CHRONICLE the harvard-westlake
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Los Angeles • Volume 24 • Issue 2 • Oct. 14, 2014 • hwchronicle.com
Fair
Game By Zoe Dutton
W
hen Sandra* ’15 slips on her kneepads and strides onto the volleyball court, she isn’t there to play nice. As a member of a volleyball team that was CIF runner-up last year, she and her teammates are among the top players in Southern California. Their games are also among the school’s most popular, drawing crowds of hundreds of chanting, face-painted fans. And how does she feel when students casually reference the appeal of players’ teensy spandex shorts? Sandra says it doesn’t bother her. “That’s just a joke,” she said. “I think because the volleyball girls are comfortable with it, it’s not really disrespectful.” Sandra’s statement is part of a larger debate over the treatment of female athletes at Harvard-Westlake. According to a Chronicle poll of 421 students, 65 percent believe that female athletes are treated differently from male athletes by students, while 45 percent think they are treated differently by the administration. • Continued on page A4
GRAPHIC BY JACOB GOODMAN
Thefts prompt revision of security protocol
By Lauren Kim
When Clara McCarthy ’15 arrived at her locker on the morning of Sept. 20, she noticed that her lock was missing. She had left it hanging on the loop unlocked, and as she checked for other missing items, she realized that her Nikon D3100 camera was gone. After filing a missing items report with Head of Security Jim Crawford, McCarthy told her friend Katie Hohl ’15, who checked her own locker and realized that her camera was also missing. “I think we didn’t want to believe it was taken, because we’re kind of taught that
our school is safe,” McCarthy said. “We leave backpacks and phones everywhere.” McCarthy’s and Hohl’s cameras were two of four items stolen on Sept. 19, when visiting water polo players from Los Osos High School were caught on security cameras wandering around campus opening unlocked lockers. Three student cameras were stolen from lockers near Mudd Library and a laptop from a backpack in Taper Gym, Crawford said. “I keep telling everybody that I’m not worried about the kids here stealing from each other, I’m worried about the kids and fans from other schools,” Crawford said.
Soon after both McCarthy and Hohl reported their cameras missing, Crawford received a report of the missing laptop. The following Monday, a senior, who asked not to be identified, also noticed her camera was missing. Crawford went through security videotapes and showed them to Head of Athletics Terry Barnum, who identified the Los Osos school shirts. Barnum called the Los Osos water polo coach, who identified the suspects, Crawford said. Los Osos officials recovered the cameras and returned them to Harvard-Westlake soon after. The laptop was never recovered, but Los Osos reim-
bursed the student for the loss, Crawford said. “The students that had removed those items are being disciplined by [their] school, and are in complete cooperation with their administrator and head of school,” Crawford said. As a result of the thefts, Crawford and the security team are banning visiting sports team members from walking around campus. Team members waiting for a team of the same sport to finish a game must now stay in the venue and watch. Visiting fans are not restricted, but Crawford said security has been beefed up at home games.
School adjusts water use in face of severe drought By Su Jin Nam The school is taking measures to conserve water in response to the worst California drought of the century, but some students and faculty think that it could do more. The watering program at Harvard-Westlake has been cut back “a considerable amount,” President Rick
Commons said, since California passed emergency drought regulations in July. The pools on both campuses are now covered when they are not in use, which decreases evaporation. The school has stopped watering the lawn behind the library at the Middle School, and sprinklers for the houses the school owns on campus now operate only twice a week,
in accordance with the regulations. “We take all issues, rules and laws very seriously and make proper decisions on how we are going to react to issues based on all the facts we have,” said Jim DeMatte, director of campus operations and construction. The new state regulations prohibit runoff when watering
outdoor landscapes, washing cars without a shut-off nozzle, watering concrete, and running fountains that do not recirculate water. The fountain in front of Feldman-Horn and waterfall in front of the main office both recirculate water and must be run to avoid the infestation of • Continued on page A3
INSIDE B4
CYBER PIRATES: Many students pirate books, movies and music from the Internet illegally without a second thought.
ONLINE
HOMECOMING: Check out full coverage of Homecoming 2014, including a video recap of the event.
A2 News
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
‘Funny or Die’ looks familiar By Sophie Kupiec-Weglinski
I
t all started with a promise. “Vote for me, and I’ll convince the school to sell candy and junk food in the cafeteria,” a candidate for student body president says in the “Funny or Die” video “Snackpocalypse.” He wins in a landslide, obviously. Fast forward a few weeks. All of the bright students have been reduced to zombies by their unhealthy diet. Sprawled across floors and tables, they can only move so far as to reach for another candy bar or chip bag. Out of this sluggish and trans-fat-filled nightmare emerges the heroine, a girl who rejects the unhealthy ways of her peers. Instead of chomping on chocolate bars she munches on carrots. Instead of slobbering on the ground and struggling to move, she briskly makes her way across the cafeteria with a purpose in mind. She’s going to save these souls with the power of nutrition. She makes her way to the only remaining vending machine with fruits and vegetables. She puts in the coin. She waits for the apple to fall. She’s so close to victory. The apple gets stuck, so she improvises. It turns out that all of this has been inside a TV screen, and the screen turns off.
“I hate it when movie teasers give away the ending,” first lady Michelle Obama says before taking a bite out of a carrot. The video ends. Watch this comedy sketch. Notice something eerie in the background? Does the campus on which the video takes place look familiar? That’s because the film was shot on the upper school campus during the summer. The video, which was posted online Sept. 2, had 680,000 views as of press time. The video aims to promote healthy eating, which the first lady supports. As a rule, Harvard-Westlake never lets outside companies use the campus for filming, but the school made an exception in this case. Drew Foster ’08 was a summer assistant at “Funny or Die,” and when the producers needed a campus on which to film their video, he had an idea. “We needed a photogenic and versatile campus with many eye-catching nooks and crannies,” Foster said. “And equally as important, we needed a great location partner to work with. Harvard-Westlake was the gold standard for both of those needs.” In came the video cameras, producers and cast (which included names like Chloe Moretz and Tyler Posey). For “Funny or Die” to gain access
Previews
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF FUNNYORDIE.COM
SNACK TIME: The main protaganist of the video, played by Chloe Moretz, walks to class eating a carrot as her fellow students binge on junk food. The sketch was posted Sept. 2 on funnyordie.com. to campus, the producers had to get the permission of Chief of Campus Operations and Construction Jim DeMatte, who oversees daily operation of the campus. Director of Communications Jill Shaw said that Foster and the rest of “Funny or Die” crew was lucky to be able to film on the campus, as she receives dozens of requests to film on campus from college students and executives needing a site to film commercials. The answer to all of these pleas is a resounding “no.” “We almost never allow
filming on campus because it’s very disruptive to how the school operates, but we’ve known the Foster family for a long time,” Shaw said. “It was a very quiet time on campus, so we agreed to do it. They were great to work with, very courteous. They did not disrupt at all.” Foster is now a full-time employee at “Funny or Die” as a production assistant. Performing arts teacher Ted Walch, who taught Foster in high school, is not surprised at all with Foster’s work. “He was one of my very
best cinema studies students ever, and he was an impressive and articulate co-leader of the Harvard-Westlake Film Festival,” Walch said. “My hunch is that Drew will in time become a fine and successful filmmaker. He’s got what it takes.” Students are also impressed with the film. “I think it’s so interesting and cool that Harvard-Westlake is appearing in the media, especially something as widespread and popular as ‘Funny or Die,’” Alexandra Kass ’15 said. “I loved recognizing the campus in the video.”
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DOES WHATEVER A SPIDER CAN: Choreographer Ari Loeb ’97 holds a Q&A session after school Oct. 1. Loeb also taught an excerpt from “Spiderman: Turn off the Dark” to advanced dance classes.
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF TED WALCH
OVERSEAS: Students from the Westville Boys’ School in South Africa were led on a tour of the school before they listened to a panel of eight Harvard-Westlake students, who introduced them to the main aspects of life on the campus.
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PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF KATHRYN TIAN
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JACOB GOODMAN/CHRONICLE
The Chronicle, the student newspaper of Harvard-Westlake School, is published nine times per year and distributed free on both the upper and middle school campuses. There are 727 students at the Middle School and 866 students at the Upper School. Subscriptions may be purchased for $20 a year for delivery by mail. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the seniors on the Editorial
HI-YA: Kathryn Tian ’17 shows a taekwando routine to judges in the musical form: hard style weapon category at a competition. Tian went to Italy Sept. 6-14 to compete in the Association of Kickboxing Organizations Juniors and Cadets World Championships, where she won gold and was named “Best Female Athlete.”
Board. Letters to the editor may be submitted to chronicle@hw.com or mailed to 3700 Coldwater Canyon Ave., Studio City, CA 91604. Letters must be signed and may be edited for space and to conform to Chronicle style and format. Advertising questions may be directed to Kelly Loeb at 818-487-6511. Publication of an advertisement does not imply endorsement of the product or service by the newspaper or the school.
Oct. 14, 2014
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News A3
Financial aid students sign contracts for trips By Eugenia Ko
SCOTT NUSSBAUM/CHRONICLE
Water main breaks near Coldwater Canyon Ave. FLASH FLOOD: Los Angeles Department of Water and Power workers repair a broken water main Oct. 10. The main broke at the intersection of Goodland Place and Halkirk Street near Coldwater Canyon Avenue at around 2 a.m., a few hundred yards from the north perimeter of the campus. Two houses were damaged due to the break, and water was shut off in 60 homes until about 4 p.m.
School tries to conserve water during drought • Continued from page A1 mosquitoes, Commons said. The school also continues to water the quad and terrace areas at the Upper School but only once a week instead of daily. Some students are under the misconception that Harvard-Westlake is disregarding the regulations. However, the law allows all watering “where necessary to address an immediate health and safety need,” according to the State Water Resources Control Board website. The concrete lunch area is watered for such health reasons. “There’s a real effort to conserve water, but when you sit down to eat at a lunch table, we want to make sure that it is disease-free, and safe for
you,” Commons said. “It’s a Environmental Science matter of, is it excessive how teacher Florence Pi agrees much our staff are spraying, with Smith. or is it just enough, and I think “I think that we can use that’s something we have to be brooms to sweep up instead of conscious of. We want to do water,” Pi said. “We can also not just what is be more clear legal, but what with students is good for the that if they We want to do environment don’t clean up not just what is legal and conservaafter themtion minded.” selves, they but what is good for Members are bringing the environment and of the school rats down and conservation-minded.” community say they have no that the school one to blame —Rick Commons but could, in fact, themdo more to use selves. We less water. could tear out “I feel like there are all that ivy and green stuff enough alternate methods of that currently requires a lot cleaning,” Nicolas Smith ’16 of water to keep growing and said. “We should look for oth- provides cover for rodents er ways to clean, rather than and re-plant with succulents excuse ourselves by citing the and native plants that require health code.” much less water and provide
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National Merit Semifinalists 25 seniors earned National Merit Semifinalist status for scores of 222 and above on PSATs taken last October. The 2015 finalists will be notified in February for a chance at college scolarships. Nicholas Abouzeid Clare Chou Michael Chung Raymond Chung Sara Evall
Benjamin Goldstein Jonathan Heckerman Enya Huang Seaok Kim Jonathan Klein
Bryanna Lee James Lennon Alexandra Liao Amelia Miller Rahul Natarajan
Marcella Park Nadia Rahman Aaron Shih Jonathan Sington Jamie Skaggs
Riley Spain Erina Szeto Sabrina Szu Jeremy Tepper Victoria Yu
SOURCE: NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP CORPORATION GRAPHIC BY CARMEN LEVINE AND CLAUDIA WONG
25 seniors earn NMSA Semifinalist status By Cole Feldman Twenty-five members of the senior class earned the accolade of National Merit Semifinalists, whereas 54 of the 2014 graduating class earned it. The cutoff to receive this award dropped during the two-year period from a score of 223 to 222. Despite the deficit, more girls in this year’s senior class earned National Merit status than eight all girls’ schools in the Los Angeles area combined, Head of School Jeanne Huybrechts said. The decrease could be due to schools starting to push the
ACT, Upper School Dean Beth Slattery said. “Because of the changing of the SAT, it is becoming somewhat of an unknown quantity,” Slattery said. “If people are not preparing at all for the SAT, the idea that we would tell them to prepare for it would just seem crazy, expensive and a waste of time.” Upper School Dean Kyle Graham said he doesn’t put much value in the numbers. “I don’t think our National Merit numbers make us good,” Graham said. “I think there’s all these other things and that the [numbers] are a byproduct of the students that we have.” The junior class will be
taking the PSAT for a chance at this merit Oct. 15. “I guess there’s a little bit of pressure to do better and keep this elevated name of Harvard-Westlake and standard which the student body is held to, but I don’t feel particularly pulled to be a national merit scholar,” Tiana Coles ’16 said. “But going into it, I don’t want to fit into a lower bracket at the school.” National Merit is nothing to worry about, Slattery said. “I don’t think the [number of semifinalists] will decrease,” Slattery said. “We will always have good test takers, people who can naturally be National Merit finalists without even much work.”
less habitat for pests.” The Environmental Club has also been taking measures to increase the number of native plants on campus, which require less water. “I do not really think the school is doing enough to conserve water. Many of the current plants on campus are non-native, invasive species, which means they require a lot more water than California can naturally provide,” a leader of the Environmental Club Alexandra Kass ’15 said. Commons said he wants Harvard-Westlake to be a place that goes above and beyond what is required. “I’d like Harvard-Westlake to be a place that does more than its part,” Commons said. “Purpose beyond ourselves.”
Students who receive financial aid for school trips now have to sign a contract affirming their participation in all aspects of the trip, including events before and after and required projects. Though the new policy by the financial aid office would mostly affect financial aid students attending the documentary filmmaking trip to Cuba in January, leaders of the trip have already obligated attendees to sign a similar contract. The contract for financial aid students states that students who violate this agreement will not be eligible for financial aid on school trips. New director of financial aid Melanie Leon said she hoped the new policy would encourage students to immerse themselves in the full experience of the trip. “We just want to make sure the student takes advantage of everything offered,” she said. Leon also said a smaller factor in the change was that students in previous years did not complete assignments related to the trip. The contract has not seemed to deter students from signing up. Thirty-two students have signed up for 20 spots on the Cuba trip. Visual Arts Department Head Cheri Gaulke said a digital storytelling project is both required and the main objective of the trip. “[The documentary] usually takes the form of a video but sometimes is a blog, PowerPoint, photo exhibition, or presentation,” she said. “By going on the trip, students promise they will complete a project that can tell the story of the Cuban people.”
Commons, Huybrechts address Parents’ Association By Jonathan Seymour Head of School Jeanne Huybrechts said in the first Parents’ Association meeting Sept. 17 that she wants to make current students the next greatest generation like those in “The Greatest Generation” by Tom Brokaw who were born between the two world wars. President Rick Commons introduced the new mission statement by recounting his experience seeing Ben Platt ’11 in “The Book of Mormon” on Broadway. Huybrechts said she read “The Greatest Generation” by Tom Brokaw. “Having just spent a school year thinking deeply about our school’s mission and purpose and values, the idea of a greatest generation resonated strongly,” Huybrechts said. “What my colleagues and I really want to give the children in our care is the capacity for greatness. Why aspire for less?” Commons recapped his experience watching Platt per-
form the “Book of Mormon” this summer and the deeper meaning in the show’s ending. “The brilliance of this show is that it makes missionary zeal and unquestioning belief look absolutely absurd, and then it cuts back against its own irreverence by bringing the story around to quite a moving statement about the power of community believing in something together,” Commons said. When introducing and explaining the mission statement, he underscored the importance of the word “joyful” in all aspects of school life. He ended his speech asking parents not to let him be the only missionary to their children. “The mission of HarvardWestlake isn’t the ‘Star Wars’ silliness that Ben Platt spins into gold every night on Broadway,” Commons said. “It’s what you chose already for your children’s education, and it might just help in making the next greatest generation. For the mission to have its effect, we have to be partners.”
A4 News
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
School ranks 8th best in country By Jesse Nadel Harvard-Westlake ranks as the third best school in Los Angeles County and the eighth best private school in the country based on its ability to “bring out the best in their students,” according to lists published on the Los Angeles Magazine and Washington Post websites. Washington Post educational columnist Jay Mathews created both lists with his Challenge Index, which measures the number of AP, IB and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests administered per graduating student, rather than scores. “I think my system gets us much closer to the quality of a school’s staff and standards than the usual way of measuring schools by average test scores,” Mathews said in an email. “The Challenge Index measures how hard school staff are working to get as many students as possible ready for college by giving them a real taste of college trauma—the AP, IB or AICE programs.” Harvard-Westlake ranked behind the Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies, a public
magnet school, and Polytechnic, a private school in Pasadena. Harvard-Westlake was one of only six private schools in the top 75 in Los Angeles. The lack of private institutions is, Mathews said, largely because private schools are not required to give their testing statistics, while public schools are. Some schools do not share their AP statistics because they do not believe that they should be judged by this information, especially if they rank lower than competitors, Mathews said. Harvard-Westlake provided the information necessary for the list. However, school administrators point out that Harvard-Westlake students need permission of the department and qualifying grades to take AP courses. “Depending on the way that people allow students to take AP classes can impact [the ranking,]” Dean Beth Slattery said. “Imagine how many AP exams would be taken at Harvard-Westlake if all AP classes were open to anyone. Who knows if the scores would be as high, but nevertheless.”
SHARON CHOW/CHRONICLE
THE DOCTOR IS IN: Jessica Capshaw ’94, left, discusses her life and her career as an actor. Capshaw spoke to students at an Oct. 6 meeting of La Femme, a club focusing on female empowerment.
‘Grey’s’ actress discusses role By Sharon Chow Jessica Capshaw ’94, the actress who plays pediatric surgeon Arizona Robbins on “Grey’s Anatomy,” talked to girls Oct. 6 about her childhood, playing a lesbian character on the show and adapting to the challenges in her life. The La Femme club invited all upper school students to attend Capshaw’s talk in Feldman-Horn. As a child, Capshaw loved stories. “I knew that I loved telling stories but was super shy,”
A level playing field for all teams? • Continued from page A1
that might be true. I’m not saying it’s patently false. At The issue has been an es- the same time I think there pecially hot topic in recent are instances — our girls’ volweeks, after an assistant foot- leyball team, our girls’ soccer ball coach made an offhand team, our girls’ track and field comment in which he com- team — those are three inpared his players’ poor tack- stances, of girls that are held ling ability to that of the girls’ in very high regard by their field hockey team while playpeers, male and female ers were within earshot. The alike, and feel very football coaches and Head respected for the of Athletics Terry Barwork they do and num later apologized, and the work they’ve Barnum also spoke to both accomplished.” teams about the imporS e v e r a l tance of respecting female members of athletes. the girls’ var“My message to them sity soccer was all athletes male and team, includfemale are to be respected ing Milly* ’15 and to be treated fairly, agreed they had no matter what sport they been treated with play and no matter what nothing but respect gender they are,” Barnum by students and adsaid. ministrators. Yet some students “Though I’ve nevsay the problem is er experienced anynot a single thing bad, it could be coach’s redifferent across differmark, but ent sports, dependthe larger ing on the culture attitudes around the team,” they believe it Milly said. reflects. 65% of students think “Field hockey, “ T h e r e ’s for example, female athletes are definitely more doesn’t have of an appre- treated differently from a boys’ equivciation and reand male athletes by students alent, spect for the there’s defiguys’ sports,” nitely a negavarsity track and field athlete tive, girly stigma around it.” Daisy* ’15 said. However, the varsity girls’ Barnum said the athletic soccer team ran into trouble department was looking into last year over its methods of ways to encourage education promotion. A player urged among students about the students to attend a girls’ socimportance of female athlet- cer game in a Facebook post ics, possibly through a video that included the term “soccer or discussion at a 1st and 3rd sluts,” in what teammates say Wednesday assembly. He did was a tongue-in-cheek parody not, however, think that there of similarly offensive online was any sort of discrimination. party invitations. “The girls on the field Some students who viewed hockey team felt like female the post, however, didn’t conathletes are treated by their sider it humorous. peers or viewed by their peers “There were posts before as worse than male athletes. that of a similar subject matI’m not sure if I completely ter, along the lines of ‘come to agree with that,” Barnum said. our game because we’re hot,’ “I think in some instances but I felt like this one was re-
65%
ally crossing a line,” said Ethan Weinstein ’15, who commented on the post. “They didn’t even mention that the girls’ soccer team was the No. 1 team in the nation. It just seemed like their entire existence as a Harvard-Westlake identity was contingent upon the fact that they were hot girls wearing short shorts.” Milly said she wasn’t offended by the post because it was meant as a joke, though she thought some of her teammates may have felt differently. Soccer coach Richard Simms said such comments were unacceptable. “It happens, and it’s something I’ve been very serious about trying to discourage kids from doing,” Simms said. “I’ve been punitive about it in the past when I know our kids have done it and I’ve found out about it ... I would say societal culture uses sex to sell things and promote things. At our school that’s something we should discourage, and celebrate our girls as athletes.” While Sandra felt comments like those made by the coach were inappropriate, she didn’t mind remarks about revealing spandex. “I’m confident enough in myself and my own [athleticism] that it doesn’t bother me,” she said. “And if more people come [to games], great. Some people can just get too politically correct.” The athletic department discourages students from promoting games through objectification. “It’s unfortunate,” Athletic Director Darlene Bible said. “That’s trying to find ways to get people to come to their contests in the wrong manner.” Student Athletic Advisory Committee member Jeremy Tepper ’15 didn’t believe such remarks were indicative of a larger issue. “I would say that com-
Capshaw said. “I was one of the last kids to learn to read in first grade, and then I was the first to read all of the books and win all of the spelling contests and that was my pride.” In high school, Capshaw started auditioning and acting in the plays. Upon graduating, Capshaw attended Brown University, where she majored in English, and later attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London. Capshaw got married at 26 and had her first child before getting a phone call to audi-
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tion for a three-episode arc on ABC drama “Grey’s Anatomy.” Though Capshaw did not get that role, the writers wrote another three-episode story arc for her to play Arizona Robbins a few months later. At first, Capshaw said that people doubted her choice and believed that playing a lesbian character on the show would limit her. However, Capshaw is proud of her role. “I want to tell stories that enlighten people,” she said. “I want to play a character that makes people see things.”
All athletes, male and female, are to be respected and to be treated fairly, no matter what sport they play and no matter what gender they are.” —Terry Barnum Head of Athletics
nathanson’s
ments on Facebook groups by widely circulated on social a specific person or any one media, receiving more than person’s comments in general 3,500 page views. don’t reflect the student body Some, however, felt that and our school as a whole,” the article blew the issue out said Tepper, who plays varsity of proportion. football and volleyball. “It wasn’t even the footHead of School Jeanne ball team saying it, it was one Huybrechts agreed, adding coach,” varsity football player that remarks like the assis- Alec Dominick ’15 said. “I obvitant football coach’s were rare. ously think it’s wrong, but it’s “I could probably count not like he was even saying on one hand the number of it to their face. Obvioustimes that there has been ly since the field hockey friction between any two team doesn’t play footteams at this school, and ball they would tackle by that I mean girls worse than us.” and boys or boys Other students and boys,” Huysay that the issue brechts said. “It is not so much the just doesn’t happen comments about very often.” female athletes as Field hockey player it is the turnout at Jessica Spitz ’15 distheir games. agrees, saying that “Let’s be honest comments like the foot— would you rather ball coach’s should not watch girls basketball be ignored. or boys?” Franklin* “It’s a lot easier ’16 asked. “Obviously to categorize this boys. The game’s just as an isolated more exciting, and girls incident rather can’t dunk like in boys’ than face the basketball [games].” problem head Varsity track athlete on,” Spitz said. Daisy says she tries “The fact that not to let any this kind of be- 45% of students think gender inequity havior goes on her from female athletes are distract at all is cause performing her differently best. for concern, and treated writing it off as “Guys sports from male athletes by not reflective of have traditionally the school’s ath- the administration been more valletic culture is a ued everywhere,” mistake.” Daisy said. “Harvard-WestSpitz also wrote an opin- lake is just a little part of that. ion article criticizing the re- It’s getting better, and we’re mark and the ethos she felt it probably a lot better than reflected. The piece appeared most high schools, but it’s still in the fall issue of the school an issue.” sports magazine Big Red and the Chronicle Online, and was *Names Have Been Changed
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Oct. 14, 2014
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News A5
Wafflebots compete in scrimmage
JACOB GOODMAN/CHRONICLE
CULTURES CONVERGE: Students from the Westville Boys’ School in South Africa listen to a presentation about student life from a panel of juniors and seniors in Ahmanson Lecture Hall. Before the panel, visiting students toured the campus and talked with other hosts.
South African students tour upper school By Cole Feldman and Jonathan Seymour
from abroad to Harvard-Westlake, you have the opportunity to really understand what it is Thirty-five students from like to grow up in a different Westville Boys’ School in part of the world.” Wandsbeck, South Africa visWhen the students arrived ited the Upper School for two at the Upper School, Father hours Oct. 6 as part J. Young, Dean of Stuof a two-week-long dent Affairs Jordan California college Church and Patterson tour. met them and gave The Westfield them an overview of Boys’ School is a Harvard-Westlake life member of the from the perspective of World Leading the faculty and adminSchools Association, istration. of which Harvard“I will say that the nathanson’s Westlake is a foundnorms are very differJim Patterson ing member. WLSA ent between Westfield promotes educaBoys’ School and Hartional and cultural exchange vard-Westlake School,” Patbetween member schools, Di- terson said. “They have more rector of External Learning rules regarding dress and apJim Patterson said. pearance than we do here.” “I wanted an opportunity “Obviously, they have unifor Harvard-Westlake stu- forms and they have reguladents to genuinely interact tions regarding how short with students from a different their hair must be, and things background,” Patterson said. like that are just completely “Anytime we bring students different than the norms that
we have here at HarvardWestlake,” he said. The students went on tours led by Benny Weisman ’15, Sarah McAllister ’15 and David Seo ’16 that ended with a student-run panel in Ahmanson Lecture Hall. “They were definitely more hesitant to be verbal,” Weisman said. “I’m not sure if that’s because I was touring them or because they were used to being under command.” The students talked with the eight members of the panel about various aspects of Harvard-Westlake life, including Peer Support, the private taxi service Uber and differences between life in Los Angeles and life in South Africa. “Initially they were pretty shy, so we were asking them questions to get them going,” panelist Nina Woythaler ’16 said. “They seemed to have some pretty rigid stereotypes about football players and cheerleaders, so we spent some
Administration, trustees rename Reynolds Hall
Debate team wins bids at tournaments
By Benjamin Most
By Katie Perrin
Debate team co-captain Cameron Cohen ’16 won his first bid toward qualifying for the Tournament of Champions, the nation’s premier debate competition. The Greenhill Fall Classic in Dallas Sept. 20-22 was the first major national tournament of the year and included some of the nation’s top debaters. Both co-captains, Cohen and Nick Steele ’16, advanced to the elimination rounds at the tournament. Steele reached the round of 32, and Cohen, who was named as 10th place speaker, reached the round of 16. The debate team also competed Sept. 27-28 at California State University, Long Beach. Out of the 43 student participants, 38 won at least three debates and seven broke into the elimination rounds. Ten of those students had records of 4-2, and 21 went 3-3. Novices Nick Platt ’19, Will Evans ’19 and Indu Pandey ’18,
time trying to dispel that. But other than that, none of this seemed that foreign to them.” After the panel, the students left Harvard-Westlake to go to Universal Studios. “It was actually quite a short visit,” Patterson said. “They just wanted to spend time on a high school campus in the United States when they were here.” During the rest of their tour, the students visited colleges, including UC Berkeley and UCSD. “Harvard[-Westlake] is a very nice school,” a Westfield student said. “I enjoyed visiting and learning different things and seeing different people.” The day after their visit, the students visited UCLA. “Two hours was not adequate at all,” Patterson said. “But you do what you can with the constraints that you are given. I’m sure they got a lot out of it.”
By Enya Huang The Wafflebots, the combined Robotics class and club team, sent nine students to a scrimmage in which they used a robot designed by last year’s club to throw balls into two separate goals. At the Oct. 5 competition held by Valencia High School, the team faced 20 opponents. “The students learned about the variety of robots that were possible solutions to playing last year’s game,” faculty adviser and science teacher Karen Hutchison said. “They also got to see how a competition flows, as well as learn about the components of the robot as things needed adjustment or fixing.” The Wafflebots placed 17th at the scrimmage, Wafflebots co-captain Christian Stewart ’15 said. “[The result] was actually better than we were expecting, as the scrimmage was more for giving our newer members the experience than for competing, especially since we were using last year’s robot,” Stewart said. Team members will design a new robot for the upcoming FIRST Robotics Competition once the guidelines are released Jan. 3, club and class member Paula Lahera ’16 said. The Robotics class is also using a 3-D printer to complete two projects. “We all build a small robot from scratch in groups,” Lahera said. “We came up with our own design and wrote our own code.” Students also designed objects on either AutoCAD or Sketch Up, which are programs for creating models on the computer, and printed their designs on the 3-D printer, Lahera said.
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF RACHEL MADAGHORIA
GREAT DEBATERS: Members of the debate team type up their arguments and review their points in preparation for a tournament. JV debater Aidan Lusckinski ’17 and varsity debaters Ravi Durairaj ’17 and Jesse Nadel ’17 qualified for the elimination rounds. Liz Yount ’17 was awarded a fifth place speaker award in the novice division, Ravi Durairaj ’17 won the fifth place speaker award in the varsity division and Jesse Nadel ’17 received the sixth place speaker award, also in the varsity division. “It was so great to see so many of my fellow debaters compete at this tournament,” said Allison Gorokhovsky ’17, who was one of the debaters who went 4-2 at CSULB.
“We had some who have now done debate for a few years, and for others, this was their first tournament. I personally began debating at this tournament a year ago, so it was really nice to come back and go 4-2 in the varsity division. But most importantly, I think we had a great time as a team.” Upcoming tournaments include matches at Presentation High School in San Jose, St. Marks School in Dallas, Bronx High School of Science in New York, The Meadows School in Las Vegas, Narbonne High School in Torrance and Damien High School in La Verne.
of the few buildings not renovated in the Middle The administration and School’s modernization Board of Trustees voted to project, Weil said, and the change the name of Reynolds Board of Trustees felt that the Hall to Wang Hall in honor building needs more modern of Walter and facilities. Shirley Wang Wang Hall (Walter ’13, renovations Chantalle ’17, are scheduled Exact plans Matthew ’18), for completion are still being who donated $5 by September million toward 2015. The developed, but I’m sure renovating the building will announcements will be building. feature an made as we get closer to i m p r o v e d S h i r l e y Wang serves w i r e l e s s a formal dedication.” on the Board of connection Trustees. larger —David Weil ’93 and “It is quite classrooms. Business Manager common for Fo r m e r schools to head of use naming Harvard School opportunities to honor those and namesake of Reynolds Hall individuals, foundations and Nathan Reynolds supports the families who have made a renovations, Weil said. significant impact on the “I know that the school’s school and its community,” tremendous respect and Business Manager David Weil appreciation for Mr. Reynolds ’93 said. “It is also common will be memorialized at the practice that building names Munger Library tower,” Weil change over time, usually said. “Exact plans are still connected to when the building being developed, but I’m sure is significantly renovated or announcements will be made rebuilt.” as we get closer to the formal Reynolds Hall was one dedication.”
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A6 News
inbrief Oka ’92 Model UN to attend UCLA conference
The Model UN Club will compete in the Bruin Model United Nations conference at UCLA Nov. 8-9. Club members are preparing by reviewing a Model UN guidebook on writing position papers that club copresident Danielle Brody ’15 received from a Georgetown University summer program. “The manual will allow everyone to familiarize themselves with the proper language and format of writing a position paper for their country,” Brody said. —Layla Moghavem
Middle school students attend grade retreats Middle school students are visiting either local or out-of -town locations for retreat this week. On Monday, 119 seventh graders visited Long Beach and Culver City. They will spend Wednesday and Thursday at Camp Crags in Malibu. For 96 seventh graders, retreat week is being spent on Catalina Island. “Hopefully, retreat helps seventh graders transition by providing the opportunity to participate in activities that might be new and challenging,” Seventh Grade Dean Kate Benton said. About 150 eighth graders traveled to El Capitan campgrounds, while 60 others chose a retreat at Joshua Tree. Ninth graders are spending their retreat canoeing and camping on the Colorado River. —Jean Sanders
Sophomores, juniors to take the PSAT Juniors and sophomores will take the PSAT Oct. 15. For most sophomores, it will be the first time taking the test. Juniors will have a chance at achieving National Merit Semifinalist status, which is given to students with scores in the highest 1 percent for their state. “I thought it was harder than I expected when I took it last year,” Jon Nelson ’16 said. “It matters a little bit [taking it as a junior] because of the National Merit.” —Teresa Suh
Librarians allow food inside Mudd space The ban on food in the Upper School’s library has been lifted, and students are now allowed to eat indoors. With this change, Head Librarian Shannon Acedo hopes there will be no need for students to break rules, which will decrease unnecessary stress among library visitors. Bringing food into the Tech Lab is still discouraged, as spills may occur, she said. “I think that [allowing] food in the library is good because it gives students more opportunities to get work done, since they can multitask if they have a busy schedule,” Thomas Tilton ’16 said. —Sabrina De Brito
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
teaches acting, improv By Jackson Novick
Actor Masi Oka ‘92 taught an Unconventional Leadership workshop on improvisational skills in the Drama Lab last Friday. Oka, who starred in NBC’s “Heroes,” has a background in improv that includes several troupes, such as the Groundlings, Improv Olympics, Second City, and Theatre Sports. He has taught his own improv workshops in California, Hawaii and Japan. “This is all about participating,” Oka told students. “There’s not that many rules, but there’s a couple things that we want to agree on. This is a safe space, and there are no right answers. There’s no judgment. I want everyone to be supportive of each other. I want you all to think of each other as geniuses.” The class stood in a circle. One person made a sound and action, then each person repeated it. Oka then asked the class to redo the exercise, this time altering the sound and
CARMEN LEVINE/CHRONICLE
ACTING ON THE SPOT: Masi Oka ’92 teaches an improv acting class. Eliseo Gonzalez ’16, (left) Max Cho ’15, Sloane Chmara ’15 and Grace Gerber ’15 practice new improvisation techniques. motion as it traveled around the circle. “[This game] is improv at its basic: I present an idea to the world, and someone else accepts it,” Oka said. “If someone had never changed [the idea], then it would come back to me. But if someone else accepts it, that idea lives. If that idea lives, it becomes a brilliant idea. That motion can inspire you to do something else.” In a test of agility, students were required to pass imaginary different-colored balls to one another using only visual and verbal cues.
“Point is, whatever you do, just do it,” Oka said. Students also partnered up and planned a trip or adventure. Oka told them to only disagree and say “no” to each other. Students learned that the answer was inhibiting, as nothing in their plans was able to move forward. Students repeated the exercise, this time saying, “yes, and.” Ideas for the studentplanned trips immediately took off. The final lesson was called the “ad game.” Students had
to come up with various original products, complete with their own commercial jingles. They had to be conscious of how many people around them were saying no, and how often they themselves were saying no. With this lesson, students found that, using the “yes, and” strategy, they were able to not only complete the assignment, but also experience the collaborative nature of bouncing ideas back and forth. “Do you want to live your life in insecurity or fear?” Oka asked. “Or do you want to go on an adventure?”
KHWS radio returns with teacher slots
By Phoebe Sanders and Izzy Wiesenthal
Student radio station KHWS will return to the air on Oct. 19 at 5 p.m., and teachers will have the opportunity to co-host with their students this year. After science teacher and faculty adviser Nathan Cardin’s broadcast last year re-
ceived high ratings, KHWS staff decided to invite all teachers to co-host with students. “Teachers get to share a different side of themselves in those broadcasts, and students really enjoy that,” Cardin said. Students can listen to a live stream of the station at www.khwsradio.com. The club’s 39 members
KHWS club releases new DJ schedule
were all selected by club leaders Nikta Mansouri ’15, Oliver Sanderson ’15, Sam Schlesinger ’15 and Ethan Weinstein ’15. Jordan Brown ’16, Tiana Coles ’16 and Mei Mei Tercek ’16, who call themselves “A Couple of Kooks,” are one group of DJs that will broadcast on Sundays at 8 p.m. “Ultimately we want to try and let our broadcast become
more than some songs playing from a playlist,” Coles said. Club leaders emphasize the importance of keeping the channel fresh by encouraging their broadcasters to play a larger variety of genres of music. “We are trying to break away from the mold of exclusively alternative rock music,” Weinstein said.
The new lineup includes a feature DJ slot that is open to teachers who want to broadcast with students in the KHWS club.
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
X
X
Shannyn Shack ’16
Teacher
Jessica Dickman ’17, Eliana Lechter ’17
X
X
Cameron Victor ’15
Scarlett Wildasin ’16, Haley Wilson ’16
Jack Stovitz ’16, Josh Friedman ’16, Henry Roskin ’16
X
X
Bridget Hartman ’15
Jared Gentile ’16
Ari Blut ’15
Roman Holthouse ’15, Jono Klein ’15
Mark Fuller ’15, Nick Baron ’15, Cameron Kao ’15
Featured DJ
Daniela Grande ’16
Mark Shkurovich ’15
Nikta Mansouri ’15
Featured DJ
Genny Thomas Ethan Weinstein ’15 ’16, Jadon Yariv ’16
Sam Schlesinger ’15
Shyan Zakeri ’15, Oliver Levitt ’15
Oliver Sanderson ’15
Trevor Tatham ’15
Jessica Herera ’17
Aimee Misaki ’15
5 p.m.
6 p.m.
7 p.m.
8 p.m.
Jordan Brown ’16, Teddy Sokoloff ’15, Mei Mei Tercek ’16, Alan Yousefzadeh Tiana Coles ’16 ’15 9 p.m.
Jeremy Samuels ’16 10 p.m.
11 p.m.
Simone Woronoff ’16
Henry Mulheim ’16
SOURCE: NIKTA MANSOURI GRAPHIC BY TERESA SUH
Oct. 14, 2014
The Chronicle
News A7
inbrief
Environmental Club to plant garden by gym
SCOTT NUSSBAUM/CHRONICLE
Bake a Difference Club holds Bake Off on quad
TAKE THE CAKE: A panel including Upper School Dean Sharon Cuseo, President of School Rick Commons, Father J. Young and Director of Student Affairs Jordan Church judged the baked goods of 25 students applying to be part of the Bake a Difference Club. Club founder Lili Cohen ’15 said all competitors were admitted to the club and the competition was held t o initiate new members.
Administrators discuss school development By Rian Ratnavale
Administrators from nine schools across the nation met at Harvard-Westlake for the annual meeting of the Independent Schools with Maximum Capacity consortium Oct. 6 and 7. They discussed the Programme for International Student Assessment testing, as well as issues the schools have in common, such as student attention. Head of Upper School Au-
drius Barzdukas moderated a panel called “Competing for Attention” with DreamWorks CEO Stacey Snider (Katie Jones ’15, Natalie Jones ’17) and OMD CEO Monica Karo (Marissa ’16, Matthew ’14). Rex Welshon, a philosophy professor from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs made a presentation titled “What is Attention?” Everyone attending the conference also went to the Common Sense Media Event hosted by the school in Saper-
stein Theatre at the Middle School campus titled, “Mean Spirited by Mistake: Raising Kids in a Digital World” Oct. 6. The featured speakers were Jim Steyer, Common Sense CEO, and Emily Bazelon, author of the book “Sticks and Stones: Defeating the Culture of Bullying and Rediscovering the Power of Character and Empathy.” Schools in the consortium all have large student populations, multiple campuses and
unique school missions and ideals. Throughout the year, they share data so they can learn from institutions similar to their own. “It was great having an opportunity to learn from 10 [of the] most complex schools in the country,” Viewpoint Interim Head of School Paul Rosenbaum said. “Welshon was unusually insightful. His [theory] about attention disorder coming from a lack of physical exercise was interesting.”
Student to perform in competition in China By Benjamin Most
Joss Saltzman ’16 will perform original songs and give speeches on his relationship with China and its language and culture in the Chinese Bridge Competition in southwest China in October. After winning the Southern California preliminary round in May, Joss qualified to participate in the semifinals, portions of which will be televised on Chinese TV. After a week of touring Beijing, Saltzman and the other contestants will travel to Kunming, a city in Southwest China, for the actual competition. Saltzman will give a prepared speech with 30 seconds
of personal introduction and oms and present a video. another 30 seconds explaining Among the songs Joss has his friendship with Chinese written is one that describes pianist Lang Lang, with whom the power of music to bring he performed a people togethpiano piece on er. the “Tonight “For me, I feel like the Show with I feel like the speaking portion and Jay Leno” in speaking por2012, and the tion and the the talent portion are World Leadportion going to be very strong.” talent ing Schools are going to Association —Joss Saltzman ’16 be very strong conferences because that’s he attended what I can prewith students from the United pare for the most,” Saltzman States and China. said. “I’ve obviously had a lot Saltzman will also give an of experience with culture in impromptu speech, sing origi- our Chinese curriculum, but nal songs he has written in they could ask questions that Chinese, take written exams are entirely out of left field, so on grammar, culture and idi- I have no expectations.”
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In the second round of the competition, students will compete in shorter versions of the events of the first round. “After the speech, test and talent portions, there’s another round, which is like mini-games,” Saltzman said. “There’s a smaller test, a smaller speech, and a smaller talent performance. In general, I think it should go well.” One of the goals of the Chinese Bridge competition is to join together separate cultures and help students understand foreign customs. “I’ll have the opportunity to meet people from around the world, but we all like Chinese, so we have something in common,” Saltzman said.
2 Chronicle stories nominated for Story of the Year By Hannah Cho
$1,000 Brasler Prize. Julia Aizuss’s ’14 story, Two stories from last year’s “Outside the Binary,” is one of Chronicle are finalists for the 10 finalists competing in the 2014 National Schodiversity category. lastic Press AssociaTyler Graham ’15 tion Story of the Year is a finalist competaward. ing in the sports catThe Story of the egory for his story, Year award is given “Rebounds to Recepto one story in each tions.” of five categories: Chronicle and Vox news, feature, editostaff will be at the rial, sports, diversity National High School nathanson’s and multimedia. Journalism ConvenJulia Aizuss ’14 The award recogtion in Washington, nizes quality reportD.C. Nov. 6, where ing on specific issues and prob- the winners from each categolems. The winners from each ry will be announced. category, except multimedia, When Aizuss was looking will go on to compete for the for a feature story that was
specific to Harvard-Westlake, Erik Swoope ’10 and his career she remembered two students switch from a college basketthat considered themselves ball player to a NFL football outside the gender binary. player. “What I wrote The story made about is rather basic national sports headknowledge in the LGlines. BTQIA community, “The reason the but is so, so underrearticle worked out so ported and unknown well is that Erik was outside that commureally awesome comnity,” Aizuss said. “So municating with me,” I’m glad my feature’s Graham said. “An getting some recogopportunity to write nathanson’s nition and exposure a sports story about Tyler and so on, and if anysomething that has Graham ’15 thing, I hope anyone an important impact who’s read it was inon not only the Harspired to learn more about the vard-Westlake community, but topic.” also the nation as a whole was Graham’s story profiles pretty unique.”
The Environmental Club has teamed up with TreePeople to bring a native plant garden to campus in late January. The garden will be planted between the back of Taper Gym and the Ted Slavin Field. Student leaders Brian Adler ’15 and Alexandra Kass ’15 met with a TreePeople representative to work through the garden plans. “The [administrators] are all really supportive,” Adler said. “It’s just quite a hassle trying to get a project that actually changes how campus looks.” The club must create a map of what the area will look like with the plants to get the administration’s full approval. —Emily Rahhal
Prefects change Honor Board presentations The prefects have revamped the presentation they will make to introduce sophomores to the Honor Board. On Oct. 21, prefects will begin the yearly process of familiarizing sophomores to the Honor Board—except with a new twist. This year, the prefects plan to create a dialogue with the incoming class. “It is our job as Prefects to enlighten all students [about the] school mission and policy, and to bring their opinions to light,” head prefect Sarah Winshel ’15 said. “These meetings will, overall, be a chance to ignite that dialogue with our incoming class.” —Alyson Lo
Social Committee to host Halloween Week The Social Committee will host a week of movies, candy and costume contests to celebrate Halloween. Students will vote for the winners of costume contests on Halloween who will be awarded Starbucks gift cards. “It is always fun to see the creative costumes that students come up with,” Upper School Dean and faculty advisor of social committee Tamar Adegbile said. Halloween-themed movies will be screened in the lounge every day and candy will be available on the quad all week. —Katie Plotkin
Students unable to access school website Students, staff and faculty had difficulty accessing the Harvard-Westlake website Oct. 3 due to a DNS service corruption at Time Warner. Students were unable to access hw.com from their home Time Warner internet service. Network Manager David Hartmann and his team collaborated with Time Warner Oct. 4 and tried to convince them that the service had an error and to resolve it. Computer Service Head Dave Ruben said that the problem was “exclusively a Time Warner issue.” —Asya Alekhina
A8 News
Mintz to take over as plant manager
school plant manager for 15 years. “I really know the Middle Dave Mintz ’87 will transi- School inside and out, not just tion from his position as the in terms of the physical cammiddle school plant manager pus, but I’m very familiar with to the upper school plant man- the very pulse and heartbeat ager beginning Oct. 20. of the operation here,” Mintz Mintz will replace Felipe said. “I’ve got to learn that Anguiano, who will become over at the upper school. What the director of off-campus fa- the fundamental differences cilities. are have yet to make themAnguiano has selves known.” worked at HarvardAlthough Mintz Westlake for 38 years will be on a different and has been the upcampus, he says that per school plant manhis experience on the ager for the past 20 Middle School will years. help him learn how His new job will the Upper School oprequire him to supererates. vise any off-campus “I will make sure nathanson’s work on facilities, that everything is opsuch as maintain- Felipe Anguiano erating as it should ing O’Malley Family and that the teachers Field, where the baseball team and programs have the suppractices and plays through- port that they need to perout the year. form their jobs to their fullest Mintz’s job includes over- potential,” Mintz said. seeing operations on the camStudents said they apprepus, including evening events, ciate Anguiano’s work. performances, parent meet“The maintenance crew is ings, special student activities such an integral yet underand athletic events seven days appreciated group of individua week. als,” Nathan Lee ’16 “It is really not said. “I think that a ‘9 to 5’ type job,” students often overMintz said. “There look how crucial they are many hours inare to our everyday volved and not just function. It’s imporfor myself, but for my tant that we take team that provides time to thank them this critical support.” for service and their Anguiano used to constant kindness.” nathanson’s start his day at 6 a.m. Faculty also apDave Mintz ’87 on campus for his dupreciate Anguiano’s ties as the upper school plant hard work. manager. “He’s very responsible and He dealt with outside one of the nicest humans I vendors and contractors the know,” Assistant to the Head school uses for events such as of Upper School Michelle Homecoming. Bracken said. “He’s a genuMintz has been the middle inely helpful person.”
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
By Aimee Misaki, Connor Reese and Bryant Wu
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF LEXI BOWERS
DRESSING THE PART: Lexi Bowers ’16 speaks at the Jane Austen conference in Montreal during a breakout session. The Jane Austen Society hosts the event to enrich people’s lives through literature.
Junior presents at Jane Austen conference in breakout session By Connor Reese and Oliver Richards
Alexa Bowers ’16 was a speaker at the Jane Austen conference Oct. 10-12 in Montreal. “I am the first high school student to lead a breakout session so I was really nervous, but I just got out from presenting and it went really well,” Bowers said. “I’m glad they gave me the opportunity to present.” The Jane Austen Society of America was founded in 1979,
by enthusiasts of the late 18th century English author. These founders include descendants of Austen, school teachers and businessmen. The Jane Austen Society hosts the event, which strives to enrich people’s lives through works of literature every four years. Each fall, hundreds of young writers attend the annual general meeting at a venue either in Canada or the United States. “I decided to attend after I took a course online at UCLA
about Jane Austen and then submitted a paper to the society and got accepted,” Bowers said. The conference features workshops and speeches by scholars and members. This year’s meeting theme was Austen’s book “Mansfield Park.” This is the 200th anniversary of the book’s publication. Bowers’ topic focused on the main character in “Mansfield Park,” Fanny Price. Bowers talked about how political and economic forces shape the women in the story.
Next Generation of Investment club increases financial literacy
By Angela Chon
to empower young people by teaching the basics of finance The startup company and managing their money, Next Generation of Inves- Cho said. tors, known as NextGenVest, Cho was recommended for is working with a new student the program and attended a club to teach the importance conference called NextGen of financial education to stu- Summit held in May. dents. About 50 kids from around NextGenVest was created the world collaborated with through Grand Central Tech entrepreneurs and business as a compaleaders in New ny that helps York City, Cho start-up busisaid. nesses in New Ne x t G e n I thought it York City. The Vest organizes would be a good company hopes different stuto increase fident-led clubs opportunity to show nancial literacy around the that not only do I like in young adults world that crethrough threeate videos to film, but I like to tell minute mobile increase eduthe story of business videos made cation about through film.” for and by stufinance. dents. “Harvard —Max Cho ’15 Westlake has The club at Harvardone of them Westlake was through my initiated by Max Cho ’15 and membership in the club at is directed by Cho, James Len- NextGenVest,” Cho said. “And non ’15, Ethan Madison ’15 what the club itself does is creand Henry Quilici ’15. ate a video clip for a specific NextGenVest itself was financial topic.” founded by Kelly Peeler, who The club will create a film graduated from Harvard Uni- titled, “Traveling Abroad 101”, versity in 2008 and left her job a three-minute mobile video at J.P. Morgan to create Next- about how students can manGenVest. age their money while out of NextGenVest’s goal and the country. Peeler’s passion in life was Cho and the club’s direc-
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tors are looking for “committed and dedicated” members that are interested in business and entrepreneurship to help the club create the video. “I’m basically the director of the kids at Harvard-Westlake,” Cho said. “It’s a club, but it’s a different club. It’s very goal oriented and it’s almost like an extra-curricular.” Those directors are responsible for the content and creative elements of the video the club wll make. Club members will also research the topic during the year-long project that the club will finish and submit to the company to be distributed world-wide. “I thought it was a good idea for me, personally, to do it and mix and combine my love for film and an interesting business,” Cho said. “It’s very goal oriented.” Cho traveled around the United States after receiving a stipend to visit other schools involved in NextGenVest to promote the company’s club launch videos and to inform students of how to organize clubs at each of the schools. “I thought it would be a good opportunity to show that not only do I like film, but I like to tell the story of business through film,” Cho said.
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF VANNA CAIRNS
GOING ROUND AND ROUND: Director of Financial aid Melanie Leon, dean Vanna Cairns, librarian Edith Darling and science teacher Dietrich Schuhl pose for a picture at CicLAvia.
6 faculty members ride in CicLAvia cycling event
By Benjamin
most
Six teachers participated Oct. 5 in CicLAvia, an event during which streets in downtown Los Angeles are cleared of cars to allows for bikers and pedestrians. Science teacher Dietrich Schuhl, dean Vanna Cairns, Executive Assistant to the President Ann-Marie Whitman, librarian Edith Darling, Director of Publications Terry Baris and Director of Financial Aid Melanie Leon rode in the most recent event. CicLAvia encourages locals to enjoy the community atmosphere and provides a safe en-
vironment for pedestrians in areas that would otherwise be crowded with cars. Schuhl, who organized faculty participation, first heard of CicLAvia when reading about Bogota, Colombia, where the concept was pioneered. Volunteers in Los Angeles, inspired by Ciclovia, implemented the idea here. Faculty members are also considering volunteering in the next CicLAvia event in December instead of biking. “It’s a huge undertaking maintained by an all-volunteer staff, so it would be wonderful for our community to support,” Schuhl said.
C HRONICLE the harvard-westlake
Los Angeles • Volume XXIIII • Issue II • Oct. 14, 2014 • hwchronicle.com
Editors-in-Chief: Zoe Dutton, Scott Nussbaum Managing Editors: Elijah Akhtarzad, Jessica Spitz Executive Editor: Marcella Park Presentations Editors: Leily Arzy, Jacob Goodman
Opinion The Chronicle • Oct. 14, 2014
editorial
News Managing Editors: Enya Huang, Jake Saferstein News Section Heads: Angela Chon, Cole Feldman, Eugenia Ko News Assistants: Sammi Handler, Layla Moghavem, Jackson Novick, Jesse Nadel, Oliver Richards, Teresa Suh, Izzy Wiesenthal, Claudia Wong Opinion Managing Editors: Haley Finkelstein, Sophie Kupiec-Weglinski Opinion Section Heads: Kelly Riopelle, Jonah Ullendorff Opinion Assistants: Asya Alekhina, Carmen Levine, Mady Madison, Katie Perrin Features Managing Editors: Carly Berger, Aimee Misaki Features Section Heads: Sacha Lin, Benjamin Most, Su Jin Nam Features Assistants: Eshanika Chaudhary, Lola Clark, Kami Durairaj, Sabrina de Brito, Danielle Kaye, Lauren Kim, Jean Sanders, Phoebe Sanders, Liz Yount A&E Section Heads: Sharon Chow, Pim Otero A&E Assistants: Nico Brown, Hannah Cho, Sophie Cohen, Tiffany Kim, Katie Plotkin Sports Managing Editors: Tyler Graham, Audrey Wilson
MADY MADISON/CHRONICLE
Live every day in the real world
Backpacks full of valuables are strewn across campus and left unattended on a daily basis. Sports Section Heads: Students believe their personal items will always Bennett Gross, Jonathan be waiting wherever they left them, putting faith Seymour, Henry Vogel in their classmates’ honesty. The Honor Code Senior Sports Writers: is a significant part of our mutual promise to Mila Barzdukas, Cole Jacobson respect one another, with every person’s conscience serving as his or her guide. In addition, a Sports Assistants: top-notch security staff keeps watch over school Aleksei Aguero, Juliana Berger, Zac Harleston, Joe grounds around the clock. Levin, Jacob Liker, Dario The problem is that students place more trust Madyoon, Carina Marx, William Park, Emily Rahhal, in this environment than is practical. Rian Ratnavale, Connor Thefts happen at our school, as they did last Reese, Griffin Richter, Nick Settelmayer, Cameron Stine, month, and it seems students have made them Bryant Wu all too easy. Art Director: During this past weekend, 536 of 786 lockVivian Lin ers at the Upper School were left unlocked. The Multimedia and Online situation was likely similar on the afternoon Editors: that athletes on an opposing team were strolling Nikta Mansouri, David through campus and opening unlocked lockers. Woldenberg Three cameras and a laptop were stolen from Photography and these open lockers and from a backpack left unMultimedia Staff: Caitlin Neapole, attended. Lexi Bowers, Kelly Loeb Though the items were eventually returned, Photography and precautions could easily have been taken to avoid Multimedia Assistants: the ordeal. Eshanika Chaudhary, Kami Duraijaj, Tiffany Kim, Joe We support the school’s decision to tighten seLevin, Phoebe Sanders curity for home games, but students should not Ads and Business depend on this change alone. They need to make Manager: an effort of their own. Kelly Loeb Visitors are not governed by the Honor Code, Advisers: and even within the school, our sense of mutual Jenny Hontz, Kathleen trust cannot be absolute. Neumeyer We are not saying that the thefts were the The Chronicle is the student newspaper of Harvard-Westlake School. It is published victims’ fault, and we are not suggesting that eight times per year. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the students padlock their backpacks or install seniors on the Editorial Board. Letters to the editor may be submitted to chronicle@ security cameras in their lockers. But students hw.com or mailed to 3700 Coldwater Canyon, Studio City, CA 91604. Letters must be signed and may be edited for space and to conform to Chronicle style and format. Advertising questions may be directed to Kelly Loeb at 818-825-5059. Publication of an advertisement does not imply endorsement of the product or service by the newspaper or the school.
should be more aware of their belongings, especially with valuable items and over the weekends. We need to be responsible even outside of the context of possible theft. Some students lose track of their things more often than they would otherwise simply because they seem so easy to replace. This is especially true with textbooks and sports gear, which are often left around campus and may not seem to cost as much as they do because students can pay for them with their ID cards, sometimes without even looking at prices. Seniors will soon be in college environments that may resemble the real world more closely than their current school does, and they will need to know how to take care of themselves. They will be living without their parents and making their own decisions, and everything will be less fenced in. Leaving a dorm room unlocked or a laptop overnight in the library are not risks they will want to take. Even sophomores and juniors need to learn how to exist in surroundings outside of the bubble that is Harvard-Westlake. Most of them will volunteer or intern somewhere outside of school during the summers, and that is just one situation in which they will be confronted with an environment drastically different from the one here. It really should not only be during the summers that students are aware that they are part of a bigger world. The reality outside of this hillside campus should be part of students’ everyday lives. Let’s not be the overly sheltered kids others expect us to be.
A10 Opinion
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
Venturing into the big world By Haley Finkelstein
W
ith college applications looming and the unavoidable anxiety to press “send” ending, I can’t help but feel nervous. While being Jewish has never posed a problem for me in the Harvard-Westlake community, anti-semitism is a prevalent issue not only in America as a whole but also in our universities. Last week, within hours of Yom Kippur, one of the holiest days in Judaism, offensive graffiti — swastikas — were spotted outside a historically Jewish fraternity house at Emory University in Atlanta. This really disturbs me. Although I’m extremely excited to meet new people with different religious beliefs and cultures, I feel trepidation because I know I would be a religious minority at many of the schools I’m applying to. Throughout my entire high-school career, students with my religion have actually been quite prominent. I’m not at all nervous to hear the opinions and further understand the views of people who don’t share my own, but I do get nervous when I hear news like this. What if kids at my college associate me with typical Jewish stereotypes? What if I don’t get invited back to a sorority during rush? These are questions that come to my mind when I hear about this sad, yet common religious prejudice. I expect wherever I go to college to feel like home. I highly doubt the brothers of this fraternity along with other Jewish students at Emory feel at home when they are victims of these acts of intolerance. Their fraternity is supposed to be their home away from home, their sense of family, and provides a feeling of brotherhood. Don’t get me wrong; my intent in writing this column is not
to target Emory for an issue that truly extends far outside just their Greek row. I want to have the “classic” college experience. Translation: Greek life is important to me. If I don’t rush a sorority, how will I get a good Instagram? Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but my point still stands. I want to be in a safe, respectful environment where religious prejudice, racism and sexism are not issues. I know that in reality it is impossible to completely get rid of prejudice, but a diverse and accepting community is a necessity for me in my college experience. I’m encouraged by the response of Emory University and its students who decided to wear blue one day in support of Emory’s Jewish community and the rights of all people to live freely and safely. The incident motivates me to consider inclusivity and diversity huge factors while I decide where I spend the next four years of my life. It frightens me that I might be leaving the HarvardWestlake bubble for places that are less accepting than where I’ve grown up. Though being a Jew is a defining aspect of my character, I never thought it could limit me in any way. It’s not like my religious beliefs have come into play when trying out for a sports team or even joining a club in high school. It is upsetting that the real world can be so scary and judgmental. As much as I fear growing up and being exposed to discrimination, I cannot be sheltered forever. What I can control is my attempt to find a university that offers a diverse, inclusive and accepting community — a community where students not only express their own beliefs but are also open to the beliefs of others.
MADY MADISON/CHRONICLE
Rationalizing college dreams By Jacob Goodman
T
here is too much advice in my life right now. And it’s all about college. My dean, parents, friends, other deans, admissions officers, are endless supplies of application edits, acceptance percentages, and other relevant college data. And all that data seems to have the same message: Manage your expectations and be reasonable about where you might be accepted. I understand that the people in my life don’t want to see me hurt if I’m not accepted into my first choice school, and they also want to make sure I end up somewhere that I’ll be happy. But it is sucking the hope out of applying. College is a huge step in life. You’re moving to a new place where you can grow and learn and basically live on your own for the first time. I’m looking forward to it all, but it’s hard to be hopeful about it when I’m constantly being reminded to make sure I shouldn’t have too much faith in the system. I’m a fairly pragmatic person, but even I like to believe that that magical moment where I’m accepted early into the school of my dreams could
happen. Granted, my first choice is a bit of reach, but too many people have tried to persuade me to try a school that I have a better chance of being accepted to. It doesn’t help. Applying to college is full of choices: on apps, recommendations, essays, everything is a choice. And there are far too many of these choices for me to constantly doubt the ones I make. I’ve been receiving brochures and emails from colleges for about six months now. They’re mainly from places where I’m applying and want to go to, but occasionally I’ll get one from those places that in actuality I don’t want to go to, but are such storied and privileged schools that I can’t help but feel good about myself for being on their mailing list. Again, everything that I have been told says to remember that colleges are just trying to increase their yields and get more students interested in them. Don’t apply, I’m told, they don’t really want you. Try the schools you can get into. I get excited, though. I see those mailings and
think highly of myself. Those brochures are compliments to me, false ones, but it feels good to think that I’m being sought after. The problem with my college process, at least, is that there is a lopsided imbalance between support and rationalizing. I’m a smart kid. I understand the risks of applying and how the process works and where I can maximize my chances. I do understand that it is my counselors’ and parents’ job to make sure I’m okay and end up in a good place, but I feel that the choices I am making are sometimes being undermined by the constant refrains of “Are you sure? You do have a better chance of getting in here. Why not try this school?” There needs to be a balance. Support is just as beneficial, if not more so, to the college process than logic and reasonable expectations. I’m not looking for that logical, guiding voice: I already have it. I just need to know I can have faith in it. There may be longshots involved, but I need to be able to go for those risks.
Putting tedious schoolwork into a larger perspective
By Pim Otero
B
zzt. Another mosquito adhered to my skin, preparing to give me yet another wonderful product of its nature: a big, red, itchy bug bite. I think that might have been my 20th bite that week. Even though I had been in Thailand for three weeks and had visited every year to see my family, the oozing heat of the summer sun around me and the bug bites managed to distract me from tutoring English to the 19-year-old in front of me. His name was Eannie, and he just started the 10th grade. We were drawing our letters in the dirt, learning slang words such as “wanna” and the difference between noodles and pasta. I’m not sure he really understood the hodgepodge of English that
was my lesson, but he seemed happy just to have me there nonetheless. Apparently it wasn’t every day he could try to talk with a kid his age in English, and for now, that was all he wanted. At the time, I couldn’t help but wonder why he didn’t want to study from a textbook so he could get a head start reviewing for his next test — but the thought quickly disappeared as the next question and mosquito hit me simultaneously. Snapping back to October, the piles of textbooks and cascading sea of worksheets begin to turn from the cause of my stress-induced gray hairs to a blessing in disguise. Despite the repetitiveness and seeming pointlessness of these assignments, I marveled at the new perspective
they, along with my “vision,” had taught me: it isn’t the prospective grade boost or the ultimate fluidity of this column that would really give me success in life, but these assignments still had a purpose. It was the process of actually learning this knowledge, rather than cramming it for a grade, of being in an environment that will allow me to make an attempt and help me if I fall. Of being provided an outlet from where I am able to voice my ideas and be critiqued with (almost) solely the intention of making these ideas better, even when my ideas are torn apart. Although failure is never fun, it’s these moments that tell us where our curiosity and vivacity have waned, and where we may find our biggest challenges. The boundless
pop quizzes and gargantuan papers are here to encourage our curiosity, to teach us to ask questions and search for answers, to think quickly with wit and logic. The grades we get, while being sent to colleges and universities, are only a representation of what we had gained according to the curriculum. And although grades are important, the true growth of our intellect and determination, in and outside the classroom, is measured both by how well we learn and what we decide to do with our new knowledge. Our success cannot only be defined by a perfect “A” on a history test or memorizing a textbook. Success is embodied by an eagerness to investigate and to test new ideas. This is the connector
between our looming destinies in college and all those seemingly pointless worksheets scribbled on at midnight. These worksheets are trying to teach us how to inspect literary texts and how to develop our own ideas, to form opinions unique to every one of us that will one day help shape our world (when we no longer have our homework to help guide us). And despite how simple these assignments may be, we must learn to walk before we can run. So, take time to savor the curiosity each of us has buried somewhere deep in our core, and how our school is, really, almost perfectly responding to it. Then maybe the task of starting huge papers or completing homework may not be so daunting anymore.
Oct. 14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/opinion
quadtalk
The Chronicle asked:
Opinion A11
“Do you feel that Harvard-Westlake has created an environment that feels relatively free of theft?”
388 students weighed in on the Chronicle poll “I feel Harvard-Westlake is a safe environment because I think the community is built on a certain level of trust between students, and so I think leaving my backpack somewhere or leaving my locker unlocked is fine. However, I would not leave my laptop in my backpack.” —Adam Yaron ‘16
Yes
3 5 3
KELLY RIOPELLE/CHRONICLE
No
“I do think it is a safe environment. Sometimes I feel threatened by the amount of homework we get.”
35
—Theo Velaise ‘17 KELLY RIOPELLE/CHRONICLE
“Do you think you will learn to adjust to the ‘real world’ after you graduate?
KELLY RIOPELLE/CHRONICLE
“I think that Harvard-Westlake in general is similar to some colleges that kids go to, but I also think that when you go get a job, risks come along with that. I don’t even think I necessarily trust Harvard-Westlake kids always.”
—Benny Weisman ‘15 “I feel like I am definitely scared. I’m afraid I’m not going to be as responsible as I need to be. Especially since here it is very trusting. But hopefully the transition won’t be too shocking.”
“Have you ever had an item stolen from you on the Harvard-Westlake campus?” “No, but I have heard stories that at some of the games that some stuff will get taken. But I don’t really worry about it during school hours. Yeah, I do leave my laptop out. I mean, I left it out for, like, 20 minutes just now.” —Jessica Wolf ‘16
No
Yes KELLY RIOPELLE/CHRONICLE
113
2 8 3
KELLY RIOPELLE/CHRONICLE
“If yes, what was stolen?” Textbook or other school supplies
61
Camera
6 Other
46
—Imani Cook-Gist ‘15
Laptop
4
guest column
The pressures of being a college-bound senior
D
o you know where you want to go?” Every high school senior knows that this question means one thing and one thing only. We’ve heard it more times than you can imagine. It’s common dinner party etiquette from those random friends of your parents whose first names you can never quite remember. Your own parents probably blurt it out at least three times a week, and you’re swarmed with it in the school hallways from teachers and students alike. Friends turn into fierce competitors, parents of friends who once seemed so pleasant transform into the enemy, the lounge where you once took refuge, the ease and comfort of your own dinner
By Becca Katz
table, all morph into a CIA interrogation room. You are bombarded left and right. Let’s face it, you’re trapped in the suffocating, surreal and one-dimensional glass bubble called college bound senior. Six words: “Where do you want to go?” have never had such a constricting and hand wringing connotation. We are teenagers. Planning for the future goes against all of our most basic human instincts. Yet while we have all mastered procrastination, putting one last accent on our monotonous Spanish worksheets just as the bell rings for class, and while the farthest we’ve ever planned in advance is for our weekend road trips to Coachella, we are forced — no — molded to constantly plan
our futures. Even while the fully prepped eighth grader that has been attending six-hour SAT prep courses every weekend since the fourth grade may be an outlier, SATs, ACTs, subject tests, essays and college lists are pummeled into our brains from the moment we step foot into high school. Imagining your future spouse, occupation and home, or conjuring up a picture of yourself wearing your oversized college sweatshirt, sitting on your dorm floor with your roommate eating week old potato chips and chocolate milk like it’s the best meal you’ve ever had, can, indeed, be fun to do. We all like to think about the places we may discover and romanticize moments
and images in our heads, but as high school seniors, we are getting mixed messages. “Seize the moment, Carpe Diem, YOLO,” they say, but how can anyone expect us to put our hearts and souls into the now when all anyone can think to talk to us about is our future? While college should be an exciting and thought-provoking experience, the process of getting there is so tightly managed that it’s hard not to cringe when simply hearing the word “college.” Innumerable all-nighters pulled to perfect a history term paper, hours wasted making grammatical changes to an English essay that may boost your grade a half letter in the end, and countless worksheets of math proofs
distilled down to one number with maybe a couple of decimal points tacked on to the end if you’re lucky — your GPA. Even worse, all of your passions, life experiences, and time spent on meaningful things are summed up in a couple sheets of nice white paper. A transcript, a number that depicts all of your life’s worth with one look, and poof there it is, the colleges know everything there possibly is to know about you. So next time you want to strike fear in the heart of a high school senior, don’t threaten them with family road trips, leisurely dinners with strange relatives or embarrassing old photo albums. Simply ask them: “Do you know where you want to go?”
exposure
A12
Oct. 14, 2014
Homeward Bound
Students, family, alumni and other visitors came to the Homecoming fair on Sept. 27 to enjoy the many sports games and festivities, which included a ferris wheel and various food tents.
SHARON CHOW/CHRONICLE
ON THE SIDELINES: Two kids get ready to get their game on in an inflatable football throwing contest, one of the numerous activities stationed around the football field at the Homecoming fair.
SHARON CHOW/CHRONICLE
SCREAM AND SHOUT: Wolverines’ varsity cheer team rallies players before the football game.
JACOB GOODMAN/CHRONICLE
CLEVER PLOY: Cole Fletcher ’16 maneuvers to keep the ball on a “rugby style” punt, where he rolls out to the side and then rushes for the first down in the victorious Homecoming game against Westchester.
MILA BARZDUKAS/CHRONICLE
TEAM SPIRIT: Fanatics get excited as they watch the cheerleaders and award ceremony during the Homecoming football game halftime show. The members of the girls’ track and field team received their CIF rings, and four alumni were inducted into the Hall of Fame.
SHARON CHOW/CHRONICLE
FLYING HIGH: Alexandra Florent ‘15 leaps high into the air to spike the ball.
SHARON CHOW/CHRONICLE
WORTH THE WAIT: The towering, brightly lit ferris wheel attracts a large crowd at the Homecoming fair.
Features The Chronicle • Oct. 14, 2014
Masks of Plastic Not only on Halloween do students mask their identities. According to a Chronicle poll, more than 10 percent of students use fake IDs to buy alcohol and cigarettes and to get into bars and clubs.
By Nikta Mansouri After waiting for more than an hour in line to enter the FYF Fest music festival, Kurt* ’15 headed straight for the restricted, 21-and-over beer garden. He approached the bouncer, pulled out his fake New York state identification card from his back pocket, and presented it. The bouncer examined the card under a flashlight and a magnifying glass, bending it a few times. He looked up at Kurt and said, “Sorry this is a fake. I’m going to need to take it.”
“I didn’t really feel like I was in a position to argue with him so I just let him take it, and I walked away,” Kurt said. Kurt is not the only student who uses a fake ID. Of 364 students polled by the Chronicle, almost 11 percent of students said they have a fake ID. Even though it’s illegal, many of them don’t worry about the repercussions of owning one. “I wouldn’t say I’m scared [of the consequences],” Lara* ’15 said. It’s more that I’m aware of them and conscious of my surroundings whenever
I use it.” Police officer and lawyer John Dewell believes that there has been an overall decrease in teen fake ID usage. “One [reason] is with all the new security enhancements on the identifications they are harder and more expensive to make,” he said. “Another reason is the increase in the number of laws governing identity theft, which has also had an overlapping effect on the possession of fake IDs.” According to California Penal Code Section, if students display or possess fake
identification cards or driver licenses, they are violating the law. It does not matter if the fake ID card looks like it’s from another state. As long as the card appears to be government issued, it’s a violation of the law. Depending on the situation, the prosecutor can decide whether to file the offense as a felony or a misdemeanor. If convicted as a misdemeanor, the offender may face one year in a county jail and a maximum $1,000 fine, but offenders convicted as felons may face • Continued on page B2
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY JACOB GOODMAN AND SHARON CHOW
B2 Features
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014 Numbers get blurred on a fake ID as the maker moves them around.
A seal here normally flashes in the light, but on a fake ID, the seal may be faded or gone altogether. The layers on a fake ID can be seen by bending the card.
SOURCE: POLICE MAGAZINE GRAPHIC BY SHARON CHOW AND AIMEE MISAKI
The signature on a fake ID may be too big or on a blurred background to obscure the real signature.
There is a watermark on a real ID. A flashlight can be shined onto the card to see the image.
Faking It like as long as the ID isn’t poor quality,” Lara said. “My IDs one year in a county jail and don’t even have my picture a maximum $1,000 fine, but on them. They’re all pictures offenders convicted as felons of other girls with brown hair. may face 16 months in Califor- No one’s going to tell you that nia state prison and a maxi- you look too different from mum $100,000 fine. your picture because you can However, criminal lawyer just argue that you’ve changed and Loyola Law professor Lau- a lot since it was taken.” rie Levenson (Solly Mirell ’06, Kurt, on the other hand, Havi Mirell ’08, Dani Mirell believes it has more to do with ’17) said that if someone with a attitude, not card quality. fake ID isn’t showing the false “I don’t think it’s necessaridentification to ily a way of a police officer acting older,” or isn’t trying Kurt said. Many of my to buy alcohol, “It’s more a friends have been the violation is way of acting only an infracvery noncaught with fakes, tion. The violachalant, like and the worst that has tor faces a fine there’s no and community happened is that they’re reason anyservice but no thing would taken away.” prison time. be out of “Many of —Kurt ’15 the ordinary my friends have in the first been caught with place. Cafakes, and the worst that has sual and confident, like you’re happened is that they’re taken used to being asked and don’t away, so it doesn’t seem like mind.” a big deal to me,” Kurt said. Lara said there have only “Not compared to drinking or been a few times when othsmoking anyway.” ers have doubted her, but that Like most students, Kurt doesn’t stop her from using it. uses his mainly to buy alcohol Dewell said that there are and cigarettes. specific things police officers “I still haven’t worked up look for when trying to decide the confidence to try it at a if a card is a fake or not, not bar,” Kurt said. “Bars seem all of which he is at liberty to much more intimidating and disclose. personal, especially interact“The most common indicaing with the bartender. My tor that an ID is fake is usually fake says I’m 23, and I can pass in the ‘feel’ of the plastic that as 23 convincingly to a secu- the card information is printrity guard for 30 seconds, but ed onto,” he said. “Additionit’s hard to maintain a charade ally, the print font is usually like that for an extended pe- of a poor and different qualriod of time.” ity compared to an authentic Lara and Kurt have differ- identification.” ent ways of getting away with Kids not only risk getting using fake IDs. Lara believes caught by authorities with a the trick is just to have a good fake ID but also risk getting fake card. duped when ordering them “I used to put on makeup from dishonest card sellers. and dress ‘older’ to try not to Seth* ’15 got the contact look as young as I was, but af- of a fake ID maker from his ter a while I realized it really friend during the summer and doesn’t matter what you look ordered a few cards for him• Continued from page B1
“
self and his friends by email. He sent $300 in cash through the mail, but he never received the cards. “I tried emailing him after a few weeks of not getting the cards in the mail, but he never responded,” Seth said. “I emailed him like 10 times, but I got nothing, and it wasn’t like I could go to the police or anything, even though he technically robbed me. I was pretty infuriated, but what can you do?” Getting caught is another source of stress for students. Last year, Lara’s friends had asked her to purchase some alcohol, so she went to a grocery store. A bottle of vodka in hand, she waited in line to pay when a police officer came and stood behind her. “I was obviously freaking out,” Lara said. Her hands shaking, she quickly got out of line and waited in an aisle for five minutes so that the coast would be clear. Now, she’s much more cautious of her surroundings when using the card, but the situation didn’t scare her completely out of using it. Some students find that having a fake ID is actually a hassle at times if they are the only ones in their friend group with one, as friends are always asking them to buy alcohol or cigarettes for them. It’s also difficult to go out to drink or club if none of their friends can go with them. “It can be annoying when we go out to dinner and want to drink a glass of wine or a martini or something but none of them can order because then I’m left either drinking alone, illegally slipping them sips, illegally giving them entire drinks, which could be obvious, or just not drinking at all,” Lara said.
*Names have been changed
Caught in the Act Here are the possible repercussions of being caught in possession of a fake ID. Teens caught with fake IDs can be fined a maximum of $1,000.
Getting caught with a fake ID can lead to six months in county jail.
On top of the fine, teens can be ordered to fulfill 24-32 hours of community service.
Teens can face a one-year suspension of their driver licenses when caught with fake IDs. SOURCE: CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL GRAPHIC BY SHARON CHOW, AIMEE MISAKI AND BENJAMIN MOST
Oct. 14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/features
Features B3
ILLUSTRATION BY VIVIAN LIN
By Pim Otero
Battling distractions
Scrolling through posts on Facebook and Tumblr, Hannah Dains ’16 watches the clock as it turns to 11 p.m. She hasn’t done any homework in hours and knows it will be impossible to finish it all during her free periods the next day. Giving up, she decides to go to bed, turning off the lights and promising to start her homework earlier another day. Rather than relying solely on her self-control, Dains uses applications to curb her concentration. “If it feels too hard to make a rule for yourself of ‘no I can’t check’ whatever it is that’s distracting you, [computer] apps that can block you from going on certain types of websites is a great way to keep people focused,” University of California clinical psychology graduate student Ali Cram said. Blocking websites isn’t the only way to help with procrastination. Apps and websites have been created to help keep notes and assignments organized and online. For some people, just a little bit of white noise makes all the difference. Background music can also help some students refocus on the task at hand, rather than get distracted by a new post on Facebook. “There are different theories for what makes people focused, and a lot of theories have to do with the brain structure,” counselor and humanities teacher Luba Bek said. Some people “need to look for different distractions, and that’s where listening to music comes in.”
For those that can’t work in too quiet an atmosphere, but who find songs too disruptive, apps like Coffitivity have been created to create background noise – specifically sounds that mimic coffeehouses or university cafeterias. “Something about being in a public setting really calms me down,” Abby Shaum ’16 said. “I really like being around people, and hearing the sounds of other people is just soothing for some reason. When my surroundings are silent, that’s when my mind tends to wander. With a lot of ambient sound I feel like I’m in a populated area, then my mind won’t wander.” The user can hear conversation and clinking cups in the background, none being too loud to intrude on work. Coffitivity is available for free online at www.coffitivity.com. These apps are not for everyone. “For some people, background noise is very distracting, for other people it might appear that using a little bit of background noise, a kind of white noise might actually help to focus by drowning out other noises,” Cram said. Alone in his room, Jacob Tucker ’16 spends all day keeping updated on his friends through Facebook instead of finishing his homework. “[I work at my] desk in my room so my parents won’t bother me while I procrastinate,” Tucker said. Apps like SelfControl for Mac OS X users or StayFocused for Chrome browser are downloadable for free from selfcontrolapp.com and the
Chrome app store, respec- first organize their desk, ortively. StayFocused allows us- ganize their computer, write ers to create a private account a lengthy to-do list, just do to pick specific websites (such something else,” Bek said. “As as Facebook or Buzzfeed) and opposed to someone who’s not media (photos, videos, etc.) to a procrastinator, who can get block for specified amounts into his or her messy room of time, while timers are in- and sit down in the middle of stalled into a user’s toolbar the mess and do [their homethat specify how much time is work].” left until a website is blocked Although one solution is to or unblocked. work through SelfControl is a mess, many a similar concept, students prewhich also allows fer to have a SelfControl has users to block clean, orgasaved me. Without incoming emails nized workand websites unspace. it, my life would be til a timer has Apps like a mess. It’s not an run out, even if Evernote can the user restarts help avert overstatement that the computer or any time stuwithout SelfControl, I deletes the Selfdents may Control applicawaste sorting would not have been tion. through piles able to go through “SelfControl and piles of has saved me,” notes. Eversophomore year.” Jaebok Lee ’16 note allows said. “Without it, —Jaebok Lee ’16 students to my life would be create a free, a mess. It’s not private acan overstatement that without count on evernote.com, and SelfControl, I would not have an offline Evernote program been able to go through sopho- can be downloaded to Mac or more year.” PC users. Any notes taken on For those with tons of the program are automatically notes, sometimes students can synced to an online cloud, and find ways to procrastinate by users can create calendars and repeatedly organizing their alerts to fit their daily lives. surroundings before finally “When I use programs like starting their work, usually Microsoft Word, switching belate at night. Organizing is tween documents on my laptop usually a helpful habit, but in can be cluttered and clumsy,” these situations it proves det- Katie Speare ’16 said. “And if rimental to students by help- I’m studying for a note-heavy ing them comply with their subject like history, I have the habits of procrastination. option on Evernote to search “A lot of times students, es- all documents at once for a pecially girls, when they come specific keyword.” home and before they have to “We are all very, very difstart doing work, they need to ferent,” Bek said.
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B4 Features
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
Cyber Pirates Many students regularly pirate music, books and movies online without regard for the possible detrimental economic consequences of their illegal actions.
SACHA LIN/CHRONICLE
By Angela Chon
Some students have also vice president of music busiparticipated in online piracy ness affairs at Paramount PicAs Hector* ’16 arrives as a convenience for school. tures. home for the weekend, he de“I don’t pirate movies or “I know many people who cides to watch a movie, and songs,” Caesar* ’16 said. “But pirate movies,” Sapphire* ’16 after scrutinizing options, he I pirate books, like textbooks, said. “But it should not be chooses “The Dark Knight.” because they cost so much. I that big of a problem if the He connects his laptop to his downloaded my math publicity gets big and TV screen and streams his textbook so that I spreads. It’s more movie online to start the re- don’t have to carry about that than the laxation of a typical Friday af- my books around.” small amount of ternoon. Caesar said he was money [movie indusWhat Hector doesn’t think able to find the PDF tries] would make twice about is that he’s par- file through a website if someone actually ticipating in an illegal activity: he didn’t identify. bought it because no online piracy. “Everything is so one buys movies anyOnline piracy has been a accessible online, and more. I think in the nathanson’s part of many students’ lives it’s so easy to [pirate] future, everyone will Brandon for a long time, but rarely do and hard to avoid be pirating movies.” Kuwada ’16 students consider it a crime. temptation,” Aurora Similarly, HauWhether it’s downloading Huiz ’17 said. nani Bautista ’17 movies, recorded music, sheet Students also think it is said that “the government music or even textbooks, on- rare to get caught. shouldn’t do anything about line piracy has always been ilAlthough Brandon Ku- it” because “it really doesn’t legal, yet students continue to wada ’16 has seen clips about affect movie companies.” actively participate in it. people going to jail for particiHowever, this is only what “I do download some mu- pating in online piracy, he be- students believe to be true. sic,” Cornellius* ’17 said. “I lieves that in reality, “nobody Bills such as the Stop Online have a few songs. Most of my gets caught,” and that it’s “not Piracy Act of 2008 as well as music I get from my brothers a big deal because everybody the Copyright Alert System and my sister who have CDs, does it.” of 2013, which slows down or but I get a few songs every Even though interviewed takes away internet conneconce in a while. I use this You- students had not yet been tion from pirates, were introTube to MP3 converter app prosecuted for participating in duced in order to protect owncalled Ares.” online piracy, ers of copyrighted materials. Although usthe truth reAccording to the Motion ing YouTube is mains that Picture Association of AmerI don’t pirate a legal way to they are all at ica, online piracy contributed view media berisk of being to movie industries losing bilmovies or songs. But cause it doesn’t charged with lions of dollars. I pirate books, like have the option a crime. DVD sales alone dropped to download or E a r l i e r $2 billion within the last five textbooks, because they rip files, using a this year, 31 years as a result of online cost so much.” third-party conusers of Bit- copyright infringement and verter app such a unauthorized sharing. The —Francis* ’16 Torrent, as Ares to pirate s o f t w a r e music industry has also been is illegal. company that affected. Although the facilitates “I know that it has totally program states in its terms peer-to-peer downloading, changed the music industry’s and conditions that “we do not were sued for downloading the sales because there’s so much condone piracy or breaking Oscar-nominated film “Dallas piracy,” McNicoll said. copyright laws,” students dis- Buyers Club.” “Now [students] don’t obey the regulations by sharHowever, lawsuits typically think that because of concert ing or downloading through go after big piracy sites and touring and other things that the legal Ares program, mak- not individuals, said Liz Mc- artists can make money from, ing their actions unlawful. Nicoll (Nico Brown ’17), the but piracy really has changed
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Evaluating the Plunder
18% pirate books
the whole landscape of the ones that are not really as famusic industry. It does hurt mous or as successful, the ones economically for sure.” who really do need the money The Recording Industry from legitimate iTunes sales.” Association of America goes School faculty and staff after big websites and tries to members are more concerned decrease piracy. with a less recognized form of “They don’t go after indi- online piracy. viduals, but there have been Upper school librarian a lot of cases recently where Shannon Acedo says that the they have brought in lawsuits school tracks online piracy and shut down a lot of the pi- and plagiarism through Turracy,” McNicoll said. nItIn.com. “What a lot of people “It’s mostly used by history don’t realize is that the sites and English teachers,” Acedo themselves, piracy sites that said. “Stealing another perare maintained outside of the son’s work off the Internet is country, are really part of in- another form of online piracy. ternational organized crime Of course, it’s not as exciting sites,” she added. as a media file, but it is just as The film industry has been dangerous.” hurt over “The school seas the most. does not have a “It’s a system of coorEverything is so huge probdinating ID logaccessible online, and lem for the ins with student film industry, behavior [while it’s so easy to [pirate] no question browsing],” she and hard to avoid about it,” Mcadded. temptation.” Nicoll said. Although “Especially many students —Aurora Huiz ’17 seem to be igin certain countries like noring the imChina and Inportance of dia, which is a huge potential stopping online piracy, others market, there’s a lot of piracy.” have made an effort to stay McNicoll said that movie away from the crime. studios are “working with Katie Schlesinger ’17 and China to help enforce the laws. Nina Kiley ’17 opted to use It’s a huge problem. It hasn’t Netflix and iTunes rather so far affected the film studios than pirating. the way it affected the mu“I don’t pirate anymore,” sic industry, but that’s what Kiley said. “I used to use the film studios are worried MegaShare.” about. They don’t want to go Even though Edward conthe same way that the music tinues to participate in online industry has gone, with being piracy because he doesn’t want affected by piracy.” to pay for a movie or TV show While students justify that he will only watch once, their behavior by saying piracy he also tries to find a solution. does not hurt the arts, Mc“I watch illegal things onNicoll says that is not true. line after I make sure there is “Part of the problem is no free legal way of watching that people don’t realize that it,” Edward said. it does hurt musicians and not just big superstars, but the *Names have been changed
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Based on the Chronicle poll, 57% of students participated in online piracy, downloading the following:
70% pirate movies or television shows
69% pirate music SOURCE: CHRONICLE POLL OF 379 STUDENTS GRAPHIC BY SACHA LIN
Oct. 14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/features
Features B5
Escape from Reality Students compete to destroy the enemy team’s nexus in online multiplayer game League of Legends.
By Sharon Chow
time on this game.” tion, researchers found that playing a League of Legends is popular in moderate amount of games improves “I’ll sacrifice myself. Run, run, part because of the variety of charac- cognitive skills and quickens the abilrun,” Chris Lee ’16 commands with one ters and skills required. ity to make spontaneous decisions. hand on the keyboard of his computer Kuwada and other players also en“It’s definitely a fun way to just reand the other continuously clicking joy the cutthroat nature of the game. lieve the stress from school and just his mouse. Lee strategizes with Bran“It’s really competitive, and it relax,” Lee said. don Kuwada ’16, planning the best way keeps the game really fun,” Kuwada But there can be a downside. to destroy the other team’s nexus, or said. “There are just so many people “Sometimes, I can lose track of base. playing the game that there’s always time and keep playing matches,” he Lee and Kuwada are playing going to be someone better than you.” said. “This can either lead to staying League of Legends, first released in Psychologist Luba Bek said that up late at night to finish homework October 2007 and now the obsession for play- or just going to sleep early and doing the most-played game ing has always been an homework early in the morning.” in the world with gaminherent part of soSmith also thinks the game is so It’s definitely a ciety, and that’s not a addictive it can throw off his schedule. ers logging a combined total of nearly 1.3 bil“I sleep less so I can play more,” fun way to just relieve bad thing. lion hours of game “People play be- Smith added. stress from school and cause the right hemiplay, according to In League of Legends, players relax. Sometimes I lose sphere of the brain choose and improve their characters Forbes online. Players can also watch thouwants to do something by playing more games, which cretrack of time.” sands of live streams other than be logical ate new realities that need to be conof League of Legends —Chris Lee ‘16 and rational,” Bek said. stantly managed. on twitch.tv, the web“It’s so important to “Usually I like to get one or two site where players can escape the daily rou- games per night, which can go from film themselves playing in real time. tine of Harvard-Westlake, of 20 minutes to a hour for each Amazon recently purchased twitch.tv being an overachiever and of game, but I try to finish my for $970 million. competing.” homework first,” Kuwada This popular game has spread to Games like League of said. Harvard-Westlake, with students Legends can, in fact, be seen Bek offers an explanation swapping their old video games for as a reprieve from daily life. for why students make time interactive computer games. These With the burden of schoolto log on and compete despite games allow students to play with work, practices, games and the burden of homework. other people, so each game is always outside obligations, it is “From the psychoanalytidifferent from the others. hard to find time to relax. cal perspective, Freud actuThere are more than a hundred “It’s a fun pastime ally said that when we are nathanson’s characters from which to choose, de- that takes my mind off anxious or overwhelmed, our Nic Smith ’16 pending on the user’s style of play. things,” Nic Smith ’16 said. psyche has defensive mechaEach character has its own detailed Playing games and escaping reality nisms to protect ourselves from the backstory and is part of a huge inter- for a short period of time can actu- anxiety of being overwhelmed: avoidconnected world. ally have cognitive benefits, Bek said. ance,” Bek said. “This is a little like self“I used to play Call of Duty a lot,” In a case study published in 2013 by sabotage, but according to Freud, it is Kuwada said. “I just spend a lot more the American Psychological Associa- also protecting your mental health.”
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GRAPHIC BY BENJAMIN MOST IMAGES COURTESY OF RIOT GAMES AND ARTSED.TUMBLR.COM
The Chronicle
B6 Features
Pressure for Rigor By Scott Nussbaum
Science A. “One of the best indicators of In all of the college information the foses- cus on AP classes is the incoming sophsions and discussions about colle ge, Riya omores because unle ss you are going to Garg ’15 finds one constant theme: The take an AP in World Languages, other number of Advanced Placeme nt classes than that, the only AP [sophomores] can and rigor of a schedule is alwa ys a main take is Compute r Science,” Cuseo said. focus. As a senior, Garg admits she feels a “And interestingl y, as the college compepressure to take as many AP and honors tition ratchets up, more of that class has classes as possible. filled up. It is a great class and “I feel that there is an unspoken people are agree- enjoying the subject, but I think a huge ment that college expects you to take an part of it is soph omores wanting to jump AP or honors class if it is avai lable,” Garg on the AP trai n, whether it’s a genuine said. “Each time you attend a college in- interest or not.” formation session, they make a point to When the class was initially say they look at the rigor of offered, courses, so AP Computer Science A had enrollI think it is on a lot of people’s ments between five and 20 minds.” studen ts, math and computer sciDean Sharon Cuseo says the ence teacher Paula Evans said school is considering enactin . g How ever, the total enrollment for a policy to limit the number of last year was 82 and 102 stud AP classes a student could take ents this year. This increase makes AP each year. Computer Science A the mos “Many of the deans would t pop ular class in the math departlike to see the school drop APs ment. altogether or cap the number of “It would be a beautiful thing AP classes a student can take ,” nathanson’s if people were to approach thei Cuseo said. “After the workloa r d Sharon Cuseo curriculum with an eye tow study, I think that is something ard what they really want to stud we are willing to explore implem y, enting.” but unfortunately it is hardly In analyzing the results of the ever pure,” work- Cuseo said. load study, the administration took notice Cuseo said that much of the of an increased involvement focus on in weighted weighted courses is derived from misconclasses, AP and honors cour ses graded ceptions about how many of these courses on a 5.0 scale rather than the 4.0 scale other students in the same grade are takall other classes are graded on, Head of ing. School Jeanne Huybrechts said . “Parents and students will com “We are considering enforcea e to me ble lim- and say ‘I think mos t of the other juniors its, whether that be on only AP classes, are taking four or five AP classes’,” Cuseo on weighted classes or on weig hted class- said. “And you hear that sort of statees and activities in general,” Huybrechts ment all the tim e, and it’s just not true.” said. Cuseo said that the cancella Andrew Lehroff ’17 sees this pote tion of ntial six Kutler Center classes was most likely cap on classes as a restriction of student caused by students , too concerned with interests. AP classes. “I would say that it wouldn’t be fair Although the number of clas to the kids who deserve to ses oftake those fered in the Kut ler Center dropped, the courses,” Lehroff said. “Esp ecially be- total enrollment of students in these cause some kids devote all of thei r time to classes has increase d, according to Inacademics rather than sports, performing terdisciplinary Studies and Indepenarts and so on.” dant Reseach (ISIR) head Lar However, Garg can see the mot ry Klein. ivation “I am uncertain whether limi to alleviate stress behind the pote ting ntial re- the number of AP courses a student strictions. is permitted to take would affe “I think it could take some ct ISIR pressure Department enrollme nt numbers, but off students but I think it coul d also be it wouldn’t be too enormous a logical limiting considering a majorit y of senior leap to think that either kids will just classes are only AP,” Garg said . block those opened-up slots As evidence of the increasing in their popu- schedules or would instead fill those larity of an AP-oriented sche dule, Cuseo with elective cour ses across the varipoints to the enrollment in AP Computer ous departments ,” Klein said.
Oct. 14
Getting an
To appeal to college admissions offi stack their applications with APs a join clubs to show their well-round become invisible on
By Jacob G oodman
plicants’ p rofiles. Kat L ast year, her ’15, who has University gan freshm of two brother M ic h ian Jonath an s d M atty ’10) w an Felker changed ho have ’14 throu his Faceb gh the coll ook name “nutsackfa ege applic to cess, ce.’’ It was said that ju part of a tr dition wher st a few a- studen e seniors ts weren’t change th Facebook hiding th eir media names to a identities. pun or a jo so colleges ke can’t find th “When m eir postings For Felker y brother , the tradit . plying s to college io n b ac “My dean k fi re it wasn’t d . was emaile C al ve rt said. “In th lege, alerti d by a cole last fi ng it’s gotten book name, him about my Facea lot mor ” Felker sa e com T h e p ro id ce changed it , but at that . “I quickly stressfu ss has gotten a l l. People fe point, Mar or April, it ch to hid el like th was too la e somethin te, so I tru regret that g.” ly . If you th New ink changi your nam Upper ng Schoo e means l Dean Ja colleges ca find you on n’t mie line, you’r Chan, wh e wrong. M college pro o y worked cess never really reco as an adered from v- missi that mista ons ke.” officer The colleg at Emor has go has change e application process y Unid a lot sin versity un ce Faceboo launched. ti l la st st ressfu k spring, During th says not e summer of 2004, the year every adm like the Facebook founded, U issions was office pper Schoo r bothers l Dean Kyl Graham w so meth to e look. as sitting in the stud worker lou ent nge at Ham “Here’s —Kath ilton Colle a fellow su the ge thing: mmer tou r guide ca I up to him d on ’t me have with a lap a Facebook top. “My frien ,” said Chan d Ben Cri d on ’t . “A do social m ‘Yo Kyle, ghton said edia, and th , me. So check out at’s when I re book,’” Gra The Facead applica ham said. wouldn’t tr tion “And at th time it w y and look at Faceb as only H them up ook and se arvard, Pri eton, Yale e n w chat they d and a cou But the co o.” ple New E land Smal llege doesn ng- be ac l College ’t have tu A al th ly looking. ference sc le ti c C on hools, and - times sabotage th Students som Hamilton the invite.” eir compet got “W ition here Faceb Facebook ook rears w h ea as d,” said G soon on it it s u to becomin raham, w s way in g the mult ho work admission ibillion dol company th s at Hamilton lar and at it is tod NYU, “is Colle ay. “Parents d you’ll get ap id n p some k ’t ly in k now about g to ‘x’ sc admission h it, sion. s officers Some other ool, Early Dec didn’t kn about it,” ow ested kid is also Graham sa in ‘x’ schoo inter id. “And th around 20 l. The first en goes 07, I rem studen to a party ember Sk more Colle ov id er - gets d ge was th the week runk and e first that was aware posts pictu end I Faceboo of creatin res on g a Faceb k page for p with the ook den rospective red cups. t two, or p students.” Stu Today, soci arent of st al media h screenshot udent two a big part as s th b ec os om e photos and of the colleg e it to th sends e recruitm e college.” and applica ent tion proce S oc ss ia . l media doe A more re sn’t al cent devel student pro fear that opment is spects. Som ways hurt colleges ar media as e use soci e checking al a means ap- appli to boost th cations, sa eir id Seth A llen, vice
“
14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/features
n Edge
officers, students try to Ps and Honors classes, undedness, and to try to e online.
k Facade
therine Cal vert pre sident and thers (Rya dean of ad n ’07 an missions d financial have both aid at Pom gone lege ona Col. pplication pro“Students few years sometimes ago, the reader to point ng their so various fo cial soci rms of al media w h en they w highlight ant to ers were some asp ap- cand ect of th idacy [a ch asn’t a thin eir ar it g,” ricula r],” Allen sa y, or extracurast five ye ars, feel id . “If the read s it is imp competitiv er ortant to e. more learn even than what n a lot mor is in e tion, oc the applica casionally ke they nee the conten d be revi t may ewed.” While coll eges aren ’t actively checking Facebook profiles fo r every stu The process dent, they have started monit s gotten a lo oring ap t more plicants’ in teractions essful. People with the sc feel hool’s dife they need ferent form s of social to hide media, Gra mething. ham said. “One of m y very good fr Katherine Ca lvert ’15 admissiieonnds, who’s an s officer fo r a very sm all, highly an. “And I selective li beral arts college on the east hat’s just coast, is charge of in social med cations, I ia,” Graham said. “She tracks stu m up on dent enga ment with gethei y do.” their Instag r Twitter feed, with ram, thin have to king that some stud if ent is likin ts someg our post Instagram on or is retw tition. eeting ou tweets, do r we have a its ugly better chan of getting ce them? Is worked the potenti of us yield al ing him sl College ightly high because h er e’s engage me kid d with us social med on ia?” DeciStudents ar inter- er e becomin g smartabout hid tudent an ing party pictures d colleges ar ekend, ab e becomin g savvier out collecti ng data. es on “I think w e’re pivotin Stu- ham g,” Grasaid. “It’s t two, n less about ating pictu res and bad incrimisends th things, alough conn iving peop le sometim can go af te es r a kid. I hurt goin think now g to be m it ’s or ocial tou e engagem ches and tr ent in acking, hel heir to p ping them redict yiel d.” vice
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Features B7
Being Involved By Marcella Park “What is important is that students select activities that are truly meaningful to them and that they really get involved with them,” reads UCLA’s Admissions website. “We look for long-standing dedication and significant time commitment to an activity, and we notice students’ progression to positions of leadership or recognition of achievement.” Some students keep what colleges like UCLA look for in mind as they plan their involvement in school clubs, and some even exaggerate the importance of their participation to boost chances of college admission. Last year’s Leading Business Visionaries Club only ever held two meetings. It had grown out of the previous year’s Future Business Leaders of America Club, which had held meetings that “ended, like, after two minutes,” club member Kevin Ho ’14 said. Because Leading Business Visionaries had done so little, Ho didn’t recall that he had been in some kind of business club during his senior year until he was reminded of Leading Business Visionaries by name. “We were all so busy with college apps, it didn’t happen,” said Ho, who added that fellow club leaders talked about wanting to run the club solely for their college applications. At least three of them ended up including their involvement on their extracurricular activity lists, and Ho said he might have done so, too, if he had applied to business school. The heavy student interest in becoming club founders or leaders led to the participation of 66 clubs in Activities Fair last month. With so many clubs, deans have had to find ways to make each student’s participation in extra-curricular activities distinct. “Without being dismissive of things like being captain of something or president of something or whatever, that isn’t the most significant thing that a kid can do — it’s really about the
kind of impact the for Harkid has had,” Dean Beth Slattery vard-Westlake. said. “So we really try to suss out “Deans can tell 100 percent,” for our letters of recommenda- du Manoir said. “The deans tion, the deans’ letters, what has know the students best.” been the impact, and that, I think, Slattery said that deans can’t is how colleges distinguish.” necessarily tell when students’ There is a vast difference in clubs aren’t meeting anymore. the activity levels of various clubs “We don’t necessarily know at Harvard-Westlake. who’s meeting during activities For three years, Soma Club period or whatever,” Slattery founder Diana Kim ’15 has been said. “But if a kid tells me that taking weekly trips to disability they spend more than an hour centers and organizing concerts a week in their club, I will ask to raise money to buy wheel- them, ‘So, how often do you guys chairs. Meanwhile, clubs like meet?’” Leading Business Visionaries peSlattery said she remembers tered out soon after they were only one student she believed exfounded. aggerated his involvement. As part of an increase in foSlattery knew the student cus on school clubs, Prefect was involved in Boy Scouts, but Council started providing some Slattery couldn’t be sure whethof the clubs grants last year. Pre- er he was an Eagle Scout, as he fects also contacted various club s a i d he was. leaders to check “You know, whether they were you have no way continuing their acof verifying, and We’re definitely tivities, Head PreI wasn’t going going to try to inspire fect Sarah Winshel to actually chal’15 said. people and motivate lenge it,” Slat“This year we’re tery said. “But people and give them definitely going to the person got try to inspire people the actual practical in some place and motivate peothat was sometools they need.” ple and give them what unexpectthe actual practical —Sarah Winshel ’15 ed, and I heard tools they need to from the adcontinue their clubs, mission officer even if it’s a simple follow-up to about all of their leadership and see ‘how’s this going,’” Winshel mentioning Eagle Scouts. But said. “If they make the conscious again, it’s not one of those things decision to not follow up with a where I was going to say to them, club that’s totally fine, but we ‘I don’t really think he did all of just want them to know that they that.’ That’s probably the only have support if they do want to time, and it was literally my first pursue it but don’t feel like they year, like 10 years ago.” have the tools to do so.” Ho said he doesn’t think the Kim understands why col- deans could tell that Leading lege prospects might influence Business Visionaries Club was no students’ efforts to take leader- longer meeting. ship roles in clubs, but believes Winshel thinks of clubs as they should be rooted in actual more of a way to enrich one’s life interest. In addition to running than a way to show one’s interSoma Club, she co-leads Science est in certain fields or boost one’s and Outreach Club, which plans college application. monthly trips to a community “In my speech [during Opencenter to teach children science ing Convocation] I was talking through experiments, and partic- about finding your own sunshine,” ipates in two other clubs, Robot- Winshel said. “I think that clubs ics and the blog H-W Voices. are one of the primary ways of Charles du Manoir ’15, who doing that … I have honestly nevlike Ho is interested in business er thought of [college admissions] and founded the Entrepreneur- as an incentive. I personally don’t ship Club, thinks deans recognize think about college that much.” the motivations behind each stuThe Leading Business Visiondent’s involvement in clubs, while aries founder thought differently. admissions officers may not. He “Only fun clubs like Breakhas worked with the club to start ing Bad Club are not for college,” a natural ginger company and or- Ho said. “Most [things] Harvardganizing the development of apps Westlake kids do are for college.”
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B8 Features
The Chronicle
highstakes
Oct. 14, 2014
ILLUSTRATIONS BY VIVIAN LIN
Living the dream By Benjamin Most
Eric Greenberg ’14: Eric Greenberg ’14 enjoys the freedom that the University of Chicago gives him to manage his time. “Since you make your own schedule, you really are in control of what you can do and when you can do it,” Greenberg said. He is a member of several a capella groups, business clubs and the college debate society. He plans to double major in economics and political science. “The Harvard-Westlake environment definitely prepared me for college,” Greenberg said. “The structure and expectations there are very similar to what is expected here.” The workload is heavier than at Harvard-Westlake, he said, but no greater than he expected. Katie Jung ’14: Katie Jung ’14 was impressed by the multitude of clubs that New York University has to offer.
Recent grads describe what it’s like now that they have achieved their goal of getting into college and are finding their way on their new campuses.
Jung recently attended Club Fest, a presentation of all clubs in the school, and signed up for Freedom 4 North Korea, the Digital Arts Club, and the Stern Tisch Entertainment Business Association. Jung was nervous about college, but she now enjoys her new lifestyle. “Over the summer, I was super anxious about starting college, but I forced myself not to have too many crazy expectations, so I really enjoyed all of the little things that I never really expected,” Jung said. She has made new friends quickly and enjoys exploring New York City with them. “Of course, there’s the initial awkwardness of making friends and trying out different social groups after hanging out with your best friends for the past six years, but after that, there’s just so much to do and so much to learn about your new friends,” Jung said. “Especially at a school like NYU, where the campus is the city, you’re doing something different every weekend.” Jung declared sociology as her major, but she is consider-
ing changing it by the end of her sophomore year. “I really want to spend my freshman year and first semester of sophomore year taking all of the classes that I never had time for at Harvard-Westlake and ones that weren’t offered there to make sure that what I ultimately choose is what I want to pursue,” she said. “Even though I see myself ultimately going into business or the entertainment industry, I still want to take an art history class, a programming class and a cinema studies class. With that said, I am taking Intro to Sociology this semester, and I really like it, more so than I ever expected, so you never know.” Miles Williams ’14: Miles Williams ’14, a freshman at Cornell University, may major in business because of his interest in finance. “I’ve had a good experience with the economics program here so far,” Williams said. He has also joined several clubs, including the Cornell Finance and Consulting Club, a community service group
called Jamaica Difference that offers educational opportunities to Jamaican youth and a group called COLA that focus on protecting the rights of oncampus workers. Williams considers the social life at Cornell similar to that of Harvard-Westlake. “Most of the people here are very driven and have intellectual desires beyond school itself,” Williams said. “Everybody also enjoys having a good time, which makes it a fun environment to go to school and live.” The main difference between Cornell and HarvardWestlake is the “large lectures with hundreds of people,” Williams said. He has not yet confirmed his major. Liza Woythaler ’14: Liza Woythaler ’14 is exploring the performing arts opportunities at Wesleyan University. She throws burning projectiles called fire poi in a group called Prometheus, which uses props such as staffs and fire in performance art. She also sings in an a capella
group called the Mazel Tones, which performs Hebrew and Yiddish music and is acting in the school performance of the “Rocky Horror Picture Show.” In addition, she is a member of Queer Wes, which she describes as being similar to the Harvard-Westlake GayStraight Alliance. Woythaler also participated in One Day Plays, a 24-hour event during which students write and perform plays. She enjoys the social life at Wesleyan because she sees her friends often and meets new people in classes and activities. “It’s not uncommon that I meet sophomores or seniors and become friends with them,” Woythaler said. “The thing that’s new about college is that you’re near your friends 24/7, as opposed to the distance between your homes at Harvard-Westlake. So it’s way easier to hang out and do homework together or go get dinner.” She is considering majoring in computer science, psychology or film, or double majoring in computer science and another subject.
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Arts&Entertainment The Chronicle • Oct 14, 2014
Cuba trip
to require
digital work
By Lauren Kim
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF CHERI GAULKE
ON FILM: An animated character raises its arm in “The Monster Within,” far left. An actor pushes an elevator button in “Emergency Stop.” A monster walks past a landscape in “The Monster Within.” Cleveland High School sophomore Sean Oh acts in “Trauma You Don’t See.” All images above are screenshots from student films on domestic violence.
Films to raise awareness about domestic violence
By Eugenia Ko
Public service announcement videos for the I CAN WE CAN: Films to End Domestic Violence program will premiere tomorrow for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The films will screen in Ahmanson Lecture Hall from 7 p.m. They were created by both Harvard-Westlake and students from other schools as
well as film professionals who participated in the I CAN WE CAN: Films to End Domestic Violence summer workshop initiated by A Window Between Worlds, a nonprofit organization dedicated to using art to bring an end to domestic violence. Visual Arts Department Head Cheri Gaulke led the summer workshop. Three films will be
screened: “Emergency Stop” by Becca Frischling ‘19, Jess Grody ‘19, and Karenina Juarez ‘16; “Trauma You Don’t See” by Angela Chon ’15, George Khabbaz ’15, Dora Schoenberg ’16 and Jordan Seibel ’15; and “The Monster Within” by Angela Chon ’15, George Khabbaz ’15, Dora Schoenberg ’16 and Jordan Seibel ’15. Creators of the service announcements will answer
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF LAUREN ROTHMAN
CLOSE AND PERSONAL: Visual Arts Department Head Cheri Gaulke takes a selfie with Rwandan children while on last year’s trip to Rwanda.
questions about the inspirations for their films and how they created each one. “Our end product, “The Monster Within,” was phenomenal,” Schoenberg said. “I believe our animation will bring much attention to this terrifying cause. I’m so glad Ms. Gaulke mentioned the Films to End Domestic Violence camp to me. It was an absolute success.”
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF CHERI GAULKE
POSING FOR THE CAMERA: A Rwandan boy poses with a hoop.
Preparations for the Digital Storytelling Adventure: Cuba trip led by Visual Arts Department Head Cheri Gaulke began with an information session held on Sept. 18. The session, attended by both prospective students and their parents, went over the history and significance of Cuba as well as some logistics about the trip, which will be Jan. 17-25 during semester break. The cost of the trip is $5,385. The registration deadline was Oct. 13, but 20 students signed up, and 10 more were already on the waiting list weeks before the deadline. “When the students come back, it’s really nice because you can go to one place together, but everybody comes back and tells a different story,” Gaulke said. Students participating in the eight-day trip will be required to sign a contract that compels them to engage in pre-trip preparations, including “webinars” that preview the history and modern significance of Cuba, and to create a digital project with footage taken during the trip. “It’s not just a trip; it’s a trip that results in some sort of digital storytelling project. That could be a photo series, or something written, or a video,” Gaulke said. Students can also use the trip to get credit for a directed course in the Kutler Center, she said.
PRINTED WITH PREMISSION OF CHERI GAULKE
PEACE OUT: A Rwandan child makes a peace sign in a screenshot from footage from last year’s Rwanda trip.
Rwanda films to screen Oct. 29 By Lauren Kim
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF IMANI COOK-GIST
SNAPSHOT: Imani Cook-Gist ’15 looks at a photo with the boy who took it during the trip last year investigating the Rwandan Genocide in a screenshot from Kennedy Long’s ’16 film.
Films made by students who visited Rwanda last year will screen in Ahmanson Lecture Hall on Oct. 29. The 14 students who made these documentaries spent 10 days in Africa interviewing the Rwandan people and learning about their culture. “The trip was an amazing experience, and the people we met with were incredibly inspiring,” trip member Noah Bennett ’15 said. “Making the documentary has been a really fun challenge, especially for those of us who have never made videos before,” he said.
The students’ projects centered around the Rwandan Genocide and its effects on the country. “Every student identified an aspect of the Rwandan story that they were interested in before we went, because part of what we do on the trips is educate the students before we go,” trip leader and Visual Arts Department Head Cheri Gaulke said. The trip to Rwanda was the second of its kind. The first trip was to Laos, and this year, Gaulke is taking about 20 students to Cuba to create digital projects documenting the first opening up of the island to American visitors.
B10 A&E
Cirque de Soleil performer teaches dance techniques By Sabrina
we all really enjoyed,” Aurora Huisa ’17 said. Broadway dancer Ari Loeb Loeb said that he’s known ’97 taught an excerpt of finale he wanted to pursue dance choreography from the musi- ever since he was 12 years old. cal “Spiderman: Turn Off the He attended Harvard-WestDark” to advanced classes on lake seventh through 11th Oct. 1 and held an open Q&A grade, leaving for the State after school in which he of- University of New York at fered advice to stuPurchase. dents about breaking “I love the intriinto a performing cate movement and arts career. the collaboration [of Loeb encouraged dance],” Loeb said. students try to creHe related to the ate opportunities for students his initial themselves. If somestruggles of living on thing needs to be low income and havdone on a show or ing to perform on in a dance company, subways for change. nathanson’s Loeb suggested, it’s Afterwards, Loeb was Jane Lee ’17 best to jump at the accepted into the Mochance. Putting in mix Dance Company, effort and showing genuine in- which he performed tours with terest pays off, Loeb said, and spanning over 300 cities for can result in big breaks down two years as dance captain. the road. “It was just really interest“He was so much fun and ing because usually you only he taught us unique and in- see the success of a performer, teresting choreography that not the hardships that came de
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
Brito
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF CYNTHIA WINTER
THROWING THE WEB: Ari Loeb ’97 teaches an advanced class an excerpt from the musical “Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark.” Loeb attended Harvard-Westlake before pursuing a career in dance. before and he told us about all of the hardships and the rewards,” Jane Lee ’17 said. Next he joined the dance company Pilobolus. A full contract from Cirque de Soleil to perform in Delirium followed shortly after, taking Loeb on tours worldwide. “I was doing things I never imagine I’d be doing,” Loeb said. Loeb acted as a “swing” and
dance captain for the Broadway production “Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark,” supervising male dancers involved in production and choreogrpahy. After, Loeb performed in “Kung Fu”, a bio-play about Bruce Lee composed of a mix of dance and martial arts. “It’s just like dance choreography except with fists,” Loeb said. “And I loved it!” He hopes to break into film
and TV, specializing in choreography of stage-fighting, as the techniques are similar to that of dance, said Loeb. He said that he’s excited for this new chapter of his life, back in his hometown Los Angeles, and is looking forward to his next dance-related “Inspiration comes when you least expect it and it just sweeps you off your feet,” Loeb said.
Batchler ’13 to appear on 6th ‘Glee’ season By Sacha Lin
SABRINA DE BRITO/CHRONICLE
PRODUCING PROSE: Posters advertising the first poetry festival hang in the English office. “Wider than the Sky: A Celebration of Poetry in Word, Image and Performance” will be held on Oct. 25.
First-ever poetry festival to begin at Harvard-Westlake By Sammi Handler
Harvard-Westlake’s firstever poetry festival, “Wider than the Sky: A Celebration of Poetry in Word, Image and Performance,” will offer an opportunity for students and teachers from Los Angeles to write and celebrate poetry. The festival, which will run from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 25, will feature two keynote speakers, Douglas Kearney and Sharan Strange, as well as readings, performances and workshops. Strange won the Barnard New Women Poets Prize in 2000 for her first poetry collection, “Ash,” and is an active member of the Dark Room Collective, a community of black poets. Kearney is a Los Angeles poet who teaches at California Institute of the Arts. He has published multiple books. “A big aspect of the festival is what it’s like to be in LA, and poetry in LA,” co-director of the festival and English teacher Sasha Watson said. “So I was very excited to get
someone local to talk about There will be roughly 15 being a poet in Los Angeles -18 workshops led by poets and and inspire kids in that way.” visual artists, on topics related Attendance is not limited to writing poems in different to Harvard-Westlake. The mediums, such as writing poschool is providing transporta- ems in response to paintings tion so that participants from and instructing teachers on other high schools are also able educating their students on to attend the how to make festival. Watpoetry videos. son estimates Event adI was very excited mission is free that there will be 200 attendand includes to get someone local ees. breakfast and to talk about being a “[We want lunch. Watson to] create a poet in Los angeles and and Sherwood, poetic comalong with Jim inspire kids in that way.” Patterson, dimunity that’s not divided by —Sasha Watson rector of exgeography or ternal learnco-director of “Wider ing, met with different backgrounds, and than the Sky” Robert Polito, to bridge those the president communities of the Poetry with a common love of poetry,” Foundation in Chicago, who Watson said. agreed to partially fund the Watson and co-director event with Harvard-Westlake. of the festival and visual arts “The goal [of the festival] teacher Alyssa Sherwood is really to open up poetry to worked during the summer to as many people as possible, for create workshops, which “are students and teachers to be the really exciting thing [about invited into poetry in a new the festival],” Watson said. way,” Watson said.
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Viewers will see Cory Batchler ’13 in the band when the sixth season of the Fox television series “Glee” airs in early 2015, but they will not hear what he is playing. He was cast in a paid role as the bassist for the Glee band after attending an audition open to students at the USC Thornton School of Music, where Batchler majors in popular music. Students were notified of the audition in an email. During filming, the members of the “Glee” band play the songs that the actors perform, but the audio is not recorded. “It’s like I’m in the band, but I’m not actually playing music,” Batchler said. “They play a track and we know the songs, so we know what to play. We’re actually playing everything. We just are not plugged in, so we aren’t actually heard.” About once a week, Batchler attends filming sessions
that tend to last the entire day. He never knows what the schedule will be before he arrives at the set. “Some days I’ll show up and then I’m immediately thrown into costume and then I’m just on set the entire day doing take after take of the same thing,” Batchler said. “And then some days I’ll get there and they’ll have me wait for a few hours before they actually need me, so I never really know what to expect until I get there. They don’t know what to expect until they start filming, and schedules get changed all the time. It’s a very evolving process.” Although Batchler is not allowed to approach the actors, he has met several of the them because they are allowed to approach him. “It’s just pretty cool to be there and know that what you’re doing today is going to be seen by a lot of people,” Batchler said. “Even if I’m just in the background of a few shots, it’s still really cool because I’m going to be on TV.”
Playwright teaches writing workshops By Tiffany Kim
Award-winning playwright John Walch, the nephew of performing arts teacher Ted Walch, taught three workshops for the playwrights’ festival Oct. 9-11. “[It] was a really great experience,” Talia Ratnavale ’17 said. “We explored the different ways in which we write about how we perceive the world, and it was... interesting to see the way another writer’s mind works.”
Walch gave students a starting line of a play and asked them to run with it and see where it took them. “As writers, we have to trust our instincts. That’s how things happen,” said Walch, who wrote “Double Time.” “The process is in the discovery.” Students also listed memories of youth, which they used to write a haiku. Walch said this excercise emphasized “an enormous amount of stories inside of them.”
Oct. 14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/features
Features B11
Students rehearse ‘Company’ musical
like cloud,” assistant director Teddy Leinbach ’15 said. “Just A semi-translucent mate- a fuzzy, indistinct feeling that rial called scrim hangs from really aids in the illusion and top to bottom on back of the in the feeling that this is an Rugby stage, adding a dream- abstract moment in time.” like feel to the set of the muThe center of the set is fosical, “Company,” which takes cused on a grand piano, which place entirely in a Walch said will gain 30-second time span a certain meaning in the head of the over the course of the main character. show. There will also “When you light be several objects it from the front, to be used as chairs everything that is or tables, but while behind it is not visthey are functional, ible,” performing arts they have no distinct teacher and musical shape. nathanson’s director Ted Walch With a small cast Autumn said. “When you light of only 18, the actors Witz ’15 it from behind, everyin “Company” feel thing that is behind closer to one another it is visible, and the scrim just than they felt in previous mudisappears.” sicals, which involved a very In Stephen Sondheim’s large group of students ac“Company,” a man finds him- cording to Autumn Witz ’15, self unattached on his 35th who plays Jenny, a close friend birthday with all of his friends of Robert. married or engaged. Played “The cast has really, reby Adam Yaron ’16 in the up- ally bonded,” Witz said. “We’re per school fall musical, now in getting a lot of work done. Alrehearsal, the character Rob- though the other thing is, you ert self-reflects in a series of can’t rely on anybody to pick seemingly unconnected vi- up your singing part.” gnettes. The actors will also all be The musical will be per- on stage at all times, which formed Nov. 14-16 in the Rug- means that they will have to by Auditorium. constantly stay in character Walch and Michele Spears and react to the action on produced this same musi- stage. cal several years ago, but this “They are always present time decided to emphasize the in his mind, they have to alillusory qualities of the musi- ways be in character, they’re cal. always on,” Leinbach said. “For example, in many When the characters are cases where you think there not in the scene, they may might be props, there are be wandering around in the none, they’re just imagined,” orchestra section, which will Walch said. “Because if you make the section much more are remembering something visually involved than in most you are remembering it in a musicals. different way.” “We have a really talentWalch and Spears con- ed cast and we are making ceived of the idea to use the huge improvements every day fabric to aid the imaginary which is excitig... Our direcfeeling, and Performing Arts tors have been really helpDepartment Head Rees Pugh ful on getting to know the and performing arts teacher show on a deeper level which Alex Kolmanovsky designed should make it an inerestand executed the set. ing experience for the audi“The material itself lends ence and cast alike,” Elizabeth a fluffy, dream-like quality, Edel ’16 said.
Improv groups to hold workshops
By Juliana Berger
By Kelly Riopelle
TERESA SUH/CHRONICLE
TWO’S COMPANY: Members of the cast of “Company,” rehearse in Rugby on Sunday. This year’s musical will open Nov. 14.
Cast List Bobby: Sarah: Harry: Jenny: David: Susan: Peter: Amy: Paul: Joanne: Larry: Vocal Minority:
Adam Yaron ’16 Morgan Brown ’15 Carlos Guanche ’16 Autumn Witz ’15 Noah Bennett ’15 Julia Safir ’15 James Hansen ’16 Katherine Calvert ’15 Will Hariton ’15 Dora Palmer ’15 Jacob Goodman ’15 Benny Weisman ’15 Elizabeth Gaba ’17 Henry Platt ’17 Cate Wolfen ’17 SOURCE: PERFORMING ARTS DEPARTMENT INFOGRAPHIC BY LIZ YOUNT
Chamber Singers bond while singing at retreat By Danielle Kaye
tional performance and joined together for remaining reSingers honed their group hearsals. performance and individual Private voice teacher Deskills during the 13th annual siree La Vertu, a friend of Chamber Singers Fall Retreat Guerrero’s, joined the retreat at Camp Wrightwood Sept. to coach sections. 5-6. In addition to singing and Performing arts teacher rehearsing, attendees particiRodger Guerrero, who chap- pated in a group discussion at eroned the the end of the retreat with retreat which accompanist was desiged to Sara Shaklibuild connec[The retreat] yan, organized tions with one was a great bonding the rehearsanother and experience, I think, for als. Chamber to discuss the Singers seceveryone, and we really coming year. tion leaders “[The regot to know each other treat] was a planned additional bonding great bonding better.” activities for experience, I —Elizabeth Gaba ’17 think for evthe 40 singers who attended eryone, and we the event. really got to “Each retreat is differ- know each other better,” firstent because of the students time attendee Elizabeth Gaba and music involved,” Guerrero ’17 said. said. Section leader Landon MARCELLA PARK /CHRONICLE Boys and girls were sepa- Fadel ’15 said that the retreat A CHORUS LINE: Choral arts teacher Rodger Guerrero instructs rated in some rehearsals to emphasizes building a unified Chamber Singers at the 13th annual retreat Sept. 5-6. improve aspects of their sec- choir.
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The two upper school improvisation troupes, the Scene Monkeys and the Jackanapes, will hold workshops on Oct. 24 and Oct. 30 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. “The upcoming workshops will consist of a variety of theater games to warm up returning improvisers and introduce the concepts to people doing improv for the first time,” Jensen McRae ’15 said. Both troupes are open to all students on campus and typically consist of 13-21 people. Auditions to be in the Scene Monkeys or Jackanapes begin on Nov. 7 and callbacks will be held on Nov. 8. The final callbacks and cast listing will be posted on Nov. 21. Once the troupes are cast, both troupes will rehearse Fridays from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., with additional rehearsals once they near show times. While the Scene Monkeys and the Jackanapes occasionally rehearse together, the majority of the time, they will rehearse separately.
Literary magazine to host writing seminars By Emily Rahhal
Stone-Cutters is holding writing workshops this year to create a bigger literary community on campus and increase submissions to the literary magazine. The series of workshops began Sept. 29 with a poetry workshop led by upper school English teacher Amber Caron. A fiction workshop was led by student editor Melanie Krassel ’15. All students have the opportunity to lead one of these workshops before Dec. 1, when submissions are due for Stone-Cutters’ first issue. In the past, “we never really were able to build up any kind of literary community around it,” Caron said. “We decided this year that part of what we wanted Stone-Cutters to do was give people a place to write and to think about art.” Caron said submission guidelines will be released at a later date. This year’s new literary editor, Kacey Bae ‘15, and the new arts editor, Danielle Stolz ’15 were chosen from an exceptionally large pool of applicants compared to past years, said Caron. This year will be the publication’s first year online. Krassel will be leading this movement as the arts editor. “Melanie is incredibly talented, and she would be a wonderful and a thoughtful person to put this into action,” Caron said.
B12 Features
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
Gone in a F ash Metallic, jewelry-inspired tattoos are the newest trend. Many wear the temporary tattoos at music festivals and to the beach, but they may not be here to stay.
By Carly Berger
collections vary in price between $20 to $30. While their Julia Safir ’15 cut out gold- popularity began during the en tattoos from a sheet. She spring, it grew throughout the took off the clear plastic cover summer. on top of the design and placed Tiana Gamble, co-owner of it face down on her arm. Safir Bikini Bird, an online retailer put a wet cloth over the de- of Flash Tattoos, said that sign and held it there for 30 they began selling the tattoos seconds. After peeling off the in January, however the masssheet, a shiny constellation of es began to know about them tattoos appeared on her skin, starting in June. Their highest and then she walked out the sales rates were in July and door to drive to the Coachella August. Valley Music and Arts Festi“I noticed them in the val. summer, because a lot of The metallic, jewelry-in- people were wearing them spired tattoos in their phoare temporary tos on FaceI think they had a book,” Nina tattoos that last between golden age, no pun Dubovitsky ’15 four to six days. said. “I loved intended, but since the way they Flash Tattoos, one brand that school is back in session, looked, and the produces these that they I think people need to fact accessories, were shiny.” let them go.” replicate highP l a n e t end jewelry Blue, LF stores —Julia Safir ’15 and Boutique brands Cartier and Van Cleef to You are & Arpel. stores that also sell Flash TatThe tattoos come in collec- toos. Kitson and Exhale yoga tions with three to four sheets studios sell different brands of and are given different names the metallic, jewelry-inspired such as Lena and Dakota. The tattoos.
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“The tattoos are very it is time to put the tattoos cutting edge because nobody away. has ever worn metallic “I think they had a golden tattoos,” Safir said. age, no pun intended, “They are more but since school is fashionable than back in session, I your typical dinosaur think people need to tattoos they sell at let them go,” Safir bowling alleys.” said. Safir discovered Safir believes that the tattoos at Planet flash tattoos were Blue while shopping just a trend, and she for clothes to wear does not think they nathanson’s to Coachella. She saw will retain their them at the register popularity like perJulia Safir ’15 and the shiny, manent tattoos. fashionable, tattoos intrigued “I would say I probably her. won’t remember them in 20 While many believe the years, but I can look back at tattoos are fashionable, others summer albums and see them think they are annoying, and featured for sure,” Safir said. have already gone out of style. Jones thinks that Flash “It’s so absolutely Tattoos are acceptable to ridiculous that people wear wear only if someone is going them because they are so to a music festival or a special obnoxious, especially because event, but she believes that it they are trying to copy is odd that people wore them designer jewelry,” Natalie all over their bodies in the Jones ’17 said. “All in all, flash summer. tats are terrible.” “I feel like the tattoos Some believe that Flash are just cool because of the Tattoos were appropriate to designs and the fact that they wear in the summer because are shiny, but overall they are of their summery style, but obnoxious and unnecessary to now that it is fall, they believe wear,” Jones said.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CARLY BERGER
Sports The Chronicle • Oct. 14, 2014
Cross Country
Girls adopt pack strategy to ensure victory
A League of their Own Boys’ water polo has left the competition in the dust and remains undefeated as they prepare to take on rival Mater Dei.
By Henry Vogel
By using the “pack running” strategy that encourages the entire team to run together, the girls cross country team is ranked first in the Mission League. The boys team is tied for second. “Running as a pack is a big part of how we are doing well because the girls are able to work together,” Cross Country Program Head Jonas Koolsbergen said. “They use the strength of the group to pull themselves forward and to put a number of placers in high positions in front of our opponents.” The strategy relies on the theory that to win, individual runners don’t need to win the overall race. The team just needs to have a lot of people placing near the top. Against Notre Dame, the girls’ biggest competition, for example, the squad deals with losing to Notre Dame’s number one and two runners, who are also top runners in the CIF, by placing as many runners as they can ahead of the third place finisher for Notre Dame. In the second Mission League meet, the entire team finished before Notre Dame’s third runner. The boys’ roster does not use the pack running strategy as often, Koolsbergen said. The squad’s best runners work together on one race plan, and the next tier of runners work together on their own race plan. The system still relies on group running, yet not to the same extent as the large pack the girls use. As of press time, the girls finished first in both Mission League meets. They have also completed three invitationals that have no bearing on their league standings. The boys finished third in the first Mission • Continued on page C7
MILA BARZDUKAS/CHRONICLE
SPLASH ZONE: Left-handed attacker Duncan Froomer ’16 looks for a shot in the water polo team’s game against Dana Hills on Sept. 16. Froomer scored twice and assisted on three goals. Their next game is today at 5 p.m. against Mater Dei at Copses Pool.
Wolverines win on Homecoming, gearing up for Mater Dei showdown By Mila Barzdukas
Aside from a 10-8 win over Mater Dei in the finals of the Santa Barbara Tournament Sept. 13, the boys’ water polo team has won every game this season so far by at least nine goals. But the Wolverines have a few more games left in the regular season that could be a threat to their goal of an undefeated season. Last Friday and Saturday, the squad traveled to Irvine’s Woollett Aquatic Center to compete in the S&R Tournament. As the top seed in the tournament, the Wolverines had an easy first day on Friday, defeating Clovis West 24-2 and then Long Beach Wilson 21-9 in the quarterfinals. “We had a few collapses on defense in the Long Beach Wilson game that should
never have happened,” Center Ben Hallock ’16 said. “But offensively we dominated the whole game.” A 21-9 rout of Sacred Heart advanced the squad past the semifinals. In the finals, Hallock scored six goals and attacker Johnny Hooper ’15 scored eight goals to beat Corona del Mar 22-7. Last year, the Wolverines won the tournament for the first time ever. The first place finish in the S&R Tournament combined with their unbeaten record has solidified the Wolverines as top dogs. “We definitely have a target on our backs,” starting goalkeeper Anthony Ridgley ’15 said. “I think we knew that even from the beginning of the season, very early on. A lot of players on the team play club [water polo] together and
even then we knew we were polo world. the team to beat.” It was previously thought Being the best is not a that Harvard-Westlake and huge shock to Ridgley. Mater Dei were the two best “Even last year Mater Dei teams in the pool, going 1-2 in was definitely more of a team various polls. However, Mater to beat than us and Dei recently lost by people were still out two goals to eighth to get us,” Ridgley ranked Long Beach said. “Every team Wilson, who in turn needs to bring their lost to sixth ranked best game against Huntington Beach us, so we’re used to 17-9. The Wolverines bringing our best evplayed Huntington ery game and taking Beach Oct. 2 and advantage of every beat them 15-3. nathanson’s possession, just as if “Long Beach Wilnathanson’s it’s CIF finals.” son beating Mater Anthony For the first time Dei was actually the Ridgley ’15 in two years, the upset of the season Wolverines face Mater Dei so far,” Hallock said. at the Copses Family Pool toThe only constant day at 5 p.m. The matchup is throughout the season is evgarnering a lot of attention, ery poll has named Harvardespecially since recent CIF Westlake as the number one Southern Section upsets have team to beat. caused ripples in the water • Continued on page C3
Field Hockey
Squad undefeated in Sunset League By Bennett Gross
SCOTT NUSSBAUM/CHRONICLE
SLAPSTICK: Claire Quinn ’16 protects the ball from an oncoming Fountain Valley defender. The Wolverines won 4-0 on Sept. 16.
As the postseason approaches, the Wolverines are continuing to excel in regular season play, winning seven of their last eight games and only allowing two goals in all of those games combined. The team has started 6-0 to begin their Sunset League schedule, and are 9-2 overall. Although starting goalie Daniela Grande ’16 has been unavailable in recent weeks due to nagging back and leg injuries, the team has not skipped a beat, as the Wolverines have shut their opposition out in six consecutive games.
A superb backline and strong team chemistry are the primary ways that the team has been able to mask its goaltending issues. While the team wants Grande in goal, they are confident that they can continue to be successful without her. “Even though Daniela Grande ’16 hasn’t been in net for the past couple of weeks, we have been able to win because we are a very strong, cohesive team,” Brooke Reese ’15 said. The team recently won its first Homecoming bout in two years, as last year’s game was canceled. This year, the team
easily handled Glendora 5-0. Along with a stout defense, the Wolverines’ production on offense has been nothing short of prolific. Not only have they shut out their recent opponents, but have handily beaten all of them, scoring at least five goals in each of their league games. “Although we lost a lot of seniors, and didn’t really know how it was going to work out, we have adjusted really well with the players currently on our team, and we are definitely making it all work,” Caitlin Neapole ’16 said. The Wolverines have two • Continued on page C6
The Chronicle
C2 Sports
Facts &
Figures
6
Years since the football team’s last 1,000 yard rusher.
67
Bryce Taylor’s ’04 player rating in basketball video game NBA 2K15.
13
Michael Genender’s ’15 national ranking for boys’ tennis.
209
Goal differential for the boys’ water polo team.
Game to watch OCT. 14 Water Polo vs. Mater Dei 5 p.m. @ Copses Family Pool
The squad is unbeaten in the Copses Family pool since 2012, when Mater Dei defeated the Wolverines in the CIF playoffs. This is the second matchup between the two teams this season.
KEY PLAYER
Anthony Ridgley ’15 Ridgley has only given up an average of 4.6 goals per game over his first 13 starts on the season. The threeyear starter is coming off of a shutout against Notre Dame and an impressive run at the S&R Tournament.
Martial artist wins at World Championships By Sammi Handler
she tries to incorporate into her daily life, she said. Kathryn Tian ’17 won “Besides teaching a sport, a gold medal as the U.S. [taekwondo] also teaches life representative at the World lessons,” Tian said. “I rememAssociation of Kickboxing ber learning taekwondo and Organizations Juniors and karate, the teachers always Cadets World Championships stressed integrity, honesty, in Italy in September. She was confidence, self-discipline and also named the “Best Female other life lessons like that.” Athlete” in the competition. Last April, Tian attended Tian competed in Italy a tryout tournament in Rhode Sept. 6-14 against 1,000 partic- Island, where judges chose ipants from countries across the top athletes to travel to the world, including Mexico Italy. To attend the tournaand Australia, as well as U.S. ment, WAKO suggested that teammates. the teams raise “I felt money through like I was fundraisers. I started because representing Tian and othI got bullied as a kid, my country er participants more than and my parents wanted used the social representing media site Weme to gain confidence myself,” Tian Chat and held said. and self-defense [skills].” barbeques to reShe comceive donations. —Kathryn Tian ‘17 peted in two They earned musical form approximately c ategories, $3,550. winning a gold medal in the “I think I gained a lot of hard style weapon category knowledge from both the tourfor a taekwondo routine, a sil- nament and the fundraising ver medal in the open-hand campaign,” Tian said. “I feel category with routines that I gained a lot of experience incorporated the elements of through them.” taekwondo, karate and gymTian started studying taenastics all choreographed to kwondo at age six at her parmusic. ents’ suggestion. “I trained a lot [for the “I started because I got bulcompetition],” Tian said. lied as a kid, and my parents “Over the summer I would wanted me to gain confidence mostly train in the morning and self-defense [skills],” Tian and in the night, but with said. “At first I didn’t really school I can only train at night like it, but I grew into it.” for usually one or two hours. She plans to continue pracSo, I feel like I trained well, ticing taekwondo and attend and that it paid off.” more competitions, but not as Taekwondo and karate frequently due to her school have taught her lessons that workload.
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By Jonathan Seymour
Next Meet: Oct. 24 @ Mt. SAC Invitational
Football (2-3-1) Next Game: Oct. 17 @ La Salle HS
Field Hockey (5-2-1) Next Game: Oct. 21 @ Glendora HS
Girls’ Golf (2-1) Next Match:
Oct. 22 @ Marymount HS
Girls’ Tennis (4-3) Next Match: Oct. 21 @ Notre Dame
Girls’ Volleyball (9-3)
Boys’ Water Polo (10-5) Next Game: Oct. 15 @ Alemany
KICKING BUTT: Kathryn Tian ’17, top, holds up her first place trophy at the end of the tournament. Above, Tian completes a flip.
Team aims to earn league victory against FSHA
Cross Country
Oct. 14 @ FSHA
PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF KATHRYN TIAN
Girls’ Volleyball
Junior Varsity
Next Match:
Oct. 14, 2014
JONATHAN SEYMOUR/CHRONICLE
FLEAN: Starting libero and co-captain Mila Barzdukas ’15 serves the ball in a game against Marymount. The team uses the term “flean” to describe their flat and clean serving.
After losing 3-1 to Marymount High School Oct. 9, the girls’ volleyball team’s league record is 0-3. In every game, the team’s motto of “All In” means that the girls fight until the end and put all of their effort in to winning every point. “I think since school started, the team has definitely reached its goal of becoming close with everyone on the team,” opposite Alex Florent ’15 said. “Because of that, we’ve really been able to play like a family.” In many of its games, the team jumps ahead with an early lead, only to lose that lead in the final few points. In one set against Notre Dame High School, the team reached 24 points, but the Knights took the set 26-24. “If volleyball games were played to 23 or 24 points, we would win every game,” said team captain and libero Mila Barzdukas ’15. “We just need to work on finishing our games a couple points later.” Middle Natalie Wiegand ’16 has consistently been one of the team’s leading scorers. Her hard-hitting spikes and effective blocks have been able to singlehandedly stop multiple streaks every game. However, her power in addition to setter Kaira-Muraoka Robertson’s ’16 consistent sets and point-saving dives were not enough to defeat the hard-
hitting Oaks Christian Lions the first set, 24 points in the in the Wolverines’ non-league second set and 17 points in homecoming match Sept. 27. the fourth set, only taking the This season, in accordance third set 26-24. with its “All In” motto, al“We are still getting in though it consistently has had the groove of things,” outside a one or two game deficit, the hitter Rachel Savage ’15 said. team has continued to fight “We are getting close to figurand play hard in every point. ing out how to balance disciple “We’ve been playing with and energy effectively.” every ounce of fight that we The Wolverines lost 3-2 to have in our games, and it’s Marlborough School Oct. 7 in definitely noticeable,” Florent their second league match, alsaid. though they reached set point Although the team has an multiple times in the three overall record of 6-10, its first sets that the Mustangs won. league match“In pracup wasn’t untice, we’ve been til halfway focusing on We are getting through the releasing, reclose to figuring season against grouping, and arch-rival refocusing afout how to balance Notre Dame ter each play discipline and energy High School so that we can Oct. 1. put our best efeffectively.” “The first fort into every —Rachel Savage ’15 play,” Florent month of school can be Outside Hitter said.In challenging to their adjust to, espethird league cially with a heavy volleyball matchup, which was against schedule,” outside hitter Josie the Marymount Sailors Oct. 9, Treadwell ’16 said. “To pre- the Wolverines lost 3-1, taking pare for our upcoming league the third set 25-19. games, the team has been foFlorent, who is six feet, cusing on refining skills and was sidelined with a hurt knee, replicating game-like scenari- which meant that the Wolveros in practice.” ines had a lack of height in the The Wolverines lost 3-1 in front row. However, outside their matchup against Notre hitter Truth Cole ’16, who is Dame, although both teams five feet six inches, was very were tough to the end of all effective as an opposite and four games. blocked multiple Sailor hits. Following the characterThe Wolverines’ next istic of the season, the Wol- league match is against Flinverines reached 22 points in tridge Sacred Heart Academy.
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Oct. 14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/sports
Boys’, girls’ athletic programs make top 5 in CIF Commissioner’s Cup rankings
By Jake Liker and Cole Jacobson
try and volleyball finished runners-up in the division and soccer made the semi-finals. Recognized for their sucHowever, Harvard-Westcess during the 2013-14 school lake’s 2013 field hockey title year, Harvard-Westlake Ath- was not included, as field letics placed in the top five hockey does not have the reof the CIF Southern Section quired 75 participant schools Commissioner’s Cup rankings in the region to qualify as a for both boys and girls. The CIF sanctioned sport. If inCommissioner’s Cup is a year- cluded, the Wolverines would long competition that rewards have 18 points and be in secathletic programs in the CIF ond place. for cumulative success in all The only other schools to sports. Neither the Wolverine make the top 10 for both genboys nor girls have placed in ders were Mater Dei and Oaks the top 10 since the 2010-11 Christian, a testament to the season. Wolv e r i n e s ’ The scorstrength ing system across all is based on facets of the teams’ postathletic pro[The ranking] season regram. is a tribute to our sults in the 13 Harvarddepartment heads, the CIF-SS sancWestlake has tioned sports. entire department, and won the cup Five points three times the athletes on the field.” since its deare given for a CIF-SS diin the —Darlene Bible but visional title, 1991-92 seaAthletic Director son: The girls three for a second-place won in 2000finish and two 01, 2001-02 are given to semifinalists. In and, most recently in 2009-10. sports that have a champion- The boys have never won a ship meet instead of a playoff Commissioner’s Cup title. bracket, such as cross country, “We at the CIF-SS are very track and field, and swimming, proud of these outstanding two points are given to third- programs for their hard work place finishers and one point and dedication that has resultto fourth place. ed in success on the field and The boys finished fifth out courts,” Comissioner of Athof over 500 schools, thanks to letics Rob Wigod said. “Their a divisional championship in determination and teamwork water polo, division runners- have resulted in experiences up in golf and tennis and a that will last them a lifetime.” third place division finish for “That’s what we always cross country. Mater Dei won strive for, it’s fantastic. It’s the boys title with 21 points. a tribute to our department On the girls’ side, the Wol- heads, the entire department, verines finished fourth place and the athletes on the field,” with 13, after track and field Athletic Director Darlene Biwon its division, cross coun- ble said.
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Final Commissioner’s Cup Rankings for 2013-2014 CIF-SS divisional title = 5 points CIF-SS second place finish = 3 points CIF-SS semifinalist = 2 points
Girls
Points
1. Santa Margarita 20 2. Oaks Christian 16 3. Mater Dei 16 4. Harvard-Westlake 13 5. Mira Costa 11 Boys
1. Mater Dei 2. Loyola 3. Oaks Christian 4. Laguna Beach 5. Harvard-Westlake
21 19 16 13 13
INFOGRAPHIC BY EMILY RAHHAL AND WILLIAM PARK
Boys’ Water Polo
First shutout recorded in 15-game win streak • Continued from page C1
MILA BARZDUKAS/CHRONICLE
YOU’RE BEAT: Attacker Evan Rosenfeld ’17, top, looks for a teammate to pass the ball to in a game against Huntington Beach. Above, Ben Hallock ’16 prepares to shoot against three defenders.
“Last year when we won we were still a young team and now we’re definitely the most experienced at everything,” Hooper. “We have eight seniors on the team this year which is crazy to think. We’re just really prepared for everything.” The shakeup of wins and losses in the Southern Section has been noted by the Wolverines, but attacker Jake McCabe ’15 says their team philosophy has not changed. “We want to crush Long Beach [Wilson] to send the message that we’re at the top,” McCabe said. The teams will play each other Oct. 27 at Copses Family Pool. The Wolverines have not lost a game in their pool since 2012, and they plan to keep that streak alive even as they play the next best team in the nation. “I think we’re going to be out for blood a little bit,” Ridgley said. “They beat us at their home pool last year and we thought we had them, so I think it’s time to take it back to them in our home pool in front of our home crowd. We just want to show them early
on that they won’t be able to compete with us come the end of season.” While the team does not want to shift their entire focus to one seasonal game, center Raphael Raede ’15 knows it is important. “We want to win CIF again,” Raede said. “And to do that, you have to go through Mater Dei. Mater Dei is much closer to us in terms of skill than any other team.” League play opened on Homecoming against Notre Dame, resulting in their first shutout of the season. Ridgley was pleased with the outcome, but did not expect anything less from the team. “I feel like [a shutout] is something that we always strive for,” Ridgley said. “We always set goals for ourselves limiting how many goals we give to the other team. I feel like it was a very realistic goal to shut out this team. We had a defensive emphasis going into the game, and we accomplished that, which is good.” The Wolverines travel to Alemany tomorrow for their second league game. Last year, the Wolverines beat the Warriors 20-1.
Sports C3
inbrief
Giolito wins pitcher of the year award The Washington Nationals honored former Wolverine pitcher Lucas Giolito ’12 as pitcher of the year in the Nationals’ minor league system. Giolito, after a year of rehab on his elbow following Tommy John Surgery, went 10-2 with a 2.20 ERA for the Class A Hagerstown Suns, and paced the team with 110 strikeouts. “It’s an absolute honor,” Giolito told the Washington Post. “I wasn’t expecting it at all. I was going into this year looking to build some innings up and work on my game and give the team a chance to win and just have fun.” —Rian Ratnavale
Taylor ’04 featured in NBA video game
Shooting guard Bryce Taylor ’04 has been included in the popular basketball video game NBA 2K15, as his FC Bayern Munich team, which plays in the German “Basketball Bundesliga,” is an option for players of the video game to use in action. Taylor averaged 8.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game in 23.5 minutes during the 2013-14 season in which his team won the league title. Taylor led the Wolverines to three consecutive CIFSS divisional titles and set a still-standing all-time scoring record with 2676 points in his varsity career. Taylor’s prowess was recognized when he was picked second overall, behind Jason Collins ‘97, in the May 2014 Big Red HarvardWestlake Basketball Alumni Fantasy Draft. —Cole Jacobson
Rower to attend Columbia University
Sabrina Zaks ’15 committed to Columbia University. She will participate in their Division I rowing program. Zaks has rowed for the Marina Aquatic Center for the past three years and will row for them this year as well. She chose Columbia University because her brother, Michael Zaks ’13, is a current sophomore there, and she likes New York. “I can’t wait to row for four more years during college and improve even further,” Zaks said. “This sport has pushed me to my limits, and taught me that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. Dedication is all that matters.” —Teresa Suh
Football team ranks 10th in local poll
The football team made the CIF-SS’s coaches poll for the first time this season, coming in at tenth place in the Southeast Division. Three other Angelus League members made the list. The undefeated Saint Francis Golden Knights ranked first, fellow unbeaten team Cathedral was fourth and Salesian ranked seventh, despite their 2-3 record. A group of coaches in the CIF-SS Football Coaches Advisory Committee vote and create the rankings weekly. —Joe Levin
The Chronicle
C4 Sports
Oct. 14,
HENRY VOGEL/CHRONICLE
H omecoming W rap-up V
olleyball
F
ield Hockey
JONATHAN SEYMOUR/CHRONICLE
Opponent: Oaks Christian Result: Loss Score: 1-3 The girls' volleyball team lost on Homecoming in four games to Oaks Christian. The Wolverines reached 22 points in the first game, 24 points in the second game and
17 points in the fourth game. After starting the year with a 6-3 record, the squad has lost its last seven and now holds a 6-10 overall record with an 0-3 league record.
BENNETT GROSS/CHRONICLE
Opponent: Glendora Result: Win Score: 5-0 The varsity field hockey team, coached by Erin Creznic and led by captains Maddie Oswald ’15 and Jessica Spitz ’15, won their second league game of the season
against Glendora High School at Homecoming with a score of 5-0. The squad has won all six of its league games, allowing zero goals and scoring 42 in the process.
W ater Polo F ootball MILA BARZDUKAS/CHRONICLE
Opponent: Notre Dame Result: Win Score: 22-0 The boys water polo team continued its undefeated season on Homecoming with a 22-0 win against Notre Dame. The squad has outscored other teams with a total score of 210-50. The biggest margin was on Homecoming.
The team, which finished as the number one rated water polo team in the country last year with an overall record of 26-3, now has a 12-0 overall record with a 1-0 league record. The team will play rival Loyola High School Oct. 21.
HENRY VOGEL/CHRONICLE
Opponent: Westchester Result: Win Score: 49-9 The football team won its \ Homecoming matchup against Westchester High School with a score of 49-9. The team was dominant the entire game, including scoring 42 in a row by the beginning of the third quarter.
The squad avenged last year’s 4518 loss against Palisades Charter High School on Homecoming and won the first homecoming football game since 2011. The boys are now 4-2 with an 0-1 league record. The team has four league games left.
t.
14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/sports
Sports C5
Football
HENRY VOGEL/CHRONICLE
GRIDIRON GRIT: Clockwise from top left, Desmond Butler '15 tracks the quarterback across the field and stares down the oppostion before the snap. Marshal Cohen '16 runs a quarterback keeper to the sideline. Garrett Robinson '15 breaks a tackle en route to a touchdown against Pali. Noah Rothman '16 receives the snap against Taft. Alec Dominick '15 rushes the Taft quarterback from the defensive end position. The team has four wins and two losses.
4-game winning streak ends in loss to St. Francis By Tyler Graham
potent St. Francis offense to 23 points below their After rattling off four season average. Going into straight wins, the football halftime, the teams were team suffered their tied at 7 before St. Francis second loss of the season began to pull away. at the hands of their first After surrendering 48 Angelus League opponent, points to archrival Loyola, St. Francis, losing the defense has by a score of 21-7. allowed an average The team currently of only 14 points holds a 4-2 overall per game. record, and an 0-1 “So far I think league record. the season has St. Francis is the been going pretty top ranked team in well,” running back the CIF Southern Garrett Robinson Section Division 5 ’15 said. “With the ’ and had not scored win over Pali and Garrett less than 35 points the close game with Robinson ’15 prior to last Friday’s St. Francis, I think game. The Wolverines’ lone we’ve seen that we can touchdown came on a two- compete with good teams. I yard run by running back hope that going forward we Garrett Robinson can make things ’15. happen and come “Losing to home with more St. Francis was victories.” tough, but I was Butler had his still proud of the best defensive team,” linebacker performance Desmond Butler ’15 of the season said. “St. Francis is in the team’s ’ supposed to be the 37-21 win over Desmond class of our league Palisades Charter Butler '15 and we went toe-toHigh School toe with them. There’s a lot Oct. 2. Butler recorded of good to take away from an interception, forced a the game and a lot we still fumble and recovered a need to work on.” blocked punt. Defensive The defense held the end Olan Moon-White ’15 nathanson s
nathanson s
also had a big game against Instead, St. Francis Pali, logging five sacks capitalized on the mental and scoring a defensive mistake and scored a touchdown. touchdown to give them a The squad’s four game 21-7 lead. winning streak included “We just have to play wins over Granada Hills, smart, eliminate the Pali, Taft and Westchester. unnecessary penalties Harvard-Westlake won and capitalize on offense,” by more than 16 points in Butler said. “I think last all four games. [Friday] was positive in “We’ve done really well that it showed us we can at communicating and play with anyone in our being aggressive to the league. I think we’ll have ball on defense, and have a lot of success moving been pretty forward as successful long as we do m o v i n g what we are I think we'll the ball supposed to have a lot of success offensively,” and give great moving forward as long effort.” Butler said. The team On the as we do what we are has struggled offensive side supposed to and give a w i t h of the ball, great effort.” committing the team’s unnecessary —Desmond Butler ’15 strength has penalties. been their Against Taft r u n n i n g the special teams unit attack, led by Robinson and committed three roughing dual-threat quarterback the punters, and against Marshal Cohen ’16. St. Francis the team was Through five games, the flagged for a roughing the team has averaged 268 passer at a key stage of rushing yards per game, the game. The roughing 116 of which come from the passer call negated Robinson. Robinson has an interception by Phillip nine rushing touchdowns Smith ’15, which would on the season. Cohen made have put the Wolverines in his first start of the season a position to tie the game against Taft after sitting at 14 in the third quarter. out 11 months with a knee
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injury. Ryan Dominick ’17 and Noah Rothman ’16 saw snaps at quarterback during Cohen’s absence. “I think the running game has been pretty successful because we cause a lot of misdirection and confusion,” Robinson said. “We try to fake defenders out and keep them guessing.” One of Robinson’s rushing touchdowns came in front of a huge crowd in the team’s 49-9 win over Westchester on Homecoming. Cohen also added two touchdowns to the offensive output: one through the air to Dominick, and one on the ground with a 15-yard rushing touchdown. The defense pitched a shutout for more than three quarters and the team was leading by as much as 42 points before giving up a safety late in the game. “It’s always good to get a win, especially on Homecoming,” Head Coach Scot Ruggles said. “We played hard and I’m very proud of our effort. Defensively we played great, the whole defense was awesome.” The team will next face La Salle Friday.
C6 Sports
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
Girls’ Golf
Young squad excels in Mission League play By Cameron Stine and Dario Madyoon
The varsity girls’ golf team will head to the Mission League finals with a 7-1 overall record and a 6-1 record in league play. Their only loss this year was to their main rival, the currently undefeated Notre Dame Knights, who took first place in the Mission League last year. This year’s loss was by only 15 strokes compared to last year’s loss by 28 strokes. “Like any loss, we were disappointed, but we are still very optimistic, as we lost by much less this year than we did last year,” Rachel Madhogarhia ’17 said. Furthermore, all of Notre Dame’s top four scorers were seniors in the game, while Harvard-Westlake’s top two scorers were both freshmen. This season, the team does not have any seniors, which ensures they will not lose any core players, while Notre Dame will be hit hard by graduation. “A freshman [either Karina Gou ‘18 or Josie Baker ‘18] has led us in scoring every game this year,” Madhogarhia said. “This should work to our advantage next year.” The team responded to the
Notre Dame loss with a huge victory over its new Mission League foe, Marlborough School, in an important win on Oct. 7 with a score of 208215. Led by its young stars, the team has been doing well and is on a three-game winning streak heading into the postseason. “Being a freshman on the varsity team has been really great, especially since I’ve been able to learn from all the more experienced players on the team,” Josie Baker ’18 said. The team is preparing for the upcoming league finals on Oct. 23 with a chance to beat Notre Dame and claim first place in the Mission League. “We are very excited for our chance to play Notre Dame again,” Madhogarhia said. “Recently, we have been focusing more on our mental game, a new strategy we hope will improve our playing.” The first ever girls’ JV team has also had a successful start to the year, defeating Marymount and splitting a series with Marlborough. “The JV team is a great atmosphere for improvement and building skills while achieving a goal,” JV team captain Isobel Phillips ’17 said.
COLE JACOBSON/CHRONICLE
PUTTING ALONG: Karina Guo ’18 putts the ball from the rough Sept. 4 at Rancho Park and watches as it rolls toward the hole during the girls’ golf team’s 226-275 win against Marymount High School.
Girls’ Tennis
Team strives to uphold Mission League legacy
By Audrey Wilson
AUDREY WILSON/CHRONICLE
AUDREY WILSON/CHRONICLE
SERVING IT UP: During the girls’ tennis team’s 9-9 non-league loss to Santa Barbara High School Oct. 8, Juliana Simon ’16 (top) goes up for a smash while her partner Joelle Choi ’16 waits at the baseline for their opponents’ return in their doubles match at the Los Angeles Valley College tennis courts. Jenna Moustafa ’17 (bottom) returns the ball from the baseline with a forehand in the same match.
in the following two nonleague games suffering a close Despite falling 81-69 to loss to Beverly Hills 78-72 Oct. Santa Barbara in a non-league 17 and falling 15-3 to main rimatch Oct. 8, the girls’ ten- val Peninsula Oct. 18. nis team remains undefeatIn the first league match ed in league and aims to win of the season Oct. 30, the girls its eighth-straight Mission made a strong return, trumpLeague title. ing Marymount 12-6. “I think the team has Once again, Moustafa worked really hard so far this dominated singles and Joelle year,” Sophie Cohen ’17 said. Choi ’16 played solidly in her “We have played really well doubles matches. Choi’s partand we are improving as we go ner Juliana Simon ’16 returned on, game after game, and we to the courts this season after are only getting better from being out for two and a half here.” years with a back injury. SiHistorically, the girls have mon is limiting her playing fallen to top teams Santa Bar- time to protect her back. bara and Peninsula every year The Wolverines continin playoffs. Although they lost ued to win their following to both teams again league games defeatthis year, 81-69 and ing Notre Dame 10-8, 15-3 respectively, Marlborough 12-6 and the point difference Louisville 15-3. is significantly closWith a sevener than in previous year string of Misyears. sion League titles, the In the match squad has pressure to against Santa Barbacontinue its legacy. ra, doubles partners “I’m looking forand co-captains Arin ward to playoffs benathanson’s Schwimmer ’15 and cause as a team we Arin Paige Moelis ’15 were have improved so Schwimmer ’15 down 2-5 early in the much that we will rematch, but won the ally be able to do well next five consecutive sets to and prove ourselves and dewin 7-5. fend our Mission League title,” “[Santa Barbara is] always Cohen said. great competition and their Schwimmer hopes the doubles are what we strive to pressure will motivate the play like,” Schwimmer said of team to play at its highest the match. level. Moelis credits the team’s The team heads into its success so far to the overall next match against Notre improved team camaraderie. Dame High School Oct. 21 In the season opener ready to uphold their undeagainst Palos Verdes Oct. 9, feated status and continue Jenna Moustafa ’17 led the their path to victory. team to an 11-7 victory, sweep“All in all, the team has a ing all three singles matches. great vibe and we are a truly The Wolverines struggled competitive team,” Moelis said.
Oct. 14, 2014
hwchronicle.com/sports
Sports C7
Cross Country
New tactics lead to wins • Continued from page C1
AUDREY WILSON/CHRONICLE
ON YOUR RIGHT: Jeffrey Ehlers ’16 (left) passes a runner from St. Francis while Henry Roskin ’16 (right) follows close behind a Notre Dame runner during the boys’ cross country team’s second league meet at Crescenta Valley Park Oct. 2. The team took second at the meet.
League meet and second in the second one. They are tied with Bishop Alemany for second place behind Loyola. Though runners have not sustained any serious injuries this season, though they are being cautious because they want to be at their best for the postseason, Koolsbergen said. The squad has one more invitational Oct. 24 before league finals Nov. 5. Depending on the team’s results, the it can potentially advance to CIF preliminaries Nov. 15, CIF finals Nov. 22 and California State Championships Nov. 29.
Field Hockey
Team shoots to repeat win • Continued from page C1 regular season games left until the playoffs. The team hopes to go undefeated in league and repeat as Los Angeles Field Hockey Association champions. “Right now we are on a winning streak, and we want to continue winning, so we can place first in our league and have a good seed going into the playoffs,” Neapole said.
BENNETT GROSS/CHRONICLE
SHOWDOWN: Mia Reilly ’18 fights a Marina High School defender for the ball in the field hockey team’s non-league 5-1 victory Sept. 9.
C8 Sports
The Chronicle
Oct. 14, 2014
Stick It
Q&A with Maddie Oswald ’15 SCOTT NUSSBAUM/CHRONICLE
DRIVNG FORCE: Maddie Oswald ’15 passes the ball to an open teammate up field against Fountain Valley High School Sept. 16. The Wolverines defeated the Barons 4-0.
By Bennett Gross
What made you decide to start playing field hockey, and how old were you when you started? I played AYSO and Elite Club soccer competitively since I was about 10. After our seventh grade team went undefeated and won our league, several of my teammates recommended that we play spring field hockey just to stay in shape during the off-season. The game’s strategy, passing the ball and movement with and without the ball is very similar to that of soccer. After the first practice in seventh grade I knew I was hooked.
What are your individual and team goals for the rest of the season? I’d like to help my team win a third consecutive Sunset League Championship and ideally win a second consecutive LAFHA Crown. But honestly, I have to say that we just want to bring our best selves to each game, one game at a time. If we do that, I think we are going to win more games and bring home more championships. For me, personally, I’d like to finish my Harvard-Westlake career on a real positive note. January through June of next year I will be concentrating on improving my passing, my shots and my defense, so I can be ready to make a real contribution to my Georgetown team come August.
How do you prepare for each game mentally, physically and emotionally? Coach [Erin] Creznic prepares us well during the week with set plays, practicing short and long corners, moving the ball up the field and, of course, fitness. In terms of the mental and emotional side, I do a couple of things to prepare. First, I spend some time pre-game visualizing how the game might go. I close my eyes and run through how I will move down the field, how I will get past a defender and how I will hit the ball on a shot. Second, I always remind myself to focus on the fundamentals: look up and see the field, know where and how the defense is playing, where my teammates are positioned and how my team can gain an advantage. Finally, I listen to pump up music to get hyped and ready for the game.
How do you train for field hockey, and what is the time commitment like? My training for field hockey involves four key parts: stick skills, passing and moving with and without the ball, strength-training, and most importantly fitness. During the school season, we work out three days a week, and usually play two games a week. Over the past couple of years, I drove to Moorpark College for one- to two-hour work outs with one of my club coaches, Shawn Nakamura, multiple times a month to further hone in on my stick skills, hits, passing, and moves to the goal. Nakamura recently retired from the U.S. Men’s National Team. After the school season, I play with a U19 and adult club. From January to April, I worked out with the Futures program, the U.S. Field Hockey Association Development Program. I attended seven college field hockey camps the past two summers (University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Dartmouth, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford, Harvard, Johns Hopkins and Georgetown). I usually try not to pick up my hockey stick for about three to four weeks in late July, early August and then everything kicks in again in mid-August.
What has been the most memorable moment of your Harvard-Westlake career thus far? Beating Edison 2-0 and winning the Los Angeles Field Hockey Association Championship last year has to be my most memorable moment so far. Scoring the first goal and assisting on the second goal at the Edison game were exhilarating moments and will always be special moments.
20
21
Goals
Assists
1
4-Goal Game
What most excites you about playing for Georgetown next year? I had a chance to meet the whole team and spend more time with Head Coach Shannon Soares and Assistant Coach Shelly Montgomery when I went to Washington, D.C. for my official visit a few weeks ago. I really like the coaches and my teammates, including the Class of 2015 recruits, and I am really looking forward to working hard and immediately helping the Hoyas move up the standings in the Big East. I also can’t wait to live and study in Georgetown—it’s such an incredible place.
Stats:
NATHANSON’S
2
Hat-Tricks
4
2-Goal Games