November 2022 Issue

Honoring Jameson McMullen

By Averie Perrin and Connor Tang

Jameson McMullen ’19 passed away Oct. 13 at Brown University.

McMullen, 22, was entering his senior year of college at Brown University, where he was a member of the swim team. He graduated cum laude from Harvard-Westlake and was captain of the swimming and diving team, holding records in the 100 and 200 meter free.

Athletic Director of Aquatics Darlene Bible said McMullen was talented and engaged and an im portant part of the school’s swim ming program since his youth.

“Jameson or Jamo, is what everyone called him since he was little, was a bright, talented, thoughtful, beautiful young man,” Bible said. “He swam for me at Los Angeles Swim Club when he was young, and he later volunteered and lifeguarded for me with the [Summer Enrichment Program] SEP at the Middle School. I was his swimming age group coach when he was just a young man and of course followed his career and supported his swimming once he came here to Harvard-Westlake.”

Bible said that she found Mc Mullen to be extremely kind, sup portive and attentive during her time working with him.

“He was patient and caring,” Bible said. “He was shy, but ath letic and competitive. I remem ber him as a young swimmer lis tening well, working hard, being a natural in the water and loving his teammates.”

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Student performers bring activism to the stage with “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later”

By Davis Marks and Alden Detmer

The Performing Arts Depart ment opened the fall play, “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later,” to audiences in Rugby Theater on Oct. 28, 29 and 30. The show centers on how the community of Laramie, Wyoming grappled with the murder of Matthew Shepard in an infamous hate crime that took place in their town ten years prior.

In October 1998, Matthew Shepard, a gay college student,

was brutally beaten and left to die on the outskirts of the town. The hate crime received internation al attention, leading the Tectonic Theater Project to travel to Lara mie and interview residents of the town. The result of the interviews was “The Laramie Project,” a play that examines the town’s reaction to the murder and the implicit ha tred that enabled it.

Written a decade later, “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Lat er” is the sequel to “The Laramie Project.” The show examines how Laramie residents made excuses

to avoid dealing with Matthew Shepard’s murder and how hate, ignorance and the spread of misin formation can mold a community. In an interview with The Chronicle, Judy Shepard, Matthew Shepard’s mother, said performing “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later” provides a uniquely impact ful educational experience.

“It’s a life-altering experience for everybody who participates in this [play],” Shepard said. “I don’t think they realize when they take it on [that] it educates folks in a way that I don’t think

they expect. It still engages some level of controversy in communi ties, so I am very proud of anyone who takes it on because it can be a challenge.”

Both shows use verbatim the ater, a form of documentary the ater that uses the exact words of real people. The school previously put on productions of ‘The Lara mie Project’ in 2005 and 2012, both directed by former Perform ing Arts Teacher Ted Walch. This year’s production honored Walch on the ten year anniversary of his final production of the show.

Ben Freeman speaks on antisemitism

By Alex Dinh And Sammy Glassman

A2

Sky High: Daniel Katz ’09 is promoted to the Thunderbird Squad ron, which performs air demonstrations with F-16s.

B6

Assimilation Frustration: Immigrant students share their experiences and strug gles with fitting in both at the school and in America.

Jewish author, educator and DEI specialist Ben Freeman spoke to the Upper School on Oct. 25 following recent inci dents of antisemitism.

Freeman was brought in to speak soon after several Nazi swas tikas and the words “Hitler Rocks” were found carved into an upper school desk. This was part of a larg er response to the incident, which was outlined in that same email.

Freeman spoke about antisemi tism, hate speech and the impor tance of communities.

Freeman said there has been a long history of antisemitism, which goes well beyond the antisemitic acts that occurred at the school.

“It is a miracle that I am stand ing here in Harvard-Westlake, in 2022 and we are talking about Jewish identity,” Freeman said.

to a much deeper history [of an tisemitism], which stretches back thousands of years.”

Middle East Studies Teacher and Jewish Club Advisor Dror Yaron said Freeman’s definition of antisemitism as a series of stereotypes resonated with him.

“One very import ant point that Freeman made is that antisemi tism is not merely an other iteration of racism against Jews,” Yaron said. “Antisemitism is an insidious conspiracy theory, which holds that Jews are disproportion ately powerful imposters and swindlers. This type of con spiracy theory currently emanates from both the right and left of the political spectrum.”

Freeman said that being Jewish extends beyond religion.

It’s not really about that for me. It’s about the way I was born, the com munity that I was born into, the history that I belong to, the lineage [and] the ancestry.”

Jewish Club Leader Charlotte Newman ’24 said Freeman’s speech effectively connected the history of antisemitism and recent events.

“I’m really glad he talked about historical antisemitism, like blood libel and economic li bel,” Newman said. “I thought that was very important and he did a really good job integrat ing that into the discus sion about what hap pened at school.”

Newman said she is hoping that more people, not just Jewish stu dents, will attend Jewish Club to continue to talk about the issues Freeman mentioned in his speech.

Ye or Nay?: Community members debate whether you can sep arate art from the artist after Ye’s antisemitic statements.

A Message From Math: Math Teacher Derric Chien shares his story with math and urges students to be comfortable with uncertainty.

“The reason that it is a miracle is because of the long history of Jew hatred. There was an incident at Harvard-Westlake where a swastika was carved into a desk. And that may be an incident at this school, this year, in this country and this city. But it is something connected

“There’s a misconception that to be Jewish is thought of as simply a religious identity,” Freeman said. “I wear a Star of David necklace and a Kippah to show the world that I’m a proud Jew. Not to show the world that I believe in God, or I believe certain things or a faith.

“I’m hoping that more people and not just Jewish people will come to Jewish Club because I think having that space is real ly good,” Newman said. “I also think it’ll be good because peo ple are just more aware of the fact that [antisemitism] is real.”

ILLUMINATING INTERVIEWS: Carter Staggs ’23, in character as Tectonic Theater Project member Greg Pierotti, interviews Elise Fried ’24 and Clara Berg ’25, in character as Reggie Flute and Marge Murray, respectively. The play uses the real words of Laramie residents gathered through interviews.

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF WOO SIM

Whites Dror Yaron

Jewish activist speaks

Freeman also spoke about antisemitic comments that rap per Ye (born Kanye West) made on Twitter. Freeman displayed a picture of West’s hateful tweet, and said the ideas West is shar ing are racist and dangerous.

“I want to say very clearly the things [West] said are not funny, and they are racist,” Freeman said. “The idea that Jews are rich and powerful, and that Jews control the world is something which has led to the murder of Jewish people.”

Jewish people constitute only about 2.4% of the total population in the United States, but were on the receiving end of 54.9 percent of all religiously motivated hate crimes in 2020, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s 2020 Hate Crimes Statistics.

Eric Vartany ’24 said it was im portant that Freeman spoke to the school in light of recent antisemi tism in the community.

“I thought it was very enlight ening given the current situation at Harvard-Westlake and the tweet by Kanye that has sparked antisemitism in Los Angeles and around the world,” Vartany said. “It was very important to hear how antisemitism is still present today and look at the history of how it evolved over time.”

Member of Jewish Club Aviv Pilipski ’25 said he appreciated how quickly the school arranged a speaker to talk about antisemi tism and how to combat it.

“It was really impressive that the school took the initiative to bring someone to talk about an tisemitism from the perspective of a high school and on the glob al scale,” Pilipski said. “I think it is an important conversation that really isn’t brought up a lot in high schools around the U.S.”

Daniel Katz ’09 selected as a Thunderbird for the USAF Air Demonstration Squadron

By Everett Lakey

Air Force Capt. Daniel Katz ’09 was promoted in July to the Thunderbird Squadron, which flies during air demonstrations by the Air Force. The perfor mances showcase both the pi lots’ skills and the capabilities of the F-16 Fighting Falcon, the aircraft that the squadron uses.

The Thunderbirds Squad ron tours the United States and much of the world, performing aerobatic formation and solo flying in specially marked air craft. The squad is an Air Com bat Command unit made up of 8 pilots, 4 support officers, 3 civilians and over 130 enlisted personnel, according to the Air Force’s website.

After graduating from Harvard-Westlake, Katz stud ied Science and Economics at

the Air Force Academy, where he also became an officer. He then went to pilot training in Columbus, Mississippi, and later at the Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, where he trained to be a specialist in the F-16 aircraft.

To be accepted into the squadron, Katz said he had to complete a nine-month applica tion process that included creat ing a resume, collecting flying evaluations from his career in the military and getting recom mendations from commanders.

“There’s like 35 applicants that had applied that have the qualifications to make it to the semi-finalists, then eight of us made it to the finals,” said Katz.

“From there, it’s the processes [of doing] loops and rolls with the commander. So you’re actu ally flying an airplane, [and] it’s

Garcetti ’88 explains allegations

By Davis Marks and Will Sherwood

Discussing his time as mayor with Los Angeles Magazine on Oct. 26, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti ’88 said he was a surivor of sexual harassment in high school. According to Garcetti’s Press Secre tary Harrison Wollman, the events recounted were not connected to Harvard School.

In the interview with LA Mag, Garcetti spoke publicly about being a survivor of sexual harass ment for the first time. At Colum bia University, Garcetti served as president of the National Student Coalition Against Harassment and spoke to congressional staff ers during the creation of the first Violence Against Women Act.

President Rick Commons said he felt sorry for Garcetti’s experi ence, but he was relieved to find out that the incident did not hap pen at Harvard School.

“My first thought was sadness for him,” Commons said. “My second thought was, if the inci dent took place while he was a stu dent at our school, and it involved

someone at the school, that we needed to look into it. So I reached out to the mayor and expressed my condolences and asked him if it involved someone related to the school, and if so, would he be willing to talk with me about it. I asked him if there’s anything that we could do to support him. He let me know that it was not someone associated with the school, [but] he appreciated the outreach, and ap preciated my thoughts.”

Head of Upper School Beth Slattery said Garcetti’s experience is a reminder about the current reali ties of sexual harassment, particu larly that anyone can be a victim.

“I’m a person who as an adult was the victim of sexual harass ment, and it’s something that I’m super conscious of,” Slattery said. “I think [Garcetti’s experience] is a good reminder that it can hap pen to boys too. I think that we automatically assume that this is a problem for [only] female-identi fying students. I just think we al ways have to be vigilant about that stuff and also depend on students to be vigilant.”

Students Against Sexual Vio

lence (SASV) Co-Leader Eloise Stoddard said that discussing the issue is an effective way to change the way people behave.

“Sexual violence, including ha rassment, is an issue that affects plenty of people, more than many would expect,” Stoddard said. “As someone who has seen firsthand how sexual violence affects people, I, and my fellow SASV leaders and members, recognize that the only way to prevent it in our communi ty and in the world is through peerto-peer education. Sharing how to protect yourself and others, proper sexual conduct, and how to report sexual violence in a way people feel comfortable with is how SASV hopes to contribute to a safe envi ronment for Harvard-Westlake.”

In April, Slattery sent out an email with the results of an anonymous survey about sexual harassment. The email said that 40% of respondents reported experiencing a comment of sex ual nature that was offensive, and 25% of respondents reported that someone touched or tried to touch them in a way that made them feel uncomfortable.

a much more intense interview process. And then you spend about four or five days with the team, and they just kind of get to know you a little better. We spend so much time with each other that you really spend more time with the team than our families back home, and they want to make sure that it’s a good match so that you can spend a lot of time on the road together and create a good fam ily environment."

Katz said he felt honored to have been selected for the Thunderbird squadron.

“It’s something I never thought would happen,” said Katz. “Coming from Los An geles, it’s pretty rare to try and join the military. It was just one of the things that I was kind of always interested in. And then to be selected is truly an honor.

It’s been a really, really amazing experience to be able to reach all over the U.S. [and] a little bit of Canada [and] hopefully in the next few years the world to con nect and inspire the next genera tion of Americans as well as just inspire people to give the best versions of themselves. That’s really what we’re all about.”

Katz said he hopes to talk to members of the school commu nity about his military experi ences in the future.

“I think [the military has] al lowed me to do things that I never thought I’d be able to do,” Katz said. “It’s allowed me to travel places and meet folks that are really one-of-a-kind. I think we have a couple of shows in Cal ifornia next year. So if anybody’s interested in coming, just have them reach out to me, and I’d be happy to show them around.”

PASSING WITH FLYING COLORS: Captain Daniel Katz ’09, who serves on the United States Air Force Demonstration Team, flies his number six plane upright during the 2022 Andrews Air Force Base airshow. Katz is pictured performing the calypso pass maneuver in an F-16.

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF GEORGE FENIMORE

BEFORE CITY HALL: Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti ’88 poses for his yearbook photo during his junior year at the Harvard School for Boys.

Community Council organizes yearly service week to encourage student participation

By Saisha Kumar

Community Council host ed their annual service week to introduce students to various community service opportunities from Nov. 3-11. The service op portunities are meant to facilitate giving back to the community through activities while also pro moting meaningful connections.

Angel City Sports representa tives spoke about their program and taught students how to play wheelchair basketball during class meeting blocks. Other ser vice week activities included let ter writing to senior citizens and a speaker from Ace of Hearts Dog Rescue on animal adoption, with students able to play with pup pies if they donated a toy to the organization. At the end of the week, Community Council gave free pie to students who submit ted six or more hours of commu nity service before Nov. 4.

Community Council member Sophie Shabani ’24 said service week exposes students to vari ous types of community service,

which is not only stimulating but also provides students with ways to find their own means of giving back to the community.

“There are literally endless dif ferent opportunities and organi zations that you can participate in,” Shabani said. “It’s import ant to find a service activity that you’re passionate about so every one can give back to the commu nity, whether it be [your] school, your neighborhood, your sport or anything else. Not only will it make you feel good, but it will also be fun.”

Community Council member Idalis McZeal ’23 said the most successful event was the wheel chair basketball game.

“Everyone really got into [the game] and I think that provided an opportunity for students to participate in the game to learn more about how difficult it is to actually be in a wheelchair,” McZeal said. “I feel like everyone learned a lot in the trivia. There was really high energy and every one was very supportive of peo ple who were playing the game,

which was obviously nice to see.”

Sasha Gadalov ’25 said she en joyed watching her peers partici pate in the Angel City wheelchair basketball game.

“[The Angel City basketball game] was very informative and shined a light on something that I really didn’t know a lot about before and it opened my eyes to new op portunities,” Gadalov said. “It was honestly a great experience and I have a lot of respect for the athletes [that performed].”

Gadalov said she was excited to be able to donate to the Ace of Hearts organization and play with the pup pies on the Quad.

“Bringing the puppies to school was a great idea,” Gadalov said. “Playing with the puppies brought me joy throughout the day since I was already stressed out with school.”

Laura McNary ’25 said she ap preciated writing letters to senior

Shepard Foundation speaks at HW

By Nathan Wang

Matthew Shepard Founda

tion

Executive Vice President

Jeff Mack and Associate Louis Sisneros spoke to students over Zoom in Rugby Theater Oct. 25. They discussed Matthew Shep ard’s story, the history of fighting for equality and the foundation’s effort to stop hate crimes.

In October 1998, Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old student at the University of Wyoming, was brutally murdered in one of the nation’s most infamous anti-gay hate crimes, according to the foundation’s website. Two months after Matthew Shep ard’s murder, his parents, Judy and Dennis Shepard, started the foundation to honor him and his story.

In an interview with The Chronicle, Judy Shepard said her message to young people looking to make a difference is that radical progress takes time.

“My advice to young activists

is to just be patient,” Judy Shep ard said. “We all are lit on fire when the cause comes to us, but nothing changes overnight. And persistence really is the key.”

Mack and Sisneros spoke to students in light of the school’s performance of the play “Lara mie Project: Ten Years Later.” The play depicts the stories of people living in Laramie, Wy oming, 10 years after Matthew Shepard was murdered there.

Sisneros said it is import ant to continue sharing Mat thew Shepard’s story to spread awareness about the enduring challenges the gay community faces as our society is continu ing to make progress towards LGBTQ equality.

“Lots of people haven’t heard [Shepard’s story],” Sisneros said. “So, hearing about it sort of re awakens the feeling that was na tionwide when it actually hap pened. It’s also the kind of story that sort of gets people to open their eyes and see things a little

bit differently.”

Zoe Roth ’24 said the speak ers’ message about how future generations can influence their communities resonated with her, as she expresses faith in a more caring, compassionate world.

“I really appreciated all their talk about hope for the future generation, hope for a better world and change in the awful people of the world,” Roth said.

“I believe it is important to re member Matthew because he represents a need for change.”

Judy Shepard said there have been changes in the way people view the LGBTQ community since Matthew Shepard’s murder.

“I think we need to expand the meaning of the story and relate it to what’s happening in today’s world,” Judy Shepard said. “This is a very different world than Matt’s world. And the gay community is far more accepted and recognized [but] still not to the extent that it should be.”

citizens during her lunch period.

“The letter writing activity was a good way to have a break from the academic school day,” McNary said. “It was fun to be able to do something that could brighten someone else’s day.

Anaya Olivas ’25 said service week is beneficial for students to get familiarized with community service op portunities at the be ginning of the year and explore ideas for service credit but also to think about the community with more perspective.

“I feel like a lot of times people are scram bling for community service hours [at the end of the year], but it’s important that they have this week so people can get some ideas or at least start thinking about it earlier in the school year,” Olivas said. “I definitely think it’s easy for students to get caught up in their own bubble and not really think of the grand scheme of the city or the world or anything.”

Former student dies at 22

During his time at the school, McMullen set multiple school records, competing individually in the CIF Division 1 finals and qualifying as an All-American. Head of Boys and Girls Swimming and Diving Jason Schwarz said McMullen’s pres ence as a competitor and a lead er in the Swimming and Diving program had a lasting impact on other athletes.

“With the team, he led by example and was so positive with his teammates.” Schwarz said. “He was encouraging to our younger athletes and would spend time with them, sharing his knowledge. [Jameson] was al ways ready to race and compete in the biggest meets like CIF and State. He was so depend able in that way. We always knew he would get his best when we needed it the most.”

Swimmer Benji Ham ’23 said he remembered McMul len personally as a role model, who left a lasting legacy on the swimming program.

“I was shocked and extreme ly sad at the news of Jameson’s death,” Ham said. “He was well known within the Harvard-West lake swimming community and my club team, so I’ve heard many stories about his fast swims and practices. Although I wasn’t real ly close to him, I got the chance to hang out with him once this past summer with some old team mates. We had conversations about collegiate swimming, and he had such a great vibe, which made the news of his death more shocking. I’ve gained so much re spect for him because of his work ethic and leadership skills that he displayed throughout his time at Harvard-Westlake and in college.”

A GoFundMe started to bring McMullen home and host a cele bration of his life raised $87,861. The celebration will be held at Bel Air Church on Nov. 26.

MORE THAN A GAME: Students participate in the annual Community Service Week during a session of wheelchair basketball in Taper Gym. The game was part of a visit from Angel City Sports, which aims to familiarize students with athletic activities for the disabled community.

SAISHA KUMAR/CHRONICLE

SPREADING AWARENESS: Carter Staggs ’23 performs in the “Laramie Project: Ten Years Later,” shedding light on LGBTQ rights.

Sophie Shabani ’24

School hosts sixth Pollyanna

By Jade Harris and Jayan Kandavel

The school hosted 21 schools and approximately 350 student representatives for its sixth annu al Pollyanna Conference on Oct. 22. The conference aims to help schools improve their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) pol icies, and this year’s theme was “Teamwork is the Heartbeat: Building Communities of Inclu sion Through Collaboration.”

Pollyanna Inc., which part ners with the school to hold the conference, is a national nonprofit that works to help educational institutions achieve their DEI goals, according to its website. The Pollyanna confer ence model aims to deliver an interactive program, providing leaders with the training needed to understand how diversity can impact their communities.

Head of DEI Janine Jones said the conference’s theme of team work was relevant to all attendees.

“The goal this year was to dis cover ways that we can work to gether instead of separately,” Jones said. “In addition, we were partic ularly interested in this topic given that the word ‘unite’ is in the Har

vard-Westlake mission statement. We truly believe that we will go farther if we go together.”

Jones said this year’s confer ence was crucial in light of hate ful acts on campus, including the discovery of antisemitic carvings on a school desk.

“[The conference] is especially important because hate has no place in the world, in schools, or at Harvard-Westlake specifical ly,” Jones said. “When we gath er with a shared commitment to building diverse and inclusive communities, we are taking a few steps forward to eliminate

hate from our respective com munities and the world at large.”

This year, the keynote speaker was Chief Inclusion and Diver sity Officer Nzinga Shaw, who has worked at organizations in cluding the National Basketball Association’s Atlanta Hawks and Starbucks. Shaw shared case studies of her work in the National Basketball Association and National Football League to show how working collaborative ly leads to success.

Middle School Dean, Student Leadership Teacher and DEI Coordinator John Carroll said

BLACC holds screening of “Till” and panel for discussion afterwards

By Sara Segil

Black Leadership Awareness and Culture Club (BLACC) sponsored a screening of the new film “Till” Nov. 6. Till is a bi ographical film about Mamie Till-Mobley’s social justice work following the murder of her son Emmett in 1955.

Emmett Till was 14 years old when Mississippi grocery store cashier Carolyn Bryant per ceived him to be flirting with her. Carolyn’s step-brother and husband, who were both white, abducted and lynched Till the

following day.

Following Emmett Till’s death, Mamie Till helped spread his story during the Civil Rights Movement. She went on a pub lic speaking tour with NAACP across the nation and spent 23 years as a public school teacher in Chicago. In addition, Mamie Till created the “Emmett Till Players,” a theatre group that worked with children.

BLACC member Hannah Messaye ’23 said the screening was a valuable opportunity to learn about the lynching and re sulting political activism.

“[The] event was an amazing outlet for sharing love, expanding knowledge and gaining tools to help build better and more con nected communities,” Messaye said.

After the event, BLACC members spoke on a panel to share their feelings about the movie. BLACC Advisor and History Teacher Erik Wade, who moderated the Q&A ses sion, said the film was import ant to watch.

“The main themes I devel oped after watching the film a few days prior to the event were race, place, family and justice,”

Shaw’s presentation emphasized that fostering an inclusive envi ronment takes time.

“I was reminded by our mag nificent keynote speaker Nzinga Shaw that pacing is important when you are talking about change of any kind,” Carroll said.“[DEI] work often calls for change, whether [in] thinking, behavior or policy. For those en gaged in this work, it therefore means planning for how you develop buy-in for changes that may need to happen and allow time for people to get on board.”

Carroll said he and Jones

have created spaces for differ ent affinity groups at the school to collaborate in order to foster more inclusivity.

“One of the things that Mrs. Jones and I talk about when we think about plans for DEI at HW is to continue to design opportu nities where people can find con nection across affinity spaces in the name of unity and understand ing,” Carroll said. “In times where many ethnic and identi ty groups are feeling attacked, finding ways to ally with and support one another becomes that much more imperative.”

[This] event was an amazing outlet for sharing love, expanding knowledge, and gaining tools to help build better and more connected communities.”

— Hannah Messaye ’23

Wade said. “This helped to frame the conversation with the panel and the greater audience, even making connections to HW. Whether or not justice and eq uity were achievable within HW was a key question students and attendees reckoned with.”

BLACC member Isiuwa Odi ase ’24, who spoke on the panel said sharing her feelings was a very emotional experience.

“Being one of the people sitting on it, I heard so many heart-wrenching experiences from so many that felt vulnerable and brave enough to speak on it to the audience after witnessing this painful film,” Odiase said. “Overall, this movie was filled with life changing messages, and it really reminded us never to forgot the tragedies of African Americans in America.”

LAHSO celebrates Day of the Dead

By Nathan Wang

The Latinx and Hispanic Stu dent Organization (LAHSO) and the Latin American Studies course constructed an altar on the Quad to celebrate Día de los Muertos on Nov. 1. They also or ganized activities such as paper skull decorating and shared pan de muerto, a Mexican sweet bread.

Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead in English, is a Mexican holiday that commemorates the lives and memories of the deceased, according to the Day of the Dead website. It takes place every Nov. 1 and Nov. 2, and traditional cel ebrations include decorating altars with pictures of the deceased, their favorite foods and items that repre sent the lives they lived.

LAHSO Co-Chair Andrea Colmenares-Cifuentes ’24 said the celebration was valuable to students, as it increased awareness about Latin American traditions.

“I think it’s important to share this holiday to further inform

and teach the school community about the meaning of significant traditional holidays like Día de los Muertos that are rooted in Latin American cultures,” Colmena res-Cifuentes said. “It was also nice to see members of the school com munity come together and con tribute to the altar that was built.”

LAHSO Faculty Advisor Cel so Cárdenas said unlike other holidays honoring the deceased, Día de los Muertos focuses on life instead of death.

“While we normally associate a feeling of solemn and sorrow with death, el Día de los Muertos helps us remember the joy there is in life,” Cárdenas said. “We take time to remember our loved ones who have passed without focusing on their deaths but in stead focusing on their lives [and] the incredible contributions they made while they were here and the joy and love they brought us.”

Cárdenas said he appreciates how commemorating Día de los Muertos can bring the Latin

American community together.

“My parents did not celebrate Día de los Muertos growing up,” Cárdenas said. “It is something that became more a part of my life in high school and college when I was involved with Latino affinity groups. It became a very powerful way to connect with my culture and bring it to people who were coming from different backgrounds. Now, as an adult, I do set up an altar to remember loved ones and I take time to re flect on the great blessings I have been afforded in this life.”

LAHSO member Andrea CruzVázquez ’25 said her family’s annu al Día de los Muertos celebration helps her connect to her heritage.

“I celebrate Día de los Muertos with my family and we typically have an altar that we decorate with flowers and embroidered mantels along with pictures of our loved ones who have passed away,” Vázquez said. “They also make me feel more connected to my roots and culture.”

DAY OF THE BREAD: LAHSO celebrates Día De Los Muertos with a decorated booth and treats available to students and faculty.

A CAPTIVATING CONFERENCE: Student represantives speak on a panel at the Pollyanna Conference in Saperstein Theatre at the lower school campus Oct 22. This year, the meeting’s theme was “Teamwork is the Heartbeat: Building Communities of Inclusion Through Collaboration.”

PRINTED

Prefects hold costume contest

By William Liu

Prefect Council hosted the annual Halloween costume con test in front of Chalmers Hall on Oct. 31. The contest was held in addition to the after-school Hal loween Coffeehouse, also orga nized by Prefect Council.

The contest took place during the schoolwide lunch period. Con testants walked down a red carpet and were judged by a panel of fac ulty judges, comprised of Head of Upper School Beth Slattery, Dean Sara Miranda, Visual Arts Teacher Whitney Lasker and Math Teacher Derric Chien.

Stella Glazer ’23, who won the individual costume contest, said she enjoyed the liveliness of the event.

“I dressed up as Walter White from ‘Breaking Bad’ because I love the show and really want ed a reason to wear a bald cap,” Glazer said. “There was a panel

of administrators judging, and although I didn’t plan on partic ipating, a Prefect approached me and asked me to participate, so I just did it for fun.”

Glazer said she was proud to have won the event.

“There was no award, only brag ging rights,” Glazer said. “But the people that had planned the event said they would get me a gift card or something. I love dressing up in costumes and doing fun makeup, so I would definitely say I enjoy costume contests.”

The World Languages Depart ment participated in a joint cos tume idea, dressing up as charac ters from the film “Men in Black,” winning the group division of the contest. World Languages Depart ment Chair Veronica Cherry said the idea was simple but fun.

“One day, a member of our de partment came to school in a black pantsuit, so another member got the idea that we should all dress

Stores offer dicounts

By Georgia Grad and Max Turetzky

Prefect Council announced the school’s restaurant discount partners in an email to students Oct. 17. The participating restau rants are located in Studio City, with discounts ranging from 5% to 15% off of purchases .

To receive their discount, stu dents must show their school ID card at the restaurants.

In the email, Prefect Council said students should use the dis counts so the participating restau rants continue to offer them in future years.

“It will prove to these restau rants that giving Harvard-West lake students discounts is bene ficial to their business,” Prefect Council said. “Seniors, we hope you take advantage of these dis counts when using off-campus privileges during Lunch.”

The school first arranged deals with local restaurants January 2020, though the arrangement was soon paused because of COVID-19. The program was brought back in the 2021-2022 school year when students re turned to campus.

Junior Prefect and Assistant News Editor Davis Marks ’24 said Prefect Council revived the discount program last year to to

enhance the student experience at the school.

“Last year on Prefect Coun cil, one of our main goals was to make our student experience at Harvard-Westlake as enjoyable as possible following the pandemic,” Marks said. “Prior to the pan demic, Prefect Council offered a few discounts to local restaurants, so that was a program we hoped to bring back.”

Jack Ryan ’25 said the dis counts will allow him to save money on food when he has prac tice after school.

“As someone who stays af ter school for practice a lot, I eat at restaurants around Har vard-Westlake on a regular ba sis,” Ryan said. “My parents give me a budget on how much I can spend on food each week, and with these discounts, I can order and eat more, giving me more fuel for practice.”

Eden Mahoney ’25 said she was excited about the discounts because she enjoys many of the participating restaurants.

“A lot of the school’s students like to go to those restaurants to eat, so it’s really nice that we get a discount, and it’s an incentive to go as well,” Mahoney said. “I really love McConnell’s Ice Cream and Sweetfin, which hasn’t opened up yet.”

as ‘Men in Black’ for Halloween,” Cherry said. “It was easy because most of us already had black pants and a black jacket, so we didn’t have to purchase much. Some purchased cheap sunglasses or a necktie.”

Cherry said her department was excited to coordinate costumes.

“We started talking about dress ing up over a month prior because several of us love to dress up, and we were just brainstorming,” Cher ry said. “We wanted to dress up even if there had not been a cos tume contest.”

Cherry said Prefect Council did an incredible job of bringing the school community together with the competition.

“I think it helps school spirit because everyone can participate either as someone who enters the contest, as a judge or as a specta tor,” Cherry said. “Everyone gets excited to see the creativity that goes into selecting or creating the costumes.”

Local clothing brand creates Weddington collection for wear

By Hannah Shahidi

Los Angeles-based clothing company AG Jeans designed a “Save Weddington” collection to protest the school’s plan to de velop Weddington Golf & Ten nis into the River Park athletic campus. Save Weddington is a nonprofit organization that says it is trying to preserve the Wed dington property and prevent the school from building on it.

An undisclosed portion of AG’s profits from this line will be donated to Save Weddington, accord ing to its website.

AG’s website said it is aiming to raise awareness and finan cial support in an attempt to preserve Weddington. The items in this col lection include $24 socks, a $68 hat and a $178 pair of sweat pants all embroidered with “Save Weddington Golf & Tennis.”

The collection features 22 products altogether and is de scribed by AG as a “tribute to Weddington’s golf & tennis heritage and Los Angeles’ casual approach to athleisure.” The AG website also links to Save Wed dington’s social media pages and said customers should contrib ute to the organization.

“Save Weddington is call ing for action, they need help drumming up awareness, con tacting councilmembers, and raising funds to help succeed in their mission to save Wedding ton Golf & Tennis,” the web site said.

Mia Morgan ’25 said the clothing line exists because many people do not understand

the River Park project and its potentially positive impacts on Studio City.

“It’s upsetting that people don’t see the benefits of the River Park,” Morgan said. “ The plan will benefit not just students but everyone in Los Angeles, and it’s a little worrying that such a pop ular brand doesn’t see that and that they’re trying to stop it.”

Keira Haley ’24 said she does not believe the clothing line will bring publicity to the Save Wed dington movement.

“I think people will buy it, probably not for the sake of the movement but just because it is cute,” Haley said. “I think it’s a decent strat egy, but the people who just see the cloth ing in stores and don’t understand the cause that it is for won’t really be affected.”

Head of Commu nications and Strategic Initiatives Ari Engelberg ’89 said the new campus will be benefi cial for members of the Studio City community.

“I believe that HW is cre ating a gem of Studio City in building River Park,” Engelberg said. “River Park will be good for Studio City in lots of ways. For starters, we will expand ac cess to recreation opportunities, offering members of the public and community groups access to playing fields, the gym, pool and tennis courts. River Park will also have six acres of public open space for members of the community to enjoy, including a dog-friendly walking and jog ging trail, plazas, seating areas, lawns and more. River Park will also reintroduce native trees and wildlife to the site.”

BACK IN BLACK : Language Department teachers perform a routine in costume for the Halloweeen costume conteset. Stella Glazer ’23 was victorious in the competition, dressing as Walter White from “Breaking Bad.”

KRISTE AN/CHRONICLE

Senior Independent Studies

Nine seniors were selected to work on Independent Studies this year. Six of them and their advisors re ect on their experience.

Yoshi Kimura

By Zoe Goor

Yoshi Kimura ’23 is building a new instrument and composing a piece of music with it for her Senior Independent Study.

Kimura said the instrument, which is played with a cello bow, is a sound box with nails hammered into it. e nails stick out of the box at di erent lengths to achieve a range of pitches when the bow is drawn across them.

Kimura said creating a good sound has been challenging for her.

“ ere’s a lot of unexpected barriers that you come across when building something,” Kimura said.

“Sometimes applied designs won’t work out, or we simply don’t have the tools to make things happen, so we have to pivot and retry which can make it a little bit di cult to t within that rst quarter [or] rst semester timeframe. I’m a master at making screeches and skirts [on my instrument], but trying to produce a sound [that has] the quality of a violin or guitar is very di cult, especially when your only tools are like wood and nails and scrap pieces of things going around.”

Kimura said she has always wanted to build an instrument, and the Independent Study Program

provided her with the carpentry support to nally give it a try. Her faculty mentor, Performing Arts Teacher and Master Carpenter Rees Pugh, said working with Kimura is enjoyable because of her excitement and creativity.

“[Kimura is] just interested in lots of things,” Pugh said. “ She’s inquisitive, which is [a] good starting point for anything. She’s certainly not waiting for me to do it. She’s coming at me every session with a new idea.”

Pugh said he and Kimura have used trial and error to design the instrument.

“We tried and failed at a bunch of di erent

noise-making contraptions,” Pugh said. “At this point, [Kimura] has constructed the main components of an instrument, which are hard to describe. It will be a bow drawn across nails that are knocked in at di erent lengths to achieve di erent pitches. So it should play like a string instrument: it’ll be like a wedding cake of nails and the bow will draw across it.”

Kimura said she is happy with the program’s exibility and accommodation.

“I think Independent Studies really let students pursue what they love, and they build structure into the school day to allow that,” Kimura said.

Kieran Chung

By Olivia So

Kieran Chung ’23 is studying set theory, a branch of mathematical logic that deals with collections of objects or elements, for their Senior Independent Study. Chung’s project will culminate in creating YouTube tutorials. Chung said they chose this project to assist other people’s learning and understanding of set theory.

“ e idea is to create a conceptual mini lecture series that anybody could watch, even if they don’t have a background in the material and especially if they don’t have time,”

Chung said. “A lot of what is out there for higher math levels is an hour to two hours long, and nobody has time for that.”

Chung’s faculty advisor, Mathematics Teacher Joshua Helston, said he is impressed with the speediness and e ciency of Chung’s work.

“I’m surprised with how quickly they have been able to make such high-quality videos,” Helston said. “I created videos back in my previous job, and it took me 10 years to nally get a video system where I could type well to perform things with the videos.”

Helston said he agreed

to advise Chung’s project because set theory is fascinating to him.

“We have a eld called algebra that abstracts the idea of structure and properties,” Helston said. “ en there’s another eld called analysis that abstracts the eld of functions, but the eld that I studied and that I’m working with Kieran is a eld that takes that thought process of abstraction and abstracts that, so you learn this middle level of what it means for something to be true or false,”

Chung said Helston has been a helpful guide throughout the process.

“If I have any questions,

I ask him, and he checks in with me to make sure I’m on track,” Chung said.

Helston said the project has been rewarding and that Chung’s math background allows them to have a deepened understanding of mathematics.

“Kieran is doing multivariable calculus right now, which is super applied, and simultaneously, doing super abstract theoretical set theory, so they can see both sides of the coin,” Helston said. “I think in math a lot of times, people only see one side of the coin, and if you learn to love one, that’s ne, but you really should be exposed to both.”

ZOE GOOR/CHRONICLE

ILLUSTRATIONS BY AMELIA CHIARELLI AND SOPHIA EVANS

By Alden Detmer

Executive Editor James Hess ’23 is studying Dan te Alighieri’s 14th-century epic poem ‘Inferno’ for his Senior Independent Study. Hess, a practicing Catholic, is focusing on the similarities between Dante and contem porary Catholics’ experienc es with the Church.

Dante’s Inferno deals with the issues of corrpu tion, bribery and nepotism surrounding the Catholic Church. Hess said some from the 14th century are still at play today.

“I believe in a lot of what the Bible teaches about charity, goodwill and morality,” Hess said.

“But, I have a lot of prob lems, as many others do, with how the Church op erates. ‘Inferno’ specifical ly covers how the Church operates as an institution because, in the medieval and pre-Renaissance peri od of Italy, the Church was very corrupt.”

Hess said the process of choosing Dante for his project was straightforward.

“I knew from March 2021 that I wanted to do an independent study after [English Teacher Stephen Thompson] had mentioned it,” Hess said. “Having the opportunity to choose something I wanted to read and make a big project out of it sounded amazing. Af

ter viewing a proposed list of suggestions, we landed on Dante as a common interest.”

Thompson, who wrote his dissertation on how modern literary criticism is deeply influenced by uni versities, said his experience with academia has helped him teach Hess important research skills.

“I’m able to tell James that he needs to be strate gic about the way that he engages with scholarly ma terial,” Thompson said. “I can easily guide him so he doesn’t have to learn cer tain lessons the hard way.”

The project includes a complete reading of ‘In ferno’ and a lecture series from Yale professor Gi

useppe Mazzotta. It will conclude with a 40-page research paper. Thompson said the skills Hess has been learning from the project will be useful in his future endeavors.

“His project is geared toward understanding how to be a faithful Catholic in a corrupt institution, which I think has universal appli cability,” Thompson said.

“There’s value in that, but I think even more impor tantly, James’s project brings together academic and per sonal interests. There’s ac tually something at stake, which makes for the best kind of intellectual projects, where it matters beyond merely the library.”

Beau Demaine

By Alex Dinh

Beau Demaine ’23 is ex ploring economics for his Senior Independent Study.

Demaine said he decid ed to take an Independent Study because he wanted to study large-scale and general economics, two topics he was interested in. Demaine is working with his faculty advisor, Histo ry Teacher Conrad Cuda, to create activities, read ings and writing assign ments for his project.

Demaine said the fo cus of his project is on the global impact and impor tance of economics.

“My independent study is about the ‘why’ of eco

nomics,” Demaine said. “It’s taking a step back from studying modern economic systems, seeing why we do economics as a whole, what it truly is and how much it is impacting society today.”

Demaine said he has found his project novel and exciting.

“A lot of the economic stuff that I’m touching on is kind of controversial and outside the usual realm of what we call economics,” Demaine said. “And a lot of it is relatively new stuff. So I feel like it’s really re warding to kind of build this up because it’s an everevolving project.

Cuda said it has been fulfilling to advise Demaine

on his study after seeing his interest in economics grow.

“I was really fortunate that I taught Beau two years in a row, so I had him in 10th and 11th grade,” Cuda said. “My back ground is a little bit differ ent than some of the other history teachers at school in [that I received] my un dergrad degrees in business, and I had a heavy focus in finance and economics. In my history courses, Beau thrived in the concepts that we did for those two years talking about eco nomic development. Given that the project he wanted to do was economics relat ed, it seemed like a pretty natural fit.”

Sam Volokh

By Nathan Wang

Sam Volokh ’23 is re searching and writing a paper on Ukrainian history for his Senior Independent Study.

Volokh said he chose to study Ukraine’s history because of his familial ties to Ukraine.

“My father and his par ents immigrated to the United States from Ukraine when he was about seven, so I have a family con nection to the country,” Volokh said.

Volokh said as a result of his Ukrainian background, current events regarding the state of Ukraine are im portant to him.

Cuda said working with Demaine has broad ened both of their views on economics.

“Beau started sharing resources with me that got me really interested in thinking about economics in ways that I hadn’t be fore,” Cuda said. “He fa miliarized me with scholars and academics that I wasn’t familiar with, and I can do the same for him by sharing some of my favor ites. We have been trading some of those ideas. And some of those go-to’s in terms of people that we like to lean on in terms of trying to better understand economic concepts.”

“I’m concerned about what’s been going on, and I just think it’s really im portant to take a course that helps you stay up to date on certain issues.”

Volokh said he spent the first quarter of his semes ter-long project conduct ing research for his paper.

“It hasn’t been that excit ing so far,” Volokh said. “I’ve really just spent a lot of time reading books and articles.”

Volokh said he reached out to Upper School His tory and Social Studies Teacher Celia Goedde and Upper School En glish Teacher Sara Cohen to help advise him on his project because of his previous experience work

ing with them, as well as their expertise in their respective fields.

“I actually have two fac ulty advisors,” Volokh said. “First is my former English teacher Dr. Cohen, whom I wanted to work with be cause she really helped me throughout the year and made me a much better writer. My second mentor is Dr. Goedde, who is a member of the Indepen dent Study Committee. She has overseen a lot of Independent Studies and knows a lot about history, so she also seemed like an important person to give me suggestions.”

Goedde said she al ready had a prior interest

in Volokh’s research top ic, but advising Volokh on his project has kept her up to date on many Ukrainian current events and media.

“I’ve been very interest ed in Ukraine, certainly, [and] Russia’s antagonism over the past several years,” Goedde said. “I had read some of the historians that I’ve been recommending to Sam just to get a bigger and deeper sense of what’s going on in that part of the world. I was already interested in it, but know ing that I was going to be his advisor made me pay more attention to the arti cles coming out and other works and authors.”

By Georgia Grad

Chloe Fribourg ’23 is studying how the Tagalog language and the Philippines’ Spanish Colonial period im pacted each other for her Senior Independent Study.

Fribourg will also look into how the development of Tagalog (a language of the Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of Fili pino population), is con nected to the evolution of Filipino culture. She will display her final findings as a printed anthology consisting of self-written essays, Filipi no poetry and artwork.

Fribourg said she chose her study topic because lan

guage can uncover much about the world.

“Language is something that I really love, and I thought it would be an interesting way to explore my own cultural heritage,” Fribourg said.

She said the most in teresting part of her study was discovering the Spanish roots in Tagalog words.

“I learned about the Ta galog word ‘diyos’, or ‘god’ in English,” Fribourg said. “Phonetically, the word ‘diy os’ closely resembles the Lat in word for god, or “deus.” This is actually not a coinci dence. The Spanish colonists brought Catholicism to the Philippines and would recite

the mass in Latin. This one aspect of Latin was quickly absorbed into the Tagalog vocabulary. This is just one instance of Tagalog reflect ing its cultural impacts.”

In addition to this dis covery, Fribourg said she had a breakthrough read ing Jose Rizal’s 1887 novel “Noli Me Tangere.” About a young Filipino man, the book describes Spanish col onization in the Philippines and explains ways the Span ish treated Filipinos poorly.

“I planned on finishing this book in two weeks,” Fri bourg said. “This was just im possible. I pushed through, and ultimately feel that I have gained so much from

reading an actual primary source. It was all worth it.”

Fribourg’s faculty advi sor, Upper School History and Social Studies teacher Ingrid Sierakowski, said she is learning alongside Fribourg while researching.

“We are only mid-se mester, but I am already surprised about the inter connections that Chloe has been able to tease out from her reading and exploration of Jose Rizal’s 1887 novel ‘Noli Me Tangere,’” Sier akowski said. “I am abso lutely excited to see the end product, in which Chloe has many creative ideas about how to communicate her re search and findings.”

Chloe Fribourg

NATHAN WANG/CHRONICLE

ALDEN DETMER/CHRONICLE

ALEX DINH/CHRONICLE

HWord Search

Chronicle sta members created the second edition of the HWord Search for this issue. Watch out! Some words are backwards.

Editors-in-Chief: Natalie Cosgrove, Will Sherwood

Print Managing Editors: Lucas Cohen-d'Arbeloff, Claire Conner, Daphne Davies, Charlie Seymour

Presentation Managing Editors: Fallon Dern, Allegra Drago, Jina Jeon, Leo Saperstein

Digital Managing Editors: Alex Hahn, Lily Lee

Executive Editors: James Hess, Emmy Zhang

News Editor: Natasha Speiss

Assistant News Editors: Davis Marks, Chloe Park, Grant Park, Tate Sheehy

Opinion Editor: Georgia Goldberg

Assistant Opinion Editors: Jade Harris, Jackson Tanner

Features Editor: Harry Tarses

Assistant Features Editors: Dylan Graff, Iona Lee, Averie Perrin, Ella Yadegar

A&E Editors: Becca Berlin, Vasilia Yordanova

Assistant A&E Editor: Kriste An

Sports Editors: Jaden Bobb, Paul Kurgan

Assistant Sports Editors: Jackson Mayer, Christopher Mo

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Photography Editor: Raisa Effress

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Layout Assistants and Staff Writers: Sasha Aghnatios, Hailey Cho, Karsten Cole, Eden Conner, Alden Detmer, Alexander Dinh, MacAr thur Galavitz, Samuel Glassman, Zoe Goor, Georgia Grad, Justine Gustman, Sabrina Hamideh, Jayan Kandavel, Crista Kim, Katelyn Kim, Saisha Kumar, Everett Lakey, Alex Lee, MeJo Liao, William Liu, Daniel Mittleman, Olivia Phillips, Madeline Pimstone, Fiona Ryan, Sara Segil, Hannah Shahidi, Olivia So, Connor Tang, Justin Tang, Arielle Trakhten berg, Max Turetzky, Mason Walline, Nathan Wang, Tiffany Wang, Amber Zhang

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Publication Information: Founded in 1990, The Chronicle is the Harvard-Westlake Upper School’s student-led newspaper. Now in its 32nd year, The Chronicle strives to report stories accurately and to uphold its legacy of journalistic integrity. The newspaper is published eight times per year and distributed to students, parents, faculty and staff. The paper is affiliated with two school magazines, Big Red and Panorama. We are members of the California Newspaper Publishers Association and the Private School Journalism Association.

Valuing Our Veterans

On Veterans Day of last year, the school invited two alum ni––Captain Colin Weidmann ’08 and Lieutenant Earle Lemasters ’04––to discuss their experiences as members of the United States Military. The all-school event was controversial for comments made by Weidmann about his morning routine that some took as misogynistic; quotes from the Nov. 18, 2021 Chronicle article about it reflect students’ differing opinions of both the speakers and audience. Still, the school made a real effort to celebrate Veterans Day and gave students a space to honor service members.

This year, students saw the exact opposite: the only mention of the holiday was a lone announcement on a Wolverscreen surrounded by other messages about club meetings and the fall play. For something celebrated around the country, we did remarkably little to thank veterans––some of whom are parents, teachers or faculty members in our community––for their service. We didn’t have another assembly, perhaps because Nov. 11 happened not to fall on day five, and the school did email us about family photo submissions for a slideshow. But other schools, including those part of the Los Angeles Unified District (LAUSD), had no classes to celebrate Veterans Day, and many that went to school still held events to acknowledge the holiday.

Why, then, has our school turned such a blind eye? Part of the reason may be the holiday's perceived controversy: in a community as progressive as ours, some think that celebrating Veterans Day is an endorsement of the U.S. military's actions abroad. But we must be careful not to conflate the day with disagreements about foreign policy or intervention. Veterans Day is not a political debate––it’s about honoring those who have sacrificed years of their lives for us and our country.

In addition to acknowledging veterans' services overseas,

about us

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Veterans Day is about acknowledging the challenges they face after retirement––the lives they’ve led in and out of service and the problems they’ve faced as a result of their military participation. In the greater Los Angeles community, we see these problems daily: homeless veterans in uniform asking for money on freeway exits, tents with Veterans Day stickers lining the streets of Hollywood and crowds of service members at the Veterans Administration building on Wilshire.

Veterans are uniquely likely to face physical disabilities after returning home, along with a litany of trauma and PTSD-re lated mental health complications. People who have served in the military are far more likely to experience depression or at tempt suicide and often lack the financial resources to address these concerns.

The school has always been committed to teaching students about the social, economic and political challenges we'll face as future leaders. Especially when given a national holiday dedicated to veterans, its inability to extend this commitment is both confusing and appalling. Students need to learn about actionable ways to both honor and support veterans at a time when they are so often ignored by citizens and policymakers. From burn pit cancer victims to homeless veterans with no job or support to fall back on, we must use this important day to recognize the need to serve the people who risk their lives serving us.

We can never fully repay veterans for their sacrifices, but learning to honor them is a small step in the right direction. We are not requesting that the school make Nov. 11 a day off next year but simply requesting that it do more to recognize veterans for both the sacrifices they make and challenges they face. By doing so, we can do our best to honor the veterans in our community and fight for the resources they deserve.

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ILLUSTRATION BY ALEXA LIU

Stepping up our school spirit

By Davis Marks

As Prefect Council planned the annual Spirit Week in September, I eagerly watched the Fanatics Committee brainstorm ideas for dress- up days. In the weeks leading up to Spirit Week, I looked forward to seeing the outfits students would wear to show off their spirit. When Spirit Week arrived, however, something felt different than previous years. As I showed up to school each morning in my humiliating outfits (I’m still processing Emo Day), I noticed a distinct lack of spirit.

This issue becomes even more prevalent when we consider the levels of spirit in past years. Walking on the quad as a sophomore new to the Upper School last year, I was hit by a public Homecoming Formal ask almost every day during the fall. Students across all three grade levels asked others to Formal in a variety of ways, from creative

signs, personalized music perfor mances, students painting letters on their bare chests and even mock college commitments. The Homecoming asks created a fun relief from the rigor of school, as we were able to gather on the Quad as a community and laugh as students asked others to Homecoming in the strangest of ways. This year’s Homecom ing public ask season greatly contrasted last year’s, as I can count the amount of public asks on my fingers.

I'm not saying that the student body not wearing school colors on Spirit Day or a lack of public Homecoming asks means impending doom. However, it characterizes a noticeable shift between this year and last year. This trend may not mean much on the surface, but its implica tions are worrying.

Throughout my time at the Middle School, I heard amazing

stories about the Upper School. Older students described a united and intimate community with a wide range of fun tradi tions that create memories for a lifetime. However, this year it is starting to feel as if we are so blinded by our individual responsibilities and pressures that we forget our important responsibility as a community to make this school an enjoyable place. Though the administra tion has been working to make the environment less stressful overall, our school is an aca demically rigorous place. The administration’s work makes a difference, but the most positive change we can make as students is allowing our campus to thrive through our traditions and col lective enjoyment.

Though the Class of 2022, the last class to be at the Upper School before the pandemic, has graduated, we can use our

A Chronicle Assistant News Editor argues that the school is lascking spirit, which leads students to forget how enjoy able the school community can be.

experiences from last year to en sure our community’s traditions do not fizzle out. While we are focused on academics and ex tracurriculars, we have another important responsibility.

Especially after the pandemic, it is our role to ensure our school’s traditions get passed down to the Class of 2025 and beyond. We are the stew ards of our traditions,

and it is time we act as such. It is time to step up and make our school's community the place we want it to be.

English department, do better

By Jade Harris

English class is a chance to explore unknown worlds and step into the minds of characters with different experiences and backgrounds. Though much of this content includes mature themes, the English department consistent ly fails to adequately address one of them: sexual assault.

The department has rarely been able to properly approach sexual assault in literature, glossing over it in classes and almost never providing content warnings. In an assignment for English III: The American Liv ing Odyssey, students had to write a fictional letter to a jury in defense of a child rapist.

In Toni Morrison's book “The Bluest Eye,” Cholly Breedlove, a middle-aged Black man who dealt with physical assault, sexual assault and rac ism since childhood, rapes and impregnates his 11-year-old daughter, Pecola.

Students are forced to take the position of Cholly's childhood friend, who fears that Cholly will face the death penalty. To complete the as signment, they had to explain to an imaginary jury why Cholly decided to rape Pecola, attempting to make the rape understandable and provide alternatives to his punishment.

The project forced students to defend Cholly’s actions, downplaying their impacts on

Pecola. An introduction to the assignment describes Cholly as “a man who is subject to a host of pressures that are at times contradictory to and hurtful.” While it is crucial for students to discuss the complex circum stances Cholly faced to better understand his character and the book, the assignment was framed in a way that defends his actions rather than clearly confronting how morally repre hensible they are.

The English department likely had no intention of justifying Cholly's actions, but sidestepping Cholly’s sexual violence by focusing entirely on his internal conflicts—forcing students to come up with ways to excuse the inexcusable—is not a responsible approach to the topic. English is about leaning into discomfort to understand humanity, but this assignment was a mandatory defense of actions that often go unpunished and unrecog nized in the real world. While it’s important to acknowledge his internal conflicts and how Morrison tries to find the origins of his crime, fully con demning his decisions should be common sense.

The English department’s failure to sensitively approach sexual violence extends beyond one assignment. In the novel “Salvage the Bones,” Esch Ba tiste, a 15-year-old black girl, is a victim of statutory rape.

Esch grew up as the only woman in her neighbor hood, leading her to conflate

sex with empowerment, even as a 12-year-old. When her 19-year-old neighbor Manny rapes her, she is left physically and emotionally defenseless.

“Salvage the Bones” repre sents real issues for young black women in a male-dominated society, and it is essential to have conversations about them.

Teachers placed minimal focus on Esch being incapable of understanding her relationship with Manny. Instead, classes only analyzed the scene from her flawed views of empow erment, ignoring the ma nipulation that impacted her.

Teachers need to be cautious when presenting these issues to students instead of bounding discussions within the world of a pre-teen's psyche.

An outline of the English Department's plans for discus sions and assignments that deal with sexual assault is absolutely necessary. Explorations of community, as well as circum stances of the victim and rapist, are a crucial part of teaching students to firmly condemn as sault and understand how cur rent cultural mindsets reinforce its presence in our world.

The department doesn't need to ignore or shy away from a central issue in these novels. It should do the op posite — sexual violence needs to be thoroughly addressed in class. Leaving out these discus sions generates ambiguity and ignores the harm this violence leaves behind.

Ballots, Claire-ified

By Claire Conner

On Wednesday, Nov. 8, it was election night in America—but that didn’t carry the meaning it once did. Just four years ago, poll workers, pundits and eager citizens stayed up until every race had been called. The presses would already be ready to print results for the next day’s paper. And one crucial certainty would make the sus pense and civic effort worthwhile: On Thursday morning, the nation would have elected its next set of leaders.

An occasional blip was not unusual , and years like 2000 saw races tight enough to require a pe riod of limbo. But current ballotcounting troubles will impact the future of our democracy far more than Hanging Chads. After years of casting ballots at the polls, states like California, Nevada and Colorado have shifted toward mail-in voting, sending ballots to the homes of all eligible voters.

California’s former precinct system provided polling locations close to nearly every home in ma jor urban areas like Los Angeles and required voters to request an absentee ballot if they intended to vote by mail. This absentee system had one central requirement: All ballots had to be received by 8 p.m. on election night.

In 2020, amid a global pan demic that made polling riskier, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to mail ballots to every registered voter and extended their due date. By the new rule, ballots only need to be postmarked on Election Day and could arrive up to seven days later. These changes have proven disastrous.

While most of the country’s elections have already finished, control of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives hangs in the balance because some states have only just received large num bers of ballots. Given the relative Democratic lean of mail-in ballots in states like California and Ne vada, Americans could see a dra matic leftward shift from initial election night numbers. Next-day results have been replaced by an extended counting process, add

ing fuel to the fire of conspiracy theories that have already threat ened core democratic principles and legal protections.

A lack of trust in the voting process has demonstrated its potential to diminish government institutions’ legitimacy. When key races seem to magically turn in favor of Democratic candi dates throughout a week of ballot counting, we can only expect this trust to further erode.

Attempting to increase turnout by sending all registered vot ers ballots is a productive policy change, but we need to bring back Nov. 8 mail deadlines. When ballots are already sent in advance, including information about when to mail them will en sure that they are received in time. States like California and Nevada have extended the absentee ballot system to include voters who would be able to vote at a polling location—voting by mail used to be reserved for the elderly, anyone traveling during an election or others who could not cast a ballot in person.

Guaranteeing that anyone who needs to work during election day has a way to vote makes our democracy more representative of citizens’ perspectives. This prog ress will be reversed if suspicion of mail-in ballots from late deadlines force a return.

Improving election efficiency goes beyond tightening our absentee ballot guidelines. Many voters sent ballots in the mail this year simply because the number of polling locations has been dramatically reduced. Nobody should have to travel far beyond their neighborhood and wait in line for hours to vote in person. Mail-in ballots are useful, but en couraging traditional voting will make the counting process easier.

Through this two-pronged ap proach, states would reap the ben efits of expanded turnout through mail votes without jeopardizing trust in elections. A healthy and modern democracy ought to actu ally elect candidates within 24 hours of Election Day. We cannot afford to maintain a flawed system and lose monumental progress.

Content Warning: This article contains descriptions of rape and sexual assault.

ILLUSTRATION BY ALEXANDRA LIU

ILLUSTRATION BY ALEXANDRA LIU

Implement weighted GPAs

By Zoe Goor

On the “Our Values” page of the school’s website, the mission statement is written in big white letters. One phrase stands out: the joy ful pursuit of educational excel lence. Educational excellence means that students should be able to choose their level of ac ademic rigor, and if that level is high, then the school should be able to support that while con sidering the challenges of a de manding course load. The school does offer countless Advanced Placement and honors courses that provide students looking for more academic rigor the chance to learn greater amounts of more complex material. But it should give those students the support and credit they deserve for their work by weighting Grade Point Averages (GPAs).

Of course, these advanced

courses have harder assessments, more essays and time consum ing homework assignments. These higher standards mean that AP and honors students frequently get a lower grade in their advanced classes than they would have had they been in a lower level of that class.

If the school instituted a weighted GPA, it would be re warding students who chose to take a challenging course by letting their grade reflect that higher level of difficulty. The lower grade that they may have gotten from that class is made up for by weighing, which changes GPA to indicate the difficul ty of a student’s course load.

Additionally, weighted GPA ensures that the students who find their way to the top of the class do so by getting good grades, yes, but also by getting

those good grades in hard classes. Without haing weighted GPAs, Student A can fill their sched ule with easy A’s and achieve a 4.0 unweighted GPA, whereas Student B can take 3 APs and 2 honors courses and end the year with a 3.9 unweighted GPA. To an uninformed eye, it would ap pear that Student A had a more successful academic year than Student B, when they just had different academic years. The point of a weighted GPA is to add nuance to grades, which tend to be a statistic that does not tell the full story of a student.

The argument against weight ed GPAs is that students will take harder classes just because they want a higher GPA. And while that is a bad reason to challenge oneself, the reality of taking a hard course is not nec essarily a bad thing. When stu dents take harder classes, they are forced to push themselves. Regardless of what their inten tion is when signing up for the class, students do receive the benefit of an intellectually rigor ous and stimulating course, even if they initially added it to their schedule for superficial reasons. Furthermore, when looking at grades during admissions sea sons, some colleges do take into account the weighted GPAs. Instead of ignoring a statistic that the school could very well provide their students with, we should have weighted GPAs in addition to unweighted GPAs be cause it is simply more informa tion for students and admissions officers to take into account.

Diving into the unknown

By Derric Chien

As a toddler, I had to move from the United States to Taiwan and then back to the United States. I remem ber struggling with language, trying to manage a mix of En glish, Taiwanese and Mandarin. Throughout the tumultuous international moving, math re mained a constant: the num bers I saw in the United States were the same numbers I saw in Taiwan. In my world filled with unknowns, I found myself drawn to the promise of certain ty brought by the algorithms and theorems of math. It felt like a place where I could find answers and be sure of their truth. I also loved that it was a pragmatic sub ject to study. I would often hear of the limitless “applications” of math to the world. After all, calculus would pave the way to the question of the centu ry: how fast does the top of the ladder really slide down a wall?

But my relationship with math and my understanding of it changed when I got to college. There’s nothing like going from getting straight A’s in math class es to receiving a 60% on your first college math midterm to give you a wakeup call. The once constant assurance that math gave me suddenly vanished. And I must confess that even though I often tell my students to never give up, I gave up—on more than one occasion, in fact. I went to college knowing I would major in math, but what I did not know

was that I would end up nearly dropping the major more times than I can count on one hand. If you’re like me and are not good at “math,” that’s more than 5 times.

But the subject recaptured my interests through mathemat ical logic. The theorems that first truly mesmerized me were Kurt Gödel’s Incompleteness Theo rems. These theorems essentially tell us that math will never fully know everything. They absolute ly fascinated me; the tantalizing power of logic to know what ex actly was unknowable intrigued me deeply. But they also unset tled me: I felt betrayed by my previous assumptions of math. There was, in fact, no certainty. Math itself had somehow dealt

the finishing blow on my dream of a stable and certain founda tion. As I approached my grad uate studies, it became more and more apparent that this is the life of a mathematician: to essentially live with uncertainty. The thing they are trying to prove could be true, but they just haven’t tried hard enough. Or it might be false, and all their effort would come up empty. But now, I guess there’s even the third option that it’s neither true nor false…

During my time exploring logic, an unexpected chain of events led me to be under the guidance of my then advisor and one of his graduate students. With their support, I found my interests diverge away from the

STATS AND FACTS

Does the schedule give enough time between classes to do homework and study for exams?

No: 12%

Sometimes: 50.6%

Yes: 37.3% No: 51.3%

Is it fair that some classes have unlimited retakes?

Yes: 48.7%

Do you think the school should get rid of the AP class limit?

No: 39.2%

It shouldn't be removed but changed: 32.3%

Yes: 28.5%

In your opinion, should students take honors/AP classes for the sole purpose of college admission?

No: 51.3%

Yes: 48.7%

*158 students polled

incompleteness theorems and converge on another branch of logic called model theory. As time passes, I may forget how difficult it all was, but I will nev er forget how hard I fell back in love with math through model theory. My favorite theorem in all of mathematics is a theorem called Morley’s Categoricity The orem. Of course, the central rea son I love this theorem is all the precious memories it holds for me. But there is another reason I love it: its proof. The proof of Morley’s Categoricity Theorem showed me that the seeming dis sonance in the math world ulti mately coalesces together to form harmony. As beautiful to me as Morley’s theorem is, I must con

fess that I cannot remember the last time I used it outside of the math world. But to me, that’s ok. It is beautiful, and that’s enough.

I am a math teacher, but I never feel that I do a good enough job of making math feel relatable or relevant to my stu dents. So, I’m hoping that my story might humanize the sub ject and give it that relatability.

Working mathematicians fully understand the math one learns as an undergraduate. But past that stage, they tackle the fright ening unknown. It’s the quintes sential question one must con front when in the midst of any challenge: have I not achieved this because I haven’t worked hard enough, or have I not achieved this because it was im possible in the first place? It is a rather terrifying prospect to put all your effort into something, not knowing if it’ll work out. But mathematicians do it anyway.

The fact that I am Mr. Chien today and not Dr. Chien tells you how the pursuit of my PhD ended. And while I once want ed to hide this mark of failure from others, the more I teach, the more I feel it is important that my students know my sto ry. Students often approach a math problem feeling like the answer should immediately jump out at them, and if not, then that’s the end of the story. They simply can’t do it. But nothing could be farther from the truth.

Math Teacher Derric Chien reflects on his journey with math, and how kids should do what they enjoy, regardless of if it is good on a resume.

ILLUSTRATION BY ALEXANDRA LIU

By Davis Marks

The 2022 LA mayoral election between Congresswoman Kar en Bass and businessman Rick Caruso ’76 is too close to call at the time of writing. As of Nov. 11, Bass leads Caruso by 4,484 votes with 62% of votes counted.

Both Caruso and Bass ex pressed optimism in the days following election night, but estimates of hundreds of thou sands of uncounted votes mean the final result will take days or weeks to determine.

Following the usage of voteby-mail during the COVID-19 pandemic, Califor nia adopted a law in September 2021 making the practice per manent and now has universal mail voting for all elections. Due to this law, California gives mail ballots postmarked by election day an additional seven days to arrive at election offices, making the tabulation process longer.

Daniella Goldrich ’23 said the uncertainty of the election shows just how important it is to vote.

“My biggest takeaway from the mayoral race is the in credibly slim margin,” Goldrich said. “Regard less of which candidate you support, this result demonstrates how each individual vote has the power to swing an election. With this in mind, I hope that the race has encouraged the Los Angeles com munity to become more politically aware and engaged.

If Caruso wins, he will be the second school alumnus in a row to serve as L.A. may or, succeeding incum bent Mayor Eric Garcet ti ’88. If elected, Bass will be the first woman and woman of color may or of L.A.

Isiuwa Odiase ’24 said it is incredibly inspiring to see Bass campaigning for mayor, as she provides representation for females of color in politics.

“I want to set this statement apart from any political biases out there and say [that] repre sentation in government is es sential to the citizens that abide under it,” Odiase said. “That’s why I feel that having someone like Karen Bass take office in a cosmopolitan [area] like Los An geles will allow for many people from different backgrounds to be heard that didn’t feel that way be fore. As a black woman myself, Bass is seen a role model to many other women of color. She was able to do what most of us thought couldn’t be pos sible in this White America that we live

Bass has been the congress woman for California’s 37th congressional district since 2011 and was the first African Amer ican woman in the country to be speaker of a state legislature. Caruso is the developer of the Grove, Americana and other

“Because of the ballot initia tives in California, voting here requires that one do quite a bit of research to be well informed before casting a ballot,” Shee hy said. “There are also a large number of candidates on the ballot that one needs to research. Many of these candidates are not household names. I have encour aged my students to consult a variety of balanced and non-par tisan sources for guidance. It’s a bit of work, but it’s well worth the effort.”

According to a Chronicle poll, 42.8% of 158 students surveyed said they had no pref erence in who wins the elec tion. Among students with a preference, 35.8% said they support Bass and 21.4% said they support Caruso.

Rowan Jen ’23, who voted for Caruso, said he selected him be cause Caruso is not a politician.

“I should preface by saying I don’t know much about LA pol itics and I certainly haven’t done rigorous research,” Jen said. “As such, my vote for Caruso op erates pretty much outside the realm of specific policy. Instead, my vote reflects my general dis illusionment with career pol iticians and relative optimism with outsider’s capacity to suc ceed in government.”

Unlike Jen, Head Prefect Si mon Lee ’23 said he feels that prior political experience is im portant to be an effective mayor.

“I support Bass over Caru so because generally, especially for the executive office, such as mayor, president or governor, I think that the people who run should have some kind of prior experience in government,” Lee said. “In an office where you perform the basic day-to-day executive functions of govern ment, I think it’s valuable to have someone who has that sort of political experience.”

Jen said Caruso’s experience in business shows he can effec tively lead and solve problems facing the city.

“I don’t subscribe to the be lief that ‘rising up the ranks’ is a necessary prerequisite for politi cal success, in fact, I think that it can often be the opposite,” Jen said. “I think that the most important trait in good leaders political leaders is problem solv ing capabilities, and frankly, I believe that success in the busi ness arena is a much better posi tive indicator of problem solving abilities than success in govern mental bureaucracies.”

Manu Markman ’23 said he

disapproves of Bass’ policies and hopes if elected, Caruso will de crease crime in the area.

“I think Caruso has a much stronger platform on crime and has a much better record ‘gov erning’ compared to Bass in managing the many shopping malls that he owns,” Markman said. “[Bass], as my representa tive, no less, has sat in Washington doing absolutely nothing, [and is] shielded from the reality in LA and [is] sympathet ic to the mon ey-wasting [and] police-curbing national Demo cratic bureaucra cy that has put places like LA in this mess in the first place. So, I see Caruso as a vote for change and an opportunity to return to the old, better LA.”

President Rick Commons said the school does not take a position on the election, and he does not believe the outcome will impact the school.

“I think it’s it’s a fascinating election and like a lot of people, I have been following it,” Com mons said. “The fact that one

whether it’s the River Park proj ect or issues that matter to us, better than another.”

Associate Head of School Laura Ross said she hopes mem bers of the school community do what they can to be civically engaged as individuals.

“As citizens of our city, we should all care about and figure out who we think is going to help support what we hope for our city,” Ross said. “As a nonprofit insti tution, we can’t and shouldn’t be in the business of endorsing a politi cal candidate over another or having an opinion, but I hope that all of our employees and students who can vote, do. I think even more so than ever, people remember that local elections are huge and your own environment is a big deal.”

Lee said voting for the first time made researching the race more meaningful to him.

“As someone who is very in terested in politics, it was an in teresting experience,” Lee said. “I follow races and read a lot of news to keep up with current affairs, but it’s different to do all of that within the con text of actually having to make decisions about all these things, rath er than just doing it because I’m inter ested in it.”

According to a Chronicle poll, 93.6% of 158 stu dents surveyed said they were not eli gible to vote in the 2022 election.

Goldrich said she views politics as a method of creating change and hopes stu dents will embrace civic engagement in order to make a difference.

“Whether in our im mediate communities or at the national level, pol itics presents a means to address the issues we see in society,” Goldrich said. “While much of the Har vard-Westlake community can’t vote, political engage ment presents a way for us to help enact the change we want to see occur.”

L. Wood

Rowan Jen ’23

Community members react to the Los Angeles mayoral race between Karen Bass and Rick Caruso ’76 being too close to call.

Preppy? Squashing the Falsehoods

The community discusses changes students experience from high school to college.

By Dylan Graff

As Henry Mass ’20 prepared for his first Chemistry exam at the University of California, Los Angeles, he anxiously pored over the pages of his textbook, re viewing for hours into the night. When he walked out of the test, however, Mass said he found the test easy and realized his time spent learning the content and fears of failure were excessive.

Mass, who transferred to Brown University this year, said his feelings of ease through out the exam were a product of the work ethic and efficien cy he developed in high school.

“It is not to say that you won’t take hard tests in college because you will, but Harvard-Westlake certainly prepared me to where I expected the hardest from col lege and it really just didn’t end up being that [way],” Mass said.

The school, a self-defined “college preparatory” institution, sends students to top colleges every year. The school recently ranked #2 on the Niche Best Pri vate High School in America list.

Mass said that while col lege courses were easier after he learned to manage a large workload in high school, he advised high school students to pursue fulfillment rath er than preparatory rigor.

“I was more attracted to the process of Harvard-Westlake and really challenging myself and growing,” Mass said. “The school has to be looked at as an experience in and of itself. My classes preparing me for college did a great job. How ever, if you’re just taking your classes to prepare yourself for college, you’re missing the big ger picture. You have to take your classes to gain something out of them intrinsically, which I think I did immeasurably.”

University of Chicago stu dent Emmanuel Zilber ’19 said his first year of college was less academically chal lenging than high school.

Cutter East ’24 said he viv idly remembers learning about the first Thanksgiving in his kindergarten class. East, who identifies as a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklaho ma and the Isleta Pueblo, said he was told the story of how Squanto and the Wampanoag tribe helped the Pilgrims grow crops to prepare for the harsh winter. By the end of autumn, the Pilgrims grew enough food to hold a massive feast, and members of the Wampanoag tribe were invited as honored guests—or so he heard. When East got home from school, however, he was told by his par ents that the story was nothing more than a myth. Now, East said he feels it is important to portray the true relationship between Native Americans and Pilgrims, even if it is an uncom fortable conversation to have.

“We should teach more of the actual relationship and how it was detrimental so that we can move past it,” East said. “I don’t think it’s right to gloss over

the fact that there was a geno cide and hate between the two groups. It should be known from a young age about this wrong in stead of just glorifying history.”

According to indigenous his torian Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, the true story of Thanksgiving is far different than the one

members of the Dakota Tribe were lynched. wAccording to Dunbar-Ortiz, Thanksgiving is a myth created by the Unit ed States Government to cov er up its brutal colonial past. History teacher Dr. Erik C. Wade said nostalgia plays a large role in perpetuating

losing their nostalgia.”

In 1970, the Wampanoag tribe created the National Day of Mourning on the same day as Thanksgiving to dispel the myths surrounding Thanks giving and educate the pub lic about the struggles faced by indigenous people around the country. At the first cere mony, Wamsutta Frank James, a Wampanoag elder and ac tivist, delivered a speech to explain the holiday’s goals.

“We forfeited our country,” James said. “Our lands have fallen into the hands of the ag gressor. We have allowed the white man to keep us on our knees. What has happened can not be changed, but today we must work towards a more hu mane America, a more Indian America, where men and nature once again are important; where the Indian values of honor, truth, and brotherhood prevail.”

While East said he does not actively partake in the National Day of Mourning, he said he also does not celebrate Thanksgiving.

Around the

By Iona Lee

It was 2:30 in the morning as Claire Wu ’24 frantically typed the Chinese translation of an En glish word her teacher used into her computer. Since immigrating to the United States when she was 12 years old, Wu said she often has trouble understanding the things her teacher says, an inhibi tor that causes her to fall behind.

“I don’t understand anything my teachers say in class,” Wu said. “I stay up until two or three every day trying to understand all [my school work]. It’s really bad.”

After living in the U.S. for the last four years, she said her comprehension has improved. Still, Wu said she struggles to grapple with her identity as a Chinese American student. Wu’s parents are her primary ties to traditional Chinese culture, and she said it is difficult for both her and them to balance their native customs with life in America.

“I feel that I did not quite find a way to manage [both cul tures],” Wu said. “It’s really hard to change, especially for my par ents. They’re trying to, and I can see that. It’s still difficult for them to completely forget about what [their life] was like, or the ties they had to their culture. So I definitely understand that, but it’s just hard for me [in the middle].”

A Chronicle poll indicated that out of 30 first-generation immigrant students, 16 have ex perienced an internal struggle to

grapple with their identity. Out of the same 30 students, 23 said American culture is the prima ry influence on their identity.

Manu Markman ’23 im migrated from Argentina and said adopting native manner isms and beliefs is the best way to become successful in the

go there every six months, and now I go there every year or year and a half. I still follow the soccer games there and stuff. I think the case with immigrants is that we’re not one [identity] as you live more in your new home. You’re not purely in my case, Argentinian. And you’re

“There was a time in seventh through ninth grade, where I felt more valuable [as an Argen tinian],” Markman said. “I felt that my community encouraged me to reject assimilation and be overly proud of the Argentini an part [of me], something that I sort of succumbed to. Then I

Members of the school community reflect on misinformation surrounding the history of Thanksgiving and its implications.

Students and faculty reflect on being first generation students in America and the school community.

World

A n Insincere Thanks

“I don’t acknowledge Thanksgiv ing as an event to celebrate because I don’t want to acknowledge the genocide of Native Americans as a good thing,” East said. “To me, it’s more of a celebration of indigenous people and meeting with my fam ily rather than a celebration of the founding of America.”

Whitney Enen stein ’24 said she views Thanksgiving exclusive ly as a chance to recon nect with her relatives.

“I go on a trip with my family every year,” Enenstein said. “It de pends on the year where we go, but I just really like spending time with family from around the country and hav ing special time together.”

Patrick Yeh ’23 also said he associates the holiday with fond family memories.

“Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday by far,” Yeh said. “I usu ally travel up to San Francisco with my extended family, and we go to my uncle’s boujee hotel. It’s not the best food, because they’re pretty Irish, but it’s really fun.”

Ofek Levy ’23 said he cel ebrates Thanksgiving with burgers instead of a turkey.

“My immediate family gets to gether for Thanksgiving and we usually have what most people would consider a classic Fourth of July barbeque, Levy said. “We have hamburgers and hot dogs because nobody in my family likes turkey. We also don’t really consider the history of Thanksgiving. As an im migrant family, it’s viewed as one of those things we do [to be American], but even the way we celebrate is not very American at its core.”

Wade said he can no longer view Thanksgiving in the same light, but agrees that it can be a wholesome holiday outside of its flawed history.

“The way that I’ve tried to reframe Thanksgiving is [looking] at it as a fami ly fun day,” Wade said. “But I also make sure that we pay respects to the fact that we’re eating on top of indigenous land. It doesn’t make the pumpkin pie taste any less sweet, or the food more bitter. I just think it’s worth knowing the past and how we’re going to move forward.”

Wade also said the Upper School United States History team has implemented more works by in digenous authors into the cur riculum. Clarissa Brown ’24, a student in Dr. Wade’s class, said

she recalls a particularly impact ful reading from Dunbar-Ortiz’s “An Indigenous People’s History of the United States,” which deals with ideas like settler colonialism.

“I thought it was a good decision to open the year by reading about indigenous people,” Brown said. “Before this year, I had really only heard watered-down versions of the indigenous experience in America. I never had to grapple with ideas like settler-co lonialism, but reading about it and dis cussing it in class has defi nitely changed how I look at America’s history.”

now. I think ‘There There’ puts into perspective how Native Amer ican hate is still occurring today.”

Noelle Kim ’24 said the book taught her about the struggle for Na tive Americans to find their identi ty through unique, nuanced lenses.

“I thought it was interesting how each character experienced their Na tive American culture and identity differently,” Kim said. “I got a lot of different perspec tives on how much their identity is embedded in their present day lives.”

Before this year, I had really only heard watered-down versions of the indigenous experience in America.”

Clarissa Brown ’24

In addition to US History classes, some English III class es have begun to teach texts, such as Tommy Orange’s “There There”, that deal with Native is sues in the modern day. Andrew Kurgan ’24 said the book served as an important reminder that Native Americans are still faced with many challenges today.

“[There There] is important be cause it shows the connection to our culture now,” Kurgan said. “Most people assume that the Na tive American genocide happened so long ago, so it can’t happen

East said while there are rela tively few Native American stu dents at the school, he is happy the school cel ebrates indigenous culture.

“As a Native American, I feel the school is very welcoming and understanding of the native cul ture,” East said. “I also think it’s important that the school high lights [native culture] in its read ing, as they’re doing, in order to appreciate the culture of each of the diverse groups within the school. There aren’t many Native Americans here so I can’t real ly find community in that sort of sense, but I can find appreciation of other groups, which helps me.”

L. Wood

Cutter East ’24

Members of the school community reflect on misinformation surrounding the history of Thanksgiving and its implications.

“

Converting to College

“In college, you still have to take required courses in subjects you might not necessarily be interested in, but nonetheless have a lot of con trol over what it is you’re taking,” Zil ber said. “And because of the larger array of classes, you can personalize it to classes you’re more interested in taking. Harvard-Westlake prepares you well for college, too, so I didn’t feel a substantial workload shift.”

Despite the increased free dom of his schedule and his aca demic preparedness, Zilber said he still feels pressure from the difficulty of his college courses.

“[My college classes] can be harder than my high school classes were due to a larger number of assignments in a shorter amount of time, at least with the quarter system, but you can ad just quickly because you’re not taking as many classes as you would at HW.”

History and Interdisciplinary Studies and Independent Research Teacher Dror Yaron said he be lieves the school teaches students the necessary skills to be successful in their future academic endeavors.

“It prepares you very well with learning how to balance priorities, deal with stress and endure chal lenges, all the while expanding your mind and your intellectual hori zons,” Yaron said. “The college-ob sessive cycle here, sort of the college industrial complex, that we play as a school, every school nurtures into that by its very nature. Though it is also self-induced by students. Of ten I see that sometimes, students are more concerned with what oth er people got on tests and what col leges they get into than appreciat ing themselves in their own right.”

Yaron said his three sons, who graduated from the school, were able to overcome the pressures of their first years of college be cause of the stress they learned to cope with in high school.

“I see with my kids that they were under some stress in col lege,” Yaron said. “Not only did they surmount it, but they thrived, they flourished and they’re doing so because of the en vironment here that at times was ostensibly unfair, overwhelming and inflexible.”

Former News Edi tor Sandra

Koretz ’22, a freshman at George Washington University, said she does not think the school could have better prepared her for col lege, both socially and academically.

“I have, thankfully, found it to be a pretty fair adjustment in terms of work,” Koretz said. “Yes, col lege comes with a ton of work, but so did HW, so I am relatively used to working and needing to manage my time efficiently. The only thing that is different is that you also have to factor in other things that come with adult life such as budgeting, cooking and more, which are some things I wish I had the opportuni ty to get better at in high school.”

Koretz said college gave her op portunities to form new friendships and experience a new environment.

“The first few months of college have been really fun because I have gotten to explore a new city and take classes I am passionate about, some thing I wasn’t always able to do at HW,” Koretz said. “Socially, college has so many more people than high school, which is great and allows for you to make new friends besides the ones that you go to school with. Be ing at HW, you are exposed to a super small environment and type of person, but being at a university, you meet all types of people from new places.”

Zilber said living away from home is a new experience most college freshmen have to learn to deal with on their own.

“I personally think high school was much more difficult than college, but that’s also including the stresses of hav ing to get into college,” Zilber said. “Living on your own in another state is an adjust ment on its own that Harvard-Westlake can’t really prepare you for. You get thrown in and have to make do. But it’s im portant to remem ber everyone else with you is in the

community you can adjust quickly.”

Mass said although his first two years of college were in his home town, he had to learn how to navi gate a collegiate social environment.

“The connection between the in tellectual environment and the social environment is much stronger in high school than it is in college,” Mass said. “In high school, all your activities center around the school. I played la crosse [in high school]. All my friends were on the field with me, and I could talk to them about the lacrosse game or our English paper due the next day. That shared experience is just different in college because everyone comes from different places, different backgrounds and is in different class es or interacts with different people.”

With the submission of the Nov. 1 early decision deadlines, some seniors are considering their future plans.

Olivia Rahhal ’23 said the idea of attending school on an unfamil iar campus has been nerve-wracking.

“I’ve been stressed about it socially

my stress has come socially,” Rahhal said. “I’m a little bit nervous to not have the Quad every day and not have set places where I meet my friends.”

Rahhal said she believes that as a student at the school, she has de veloped the independence neces sary to live on her own in college.

“The best thing I’ve learned here is how to just function in the world and live as an adult, even at a young age,” Rahhal said. “Har vard-Westlake has prepared us well to be out in the real world.”

Associate Head of School Lau ra Ross said almost every alum she has spoken to said they felt ac ademically prepared for college.

“I appreciate that our kids are pre pared academically,” Ross said. “But what I really appreciate is [that] we help give kids the skills so that they can hit the ground running their first year of college and then take advan tage of all their college has to offer to get them ready for grad school and jobs. Harvard-Westlake

Students, alumni and faculty reflect on the social and academic transitions students experience from high school to college.

By Averie Perrin and Iona Lee

As students poured into the science office before finals, worrying about their upcoming exams, Science Teach er Yanni Vourgourakis ’90 thought about the evolution of academic diffi culty at the school. Despite the stress and anxiety buzzing in the atmo sphere, Vourgourakis said he couldn’t help but notice the differences from his time at the school as a student.

Vourgourakis said students at the Harvard School for Boys were less preoccupied with the stress they faced while still wanting to suc ceed, and the increased focus on stress nowadays causes more anxiety.

“It’s always been a place where peo ple wanted to do well, and they expect ed a lot of themselves, but I don’t think we ever felt like we were com peting against each other,” Vourgourakis said. “It wasn’t socially acceptable to not do well, but we didn’t seem quite as neurotic about it as [students now]. I don’t think we were so aware of stress, because no one talked about it. Now, there’s so much awareness of it because it’s all anyone ever talks about. It’s kind of self-perpetuating in some ways. There is clearly an objec tive amount of stress around here, but there’s so much focus on it and trying to alleviate it, which can’t be done, that it’s making everybody kind of crazy.

Vourgourakis said he feels that the difficulty of academics has de creased significantly since his time at the school both as a student and young teacher, when students had to take responsibility for their work and the way teachers treated them.

“Pressure was much higher,” Vourgourakis said. “There were no homework policies or things like that. You just got what you got, and you worked pretty hard at times, but it never occurred to us that we had any right to complain about it.”

Vourgourakis said he believes students have a different idea of au thority than they did back then.

“When parents ask me, ‘what’s the biggest difference between now and then,’ I’ll say ‘the difference is that back then, it was our fault,’” Vour gourakis said. “Honestly, if a teacher was really mean to you, or did some thing that was way out of line, you never thought that there was any re course. You just kind of got on with your life. You talked your trash behind their back and moved on with it. There was a different sense of where you stood in the world, and your genera tion seems to think that you’re already like adults and equals with everyone else around there, and I disagree.”

Vourgourakis said he is concerned about students’ mental health but is more preoccupied with the idea of stu dents using mental illness as an excuse.

“I worry about [the popularity of discussing mental health] a lit tle sometimes, but I think it’s a good thing for people who really do have these problems,” Vourgourakis said. “It’s a bad thing for people who use

Under(standing)

it as an excuse to not do their best effort. So it’s a good thing, because there are people who really do struggle with these things, and it’s good that they’re not stigmatized, but it’s a lit tle bit concerning that it becomes an excuse, or a get-out-of-jail-free card.”

Ellie Whang ’24 is a teen ho tline responder for Teen Line and a Peer Support Trainee. Whang said while she has observed that the stress from schoolwork and homework is overwhelming for students, it is not the sole contributor to mental health struggles for most students.

“Since we have such a competitive environment around school, on top of the stress that people might have with managing their schoolwork, that com petitive nature of our school in partic ular can increase a lot of anxiety that people have to perform well,” Whang said. “I wouldn’t say that school is the main cause, but it can definitely amplify any feelings that people have.”

Whang said she had a teacher who was not accom modating of her personal mental health problems, which ultimately affected her performance in class.

l. wood

“I had a teacher who wasn’t as understanding be cause, from her perspective, and I completely understand this, ev erybody was struggling returning from the pandemic,” Whang said. “So obvi ously everyone was going to have some issues, which is true, but the thing that I was going through was a little different than mental health being affected just by the pandemic. Then she ended up understanding towards the end of our time together at the end of the school year, but regardless, not having that kind of support did suck a little bit, but I think that’s just because I didn’t take the time to really explain to her either what was really going on, which I feel like would have been more effective.”

Whang said her Peer Support group provides a beneficial outlet where students understand the unique pressures and workload at the school and how they affect mental health.

“Since at Peer Support we all go to the same school, we understand at the same level the amount of stress that we all have, as opposed to if you talk to someone from another school, they won’t get it as much,” Whang said. “I do feel like talking about school stress and how it affects mental health is a very present topic in Peer Support, just because everyone kind of has that same understanding of how much pressure some people can put themselves under.”

Whang said the kindness teachers showed during the pandemic led to a hard readjustment to regular, non-pan demic workload and more anxiety.

“I definitely feel like the leniency that teachers gave was helpful at the time, but now since we’re recover ing from that and coming back from that, it can be harder for students to readjust to the normal rigor that Har vard-Westlake is used to giving out,” Whang said. “So I think that’s an issue that some people are having right now, but I think the school has a lot of great resources that help students manage

this kind of stress coming back from the pandemic.”

Like Whang, His tory Teacher Lilas Lane said that the pandemic had an effect on everyone’s mental health and work level.

“COVID has had an effect on the rigor because there [were] a lot of [kids] freaking out, [so we asked] can you hold people to a high [standard] when they’re on Zoom?” Lane said. “Then [with] the mental health aspects of all of this, and kids hadn’t been exposed to anything like this, we had to figure out how [do] we test and teach effectively.”

Lane said she thinks the younger generation’s hyper-awareness of mental health issues from an early age may pre vent students from seeing what serious mental health struggles actually are.

“I think the awareness that peo ple have about mental health is not negative because it’s good to have awareness about mental health, but when you’re 12-13 years old, and you’ve been told all about anxiety, depression and these things that you don’t really have the intellectual capac ity to understand, it be comes just like anything, when you’re a teenag er, [a sole piece of your identity],’” Lane said. “Now you can go on to social media and hear all about anxiety. I’m not saying knowledge is bad, but some

Administrators and students opinions on the changing in relation to students’

Ellie Whang ’24

Under(standing) Pressure

students talk about their changing difficulty of the school students’ mental health.

times knowledge is not appropriate for a certain age, and most of us feel anxiety but not most of us have [an] anxi ety disorder. That’s extreme. It’s normal to feel anxiety in stressful sit uations. It’s not normal to have pan ic attacks. Most of us are not at that level of real mental illness, but now we’re all thinking about it so much.”

Lane said that as the school has become less rigorous, students have lost sight of the point of learning.

“I feel like that’s another big is sue for your generation, and that’s the thing that I really worry about when it comes to rigor, because I don’t think rigor should be hard for hard’s sake,” Lane said. “I think rigor should be about being thoughtful and deep in the way that you think about things. It’s about critical thinking, and unfortunately, you have to get a certain base [of] knowledge before you can think critically. You have to be able to look at multiple sides and know things fairly deeply. This is why rig or matters.”

Lane said that she expects

a high quality of work from stu dents but understands their person al struggles and tries her best to sup port all students in individual ways.

“I am the advocate of caring, warmth and demanding high standards, so the way I feel about it as a teacher is sort of like how I have as a mother,” Lane said. “I love my students, and I want what’s best for them, but what I think is best for them is not making it easy for them, it’s challenging them to do their best work. I’m going to try to do what I can to support them so that they can kind of keep moving in that direction, but I be lieve it is not serving my students if I go easy on them, especially those students who don’t need that. The students who are falling apart—like we all go through things where our parents are getting a divorce, or somebody dies or we’re hav ing a mental breakdown—I will support the hell out of those kids, and I will make conces sions for those kids. But I’m not going to be like that for kids who just are procrastinators. I’m gon na try to push them to be better, to learn how to learn and be effective.”

According to a Chronicle poll, 98.7% of 158 students sur veyed said they had felt anxious over schoolwork.

kind of dejected and feeling like they have to put all their work into school.” Hall said he continues activities that he enjoys and tries not to get caught up in leveraging his activities.

“I think I realized that everyone was trying to find [a niche] last year in my [Peer Support] group,” Hall said. “Once I realized that, I tried to have a balance and try as best as I could to enjoy the things I do. Ultimately, the goal is that, if I enjoy it, I’ll put more time into it and be better, but I definitely do find myself relapsing or thinking that way. Some times I think it’s impossible here not to.”

President Rick Commons said the school has been adapting to the changing social environment and increased mental health awareness by finding ways to pre serve excellence in the school community.

It’s always been a place where people wanted to do well, but I don’t think we ever felt like we were competing against each other.”

Dr. Vourgourakis ’90

87.4% of students said the school is not lenient enough regarding school work. 61% of students surveyed said they had not done an assignment before because they were struggling with mental health, and 63.9% of those students said a teacher of theirs had not been very under standing of their mental health struggles.

Psychology Teacher and School Counselor Michelle Bracken said mental health problems inter fere with students’ abilities to do work, but she believes schoolwork is not the main contributing factor.

“For some people, particularly [with] anxiety, depression or obsessive-com pulsive disorder or really anything, those things get in the way of your ability to process information, focus in class, do your homework and sit with your thoughts,” Bracken said. “It’s a lot of things that other people can do on their own. It just makes doing any kind of work harder, not less rigor ous. So people don’t leave here because they’re like, ‘oh, I have a mental health problem and this is too hard.’ They leave here because of a mental health problem, and maybe I need some thing different, as opposed to easier.”

Cole Hall ’24 said he sees many students that feel pressure to stand out due to the compet itive environment of the school.

“Everyone at Harvard-Westlake has the mindset that [they] got in for a specific reason or just because they’re extremely smart,” Hall said. “That can leave some students, at least from what I’ve heard, feeling like they aren’t as good as others in all aspects. They feel they have to stand out in one thing to be noticed because, in the grand scheme of things, Harvard-Westlake has such a diverse talent pool. It’s kind of hard to find something that isn’t already taken. That can leave a lot of students feeling

“I do think the school’s been evolving as you’d expect a good school to do, and I’m sure the school has always evolved,” Commons said. “I think the evolution for us, which is not dissimilar from the evolution for other schools like us, has been one in which we wanted to main tain our distinctive commitment to multi-faceted ex cellence while ensuring that we are identifying ways in which students are not thriving emotionally as they pursue excellence and working to address that, and then identifying ways in which the pursuit of excel lence is perhaps not available to all members of the community—which is a kind of vague way of saying we know that students who are at the top of the class academically and have an extracurricular activity in which they are excelling are more likely to feel good about their ex perience than students who may be struggling academically and may not have found the thing extracurricular ly that makes them feel successful.”

Commons said educators are aware of the mental health struggles of teenagers, and the school aims to help students while maintaining its historical success and excellence.

“I don’t know another educator who is not aware that the mental and emo tional health of adolescents, especially high-achieving adolescents, is much more of a concern than it used to be,” Commons said. “It’s fair to say that it has reached a crisis. I don’t know an other educator at another school who’s saying ‘forget making the kids healthy, forget giving the kids an opportunity to enjoy their lives. We need to teach them how to think and nothing else matters.’

Nobody says that anymore, but change is hard and especially hard at successful institutions, and Harvard-Westlake has a long history of success. So for us to work at change inevitably brings ques tions about the extent we are risking the excellence DNA of our institution. That’s the trick that we are continuing to try to pull off and to not compro mise the excellence and the opportunity to pursue excellence at this place while doing everything we can to make the experience more joyful and healthier.”

“

“I felt pressure to assimilate, but I also learned not to at the cost of losing who I am and my identity,” Pleitez said. “I felt a little shy from people [originally] because I was getting to know the culture. I was trying to read people. But, I assimilated. For example, I eat what we consider American food more than Salvadorian [food]. at doesn’t mean that I don’t appreciate Salvadorian food. It’s just that where I live, there are not many Salvadorian restaurants, and I don’t have much time to cook Salvadorian food at home.”

ough he feels that he assimilated, Pleitez said he was surprised by the emphasis on privacy in American culture, which is very di erent from Hispanic culture.

“American people are a very individualistic based culture,” Pleitez said. “ at means that you have to respect people’s space, so you just don’t show up at a house. Hispanics don’t care as much. You just go and knock and say, ‘I’m here, and I’m coming in.’ ere is not that protocol [here]. I had to learn to ask ‘Are you going to be available to hang out on this day? Or, can we meet on this day, people?’ I had to learn those rules of respecting people’s space to make friends.”

Tonya Hoodyakova ’25 moved to the United States from Russia in order to pursue her passion for ballroom dancing when she was 12. She won the National Ballroom Dancing Championships in 2019 and earned dual citizenship in both countries when she was invited to the team.

“I got citizenship because I was invited on the U.S. national team [for ballroom dancing],” Hoodyakova said. “I originally came to New York to practice for the championships. I still lived in Russia, though. So, I have citizenship in both coun-

tries and kinda live everywhere. I’m more of a citizen of the world.”

After moving to New York, Hoodyakova moved to Miami, Florida, where she stayed until she transferred to the school. She said she still hasn’t decided whether or not she wants to return to Russia in the future, especially in light of recent global con icts.

“It is hard to know [if I want to stay in the U.S.], but a lot of a lot of people ask me,” Hoodyakova said. “I love Moscow and my relatives and friends there. I mean, I would like to live there because I was raised there. It’s kind of my home, but I like the U.S. too because I spend a lot of time here.”

Hoodyakova said Russian education and social standards di er from America and the school.

“ e culture is completely di erent,” Hoodyakova said. “In Russia, we are used to discipline, and when I came to the U.S., it seemed like everything was very di erent. I guess it’s more casual. In school, people can wear pajamas and slippers, but in Russia, that would be unacceptable, and [they] would be kicked out of school straightaway. Everything [in Russia] is really strict compared to the U.S.”

Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Janine Jones said she acknowledges the language barrier for international students and said it could look di erent depending on each student’s circumstances.

“I’m sure there’s a disconnect in that [students] may not have a mastery of the English language,” Jones said. “If that’s the case, the school can be a really tough environment. at is why our past standard has been to be uent in English. As we all know, uency looks di erent, there’s a level of uency to be able to navigate the United States versus a level of uency that would be needed in order to be academically successful at Harvard-Westlake.”

Jones said even though she appreciates what the school does for immigrants, she thinks the administration could attempt to do more to accommodate the language barrier.

“ ere’s a lot that we could do to open Harvard-Westlake up to students who may not have the same level of uency around English,” Jones said. “To me, it kind of gets to the question, ‘How accessible are our materials that we give to parents?’ ‘Are we putting things in di erent languages?’ e deans send out information all of the time, but if your parents don’t read English or don’t speak English very well, then that might make it more challenging to communicate with the Deans. Sometimes, it even puts the student in the position of being a translator, which I know is really hard.”

Emily Silkina ’23 is of Russian descent but lived in Hong Kong until she was 12, when she moved to the United States. Silkina said she experienced a lot of social issues with other students after she immigrated.

“I did get bullied a lot,” Silkina said. “I just didn’t know that the experience with other kids would be so different. We all had a di erent culture, di erent upbringing, and I also had a British accent, which got me bullied.”

Although all of these individuals said they may have found di culties in America in terms of language or cultural di erences, they said they each found a way to accept themselves and t in.

Wu said she doesn’t feel con ned by choosing between cultures and embraces her Chinese culture while in America.

“At the last guest speaker event, someone asked a question on how to identify as a half-Jewish and half-black

person,” Wu said. “ e speaker said that he could be both. I feel like that also applies to me. So, I guess, I’ll identify myself as both [Chinese and American].”

Markman said he feels it is necessary to assimilate into American culture in order to build a healthy identity while maintaining strong cultural ties.

“I think when you move to a place, the onus is on you to assimilate and try to learn the language and immerse yourself in the culture, while making sure you stay connected to your other culture,” Markman said. “ at creates a phenomenon of being in the middle. In the end, if done correctly and with intent, I think assimilation can fully Americanize you. At the same time, you’re able to incorporate [some] of your culture into your American identity and you become American plus.”

Pleitez said when he moved to the United States, he strove to achieve citizenship and initially experienced some struggles with grappling with his identity, but ultimately learned to accept his nationality and ethnicity.

“I had to nd the balance between being American versus not losing my complete identity or losing Spanish because as an adult in 2016, I became an American citizen,” Pleitez said. “In terms of law, I had to renounce my nationality and any kinship to the country I came from and only accept the United States. It was so emotional, but this is what people are willing to do. It was very happy, but at the same time, there were a lot of emotions. I am American, but I am also Salvadorian. I think [this realization] came with a more mature level of understanding as an adult, which is probably di erent from a child who doesn’t know who he or she is yet. I knew that this is who I am, an American, but with Salvadorian roots.”

International students and faculty members re ect on being rst generation immigrants in the United States and the school community.

“

I had to nd the balance between being American versus not losing my complete identity or losing [the] Spanish [language.]”

Harold

Pleitez

L. Wood

Harold Pleitez

By Averie Perrin

Jayden Huang ’23 opened up his laptop to a colorful display of websites bookmarked on his browser. Some stores sell accessories, others trendy shoes––but they all share one thing in common: their Black Friday sales, with discounts ranging from 30% to 70%.

Huang said he waits for items to reach the cheapest sale price before purchasing them. He said he pre pares for savings events so he can get an early start on the shopping season.

“There are a couple of small businesses that have already announced they’re go ing to do Black Friday promotion al things,” Huang said. “I have a few places’ sales book marked with times and dates. On one hand, I am looking forward to get ting items, but on the other hand, it also makes me nervous because I am worried about some clothes going out of stock during the sales.”

Huang is not the only student shopping on Black Friday. According to a Chronicle poll, 62.3% of 158 stu dents surveyed said they plan to shop on Black Friday, either in person or online.

95.6% of students surveyed said people at the school are either ma terialistic or somewhat materialistic.

During last year’s Black Friday season, a record $886.7 billion was spent by consumers, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF).

This was a 14.1% increase from the previous year, and the NRF pre dicts holiday sales this year will in crease by six to eight percent.

Huang is a leader of the Fash ion Club, which discusses the cul tural impact of trends and clothing.

He said he has noticed that quick ly changing trends lead to ma terialistic mindsets in teenagers.

“Trends definitely feed into a ma terialistic attitude,” Huang said. “The whole point of trends is just for peo ple to shop more. That’s why fashion is constantly changing because that’s how companies earn money. Especially nowadays, with so many trends pop ping up and microtrends growing, it would be hard to keep up with a lot of trends. A new thing pops up every day. Some people who are really determined to be on trend end up spending a lot.”

Huang said societal pressures of ten lead him to question his out fit choices and buy new items.

“With some of my own outfits, some times I’m in the mood to wear some thing, but then I’ll be like, ‘Wait, is that what am I gonna be like, is that not cool anymore?’” Huang said. “There’s definitely pressure to make sure you’re not going to get shamed for wearing something that you know may be considered outdated.”

Huang said social me dia platforms and creators’ videos in spire peo ple to shop more, lead ing to over consumption.

“Usually around Thanksgiving time on social media, there’s a bunch of Black Friday hauls, and creators will buy a lot with their main point being to show off how much they bought,” Huang said.

“When you buy a lot, you will get more views and more comments, because there’s going to be comments like, ‘Oh, my God, I could never wear that,’ or ‘Oh, my God, my parents will never let me’ or even just, ‘how do you afford that?’ A bunch of questions come up, which leads to more popular videos. For fame and clout, people will shop extra hard on Black Friday. Also be cause the prices are cheap er, people are more likely to buy stuff, maybe they will only wear it once or twice, if they spend less money.”

Mia Patel ’24, the leader of the Sustainable Fashion Club, said she founded the club to change her own fast-fash ion shopping habits.

“I used to shop from fast fashion stores,” Patel said. “Now re cently, as I learned more about sus tainable practices and the effects of our consumption, I’ve started trying to redo my closet so that it’s all basics or sus tainable items. I always limit myself and make sure that the places that I’m

buying from during the year are sustain able. Something that’s important when you’re considering where to buy clothes from is quality over quantity, so you can be more sustainable in your choices.”

Patel said some students use shopping as an emotional outlet.

She said many people do under stand the negative effects of fashion and thus change their shopping hab its to avoid unsustainable brands.

“Some people at Harvard-Westlake have this mindset of ‘this is what makes me happy’ or ‘shopping is what makes me happy,’ but also some people are aware of the consequences of their actions and are able to kind of stray away from this fast fashion and lean towards these more sustainable practices,” Patel said. “I’d hope that they take the time or the effort to shop sustainably when they have the monetary priv ilege to do so, which is something many kids at Harvard-Westlake have.”

said. “They don’t have to try in school because their parents get them every thing, and they don’t ever need to work because they have such big trust funds, but that’s not really a problem that Har vard-Westlake has. For example, when a seventh grader [at Beverly Hills public school] dropped their Cartier ring down the Santa Monica Pier, it was okay, be cause they had insurance on the ring.”

Like Patel, Evan Krau theimer ’24 said he believes the problem of materialism ex tends beyond the school and is present throughout the city of Los Angeles.

Something that’s important when you’re considering where to to buy clothes from is quality over quantity [to be] more sustainable.”

Patel said materialism at the school extends be yond clothing or shop ping items to academic transactional ity and a desire for academic success.

“The atmosphere at Harvard-West lake itself, even academically, is very materialistic,” Patel said. “We always go there to get something in return. We always just want more and more and more, but Har vard-Westlake is doing a lot to counter the academic materialism. Also, I don’t think buying something just because you see it on someone else is mate rialistic. I just think that we’re easily influenced.”

Patel said she does not believe the consumeris tic attitudes necessar ily stem from the school being a private in stitution, and that she ob served a more materialistic attitude at the public school she attended before coming to the school.

“At Beverly Hills High School, most kids know that they’re never going to have to work a day in their lives,” Patel

“At lots of schools in LA, even at public schools, there are kids that are incredibly materialistic,” Krau theimer said. “I don’t think it’s something exclusive to the Har vard-Westlake private school kids. I think just because people here have more money than average, they will spend more money.”

Mia Patel ’24

Krautheimer said he does not shop frequent ly and does not feel any pres sure to buy more clothes or items.

“Over the past year and currently, I have two pairs of shoes that I actually wear and a pair of Crocs,” Krautheimer said. “I’m not really big into shoes. I’m not super into fashion, so I don’t really care. I look at people’s shoes and I’m like, ‘Damn those are sick.’ I wear these shoes, a different pair of shoes and a pair of crocs and I’m cool with that. I don’t think anyone is judging me for it, and if peo ple do, I don’t mess with them anyway.”

Elizabeth Johnstone ’24, a lead er of the Environmental Club, said whether it makes students happy or not, Black Friday is detrimental to the environment because it creates excess waste in production and packaging.

“The waste produced with the mate rials is a big problem,” Johnstone said. “Specific to Black Friday, packaging is a huge one. Whether you’re buying off of Amazon or in person, the waste pro duced in packaging can really overwhelm our waste system, and even if that ma terial is shipped out, it’s a horrible mess of a lot of garbage and waste that ends up in landfills or in oceans. If you buy a piece of clothing and it rips, and you throw it out, then it’s just sitting in the landfill, and not only the materials that were harvested, but also the energy that it took to manufacture the shirt and then transport and package it is wasted.”

Students and faculty discuss their plans for Black Friday shopping and the presence of materialistic attitudes in the community.

“

Arts & Entertainment

By Kriste An

Scrolling on her phone, Jewish Club Leader Charlotte Newman ’24 said she was disappointed to see anti-Semitic remarks that American rapper, songwriter and record producer Ye, born Kanye West, had posted on Twitter.

Newman said though she found Ye’s remarks difficult to understand at first, she did not find it surpris ing given the global rise of anti-Semitism.

“The initial post struck me as weird,” Newman said. “I did not know what [death con three] meant at first. I was pret ty unfazed, though, because to some de gree, a lot of celebrities and people [have] voiced their an ti-Semitic beliefs on Twitter.”

After Ye posted a threat to murder Jewish people, multi ple companies, including Adi das, Chase Bank, Gap, Balen ciaga and his agency CAA terminated deals with him. In addition, social media platforms including Twitter and Insta gram have deleted his accounts.

Newman said though Ye has made a number of contro versial remarks in the past, she finds his anti-Semitism hurtful.

“I liked Kanye,” Newman said. “I was never a huge fan, but I liked his music. His opinions have, for some time, struck me as egotistical, [but] I think his comments toward Jewish peo ple are more harmful than past comments [he has made] because of what he said at this particular moment about Jewish people. He is a great musician, but I am not purchasing merchandise, tickets or playing his songs on repeat.”

Like Newman, Upper School Visual Arts Teacher and DEI Coordinator Reb Limerick said Ye’s remarks against Jewish peo ple have prompted them to stop listening to his music.

“Ye has gradually shifted from being a problematic fa vorite to someone [that] I no longer admire or support,” Limerick said. “His music is intertwined with ecstatic and spe cial memories with friends, but at some point, I had to let him go and draw the line.”

Jewish Club Leader Manu Markman ’23

said Ye’s threats are concerning because they signal a larger disre gard for the Jewish community.

“I was disappointed knowing that he is symbolic of a great er ignorance of the past Jewish experience that has subjected us to unthinkable alienation in Europe and around the world,” Markman said. “When I saw Kanye’s posts, I felt it was less about Kanye, who has been upfront about his mental health struggles, and more about the greater im portance we should as cribe to education on the Jewish experience.”

Markman said he still believes being able to separate the art from the artist is valuable because it allows people to ap preciate art without connect ing it to its creator’s mistakes.

“I think one must respect the

great things like Lyndon B. John son and the Civil Rights Act.”

Whether individuals should support a product when its cre ator is embroiled in controver sies — that is, separate the art from the artist — has been a mainstream issue for some time. Though some find it difficult to support an artist after learn ing of their offenses, others, like Sam Pulaski ’24, said they find this process less challenging.

Pulaski said though he recog nizes that what Ye did was wrong, he will have a difficult time de taching himself from Ye’s music.

“I do not want to support him, but at the same time, I love his music, and I find it difficult to stop listening to his music,” Pu laski said. “He has either written, produced or vocalized in a good portion of music from the last 20 years. There is a playlist on Spotify with every single song that he has spoken at least one word on, and that playlist has 500 songs. It is 25 not listen to

all that music can be a challenge.”

Aviv Pilipski ’25 echoed a similar sentiment. Pilipski said he will continue to listen to Ye’s music, though his feelings to ward him have changed. He said there is an important dis tinction to make between active and passive forms of support.

“I am go ing to listen to his music, but as a person, my feelings to ward him have shifted for the [worse],” Pilips ki said. “The events have me thinking twice about listening to his music but are not enough to prevent me. If his music was on somewhere, I would not walk out or storm out of the room. I consider listening to his music a passive action. I feel the line gets drawn when the action becomes active like when people purchase merchandise or go to his concerts.”

I want to educate them, but when celebrities say something, I feel that it is not my place to judge them.”

Pilipski said part of this decision is because

Jewish value,” Pilipski said. “[It] is what allowed Jewish civilizations to survive and what allows my faith to continue. I do not want to censor anyone or force anyone to have anti-Semitic training or background because that goes against my own values. I want to educate them, but when celeb rities say some thing, I feel that it is not my place to judge them. I think context is important, and I want to dig in a little more to see the con text surrounding their actions. I refrain from hat ing them with out consider ing these circumstances.”

Pilipski ‘25

Limerick said it is important to give artists chances to compen sate for their mistakes, though their actions become unacceptable when similar offenses continue.

“I do not believe we should rush to cancel an artist for doing something wrong because people should be given opportunities to grow and change, but we must notice who our culture gives sec ond, third or tenth chances to and who we do not,” Limerick said.

“Once I notice patterns of harm, hate and abuse of power, then it is time to stop supporting an artist with my money and time.”

Ye, however, is not alone in conversations about separating the art from the artist. British author and philanthropist J. K. Rowling, best known for writ ing the “Harry Potter” series, has been subject to allegations of transphobia and homophobia.

Harry Potter Club Lead er Jessica Thompson ’23 said she was disappointed in Rowl ing’s offensive remarks to ward the LGBTQ community.

“I watched ‘Harry Potter’ as I grew up as other kids watched other shows,” Thompson said. “When all of the stuff [relating to her transphobia] transpired in the media, I tried to not support the ‘Harry Potter’ fran chise. I did not purchase things from Universal or the website. I bought books second-hand and watched the mov ies pirated. I did not want the money I spent to be given to J. K. Rowling.”

Students and faculty debate whether it is acceptable to separate the art from the artist amid recent events of anti-Semitism.

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Manu

Markman ’23

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Aviv

Clara Berg ’25 played Marge Murray, the mother of the po lice officer who found Matthew Shepard after he was left to die. Berg said she thinks it was an important choice for the school to put on “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later” because the play serves as a reminder that Mat thew Shepard’s story is relevant.

“I think this show is sig nificant because it is different from plays that are usually done at a school,” Berg said. “This was an important show to do because of its heaviness and the reality of it. Because Matthew was killed in 1998, some people find it easy to just think of it as something in the past that is not im portant today, but this play and its message show how Matthew’s story is still present and relevant now. This play has brought me new awareness, being queer my self. This play educated me and connected me with Matthew [and] his community.”

Performing Arts Teacher and Director Michele Spears said it was difficult to do justice to Mat thew Shepard’s story but that students managed to persevere through these challenges.

“The weight of it was a chal lenge because we’re asking young people to open themselves up to these things that I hope, for the most part, nobody has ever had to bump up against, but as an ac tor, that is your mission, to step

in and understand all sorts of people in order to serve the story that’s being told,” Spears said.

Roles were open to students of all identities, regardless of the character’s actual gender, race, religion or sexual orientation. Spears said every student who auditioned received a part. Weston Fox ’24, who played Tectonic Theater Proj ect member Moíses Kaufman and Laramie resident Jonas Slonaker, said while it is easier to portray a fictional char acter, the opportunity to play a real person helped him develop as an actor.

“[Acting as] a fic tional character, you do almost anything [because] you only get the lines, but with Moisés and Jonas, there is so much more to explore,” Fox said. “The words that are seen reflect so much more emotion and power than what a fictional character could say, as they are rooted in reality and much harder to ignore. The whole pro cess had a greater weight to it because I am trying to show two people, not just two characters. I can’t just copy them, but I need to honor

who they are.”

Assistant Director Zoe Sha piro ’23 said an additional chal lenge for actors was portraying characters whose actions and opinions they may disagree with.

“Another element for actors was playing a person that is still alive and not thinking of them as a villain, even if they don’t agree with their views,” Shapiro said. “All these people have depth and I think that was a big challenge for people to explore their char acters and understand there [are] so many layers.”

Nathaniel Palmer ’24, who played Laramie resident Jeffrey Lockwood, police officer Rob DeBree and Matthew Shepard’s murderer, Aaron McKinney, said though it was difficult to step into the role at first, understand ing how other characters viewed McKinney helped him portray the murderer.

“At some point, I put Aaron

cused on my other characters, namely Rob DeBree, who hates Aaron,” Palmer said. Strangely enough though, being in that mindset helped me form Aar on. Whenever I played Rob, I thought ‘What kind of a person could be so monstrous that this jaded old cop is showing his an ger?’ and realized it was my job to tell the audience.”

Along with the cast of 20 actors, a group of stagecraft students helped stage manage and run the lighting, video and audio for the show. A team of student musicians com posed music for the scenes in the play.

Spears said though the play was not nec essarily uplifting, its impact on the audience members made it meaningful to perform.

“People confessed to me that they dreaded hav ing to come and see this deep play with young actors, but after, they [said] we handled it beautifully,” Spears said. “That is our point. The audience connection is the thing that makes theater dif ferent [from] anything else. That conver sation with an audience and that impact

that you feel in a room when an audience goes still, that is the special purview of the medi um of theater, [and] I think we achieved that really beautifully in this show.”

Fox said he found the play personally impactful and that he hopes it inspired audience mem bers to similarly embrace the messages within the show and create change.

Wood Weston Fox ’24

“The play was so inspiring,” Fox said. “There are so many different lessons throughout the play, and I hope the audi ence recognized them. Because we shared this story, the audi ence became a part of it, and they can help bring about change and spread the messages of ‘The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later’ even further.”

Shepard said the play is espe cially significant because of its universal lessons surrounding hate and ignorance.

“If you remove Matt and his sexuality and then introduce reli gion or race, it is the exact same story about prejudice, ignorance and hate,” Shepard said. “It in troduces that concept to students but also the idea that everybody comes from different back grounds and perspectives. We need to take that into account when we talk about these stories, and try to educate and open their hearts and minds to the idea that we are all just people.”

Student vocalists perform in St. Saviour’s Chapel

By Hannah Shahidi

The Upper School Performing Arts Department hosted its first vocal performance of the year as part of the Lunch Time Concert Series in St. Saviour’s Chapel on Oct. 28. The showcase featured performances from Bel Canto, Wolverine Chorus, Chamber Singers and a variety of small groups and soloists.

Robles said students worked on their pieces for months lead ing up to their performances.

“The choral ensembles have been rehearsing during class since

the beginning of the year,” Robles said. “This was [an] opportunity for them to learn what it is like to perform in front of an audience. The soloists and small ensembles were the top performers chosen from a number of students who submitted audition recordings. Those who were selected demon strated an exceptional level of art istry and preparedness.”

Performing Arts Teacher Za naida Robles said small concerts like these prepare singers for their larger performances.

“Small-scale performances are a great way to introduce [the]

school to music in an accessible way and at a convenient time,” Robles said. “It is a great way for our performers to practice their skills in a low-pressure environ ment. The chapel is a special and historic space with acoustics that amplify the human voice. As a concert producer and artistic di rector, I love creating these kinds of performances.”

Chamber Singers member Cayley Tolbert-Schwartz ’24, who performed a solo, said the concert allowed students to unite the community through music. “The concert was to celebrate

holidays that have to do with darkness around Halloween time,” Tolbert-Schwartz said. “It has some themes from Día de los Muertos and other holidays that carry the same theme. It is not a space for people to perform just to perform but sing as a celebra tion of music. It allows people a space to express themselves and bring together the community.”

Piper Vita ’25 attended the concert and said she appreciated the assortment of songs that were performed by the choir.

“I liked how many different genres of music they included in

the performance and how some students had their own songs,” Vita said. “I also liked how stu dents got to perform their own songs individually. I remember one song in particular stood out because one of the choir mem bers played the acoustic guitar with it.”

The Performing Arts Depart ment is planning three more concerts as a part of the series, each centered around different holidays, Dec. 13, Jan. 24 and Apr. 20. All these productions will be hosted during lunch in St. Savior’s Chapel.

Students and teachers discuss their experiences working on the school’s production of “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later.”

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Clara Berg ’25

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WHAT’S NEW: FALL REVIEWS

The School for Good and Evil

By Natasha Speiss and Jade Harris

Netflix’s film “The School for Good and Evil,” released Oct. 18, attempts to spin classic fairy tale motifs into something fresh and origi nal but sorely misses the mark.

Based on the book by So man Chainani, the film follows best friends Sophie (Sophia Anne Caruso) and Agatha (So fia Wylie) in their journeys at the School for Good and Evil, where they are seemingly placed in the wrong schools. Sophie, in the School for Evil, attempts to prove she is truly good by seducing Prince Tedros (Jamie Flatters), while Agatha, placed in the School for Good, desperate ly tries to convince her friend to go home. This happens all while

their story is written by a sen tient storybook, and the school master’s evil brother Rafal (Kit Young) stalks So phie’s progress. My biggest issue with the film was how, even in a fan tasy world of magic and fair ies, it managed to be truly unrealistic.

Ranging from the dialogue to the world building, the writing of the film was poor. The characters’ dialogue was too

Midnights

By Alden Detmer

Taylor Swift released her highly anticipated “Midnights” Oct. 21 at midnight on the East Coast – but for students in Los Angeles, it was 9 p.m. That is a metaphor for this album. It should have felt as exciting and invigorat ing as pulling an all-nighter, when in reality the energy level was reminis cent of a tod dler’s bedtime.

While some of the songs, including “An ti-Hero” and “Mastermind,” are relatable and great for the person who screams at the top of their lungs at parties, the rest of the songs feel generic. They fall flat when compared to the

nine other albums produced by the singer that tell a full story.

The whole album has es sentially been done before and is reverting to a safer idea of Swift, one of basic pop that is missing the emotion that typically comes with her sto rytelling. Es pecially after the wave of excitement and anticipation for something even better than her previ ous albums, the underwhelming nature of “Mid nights” has failed to meet the high expec tations she set for her fan base.

Unusually for Swift, the lyrics are unable to salvage the immature sound of the songs. In “Bejeweled”, for example, she says, “Best believe I’m still

scripted, forgoing the brilliance of the novel in order to ad vance the plot. The characters themselves had little chemis try with each other, especial ly Sophie and Tedros. There was little con text given to their romance; one moment, they were look ing at each oth er from across a hallway, and the next, Tedros was agreeing to take her to the ball. The movie is a critique of

extremes – good and evil, love and hate, alienation and belong ing – but attempts to do too much, and as a result, doesn’t do enough. Though the book manages to make clichés of love and acceptance feel new through a unique mode of storytell ing, the movie feels derivative.

The storylines fluctuate too much, with barely any build-up to critical plot points. This can be partly attributed to the nat ural cuts when making books into movies, but the acting performances were extremely one-dimensional: characters rap idly flipped their personalities.

Moments of incredible act ing shined through from Wy lie, Caruso and Fishburne, but the rest of the cast either were working with incredibly under developed characters or simply

were unable to give a moving performance. Young’s acting was especially disappointing, and I found myself cringing at scenes he was in rather than being ter rified of the supposed villain.

That being said, the film does some things very well. The spe cial effects are breathtaking, with talking trees and phenomenal scenery, and the costumes and makeup are some of the most beautiful I’ve seen onscreen in a while. Sophie wearing elab orate, hand-sewn black outfits to seemingly embrace her evil was especially intriguing–her outfits visually separate her from Agatha’s ornate dresses.

Overall, the movie was a sweet watch, made more enjoy able by my prior love for the se ries. Just next time, turn books into TV shows instead of mov

bejeweled, when I walk in the room, I can still make the whole place shimmer.” The plastic, dim and aggressive sound of “Karma” or electro-nonsense of “Vigilante Sh*t” feel in accessible in “Midnights.”

Swift released seven addi tional songs at 3 a.m. the same night. Unfortunately, they do not contribute nearly anything to the original album other than another mindless blur of pop. They seem to be filler songs, obscuring the bigger picture.

“Midnights” makes the lis tener wonder where Swift can now go as she has pivoted to seemingly every genre of the music industry. The influence of other gloomy pop stars is clear within “Midnight Rain” and “Lavender Haze.” If Swift makes a return to country or pop country, she may be able to reinvigorate her music. Otherwise, we may be stuck with generic pop for a while.

By Eden Conner

“Smile” is one of 2022’s most popular horror film’s whose success ful blending of genres has allowed the movie to reach wider audienc es. The film, released Sept. 30, was incredibly successful at the box office, gross ing over $100 million internationally. This was the only reason I, a publically proclaimed hater of horror films, chose to go to the movie theater and give it a try.

“Smile,” is based on the 2020 short film “Laura Hasn’t Slept,” and focuses on psychi atrist Dr. Rose Cotter, who is haunted by an evil spirit that feeds on the trauma of humans.

The jumpscares were nerve-wrack ing to say the least, and the cine matography was brilliantly done.

As a lover of art within movies such as color choice and photogra

Smilephy, “Smile” checks all my boxes. There is little to no cheesiness, and eye-roll moments are few and far between. The film’s incredible box office success can be attributed to its blend of mystery, romance and horror. Rose must balance the lack of humanity within the evil spirit which, juxta posed with its hunger for humans’ emotion al trauma, made me wish Director Parker Jones was consider ing a “Star Wars” in spired prequel series.

Whether you are a die-hard fan of all things scary or the kind of person that finds themself covering their eyes for the majority of the movie after the opening credits, “Smile” has something for every viewer (even if that thing is the inability to sleep for a week after watching — I am definitely not speaking from personal experience).

Halloween Coffeehouse showcases school community’s creativity

By Hannah Shahidi

Prefect Council hosted the first Coffeehouse of the year in Chalmers lounge after school Oct. 31. The Halloween themed event featured perfor mances from students in mu sic, comedy and poetry. Prefect Council provided coffee and bundt cakes for all attendees.

Sophomore Prefect Eric Lee ’25 said his hope for the Cof feehouses is that they will help connect students with each other in an informal setting.

“I hope that the Coffeehouses will not only bring the commu nity together, but also provide a chance for students to relieve their stress and share their talents with everyone,” Lee said. “Cof

feehouse gives everybody the chance to share their creativity with the rest of the community. The environment is so low stress, so there’s nothing wrong with messing up because everyone else just encourages the performer.”

Instead of having faculty mod erators or organizers, all Coffee house events are student-run. Lee said having students plan and exe cute such events contributes to the relaxed atmosphere of the event.

“I feel like having a stu dent-operated event is special because it makes other students feel more carefree about the event,” Lee said. “The casual ness of Coffeehouse is what makes it unique. Having stu dent moderators and student organizers allows people to freely

make jokes and have more fun.”

Whitney Enenstein ’24, who sang and played guitar, said she enjoys performing and hopes that more students will partic ipate in future Coffeehouses.

“I love performing and sharing my passions with others, so I take every opportunity I can to per form,” Enenstein said. “As Prefect Council has hosted more Coffee houses, more people have come to support their classmates and friends, and I feel like it has really helped to bring people together. It’s important to encourage more students

form. It’s easy for students to be nervous or intimidated to per form, which I totally understand and can relate to. However, I hope that people can come to these events and see how supportive the environment is and that this will encourage more people to perform in future Coffeehouses.”

Nate Arnold ’25, who per formed an original song, said he appreciates the chance to sing in front of an audience.

“I love to write songs, and Coffeehouse gave me the op portunity of playing them that I’ve been looking for,” Arnold said. “As someone who can get nervous when performing in front of people, Coffeehouse gave me an opportunity to gain experience and get my nerves

under control. I loved being able to perform my songs and I loved hearing the amazing voic es of all the incredibly talented people who also performed.”

After the scheduled perfor mances, students were able to give impromptu performances. Ava Hakakha ’25 said she likes that students can perform with out signing up before the event.

“I think it’s cool that people can just go up and perform,” Hakakha said. “It definitely adds to the overall laid-back vibe of the event and it makes it more fun for everyone watching.”

Prefect Council will con tinue to host more Coffee houses and similar showcase events throughout the year for students, according to Lee.

Staff members share their thoughts on media releases this fall, discussing two new films and a long-anticipated album drop.

Guys

why

By Ella Yadegar

Alyssa Thompson ’23 walked out beside her U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) team mates at Wembley Stadium un der beaming lights and the cheers of 76,893 attendees. Preparing to take on England in the match, Thompson said she could not help but notice how different this experience felt from a typical school game at Ted Slavin Field. She became the youngest player to debut for the team since 2016 after substituting into the game for forward Megan Rapi noe on Oct. 7.

Thompson said playing in such a large stadium was a shocking expe rience because of the size of the crowd.

“I looked at the whole stadium,” Thompson said. “It was very scary imagining all those people watching, but they seemed so far away. I couldn’t even see their faces. When I first walked out, I could hear the chants, and it felt like they were right in my ear because of how many people were there. When someone missed a shot, [the au dience] was so loud.”

The team lost 2-1 to England and then lost 2-0 to Spain four days later. Thompson said even with the losses, her experience so far has been invaluable. She said

she has learned many important skills from the professional play ers on her team.

“I watch [my teammates’] movements, how they go about their day, and the recovery they do to stay in the shape that they are [in],” Thompson said. “I try to mimic their movements to make sure I’m in those half spac es. And then for recovery, they’ve been doing this for so long. See ing how they take care of their bodies and are able to play this game and the longevity of their [bodies] is amazing.”

Thompson won the Girls Soccer Ga torade Player of the Year Award after her sophomore sea son in 2021.

Before being called up to the USWNT, Thompson competed with the U-20 USWNT at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica in early August.

Thompson, along with her sis ter, then became the first high school athlete to sign a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deal with Nike. With her family by her side, Thompson signed her letter of intent to play soccer at Stanford University on Nov. 9 in Taper Gym at the Upper School.

Girls varsity soccer player Skyla Wilkins ’25 said it is inspi rational to watch someone from the school play on a national

sports team.

“It’s amazing to see someone from Harvard-Westlake compete at that level, and it makes me proud to be a part of this school whenever someone from outside of school mentions it,” Wilkins said. “What she’s done is almost like a Disney movie.”

Wilkins said that as an ath lete herself, she admires the hard work Thompson puts into de veloping her skills with her club team outside of school and the national team.

“Seeing Alyssa achieve what she has, especially because she’s so close to home at Harvard-West lake, has been really inspiring in all aspects of my life,” Wilkins said. “It’s amazing to even know that, through hard work, it’s pos sible to reach these goals and has inspired me to do the same.”

Similarly, girls varsity soccer player Victoria Pugh ’25 said she looks up to Thompson both on the soccer field and as an athlete in general.

“It is incredible to see Alyssa playing in the World Cup and on the national team because it shows us as athletes and schol ars that with enough hard work, dedication and perseverance our dreams can become our realities,” Pugh said.

Matthew Murray ’24 said while Thompson is an amazing athlete, he also admires her for her kind personality.

“I’m good friends with Alyssa’s sister and I sit next to Alyssa in Spanish,” Murray said. “She’s su per nice and chill. For someone who’s doing such amazing things, she’s incredibly humble as well.”

Thompson said although she

had to miss a number of days of school for the team’s games against England and Spain, her teachers have helped her keep up with her academic work.

“Honestly, I don’t think I would be able to do it at a lot of other schools because of the faculty at Harvard-Westlake,” Thompson said. “[Head of Upper School] Ms. Slat tery and all my teachers are very supportive and very helpful with me leaving. They’re super flex ible, and when I came back [from my trips] , they helped me get back on track and weren’t su per strict about everything, which is really nice.”

Thompson said when she is away from the team and with her friends at school, she choos es not to talk about soccer.

“I don’t want people just to think of me as soc cer,” Thomp son said. “I don’t want it to be why people want to be friends with me or why people talk to me. I just want to be a normal person, I guess. I feel like I don’t talk about it because I don’t feel that I have reached all the goals that I want to yet. And I feel like if I can become better and if I get too confident or have a big ego, then that might stop me from becoming a better player.”

Thompson said she appreciates the rec ognition she receives and does not feel pressured by the media to per form better.

“I don’t really feel pressure from [the media], more so [from] my self to just be the best I can,” Thompson said. “I hope I can continue that and not let [the media] get to me.”

Thompson said she still has some skills she would like to strengthen during her time playing with the team.

“A big goal in the [next couple of] months [and season] is just evolving,” Thompson said. “Not everything in my game is as strong as I [would like it to be]. I don’t want to just [be known as a] fast player. I want to work on my left foot and just [on] finish ing in general.”

Multiple media reporters, in cluding Eric Sondheimer and Tarek Fattal, sports columnists for the Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Daily News, respec tively, have commented on the successes of Thompson at such a

Alyssa Thompson ’23

printed with permission of alyssa thompson illustrations by sophia evans

Boys basketball tops national and local high school rankings

By Eden Conner

It’s still dark outside when small forward Nik Khamenia’s ’25 morning alarm goes off. He rolls over, groaning before grab bing his phone to turn off the alarm. The screen flashes, and he’s faced with the lock screen background he added the night of last year’s Open Division Championship loss to Corona Centennial: a silver medal en graved with the words “2022 Open Division Boys Basketball Runner-Up.” Khamenia stares at the virtual wallpaper for a sec ond, then gets out of bed to get ready for morning training.

Boy’s Basketball had an over all league record of 25-3 and a 5-1 Mission League record last season. Khamenia said the team headed into the offseason after a 64-48 loss to Corona Centennial Feb. 25 who went on to win the CIF-SS championship.

“The loss was very tough,” Khamenia ’25 said. “I’ve watched the film so many times by now I can’t even count, but I’m taking

it day by day. I think I definitely try not to look too far into the future. Everyone wants to think about January, February, March when things really get tough. Taking it a day at a time and get ting better and improving this team is what I’m focused on.”

The team has ramped up training as they get closer to the winter season, moving from practice three to four days a week to a schedule of five to six days a week of practice. Coaches have focused recent practices on live drills, playing and trying to give the squad every look they might face during the season. Guard Christian Horry ’24 said as sea son approaches, the team is tak ing precautions to ensure a suc cessful start to the season.

“Right now we’re focused on taking care of our bodies and avoiding any injury,” Horry said. “There is also a shift in what’s going on outside of practice in terms of not going to parties and using our off days to rest.”

Transitioning from being the only freshman on varsity to

sophomore year, Khamenia said he recognizes the importance of being a resource for the younger members of the team.

“Having younger guys on the team means they look up to me more,” Khamenia said. “I have to be a bigger role model and have confidence on the court because I’m not the new guy anymore.”

One adjustment the team is faced with is Sierra Canyon’s transfer from the Gold Coast League to the Mission League. Sierra Canyon was one basket ball’s biggest opponents last year, so having them in the league will

Boys water polo faces Newport Harbor in CIF semifinal game

By Jackson Mayer

The boys water polo team reached the semifinals of thew California Interscholastic Fed eration (CIF) Southern Section Championships before losing to Newport Harbor on Nov. 9. The score of the game was 11 to 9, with Newport Harbor outscoring them. The school is the third best water polo team in the country, and Newport Harbor is ranked number one, according to MaxPreps. The team also faced Newport Har bor once earlier in the season, but also fell short with a score of 11 to 10.

Attacker Alex Heenan ’24 said the team’s improved chem istry was central to their success, and that its loss will only serve

as inspiration for next season.

“I feel that the progress our team made in coming together and working for [the sake of] the team as a whole instead of the individual led to our team’s success this year,” Heenan said. “I think that this recent loss will help our team in providing fur ther motivation to improve as a team and focus on correcting the mistakes we made. I think that if we are able to make these changes, our chances of winning CIF next year are promising.”

Attacker Asher Engelberg ’24 agreed and said the team’s strong bonds were vital.

“Our teamwork and cama raderie were instrumental in al lowing us to be successful in the playoffs,” Engelberg said.

The team finished their

league season with an undefeat ed record of 4-0, and currently has an overall record of 19-6. The team will compete for a statewide CIF championship in the coming weeks.

Defender Jaxson Tierney ’23 attributed the team’s success to their work ethic.

“I think what made us suc cessful this year was our team not making excuses and work ing hard,” Tierney said.

Heenan said the team plans to continue this dedication in preparation for next year’s sec tionals. The team remains op timistic about their chances to win a championship in the up coming seasons.

“We have to keep working to get a shot at winning a champi onship next year,” Heenan said.

only add to the rivalry. Power Forward Jacob Huggins ’23 said he looks forward to their addi tion in the Mission League.

“I think it will add excite ment for another game playing them at home,” Huggins said. “I know the students and Fanatics will be hyped for that game, but within the team I don’t think it adds anything special. We are going to play our brand of basketball whether it’s against them or not.”

Heading into the season, Boys Basketball has been ranked second in the city of

Los Angeles, according to Eric Sondheimer of the Los Angeles Times. Horry says the expec tations have fueled the team to reach goals that last year’s team couldn’t achieve.

“We feel tiny bits of pressure but it’s nothing that we can’t handle,” Horry said. “We’re still the same team and we push each other. I would say instead of more pressure we feel like it makes us work harder to live to those standards.”

The squad’s first game of the season is Nov. 14 against St. Monica Catholic High School.

Girls volleyball eliminated from playoffs after loss to Aliso Niguel

By Alex Dinh

The girl’s volleyball team led by Girls Volleyball Program Head Natalie Morgan is off to a rocky start in the season after two recent losses: a 3-2 loss to Aliso Niguel on Oct. 26 and a 3-0 loss to Liberty High School on Nov. 8. Their season came to an end following their second loss in the CIF playoffs.

This season, they concluded with a final record of 22 wins and 17 losses. Their elimination came following their consecutive losses to Aliso Niguel and Liber ty High School. Last season, the team won CIF Division champi ons after a rapid series of wins. They completed a very successful season with a final record of 30 wins and 8 losses, making it all

the way to the state final game before losing to Hillsdale High School. However, that hasn’t been the case this year.

Morgan said one main rea son for the result of this season compared to to the last is that star senior players left the team after graduating last year. Now, the new seniors and juniors are stepping in the roles that led to their success last season.

“I think that the performance of last season really inspired our underclassmen to get better and grow this year, and our seniors helped guide the team, but now they’re gone,” Morgan said.

Morgan emphasized that the seniors had left large shoes to fill, and the new senior players found it difficult to take over their roles.

“Our seniors last year left some really big shoes to fill. It was difficult for our seniors this year to just learn their own lead ership styles and lead with that joy.” Morgan said.

Despite the losses, Morgan said that she could see constant growth and improvement in the team. She remains optimis tic that the team can win more games next season.

“Setting the standard of going to state every year is definitely what our President tried to build - that culture of winning long term - winning in November is something that we’re progressing to”, Morgan said. “We just faced a lot of outside adversity this year, and I’m really proud of the way the team battled together from here.”

CHECK UP: Trent Perry ’24, Brady Dunlap ’23 and Jacob Huggins ’23 of Harvard Westlake pose alongside Dusty Stromer, Mercy Miller and Caleb Foster of Notre Dame High School for picture day.

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF DAVID CRANE

EYES ON THE TARGET: Jaxson Tierney ’23 extends out of the water with the ball in his hand as he prepares to take a shot at the opposing goalie.

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF DARLENE BIBLE

ABOVE THE NET: Sophia Indelicato ’25 executes a pass as Ceumara Hernandez ’25 watches closely for the perfect moment to strike the ball.

Girls tennis season ends with defeat to Tesoro in second round of CIF playoffs

By Alden Detmer and Nathan Wang

The girls tennis team lost to Tesoro High School 8-10 in the semi-finals of the Division 1 Cal ifornia Interscholastic Federation (CIF) playoffs. The team ended their season with an overall re cord of 15-3 and a league record of 7-1.

In the Mission League Final Oct. 27, Sunny Lu ’25 won the Mission League Singles tour nament, and Emily Stutsman ’26 came in third place. Maddie Chan ’23 and Team Captain Zoe Shin ’23 won the Doubles tour nament, with Mimi Rhee ’25 and Lou Zapata ’23 finishing second. Lu was named Singles tourna ment MVP while Chan and Shin were named Doubles tourna

ment MVP.

Girls Tennis Program Head Jelena Durisic said the team was extremely dedicated and played as one.

“Starting from the beginning of the sea son, they went in as a team,” Durisic said. “They all committed to the program, showed up to practices and put in a lot of effort. We had a couple of times where our energy did not show on [the] court and we essentially froze and did not defend as well. The most import ant thing is to have high energy and just be aggressive.”

the semi-final loss was difficult to accept, the season still ended on a high note.

“The match was pretty heart breaking, because we only lost by one [set], and I know that we definitely could have won [the match],” Nickoll said. “The line up was definitely a lit tle bit surprising which threw us off a little bit.

In the end though, it was a really great sea son, and we played hard and had a lot of fun.”

the day I have to respect their opinions and trust that they had our best interest in mind,” Zapa ta said. “I’ll always hold this team close to my heart.”

Sophia Bakhtiari ’25 said she felt pressure playing in her first CIF semi-final, but the team’s support helped her overcome it.

“I was nervous but also excit ed because I wanted to play well for my team,” Bakhtiari said.

Football loses in first round

By Alex Dinh

The football team finished its season with an overall record of 6-4 after losing 33-21 to Grand Terrace in the first round of the Division 8 California Interscho lastic Federation-Southern Sec tion (CIF-SS) playoffs Nov. 4. This is the second season in a row the team has lost in the first round of the playoffs, falling short to Tahquitz High School 56-33 last year. Program Head Aaron Huerta said the team has been becoming more sure of their ability to compete success fully in the playoffs.

“I thought that we showed we can be [in the playoffs],” Huerta said. “The last two years, we’ve gotten to the playoffs, we haven’t won [a playoff game], but I think the kids are starting to gain more confidence in realizing that we are a playoff team. We just need to get over that hump and win our first one.”

The team started the season off 0-2, but then won four con secutive games until losing to St. Pius X - St. Matthias Academy 62-7, two games before the end of the season. Huerta said the team was able to stay focused after the loss and ultimately achieve their goal of getting sec ond in the Del Rey League and making the CIF-SS playoffs.

l. wood Lou Zapata ’23

Zapata said she trusted the coaches to operate the team to the best of their abilities.

“That was my first [time] in the semi-finals and my team and I were driven to win. Our team bond made a difference because when we supported each other, it made all the difference during the tough matches.”

“We came back the next Monday and were ready to go for the next week,” Huerta said. “We didn’t dwell on [the loss]. We knew that it was going to be a tough game, so it was, move on, and let’s set our sights on finishing second in the league, which we did.”

Doubles player Annabelle Nickoll ’23 said that although

“I didn’t necessarily agree with all of the coaching decisions, but I’m not a coach, so at the end of

Cross country team prepares for CIF

By Christopher Mo

The cross country team fin ished the regular season with the annual Mt. Sac Invitational on Oct. 21. The boys and girls varsity teams placed first in their open races.

Since September, the team has competed in a number of regular season meets, which end ed with the girls varsity team’s historic first through fifth place sweep at their Mission League competition. In first place was Kendra Ross ’23, with the time of 19:26, followed by Phoebe Hsu ’24, Iona Lee ’24, Helen Yang ’24 and Saisha Kumar ’25. The boys varsity team finished in third place. The team is now training for the California In terscholastic Federation (CIF) preliminaries that will happen in early November.

Track and Field Program Head Jonas Koolsbergen said he was pleased with the team’s per formance in preparation for the upcoming CIF competitions.

“We ran extremely well at Mt. Sac,” Koolsbergen said. “Both the boys and girls Varsi

ty were champions of the open races in our division. Mt. Sac is a very important and very tech nical court for the team. We are always trying to build proficien cy and understanding of how to execute in the Wolverine way on this historic course.”

Koolsbergen said the team’s preparation now focuses closely on the rigor and layout of the course at CIF.

“The preparation is constant and bit by bit the whole season,” Koolsbergen said. “We are al ways doing some of our training with an eye toward the postsea son requirements. Now we are doing very race-ready work with an attempt to build an under standing of how to attack this course the right way.”

Captain of the boys varsity team Nuzzy Sykes ’24 said the increased difficulty of the prac tices leading up to CIF compe tition serve to improve the ath letes’ endurance. He said there is also importance in balanced training beforethe race.

“Many of our workouts now are still tough to do, but there’s only so much physical training

left that we can get in before the big meets come,” Sykes said. “So a lot of the workouts are also made to help tell us what times we are capable of and help us be lieve what’s possible.”

Captain of the girls varsity team Kendra Ross ’23 said re maining consistent with their practice habits and remaining positive looking into the post season is all the team can ask for.

“Doing everything we have been doing is important, like ex ecuting the workouts accurately and efficiently as well as being consistent,” Ross said. “Also, staying calm and confident and trusting all the hard work, prac tices, and preparation.”

Ross said the team’s chemistry has elevated the enjoyment of competing and the team spirit.

“We have established such a tight team bond as we are all so supportive of each other and work very hard,” Ross said. “We lift each other up and also just really enjoy hanging out and spending time together. This year has been very special as I feel like everyone got to know people from different grades.”

Zapata said she was confident in the team because of the strong connections they built during the season.

Despite trailing Grand Ter race by two scores for most of the game, Huerta said the team played well as a unit and is look ing forward to next year.

CAN’T (LU)SE: Sophomore tennis player Sunny Lu ’25 returns a shot during California Interscholastic Federation Souther Section (CIF-SS) playoffs. After finsihing 15-3 and winning the first round of the CIF-SS tournament, players are preparing for CIF-SS individual competition.

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF DARLENE BIBLE

GOING THE DISTANCE: Chris Weng ’24 runs ahead of the pack in a race. He is a member of the cross country and track team.

DARLENE