Inklings April 25

Inklings April 25, 2014 Founded in 1933 inklingsnews.com

Safety threatened when drivers text AMINA ABDUL-KAREEM ’15 Staff Writer

D

riving downtown, across the way, there’s a guy bobbing his head up and down, trying to balance his attention between his cell phone and his windshield.

Or maybe someone is weaving into the next lane, thumbing away at her phone while she holds it below the steering wheel.

Whether it’s dialing a contact, sending a text or reading an email for a split second, the dangers of texting and driving have not deterred students and adults from doing so.

“I’ve have seen some crazy things, like a person driving 70 MPH on I-95 while reading on his iPad which he was holding on his steering wheel. Not sure how he managed to stay in the lane,” social studies teacher Rob Rogers said.

As mobile communication has expanded, so have texting and driving. Adapting to the habit of texting at a stop sign or traffic light can quickly escalate to extended conversations while driving. According to English teacher Anne Fernandez co-authored the book “Carjacked,” a book about the culture of the automobile and its effect on our lives. Fernandez said one in five teen drivers in fatal crashes was distracted, and every 90 seconds, someone is injured due to drunk driving.

Students and adults have been repeatedly made aware of the dangers of drinking and driving, but information on the crashes that result from texting and driving is not as prevalent.

“In recent polls that I have seen, adults report texting more often while driving than teens do, but polls that ask people about their own illegal activity or dangerous behavior can be hard

PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY JACKIE COPE ’15

to trust,” Fernandez said.

Many students agree that adults are hypocrites by telling their children to not text and drive, while they do it themselves. Emma Caplan ’15, whose car bumper fell off when a man crashed the rear of her car while texting his wife that he was on his way home, agrees that adults do text more than teens while driving.

Texting and driving has become bigger than drunk driving, escalating to a serious debate.

Braces and beer Middle school drinking becomes more common CLAUDIA CHEN ’16 & JEN GOUCHOUE ’16 Sports Editor & Staff Writer

Basements surrounded by cement walls, red solo cups scattered on the floor and bellows from deep voices: key elements of a party. What stands out lately are the dim lights glinting off the braces and the shouts from the high-pitched, still-cracking voices of the younger party-goers.

It’s not just upperclassmen who drink.

“In 8th grade I remember hearing that a few kids in my grade drank one time, like one beer each, and it was a huge deal,” Noa Wind ’15 said. “Everyone was freaking out.”

Times have changed.

According to a study done in

2012 by Monitoring the Future, 30 percent of 8th graders have ventured to try alcohol.

Although during health class students are lectured about avoiding pressure to drink from friends, many students interviewed attribute this trend of younger drinking to pressure from older kids.

A freshman girl remembers a party where an upperclassman was pressuring one of her friends to drink.

“When my friend said no, they tried to make it sound like she was a loser for saying no,” she said.

People can even be pressured by upperclassmen who are close to them.

“I know my friend was datContinued on page 5

Inside the Issue

Like many other Staples students, Gabbie LeBlanc’ 14, president of the club Teen Awareness Group (TAG), believes that people have convinced themselves they are able to simultaneously text and drive.

“I think a lot of teens have gotten in this bad habit because they think they are ‘good at it’ or are under control, when really you never know what may happen,” LeBlanc said.

Although the dangers of texting and driving have been

constantly advertised, the urge to glance at Facebook, or check a text at anytime of the day, is still irritating.

“Answering a text message, changing the radio station, or any other form of distracted driving can be dangerous and even fatal,” LeBlanc said. “People think that they are capable of driving safely.

The point is, anything that keeps you from paying complete attention to the road and the cars and people around you is bad and can cause a lot of harm.”

While kids text and drive and know it is not safe, because teens text all the time, Rogers believes this device that keeps people connected is never far from our sight, hence why teens text and drive.

“It is a habit, one that teens have been groomed to do every moment of the day. It sits in their lap in class, a quick tap, a message, a selfie, an update. Ten seconds and it is done. There is a belief that while driving, that quick check can’t possibly keep them from driving safely,” Rogers said.

When acceptance is no longer absolute

GRAPHIC BY SOPHIA HAMPTON ’15

GRETA BJORNSON ’15 Features Editor

Come second semester, the College Confidential website is flooded with frantic questions regarding sloping grades submitted by panicking seniors.

Student engineer renews Porsche

All are anxious about the status of their acceptance to a school given their declining GPA. Despite what many think, the threat of rescinding is not an urban legend, and schools do periodically check in on accepted

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applicants.

In the most recent survey conducted in 2008 by The National Association for College Admission Counseling, 65 percent of colleges reported that they revoked acceptances due to grades dropping, 29 percent of rescinded acceptances were due to false information on applications and 35 percent were revoked because of an applicant’s disciplinary issues.

Sydney Sussman ’15 may only be a junior, but she is already thinking ahead.

“I plan on maintaining my level of academic performance throughout this year and first and second semester of my senior year to make sure that once I’m in a college, I stay in the accepted applicant pool,” Sussman said.

Guidance counselor Leslie Continued on page 4

Dancers balance school work with play

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2 News

Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

AP tests take their toll on wallets DYLAN DONAHUE ’15 Staff Writer

A

s that fateful first week in May approaches, upperclassmen and a small selection of sophomores dread the arrival of Advanced Placement (AP) tests.

AP classes are college level courses offered in high school in which an extensive amount of material is taught at a faster pace, with the entire year cumulating into a standard, national test. Students with a high score may be eligible to receive college credit in the course.

Though the test is not required, many students choose to take it, a decision that is supported by many AP teachers.

“Enrollment in an AP course is a commitment, and I personally believe part of that commitment is taking the AP exam,” Michael Aitkenhead, an AP Environmental Science teacher, said.

However, countless hours of studying and increasing stress levels are not all that students devote to this pursuit. The AP exam demands a significant monetary contribution.

College Board, a non-profit organization that can help students in the college search and generates SAT and AP tests, says that each AP exam costs $89.

In an email interview, Katherine Levin, spokesperson for the College Board, said that this cost goes toward research into validity and reliability, financial aid, shipping, and scoring.

However, at Staples, each student pays $92 per exam. According to Assistant Principal James Farnen, the increased $3 per exam is due to the large number of AP tests Staples offers. “Certain schools only offer seven tests,” Farnen said. “We offer 28 different tests, which is more than average.”

The numerous tests offered at Staples contribute to the extra costs due to the increased need for elements that help the exams run smoothly, Farnen said. This includes a high number of qualified proctors and even the rental of tables and chairs to use the gym for testing.

The extra $3 also helps Staples to accommodate all of its

INFOGRAPHIC BY BAILEY ETHIER ’15

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students; for example, it allows students independently studying a subject to take the corresponding AP exam. In this situation, Staples will pay for an additional proctor even though only a few students are taking the exam.

Though the money spent on

the AP exam is used for necessary accommodations, the costs can quickly add up. Freddy Hertan ’15 will sit for seven AP tests this year. He will spend $644 on the tests.

“I think the cost is a little bit excessive,” Hertan said.

As the cost can be too high for some families, students on the free or reduced lunch program can receive a $26 fee reduction from College Board as well as extra reductions from Staples.

Though he agrees the tests

are expensive, Farnen believes the cost can be justified.

“Taking an AP course can take you out of one college prerequisite, which can cost thousands of dollars,” Farnen said.

“I think it is well worth the $92 investment.”

State attempts to control school calendar DYLAN DONAHUE ’15 Staff Writer

Following legislation in 2012 aimed at using state-wide standardized testing to assess teachers throughout Connecticut, The Uniform Regional School Calendar Bill tries to further regiment education in Connecticut.

School leaders in the six regions of the state have been mandated by the Connecticut State Legislature to develop calendars that will be uniform for their respective districts. This

objective, House Bill No. 6706, is meant to find savings and help increase the efficiency of each district’s funding.

State Representative Jonathan Steinberg of the 136th Assembly District in Westport said that while he believes the bill is well-intentioned, it may not have any positive effect on Westport.

But there are positives, he noted: inter-town sports events would be easier to schedule; also, teachers who live in another town might have an easier time dealing with childcare for younger kids.

The bill has not been final-

ized by the legislature. But Westport Superintendent of Schools Elliot Landon said, in an email, he does not support the concept.

“I cannot think of a single reason that links a regional school calendar to public schools in Connecticut.”

Under the bill, district calendars are required to have: at least 180 days of school, a uniform start date, uniform days for professional development, and no more than three uniform school vacations a year.

These three school vacations will include the summer vaca-

tion and no greater than two one -week school vacations.

Traditionally, Westport Public Schools have three week-long vacations: in December, February and April.

However, under the Uniform Regional Calendar, one of these vacations would be eliminated from the calendar.

Landon said he believes that the current vacations are not harmful and in fact are necessary. He noted that Westport has more school days for both students and teachers than most districts in Connecticut.

“We also build in necessary week-long breaks in December, February and April to meet the needs of our students and our community,” he said.

Principal John Dodig of Staples High school echoed Landon’s sentiments and expressed his dissatisfaction with the new legislature.

“Our kids come to school each day, ready to learn and participate in their education, they act responsibly, there is no violence or bullying. Legislation like this proposed one annoys me,” Dodig said.

News

Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com GRAPHIC BY MEGAN ROOT ’15

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InBrief Local Headlines Minute Man Race April 27

The annual Westport town race will take place April 27th, starting at 8:30 am at Compo Beach. Registration is open until April 20th and is $25. Money raised at the annual 5K will go to local charities and people in need.

New Trends, Same Dangers Students push boundaries with hookah and e-cigs

JULIE BENDER ’15 & ELLIE GAVIN ’14 Staff Writers

O

n any given Thursday night, Euphoria Hookah Lounge in Fairfield, Conn., is abuzz with the chatter of happy, young people, the melodies of live music, the tapping of feet dancing across the ground.

It’s not where you would have found the typical high school student 10 years ago, but today, hookah bars are becoming a trendy scene for Staples students.

A hookah pipe is a long, flexible tube that draws smoke through water from a bowl. The main ingredient, usually tobacco or cannabis, is heated in the top of the hookah, and the water filters the smoke at the base. This product, which is usually flavored, is becoming increasingly popular among Westport teens.

Hookah bars won’t serve teens under the age of 18.

Brooke Berlin ’14, who knows Staples students who smoke hookah or cigarettes regularly, mentions that she thinks teens are even more likely to use hookah pens, a similar product which can be purchased at gas stations or other vendors and used at home, versus actually going out to a hookah bar.

“They are fun flavors and easy to buy at gas stations,” Ber-

lin said, noting that hookah pens are often used more for the social aspects of the experience than for the way that they make the user feel. She also feels that this is true for students smoking cigarettes.

“I have definitely noticed that the kids smoking cigarettes are doing it socially,” Berlin said.

“A lot of kids will have a ‘drunk boge,’ meaning they are only doing it at parties or if they are already under the influence.”

N e d Hardy ’13 agrees that most students don’t s m o k e cigarettes regularly.

“I know of some people that smoke cigarettes, but they’re kind of suspect.”

Unlike marijuana or alcohol, which have mind-altering qualities, hookah doesn’t have the same effects. “I like hookah just to do fun tricks with the smoke,” an anonymous Staples senior and hookah user said.

Pedro Da Silva ’16, who

claims to know many hookah users, says that the lack of a high leads users to feel it is safe. “The people I know who have tried it said that it doesn’t get you high like weed. So, again, they assume it’s much safer,” Da Silva said.

According to the Mayo Clinic, “The tobacco is no less toxic in a hookah pipe, and the water in the hookah does not filter out the toxic ingredients in the tobacco smoke.”

Da Silva said that the false sense of safety associated with hookah also applies to ecigs, a popular alternative to cigarettes.

“I think that e-cigs are becoming much more popular [than cigarettes],”Berlin said.

“They are more appealing to kids because you can have different flavors, and they ‘aren’t bad for you,’ though I don’t know the actual health differences between e-cigs and real cigs.”

However, the lack of a high, which give some students a false

In 2012, 6.5 percent of middle and high school teens reported using e-cigarettes.

-NBC Bay Area

sense of security, is the same thing that seems to make it boring for others.

“The experience wasn’t too crazy. Gives you a sense of what smoking might be like, but definitely not something to do often or all the time,” said an anonymous junior, who says he and people he knows have tried hookah and e-cigs. “It really just lets you play around with water vapor and people find it fun.”

Another anonymous junior agrees. “I’ve smoked hookah before, and it was fun but nothing that would make me wanna do it again,” he said.

“It’s not worth the money or the effort.”

According to WebMD, ecigs may be slightly less dangerous than regular cigarettes, as the most harmful aspect of smoking nicotine is the smoke, and e-cigs do not burn. However, they still present health risks, including that they are addictive and not regulated by the FDA. “It could be considered somewhat of a gateway, given that it’s a step down from actual smoking, but could definitely lead to someone trying it,” the first anonymous junior said.

“That’s if you believe that smoking in general is a gateway; hookahs and e-cigs in a sense are a gateway to a gateway.”

A-level classes challenge students JACKIE COPE ’15 Opinions Editor

Students are stressed.

They’re stressed about the future, they’re stressed about their social lives, and they’re stressed, especially stressed, about their classes.

But it isn’t just AP Chemistry or U.S. History Honors that prematurely gray hair and cripple students with caffeine addictions.

Some students find their A-level classes much more stressful than anticipated.

“Some A classes can be challenging,” says Nick Bader ’15.

“Pre Calc A was harder than I expected because I didn’t realize everything the class would cover.

It really depends on the classes you take.” Some A-level classes,

he said, are not so bad.

Pre Calc A covers trigonometry identities that the B classes do not. According to Caroline James, a math teacher of 13 years, trig identities are one of the most difficult topics covered in that class.

However, students often do not drop down to a lower level, despite it sometimes being the better fit. “There’s pressure from colleges who seem to want more and more challenging schedules.

Students want to up the ante, and some bite off more than they can chew,” says Denise Honeycutt, a guidance counselor.

According to the guidance department, as well as James, A level classes are actually advanced college preparation, not average.

Some students override into higher level courses without realizing the expectations of the class, says Kristin Scott, a Chemistry A teacher. For example, “Chemistry is so heavy in applied math,” Scott explained, specifying the course’s word problems and their demands.

Both Scott and James note that as the year proceeds, students learn whether a course is appropriate. Honeycutt says there’s a stack of override forms outside her office for the 20142015 school year. “Students become so ambitious. These high level courses aren’t always about intelligence, but simply time in the day.”

Students agree with Honeycutt but add that they feel there’s a stigma around lower level

courses, which leads to overrides. “People should take APs out of passion for the subject, not because they think they have to,” says Rebecca Zlatkin ’15.

There’s unnecessary pressure in Westport, especially as college applications loom over student’s heads, says Zlatkin.

Certain A classes in particular are surprising in their difficulty, students said. Forensics, for example, is a harder course than Sophia Corde ’15 expected.

Corde suggests students take it more seriously and go into class “with the right mentality.” With a laugh, Corde says she “feels like we do more than the honors people!”

But regardless of level, Corde says, “You get the grade you work for!”

Junior and Senior Spring Concert April 30

Upperclassmen musicians will take the stage on April 30th in the Staples auditorium from 7:30 to 8:30 pm.

AP Tests Begin May 5 - 16

A.P. tests will take place in the Staples gymnasium starting May 5th through May 16th. Students taking an exam are excused from the rest of their classes for the day.

Senior Prom tickets go on sale May 5

During the week of May 5th, Seniors may purchase prom tickets during all three lunch waves in the cafeteria. Students and their dates must fill out all the necessary forms and have a parent/ guardian signature before they can purchase a ticket.

The 13th annual Castles in the Sand May 10

The annual event to benefit Homes with Home will take place at Compo Beach on May 10th, lasting from 12:00 pm to 4:00pm. All proceeds go to charity, as $100 and $300 dollar lots are available for purchase.

Last day of classes for seniors doing internships May 16

Friday, May 16th will be the last day of classes for seniors participating in the internship program. Seniors who are ineligible to participate in the program will be notified by this date.

Junior Prom May 17

Junior Prom will take place at Staples on Saturday, May 17.

For continual updates check www.inklingsnews.com

4 News Wealth causes division in Westport Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

HANNAH FOLEY ’14 & ELIZA LLEWELLYN ’14 Editor-in-Chief & Web Managing Editor

The “wealth gap” has received plenty of attention recently, including being featured in President Obama’s State of the Union address this year: one percent of the US population owns 40 percent of the wealth. A Bloomberg report from several years ago said the New York suburban region hosts the widest wealth gap in the country.

One hallmark of Westport’s wealth is its many college counseling and tutoring services. Teachers said they lose their authority as educators when thousands of dollars are being paid to outside firms that argue they know best. “There are students in my class because some company told them that they should take X number of AP classes,” one teacher, who asked to be anonymous, said.

According to Security Guard Nelson Alicea, who worked in another town previously, many Staples students routinely park illegally, undeterred by the fee incurred. “This isn’t like the train station where you can pay a fee and park,” Alicea said.

“I don’t think students intend to flaunt their wealth,” Meredith Bemus ’14 said. “High school students are able to recognize their wealth and how they spend their money. They should be aware that they are extremely blessed with the economic situation that they are in,” she added.

“Since many of the topics in my class deal with issues of affluence and overconsumption, I do ask students to look hard at their lifestyles and the consequences of their decisions,” AP Environmental teacher Michael Aitkenhead said.

INFOGRAPHICS BY ANDREA FROST ’15

Colleges reject accepted students Continued from page 1

Hammer explained in order to avoid rescinding, “In general it’s a really good idea to maintain the level of performance where it was when you applied.”

However, most colleges don’t just drop a student without any warning. According to the University of Washington website, the school first issues a soft warning letter as a reminder to

keep up grades.

Later a so-called strong warning letter is sent, which urges the recipient to make an appointment with an advisor in the Academic Affairs Office to discuss academic performance.

Finally, students receive a formal letter officially rescinding their acceptance to the university if they fail to adhere to the previous letters’ instructions and

grades do not improve.

Regardless of a how a student is informed, a steady decline in grades will always have implications. According to the University of Michigan Admissions Office, “if there is a serious, decisive and obvious slump, the office can and will revoke its offer of admission.”

Unfortunately, it is expected in high school that the tradition

of senioritis will be kept alive, and it is common knowledge that slacking off is practically a requirement for seniors the very day that the third quarter begins.

But many students are aware of the fact that their grades will continue to be monitored after their admission to a college.

Charlotte Piekara ’14 says that the idea of her acceptance being rescinded lingers in the back of

her mind as a motivation of sorts.

“I don’t let myself slack too much. The idea of that happening keeps me doing just enough work to make sure that’s not a possibility,” she said.

Piekara’s maintenance of her grades is a wise choice, as Hammer cautioned that if a student lets their grade go down a full letter grade or more, it “raises a red flag.”

News

Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

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PHOTOS BY CAROLINE OKANE ’16

Parent Allison Walmark speaks about Kool 2 be Kind at the April 7 BOE meeting.

At the BOE meeting (from left to right) BOE member Michael Gordon, BOE Chair Elaine Whitney and Superintendent Elliot Landon discuss health care.

Board of Education discusses health care costs

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ours before proposing their budget to the Board of Finance (BOF), members of the Board of Education (BOE) had a closed-door meeting in which they made about $1.1 million in cuts.

The reduction came in response to a review of the schools’ healthcare expenses, which found medical claims for this year to be lower than expected and predicted that the town would end the year with $293,000 left in cash reserves.

This represents a sharp con-

trast to the projections made in December, which indicated a possible deficit of nearly $681,309. BOE Chair Elaine Whitney explained the situation in December.

“If the trends continued as they were seeing them in that point in time…by May or June we would have run out of cash in our reserve account,” Whitney said.

When the BOE created their original budget proposal, they worked off those earlier projections and planned to ask for a special appropriation of about $1 million to cover the unexpected costs.

Pre-teen drinking on the rise Continued from page 1 ing an upperclassman,” another freshman girl said. “He would pour drinks down her throat and persuade her to drink. [He would] always drink around her too and influence her.”

In fact, many freshmen interviewed agreed that they feel more pressured when upperclassmen are at their parties. “[Having upperclassmen at the party] does sometimes change the vibe of parties,” Nicholas Hooper ’17 said. “They usually get a little crazier because of the increase in alcohol or other substances.”

Even though underclassmen are taught not to give into peer pressure through D.A.R.E. and health classes, it is easier said than done to “just say no,” especially when students have to say “no” to an older student. “[People] are more likely to engage in behaviors they are uncomfortable with if it means winning the approval of others,” said guidance counselor Thomas Brown.

In many cases, the young students are not directly pressured by upperclassmen, but rather motivated by an innate desire to grow up, students said.

“Underclassmen hear about and see pictures of crazy upperclassmen and obviously want to be like them considering they’re older and ‘cool,’” the second freshman girl said.

Anna Greenberg ’17 said she thinks that freshmen drink to break free from their reputation of being innocent. “[It’s] like oh, look at these little kids!” she said. “Freshmen want to seem older than themselves.”

Izzy Baildon ’17 agreed, bringing up the point that freshmen may want to get rid of their younger image for other reasons.

“In high school there is such pressure to make life choices such as college, careers, etc. that people may subconsciously be drinking to seem older and to fit the mindset of maturity,” she said.

Whether students are drinking because of pressure from upperclassmen or to get rid of their “innocent” reputation, students said it is clear that people are starting to drink at a much Bedford Middle School Principal Adam Rosen said that the BMS administrative team feels that any underage drinking puts middle school students at risk to their social, emotional and physical well being.

“It is important for older students to understand the effects of their decisions and the potential impact they could have on the lives of others,” Brown said.

“The reality is that upperclassmen are still very young as well and in many cases are not ready to take on the responsibility of providing safe modeling behaviors for their younger peers.”

Whitney said that no cuts were made to other areas to account for that expense.

“During the budget process, we tried to separate the two distinct issues,” she said. “There was no direct trade-off.”

Then, just before the budget was due to be reviewed by the BOF, new information came in, indicating that original projections were too high and that the schools could afford to cut back on healthcare costs.

Because those costs were handled separately, Whitney said, the last-minute session before proposing to the BOF had no impact on what she called the

“core budget,” areas like salaries and supplies.

“When we made the adjustment based on the latest information about healthcare, it reduced healthcare numbers but it didn’t affect any dollars in the rest of the budget,” Whitney said.

Instead that $1.1 million cut was entirely for healthcare. The BOE eliminated $382,800 in response to lower cost predictions by the consultant. They then took out another $733,700 that was originally intended as a “risk corridor:” a kind of buffer in case costs increase unexpectedly.

Although that buffer was removed from the formal budget

proposal, it isn’t gone completely.

According to BOF member Tom Lasersohn, the plan is to wait and see what expenses actually add up to at the end of the year before determining what funds should be devoted to building up that risk corridor.

“If in fact the claims come in as currently expected, at some point the [BOE] will come to the [BOF] asking for extra money,” Lasersohn said.

Despite the confusion, Whitney made assurances that Staples would get all necessary funds.

“There will be no major budget-driven changes to Staples,” Whitney said.

PERCENTAGE OF

44.0

TEENS WHO HAVE

PERCENT

BEEN DRUNK IN THE LAST YEAR

29.9 PERCENT

11.5 PERCENT

12 TH TH 10 8 T H GRAD GRAD GRAD E R S ERS ERS

ACCORDING TO A 2010 STUDY BY THE INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

Staff Writer

INFOGRAPHIC BY BAILEY ETHIER ’15

MEGAN ROOT ’15

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OPINIONS April 25, 2014

GRAPHIC BY OLIVIA C CROSBY ’15

Damaged by lack of diversity s every Gov student knows, Brown v Board of Education ended legal segregation in public schools across the country.

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Inklings EDITORIAL

But if you take a minute to look around a classroom at Staples, it becomes glaringly obvious that this didn’t necessarily ensure integration. The Staples student body is currently 90 percent white and five percent black and Hispanic combined, as opposed to our nation’s demographic, which is quickly approaching a minority majority.

And while we pursue everything from radio to robotics, in the bigger picture we are very similar: racially, socioeconomically, and culturally.

This isn’t to discredit the amazing differences that make Staples students who they are. But it’s foolish to disregard the fact that a Player and a lacrosse midfielder probably have much more in common with each other than they do with a teenager from the south side of Chicago.

It makes sense that if the majority of our time is spent with a majority of people who are similar to us, we’ll lack some of the perspective that diversity affords.

Editors-in-Chief Katie Cion Hannah Foley Silver Crown Award for Inklingsnews.com from Columbia Scholastic Press Association 2013 Silver Crown Award for Newspaper Columbia Scholastic Press Association 2013 Pacemaker from National Scholastic Press Association 2013

All the opinions, news, and features in this paper are those of Staples High School students. Inklings, a curricular and extracurricular publication, has a circulation of 1,800 and is uncensored. All letters to the editor must be signed. The editorial board reserves the right not to publish letters and to edit all submissions as it sees fit. The editorial board determines all editorial opinions, which are authored faithfully by the Editors-in-Chief. Inklings reserves the right to not publish advertisements that promote products that could be harmful to student health.

The paper is a member of the Columbia Scholastic Press Association and the National Scholastic Press Association and supports the Student Press Law Center.

Managing Editors Rachel Labarre Will McDonald Web Managing Editors Ryder Chasin Eliza Llewellyn Breaking News Managing Editors Sophie de Bruijn Aaron Hendel Social Media Editor Simon Stracher Graphics Coordinator Nate Rosen Photo Editor Liana Sonenclar Assistant Photo Editors Liz Hogan Justine Seligson

For the most part right now, it is not a conscious effort to separate ourselves from people who are different. But going into the summer many of us will have the opportunity – whether it’s through a summer job, summer program, or freshman orientation at college to surround ourselves with the diversity that Westport can’t provide.

In this new environment we may one day sit in class next to a student from Indonesia or ask to borrow notes from a classmate who just happens to be Turkish royalty. But just reading the same textbook doesn’t do us any good.

It’s not just sharing the same air with people who

News Editors Bailey Ethier Claudia Landowne Claire Lewin Cadence Neenan Opinions Editors Alexandra Benjamin Jackie Cope Larissa Lieberson Claire Quigley Features Editors Greta Bjornson Zoe Brown Andrea Frost Sophia Hampton A&E Editors Caroline Cohen Olivia Kalb Emma Muro Katie Settos Sports Editors Claudia Chen Gabrielle Feinsmith Deanna Hartog Connor Hardy

are different, it’s taking the time and effort to get to know them.

At college, it’ll almost be too easy to find friends exactly like the ones we have now. We’ll like the same movies, we’ll listen to the same songs, we’ll do the same things on Friday nights. If you take the time to listen to a senior who is looking for a roommate, you’ll hear about that girl in Westchester who went to camp with my best friend.

And we understand why people look to friends of friends of camp friends.

It makes the move easier when we have the assurance that we’ll have something in common. But what might be a more rewarding

experience is decorating a dorm room with someone who doesn’t know what Lululemon or Supergas are or doesn’t recognize the whale from Vineyard Vines – but coordinating sheets anyway.

Maybe they’ll be the funniest person you’ve ever met, or maybe their snoring will get on your nerves, but same goes for that girl from Westchester.

We owe it to ourselves not only to realize that we’re in a bubble but that we need to take the initiative to move out of it. There is so much more in the world than is visible from Westport.

However good the view is.

Web News Editors Ben Goldschlager Jessica Gross Web Opinions Editors Abbey Fernandez Eliza Yass Web Features Editors Jimmy Ray Stagg Caroline Rossi Web A&E Editors Kaila Finn Nicole DeBlasi Web Sports Editors Bobby Jacowleff Kelsey Shockey Business Manager Elizabeth Camche Assistant Business Managers Kacey Hertan Jack Zeldes Creative Director Olivia Crosby Video Editor Grace Kosner

Advisers Mary Elizabeth Fulco Rebecca Marsick Julia McNamee Lauren Francese 70 North Ave. Westport, CT 06880 Phone: (203) 341–1994 Inklingsnews@gmail.com Decisions of Inklings are made without regard to race, color, age, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, marital status, disability or any other discriminating basis prohibited by local, state, or federal law.

Opinions Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

Forget filters and focus on the memories GRACE KOSNER ’14 Video Editor

B

etween “Facebook stalking” potential roommates and following Instagram pages related to my future college I’ve found myself faced with a question that I have never before considered regarding the use of photos in social media: is my school, are these people and are these experiences what they seem to be?

The use of filters and fake film effects that make photos more colorful and impressive than their originals creates an unattainable reality, mirroring that of excessively Photoshopped advertisements of already stickthin super models. The average person now has the ability to fake their life to their social media followers. It’s a whole new take on “catfishing,” in which creating an

alternative identity is not just for the purpose of dating.

Can these regular posts of vacations, college visits, parties and food even be considered photos anymore?

I think back to a time when an album was not a “Mobile Uploads” folder but a physical book of family memories for guests to look at in my living room.

Memory is the key word here.

At one point, photos represented a moment in time that one wanted to never forget. They gave one the ability to preserve a life after death. Now, photos represent Snapchat updates of the three classes in a row you had a substitute teacher in.

Is there a point to these random, inconsequential pictures?

No–there is no mystery anymore. Every single “friend” and “follower” is now constantly

aware of your personal life. And this “personal life” is actually a glamorized version of your real life.

So, there is a serious problem here. I am a huge supporter of advancements in technology and the social media developments which result. However, I believe that we have been so trampled by this constant growth that we have learned to abuse it and utilize every social media function possible at every share-worthy moment in our lives.

This Thursday, millions of people are going to take their childhood photos, add the “Hudson” or “Valencia” instagram filter and caption it “Throwback Thursday.” In the process, they will be taking the purity of a memorable token and transforming it into the here and now; the modernized artificiality that we consider “like”-worthy.

PHOTOS TAKEN OR CONTRIBUTED BY GRACE KOSNER ’14

7

8 Opinions

Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

Snapchat secrecy shattered

What I never learned at Staples

ELIZABETH CAMCHE ’14

I don’t think I am particularly oblivious.

I mean, I may have said Bo Bice was our vice president in a job interview. I once thought Lance Armstrong and Neil Armstrong were the same person. And nothing beats the day I learned West Virginia was an actual state.

OK, fine, maybe I am a bit oblivious.

Given my oblivion, as I reflect on my past four years at Staples, I realize there are a few questions I may never have the answers to: 1. Where in the world is the World Language Learning Center? I’ve missed my fair share of math quizzes before, and even had to make up an in-class essay or two. But I have never

T

here is no such thing as privacy y when it comes to Snapchat.

The app that allows you to send 10-second selfies es tracks your most commonly selected friends and displays it for your entire buddy list to see. This is causing massive controversy.

Your top three best friends on Snapchat say a lot about you.

If it’s your boyfriend, girlfriend or bestt friend, you’re in the clear.

If it’s somebody else, prepare for some drama.

If you’re in a relationship, that significant other better be first. If he or she isn’t, you must be in a fight, or you’re not officially dating.

Even if your girlfriend is number one, no other girls should be displayed when she clicks your name, or else there’s something suspicious going on, and you should probably start explaining yourself … now.

You’d better have a good explanation, or that relationship is over.

People will go through their lists of friends daily, click on everyone’s names and analyze those three yellow stars placed next to each best friend. If something is off, you could be in the middle of a brawl.

Now, let’s just take a deep breath and a step back.

Just because your boyfriend snapchatted another girl does not mean he is cheating on you.

It does not mean that you’re not pretty enough or that he is looking elsewhere. It certainly doesn’t mean you have to give that other girl on his list dirty looks in math class.

It is absolutely absurd that we make assumptions like this from an app for disappearing pictures. Those three names do not define a person’s real life relationships.

But if he likes another girl’s Instagram … you may just have a problem.

Web Opinions Editor

had to venture to the World Language Learning Center. As a result, I have absolutely no idea of its whereabouts. Is it on the first floor? Near the world language computer lab? ¡No sé!

2. True or false: if teachers do not show up to their classes after 10 minutes, do the students get a free period? It is a timeless question amongst probably every single student. I can never decide if this is a myth or legitimate protocol. I could easily ask a faculty member and find the answer, but I enjoy the ambiguity far more than any possible reality.

3. Who locks the doors after 7:30? Each morning, students who drive meander into the school building half-asleep.

They enter through the doors by the cafeteria, pool house, world language wing, etc. However, if you sleep in for first period or come in later that day, you bet-

ter hope you find a kind passerby to let you in. Who the heck goes around to each door after 7:30 and locks all of them by 7:45 at the latest? That’s a lot of walking for 7 a.m…

4. What are the rules of the Klein Challenge? It happens once a week–GMS is running smoothly on a Thursday morning, entertaining students schoolwide with short, informative segments. And then, the theme song begins…it’s the Klein Challenge. Seeing as I’m not the biggest sports fan, this is usually when I pull out my phone and peruse Instagram (it is Throwback Thursday after all).

What I’ve come to embarrassingly realize is that I don’t know the rules of the Klein Challenge. Do that many football games go on each weekend? Why does a big lock appear out of nowhere? How do you win? I could put my phone down and try to pay attention, or

I could Instagram stalk Rachel Zoe. I’m going with the latter, no offense Mr. Klein.

5. What is this “black box” people speak of? I’ve heard Players mention it; I’ve heard my peers share stories about “that couple in the black box,” and I’ve even heard teachers refer to it. Can somebody fill me in on where and what this black box is?

When I hear “black box,” I envision a box that is black. What am I missing here?

So, I will never know where the high numbers are. Heck, I don’t even know where Mrs. Addicks’ office is. And that’s quite all right because, as the common saying goes, “some questions are better left unanswered.” One question that I absolutely know the answer to is “would I change anything about my high school experience?”

Nope.

?

GRAPHICS BY AMY PERELBERG ’15

Here’s the long and the short of spring styles ELIZA YASS ’14 Web Opinions Editor

You’re never really sure what to wear during midterms and finals – is a sweatshirt AND a baseball cap overdoing it?!

Your spent-all-night-studying look probably took more time than your actual studies.

You work too hard on each

of your spirit week outfits to find the perfect balance between looking cute but showing school spirit – where’s the happy medium between cat ears and full-body paint?

You try for at least a half hour each morning to look effortlessly trendy – tousled hair, a baggy shirt and pink blush give you the my-alarm-didn’t-go-offbut-I-STILL-look-good facade.

Only a date with Ryan Gosling would be a valid incentive to shave your legs.

If any of the above statements sound like you, then the transition from pants to shorts is probably a cause of stress.

Now, this may seem like an easy decision – start wearing shorts when it’s warm, right?

Psht.

There is a month of limbo between mid-March and midApril where the days range from 28 degrees with flurries to mid-60s and blue skies. This crazy weather sends many girls and boys at Staples up the wall.

Jeans and boots? Capris? Shorts?!

You don’t want to be the only one wearing shorts and risk looking racy in front of your teachers, but you also don’t want to be the GRAPHIC BY EMMA RHOADS ’14

Business Manager er

ABBEY FERNANDEZ ’14

hermit who keeps the black jean and boot look until it is physically impossible to maintain a healthy body temperature.

Well, my friends, I have the answer.

From the wise words of Kanye West, “Believe in your flyness, conquer your shyness.”

Translated: If all your hard work throughout volleyball season paid off and you can’t wait to show off your toned legs and it just happens to be mid-march, who cares?

Rock those new jean shorts.

Realistically, your teachers will probably be jealous that they have to wear nice skirts and collared shirts for the next three months while the student body slowly acclimates to the balmy weather.

If your favorite dark jeans make you feel like you could run the world (yes, that was a Beyoncé reference), then why trade them out so soon?

Strut the halls, and always remember ... you’re flawless.

GRAPHIC BY CLAIRE QUIGLEY ’14

Get it together JANE LEVY ’16 Staff Writer

Dear Popular Culture, I write this letter to you out of deep and earnest concern.

What has happened to you? Are you ill? You must have caught a debilitating flu that clouds your judgement because, of late, popular music is truly sickening. One after the other, utterly detestable songs are incessantly poisoning the radio and infecting millions of ears. To bring the severity of your unstable condition to your attention, I’m going to elaborate on your three worst recent creations, which, unfortunately, are only a few of many.

Your first symptoms appeared around the release of the song “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke. Throughout the song, Thicke repeats, “I know you want it,” a total of 18 times, and, at that point, I totally don’t want it.

Thicke also sings, “He was close, tried to domesticate you, but you’re an animal, baby; it’s in your nature.” Last time I checked, I was a human.

The Guardian calls it “the most controversial song of the decade.” I, Jane Levy, think that’s the understatement of the century.

Popular Culture, as if your condition couldn’t get any worse, you allowed “Talk Dirty” by

Jason Derulo to top the charts.

Derulo discusses how he travels around the world and doesn’t speak the language, but the only thing he cares to understand is when women “talk dirty” to him.

The constant blare of “Talk Dirty” on every pop-playing radio station has not only reached me, but my little brother, who innocently sings, “Talk dirty to me,” while skipping around the house. That’s exactly the kind of message I want my nine-year-old brother to advocate.

And then, 9-1-1! You hit a 105 degree fever, and we rushed you to the hospital in a blinking ambulance when we heard “#SELFIE” by The Chainsmok-

ers, a song that h holds h ld its i very own category of horrific and humiliating. “#SELFIE” epitomizes the stereotypical teenage girl of my generation: obsessing over a boy, another girl, the importance of Instagram likes, pretending to be drunk, hashtags and, of course, the infamous selfie.

Whenever this song comes on and I’m in the car with my dad, he can’t contain his laughter at its stupidity and superficiality.

“I only got 10 likes in the last 5 minutes. Do you think I should take it down? Let me take another selfie” and “OK, let’s go take some shots. Oh no, I feel like I’m gonna throw up. Oh wait, nevermind, I’m fine. Let’s go dance”

are hi his favorite i llyrics. i Even worse, as I am practicing balancing equations in chemistry, my phone buzzes with a text from my mom of a picture of her, my dog and my brother in the car, captioned “Let me take a #selfie.” Clearly, this infection is frightfully contagious.

Look, Popular Culture, we all get sick sometimes, but you are in desperate need of a remedy before it’s too late. I promise I’ll try to find a way to help you get out of this awful funk.

But first, lemme take a selfie.

Yours Truly, Jane

Opinions Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

9

Students need an education on the Board of Ed PHOTO BY CAR0LINE O’KANE ’16

LISTENING IN Andrew Puchala ’15 takes notes at Board of Education meeting concerning the implementaiton of solar panels at Staples. AP Envionmental students attended for extra credit, marking one of the few times students can be found at a Board of Education meeting.

KATIE CION ’14 Editor-in-Chief

B

e honest. You skipped past the Board of Ed coverage on page five.

Tell me you at least read the lede.

Seriously?

Come on, guys.

All right, so I’m biased. On the off chance that you tune into channel 79 on Monday nights at eight, you’ll probably see my mother sitting up there on the right wearing the necklace I told her was a little loud for a budget meeting.

For as long as I can remember, my mom has been attending Board of Education meetings, alternatively as a member of the board, later chairwoman and as director of human resources for the district. Monday night at my house is notoriously a time for ordering in or pre-made casseroles–if you catch her at the wrong moment, you might even see Marge glancing down at her phone mid meeting to text some quick reheating instructions.

And at 11:00 p.m. –on a good night– when the meeting ends and my mom comes home, I get a full debrief. What is most surprising about these run-downs, other than the fact that the public comment on cutting Art Smart lasted two hours, is that I had no idea they were thinking about cutting Art Smart.

Local government, though potentially less glamorous than its national counterpart, is quietly, and constantly, making decisions that directly affect us.

Turn on C-Span on any given day, and you might see a congressional discussion establishing Buffalo as the national mammal. But turn on public broadcasting, catch a BOE meeting, and it is exceedingly likely

that the subject at hand will have an impact, however small, on your daily life.

This is why we can’t afford not to know they’re thinking about cutting Art Smart, or changing the start time, or implementing new standardized tests.

A lot of times, changes occur in the school system and are implemented, and the student body in general is caught by surprise.

While there is undoubtedly room for more communication by the board, a little student initiative to be informed can go a long way.

Years ago, when Arena was being cut, no students showed up to plead its case. The board then took this as an indication that no one cared. But if no one cared, why were the sophomores in my math class complaining all through Communication ime and asking what they could do?

But it’s impossible to speak at a meeting in favor of (or against) Arena if the meeting has already happened.

Decisions about the school that we all go to should not be happening to us. They are happening around us and we should join in making them.

This doesn’t mean spending every Monday night in the Staples cafeteria. Rather, look at the meeting agenda that’s published online the week before. Glance over the proposed budget, also conveniently available online.

Included in this budget are goals the Board has for the year.

Last year, one of the goals was to reevaluate graduation requirements. To the seniors now suffering through electives they hate, but need in order to graduate – you missed your chance.

So maybe flip back to page five and check out that budget coverage. It’s not “hot parents,” but it is just as pressing.

Text temptations trump concerns for safety DEANNA HARTOG ’16 Sports Editor

From a young age, we’re berated with speeches that drone on about what not to do when driving.

Don’t drink and drive.

Don’t drive recklessly.

Don’t drive distracted.

These rules float and remain lingering in the back of our minds during all hours, minutes and even seconds of the day. We’re practically dreaming (or having nightmares) about them in our sleep. After all, they were practically drilled in to our brains like a screw in hardware.

But when it’s time to put them to the test, it may not be so simple.

By now, we’re all fully aware of the risks of this behav-

ior. Between D.A.R.E., health classes, Grim Reaper Day and T.A.G., our entire environment is practically a real life Public Safety Announcement.

The statistics, although incredibly daunting, are not surprising. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 21 percent of fatal crashes involving teenagers (ages 15-19) were due to the use of cell phones.

When we were young children, we would never fathom the mere idea of walking into the street before looking both ways.

Yet, for some reason, despite our reputation of having “matured” throughout the years, we continue to put our safety on the line.

For some, there’s no experi-

ence like hearing the buzzing of a phone in the back of a car. With each slight vibration against the leather, the sound is amplified like music in a concert stadium.

Perhaps it can be compared to a child left in a car seat, crying out for attention. The constant notifications cause a visceral reaction within your body and soul.

Your heart rate starts to increase, your mouth starts to taste like cotton and your hands become clammy against the steering wheel.

You don’t want to check on it. You need to check on it.

Or do you?

It’s perfectly logical to worry that, while driving, you might miss out. But honestly, how much really goes on during the span of a quick run to the supermarket

to pick up milk for your parent?

A girl in your grade changing her profile picture, yet again, to an edited photo from her summer vacation? Or perhaps a bulk email about your favorite store having a 20 percent off sale?

I must admit, I don’t think teenagers and their lack of good judgment are entirely to blame.

We’ve been receiving mixed messages.

How can we convince ourselves to resist this urge when we are constantly witnessing our parents, our role models, committing this heinous crime?

It’s a simple and sly maneuver. One hand remains on the wheel, and slowly, the other creeps into the cup holder to retrieve a resting phone. Suddenly, the phone illuminates, display-

ing the home page of your family’s purebred Pomeranian.

Next thing you know, they’re reading and responding to texts and emails with their foot still pressed on the gas pedal.

The truth is, no matter who is behind the wheel, parent or child, texting while driving is blatantly, unnecessarily dangerous. Not only are you putting your own life and the lives of your passengers at stake, but also risking the lives of every other individual on the road.

If something is of such importance that it can’t wait, pull off to the side of the road (no, quickly taking a glance at your phone during a red light is not legal) and place the gear in park.

Then, and only then, should you hit that read button.

Inklinations

Do you think students and parents in Westport consider texting and driving a serious issue? Why or why not?

“I only have my permit, so while I don’t think it’s much of a threat to me, I know it is a dangerous situation for others. I don’t think all Westporters think it’s a serious problem.”

-Diana Zogheb ’16

“I don’t know if it’s a big problem in Westport. I mean, I’ve been in the car and seen people doing it. I don’t feel safe when the driver is texting.”

-Justin Ludel ’15

“It’s pretty dangerous, risky and stupid. I’ve seen people texting in front of me and then swerving.

Something needs to be done before someone crashes.”

-Tyler Crowder ’14

10

Features

Talk travels through town

April 25, 2014

ParentFeed Students share embarassing parent social media moments MAT JACOWLEFF ’15 Staff Writer

Students do everything in their power to make sure their parents steer clear of all social media usage; however what happens when Westport parents just can’t help themselves? Here is a list of the top five Staples parent bloopers on social media:

Staff Writer

6.

Camille Shuken ’15: Her father shows his love for his offspring through his usernames. His Instagram username is “CamSebDad,” alluding to his kids, Camille and Sebastian.

5.

Maggie Walsh ’15: After every text her father sends her, he makes sure to include, “L, Dad,” indented at the end.

4.

Daisy Laska ’16: Her mother left a post on Laska’s Facebook timeline, “Miss you babe, come home soon so I can tuck you in bed and tell you a bedtime story.”

2.

1.

I

Emma Laney ’15: Her father snapchats pictures of him and his friends at work making duckfaces.

Nick Ward ’14: His mother texted him, “Don’t stay at her house late, but you can kiss.”

GRAPHIC BY NOELLE ADLER ’15

3.

EMMA LEDERER ’16

Alexandra Hooper ’15: Her grandfather commented on each of her Counties pictures, “My granddaughter Alexandra on the left.”

Resilience rises at Staples KAILA FINN’16 STAFF WRITER

In recent years, Staples has began to embrace a variety of 21st century movements. Every day, these projects’ buzz words bounce around the halls as classrooms echo with ideas of the 2025 initiative, standards based grading, and the newer Resilience Project.

However, many students are questioning what these reforms really are, especially the Guidance Department’s recent Resilience Project.

The project aims to educate teachers, parents, and students on how to cope with high school and life’s twists and turns.

“Every human being is going to experience loss, failure, disappointment.

We wish to see more students bounce back from situations like that,” guidance counselor Victoria Capozzi said, describing the main concepts of this program.

Others, including guidance counselors Leslie Hammer and Deb Slocum, began the Resilience Project at the beginning of the year with a series of presentations to parents and teachers, email blasts, as well as speeches at some events like PTA meetings and orientations.

Meanwhile the student population

still remains unclear about what this truly is and how it impacts them, although many high schoolers seemed to be interested once they understood the premise.

“I’ve heard about it and like the idea, but honestly, I have no idea how successful it is,” said Justin Cheng ‘16, voicing his confusion and interest.

Students, teachers, and these guidance counselors see many situations where resilience needs to be implemented at Staples.

One Staples pupil, Ellie Aronson ‘16, believes that “students should do their own bidding: [for] their grades and their life,” adding, “it’s each kid’s own responsibility to deal with their grades.”

Cheng voiced a similar sentiment about students dealing with their teachers and grades better: a big focus of the Resilience Project. He said that many students feel targeted by their teachers and blame their grades on problems with the teacher, when Justin feels that, “half the time that’s just because he/she is not doing well in the class,” an observation that the guidance counselors made as well. He said he could see tools of resilience being useful in this situation.

Another topic that this program tackles is the high expectations in the Westport community, especially the col-

lege process. Slocum described a recent situation that happens often in which a student who applied to a highly selective group of colleges was accepted to several but now solely focuses on where he/she did not get in, instead of the exciting future of college dorms, interesting courses, and new sights to see.

Rob Rogers, whose courses include psychology, said he thinks that what is particularly difficult are relationships with other students. He mused, “The ‘I got into this school. I got my first choice ,and you didn’t’ can be tough. The competition is so high and so fierce; dealing with it is very difficult.”

All of these situations are addressed through the various Resilience Project presentations, emails, and information.

The guidance counselors emphasize that this program is not about fixing what’s wrong or pointing blame.

Instead, it acknowledges the stresses, puts them in perspective, and uses optimistic and realistic techniques to try to help students.

Plus, the project supports milk and cookies during the stressful week of midterms.

Students agree that it’s certainly a step in the right direction for all of Staples.

t’s late on a Friday night, and after the party, it’s time for mission impossible. You reach into your back pocket to take out your spare key and unlock the front door. Careful not to slam it, you shut the door behind you as quietly as you can.

As if you’re crossing the street, you check left and right before you dare to continue.

Thankfully, there’s no sign of a sibling or parent in sight.

You proceed with caution and make your way up to your room on your tiptoes.

As you collapse into bed, you sigh with relief and confidence in the fact that you’ve made it home without being caught.

Or so you think. Until your mom drops casual hints at the dinner table the following Tuesday about finding out what you were up to over the weekend.

It seems that students all think that their parents are clueless when it comes to their social lives. Even though they claim that they did all these wild things back in their day and know all the tricks in the book, it seems doubtful that they’re capable of much when they can barely work a smart phone. Many are guilty of underestimating parents and what they’re capable of.

Morgan Whelan ‘16 says that her mom basically knows more about her life than she does. “My mom has found out tons of stuff about me that I’ve literally never told her and I have no idea how,” Whelan says.

Even though having parents snoop can be completely irritating, it’s understandable why parents feel the need to do so. Teenagers are notorious for keeping things from their parents.

Though Whelan has had some privacy issues with her parents in the past, she tries to look at it from their point of view.

“If you think that your kid’s doing something that would harm them, I can see why a parent would want to step in,” she said.

Going about it in a more honest way works better for some parents. However, Amy Benjamin, mother of Sarah Benjamin ‘16, says that she doesn’t try to force things out of her children. “I just give them the opportunity, and I find that the more that I leave them alone, the more they tell me. I’m pretty open, and I give them a safe environment.” she says.

However, Whelan says that there’s a big difference between finding out things about your own child that they won’t tell you, and when parents “gossip in a petty way”.

Teenagers are notorious for gossiping, and the reason behind all of it may actually because they’re picking up the behavior from their parents. According to a survey

by Stage of Life, 97 percent of teenagers learn their manners from home.

Emily Olrik ‘16 says that parents definitely influence their teens, because it seems that they gossip in the same way that students do. “Parent gossip can totally be high school,” she says. “They just get together and talk about things like teenagers.”

While gossiping can definitely be in good fun, there’s a point where it crosses the line. Along with this, parents contributing and influencing the gossip can lead to even more problems. There are dangers that come along with gossip that seems harmless. As Olrik says, “Gossip is a vicious cycle.”

GRAPHIC BY JULIA KAPLOWITZ ’16

Features Inklings /April 25, 2014/ inklingsnews.com

Young engineer jump-starts her future

11

LARISSA LIEBERSON ’15 Opinions Editor

B

ridget van Dorsten ’15 has almost reached the fi nish line.

For the past few months, she’s been tweaking, adjusting and manipulating her 1998 Porsche Boxster by replacing the engine with an electric motor. Her goal is to give it the same performance quality as the Tesla 2008 Roadster, a luxury electric vehicle.

In electric cars, electric motors get power from batteries, which are monitored by a BMS controller.

The process of converting a traditional gas car into an electric one, however, is extremely complicated. In fact, van Dorsten calculated that she has spent 90 hours working on her project thus far.

“Basically, you have to remove everything that’s involved with the internal combustion engine, then you have to install an electric motor with batteries that have the voltage to power the car,” van Dorsten said.

According to the US Energy Information Administration, there were nearly 11 million alternative fuel vehicles in the United States in 2011.

With great passion, van Dorsten explained that electric cars are the way of the future, and that more people should drive them. She even wrote her research paper stating that they’re better for the environment, more cost efficient and easier to use.

“Once the project is completed, I’ll drive it around on special occasions,” Van Dorsten said. “But the main purpose of me doing this is for the educational value.”

Engineering practically runs in van Dorsten’s blood. Her great-grandfather, grandfather and father all have electrical engineering degrees and have worked with companies such as Texas Instruments, Sikorsky,

Bloomberg and many more.

“Considering my family is so involved with engineering, it was something I always knew I wanted to do,” van Dorsten said. “I’ve been begging my dad to restore a car with me for the past seven years, and here I am.”

Even though van Dorsten usually works on the vehicle alone, her father is always there to support her.

“I couldn’t be more proud of Bridget,” David van Dorsten said.

However, the road to success wasn’t always easy.

“On several occasions, I had to innovate and create tools when I couldn’t afford or fi nd the parts I needed,” van Dorsten said. “I really needed a chain vice, but I improvised by taking

advantage of gravity and tortion by using a suspension arm.”

Yet she continues to muddle through in order to complete her project.

“She has the wisdom to dust herself off in the event of any failure and to take on the challenge of getting it right the second time around,” Humphrey Wong, van Dorsten’s Independent Study teacher, said.

Van Dorsten also hopes to pursue engineering in college, and her love for both the worlds of engineering and motor vehicles is what drives her success. “[The project] is something that I fi nd extremely fascinating-- I could spend hours working on it, and it’s kind of like a getaway for me as well,” van Dorsten said with a beaming smile on her face.

A PORSCHE ENGINEERED Clockwise from top: 1) Converting from a fuel engine to to an electric engine is a complicated process that requires Bridget van Dorsten ’15 to know her mechanics. Here she uses pliers to jump the car and push the convertible top back. 2) A piece of the engine that van Dorsten ’15 removed this piece of her 1998 Porsche Boxter’s engine. 3) Since the car presently has no engine in it, van Dorsten and her dad push the car in and out of the garage to work on it. 4) A jackstand supports the car so van Dorsten can get under it and work on the mechanics.

PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14

12 Features

Inklings / April 25, 2014/ inklingsnews.com

When police and CONNECTICUT

BY THE NUMBERS

Authorities crack down on Westport parties GRACE MCCARTHY ’16 AND MARGAUX MACCOLL ’16 Staff Writers

Information from Westport News, Century Council, Rushford.org, and the Underage Drinking Enforcement Training Center

INFOGRAPHIC BY RACHEL TRIESMAN ’15

Music mingles with the buzz of casual conversation. Drinks swish in red solo cups and laughter rings through the night.

Suddenly the teenagers are drenched in flashing spotlights of red and blue. The frenzy begins and the air, once filled with laidback laughter, is replaced with the frantic shuffling of kids fleeing.

“I’ve never seen people get out of a place so fast in my life,” Phil Foisie ’16 said of a party he threw.

Once the police arrive, a party is promptly over.

By the time they get to the house, most of the kids have run away in a fearful scurry.

“I don’t have any firsthand experience with the cops at a party because, when they show up, I’m out the window,” Nick Esposito ’15 said.

Those few who are left standing in the trash-filled wake are approached by the police and often required to give their names.

Parties, particularly ones with alcohol, are a prominent problem. About three quarters of teens consume alcohol by the end of high school, and over half of these people consume it in someone else’s home, according to the organization Students Against Destructive Decisions.

The officer’s role in parties in Westport remains a mystery to many Staples students; ew students seem to understand what is done if police take their name.

The Westport Police Department

“

commented stating that they will respond and investigate any complaints regarding parties in Westport.

While many think that the officer’s duties don’t begin until they reach the front door of a house, it really starts with a suspicious string of cars along one particular road or an anonymous complaint regarding the ruckus from the house.

While they are on the road, the officers will record all the license plates of suspicious cars and contact the owners later.

Once they arrive at the house in the midst of rapidly scattering teenagers, the police approach the party-goers. As per their policy, they take down all the names of the people they come in contact with, and notify the parents.

“This policy has lead to a steady decline in the number of parties we have to investigate,” Officer Batlin said.

Since the police typically do not get all of the names, some students have expressed annoyance.

Hannah Simons ’16 disagrees with the name-taking tactic because “all of the bad kids run and then they end up taking the names of the sober kids who are just waiting for a ride home.”

Fosie argues that parties shouldn’t be significant to the police because “it’s in [the] privacy of our own homes.”

These kids may not view breaking up parties as important or necessary, but the laws that surround them have serious consequences.

Batlin says that minors can be charged with Possession of Alcohol by a Minor. The first of-

fense is a $181.00 fine, and following offenses can lead to a fine of up to $500.00.

He also adds that it’s not just the party host who faces repercussions–the parents are liable too.

“I’ve never seen people get out of a place so fast in my life.” -Phil Foisie ’16 Batlin stated that adults or hosts of an underage drinking party can be charged with Allowing Minors to be in Possession of Alcohol. The first offense is $146.00 fine but it can increase to $500.00 and up to a year in prison.

Though police are obligated to enforce these laws, it is not their intention to ruin anyone’s night.

“We want to create a safe and positive environment for the Town of Westport. There is nothing wrong with having parties, but you still have to follow the law,” Batlin said.

So when the music is cut, and the red solo cups are left crumpled on the lawn, the police may seem like the enemy. Some students find their presence unnecessary, but understand that they are just doing their job.

Overall, the police department says they are happy with the level of responsibility from students.

“We are proud of our students and hope that you all continue to make safe and responsible decisions,” Batlin said.

I was driving [my friend] home (which wasn’t l a cop car, heard the woop woop and we starte and felt around for my license and didn’t hav verge of tears and peeing our pants. The cop dow and I was stuttering so badly. It was the s saw my life flashing before my eyes. But it turn only looking for a car that had damage from

Features Inklings /April 25, 2014/ inklingsnews.com

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students collide Students speed into trouble JIMMY RAY STAGG ’16 Staff Writer

He sits in his car, motionless, with a single bead of sweat journeying down his face. In his mind he hears the theme song from “Cops” and begins to nervously hum the tune to himself.

License in hand, he checks his rear mirror and sees an officer, in his intimidating navy-blue uniform, approaching the car.

He puts on an anxious smile and rolls down his window.

Regardless of who you are, there is one sound, and one sight, that sends a shock of nervousness and a twinge of fear down your spine when behind the wheel: the high whir of police sirens and the flashing red and blue lights.

Reasons for getting pulled over range from driving over the speed limit, like Nick Burchill ’15, to “people standing out of [my] car” during motorcade, via Griffin Thrush ’15.

When Burchill saw the lights, the thought, “No! I’m screwed,” passed through his head. Thrush worried that his license would be taken away, and Matt Collins ’15 thought, “Just my luck, stay casual,” to himself.

What follows next is a minute or two that last for years, as the student sits waiting for the police officer to come talk to him. Officer Ned Batlin from the Westport Police Department offers a set of steps to follow.

“Immediately pull over to right when you hear a siren or see the emergency lights. It’s a good idea to keep your hands on the steering wheel as the officer walks up to the vehicle, nine and three,” said Batlin. “You are not

required to put the rear windows down but if it is not too cold or raining we appreciate it.”

Then comes the often feared interaction. All students agreed that teenagers should behave “as polite as possible” as Burchill put it.

“I just went with the flow and listened to the cop and spoke when spoken to,” said Thrush, who was given a warning.

Often times, as with Thrush, students are respectful, and are issued a warning. But other times, as with Burchill, consequences become higher.

“Initially I was pulled over for not having my headlights on and going 5 miles per hour over the speed limit, and then she saw that I was driving thirty minutes after curfew,” said Burchill. “[The officer] was very nice and gave me warnings for my lights and the speeding, but she had to charge me for being after curfew.”

Burchill ended up with $103 ticket, followed by another $175 ticket and a 30-day license suspension.

Immediately following the incident, Burchill had to sit and wait to be picked up by his parents. Some students who are given warnings, like Collins, choose not to tell their parents to “spare them from worrying.”

Thrush is not one of those students. “I wanted [my parents] to hear it from me rather than someone else.”

Although getting pulled over isn’t desirable, the police keep the road safe, and as long as students are calm and collected, intimidating navy blue uniforms won’t be so intimidating.

“

I was coming home one night and this car starts tailing me. I sped up to get space, he sped up too.

I pulled over, he pulled over, too, and I was convinced I was going to die. After a few minutes, he puts on his lights and I got a ticket f going 60 in a 30.” for -Jessica Arujo ’14

legal) and I saw lights from d to freak out. I pulled over ve it. We were both on the walked to my winscariest moment. I ed out they were a hit and run.”

-Blair Gould ’15

PHOTO BY HANNAH MYERS ’14

14 Features

Inklings / April 25, 2014/ inklingsnews.com

Cost of Prom

In preparation for prom, Staples students will be doing more than just scurrying to the nearest nail salon and pumping out crunches before bed–– they’ll be reaching for their wallets. The cost of a ticket to Junior Prom is $50 and the cost of a ticket to Senior Prom is $70. After asking around, the average cost of prom was calculated. All Nick Ward ’14 had to say about this was, “I’m going to be broke after this dance.”

Hair Cut (fingers crossed): $35

Hair: $65

Tie: $50 Boutonniere: $15

Makeup: $45

JACK ZELDES ’16

Jewelry: $75

Staff Writer

C

hange happens in every facet of life, whether it be making new friends, switching a daily routine or even changing where you go to school or work. The same is true for Westport. Each year, stores and restaurants close, only to be replaced by new ones; however, some places that are closed cannot be replaced and are missed by the Staples community.

Ranging from Friendly’s, to Ben and Jerry’s, or even to Totally Kool, the one place that Westporters wish they could go to one last time.

For Nick Ribolla ‘16 that place is Swanky Franks.

“It was the last place in Westport that really had that 50’s diner kind of vibe that I love,” Ribolla said.

For other people, however, the place they miss the most comes in the form of an ice cream parlor. As Westport has evolved to a place overrun with froyo, some people miss old fashioned ice cream.

“I really miss having Baskin Robbins in the center of town. They had so many flavors of quality ice cream.

I especially miss their cookie dough,” Ziggy Hallgarten ’17 said.

While most of these places have gone out of business in the short term, Westport has changed significantly in the long term.

According to local historian Dan Woog, “In the 1960s and ’70s, there was a great mix of stores downtown.

[There were] lots of small shops owned by local people – places to buy everything. Now, downtown is all expensive chain (mostly clothing) stores, and out-of-town shoppers,” Woog said.

Woog highlighted the Remarkable Book Shop as a place that has unfortunately been run out of business.

Painted pink and located near classic stores like a locally owned department store named Kleins and an old fashioned record store, the bookshop was once the epicenter for the most talented and sophisticated readers and writers.

Unfortunately, according to Westportnow.com, the store had to close its doors as it was unable to compete with the many new chain stores.

Furthermore, Woog explained that people liked local stores where you knew the owner and the owner knew his customers. However, that was not the only reason that people miss stores.

Grace Hardy ’16 misses Claire’s, a store that used to be in downtown Westport, because it provided something that is no longer present in Westport.

“I loved Claire’s because it was the only place I could get my ears pierced besides the doctor’s office.

They also had great earrings and sunglasses,” Hardy said. From the old downtown Westport, only Oscar’s deli and Westport Pizza remain.

For now we can only use this as a lesson to never take for granted the places you love, because you never know when they won’t be there.

Jacket: $150

Dress: $300

Nails: $40

Corsage: $15

Khakis: $40 Shoes: $100

Shoes: $100

Total: $390

Total: $640

INFOGRAPHIC BY JENNA MCNICHOLAS ’15 DRAWING BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

Students shop down memory lane

Doran ditches retail, designs own prom dress BELLA GOLLOMP ’15 Staff Writer

The minute the news gets out about the first guy who asks a girl to prom, the chaos begins.

Every girl is stressing about who’s asked whom and most importantly, what they’re going to wear.

For Rachel Doran ’15, finding a dress won’t be a problem.

Doran has been making clothes ever since her grandmother taught her how to hand sew when she was six years old.

Today, you can find her very own line of pajama bottoms, “Rachel’s Rags,” sold at stores like Groove and Chilly Bear.

Although she will always love making PJ’s, a prom dress is waiting for her to craft.

Doran designed and sewed her dress for the Counties dance earlier this year and is currently in the process of making her 2nd dress that she will wear to the Junior Prom in May. “I didn’t even think twice about if I wanted to make my own dress rather than buy one,” she said. “It works to my benefit because I know exactly what I want the dress to look like and can make it just for my body. Plus, it’s cheaper than dresses in retail stores.”

Doran starts off by doing her research to figure out what she envisions for her dress.

Her ideas often come from Pinterest; she saves images of styles that she likes as well as magazine cut outs – anything that catches her eye. From there, she narrows it down to which ones she likes best, creates an outline and then begins the dressmaking process.

She spent six hours making her Counties dress and predicts that her prom dress

will take a similar amount of time.

“The actual sewing of the dress usually doesn’t take me too long considering I am a fast sewer, but coming up with what I want definitely takes me a while,” Doran said.

Aside from dresses and pajamas, Doran has experimented with other articles of clothing, from lace shorts to rompers “when they were all the rage,” she adds. Unlike most girls who buy their first day of school outfits, Doran has been making hers for the past five years.

“I’m always seeing different styles that I like ,so I literally save everything,” she said. “Whenever I get a free moment, I’ll just spend my time putting something together. I consider myself such a fashion nerd.”

As for the future, Doran definitely wants to continue fashion in college.

“This really is what I love doing,” she said. “There’s something so rewarding about wearing one of your own designs and knowing the amount of time that went into making it. I wouldn’t give it up for the world.”

SIZING UP: Preparing to start work PHOTO BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

on her prom dress, Rachel Doran ’15 takes measurements from the Counties dress that she also made herself.

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April 25, 2014

A POINTE OF INTEREST (Left to right), Charlotte Steinberg ’16, Julia Rakin ’16 and Kathryn Bangser ’15 warm up at the barre at Just Dance Studios. (Below) Dominique Teixeira ’17 balances while doing an a cambre back similar to how student dancers must balance around 14 hours of dance each week with several hours of homework each night.

PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14

Dancers balance their time between leaps and lessons

T

hey don’t wear their team uniforms to school.

They don’t wear tee shirts advertising their shows.

They don’t dress up on Fridays, or any other day.

But if they’re picking up a pencil, they might just ponché: keeping the right leg straight, they lift the left leg up as they fold their bodies down, back flat.

When they walk through the halls, they turn out to the sides, perfect buns high on their heads.

They are dancers–and they call a studio home.

For many of these students, dancing is more than a hobby.

They spend numerous hours in the studio each week rehearsing, and the time commitment only increases around the time of a performance. For dancers like Jennifer Hotch ’14, at Just Dance Studios in Norwalk, around four hours are added to the weekly load during performance time.

For others, it’s even more.

“During performances, things get crazy, and between rehearsals and shows, it can be over 35 hours in a week,” said Chloe Evans ’14. These 35 hours

are spent in rehearsal Monday through Thursday from 3-8, followed by two shows on Friday, two on Saturday, and two on Sunday.

On top of that, some dancers, like Evans, take private lessons to help master their skills. Claire Noyer ‘14, who dances with Evans at Ballet Etudes, says it takes months to perfect a dance that only lasts a few minutes.

Dance can be difficult to balance with schoolwork, and occasionally students hope their teachers will cut them some slack. “Some teachers are more sympathetic than others, though most teachers agree that dance is a priority,” said Julia Rakin ’16.

“I don’t get quite as much sympathy as I’d like, but maybe that’s because the teachers don’t know too much about it. Teachers always seems much more sympathetic towards Staples Players,” Evans said.

English teacher Kim Herzog solves this problem in her classes by being consistent. “You don’t know what students are doing outside of school, so I go in with the expectation that they’re all busy, and I don’t cut slack to anyone. If a student has been diligently working on an assignment

and has been in to see me and needs more time to make his or her piece stronger, then I’m willing to accomodate,” she said.

Some students are under the impression that Players and athletes get cut slack by teachers, while others don’t think they do.

Hotch says she doesn’t get any sympathy from teachers but doesn’t find this unfair because she doesn’t think Players or athletes get special treatment, either.

Math teacher Robert Papp’s outlook on giving students “special treatment” is similar to Herzog’s. “The beauty of standard based grading is that no one day will kill you. You can always reassess. If you’re in class when the material is taught and you’re there the day of the test, then you need to take it,” he said.

Dancer Ally Hirsh ’15 doesn’t expect to be given special treatment because dance isn’t a Staples program.

No matter their thoughts on the subject, these dancers all agree on one thing: they’re not going to give up dancing, so they just have to find the right balance.

“It’s a lot of work, but after the performances we all agree that it was well worth it,” said Noyer.

Dance Costumes You’ll Never Understand This costume was used to dance to Jai Ho when that song was popular. It has all of the dance costume classics: sequins, latex, a sheer skin-colored panel to simulate – gasp– bare skin, and just the general sense of only looking good on someone with an unhealthy BMI. It’s not inherently hideous, but just a little too “harem girl” for its own good.

Maybe the worst dance costume cliché is the “this could be a real outfit” costume. Someone please find whoever is walking around in glitter-adorned flare jeans to match a criminally sparkly vest and help them.

The saving grace of horrible dance costumes is the assurance that they came straight from the catalogue from hell, so the ambiguity of this number takes it to a new realm of embarrassing.

KATIE CION ’14 Editor in Chief

Why? Why design this costume? What possible vendetta could the creators of this monstrosity have had against adolescent girls to justify swathing them in tie-dye crushed velvet from head to toe? If this wasn’t enough, they then decided to throw on some sort of hanging synthetic seaweed to an arm and a leg. This may look like “under the sea,” but it feels like “Jaws.”

PHOTOS BY RACHEL LABARRE ’14

KATIE REYNOLDS ’15 Social Media Specialist

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Java brings a new taste to Westport Instagram captures flavor JUSTINE SELIGSON ’15 Assistant Photo Coordinator

S

ituated at 44 Church St. lies a simple, typical 06880 building.

The inside, though, is anything but typical.

With long windows and bright yellow and red walls sporting images ranging from kids’ scribbles to portraits of Marilyn Monroe, Java Westport gives simple a whole new definition.

“It’s like you have been transported to another world,” Greg Weiner ’14, an employee at this colorful coffee shop, said.

Java was born in 1991 in Idaho and joined the Westport community on Jan. 28 of this year. Breanna Brandon, the local manager, describes the style of food as assorted southwestern bakery, breakfast and lunch

dishes. She cited one popular choice, Frankie’s Homemade Oatmeal or, more specifically, basic grains topped with brown sugar, steamed milk foam, cinnamon and sliced bananas.

“Everything that we put on our menu has integrity,” Brandon said. “Our products serve themselves.”

If worried about the bias that Weiner and Brandon could have as employees, listen to the positive reviews of customers.

“I like the laid-back attitude,” Terena Koteka-Wiki ’14 said. “The people are very nice, and the food is very good.” When she first went to Java, she ordered Avocado Toast, a dish consisting of whole wheat toast covered with sliced avocado and cracked pepper.

Koteka-Wiki is not alone

with her opinion. Brandon explained that from the moment Java opened its Westport doors, conditions have been busy. She thinks she knows why this is the case.

“Westport hasn’t had a place like us,” Brandon said. “We like to call ourselves an alternative to big industry coffee.” Weiner agrees, referring to the environment of Java being more comforting than the atmospheres found at large comapnies like Starbucks.

This may have to do with the fact that Starbucks has over 16,000 stores worldwide and focuses on quickly serving cups of coffee without considering ambiance.

In contrast, with just six stores, “Java offers people a place to unwind, drink a great cup of coffee and just relax,” Weiner said.

TASTY DELIGHT Enjoy a bite of the southwest with Java’s bakery, breakfast, and lunch dishes.

Try out their Frankie’s Homemade Oatmeal, consisting of basic grains with brown sugar, steamed milk foam, cinnamon, and sliced banana, or their Avocado Toast, whole wheat toast with sliced avocado and cracked pepper.

PHOTOS BY JUSTINE SEGLISON ’15

ERIN MUNLEY ’16 Staff Writer

If you went out to eat and didn’t post a picture of what you got, did you really go out?

It seems that lately food Instagrams, popularly known as “foodagrams,” are becoming more and more popular by the day.

What is the cause of this new Instagram epidemic? “If I eat something really good or something that looks pretty, I want to show people,” Lauren Clement ’16 says.

Clement adds that she even goes to certain restaurants known for their appealing food layout just to take a good picture. “The Granola Bar is one of my favorites,” Clement says.

But being able to show your followers the exotic salad you just enjoyed or that deliciously golden grilled cheese you’re about to inhale isn’t the only reason Instagramming food has become so popular recently.

“It’s a known fact that people post pretty food on Instagram because they know it will attract the most likes,” Jordan Ragland ’16 says as she speaks the harsh but accurate truth.

When it comes to Instagram, likes are everything. It seems as if the amount of likes your pictures get determines whether you are an Instagram pro or an Instagram amateur.

While some like to use their own personal accounts to post their mouth-watering meals, others take foodagram

to a whole new level by creating their own Instagram account solely dedicated to posting food.

Logan Murphy ’15 is one example of this type of foodenthusiast. “One of my passions is making food, so I wanted to make an entirely separate account where I could just focus on the food,” Murphy ’15 says.

Mackenzie Wood ’16 is also one of the many Staples students who has created their own foodagram account. “I didn’t want to clutter my own personal account with tons of food pictures, so I just made an entirely new account,” Wood says.

There are some downsides to foodagram, however. “If I’m with a friend and they’re taking pictures of their food, I get a little offended ‘cause it seems as though the foodagram is more important than our meal,” Grace Hardy ’16 says.

Pushing aside the negative effects of foodagram, it is still undoubtedly popular and some accounts are even taking off.

“My account is actually pretty successful. We have over 500 followers. Go hit it up at @fooodagram, emphasis on the three O’s, and throw us a follow,” Wood adds with a laugh.

Whether it’s an increase in the food addict population or a recent thirst for the likes and followers, foodagram is blowing up and becoming the new fad. “I’m obsessed with my foodagram and am so thankful I made it,” Murphy says.

A BREATH OF FRESH AIR Take a seat at your choice of indoor or outdoor tables at Java, located across from the Christ and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.

A WHOLE NEW WORLD Java’s “Wake up and Live” mural displays the motto of this alternative to big industy coffee.

PHOTO BY CAROLINE COHEN ’15

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Players open an “Infinite Black Suitcase” CADENCE NEENAN ’15 News Editor

T

he play “Infinite Black Suitcase,” written by E.M. Lewis, is a compilation of 14 different vignettes that cross over three varying storylines in order to create an atmosphere of dark humor, all while exploring the subjects of death and dying.

It’s only been performed on the West Coast, and never by a high school before.

However, members of Staples Players seem prepared to take on the minor mountain that they’ve found for themselves.

“As a director, I really like the way the scenes, storylines, and characters overlap and relate to each other,” director David Roth said. “I think it will be a directing challenge to tell all five of these occasionally intersecting stories fully and simultaneously.”

Players was given the opportunity to premier “Infinite Black Suitcase” by Samuel French Publishing, one of the largest theatrical publishing houses in the country. To better prepare themselves for the upcoming challenge, Players is getting the opportunity to meet with the woman who brought the story to life.

“Actually, the cast is going to get to meet the writer and discuss the script with her, which is really cool,” said Julia Greene ’15, who recently auditioned for the show.

The story centers around a family in Oregon handling matters that are quite literally life and death. Because of this, Players plans to focus most of its work around mastering the personas portrayed in the play.

“The biggest challenge will probably be the intense characters,” Isabel Perry ’15 a student

director of the show said. “A majority of the rehearsals will probably be character work.”

Roth agreed with Perry. “We will have many discussions about the topics that are handled in the script and make sure that the students are comfortable so that they can really make these characters their own,” he said.

In the past, top-notch collegiate drama programs, like the University of Southern California’s School of Dramatic Arts, have performed the play – and it received rave reviews.

However, Roth doesn’t seem worried about following any other act.

“I have no idea what USC did with it, but I am sure that ours will be very different,” Roth said.

“That’s one of the exciting things about premiering a new work.

You get to create from the ground up and anything is possible.”

GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

A new type of Superfan takes the stage KATIE SETTOS ’15 A&E Editor

GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

Crushing into their seats, they tear open bags of Skittles.

Eagerly they wait for the action to commence as jitters creep through their nerves and the energy of the room consumes them.

Yet there are no gamechanging turnovers or miraculous touchdowns to be seen.

This isn’t your typical game, and these certainly aren’t your typical fans.

Equally devoted and perhaps even more action-addicted, they are Staples Players SuperFans.

Caroline McKechnie ’15 describes the obsession simply, “It’s incredible. I love the Players’ dedication to entertain and share their talent with the world” she said.

Once she had seen “How to Succeed in Business” when she was in sixth grade, Mck-

echnie became fully enthralled in the world of Players, amazed by their level of talent, motivation and most of all, passion.

“They really sold their characters,” McKechnie said. “And that was enough to draw me into an obsession.”

Making an effort to see as many shows as possible, McKechnie and her friend, Hadley Ward ’15, decided to generate a student fan base.

Yet Superfans is a title that must be earned, and McKechnie and Ward do not take the expectation lightly. Tracking Players’ gossip and events has become a hobby. Ward even confessed that she has the website bookmarked on her computer.

“While waiting for the cast and callback lists for any given show to come out, we spend time making our predictions on who

will be cast” Ward said.

In addition to following the casting process of the productions, McKechnie and Ward make it their goal to be able to recite lines and songs prior to seeing the shows.

“We always try to make sure we know it,” Ward said. “We could pretty much jump in as understudy for any part whenever!”

Ward, who adored the Players production of “West Side Story” because of the intense chemistry between its leads, said she is continually impressed with the quality of their performances. “‘Avenue Q’ looked really professional even more so than other shows because the set was almost identical to the Broadway one and so was the talent of the actors. ” Ward said.

McKechnie, whose favorite is “A Chorus Line,” agreed with Ward, regarding “Avenue Q” as one of the most entertaining shows Players has performed.

“The comedic timing and puppet skills were perfectly on point.

Not to mention, I could not keep myself together during ‘Everyone’s a Little Racist.’ The entire show was unbearably hilarious,” she said.

While a Players student fan base is a relatively new concept, m o s t members of the theater program h a v e warmly welcomed the support from their peers.

“They break out into song constantly in our AP Gover n ment class.

They also came to

every performance of “Avenue Q” where I caught them doing a practical photoshoot in front of the stage during intermission.

They freak out in the hallway when they see the stars, they check our website, they stay up to date on the gossip and I’m pretty sure they’re ordering T-shirts,” secretary of Staples Players Julia Greene ’15 said.

As Staples Players receives most of its support from the adults in the community, students said that it is rare to find admirers among peers.

“I do think that having Players Superfans is important to counteract the negative attitude toward Players that can sometimes be found on social media.

It’s nice to be supported to the same degree as championshipwinning athletes,” Joe Badion ’15, a member of Staples players, said. “Players Superfans should know that they are greatly appreciated.”

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Young musicians crescendo early KACEY HERTAN ’16 Assistant Business Manager

M

any Staples students remember their music career as a brief period of melodious screeching on a tiny violin in the 4th grade. But, for almost 90 students in the Symphonic orchestra, music is significant.

“It has affected everything and anything in my life,” cellist Samantha Chachra ’16 said.

The Symphonic Orchestra is the highest level of Staples orchestral music. Juniors and seniors who have taken Freshman and Sophomore Orchestra are automatically invited to join Symphonic.

Many talented musicians, such as concertmaster Katie Zhou ’14, progress through the orchestras to ultimately reach Symphonic.

However, there is also a select group of underclassmen who audition to become a part of Symphonic.

“I decided to audition for Symphonic because I wanted to play more advanced music during school,” Jessica Chachra ’16, who has been playing the viola since fourth grade, said. Samantha Chachra explained that the music the Symphonic Orchestra plays is the same level of music a professional symphony plays.

Many of the underclassman musicians in Symphonic, like Ellie Shapiro ’17

who has been playing the violin for nine years, were introduced to music before the school provided the opportunity to play string instruments in fourth grade.

“I can barely remember a time in my life when I wasn’t taking a music class,” Jessica Chachra said. Samantha Chachra added that she was “literally forced” to play the piano in kindergarten and later found her love for music after starting to play the cello.

These underclassmen who have showcased excellence in music have learned far more than how to play a pretty tune in their lengthy music careers. “By working at something every day, setting goals for myself and seeing the improvement, I’m overall much more concentrated in school and at home,” Shapiro said. She added that she always has a scheduled performance because she finds that she works more efficiently with an ultimate goal in mind.

“Music has helped me focus and I think it helped develop my brain to think in a logical fashion, along with math and memory skills,” Jessica Chachra said.

Since music has been a part of their lives for so long, many of these advanced students plan to pursue music in college, but others are undecided.

“I’m not sure what I want to do after high school, but I know either way, I will definitely include music in my life,” Shapiro said.

A WELL BALANCED MUSICIAN Ellie Shapiro ’17 finds that the discipline she’s learned from playing the violin for nine years has helped her concentration at both school and home.

GETTING A HEAD START Jessica Chachra ’16 has been playing the viola since fourth grade, and decided to join the Symphonic Orchestra to play more advanced music, as the Symphonic plays the same music as professional symphonies.

FINDING HER PASSION After being forced to play the piano in kindergarten, Samantha Chachra ’16 only found her love for music when she began playing the cello.

PHOTOS BY JULIA KAPLOWITZ ’16

Staples grads rock out GRAYSON WEIR ’14 Staff Writer

It’s no secret that the hallways of Staples High School are full of extraordinary musical talent, and it’s certainly no surprise if this talent goes on to make an impact in the music scene.

While Micah Sloat ’00 musically contributed to the movie “Paranormal Activity,” it has been overshadowed by his leading role in the film. Playing the guitar, and singing vocals, his songs were featured throughout the movie.

“Music has definitely taken a backseat as the movie’s taken off. But in the future, I definitely will be working on getting an album out there at some point,” Sloat said.

Harry Rodrigues ’07, better known as Baauer, the man behind 2013 dance hit “Harlem Shake,” and bass behind a track featuring Jay-Z, took a bit of a different route. DJing local events, and getting his music linked on popular music websites, Rodrigues started slow, and began to grow. Five years after high school, “Harlem Shake” hit number one on iTunes and started a dance craze that swept the nation.

Kevin Copeland ’10, Spencer Fox ’11, and Eva Hendricks’11, and Sam Hendricks ’06 joined together in 2011 to form Charly Bliss, a four piece indie band out of New York City, and have been taking the New York City music scene by storm.

Copeland said Eva and Spencer were a year behind him at Staples, writing songs together. They needed a drummer and a bass player, so Eva asked her brother and Copeland to join the band. “Now a couple years down the line, here we are,” Copeland said.

Having their album “A Lot To Say” blow up the indie music scene, Charly Bliss has only gone up. The group recently was booked to play this April’s MACRoCk festival in Virginia and plans to do a small tour in California this summer.

Lead singer Eva Hendricks attributes a lot of her success to Staples Players even though she’s not currently pursuing musical theater.

“Players taught me a lot about the importance of a strong work ethic and teamwork,” Hendricks said. ”It also taught me a lot about constructive criticism, accepting it, giving it, learning from it.”

GRAPHIC BY AUDREY SEO ’16

SPORTS

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April 25, 2014

PHOTO BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

Watson leads track to victory SIMON STRACHER ’14 Social Media Editor

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n recent years, the boys’ track team has had unprecedented success in the cross-country, indoor track, and outdoor track seasons.

And it’s no coincidence that this recent success overlaps with the hiring of Malcolm Watson ’01.

Watson, a Staples and University of Columbia graduate, got his start in the Staples program in an unconventional way - he began by running under head coach Laddie Lawrence in high school. He was, “a solid performer in high school,” Lawrence said. After he graduated graduate school, he ran into Lawrence’s son, who suggested that he volunteer coach. Watson took him up on it, and once they had room in the budget, Lawrence offered Watson the assistant coach job - with pay. The rest, as they say, is history.

Watson has been coach-

ing since the spring of 2011, which means he has watched the maturation of the freshmen class into seniors. And an assistant coach, Watson manages and trains the entire distance program. But more importantly, he’s there “for all of the kids as a mentor and friend to whoever need it,” he said.

“He has a tremendous rapport with the kids - that’s his most valuable asset,” said head coach Laddie Lawrence.

Besides from the obvious objective impact Watson has had on the track team - in his time there he has coached countless AllAmericans, won one national title and many state and FCIAC titles, along with setting new state, New England and national records, he’s also had a strong subjective impact that’s impossible to overlook.

“He inspires me to keep running,”

Luis Cruz ’15 said. “He is the C only person after a bad race who would look at the positives.”

Jake Berman ’15 agreed with Cruz’ assessment of Watson’s impact.

“He's a great coach that is friends with most of the team.

[He] is one of the main reasons that stars like Henry Wynne are so successful and the Staples Distance program in general,” he said.

Watson is a clear reason why the boys’ track team has had so much success in the past, and hopefully in the foreseeable future.

Lawrence, the longtime coach of the boys’ track team, gave high praise to Watson.

“When you have a great assistant, that’s when you can bring the team to a whole new level. And that’s what we have with [Malcolm],” he said.

“He’s a great guy, a great coach, and is the reason why we all love running so much,” captain Peter Elkind ’15 said.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Above: Assistant track coach Malcolm Watson ’01 trains the distance program. Since his arrival at Staples, the team has improved drastically.

Bottom Left: Coach Watson trains track runner Philip Han-Lemus ’16. Lemus was preparing for his upcoming meet on April 25 at O’Grady Relays.

Bottom Right: Coach Watson converses with track players Luis Cruz ’ 15 (left), James Lewis ’16 (middle) and, Jake Berman ’15 (right). Staples Boys’ Track and Field has an FCIAC record of 11-0.

PHOTO BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

PHOTO BY ADAM KAPLAN ’16

Internships are manageable with sports CHASE GORNBEIN ’16 Staff Writer

For seniors at Staples High School, May 19 is the joyous day that marks the beginning of the internship program and the end of attending formal classes.

From May 19 to June 13, students participating in the program will be required to earn a minimum of 95 hours of work.

For students playing on spring sports teams, this may be a daunting task. However, “past seniors have worked it out fine and my internship is flexible like most,” Connor Mitnick ’14 said.

Mitnick is a member of the tennis team and he is positive his internship won’t intefere.

Chris Wilk ’14, a member of the Staples volleyball team,

believes managing his time will not be challenging. “For my internship, I will be able to leave early in order to make sure I am not late for practice or a game,” Wilk said.

The Staples High School internship program is run by Lee Saveliff, who has been an active member of the program for three years, and has placed over 1300 students since 2012.

The program allows students to choose from over 300 jobs ,ranging from gardening to working in an elementary school.

Jason Chaskin ’14 is a member of the boys’ tennis team, however, he does not believe that interning will be a conflict. “I'm interning at Long Lots Elementary, so I will be done at 2 p.m.

which leaves me 20 to 30 minutes to be ready for tennis,” said Chaskin.

According to Saveliff, on applications, all students must fill out what they enjoy doing and what activities they participate in after school that may conflict with their working hours.

However, all of the internships vary. “Some jobs work outside of school hours [later than 3 p.m.]. On the job description, it will note that. However, most students don’t read the description” Saveliff said.

“I discover that not all of the interns read the descriptions carefully. Some are choosing sites that they cannot intern at because they are on a sports team or have a commitment that starts

as soon as the normal Staples day ends and the sites' hours conflict with their own schedule,” Saveliff said.

To fix this, Saveliff has a plan. “I am going to ask the IT person who maintains the website to add a bold feature so I can have the hours information stand out next year” Saveliff said.

Peter Elkind ’14 runs for the boys’ track team, and while he doesn’t think managing track with working will be difficult, he is still nervous about it.

“It shouldn't be too much trouble managing track and my internship because I've made sure that my internship bosses are aware of my practice hours.

I might have to make up a few days for the internship when I

have to take off for meets,” Elkind said.

The majority of the jobs are done during school hours. However, it is important for athletes to recognize that there are some internships that occur after the school day.

Fortunately, anybody in charge of a job that requires work outside of the school schedule will contact students and double check with them to make sure that they will be able to fulfill their commitments.

As difficult as it may be to balance working a job with playing a sport, the student-internship program provides a lot of leeway for students to easily manage sporting events with work.

Sports Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

21

Graduated seniors prove hard to replace WILL MCDONALD ’14 Managing Editor

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very year, when high school athletes ditch their traditional uniforms for caps and gowns at graduation, they leave behind a gaping hole on the roster of their former team.

According to boys’ volleyball co-captain Todd Goldstein ’14, one of just two returning varsity starters, the departure of seniors represents the loss of a core of the team.

“It’s always tough because you are losing invaluable leadership and experience,” he said.

“For us, coming off a victorious championship season, it is even harder.”

While captain’s practices and other pre-season activities provide teams with early peeks

at who will step up in the coming season to fill the role of the departed seniors, there is no way of knowing for sure until official practices begin.

Thus, as Goldstein notes, teams are often left with only two weeks before their first contest to scramble to find a lineup that works before embarking on another season.

Both Goldstein and Nick Vega ’14, a tri-captain of the baseball team, agree that the issue is not that the seniors were irreplaceable, but that determining who is going to replace whom can take time.

“It’s more reconfiguring than anything,” Vega said. “We definitely think that we have the pieces to fill the gaps, we just need to find some new chemistry with the new faces and that

is done through the leadership of some of the returning and familiar faces.”

While in most cases these new faces are seniors who once sat on the bench as juniors behind previous seniors, in some instances a dearth of current seniors forces teams to draw upon underclassmen in order to fill the void.

For example, this year’s girls’ varsity lacrosse team sports only three seniors on their roster. However, thanks to a strong younger contingent that includes several juniors who have already committed to play in college, co-captain Meredith Hood ’14 believes that those new to receiving large amounts of playing time on varsity will “definitely rise to their potential and fill their spots well.”

For some teams, though, the open spot left by a senior may be too big for one person to simply fill. Such is the case for the boys’ track team, who find themselves without Henry Wynne ’13, a twotime national champion in the mile and one of the best runners in Connecticut history. With no new Henry Wynne level talents coming along in the foreseeable future, the team was forced to search for another solution in order to make up for the dozens of points Wynne would rack up in every meet.

“Obviously no one is going to try and step up and run as well as he did, so instead we’ve tried to fill the void with our increased depth in events this year,” boys’ track co-captain Peter Elkind ’14 said. “Whereas last year Henry would win and that would be

that, this year we try and make up the points by maybe having one guy finish second, another around fifth, and hopefully one more in seventh or eighth, and while it doesn’t always add up to last year, it’s more than enough to keep us in the FCIAC title hunt.”

Not all teams find themselves gutted by graduation, however.

The girls’ tennis team finds itself with nine out of ten returning from last year’s starting lineup.

While they may be lacking competitively from the loss of last year’s class, co-captain Melissa Beretta ’14 acknowledged that leadership and lessons imparted by the seniors will be missed – but not forgotten.

“Their messages and lessons will be carried on with all of us in our years on the team and beyond,” she said.

GRAPHIC BY PHILIP HANͳLEMUS ’16

Third time’s the charm CAROLINE O’KANE ’16 Staff Writer

T

he moment of silence seems endless as the junior class athletes sit at their banquets anxiously waiting to hear the captains for the following year.

The names are called.

Some athletes have gone through this process more than once, and some even more than twice.

A number of these athletes show such outstanding qualities, both in the heat of a game, and through their spirit, that

Tri-Captains cope with transition out of Staples they have been nominated to lead multiple teams as captain throughout the coming year.

Peter Elkind ’14 describes his three seasons of being a captain as completely different experiences, each one having its

own unique qualities. “As each season ends, I become nostalgic, as I think about the teammates that are transitioning to a new sport, only to meet and become friends with new people in the new season.”

Captains must fulfill a variety of obligations, students said, including leading the team to the state finals, cheering on the freshman though a tough race, and being everyone's role model and friend.

In the final moments of the football state championship game, it is hard to forget the winning scorer, running 60 yards down the field, beating out defenders left and right, and bringing home the first state championship since 2005.

However, as cliche as it may sound, despite the success brought to the team by a single standout player, the team is made up of many athletes, all playing an equally necessary part in winning and losing.

Soccer, indoor and outdoor track captain Jack Scott ’14 said he has enjoyed his experience so far as captain and is excited to have an entire season left

GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

of captaining a sport in high school. James Lewis ’16 had the chance of playing on the varsity soccer team with Scott, along with running track both in the indoor and outdoor seasons with him. Lewis describes Scott as “extremely hard working” and adds that Scott “would have us repeat the same drills for hours; there was not a break until the entire team perfected it.”

Scott is always working towards the next win for the team, knowing that in both soccer and track, no win is gained by a single player.

Tyler Scanlin ’14, a captain of the indoor and outdoor track team, has led her team to win state, New England, and national titles in the DMR in the outdoor 2013 season and indoor 2014 season.

Coming into the winter season, Scanlin said she was not sure how strong her leadership skills were going to be.

Now in the spring season

of track, Scan- lin is ready to lead the team to another season full of medals and trophies.

Malcolm Watson, distance track coach, has nothing but positive words to describe Scanlin as a captain. Watson remembers watching Scanlin as captain on her first day of practice in December as a “quiet leader” and now watches her “lead the team with daily cheers, motivation, support, and respect for everyone, both coaches and athletes.”

Watson continued, saying, “It is not only Tyler who is becoming a stronger athlete everyday, but she is becoming a stronger leader and adding so much strength to the team.”

Scanlin could not have said it better: “When doing a sport like track that is sometimes very hard to enjoy, I’m glad I can be captain so that I spread my love for running, and teach everyone that running can be fun.”

LEADING THE WAY On April 22 track tri-captain Peter Elkind ’14 ran in a meet against McMahon and Central.

PHOTO BY HANNAH MYERS ’14

22 Sports

Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

Genders split over weight training MEGAN ROOT ’14 Staff Writer

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n the Staples weight room, muscles strain and faces flush red with effort as boys squat, bench, curl, and lunge their way to strength.

Emphasis on “boys.”

The weight room is a male dominated environment. The football team uses it the most; depending on the season, they might be joined by boys from teams like soccer, lacrosse, and rugby. In comparison, fewer girls take advantage of the facility. “[The weight room] is open to whatever team wants to use

PHOTO BY MINAHIL SALAM ’16

track and field members in the weight room two or three times a week.

“You can’t get faster, you can’t throw further, you can’t jump higher, unless you get stronger,” Lawrence said.

Nicole Ross, P.E. teacher and certified coach at CrossFit Revel, said that some people doubt weight training, arguing that no one does squats on the field. But Ross said that’s not the point.

“When you train your muscles to work at those high intensities, it’s going to help your muscles perform at those high intensities on the field,” Ross said.

“You can’t get faster, you can’t throw further, you can’t jump higher, unless you get stronger.”

-Laddie Lawrence it,” Athletic Director Marty Lisevick said. “It’s only that [football] schedules to get in there the most.”

Kevin Watt ’15 participates in the football program and also trains for rugby and wrestling.

He says that the lifting is key to his performance.

“Being stronger than whoever you’re up against can make up for lapses in technique and not being the fastest guy out there,” Watt said.

The question is, why wouldn’t Staples’ female athletes want that same advantage?

Some might argue that weight lifting isn’t particularly beneficial in sports with less emphasis on tackling and physical strength. But professional coaches say that strength training enhances movements like jumping, turning, and accelerating. That’s why Coach Laddie Lawrence has

Stronger muscles are important for safety as well as performance. Football Coach Marce Petroccio said that his biggest priority in weight training is injury prevention. “[Players] cannot be on that field unless they are involved in our weight program,” Petroccio said. “Someone would get seriously injured.”

Petroccio’s approach has proven true. Studies show that injuries are less common among athletes who lift weights; strengthened muscles provide greater stability and take pressure off joints.

That kind of preparation is particularly important for girls.

Statistics show that, compared to males, female athletes are six times more likely to tear their ACLs—a ligament in the knee.

Scientists have identified weak muscles as one factor in this

LIFTING FOR BOYS During a track practice on April 7 athletes Anna Bene ’16 (left) and Katie Lee Sullivan ’16 watch Gene Tsai ’14 having priority over the equipment. According to those interviewed Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are the busiest times during the week for the weight room because that’s when the football schedule is heaviest.

higher risk.

Some girls have recognized the advantages of weightlifting and started incorporating it into their workouts. Lauren Garcia ’15 began weight training at a CrossFit gym in Westport two years ago. “It’s definitely made me stronger,” Garcia said. “My legs can last longer and don’t get as tired.” But few female athletes follow Garcia’s example. Ross says that out of all the teenagers who train at CrossFit Revel, Garcia is the only girl. Ross explained some common fears behind this gender divide.

“Even my friends ask: ‘Why do you do CrossFit? You’re going to get so bulky and manly,’” Ross said. “Women are scared that weight training is going to make them big.”

But Ross said that it takes a certain body type and training program to bulk up. Most athletes aren’t capable of gaining lots of muscle mass, especially if they balance weight lifting with running workouts. That’s how Lawrence’s track team trains, and he said his runners burn too many calories to ever get bulky.

It does take expertise to

shape a strength program for a specific sport. Since lifting weights incorrectly is dangerous, some teams might avoid the weight room because they don’t have the necessary guidance.

Teams that can incorporate lifting might find it helps more than just muscles. Lacrosse player Lucas Jackson ’15 said when it comes to weight training as a team, the advantages extend beyond the physical.

“We get stronger and faster, and do so as a team,” Jackson said. “It helps build relationship and strengthen team bonds.”

STAPLES HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT ASSEMBLY PRESENTS….

2 014 VARIETY SHOW THURSDAY, MAY 1st 7-8:30 p.m Staples High School Auditorium Tickets Sold at Door $5 for Students, $8 for Adults

ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT STAPLES’ TUITION GRANTS

Sports Inklings / April 25, 2014 / inklingsnews.com

Spring sports are in full swing RACHEL LABARRE ’14 Managing Editor

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t’s said that April showers bring May flowers. While that might be appealing to some, to spring sport athletes, this can be a problem. Teams that play spring sports often have to adjust to the fluctuating weather of the season. Sometimes, practice has to be moved inside or players have to wear multiple layers and jackets while they play. But, when the sun is shining and there is not a cloud in the sky, catching a baseball, running a mile or swinging a racket can be the perfect after school activity.

ABOVE: During a practice, Mike DeAngelis ’15 hones defense skills by fielding a ground ball. Staples baseball currently has a record of 5-2, and a record of 4-1 in the FCIAC. RIGHT: Molly O’Shea ’14 tries to make her way around defender Caitlin Hoberman ’14 during tryouts. Girls’ lacrosse had their first game on April 11 against Ridgefield at Ginny Parker Field.

RIGHT BELOW: During a home match against Darien, captainLuke Foreman ’15 takes a shot. Staples took home a win with a score of 7-0.

BELOW: On April 9, track runner Sam Little ’17 participated in the first meet of the season. Staples beat Greenwich. The next meet will be on April 25 at the O’Grady Relays.

PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14

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E D I S N

The Wreckers

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ports

A preview on the spring sports in full bloom page 24

PHOTOS BY LIANA SONENCLAR ’14

InBrief Boys’ Baseball Team The baseball team is coming off several key, early season wins, including a nineinning showdown versus rival Greenwich. They play Fairfield Warde today at home, with first pitch at 4:00 p.m. Next week’s games, Mon., Wed., and Fri. respectively, are away at Harding, then home to Fairfield Ludlowe and Ridgefield, all at 4:00 P.M.

Girls’ Lacrosse Team A young girls’ lacrosse team looks to continue its solid start to the season with a home game on Ginny Parker Field against New Canaan at 4:00 P.M. on Tues., April 29. That starts a string of three straight home games, followed by Thurs., May 1 in the football stadium against Trumbull, and then Tues. the 6th against Wilton, back at Ginny Parker.

FIGHT TO WIN In the Staples gym, Chris Wilk ’14, Ian Grimes ’14 and other volleyball players practice blocking against one another in preparation for their game against Trumbull on April 23.

Boys’ Volleyball Team

Volleyball sets up for a good return JULIA GREENSPAN ’16

chemistry of the team. Shepro explained that the team worked hard to reach FCIACs and states fter a very rewarding with the help of senior leadership 2013 spring season, the and teamwork. “In the end, that's boys’ volleyball team has what pushed us to win it all,” big shoes to fill.

Shepro said.

Last season, the boys were The team was also able to able to rack up an FCIAC title maintain a strong standing in the and become the Class L State ranks when they went 21-1 for the Champions for the fifth time in season, the only loss to SouthingStaples history. Not only was this ton in the first game of the seathe first state championship title son. since the 2009 season, but it was Co-captain Todd Goldstein also the first state win for third- ’14, sees his team striving for year coach Jon Shepro. success once again during the Shepro said the root of the upcoming season. Goldstein said team’s success came from the that another championship title is possible for the boys.

He also mentioned that many of the senior players this year are aware of the work they need to do in order to win again.

“We know what it will take to make it back to the finals,” Goldstein said. “It’s all about the hard work and dedication”.

Teammate Chris Wilk ’14 thinks this team will easily transition into a new season despite the loss of major contributors. He said although they lost six seniors from last year, there are key players who are able to lead and motivate the boys this season.

“The team this year has many strong hitters and passers on it, and SET TO WIN On April 4, Andrew Marriot ’14 our two captains, Lusets the ball to middle Captain Todd Gold- cas Grevers and Todd stein ’14. The boys were practicing for their Goldstein, bring a positive attitude to the gym first game in Ridgefield on April 11. every day which keeps Staff Writer

Co-captains Todd Goldstein ’14 and Lucas Grevers ’14 have picked up where they left off last season and are leading a squad that, despite losing to Ridgefield a few weeks ago, has bounced back as of late.

Darien comes to the gym tonight at 7:00 P.M. in a matchup of two premiere FCIAC teams.

Then on Monday, the team travels to Ludlowe to take on the Fairfield Co-op team.

Boys’ and Girls’ Track and Field Teams

A

The boys start the O’Grady Relays today at Danbury High School, while both teams are participating in the relays tomorrow as well, for one of the largest events of the FCIAC season. Then on Mon., April 28, Danbury, along with Bassick, comes to take on the girls, while the boys return to Danbury the following day to race the Hatters and Lions.

Boys’ Tennis Team The boys are off to an incredible start, and look to continue the pace set by returnees Zach Levin ’15, Josh Moskovitz ’15, co-captains Luke Foreman ’14 and Jack Reardon ’14, and Baxter Stein ’14, among others. Their next two matches are at home at 4:00 P.M., today against Weston and Monday versus New Canaan.

Boys’ and Girls’ Golf Team

AIMING TOWARDS VICTORY Junior Chris Delaurentis ’15 practices playing as an outside hitter for the upcoming season in the Staples’ gym.

the team morale high,” Wilk said.

Shepro is looking for a powerful start to this season and expects nothing but hard work from his team in the next few weeks, as the spring season opens with

the first game at Ridgefield on April 11.

“I owe it to this team to tailor this season to this group of guys and not try to relive past successes,” Shepro said.

Having just started competition this week, the boys’ golf team looks to get off to a hot start at Longshore against Fairfield Ludlowe at 3:00 P.M. on Mon., April 28. Then they will play at Sterling Farms against Trinity Catholic and New Canaan in Stamford. The girls also recently got underway, and take on Fairfield Warde Monday at 3:30 P.M. at Smith Richardson, and then host Ludlowe on Tuesday at 3:00 P.M. For continual updates on upcoming sports events, check www.inklingsnews.com