Inklings march 9

Inklings March 9, 2015 Issue 8 Founded in 1933 inklingsnews.com

PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

WAKEMAN GOATS Two children visiting the Wakeman Farm pet one of the many goats that live there.

Local farm fights to receive funding from Board of Finance Benjamin Foster ’16

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n Feb. 4, 2015, students and residents involved with the Wakeman Town Farm community came together and compiled letters urging the Board of Finance (BoF) to approve funds that would enhance the current conditions of the farm.

If the funds are approved, $260,000 will be given directly to Wakeman Town Farm. The money would be used to pay for crucial property maintenance on the farmhouse and also provide a loan to Wakeman Town Farm for $300,000 so they could build a classroom and public space.

Some of the specific maintenance would include replacing the roof, chimney, porch, faulty wiring and bad plumbing.

Staples students have been supporting Wakeman Town Farm through these difficult financial times.

Charlie Colasurdo ’17, student liaison and junior board member of Wakeman Town Farm, said the farm is like his second home and helped spark his interest in sustainable agriculture. Although only a

freshman, Colasurdo has been involved with Wakeman Town Farm for five years and is a very important part of the Wakeman Town Farm family.

“I spoke at the original Board of Finance meeting where they asked the town to turn Wakeman Town Farm into an educational farm, and I cut the ribbon at its opening,” Colasurdo said. “I’ve been involved ever since.”

Nick Moro ’15 is very involved with Wakeman Town Farm just like Colasurdo. His interest began after slowly strengthening his relationship with Michael Aitkenhead. “I met Mr. A through B3 my sophomore year, and I approached him later that year to see if he had a need around the farm that I could help with through an Eagle Scout Project,” Moro said.

“After my project, I took [AP Environmental Science] with Mr. A and continued B3. This past summer I held a job at the farm as his assistant and as a camp counselor.”

The prosperity of this organization is very important to Colasurdo, and he spoke at this recent meeting. “I spoke about how involved I have

become in the farm over the past five years and how I personally have come to love it. I urged the Board to approve the funds, so Wakeman Town Farm can have a proper facility and expand upon their current capabilities as an education farm,” Colasurdo said.

However, if the BoF does not fund the urgent maintenance, programs offered at Wakeman Town Farm will vanish.

Aitkenhead has been working with the farm family ever since the town bought the property in 2012. He has been working and living there as

steward and director of the farm while working closely with a town-appointed farm board.

“In the few short years that we’ve existed, we’ve essentially created an educational center that benefits the community of Westport and through which we conduct after-school programs, summer camps, adult workshops, community events, and a food share program” Aitkenhead said.

Rather than simply “bandaging” the repairs, Aitkenhead believes it is time to make serious changes for the better. Improving the property

WINTER SHEEP Two sheep walk around Wakeman Town Farm. Sheep are just one of the many animals at the farm, including alpacas, chickens, goats and rabbits.

will also create an environment that will better suit the need of Wakeman Town Farm programs.

“The proposal basically is asking the town to pay outright two-sixths of the cost of the project.

One-sixth would be paid for through a fundraising campaign conducted by the farm, and the remaining three-sixths or one-half of the project would be paid for by a loan from the town,” he said.

The flaw with this plan is that some BoF members are in favor of the proposal while others are not.

In order to convince the other half, Wakeman Town Farm had asked supporters to attend BoF meetings in February to support and explain how Wakeman Town Farm is a valuable community asset. With the mammoth support they have received, a compelling case can be made to retain the farm, thanks to supporters just like Colasurdo and Moro.

The vote as to whether the BoF would approve the funding took place on March 4 at Town Hall.

(Results were not known at presstime. Log on to inklingsnews.com for updates.)

Students rejoice over drastically lowered gas prices INFOGRAPHIC BY MEGAN ROOT ‘15

Taylor Harrington ’15

Inside Opinions Features A&E Sports

Despite gas prices having been were on a downward spiral for a record of 123 consecutive days, they’re slowly rising again but not too much.

Anabelle Porio ’15 was a big fan of the low prices. Last month, she paid about $25 for gas compa red to last summer when it cost around $40 to fill up her Hyundai Elantra. Instead of spending her money on gas, Porio had the chance to save some cash “for pocket money to have at college.”

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Boys’ lacrosse prepares for Colorado match Page 26

Owner of the Compo 66 gas station, Bob Myers was also pleased to see the prices in the low $2 range this winter.

“It’s better for us because our inventory costs aren’t as much,” Myers smiled.

On Groundhog Day, while prices were still at their lowest point, AAA released a daily fuel gauge report, putting the prices into perspective.

When the report was published on Feb. 2, it noted that the “national average price of gas [was] $2.06 per gallon, which [was] about $1.22 per gallon less than a year ago. AAA [estimated]

INSIDE LOOK AT THE LIFE OF MR. JONES Page 11

HOW TO HAVE FUN ON ST. PATRICK’S DAY Page 19

Continued on page 5

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Inklings

March 9, 2015 | News

Staples houses art from local and famous artists

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Greta Bjornson ’15

hanks to the Westport Schools Permanent Art Collection (WSPAC), the hallways of Staples have more than the classic trophy cases, lockers and colorful posters of any American high school. Instead, they are also home to lenticular art and New York Times photography hanging on the walls.

Staples and the rest of the public schools enjoy over 1,500 works from both local artists, like photographer Lynsey Addario, as well as from the world-famous, such as Pablo Picasso. The collection was founded in 1964 by Burt Chernow and serves to remind students “that art can be an integral part of their lives and that it is an important part of their town’s cultural heritage,” according to the Westport Public Schools’ website.

Kathie Bennewitz, co-chair of WSPAC, became involved with the art at Staples and the other public schools after working in the Netherlands on art education programs at the American School of the Hage and was drawn to

REFLECTIONS ON THE WATER (from left) The pieces “The Dredger” by Sperry Andrews, “Seascape” by Henry Vander Velde and “Untitled” by Steve Smulka, three pieces from WSPAC hang outside the Staples cafeteria.

the WSPAC because of its cultural ties in Westport.

Bennewitz explained that the art she helps curate through the collection brings vibrancy and excitement to school.

“I was at another school in Connecticut a few years ago, and it felt so empty and void of life because it did not have any artwork on its hallway walls,” she said.

“Some people do not have original art in their homes either, so to come to a school filled with color, life and images that connect to what they are learning is really PHOTOS BY JILLIAN KLEINER ’16 special.”

Miggs Burroughs is one of the artists who

brings contributes color and life to the school. Many may be familiar with his piece ‘Brothers,’ which hangs outside the Staples Guidance office. It is a lenticular work, so it shifts from an image of one man in a city to a man in a field depending on the viewer’s stance.

Burroughs became involved when working with the former head of WSPAC, Mollie Donovan.

“When I started out, I was known as an illustrator, having done some TIME Magazine covers and a United States Postage Stamp.

[Donovan] asked if I would like to donate one of my illustrations, which I was honored to do,” he said.

Students have had

the opportunity to interact with some of the art that has been donated. Sammy Troy ’15 did a project with the WSPAC pieces in Staples while in English teacher Sue O’Hara’s sophomore honors English class.

The project had each student select and learn about a work of art. Then students learned to group the art and arrange the works. The final assessment came from an essay that the students wrote explaining how the different works were connected.

“Some students even interviewed their artists to get an inside perspective on all the aspects of a piece or the meaning behind it,” Troy said. “It helped us build a connection between art and writing that a lot of us were not familiar with.”

Burroughs hopes that students will continue to challenge themselves and others through the pieces of WSPAC. “For students, art will only be as meaningful as the personal stories they are willing to bring to the work that hangs in their school,” he said. “Hopefully, this collection will prompt students to share their own ‘truths’ through art and to appreciate its profound impact on us all.”

Yik Yak app makes a strong resurgence at Staples Adam Kaufman ’15 After months collecting virtual cobwebs in the depths of Staples students’ phones, Yik Yak has recently reemerged as a social media force to be reckoned with. This time, though, some are saying there’s a different dynamic about how kids are using the application.

Most will remember the day April 24, 2014 where Yik Yak was the talk of the school. Students eagerly scrolled the feed throughout the day, viewing the latest gossip and harshest insults.

It all came to a peak when Principal John Dodig made an announcement over the P.A. regarding the latest social media craze to sweep across the town of Westport.

After a geofence was installed that prevented the use of the app on school grounds, Yik Yak went on an extended hiatus. Most students deleted the app from their phones, and the Westport feed became dormant.

Now, students have discovered a workaround. While posting in school still gives even the techiest kids fits, some students are now aware of the “peak” feature. Peak enables the user to view Yaks from any location, and students have found that using peak to view the Westport feed allows them to work around the in-school ban.

Eric Hawes ’15, a popular target for Yaks, laughs off most of the posts and even goes as far as to call them clever.

He thinks that this time around, Yik Yak has a more playful tone to it. But Hawes was also quick to say, “That’s a fine line that can be crossed at any time.”

GRAPHIC BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

Students have also been finding a productive purpose for a previously malicious application.

Sarah Herbsman ’15 said that she heard news of a snow day through the Yik Yak message boards before receiving a phone call.

Dodig does not see the upside to such a powerful app. “My experience over 47 years is that if you give a large group of teenagers absolute anonymity, the worst behavior will rise to the surface,” he said.

Popular Yaks last April gained upwards of 100 “upvotes,” but some this February have eclipsed 100, and even approached 200 “upvotes.”

Yik Yak declined to comment on the recently increased popularity of their application in Westport.

One of the creators of the app, Tyler Droll, told Business Insider, “We’re proactively trying to keep high schoolers off the app. It’s being used very well at colleges. We think that, psychologically, high schoolers aren’t ready to use our app.”

Despite Droll’s strong opinion, Nick Ribolla ’16 thinks students have shown growth with their use of the app. “This time around, I think people have realized that personal, vicious attacks really just aren’t chill,” Ribolla said.

Regardless of how the app has been utilized in the past, Dodig has hope for his students in the present and future. Dodig said, “This is a golden opportunity to promote and share with others the environment that we have at Staples, which in general is both positive and supportive.”

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Inklings

March 9, 2015 | News

Staples teacher attendance exceeds average

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Reporting contributed by Katelyn DeAgro ’17 & Eliza Goldberg ’17

tudents know their own attendance policies by heart, but many don’t know the attendance standards teachers are held to.

Statistically, Staples teachers miss less days of school than the national average of public school teachers.

TEACHER ATTENDANCE

BY THE NUMBERS

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Average amount of days America’s public school teachers miss a

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PPSAT Exam March 7

Teachers are eligible for 15 days of sick leave each year, cumulative to the state minimum.

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In Brief

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-Westport Education Association

They’re meant for illness; if you’re not ill, you shouldn’t actually use them.

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The PPSAT is a practice PSAT that will only be open to sophomores. The PPSAT is shorter than the SAT but includes two reading sections, one math and one writing. The Westport Continuing Education Office allows for signups at westportcontinuinged.com or through the phone at 203-341-1209. Tickets are limited.

-Physical Education Teacher Cari Moore

Average number of days Canaan teachers miss a year, the highest in CT.

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2 8

Average number of days East Windsor teachers miss a year, the lowest in CT.

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‘Bucket days’ have been a part of the teachers’ contract here for a very long time. A ‘bucket day’ is for teachers that have taught for longer than three years within the district and have reached their limit of allotted sick days. With this benefit, the teacher is paid their normal rate, minus the $90 a day that it would take to hire a substitute to take their place.

Average number of days Westport teachers miss a year, 3 days below the national average.

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Average amount of days Connecticut’s public school teachers miss a

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-Human Resource Director Marge Cion

Each teacher must fill out a request for absence form in order to take the day off, clearly highlighting what type of leave and to what it applies.

STATISTICS BASED ON RESEARCH FROM A DROPOUTNATION.NET AND THE CONNECTICUT POLICY RESEARCH INSTITUTE FROM 2009-10

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-Westport Education Association

INFOGRAPHIC BY SOPHIA HAMPTON ’15

“Sweeney Todd” March 13, 14, 15, 20, 21

The Staples Players will be performing their spring musical, “Sweeney Todd”, the second and third weekends in March. Tickets can be purchased online at www.staplesplayers.com, in school outside the cafeteria or a limited amount at the door. For more information about times and dates visit www. staplesplayers.com.

Standardized Tests March 14 and 18

On March 14 the SAT and SAT subject tests will be offered at Weston High School, Wilton High School, Darien High School, Trumbull High School, Stamford High School and Greenwich High School. Feb. 18 is the next date scheduled for the ACT that has seats open at Fairfield Warde, Danbury High School, New Canaan High School and Bridport High School.

Students compete nationally in language exams

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adds value to Latin because not that many people take Latin, let alone have the ability to take a test in it.”

Despite whether or not students feel they are well prepared, the exams have the potential to be a great opportunity for showcasing proficiency and accomplishments in language class.

According to Spanish teacher Horacio Ballesteros, who takes great pride in having seen many of his students excel at the National Spanish Exam, the test is very complex at all levels. Despite the 2013-14 Language difficulty, Ballesteros feels that the exam is beneficial to all.

Exam Winners “The idea is for students to know how they place in a nationwide AATF National French Contest contest and for schools to know Award of Excellence: how they are doing with their Dominic Wynter world language department,” AATSP National Spanish Exam Ballesteros said.

Award of Excellence: “If there are no national Emma Lupoff standards, it can be difficult for ACL National Latin Exam Award of students to know how they are Excellence: doing,” Tavenner added.

And of course, while Nicolas Amato not all students will score AATG National German Exam extraordinarily well, taking the Award of Excellence: OR test has no downside. Earning a M Luke Fonteyne DE AT bronze, silver or gold medal, which E IO G N UA for the National Spanish Exam requires PR G N OV LA IDE a score at or above the 95th percentile and D L D BY S TA P L ES’ WO R for Latin I a score of 35-40, is quite an accomplishment. According to Tavenner, “There’s not a lot of pressure; it’s fun, and curriculum,” Tavenner said. it’s fairly inexpensive.”

Mehar Kirmani ’15, a student As Remy Laifer ’17, who will soon be of Tavenner, greatly appreciates this taking the National Spanish Exam for the preparation. “I find the test challenging, first time, said, “If I do well, good and I’ll but I’ve always been glad that I’ve taken put it up for college. If I don’t do well, I it,” Kirmani said. “The test definitely won’t care too much.”

IN

Between the months of January and March, Staples German, French, Italian and Spanish students are invited to take their respective National Language Exam; an annual, multi-level online test taken by high school students throughout the nation.

While most of the language classes have only just recently begun to discuss the upcoming tests, students in the German classes participated in their corresponding level (I-IV) of the National German Exam on Jan. 22 and Jan. 23.

Josephine Freeman ’16, though new to taking the test, discovered it to be fairly easy and simply formatted.

“I generally didn’t mind [it],” Freeman said.

According to Freeman, through The American Association of Teachers of German website, she was able to take helpful practice tests that thoroughly prepared her.

Likewise, those taking the National Spanish Exam, held March 23 – 27, appear not to be daunted by the test.

“I usually don’t do much to prepare for it,” Shelby Cataldo ’15, who has taken the exam the past two years, said. “I might look up the vocab and grammar subjects the test covers a few days beforehand, but I don’t do anything intensive.”

While there are practice tests available online and class notes to look over, most of the material found on the language exams is also already integrated into the Staples

curriculum.

According to Latin teacher Perry Tavenner, the National Latin Exam simply lends itself to information taught in a Latin class. Tavenner says the easiest way to ensure his students are well prepared for the exam is to follow the National Latin Exam Syllabus. “I make sure most of everything on there is in tune with our

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Jenny Lupoff ’15

April Break April 13-18

This year, April break will not fall over the Easter holiday, resulting in an extra long weekend with no school on Friday, April 3, for Good Friday.

The following week, school will also be out of session. Almost immediately after break, AP classes will start to hold finals before AP tests begin.

For continual updates, check www.inklingsnews.com Scan the QR code below to access our website

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Inklings

March 9, 2015 | News

Proposed budget for 2015-16 school debated by BOE and Landon BOE’s Budget

Superintendent’s Budget

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Anders Hovstadius ’17 & Rebecca Rawiszer ’17

uring the February Board of Education meeting, a budget increase was proposed by Superintendent Elliott Landon. The majority of the budget increase goes into two categories: literacy coaches and school security. Literacy coaches are professionals who work directly with teachers in their professional development rather than with students. This will primarily be in the elementary schools.

Landon presented an initial 3.75 percent or $4,091,509 increase from this year’s budget. However, at the end of the meeting, the board trimmed the budget down to $111,500,000, only a 2.08 percent increase from last year.

“Just like top athletes have coaches to help them improve their game, teachers need coaches to help them continually improve their practice,” Julie Droller, Director of Elementary Education said about the new posiition.

Literacy coaches work in professional Salaries (64%) development, where a coach can model a teaching strategy or method or debrief Benefits (16%) and follow-up with the teacher. Coaches can also co-teach and provide guidance Purchased Services (1%) and feedback. It is meant to be a model of professional development that transforms Property Services (6%) a teacher’s practice.

The other half of the budget deals with Other Purchased Services (8%) one of the largest hurdles schools face: school security. Despite past efforts to Supplies (2%) increase and improve the security within Equipment (1%) the district, school security has still been a concern for many schools across the state.

Other (<1%) “I have included in my proposed 2015-16 school budget a major effort to

expand our security needs consistent with the Kroll security report, specifically the addition of a dedicated security person in each school that does not already have one on staff,” Landon stated in his letter to the BOE. While Staples already has a security person at the front desk, other schools that do not should expect to receive one.

The new budget will include several changes to Staples, primarily for educational purposes. New classes that will be offered next year as a result include AP Computer Science Principles, Animal Behavior, Zoology and Lifeguarding.

Ryan Angerthal ’16 thinks “it is very exciting that Staples is branching out with the courses they offer.” Having experiences as a lifeguard, Angerthal was intrigued by the new lifeguarding course Staples will be providing next year. “I think the lifeguarding class is pretty cool for the people who lifeguard so they won’t be rusty when summer rolls around.”

Additionally, Kindergarteners will receive 30 more minutes of music class each week.

“I’m excited about the new Kindergarten music initiative,” Michael Gordon, Chairman of the BOE, said.

“Music in early childhood helps enormously with a child’s cognitive development.”

Despite, the fact that the initial budget has been reduced, Droller has hopes that “Westport will be able to meet individual needs of diverse learners, making sure that every student meets the Common Core Standards and helping students develop the habits of mind and dispositions to be successful and productive citizens and lifelong learners.”

Salaries (65%) Benefits (16%) Purchased Services (1%) Property Services (5%) Other Purchased Services (8%) Supplies (2%) Equipment (1%) Other (<1%)

World Briefs Brendan Massoud ’17

Staple s

INFOGRAPHIC BY BAILEY ETHIER ’15

gh Schoo l Hi

Russia Boris Nemtsov, a Russian political opposition leader, was shot and killed on Saturday, Feb. 28 in Moscow, Russia.

The assassination led to a demonstration of upwards of 70,000 people in central Moscow on Feb. 29 in support of Nemtsov.

Protesters were heard yelling the phrase “I am not afraid.”

Nemtsov served as deputy prime minister under former President Boris Yeltsin, and became one of current President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken criticizers over the past few years.

According to Nemstov’s associate, Nemstov had planned to keep reporting the fighting going on in Eastern Ukraine, which would have contradicted the government’s claims of a current ceasefire between the two nations.

Outrage among the Russian population continues; as Putin denied any involvement in the shooting.

ISIS On Monday, March 2, the Iraqi government launched a 30,000-troopsmilitary attack on the city of Tikrit in an attempt to retake the city and gain ground on ISIS. ISIS had executed 1,700 Iraqi soldiers in their takeover of the city last June, so a victory in Tikrit meant more than just military strategy.

The United States has not provided any support to the government in their efforts to re-establish a presence in Tikrit.

Furthermore, the Egyptian President Adbel Fatteh el-Sisi stated on Feb. 23 that there was a need for a unified Arab force against ISIS. This was largely in response to the killings of 21 Egyptian Christians in

Libya on Feb. 16.

“Strategically and politically for the region, this is a big deal, and it’s absolutely the right first step,” CNN military analyst James Marks said about the potential for an Arab coalition.

Boko Haram

On Feb. 21, militants from Boko Haram attacked a village in Southeast Niger. The assault was met by the Nigerien army, and left 21 people dead.

Recently, Boko Haram began expanding its region of influence from Northern Nigeria into the neighboring countries of Chad and Niger. Efforts by both the Chadian and Nigerian armies have been effective in securing their borders.

Boko Haram is a radical-Islamic terrorist group originating in Northern Nigeria. The name “Boko Haram” literally translates to “Western education is forbidden.” The group started in 2002 in response to British influence in Nigeria and since 2009 it has attempted to establish an Islamic state.

In 2013 President Barack Obama deemed Boko Haram a terrorist organization, but the United States has not yet taken any military action against it. The Nigerian government, however, is currently trying to wipe out the group as it continues to garner support throughout the northern part of the nation.

Inklings

March 9, 2015 | News

College preparation process begins earlier than expected

Claudia Chen ’16 ou’re it,” “ready or not, here I come” and the occasional “eww” are typical words and phrases uttered on any elementary school’s playground. However, it would not be surprising to also hear “college” among the swings and slides of districts across the country that are now introducing children to the word as early as the first grade.

According to The New York Times, in districts such as Harnett County, North Carolina; Westchester County, New York; and Santa Cruz County, California, elementary school students fill out mock college applications, pick specific colleges they hope to attend, sequence the steps to get into college with worksheets and tour college campuses on field trips.

However, when asked how Westport elementary schools were following the trend to teach kids about colleges, Julie Droller, Director of Elementary Education, had a simple response: “We’re not.”

Although the Common Core standards, adopted by Connecticut in 2010, state a

“Y

goal of preparing students to be “college- and career-ready,” Droller noted that this is an ultimate goal that is reached by following an educational trajectory.

“Of course we expect that children will go to college, but there’s a lot that has to happen before they even think about that,” Droller said. “We teach the foundation. We teach them how to learn. We teach them how to persevere. We teach them how to be successful individuals and happy individuals. All that doesn’t come in high school – it starts in Kindergarten.”

According to Droller, Westport elementary schools utilize the concept of zone proximal development, a type of learning that teaches kids based on what is immediately beyond their reach.

College is a concept too far beyond this reach, Christine Kurpiel, Coleytown Elementary School PTA Co-President, said.

“Most children of this age cannot grasp the idea of college,” Kurpiel said. “I think youth should be a time of play and exploration.”

Stacey Henske, Kings

Highway Elementary PTA CoPresident, echoed a similar sentiment, saying that the introduction of college so early seems like “robbing children of childhood.”

Amy Glazer, Long Lots Elementary School Psychologist, explained that discussing college so early on may also cause kids to fear that getting a bad test score in elementary school could prevent them from getting into

college later on, in turn creating anxiety.

“A focus on college may cause undue stress for children and detract from their natural inquisitiveness about school and the learning process,” Glazer said. “They may become focused on an end goal, such as getting into a certain school.”

Principal John Dodig spoke of how this stress can be magnified by the environment

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that Americans [spent] about $365 million less per day on gasoline compared to [that] time last year.”

The reason for the drop in price a few months ago cannot easily be explained. However, author Clifford Krauss of the The New York Times article “Oil Prices: What’s behind the drop?” said it boils down to supply and demand.

“United States domestic production has nearly doubled over the last six years, pushing out oil imports that need to find another home,” Krauss wrote.

Countries that heavily relied on exporting oil to the the United States for money, like Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Algeria, suddenly had to compete to sell their oil in the Asian markets; this forced producers to lower the cost of oil. Krauss also noted in his article that the popularity of energy-efficient cars in Europe has also caused a decrease in demand for oil there.

Westporters, unlike citizens in oil-production-heavy countries, aren’t seeing the bad effects of this conflict.

“There are [no negatives] at all on our end,” Myers said, as he watched customers fill up their tanks through the window. “In

other countries,” his voice trailed off, referencing the issues Krauss mentioned. Myers added that he’s been actively reading about this international conflict.

In the news, Saudi Arabia has stolen a lot of the spotlight for having a stable economy, despite the oil disaster. This country is one of the many that exports oil as a primary source of income.

Prior to the decrease in demand for oil, Saudi Arabia had $800 billion tucked away in reserve, according to Krauss.

While countries like Nigeria, Algeria, Russia and Venezuela are facing economic difficulties, Saudi Arabia is still producing as much oil as they normally would.

These poorer countries want the Saudis to scale back production.

This would allow prices to increase again; however, Saudis argue this action would only please the countries suffering; there’s no personal benefit.

The decline in prices did reverse to a steady incline in February, though, without the Saudis changing their minds.

This increase is not unusual from any other year, however.

According to WRCB TV, a NBC affiliate in Tennessee, “Gas prices normally rise between 30 [to] 50 cents during the spring, as refineries conduct seasonal maintenance.” This procedure,

enforced by the environmental protection agency, is done twice a year to switch from winter-blend to summer-blend fuel.

Luckily for Americans, gas prices are expected to still stay relatively low compared to recent years.

According to the AAA website, “AAA does not expect the national average price of gas to rise above $3 per gallon in 2015.”

Many adults, familiar with the typical spike in gas prices this time of the year, saw the increase coming.

Math teacher Stacey Delmhorst didn’t get her hopes up when she saw the low prices, knowing they’d go up again sometime soon. While discussing post-college budgets with her personal finance students, she warned them not to shorten that budget line item, confident the prices wouldn’t stay that low.

Practicing what she preached, Delmhorst didn’t adjust her own budget.

“They will eventually go back up, so I am leaving my budget as is in anticipation of that,” Delmhorst said.

Porio also knew the glory days of low prices couldn’t last forever.

“I was just enjoying it while it lasted,” Porio added.

that Westport students are in.

“I know enough about Westport to know that education is very important to parents,” he said. “Talking about college to elementary school students sounds like starting the stress rather early.”

However, Henske noted that the reverse could also be true: if the concept of college was introduced in a fun way, it could be well received by kids, making the process less stressful in the future.

“It would be great for the elementary schools to introduce kids to the concept of college [...] and some of the skills that will be needed to successfully navigate the college application process,” Henske said. She said that she feels lessons like these would be beneficial if they were done in the fifth grade.

Droller said that if she were to incorporate the future into elementary school curriculums, she would focus on having kids imagine possibilities for their futures and teaching kids that the way to get there is through hard work and school, rather than teaching the students specifically about college.

Administration debates class leveling system Andrea Frost ’15

Westport gas prices continue to drop

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Core classes at Staples High School are offered at various levels to appeal to the learning needs of all students. However, while physics has five different class levels — honors, A, B, AP physics B and AP Physics C — most Staples High School electives listed in the course catalog can only be taken as A level courses.

Recently, Michael Lazaroff, a science teacher at Staples, proposed an honors level anatomy class to the Collaborative Team.

He proposed to base the course on the Anatomy A class, which is a full year elective in the science department. However, the description of the honorslevel anatomy course stated more

“If students are interested in a subject matter they should be able to delve deeper into it.”

-Kim Herzog

opportunities for independence and discovery.

“An honors level of the course would involve exploring things in more detail and more self sufficiency,” Lazaroff said.

“Students would get a question at the start of class and, based on what they had done before and what we had done in class, they would have tried to build their own solution.”

However, according to Collaborative Team member Brian Tippy, after extensive discussion, the Collaborative Team did not approve Anatomy Honors for the upcoming year.

Nevertheless, Lazaroff said he will not give up on the proposal of this new class in the future if students continue to show interest in upcoming years.

Anatomy is not the only course with a lack of level

options. In fact, Myth and Bible, a class in the English department, is one of the few electives offered as both an A and honors level.

Emma Boland ’15, now enrolled in Myth and Bible honors, likes the class and the leveling options because she feels it bridges the gap between A level electives and AP classes seniors can take to receive their English credit in their final year of high school.

“I tried AP Literature for two days, but I thought it seemed like too much coming from English A,” Boland said. “I wanted to challenge myself in English, and Myth and Bible Honors seemed like a good in between” However, if a student wished to know more about the differences between the levels of Myth and Bible, the Staples High School course catalog would not offer much assistance, since the descriptions listed are very similar. In both classes, students are said to “enjoy written critical analysis” and should be interested in investigating “man’s expression of his beliefs.” The only main difference stated in the course catalogue is Honors Myth and Bible is a full year course offered to only seniors while the A-level Myth and Bible course is a half year class open to all upperclassman.

English teacher Kim Herzog teaches Gender Studies, another elective in the English department, and has been approached by numerous students asking for an honors level, full year version of the course as they are interested in learning more about the subject.

“There should be more opportunity [for leveling] because if students are interested in a subject matter they should be able to delve deep into it,” Herzog said.

The Collaborative Team will continue dealing with issues of leveling across all departments at Staples, working to accommodate the learning desires of all students.

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Inklings

November 10, 2014 |Advertisement

Opinions

March 9, 2015

7

GRAPHIC BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

Open the discussion about opening the bottle

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ust because we’re teenagers, it doesn’t mean we’re unintelligent. But still, we’re just teenagers.

Many are smart enough to hand over their car keys before drinking but still irresponsible enough to drink excessively in the first place.

Inklings EDITORIAL

Teenagers are clever, even in the ways they buy

Inklings

fake IDs – sneakily, stealthily, illegally. But even so, they are irresponsible by the very fact that they are buying a fake ID. This paradox – this omnipresent confusion over what is responsible and what is not and what teenagers should think or do about drinking and what parents should think or do about drinking – is a problem that’s seen all the time yet rarely discussed.

There is often obvious deceit in the act of teenage drinking – from sneaking alcohol into basements

through garages to potentially committing identity fraud with fake IDs. This deception is inevitable because underage drinking isn’t an open discussion.

Some parents tell their kids that they’re not allowed to drink and then close the discussion at that.

So what happens if or when kids do drink? They don’t know how to do so responsibly, and they don’t have the option of asking their parents for advice.

At the same time, if parents allow teenagers to drink underage, teens also don’t learn how to do so responsibly.

That may stop kids from going behind their parents’ backs but only because that rids kids of a back to go behind.

We’re not saying we have the answer to this problem, this confusion due to a lack of honest conversations between parents and kids about drinking.

But maybe opening up discussion will close out confusion.

Have an opinion?

Editors-in-Chief Zoe Brown Bailey Ethier

News Editors Greta Bjornson Sophia Hampton Quinn Hughes Megan Root

Web News Editors Kaila Finn Daniela Karpenos

Advisors Mary Elizabeth Fulco Rebecca Marsick Cody Thomas

Crown Finalist for Inklingsnews.com from Columbia Scholastic Press Association 2015

Managing Editors Alexandra Benjamin Caroline Cohen

Silver Crown Award for Newspaper Columbia Scholastic Press Association 2014

Web Managing Editors Nicole DeBlasi Cadence Neenan

Pacemaker from National Scholastic Press Association 2013

Breaking News Managing Editors Andrea Frost Taylor Harrington

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.

Directors of Social Media Mat Jacowleff Larissa Lieberson Associate Managing Editors Gabrielle Feinsmith Claire Lewin Creative Directors Katie Settos Graphics Editor Olivia Crosby Photo Coordinator Justine Seligson

Opinions Editors Emma Berry Cooper Boardman Emma Lederer Izzy Ullmann Features Editors Claudia Chen Jackie Cope Jane Levy Margaux MacColl A&E Editors Jessica Gross Sarah Sommer Renee Weisz Emily Wolfe Sports Editors Claire Dinshaw Dylan Donahue Adam Kaplan Fritz Schemel

Web Opinions Editors Julie Bender Michael Mathis Web Features Editors Jane Schutte Rachel Treisman Web A&E Editors Zach McCarthy Blake Rubin Web Sports Editors Talia Hendel Jimmy Ray Stagg Web Multimedia Editor Adam Kaufman Business Manager Kacey Hertan Assistant Business Managers Chase Gornbein Jacquelyn Sussman

Write to us!

Inklingsweb@ gmail.com

70 North Ave. Westport, CT 06880 Phone: (203) 341–1994 Inklingsweb@gmail.com Decisions of Inklings and Westport Public Schools 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.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

8

March 9, 2015

Staples faculty member expresses concern over community college stereotypes

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ear Inklings: I write in response to the Feb. 13 article and editorial on our school’s attitude towards community college.

According to the editorial, Inklings’ goal was to reveal that Staples students make assumptions about community colleges that are incorrect or unfair. If so, this was a laudable goal.

But in an effort to reveal the unvarnished opinions of the Staples High School community, the front page article included several anonymous statements that were unnecessarily cruel in their attitude, content and form of address towards students who attend community colleges.

We ought to consider that many Staples students are planning to attend Community College. This group of students is larger than we might think— guidance counselors tell me

Norwalk Community College is always in the top ten most common destinations for Staples graduates. I am sure the reasons for our graduates to attend N.C.C. vary from a choice of career, economic needs, academic struggles, indecision about the future or a lack of readiness to attend a four-year school.

No student who fits the descriptions above is worthy of scorn or derision. These students have the same rights as any other student in the building.

That includes a right to social and emotional security. The anonymous quotes printed in the article (above the fold, on the front page, by the way) were a direct assault on this right for all of our student body planning to head to community college.

They did not deserve that, and the paper should not have used its power to amplify such harmful statements.

I wanted to write on this point because I feel that many of our students who consider community college may already feel ostracized in this building.

In a school where four-year college is considered a birthright, it is tough to say you are taking another route. Just think about how many Michigan, Indiana or Wisconsin sweatshirts you see in this Connecticut school.

How many Norwalk Community College hoodies do you see?

This, despite it being a much more popular destination than is popularly thought. Consider other reasons: you also might not want to advertise that you can’t afford a four-year school immediately, are not ready for college yet or sure, have a low GPA. But just because those who want to head to community college are quiet about it does not mean that they are not excited, proud or hopeful about the

Birthday posts generate anxiety for Facebook users Alison Morrison ’15 When doing the rounds of my social media websites, it’s hard to avoid the pesky notifications from Facebook indicating that your campfriend’s-friend-you-met-once-yetstill-friended’s birthday is today.

This starts the age-old conundrum of how to phrase your “happy birthday” post. Do you capitalize anything? Do you include the person’s name? The options are endless, and I’m left at 11:50 p.m. on your birthday biting my nails, hoping I picked the right option for our relationship.

Here’s a breakdown of some of your

options: The all-lowercase “happy birthday” with no name.

This type of post is definitely the least amount of effort. Typically used when a mutual friend that you friended pops up in your notifications, this option provides that casual go-to post for people you don’t quite know in person.

The capitalized “Happy Birthday *insert name here*!!”

Always a classic option.

Used to achieve that “tryingnot-to-try” look, this is my go-to post. Short and sweet, it lets the person know that you notice the little things and that you took the time to craft a birthday post for their wall.

The number of exclamation points is up to you. Choosing one versus two doesn’t really show that much more

commitment, but adding 10,000 takes extra time and can show the person how much you care.

Lastly, the all capitalized “HAPPY BIRTHDAY OMG” with hearts and emojis – the whole shebang.

Just shy of the posts littered with pictures of the two of you from the first day you met until now, this post is almost as enthusiastic as it gets. Usually, this option is used when you are in a bit of a rush and want to show your enthusiasm without dredging up the family childhood photo albums.

Now, these aren’t even close to all of the options out there. From no capitals and no exclamation points to a multimedia extravaganza worthy of an award, your options are pretty much endless.

More often than not, however, I end up telling myself that I’ll post on someone’s wall when I get home from school and

promptly forget about it. So if I haven’t posted on your wall, I apologize.

When picking your posting poison, consider what you’re comfortable with, what you think the person would like most and how much time you have to craft the masterpiece everyone deserves. I’ll be hoping I get home and remind myself in time to post anything before midnight rolls around and it’s not your birthday anymore.

GRAPHIC BY EMMA BERRY ’15 AND COOPER BOARDMAN ’17

experience. These students have dreams the same as any other- we should not provide a microphone to voices that would mock their dreams.

In the real world, the right to free speech includes the right to offend. This is not the real world. In here, you have a right to social and emotional security because we run under the theory that if students feel secure, they will be better able to think, focus and develop their skills. In effect, we try (and are not always successful) to stop you from saying horrible things to one another so that your minds can do something better than worrythey can learn. We also do it because people who are afraid tend to silence themselves. We want all students, not just those going to four year schools to have the chance to express themselves.

I applaud the paper for being a forum for debate and controversy.

But if the paper seeks to do this, it should be a productive dialogue. The anonymous quotes that began this article were not thought-out opinions, they were insults plain and simple. Do we expect any community-collegebound students to respond with anything beyond anger?

Insults do not lead to productive discussions. You have your entire adult lives to listen to insults and close-mindedness.

Here, we do not have to give voice to insults- here we can do something better: open up real, respectful, and high-quality debate.

-D. Heaphy Inklings acknowledges that these anonymous quotes were insulting, but we stand by our decision to include them to depict the cruel stigma some students have surrounding community college.

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Inklings

March 9, 2015 | Opinions

ISIS manifesto on women’s rights sparks outrage Rock school Rachel Treisman ’15

Feb.3, 2014

Al Queda cuts all relations with ISIS after months of fighting.

Aug. 19, 2014

U.S. journalist James Foley, missing since 2012, is decapitated by ISIS.

Sep. 2, 2014

A video showing the beheading of U.S. journalist Steven Sotloff is released.

The executioner shows large similarities to Foley’s killer.

Sep. 23, 2014

Unites States carries out air strikes against ISIS, mainly concentrated in northern Syria.

June 9, 2014

ISIS military overruns Mosul, Iraq and frees up to 1,000 prisoners.

I

f I lived in a territory controlled by ISIS, I would be married by now.

Let me back up.

At the end of January, the all-female Al-Khanssaa Brigade began circulating a document called “Women in the Islamic State: Manifesto and Case Study.”

It was translated into English by the counter-extremism think tank The Quilliam Foundation,shortly thereafter.

The manifesto is Westernhating, equality-disregarding propaganda aimed at Muslim women. One of its suggestions is that girls be married as early as age 9, with most “pure” girls married by 16 or 17 years old.

I’m 17, and I don’t plan on getting married anytime soon.

The document also advocates for women staying in the house except for mandatory jihad, to study religion or to work as a doctor or teacher for females.

I don’t plan on doing that, either.

This completely exaggerated recruitment attempt distorts the

June 30, 2014

Pentagon says the U.S. will send 300 more troops to Iraq (total of 800).

reality of life under ISIS rule, glorifies the group’s practices and justifies their beliefs.

This group of women, and the mindset they represent, think so highly of a terrorist group that has killed hundreds of local people and brutally executed many Westerners in the name of Islam.

ISIS and its affiliates should be horrifying, not appealing, to people. But strangely, this document and other propaganda like it have been surprisingly successful. The week of Feb. 17, three teenage girls from the United Kingdom ran away from home, allegedly to Syria.

Sexism has never been acceptable, but it’s increasingly dangerous when it is promoted online and can so easily reach such vulnerable adolescents.

The circulation of this manifesto could be the beginning of a whole new era of brainwashing innocent young people into sympathizing with violent, ignorant terrorists, all via the Internet.

The fact that the manifesto was only released in Arabic is a clear sign that its intended

Jan. 24, 2015

Video of hostage Kenji Goto is released, demanding return of terror suspect. Goto is executed one week later.

GRAPHIC BY EMMA BERRY ’15 AND COOPER BOARDMAN ’17

audience is Muslim women only.

It was obviously not written for the Western eyes that it has reached.

In other words, even the authors of the document themselves knew we would take issue with it.

How can we not have a problem with the idea that a woman’s only value is in her “sedentariness, stillness and stability?”

While it might come as a surprise to this group, we’re in the 21st century. Women should be educated past secondary school, hold jobs outside of the home and be influential in their communities.

And woman should not live just to serve their husbands and reproduce, as the manifesto advocates.

It’s impossible to feel like the world is making any progress when there are people like this who not only believe in these outdated ideas but are working so hard to spread them to others.

ISIS isn’t just a terrorist threat. It’s a threat to the power and well-being of women across the Middle East.

Feb. 11, 2015

U.S. President, Barack Obama asks Congress to authorize military action against ISIS. INFORMATION FROM CNN

GRAPHIC BY OLIVIA CROSBY ’15

Popular colleges are not the only option Michael Mathis ’15 By junior year, most of us have established our personalities: the kid who does track year-round, the “Artist’s Club” Vice President, the “Barbeque Club” official disc jockey. We have settled into our interests. We are ready to take the next step in doing whatever it takes to accomplish that goal.

Yet, there is one thing a lot of us have in common. We all saw those cluttered Naviance graphs and tried to see where we fit in.

Just as typical as it is for a Staples student to wear their high-school logowear, it is just as common one of them has on a Michigan sweatshirt,

a Middlebury hat or a Tulane University T-shirt.

According to the 2014 Inklings Senior List, 15 students confirmed they were attending University of Michigan, more than any other college on the list. The second-highest was University of Connecticut with 12 students.

In full honesty, there’s a sense that maybe it is time to go somewhere different.

Going to a college with a lot of people from high school can be a problem in itself. Maybe we want to be an artsy kid. Maybe we want to be the guy who cooks.

Or maybe we don’t want to be “David” anymore- just “Dave.”

Let me give you an example.

By the summer of seventh grade, I had never been to sleepaway camp. My friend had told me about the one he had gone out to in upstate New York every summer. Next week, I told my friend that I visited and was thinking of going there.

He gave me a look that still haunts me to this day.

We still remain close friends, but the point is, everyone needs to reinvent themselves at some point.

Now, this is not an attack on Staples students attending the same college. But there is an interesting phenomenon that goes along with it.

I still remember those days in Junior year, compulsively

checking the Tulane University Naviance graph in both frees and classes alike, forgetting the fact that my red circle doesn’t change day-to-day.

I didn’t even end up applying to Tulane.

I understand there’s an excitation in the air. The idea of going off to school, becoming the person you’ve always wanted to, but try and pace yourself, juniors.

Not to sound like a self-help book, but think about you. It’s your Naviance login. It’s your application. It’s your life.

Make the college process yours.

And if Vanderbilt has the program you want, go for it. But don’t do it for the navy sweatshirt.

logowear properly

Eliza Goldberg ’17 It’s hard to rock school logo wear and not cross the line from classy to too casual or from appearing studious into too pretentious.

There are many different ways to show your school spirit on the daily.

Common representation ranges from T-shirts to even water bottles.

But the art of “properly” sporting logo wear is a delicate and complex fashion full of many unwritten rules.

Rule number one: wearing college logo wear before you’ve applied or have been accepted to college is tricky.

Regardless of what school is represented on your hat, it’s hard to elude questions asking if you plan on attending the school.

Rule number two: don’t wear logo wear every day.

I don’t know one person who is more comfortable in jeans than sweatpants, but that doesn’t mean sweatpants should be worn to school Monday through Friday.

Pulling the Yale sweats out of your closet should be an action that only occurs during special occasions or exams.

Unless it is Spirit Week or during the months when students receive their college acceptances, toting more than one article of logo wear per outfit falls dangerously close

You want to appear classy, casual and spirited, not sloppy and braggy. to overrepresentation.

You want to appear classy, casual and spirited, not sloppy and braggy.

Rule number three: don’t have all your outfits include school logo wear.

It’s nice to pull out your Staples sweatshirt every once in a while, but everyday is too much Wrecker-wear to handle.

Rule number four: space out your logowear days.

If you’re really into logowear, the best way to integrate logo wear frequently but not oppressively is through variation.

Plan it out. Monday, wear the hat. Tuesday, sport the T-shirt. Wednesday, take a break from wearing logo wear.

Reserve your sweatshirt for Fridays.

Mix up the schools represented, and change your lineup each week.

We all have spirit, some more than others, but there’s a right way to represent that cheer in your daily outfits and a wrong way.

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Inklings

March 9, 2015 | Opinions

Bracket busters leave “experts” puzzled

P

Bailey Ethier ’15

oint guard George Washington was the captain of a USA squad that featured Ben Franklin at the other guard, John Hancock at small forward, Thomas Jefferson at power forward and Paul Revere at center. And Washington’s team shocked the world back in 1776 when they upset the Redcoats’ squad. Even Vegas had the United States’ odds of winning the Revolution at 1,000-1.

Since basketball didn’t exist during George Washington’s lifetime, that was clearly a metaphor to show that the United States is a nation built on underdogs who pull off upsets.

And what’s a better showcase of upset-pulling underdogs than March Madness?

Whether it was George Mason in 2006, Butler in 2010 and 2011 or VCU in 2011, you were in shock when your bracket was busted, just like King George III was in shock upon hearing he lost his beloved 13 colonies.

March Madness is amazing because of its unpredictability.

It’s better to not know anything about college hoops when filling out a bracket than to be an expert.

There aren’t too many other fields where this is true.

Knowing which team is the best in the country at forcing turnovers or which university is home to the team with the highest free throw percentage leads you to second guess yourself when filling out your bracket.

The owner of the best March Madness bracket is never an analyst on ESPN, CBS or Tru TV (also known as the channel you watch once a year for March Madness and never watch again).

The owner of the best bracket is either: A.) a third grade math teacher in Idaho who has no idea where Coach Krzyzewski coaches, not to mention how to pronounce or spell his last name; B) a crazy cat lady in West Virginia who couldn’t tell you where Gonzaga or Villanova are located; or C) a librarian in Iowa with a Ph.D in 16th century farming techniques,who thinks LeBron James and Michael Jordan are playing in the tournament.

And yet the lack of knowledge among those three is still never enough to overcome the one-in-almost-4,300,000,000 odds of getting a perfect bracket.

Predicting March Madness, while pointless because your bracket will be awful, is fun because you never know what’s going to happen next.

GRAPHIC BY COOPER BOARDMAN ’17

PHOTO VIA WIKIPEDIA UNDER THE CREATIVE COMMONS LICENSE

Choosing classes is a game of chance

Students ponder the purpose of PPSATs

Julie Bender ’15 GRAPHIC BY GRACE FOLEY ’18

There’s only one reading assignment that I’ve gotten in all of high school that I’ve actually been excited to start, and I can tell you with absolute certainty that it wasn’t chapter one of my Biology textbook.

When course catalogues are passed out, it immediately sparks both the excitement of having countless opportunities and the stressful uncertainty of not knowing what each class will hold.

There are many factors that determine how enjoyable a class will be, and there’s no real way to tell from only reading the short blurb that is given under each course title.

When many students arrange their schedules, they do so with the mindset of trying to have the lightest workload possible while still appealing to colleges. With this being the priority, students often turn to their friends to figure out which higher level classes will require the least amount of effort while still allowing them to succeed.

The challenge is that every student has a different idea of what is easy and what is difficult.

When deciding what classes to take next year, you shouldn’t necessarily trust the kid who happens to be a double legacy to Stanford and is a shoe-in to get accepted to Princeton. And even if the person you’re asking is of the same intelligence level as you, there are still several other factors that can change the level of difficulty.

The teacher you get has a huge effect on almost every aspect of the class that you take. In fact, some students will do just about anything to switch around their schedules to get the teachers they want, even when the guidance department tries to avoid this.

Not only can the teacher make a better learning environment, but the work load, test difficulty and extra credit opportunities can all change based on this one variable.

The course curriculum can also change from year to year, throwing a curveball that no one expects. The class that is considered the “easiest AP” one year can quickly flip to being one of the hardest without any warning.

The best way to ensure that your classes won’t be completely dreadful is to choose a subject that you’re interested in. If you value the information that you’re learning, sometimes the best classes can be the ones that challenge you.

Alix Sommers ’16 As sophomores are thinking about signing up for the upcoming PPSAT or PSAT simulation on March 7, all that comes to mind is how overwhelmingly early it is to be thinking about taking a test for college in your sophomore year.

The purpose of the PPSAT, as described by Westport Continuing Education, is to “take a timed practice PSAT under realistic conditions [and] learn about your strengths and weaknesses on this important test.”

The scores that you receive on this test can help you decide whether taking the SAT or ACT is right for you.

However, taking the PPSAT is a hindrance to school by causing unneeded stress, especially when you’re just settling into your high school career. As a junior, I was one of the few in my grade who chose not to take the PPSAT sophomore year, yet I was still able to prepare for and select the right standardized test for me.

As time goes on, more schools are questioning and deemphasizing the importance of standardized tests. According to fairtest.org, more than 160 schools are now test optional.

Taking the PPSAT is starting to seem unnecessary.

There’s already enough anxiety around the college process.

Starting sophomore year would lengthen that experience, which

would ultimately make it more dreadful.

The time to focus on standardized testing is during the beginning of junior year when the PSAT is offered. According to collegeboard.org, the PSAT helps students become college ready. Since it’s a preparation for the SAT, it’s nonsensical to prepare for the preparation.

The high school years are high growth years. Teenagers are not only physically changing, interests and social skills are developing.

Sophomore year isn’t the year to determine what standardized test is best. It is the time to mature in your role as a high schooler.

Pursuing challenging courses, clubs, sports and activities is a better use of time.

The stress, the cost and the distraction from high school classes and activities comes at a high price, and it doesn’t need to be that way. You can successfully find the right standardized test without taking the PPSAT.

GRAPHIC BY SALLY PARK ’15

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March 9, 2015

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Students are jonesing for

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There are some things that are categorized as being “so American,” such as being overweight, worshipping Beyonce and having an affi nity for Netflix. Then there are the things that are “so New England,” such as having a winter home in either Florida or Vermont and spending the summer at camp, which senior and retired “Peaker,” Jennie Blumenfeld ’15 defi nes as being a “religious experience.” And then there are those mannerisms, sayings, clothes and actions that one would only fi nd gracing the halls of Staples.

It cannot be denied that the students at Staples have a very unique way of communicating with one another.

Words that are tossed around at a rate as frequently as Amber puts together a panini include “violent,” “savage,” “unheard of,” and “absurd,” among others.

“When I fi rst started school here, I had no clue what people were talking about when they said things like ‘violent’ and ‘savage,’” Maggie Fair ’15 said.

“But now I use them on a regular basis.”

Staples has become not only a place of learning and creativity but also a place of redefi ning oneself and with that,

redefi ning every day words to have a completely new meaning.

And this habit follows students, even after their time at Staples is complete.

“One of the biggest transitions in college is easily the fact that nobody has a clue what I’m talking about when I call someone ‘violent,’ so I’ve defi nitely toned back on that,” Jack Massie ’14 said. “They just don’t get it.”

Staples can also be defi ned by it’s unfailing ability to not only redefi ne but overdo.

Whether it be the three geotags on snapchat, the over/under 500 Jeeps that are lined up sideby-side in the parking lot every morning or the abundance of Brandy Melville in every girl’s wardrobe, the saying “less is more,” simply does not apply.

More is more here, especially when it comes to sunset Instagrams that consistently garner over 100 likes.

With a socially liberal and a fiscally conservative belief system, a slick new iPhone without a case (to show you’re classy but still a risk taker), a subscription to Vineyard Vines emails and a good follower-tofollowing ratio on Instagram and Twitter, it’s hard to miss a Staples student when you see one or stalk them over social media.

GRAPHIC BY JACKIE COPE ’15

Jenna McNicholas ’15

love, fun.”

It seems as though Jones practices what he preaches – in between all of the chemistry and physics, he fi nds moments of simple pleasure: rushing through his lunch to play the piano in the choir room and playing “Horsey” on the living room floor with his two daughters.

Even more, his students have learned that they are what matter to him.

“I would say that Mr. Jones is such an amazing teacher because of his ability to teach in a way that really connects with teenagers,” Isabel Perry ’15 said. “He’s a teacher who loves learning and wants his students to love learning as well – a really good combination.”

Brynly Marsh ’16 agrees. “Although his

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the sandwich as a prank,” three-time Jones student Claire Sampson ’15 said.

“But I’m pretty sure there was more to the story, probably involving something explosive.”

While some might consider that kind of combustion a bit of an overreaction, it seems like this kind of quirkiness is a cornerstone of Jones’ personality.

He collects watches, has a knack for analogizing science to life, is a quantifiable expert with crosswords and Scrabble and has a plethora of stories to share with his students (though only periodically).

Yet the quality that seems to most defi ne Jones is that he helps his students to think like a proton and stay positive.

“Kids are too stressed out about grades and life, and I try to make them see what’s important in life, which is not grades,” Jones said. “It’s family, friends,

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Cadence Neenan ’15 t fi rst, William Jones might seem like an average science teacher, concerned merely with the subjects in which he specializes and his daily routine.

“I wake up early, before the sun rises. I rush to school because I’m excited to teach chemistry and physics,” Jones said.

“I stay at school all day teaching chemistry and physics, and I retire to my home at the end of the evening to think more about chemistry and physics.”

It sounds like a lot of science and not much else.

Yet, stir in anecdotes from adoring students and boil at high temperature to see that there is more below the meniscus.

“When [Jones] was working at another school before Staples, someone kept eating his sandwiches, so, in order to stop the culprit, he put a super spicy pepper in

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classes are tough, he pushes his students to strive for success and truly does care about what he’s teaching and who he’s teaching to,” Marsh said.

So when it comes to Jones, it seems that he has formed a bond with the students of Staples – an ionic bond, that is – as every student he comes in contact with seems quite taken with his unique approach to life.

“He wears the best bowties,” Sampson said.

“Also, you can’t forget that he is William Jones IV.”

Student school spirit remains rock steady Caroline Lane ’16 The definition of a Superfan, according to the Collins English Dictionary, is a very extremely devoted fan, but there is so much more to that spirit at Staples.

Staples Superfans scream until it’s no longer humanly possible, are decked out in blue and white until they’re beyond recognition and cheer on each and every fan no matter the sport, weather or season.

As Anna Daytz ’16 put it, to be a true Staples fan one must “support Staples in it’s various extracurricular activities.” That’s exactly what it is: to be the biggest fans of every part of Staples.

The fans of Staples can be found storming a volleyball court, jumping up and down at a football game or even cheering on the cheerleaders. No matter when or where, the Wrecker pride and love for their school shines through.

Kaela O’Kelly ’15 believes “when everyone gets hyped about the same thing, our school can create the best atmosphere.”

Through thick and thin, Staples students are spirited and there for each other, even through heavy

snow, as seen at the infamous Homecoming game of 2010. The stands remained full with students screaming their heads off for the boys in blue until the end of the game.

Isabel Gasway ’13 was amongst the crowd five years ago and remembers that game as a memorable one.

“It was really cool that everyone stayed to cheer on the team even if we were all freezing,” Gasway said.

“School spirit like that makes Staples really special.”

Even without hazardous weather conditions, many students revel in the feeling of standing in the sea of blue and white, jumping up and down, cheering on their classmates.

Clemmy Fowle ’16 is one of these students. She has attended the football games since her freshmen year and loves the rush of supporting her own school.

“It’s a really great feeling for the whole school to come together,” Fowle said. “There’s no feeling like it.”

Looking back to 30 years ago, Wrecker pride hasn’t changed one

bit.

In fact, Stacy Fowle ’85, Clemmy’s mom, knows it first hand.

Stacy was a varsity soccer player but continues to be a Wrecker through and through.

“I don’t remember there being nearly as much school spirit as there is now,” Fowle said.

“But we were proud to be from Staples.”

Even if there’s a drop in school spirit after spirit week, the pride that comes from being a Wrecker always shines through.

Haley Burns ’16 knows spirit first hand as a varsity cheerleader.

During spirit week the rest of the school feels the intense spirit of Staples’ that she feels on a regular basis.

“It’s the most spirited week of the year,” Burns said.“Because I mean you don’t see people dressing in crazy outfits the week before or after.”

Yet, at the core of all the spirit, what truly makes Staples stand apart, as Burns puts it, is that “We’re proud to come from Staples.”

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12

Inklings

GSA members find comfort in friendship T

Daniela Karpenos ’15 he Staples’ Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) chapter is one of thousands across the country.

GSA is a nationwide youth network that, according to the organization’s website, aims to provide a “safety net” for students who need or want to provide support for any struggling LGBTQIA (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex or Asexual) peers.

Staples students turn to the closeknit club for both comfort and mutual support.

“The club’s objective is to create a safe environment and community for LGBT+ individuals and straight allies,” Douglas Raigosa ’16, an active member since his freshman year, explained.

“I wanted to fi nd other students who could relate to what I was going through,” Raigosa said. “I was pretty open about my orientation, but most of the people around me didn’t understand.”

One peer who does understand Raigosa is Halley Jonas ’16, who joined GSA at the beginning of the school year.

Jonas describes that the club’s efforts are “to spread knowledge” and “preach acceptance and tolerance.”

At meetings every Thursday in the Mandarin room, members discuss a wide range of topics, from their personal lives to upcoming events to relevant LGBT+

issues in the media.

“We spend time talking about our lives and any problems members may be having, along with hanging out with our friends and awesome staff advisor, [world language teacher Chris Fray],” Jonas said.

This is Fray’s seventeenth year as the staff advisor. Throughout the years, Fray has witnessed the club’s considerable growth, especially taking notice of the role cultural shifts have played in the expansion process.

“In the early years, being of a different orientation was still stigmatized. Some parents even forbade students to come to meetings,” Fray recalled. “Since then, a lot of people have come out [and] I’ve noticed a new generation of students.”

Fray describes the meetings as “social” gatherings meant to bring students, often those who feel “alienated,” together. The provision of snacks and friendly chatting at the beginning of meetings contributes to the relaxed environment. “We’ve become a tight lot,” Fray reflects.

Turnout for meetings is, on average, 20 students.

“Usually it varies, but this year we’ve had a bigger crowd,” Raigosa said.

At this year’s Club Rush, GSA members took a different approach to recruitment.

“At Club Rush we used to always

give out candy, and all these people would sign up but not many would show up,” Fray explained. “This year, we didn’t give out candy. We just asked ‘Are you serious about this club?’ and the people that signed up were the ones who were serious and like-minded.”

Introduced to the club by his friends during Club Rush, Keanan Pucci ’16 is now an avid advocate of GSA. “I consider LGBTQA rights and awareness very important issues that I’m more than willing to actively support,” Pucci said.

Despite what the name may suggest, GSA encompasses a wide range of orientations.

“There are a lot of us that are straight members,” Raigosa said. “Most of us aren’t gay but another orientation. I’d say it would be about half and half.”

Interestingly enough, Fray has noticed that, nationwide, a sizable amount of students have been identifying as transgender, which he considers a “new development.” In Fray’s fi rst years teaching, it was not popular nor mainstream to identify one’s self as “trans.”

However, even with the more recognition of LGBT+ issues in the media and in schools, there is still more than can be done to educate and spread awareness.

An article in The Huffi ngton Post

March 9, 2015 | Features

PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE ‘16 & GRAPHICS BY JULIA SCHORR ’16

reports, “While the social climate of any school is complex enough, LGBT+ students have additional barriers to overcome.”

Despite considerable progress, many LGBT+ students continue to face misunderstanding, ignorance or lack of acceptance from their communities.

To spread awareness, GSA members participate in a number of events. Among the most popular, is Day of Silence and True Colors.

According to the official site, on the annually held National Day of Silence, students abstain from speaking in order to “call attention to the silencing effect of anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in schools.”

This year, the Day of Silence will be held on April 17. In honor of the movement, youth motivational speaker and Rwandan Genocide survivor Daniel Trust will be holding a lecture at the library, where he will recount his experiences with LGBT advocacy.

GSA members also attend True Colors, a convention held each year at the University of Connecticut. There, students attend workshops and seminars aimed towards empowering youth of all sexual orientations and gender identities.

“Our objective is to celebrate our differences rather than condemn them,” Jonas said.

Ways to hack into a stress-free life at Staples Izzy Ullmann ’17 As anxious freshmen pace through the seemingly endless halls of Staples High School, upperclassmen have settled in to find their personal tips and tricks that make their days much easier.

2.

3.

1.

Craving Cafeteria Hacks One of the most stressful times of the day is making it out of the crowded cafeteria alive, buzzing with students trying to snag a sandwich.

“My advice on the sandwich line is to go during the middle of the lunch wave. If you go in the beginning, you’re just wasting your time in the line,” Jessica Spector ’15 said.

Some students, such as Logan Horowitz ’17, have also figured out fi nancial tricks about their snacking. “The granola bars from the cafeteria are one dollar per bar, but in Stop & Shop its only, like, five dollars for 12 bars, so I always bring them from home,” Horowitz added, as he took a bite out of his Quaker chocolate-chip Chewy Bar.

Healthy hydration When making the trek from the Fieldhouse up to the third f loor, water bottles are a must. But where is the water coming from? On f irst thought, most would assume students snag water from the water fountains. But according to Riley Thr ush ’17, “The water in the water fountain is white. I saw it bubbling one time,” she said, cringing.

Thr ush then explained that she found her solution by f inding the water dispenser in the nurse’s off ice; she goes there multiple times a day to f ill her bottle.

Late on fleek Palms sweat and paces pick up in the halls as 7:29 a.m. strikes the clock. In order to avoid unexcused tardies, Robert Gordon ’16 said, “I usually try to get to school by 7:20, so that way I have enough time to be in class without being late.”

If it’s in the middle of the day, however, some students have more creative ideas for convincing teachers not to mark them late.

“Put your head under the water fountain for a minute and say you had swimming. It works every time,” Jerrett Rende ’17 said with a grin.

But for some students, they like to just take their time, and live their lives at ease. “My advice is to be late, stroll in like a straight boss,” Max Wimer ’15 said.

He advises to “be like, ‘What are you going to do about it?’”

4.

5.

Tackling tech tricks As many students know, Home Access Center is a great tool for checking in on grades or missing assignments. But did you know that there’s an app for that?

The creator of the HAC app, Dylan Diamond ’17, explained, “It’s a great way to quickly check your grades and also view your current academic and overall GPA,” he said.

In terms of WiFi connection in Staples, Diamond also explained that the network ‘Wps-All-Aboard’ is simply used for So there you have it. connecting to “wps-wlan,” and it is not supposed to actually connect students to the Internet.

According to upperclassmen, “I usually turn my WiFi off on my phone or just keep changing it to ‘wps-wlan’ because every time I open my phone, it changes these are tricks that truly can back to all-aboard,” Olivia Daytz ’16 said. make Staples a more relaxed Breaking backpack hardships environment. Whether you While some students lug around what feels like bricks piled in their bags, other students have figured out decide to use the water fountain ways to keep their bags light while still carrying all their supplies. trick in the nurses’ office or “I have never brought my Spanish textbook to school once,” Emily Eldh ’16 said. “I always use the online download the HAC app, these textbook. It’s ten times easier.” tips are guaranteed ways to make Other students, such as Jesse Levinson ’17, have learned to get rid of binders completely. “Folders are much your next four years more stress lighter and more manageable than binders,” he said.

-free.

March 9, 2015 | Features

13

Inklings

Inklings gets up close and rowdy with Human of Staples Timi Kolade

R

rowdy,’” Andriuk said.

Kolade calls Spikeball “one of the best games [he’s] ever played.” He’s that player who’s always clapping and moving around, even if nothing is happening during the game, he said.

“Whenever I score or my team scores I get very hyped and usually scream or shout very loud,” Kolade said.

Pranks and games aren’t the only interesting aspects of Kolade’s life.

For two years, during eighth and ninth grade, he lived and attended an American International school in Lagos, Nigeria, because his parents, both Nigerian, wanted him to experience the culture.

Kolade found similarities between himself and all his friends in Nigeria.

Together, they played basketball and video games, and Kolade still keeps in touch with some of them.

Along with keeping in touch with longdistance friends, humor is also important to Kolade. After rowdy, the second word he uses to describe himself is “funny.”

“If someone just says a regular sentence, I might laugh,” he said.

Andriuk finds Kolade’s habit of playing his favorite song, “Crystal Caverns 1991,” at all the right moments-another funny example of Kolade’s humor.

“He always plays it in funny moments.

Like, if [our friends are] all just hanging out and it gets quiet, he’ll just play this song and get up and start dancing,” Andriuk said.

Once, Kolade blasted the song at Qdoba, triggering some of his friends to

PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE ‘16

Zoe Brown ’15 owdy. That’s how Timi Kolade ’15 describes himself.

“I do some crazy things,” he said. “I really don’t know why I started to be rowdy, but I can definitely say it can put life [into] any mundane situation, and that’s why I like doing rowdy things,” he added.

Kolade’s boisterous personality is expressed through his willingness to do any “Odds Are” challenge. He would never turn down a dare.

One of the most memorable “Odds Are” dares that Kolade was given was to drink from the ketchup dispenser at Shake Shack for 20 seconds. And he did it.

Another of his best dares involved another restaurant, as well as an absence of clothing.

“We ran as fast as we could through the restaurant while most people there were silent, besides one worker who shouted at us,” Kolade said. “We made sure to have a car ready in the back if it was needed,” he added.

Besides doing risky dares with his friends in his free time, Kolade enjoys playing Spikeball.

Spikeball is a four-square-andvolleyball-type game, and Kolade and his friends have formed a league in which they play competitively.

Andriuk notices Kolade’s strong passion for everything he does, including his participation in Spikeball.

“He’s always the one who’s like, ‘Yo, let’s play Spikeball. Let’s go. Let’s get

laugh and others to tell him to turn it off.

“I could be feeling tired or sad, but hearing that song makes me energetic and feel like anything is possible,” he said.

While Kolade doesn’t have much planned for his future yet besides having a

family and being successful (having a job he likes and being able to afford luxuries for his family), he also doesn’t plan on losing his rowdiness and sense of humor.

“Maybe I’ll get mature or something. I don’t know,” he smirked. “Maybe.”

Fake IDs pose as the true identity crisis Amina Abdulkareem ’15

With a bass blaring loudly, multicolored lights flashing to the beat and vibrations from the rhythm of the music, it’s time to prematurely take a step forward in line towards the entrance of adulthood.

Tightly clutching onto a shiny piece of plastic in anticipation but still eager to undertake the glamorized festivities andcomplete access to booze and bars. With a full name, phone number, shipping address and a $150 transaction, it was possible to obtain the golden ticket of maturity.

Congratulations, you have officially turned from 16 to 21 overnight.

Fake IDs are a well known trend for Staples students and are used for more than buying alcohol.

An anonymous Staples alumni decided to purchase a fake ID during her freshman year of high school. She used a passport picture taken at CVS and purchased it with her brand new vanilla Visa gift card. She bought it from a China-based company, whose site claims to produce “high quality fake IDs at a reasonable price.”

“I got a fake ID not to buy alcohol in liquor stores but to go to bars and clubs,” the former student said. “SoNo is an extremely popular area for nightlife around here. The majority of my ID use is towards bars in SoNo and Fairfield, as well as at clubs and bars in New York City.”

She has had five fake IDs since freshman year to keep her age believable, as it would be unrealistic to be 25 by the time she graduated high school. However, she does admit that she doesn’t have to use it all the time since many local liquor stores don’t ask for identification.

Nicolaas Esposito ’15 does not have this problem, as he physically appears to be older than most teenagers and believes fake IDs are not necessary. “I think fakes are a waste of money because if you’re going somewhere that’s sketchy enough to accept a crappy fake, you probably wouldn’t need one at all,” Esposito said. “The only real reason I see for having a fake is if you want to go to a bar or club.”

According to a recent New York Times article, Bill Rivera, the chief of the

International Mail Branch at Kennedy International Airport, reported that the amount of fake IDs imported from China has swelled in recent years.

From October 2013 to September 2014, 4,585 Chinese-made counterfeit IDs were intercepted by students who were headed to

be sophisticated enough to fool scanning devices and law enforcement.

An anonymous junior at Staples claims his reasoning for purchasing a fake ID from China was for the practicality of making illicit activities much easier. As a result of mastering the techniques of encountering a

GRAPHIC BY JACKIE COPE ’15

college.

In hopes of decreasing the use of identity fraud, a local wines and spirits store utilizes a machine that scans IDs. However, with a new generation of fake IDs, many can

liquor store clerk, he has never gotten his ID confiscated or consequently punished.

“I think the thing with fake IDs is when they see young-looking people trying to make as little contact as possible, they

become suspicious,” the anonymous junior said. “So I’ve found just to be as friendly as possible” Another local liquor store clerk, who requested to remain anonymous, claims to have caught someone trying to purchase alcohol with a fake ID about four times a year.

“The kids are usually nervous or try to distract you with questions, the store clerk said. “Most of them look like they’ve never walked into a liquor store in their life.”

The store clerk noticed that during college breaks and from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. are the most popular times underage kids attempt to buy alcohol. If his suspicion is aroused, he also looks at the quality of the ID by googling the ID license designs of the states to be sure it is legitimate.

“They always have a story,” he laughed, referring to the explanations kids give when caught with fake IDs. “The most recent one I heard was last month. The guy said, ‘I had to get an out-of-state license because I had to register a motorcycle.’”

When the liquor store clerk becomes suspicious of IDs that appear to be fake, he also asks the customer to show another form of identification, such as a credit card or library card.

“To be compliant to your fraud, there has to be consequences,” the store clerk said.

“Kids should be punished more severely. The drinking age should be extended one more year each time a person gets caught, or at least they should be fined.”

Apart from the obvious fear of losing $150 after confiscation of a fake ID, there are other consequences for getting caught.

Some consequences may include license suspension and possible jail time.

Regardless of the consequences, still many are willing to gamble with the risks of having a fake ID. “It’s just something that won’t go away.

Obviously adults know, and I’m sure the police do, too. If they were to try to shut down fake IDs, kids would still find ways to get booze or whatever,” Jack Marsilio ’15 said. “The issue is kids don’t see the severity in the crime, seeing as it can be interpreted as a federal crime of identity theft.”

14

March 9, 2015 | Features

What’s the real c

Students detail the emotional, fiscal and social prices th

S

Sarah Ellman ’15 & Jessica Gross ’15 taples students are known for their academic excellence, stellar athleticism, artistic abilities and appearances.

They are always stylin’, whether they’re in the hallways, onstage, on the field or in the classroom.

But what does it take to be a student at Staples High School?

What do students have to sacrifice to feel that they fit in?

And is it worth it?

For Maggie Epstein ’16, the answers to these difficult questions are clear.

“I think fitting in at Staples is pretty much like fitting in at any high school, past or present,” Epstein said.

“You have to look a certain way, dress a certain way, play certain sports and drink alcohol.

A lot of kids who ‘fit in’ seem to fit the mold of the stereotypical ‘popular kid.’”

Gabby Perry ’16 agreed.

“Most people feel like they need whatever is in style,” Perry said. “For example, many girls have Lululemon leggings and

Nike sneakers.”

But this can be difficult for everyone to achieve because, as Perry noted, “not everyone has as much money as others, and it would be harder for some people to fit in.”

The pressure to fit in, and spend money to do it, is pervasive.

The physical costs of attending Staples start to rise even before school begins.

Starting in late August, the students of Staples head to the other Staples, where red shopping carts fill up with colored pens, mechanical pencils, pocket folders, Five-Star notebooks, neon highlighters, three-ring binders, Post-it notes and TI-84 graphing calculators, and students watch the price of their supplies hit triple digits.

Although school supplies

can be expensive, the price is reasonable, according to Ben Schwaeber ’15, because they’re a necessity.

“Everyone needs a nice rack

of pencils,” Schwaeber joked.

But does everyone need a black Northface backpack? There is an overwhelming number of these being carried through Staples’ halls. They are a key item

to own in order to fit in at Staples, according to some students.

“I wanted a black one [Northface backpack] because I wanted to blend in as a freshman, Nicki Najarian ’15 said. “But I regretted it quickly because it accidently got switched a bunch of times with other people during school.”

Once fully equipped for academic excellence, the next essential for fitting in to many students is a trendy look.

According to Lucas Jackson ’15, whose average outfit consists of pants from J.Crew, a Nike T-shirt, a Burton jacket and Timberlands, Staples students do spend a lot of money on clothing.

However, he added from a male standpoint, buying expensive clothing wouldn’t help a boy fit in as much as it would a girl.

Ellie Aronson ’16 believes both genders are guilty of spending quite a bit on their daily

wear “because clothes here are expensive.”

Aronson does not believe that there is a notable difference between genders, in this domain, adding that “it honestly depends on the person. I know guys that wear T-shirts and shorts everyday ,and I know guys that wear strictly Vineyard Vines. And the same goes for girls.”

But she remains a little torn as to whether or not the pressure is the same on both sides.

“I think that girls honestly just like to put more effort into their appearances,” Aronson said.

“At the same time, I do think we’re socialized to accept more flaws in the appearances of guys than in girls, and that’s why you might not notice acne on a guy’s face at all, but a girl will spend hours putting on makeup to cover it up.”

Appearances must be maintained even on weekends, especially the weekends that host school dances, such as Counties, Red and Whites and the weekends of Junior and Senior prom.

Based on responses from twelve girls, dances usually cost between $350 and $700. With four opportunities to attend a Staplesaffiliated dance, it is clear that

15

Inklings

GRAPHIC BY JACKIE COPE ’15

cost of fitting in?

hey pay to feel that they belong at Staples High School

female students are shelling out hefty sums for their soirees.

Winged Monkey, a popular local dress store, currently carries dresses ranging from $140 to $800 on their website. Add in shoes, hair, makeup, nails and boutonnieres and the price tag only goes up.

For guys, the cost of a dance includes either renting or buying a tux, shoes, a corsage, a ticket and transportation.

“The cost of the dances is probably the worst because it is straight-up expensive and for only a couple hours,” Trevor Penwell ’15 said.

However, according to Schwaeber, it’s important to fit in at dances and not be caught wearing an “ugly, inexpensive tux,” especially when taking pictures.

“I think it’s kind of crazy how much money is spent for just one dance but, its also a necessity because you don’t want to feel uncomfortable all night,” Schwaeber said.

But costs extend beyond ensuring a sleek image in the halls and on the weekends, as another big part to fitting in at Staples is participating in afterschool activities. In fact, fitting in

is sometimes the main reason why students decide to participate in certain sports or clubs.

Liv Smith ’16 decided to try out for lacrosse her freshman year because “it seemed like everyone was playing it, and it was fun.”

S m i t h continued, “I don’t even like sports at all so I would say it probably wasn’t worth it to just do it because my friends were doing it.”

Sports at Staples, like lacrosse, football and cheerleading, have a significant cost to them, also.

M o s t athletes must purchase gear, shoes and logowear specific to their sport. Football player Evan Gilland ’16 said that players usually spend money on cleats, gloves and other accessories prior to certain games. Gilland doesn’t

think it’s too expensive because it’s up to each athlete on whether or not they want new gear for every year.

“It would certainly be nice to have to spend a little less money

on gear, but Junior and Senior year really are prime years for playing time, so it helps to look pretty fresh,” Gilland said.

Cheerleader Sloane Cooper ’15 disagreed, stating, at least for cheerleaders, that the cost is

pretty astronomical.

“I’m not exactly sure the exact amount, but I would say I have spent $1,000 on cheer for the past two years,” Cooper, who began cheer as a junior, said.

“That includes logo wear, makeup, bows [and] shoes.”

Not only do Staples sports come with a price, but being involved with Players can be expensive as well.

According to Claire Smith ’15, the preparation that goes into a production is extreme and oftentimes costly.

Voice lessons, dance classes, head shots, dance shoes, leotards, tights, haircuts, eye shadows, fake lashes, foundation, blush, mascara and eyeliner are all a part of the picture and all cost money “If you don’t have the right style or heel height on your shoe, you’re required to get them some

how. Often times that means buying them,” Smith said.

Smith said that being a performer of any kind is expensive but ultimately believes that “if it’s what you love to do, it’s worth it.”

“I think we would all want things in life to be less expensive,” Smith said,.“But it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen any time soon.”

However, in Sera Levy ’17’s opinion, fitting in at Staples is more trouble than it’s worth.

“I think that the atmosphere at Staples is that you should try to be like everyone else,” Levy said.

“Get the same good grades, have a large group of friends, be wealthy, have success in your extracurricular activity, all of which can be a block to really being yourself and therefore being successful in your own way and can block you from following the path that is right for you individually.”

However, Epstein notices how this pressure to fit in isn’t unique to Staples.

“It seems that there is a lot of pressure for everyone to be the same,” Epstein said.

“That being said, it’s not exactly groundbreaking for a high schooler to feel that way.”

16

Inklings

March 9, 2015 | Features

I

Rebecca Rawiszer ’17

t isn’t uncommon to see young faces on bodies too short to be freshmen rummaging frantically through the halls of Staples. One of these faces is of Carter Teplica ’19, an eighth grader at Bedford Middle School, who is mathematically intelligent enough to learn alongside seniors.

Teplica is one of four middle school students who are far ahead of what’s deemed the normal standards. Instead of being held back with his peers, Teplica is permitted to take advanced math courses at Staples.

In order to make for a smooth transition between schools, Teplica is either walked to Staples by Mr/ -Jason Intrieri or is driven by one of his parents.

“I very much enjoy going to Staples for math,” Teplica said.

This actually isn’t his first year taking math at Staples. In fact, Teplica began learning Algebra 2 Honors when he was in fifth grade while attending Greens Farms

Wilkes was asked to go to Greens Farms Elementary School to hear Teplica’s presentation for Pi Day. “To my surprise, this presentation was mathematically sophisticated and extremely interesting, not to mention a

PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

Middle school student adds to a mathematical world to keep up with Wilkes’ workload without a problem. He also said, “I feel comfortable in class at Staples.

My teacher, treats me as an equal to the rest of my classmates, as have my past teachers.”

Teplica participates as an

“I remember once coming home and exclaiming, ‘This is the most fun homework I have ever had!’”

-Carter Teplica ’19 Elementary School. Back then, he participated in class through Skype.

Now, Teplica sits in Bill Wilkes’ AP Multivariable Calculus BC amongst seniors.

However, this was not the first time the two met. Five years ago,

presentation that you would never expect to see an 8 year old boy make,” Wilkes said. “He was clearly having fun, knowledgeable and well composed. It was clear that this was no ordinary 3rd grader!”

Teplica explains that he is able

equal as well, Wilkes noted. “[Teplica] makes significant mathematical connections on a daily basis,” he said. “The class regularly benefits from his intuition and perceptiveness.”

While he doesn’t know them

very well, he also said that his classmates are very kind to him.

Kelly Pogue ’15 has been in math class with Teplica for three years in a row. Pogue described how, when Teplica was in sixth grade, “he was definitely a bit rowdy.”

“Once, [Teplica] offer[ed] to draw each of the infinite tangents at a corner [and] ,another time, shout[ed] ‘Eeeeeeeeee!’ in his excitement over the base of the natural logarithm,” Pogue said.

Despite his age, Carter never feels intimidated by the work expected of him. In fact, he relishes in it.

“I think that the math gets more interesting every year,” Teplica said.

“I remember once coming home and exclaiming, ‘This is the most fun homework I have ever had!’”

CRAZY FOR CALC Carter Teplica ’19 is a part-time eighth grader, a part-time calculus student but a full time math enthusiast. He began Algebra 2 Honors in �ifth grade and, as an eighth grader, is currently enrolled in Bill Wilkes’ AP Multivariable Calculus BC course.

Volunteers open their hearts to Carver Center

Margaux MacColl ’16 As Natalie Lieberson ’17 entered the classroom, a jovial chaos erupted. Three first grade girls leaped from their chairs and raced to her.

They tried to give her a hug but were too short and ended up wrapping their little arms around her legs.

Lieberson got to work right away, sitting down at one of the six tables scattered around the room and helping a first grade boy with his math homework.

This wasn’t Lieberson’s first time there — she’s been coming to the Carver Center in Norwalk, Connecticut, once a week for about two years.

She’s a part of a volunteer program that watches about 25 children from kindergarten to second grade after school, doing

everything from reading them stories to playing basketball.

The longevity of her volunteering was evident, as every kid knew her name and waved ecstatically upon her entrance.

A Kindergarten girl, with a permanently plastered smile, described Lieberson as “amazing.”

“She loves us,” the girl said before collapsing into squealing giggles.

One of the girls that hugged Lieberson was a first grade girl with an orange ribbon in her hair and a tiny tomato stain on the collar of her silver dress.

She scooped spoonfuls of peach yogurt into her mouth as she described her favorite part of the program.

“I got lots of new friends,” she said with a grin. “They be

nice to me.”

Lieberson isn’t the only one who has been coming to the Carver Center for years— one of the older volunteers, Mejelly Jean Baptiste, is currently a freshman at Norwalk Community College and has been a part of the program since fifth grade.

“I want to help kids in the same way the people here helped me,” Baptiste said.

Baptiste spoke in a gentle voice, one that was liable to break into a soft chuckle, as she described one especially poignant memory from her time volunteering.

“There was one girl who would get uncomfortable when we played gym. She felt like she was too big to be running around. So I pulled her aside, and I told her, ‘It’s okay. You’re

going to love it in the future.

Keep doing what you’re doing, and you’re going to learn from it,’” Even from behind her black-rimmed glasses, there was clear pride in her eyes as she said, “Ever since then she’s been playing in gym.”

Then her voice became lively; she cocked her hip and started snapping her fingers excitedly. “And anytime she takes a break I go to her, and I tell her to keep going and keep working hard,” Baptiste said.

Her enthusiasm for the kids shined through as she dutifully walked around, checking with each child to make sure they had done their homework.

Meanwhile, across the room, a first grade girl with beads strung at the bottom of her hair, plopped down at a

table to interrogate Lieberson.

“What do you call your mom?” she asked, beads clattering as she tilted her head.

Lieberson laughed, “Mom. Sometimes Mommy.”

Their conversation was cut short as Lieberson’s time came to an end and the kids started lining up to go to gym.

“Whenever I leave, I feel like I accomplished something.

I feel like I did something,” Lieberson said. “I feel like I did something good.”

Neither Lieberson nor the children liked to say goodbye.

The first grade girl, with the beads in her hair and neon orange leggings, grasped one of the volunteer’s hands and turned to Lieberson as she got ready to leave.

“Can’t you stay a little longer?”

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March 9, 2015 PHOTOS BY ELIZA GOLBERG ’17 AND FRANCESCA TRUITT ’17

Glasses offer new lens on popular styles at Staples Emily Olrik ’16 In the 1940s and 50s, browline and cat-eye glasses were sported by celebrities like Marilyn Monroe.

In the 60s and 70s, geometric, oversized and brightly colored frame styles surfaced, with First Lady Jackie Kennedy often wearing oversized black shades.

And in recent times, advanced designs have led to thousands of options and the rise of brands like Warby Parker and Ray-Ban. As the shapes and styles of eyewear have evolved over the years, iconic celebrities have embraced the trends, and along the way have changed people’s opinions about the accessory itself.

Many students recall the elementary and middle school days when glasses were taboo.

Adele Carter ’16, a consistent contacts wearer, remembers when wearing glasses to school was considered nerdy.

“People only wore glasses who actually needed them, like me,” Carter said.

Even with the rise of glasses as a fashion statement, Carter argues that, trend or not, the only reason to wear glasses should be for practicality.

“I guess the whole trend is weird to me, considering that glasses are truly only meant to help people see, and that was their only true purpose up until recently,” she said.

Rebecca Oestreicher ’16, a glasses wearer, agrees. “Glasses aren’t supposed to be a crazy accessory--if you need them, you need them,” she said.

However, many students have found other purposes for glasses and have embraced new eyewear trends.

Justin Cheng ’16, who dons black-rimmed, rectangular glasses, explains that he doesn’t just wear them for practicality, but for style.

“I think my glasses really spice up my image and give me a little visual zest,” Cheng said.

Like Cheng, many students think glasses have become not only socially acceptable to wear, but a desirable touch of personal style.

Emma Caplan ’15, not a glasses wearer herself, has noticed the increasing popularity of students choosing to wear glasses, which she attributes to the influence of celebrities who incorporate their eyewear into their street styles and even red carpet looks.

“I think celebrities have

influenced the popularity of glasses,” Caplan said. “Now glasses are trendy and a fashion statement and aren’t considered nerdy.”

Many students admire famous actor Ryan Gosling’s spot-on street style which usually consists of gray wash jeans, simple white T-shirts and Warby Parker Preston frames.

According to Isabella DeRocco ’16, Gosling has helped break the stereotype that only nerds wear glasses.

“I think Ryan Gosling pulls off glasses,” DeRocco said, “I think he has definitely been very influential in men’s glasses trends.”

Eyewear has also become a way for students to express their personalities and showcase their inner strengths.

“I think my glasses really say something like I’m a fun guy, but also a hard worker,” Justin Cheng ’16 said. “I work hard and play hard.”

Cheng believes the growing love for glasses is just the beginning of the trend’s reign at Staples.

“There’s definitely not a majority [of students wearing glasses],”Cheng said “but there is definitely a small cult forming around corrective eyewear.”

“I think my glasses really say something like I’m a fun guy, but also a hard worker,” - Justin Cheng ’16

s PICTURE PERFECT FRAMES (top photo) Megan Hines ’17 models her Nautica reading glasses at the Fair�ield County Hunt Club. She has been wearing glasses since September of 2014. (right from top) Paul Friezo ’17 Aishah Avdiu ’17, Fleur Byrne ’17, Christopher Scherban ’17, and Megan Hines ’17 rock Rayban, Oakley, and Nautica glasses.

Students find their own beat with multiple music apps Lulu Stracher ’16 For all of human history, music has been a significant part of human culture, but the way we listen to it is always changing.

From the phonograph to the radio to our entire music libraries being accessible on one tiny device, it is difficult to keep up with the best way to stream your tunes. These apps are how Staples students keep up with the latest hits.

GRAPHIC BY OLIVA CROSBY ’15

Spotify

Spotify is in direct competition with iTunes for its quick and reliable access to practically any song instantly.

The major difference between the apps is that iTunes requires users to pay $1.29 for each song, while Spotify has a $9.99 monthly subscription where users can stream endless songs without ads and without having internet connection.

“I’d say that I like [Spotify] even more than iTunes because, if you get the premium version, it’s literally the same thing [as iTunes],.” Hayley Foote ’17 said. “Plus, it has tons of public playlists where you can listen to and find good music that iTunes doesn’t have.”

However, Spotify isn’t perfect. Foote added, “If you don’t have premium, it doesn’t let you listen to songs offline,which

is annoying. Unlike Spotify, iTunes has everything.”

Pandora

On Pandora, users can choose a song, artist, genre or album that they like, and Pandora will create a playlist based on the users’ predilections. However, it does have its downsides. “You can only skip so many songs, so if one doesn’t sit right with you, sometimes you’re going to have to sit through it anyway,” Tova Byrne ’15, a Pandora user, said.

But it does have its upsides. “I’ve accidentally discovered a lot of good music as a result,” she said.

SoundCloud What makes SoundCloud different from the aforementioned apps is that it gives users the ability to post their own sounds and repost songs created by other people.

SoundCloud rose to popularity after its 2007 establishment in Berlin, Germany, and has been the place for up-and-coming musicians, such as Chance the Rapper and Skizzy Mars, to post their mixtapes in order to generate more buzz. “SoundCloud is a great community for a lot of underground music,” Nick Ribolla ’16 said. “Pretty much anyone who’s into electronic

music uses it, seeing as most of the artists on the site you can’t find on any other streaming service,” Ribolla continued.

But like any great streaming service, it does have its drawbacks.

“The problem with SoundCloud is that they don’t really give you the feeling of having a library, or rather a collection, of music, like iTunes does,” Ribolla said.

Beats Music

Arguably the least known music app, Beats Music was developed in 2012 and was purchased by Apple for $3 billion in May 2014.

After paying $9.99 per month, users can stream over 20 million songs instantly, and receive song suggestions based on the tunes you have previously listened to. One downside, however, is the songs will disappear after your subscription expires.

Although Beats Music is relatively new, its users remain loyal to it. “It’s like a fresh, new little Spotify,” Byrne said.

“You can get it in a family plan, so you don’t have to buy individual premium accounts for each member of your family.

Also, Beats is really, really good at constantly improving upon suggesting music.”

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Te ich

er trades

s n u r home for French horn

PITCH PERFECT Ari Teicher ’15 has been playing the French horn for eight years. Next fall, he will be attending University of Rochester, a school known for its prestigous music.

With many accomplishments, Teicher doesn’t need to toot his own horn Adam Kaplan ’16 ifth grade is a time when most students are not close to finding their passion.

However, most students are not Ari Teicher ’15. In his late elementary school days, Teicher began the musical path he is still on today.

“I remember picking up the French horn and thinking it looked really awesome and crazy,” Teicher said. “When I tried to play it, I was immediately able to get a decent sound out of it. As a little kid, this made me very excited, so when it was time to choose an instrument in school, I chose the horn.”

F

Since picking up the instrument in fifth grade and starting private lessons in seventh grade, Teicher has played at quite a brag sheet of venues.

Teicher cites Seiji Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood and Carnegie Hall in New York City as the venues at which he is most proud to have played.

For Teicher, pursuing music was something that took a lot of sacrifice. “At the end of my sophomore year, I chose music over sports. I had previously been a catcher for the JV baseball team at Staples. I decided that I enjoyed music more than baseball and devoted more time, energy and

Students follow the Jane Schutte ’16 March 17 was originally a day for honoring St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.

While this tradition still holds true, modern rituals have spun the holiday into an unhinged leprechaun fiasco, giving the Irish and the Irish-athearts a chance to paint the town in their green-and-gold attire.

While Irishmen Casey Hoy, the uncle of Colin Hoy ’16, brews his own beer for the holiday, at Staples, the sober activities are just as much fun, if not more.

Lilly Howes ’17 and

focus into my playing.”

While quitting baseball may not have been an easy choice for Teicher, it did lead to him playing with The Manhattan School of Music.

“After my junior year of high school, I decided that I wanted to spend more of my free time playing music and play at a higher level than before, so I applied to the MSM [Manhattan School of Music] precollege program and was accepted. I am currently the principal horn in the top orchestra, the Philharmonic, at MSM precollege,” he said.

During his time playing the French horn, Teicher has gained a

lot of respect from his peers.

French horn player Jodie Barris ’16, who was on the Norwalk Youth Symphony with Teicher, was impressed with some of Teicher’s skills. “Ari is really good at multiphonics, which is this ridiculously hard technique where you sing into the horn while you play, so that multiple notes come out. He can play two parts of Pachelbel's canon by himself,” she said.

Jay Mudholkar ’17, another musician who played alongside Teicher, was also very impressed by his skills. “I think Ari's range as a French horn player is unbelievable; it's really inspiring

ow back to b n i ra

Lana Whittleton ’18, for example, spend the holiday consuming traditional Irish foods in vast quantities with their stereotypically large, Irish families.

“My grandma’s birthday is on Saint Patrick’s Day, so we have gone to New York before to celebrate,” Whittleton said.

“My dad will even make Irish soda bread.”

Howes similarly gathers with a large portion of her family to have dinner, but while feasting and socializing, they admire the

GRAPHICS BY JULIA ETHIER ’17, MARGAUX MACCOLL ’16, AND OLIVA CROSBY ’15

to see how obvious hard work really does pay off,” Mudholkar said.

While the road to success was not always easy for Teicher, he did spread some words of wisdom to budding musicians.

“Every expert was once a beginner. It's easy to be discouraged when learning a skill,” he said. “I know I had times when I wondered why I was even bothering practicing because I sounded so bad, but I practiced anyway. Just how an athlete lifts weights in order to improve their strength, practice strengthens whatever you choose to focus on.”

St. Patrick’s traditions

Claugah ring, a traditional piece of Irish jewelry, that her grandmother passed down through many generations.

On another side of the rainbow, Brandon Harrington ’17 observes the holiday in a more cheerfully childish recreation.

“All the kids in my family leave a pot outside our door for the leprechaun to leave us gold chocolate coins,” Harrington said.

Even Colin McKechnie ’17, who is not technically Irish

by blood, commemorates the holiday by dressing in clothes that are the color of the symbolic four-leaf clover and feasting on corned beef and cabbage.

Saint Patrick was known for bringing Christianity to the people of Ireland, instilling in them a sense of worth, spirituality and, most importantly, family.

The original idea for his commemoration may have altered slightly. However, the same values are epitomized in the activities performed all across the globe each year on this viridescent day.

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Westport takes tocommunity the big screen with magnificent homes,”

I

Will Dumke ’16

n the 1968 film “The Swimmer,” Burt Lancaster scurries through the backyards of a pristine suburb, stopping for a dip in each swimming pool he passes. The film became famous for its inside view into the relationships and characteristics of suburban towns and for its film location: Westport.

Many residents of Westport don’t realize that they could be living in or near a scene from a famous movie. Noah Yokoi ’16 is one of many students who did not know that films like “The Swimmer” had been filmed in Westport.

“I had no idea any films were made here in Westport,” Yokoi said. “Now I’m just curious to see what movies were made here so I can see what I can recognize.”

“The Swimmer” is not Westport’s only on-screen appearance. Scenes from famous films and television shows like “I Love Lucy,” “Last House on the Left” and “The Stepford Wives” have all been filmed in Westport.

Westport is renowned for its colonial beauty, making it a perfect location for many filmmakers. According to media teacher Jim Honeycutt, many filmmakers seek that sort of quiet landscape that makes great movies.

“Westport is a beautiful shoreline

Honeycutt said. “So you can shoot a Hollywood movie using some of the beautiful homes in the town.”

Staples Players student director Vig Namasivayam ’16 thinks that while Westport may not be the most eventful of towns, “there are some nice spots that aren’t bad for filming every once in a while.”

Besides the shoreline, Westport also has an outstanding downtown area that can make for great movie shots according to Staples Player youth director Isabel Perry ’15.

“I think that Westport is a very bucolic setting with a very sophisticated downtown area,” Perry said. “This provides a lot of diverse shots in a small location.”

Whether it is the beautiful community, the diverse downtown area or the historical significance of the town, Westport holds many qualities that are often sought after when making a movie.

Westport has always been known for it’s picturesque beauty, and for many students, knowing that this has been recognized by directors and movie-goers makes it even better.

“I think that this is really interesting,” Yokoi said. “It’s almost like we live in a movie setting.”

GRAPHIC BY SALLY PARK ’15

PHOTOS BY JULIA KAPLOWITZ’ 16

Sweeney Todd swaps traditional setting for futuristic take different compared to the original.

“It's going to be very grungy and postapocalyptic, which is so different from anything we've done recently, especially after the bright and cheerful set of ‘Hello, Dolly!,’” ensemble member Colin McKechnie ’17 said.

Although it hasn’t been too difficult adapting the play to this new setting, keeping the script the same will be their biggest challenge.

“We’re going to have some problems with realism when bringing the show together,” Namasivayam explained. “It just has to be believable in the realm of the play.”

Because they are keeping all the lines the same, the language that was used in the 1800’s is still being used in the year 2049.

However, adapting the musical hasn’t been the most difficult part of the process.

“Sweeney Todd is super music heavy, and the music is so difficult,” ensemble member Zoe Fox ’16 said. “There are a lot of different rhythms, harmonies and parts that change and overlap in just one song. It was all difficult to learn at first, but once you get it down, it's hard to forget.”

McKechnie added that they’ve been using a program called Rehearse Score, which has the musical accompaniment to each song, to practice their parts.

So far, the show has been running

very smoothly, but the constant snow days have put stress on the players.

“Snow days have impacted the time we have to stage stuff, but we used those days to individually go over music, which is helpful for when we get back to rehearsal because we know our stuff better,” Fox said.

Despite some challenges along the way, the Staples Players have been working hard, to make this unique play the best it can be.

“We're all really determined to put up the best show we can,” Fox said, “as always.”

PHOTOS BY MARGAUX MACCOLL ’16,

Jen Gouchoe ’16 England is in ruins. It’s year 2049, and the upper and lower classes have just had a massive nuclear war, wiping out a large portion of the population. The two classes are more divided than ever, leaving England in a post-apocalyptic mess.

It’s the perfect setting for a revengeseeking, throat-slitting barber to murder some innocent people.

“Sweeney Todd,” which was originally written to take place in 19th century England, is a musical loved by many theater fanatics since its first performance in 1979. Staples Players has adapted to a futuristic setting: the year 2049.

“We wanted to spice it up a bit,” assistant director Vig Namasivayam ’16 said.

After doing “Hello, Dolly!,” the Players decided they didn’t want to do two plays set in the 1800’s back- to -back, hence the futuristic approach to the play.

Everett Sussman ’15, who plays Sweeney Todd, said that his “character still has the same basic principles, and the storyline remains pretty much intact. I feel that the futuristic adaption will most affect the set design and costumes etc. rather than the characters.”

Instead of altering the musical, the design of the costumes and set will be much

Opening night:

Friday, March 13

SWEENEY TAKES THE STAGE (Bottom) Everett Sussman ’15 will perform as the lead, Sweeney Todd, in his last Staples Players mainstage production before graduating. (Top) Scott Yarmoff ’15 as Pirelli and James O’Brien ’17, an ensemble member, rehearse a scene during tech week.

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Caroline Cohen ’15 Instagram’s 150-million users in September 2013 doubled to 300-million users in December 2014, proving Instagram as one of the most popular and successful social media outlets. However, the app that lets people post photos to followers has had a lot of new flavors in recent months.

“Foodagrams” are pictures of food on Instagram, whether it be of an ice cream cone from Stew Leonard’s or an intricate salad from a five-star restaurant.

Some users even devote separate accounts to photos of their meals.

Accounts like @ icecreamofinsta post various pictures of ice cream sandwiched between warm cookies, on top of waffles and crepes or even in the classic cone.

However, some accounts have more general food. @ fairfieldcountymunchies has meals and dishes from local restaurants, like Acqua and Spotted Horse. @newforkcity has become famous with its 172,000 followers, as they feature restaurants all around New York City. The account also features “getaway” posts of meals from around the world.

These Instagram accounts are starting filling social media feeds, giving restaurants and their dishes fame and trendy recognition. So, these days, diners might even be better off finding a restaurant option

by scrolling through Instagram feeds rather than searching sites like Zagat or Trip Advisor.

Julie Levitt, co-owner of Granola Bar in Westport, also said Instagram was a great way to bring public attention to their restaurant.

“We use Instagram endlessly and love when our customers use it as well,” Levitt said.

And customers do use it.

“Well, obviously, I follow @newforkcity,” Lilly Howes ’17 said. “And whenever a picture looks good, my friend and I add it to a list of restaurants we want to go to in the City.” Howes has visited many places that were featured on Instagram accounts, including Holey Donut and Serafina.

Westport foodies are also happy at home with restaurants like Granola Bar, Pink Sumo and more.

“Instagram shows me what type of food restaurants around town serve,” Shannon Barry ’15, whose favorite meal is the tuna tartare at Pink Sumo in downtown Westport, said.

But no matter where you go, it’s the picture that is most important.

“Wherever you go, if your plate looks really pretty, you have to take a picture,” Noa Wind ’15 said.

And that advice applies to fast food, too.

“People can even make Shake Shack look really good,”

GRAPHIC BY CHANNING SMITH ’17

Hot restaurants spice up Instagram feed with food photos

Westport Instagrammers Wind said. “But places like Momofuko are ‘Instaworthy’ because you can only get it in the city, so it’s pretty special. It also looks beautiful and tastes so

these Westport locations!

good.”

Levitt is particularly proud of Granola Bar’s Instagram photos. “We think our visual plating is something that sets us

apart,” Levitt said. “We posted a hot drink called the Ski Lodge and people went bonkers. They came in with their phone and ordered it right from the picture.”

Piercings reveal more than style preferences Frenchie Truitt ’17 From earlobes to belly buttons and back, piercings have become an incredibly popular accessory.

But getting piercings doesn’t always go as smoothly as having the lady at Claire’s hold your hand and, on the count of three, shoot a needle through your ear.

Channing Smith ’17, at four, had an eventful first experience.

“The first time, I actually had to get them surgically removed,” Smith said. “So I waited a few years, until I was seven, to do it again.”

Some students chose to forgo the Claire’s experience completely, and opted to take matters into their own hands.

“I did all of mine myself,” Maddy Jones ’17 said. Jones is a connoisseur of piercings, and in fact, has eight. However, she said the time has come to say goodbye and she has removed all of her ear piercings to let her holes close.

Like Jones, many students have their doubts about piercings.

“I just have a question of what you do when you get sick if you have a nose piercing.

You’re eventually going to have to sneeze,” Caroline Gray ’17 pondered. “But then what happens?

Despite Gray’s questions, girls tend to be much more inclined towards piercings than boys.

According to a Statistic Brain survey, in 2014, 72 percent of the pierced population was female, though in recent years, the male population has taken a better liking to it.

But Aiden Weir ’18 will not be adding to the ranks of pierced men. “I think they should remain female oriented,” he said.

According to Owen Burke ’15, few guys can pull off a piercing. Many boys will have to choose between their salmon

Vineyard Vines shorts and rocking a three carat diamond earring, Burke said.

“Preppy people cannot pull off an ear piercing,” he added.

Although they are considered fashionable, piercings may have ramifications in

GRAPHIC BY SARAH SOMMER ’16 AND RENEE WEISZ ’17

professional settings, according to a Salary.com study.

Morales agreed that she had been discouraged from getting a nose piercing because it would hurt her chances of getting a job.

However, she doesn’t believe this will affect her.

“It’s a stereotype,” she said.

No matter the possible consequences, Smith insisted everyone’s preferences are their own, and it’s a matter of personal style. “I think it’s really whatever you want to do,” Smith said. “It’s all about your self expression.”

Staples poll reveals piercings by percentage

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SPORTS

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March 9, 2015

Colleges ponder making sports a major Molly Liebergall ’17

C

olleges may soon need to include football, soccer and a handful of other sports in their course books. Yes, in their course books.

A recent New York Times article detailed the current debate over the possibility of allowing college recruits to major in their respective sports. Instead of balancing hours and hours of football practice with hours and hours of calculus homework, new curriculums would adapt to the demanding schedules of college athletes.

Florida State University’s professor of educational psychology, David Pargman, and Syracuse University’s director of public affairs, William D. Coplin, are two noteworthy advocates. They propose that the more common subjects, like math English and history, be replaced with sports related classes, like anatomy and physiology or kinesiology and nutrition, which would revolve around the college athlete’s main sports major.

Several members of the Staples community disagree with this proposition.

“What are you going to say, ‘I majored in football’? How are you going to get a job?”

-Marce Petroccio GRAPHIC BY SALLY PARK ’16

“I think the whole thing is ridiculous, to be quite honest,” Staples football coach Marce Petroccio said.

“You’re just opening up such a can of worms.”

Petroccio is in good company, seeing as many other educators nationwide are also in opposition to allowing students to major in their sport.

Although Pargman and

Coplin argue that sports curriculums would improve players’ career-building skills, Staples athletes believe that sports majors would not provide the same level of education as the classroom environment.

“As soon as a lacrosse player gets out of college they need a job because the professional lacrosse league is very underpaid,” varsity

lacrosse player Tanner Wood ’17 said. “[Students] need to study something that would help out for their future.”

The future of college athletes is exactly what Pargman and Coplin aim to improve, claiming that those striving for the professional league would benefit from a curriculum centered around their commitment to

sports.

“Being allowed to major in your sport in college is great for an athlete who wants to play at the professional level,” varsity soccer player Charlotte Rossi ’17 agreed. “But there are lots of student athletes who are not only going to college to play their sport.”

Unfortunately for most, the NCAA estimates that only 2 percent of athletes make it to the professional level, leaving the other 98 percent with a single question after they graduate college: ‘what do I do now?’

“What are you going to say, ‘I majored in football’?,” Petroccio sarcastically inquired.

“How are you going to get a job?”

Staples Alum and Dartmouth soccer goalie James Hickock ’13 agrees that college athletes need to think in terms of the big picture. “Arguably one of the most important parts of going to college is taking new classes and finding new interests along the way,” Hickock said.

“And if athletes were given the opportunity to both play and study the same sport each day, it would take away from that experience.”

Staples alumni find success within the professional ranks Ivy Prince ’17

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Former Staples basketball athlete, John DiBartolomeo ’09, has lived the dream of any basketball obsessed kid.

DiBartolomeo was a co-captain senior year at Staples, earning first team All-FCIAC honors. “It’s because of our success at Staples that I was able to get attention from college basketball programs,” DiBartolomeo said. He went onto play Division III at Rochester and became third in Rochester’s history in scoring. DiBartolomeo now is a Spanish basketball star, winning the MVP Honors award, playing for Palma Air Europa basketball as a point guard.

John DiBartolomeo ’09

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David Speer ’10 became the second Staples athlete ever to be drafted by a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. The left-handed Columbia University senior pitcher was recently drafted in the 27th round of the MLB Amateur Draft by the Cleveland Indians, “Getting drafted will definitely go down as one of the best moments of my life,” Speer said. In 2014, Speer had a 10.7-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, the second best in the nation. His career at Staples included being a two-time all-state champion, being an all-area MVP as a sophomore, and pitching a 21-5 record.

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PHOTO BY JIMMY RAY STAGG ’16

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Kip Orban ’11 is ‘one for the books,’ leaving a hard spot to fill in the Staples lacrosse world. He finished his Wrecker career with 135 goals and 31 assists. Now a senior lacrosse midfielder at Princeton University, he became the first Princeton player since 2004 to have at least one goal in every game in a season last year.

During his Staples career, he had earned All-American honors his senior year. Orban is now doing big things, as he was just drafted to the Major League Lacrosse league in the third round, nineteenth overall.

Kip Orban ’11

PHOTO BY ERIC ESSAGOF ’12

mid-major

Duke u p s e t

MARCH MADNESS

champion

#1 Seed N C A A

basketball

anoth er d ay

live to play

the bubble

live to play

Cinderellas

cut down the nets

Elite Eight

Final Four

b ea ter nets

win buzzer

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March 9, 2015 | Sports

tournament

first four in

another day

Sweet Sixteen

GRAPHIC BY FRITZ SCHEMEL ’17 PHOTO BY COOPER BOARDMAN ’17

As March dawns, Staples prepares its brackets Thomas Nealon ’17

A

ccording to USA Today, there is about a one in nine quintillion chance of accurately predicting all 63 games of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, better known as March Madness. The big tournament is set to begin on Tuesday, March 17.

As reported by CNBC, the March Madness tournament is one of the most watched sporting events of the year. In fact, 52 million people watched at least one game, and over 20 million tuned into the finals. There was

also a record breaking 3 million brackets filled out on ESPN.com.

Many students enter tournaments either online or with

Maggie Fair ’15 is one of the fanatics excited for the tournament. Last year, Fair watched every game and filled

“The rest of my bracket was terrible, but I won, so I don’t really care.”

- Jacob Bonn ’17 their friends, filling out brackets and predicting who will win each game. It often gets very intense, and the winners usually receive a cash prize.

out multiple brackets.

“The tournament is always so much fun to watch,” Fair said.

“I fill out a bracket every year for my dad’s office. It’s a big

pool and a lot of money is on the line.”

ESPN and company pools aren’t the only ones to host a bracket competition. In fact, students of Staples have organized a bracket pool with a cash prize of $1,000.

Last year, Jacob Bonn ’17 won the competition known as the “Big Dance” and took home the grand prize.

“I chose UConn to win it all, and they did. I was the only one in the entire school to choose them,” Bonn said proudly. “The rest of my bracket was terrible, but I won, so I don’t really care.”

Bonn is planning to compete

this year and hopes to win again.

His bold prediction for this year is for Arizona to win it all. “No. 1 ranked Kentucky will not win,” Bonn said.

Some students may be surprised to hear that some of the teachers also create brackets and participate in challenges. Boys’ varsity basketball coach and gym teacher Colin Devine has been involved in filling out brackets for many years.

“I remember filling out brackets back in the 1970’s when UConn was on the rise,” Devine said. “I’ve been doing it ever since because it makes the tournament fun and unpredictable.”

March Madness diverts attention away from class PHOTO DRAMATIZATION BY MARGAUX MACCOLL ’16

Jack Zeldes ’16

FOLLOWING THE ACTION Sulaimaan Adil ’18 and Aiden Weir ’18 are avid fans of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The tournament seeds will be revealed during the Selection Show on March 15, with competition beginning on March 17 in Dayton, Ohio.

While March may seem like a normal month for most students, many college basketball fans around the school can hardly contain their excitement. It’s March Madness and the huge college basketball tournament has begun.

However, given how extremely unpredictable and heart-stopping the madness can be, following the basketball developments is very distracting for students.

“March Madness is one of the best sporting events,” Jackson Livingstone ’16 said. “However, because it happens during school, sometimes it makes school a little less important for those days, unfortunately.”

Some teachers allow their students to watch the games during the last couple minutes of class.

John Fincher ’16 remembers when his health substitute teacher allowed him to watch the end of the game in which Mercer upset Duke last March.

However, some teachers find the games to be disruptive.

Therefore, in his other classes,

Fincher has had to get creative in order to watch his favorite teams face off.

“I have a phone case that pops my phone up so I can watch March Madness in class,” Fincher said.

Other students, like Livingstone, use the oldest trick in the book: hiding phones under desks and watching the games.

However, Livingstone admits this strategy is easily discovered by teachers.

Teachers have different opinions on March Madness.

Some believe that the tournament can be a huge disruption; however, English teacher Jesse Bauks thinks that the tournament is only minimally distracting.

“Only the first Thursday and Friday of March Madness are during school and, considering the tip off for games isn’t until noon, the distractions only exist for about two hours for two days a year,” Bauks said.

Bauks has seen his fair share of students doing anything possible to watch the games.

“I saw a kid lean his chair back,” Bauks said, “and watch the hallway television.”

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HUDDLING UP The boys’ lacrosse team’s season begins before tryouts, as they workout and practice after school during the winter. In a practice last season, the team huddles around head coach Paul McNulty.

C RO S BY ’15

Boys’ lacrosse prepares to face a

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PHOTO BY MEGAN ROOT ’15

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Chase Gornbein ’16

n March 25, the boys’ lacrosse team will kick off their season against an unfamiliar opponent, Aspen High School, who will be traveling all the way from Colorado to play the game.

Known as the “Skiers,” the Aspen High School boys’ lacrosse team will play two games against teams from Long Island on March 23 and March 24 before scrimmaging against the Wreckers.

Staples head coach Paul McNulty was able to squeeze this game into Aspen’s tight schedule because he has known the head coach of Aspen High School for many years.

Colorado team

When McNulty was the head football coach at Wilton High School, Michael Goerne, the current head coach at Aspen High School, played for McNulty.

Goerne approached McNulty, told him about his trip to the East Coast, and asked if the Wreckers would be able to scrimmage the Skiers.

Coach McNulty was ecstatic.

“Anytime we get the opportunity to play a high caliber team from Colorado, we will take advantage of it” McNulty said.

As for the Wreckers, they have maintained a relatively calm approach towards the scrimmage against Aspen, and

Juniors start the process of getting recruited to the

many players see it as just another game.

Ben Schwaeber ’16 doesn’t believe playing against a team from Colorado will alter the Wreckers strategy and game plan.

“Lately, our mindset isn’t focused on the specifics of their team [Aspen High School], or scouting their team, but just getting ready for our season as a whole,” Schwaeber said.

Connor Chamberlin ’16 agreed with Schwaeber, as he felt ready to get the season under way.

“It’s going to be an interesting competition, since I have never played a team from that part of the country, but it’ll be a great way to start our season off

blazing,” Chamberlin said.

Co-captain Lucas Jackson ’15 is not over-analyzing the game and sees it as any other game.

“The team is from out West, so it should be cool to play against them; but we’ve prepared for them like we’ve been preparing for every other game this season,” Jackson said.

This highly anticipated season opener is bound to draw in a large crowd.

An avid “superfan,” Greg Fisher ’15 is extremely excited for the game.

“I can’t wait to watch the game and lose my mind,” Fisher said. “All I know is that it’s gonna be loud.”

Adam Kaplan ’16

process and cites ‘identification’ as the first step.

“Recruiting got pretty serious for me when I qualified for the Orlando Grand Prix last summer. It was a really high-level meet, and not many people qualify for it,” Rainey said. “At that point, I realized I could compete at the next level, so I started doing all I could to reach my potential.”

Due to the NCAA rules for swimming, Rainey can’t commit to a college until July of this year.

The next step is deciding what exactly the athlete wants out of a school. Jordan Ragland ’16 committed to the University of New Hampshire for field hockey earlier this year.

“I picked the schools that had everything on my checklist and narrowed it down to about four. It’s very important to like the school and the location,” Ragland said. “I was also very fortunate to be able to spend the weekend at University of New Hampshire (UNH) and get to know the team so I knew the girls would be super nice.”

The final step in recruiting is the actual decision of where you’re going to spend the next four years of your life.

Former basketball captain Luke Yeager ’11 reflected on his choice: “Grinnell was a school that expressed a lot of interest in me.

I chose Grinnell because of the reputable academics and because I was extremely impressed with the tradition, popularity and success of the basketball program,” Yeager said. The choice ultimately worked out for Yeager as he is now averaging over 20 points per game in his senior season.

“You have to work really hard to get there,” Ragland concluded, “but in the end it will all pay off.”

Staples is notoriously affiliated with difficult tests and stressful all-nighters.

However, for some students, grades aren’t the only thing keeping them up at night.

Instead, they are kept up by recruiting.

Getting recruited is one of the highest honors an athlete can receive, and only a staggeringly small amount of students actually can boast the honor. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) currently reports that there are over 460,000 college athletes playing Division I, II and III sports. While that may seem like a massive number, there are 21,000,000 students currently enrolled in universities across the nation. To put it all into perspective, only around 2 percent of students are NCAA athletes.

Coaches look for a very specific type of player when they recruit. Trinity College’s two time New England School, College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) football coach of the year, Jeff Devanney, said he wants, “Players who are hungry to make themselves better. We want young men who want to grow as people and as football players during their college careers.”

Trinity football currently features three Staples alumni on their team, including Nick Ward ’14.

While recruiting can be very complicated, there are three main stages that make the process come to fruition: identification of the athlete’s skills, identification of what the athlete wants in a school and the final decision.

Swimmer Conner Rainey ’16, whose brother is a swimmer at the University of Michigan, is currently in the recruiting

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March 9, 2015 | Sports

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READY, SET, GO (From top left) The track at Hillhouse, where the track team participated in both FCIACs and states. Erica Hefnawy ’15 prepares to start a relay at the New Balance Nationals at the Armory. Boys’ varsity hockey players crowd around the side of the Longshore rink.

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Staples athletes prepare for the spring Talia Hendel ’16 Winter sports are wrapping up, and spring sports are right around the corner.

Last year, many Staples spring teams had a lot of success. All are either looking to repeat their successful seasons or improve their past results.

Rugby

The rugby team is beginning the season with one goal in particular – to beat Fairfield. “We came close last year but couldn’t finish the job,” James Stanley ’15 said. In terms of post-season goals, Stanley says the plan is to “just do our best in the regular season and see where that takes us.”

The team is optimistic that they’ll improve from last year, with captains Brandon Braswell ’15, Scott Seo ’15 and Trevor Penwell ’15 leading the way, with the help of a strong senior class and many up-and-coming underclassmen.

Girls’ Track

The girls’ outdoor track team had an extremely successful season last year. The team finished second in the FCIAC, first in Class LL State Championships and second at the State Opens.

This year, the goals are to maintain and improve on last year’s finishes and win the State and FCIAC titles. “The team is looking really good,” Hannah DeBalsi ’16 said. “We have a couple of really talented freshmen and some older girls who have improved this year.”

Boys’ Tennis

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BRINGING HOME A WRECKERS’ WIN (From bottom left) Nicholaas Esposito ’15 posts up during a game against Weston on Wednesday, Feb. 25. During a meet at Hillhouse, runners round the track. Luis Cruz ’15 and Ben Foster ’16 represented Staples at this event.

PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

Winter sports season comes to a close Megan Root ’15

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Boys’ Basketball he boys’ basketball team has had a bit of a rollercoaster season, winning three straight games, then losing four in a row, then winning three again. Of their many close games, senior Connor Whelan’s favorite was the first of the season, a three-point win over Fairfield Ludlowe. “We had a crowd, they had a crowd. It was a great atmosphere,” Whelan said. They finished the regular season with a record of 8-12, which was short of qualifying for FCIACs but enough for a place in the state tournament. The boys will play in the first round of states on March 9. “We’re ready to play in the state tournament,” Whelan said. “We worked hard all season to get to the playoffs.”

Girls’ Basketball The girls’ basketball team ended their fi rst season under their new coach, Paco Fabian, with a record of 9-11. They fi nished strong though, with a four-game winning streak. The girls were seeded 26th in the state tournament, after failing to qualify last year. They played their fi rst round game on March 4 against a tough Career team in New Haven.

Girls’ Track The girls’ indoor track team earned

their place in Staples’ history this year after winning their fi rst FCIAC title in 28 years. “Winning FCIACs was an awesome experience,” captain Erica Hefnawy ’15 said. “Everyone really stepped up their game.” But the girls didn’t stop there.

The team went on to take second place at the Class LL Championship and third at State Opens. Their success was built on great performances from several athletes, including high jumper Elizabeth Knoll and the 1600m sprint medley team.

Hannah DeBalsi ’16 had three fi rst-place medals in FCIACs alone and beat her own meet record by running 3200m in 10:40.55 in State Opens. Hefnawy voiced her pride about the team’s success. “It’s really amazing to see how much success the program has had these past four years.”

Boys’ Track The boys’ indoor track team showed serious speed and strength this year, taking second place at both the FCIAC and Class LL State Championships and third at the State Open Championship.

One athlete who was in the spotlight was senior T.J. Bravo ’15, who leaped 23’10” to set a new FCIAC and school long jump record. He then jumped 6’09” to set another school record in the high jump. “It feels incredibly good knowing

that my performances are the best,” Bravo said. “I hope [the records] stay there for a long time.” Bravo was one of several athletes contributing to Staples’ success; the 4x400m and 4x800m relay teams also performed well. Captain Luis Cruz ’15 was part of the 4x400m relay team that placed second at the Class LL Championship.

Girls’ Ice Hockey The girls’ ice hockey team (a combination of players from Stamford, Westhill and Staples) fi nished fourth in their conference standings this winter, making the FCIAC and state tournaments for the fi rst time ever. Meg Fay ’15 said that her team’s success came from determination. “Everyone on the team was so dedicated,” Fay said, mentioning 5:30 a.m. practices and fitness workouts.

The girls played a tough fi rst-seeded Darien team in the FCIAC semifi nals and lost 6-1. The Wreckers were also unable to pull off an upset against a strong Hamden team who defeated them 5-1 in the state quarterfi nals. Despite the losses, Fay was pleased with her team’s effort and improvement, since making an appearance in the tournaments was a big accomplishment for the team. “We have come such a long way, and I am so proud of our team,” Fay said.

Another team that had great success last year is boy’s tennis. They finished the season undefeated, winning both the FCIAC Championship and the Class LL State Championship. “This season, it is definitely going to be challenging to go undefeated like we did last year,” Max Zimmerman ’17 said. “But I think it’s definitely possible if everyone works hard and plays their best.” With a mix of good underclassmen and upperclassmen, the team is looking forward to the season with the success of last season in mind.

Softball

The softball team has the same goal as they have every year: making the state tournament. They achieved this last year but lost in the first round. However, this year, they will be missing six members of that team who graduated last year.

Nevertheless, Robyn Adelkopf ’15 doesn’t see a young team as a disadvantage.

“All of our underclassmen have shown that they can step up, so we don’t consider our young team a bad thing,” Adelkopf ’15 said. “I think we’re going to have a successful season because we’re a very cohesive team.”

Baseball

The baseball team has been preparing both morning and afternoon for the upcoming season, with practices at 6 a.m. during the week as well as conditioning after school. Last year, the team had a very successful season. They were the FCIAC regular season champions as well as the Western Division champions.

They hope to repeat those achievements as well as win the FCIAC and State titles. “This year, we plan on doing big things. We want to compete at a very high level and bring new hardware back to those trophy cases by the gym,” Phil McGovern ’15 said. Opening day is April 8 against Newtown at Staples. “We’d love as many people as possible to come and support us as we start our run for both titles,” McGovern said.

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The Wreckers

Staples alumni find success in the big leagues Page 24

Maureen

March Madness causes distraction Page 25 PHOTOS BY CAROLINE O’KANE ’16

Cadden

Boys’ Ice Hockey On the rink, the boys’ ice hockey team finished the regular season with a strong 11-9 record and qualified for the state tournament. Sam New ’18 lead the team in scoring with an impressive 30 goals, and Zac Bloom ’18 started all 20 games at goalie. The boys ended their regular season with a 7-1 loss to Fairfield Warde/Ludlowe Co-op on Feb. 25.

brightens up the

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Girls’ Ice Hockey The girls’ ice hockey team has been the talk of the state this year. Led by standout Meg Fey ’15, the girls beat FCIAC powerhouse New Canaan for the first time in the program’s history. The team’s 13-3 record is the best in their history as well. The team finished the regular season in second place in the FCIAC.

BIG SMILES Physical education teacher Maureen Cadden models her Irish dancing skills and high �ives student Carly Lenihan ’16.

Cadden is originally from Ireland and was once an elementary school teacher at Saugatuck Elementary.

Becky Hoving ’17

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estled in her office in the depths of the fieldhouse, physical education teacher Maureen Cadden keeps her door wide open, sips a cup of tea, rests her feet on her “Just A Wee Bit Irish!” door-mat and smiles as students pop in to say ‘hello.’

When asked to speak about her teaching style, Cadden could not get more than a word in before Haley Burns ’16 passed by on her way to cheer practice and offered her own two cents. “Ms. Cadden is the best teacher there is,” she began. “I’m not just saying that because I’m in her office,” Burns said with a laugh. “But she really is. She really cares about her students and is one of the kindest people I know.”

This kind of praise is not uncommon for Cadden, who began her teaching career at a young age. “Growing up in Ireland in a big family, I was always caring for my younger siblings, and it seemed the natural progression to go into teaching,” Cadden said. “I started out teaching fourth grade at Saugatuck Elementary, and a few years ago, I switched over to the high school.”

One can imagine that the transition from teaching “James and the Giant Peach” to eager tenyear-olds to trying to captivate stressed out and chatty high schoolers can be quite difficult.

However, Cadden has managed it flawlessly. “What’s great about teaching here is that the kids have come to an age where you can have good fun with them; they really get it,” she said.

Cadden is constantly aware of the stress students are under.

Instead of burdening students with more work, though, Cadden always tries to make students feel at home in her class.

Douglas Raigosa ’16 can vouch for that. “She understands

students have a stressful life outside of gym class, and she wants to make gym an environment that is relaxing,” Raigosa said. “She wants students to be relieved of stress and have fun while exercising.”

But Cadden will go even further than just ensuring her students have fun; she connects with them on a personal level.

“She’s just the kind of person who loves to get to know her students and who is genuinely interested in our lives,” Charlotte Rossi ’17 said.

“Whenever I was nervous about a test, she would help me study or show me a breathing tech nique that would help me de-st ress.

Whenever I had a soccer game after school, she would show interest by asking me who we were playing or how I thought we would do,” Rossi continued, noting that after the girls’ soccer team won FCIACs, Cadden went as far as sending her a congratulatory

Boys’ Basketball The boys’ basketball team got off to a hot start and has maintained a steady pace throughout the season. The team finished the regular season with a record of 8-12 and competed in the state tournament. The team was led by captain Nicholaas Esposito ’15 and sensation Ben Casparius ’17.

Girls’ Basketball With a 9-11 regular season record, the girls’ basketball team made a late season push, winning four straight to end the regular season. This season, Sarah Mahoney ’15 made solid contributions all season long, along with her fellow seniors Abby Lustig ’15, Maggie Fair ’15, Tessa Mall ’15 and Madeline Schemel ’15.

Wrestling

“Ms. Cadden is th e best teacher there is. I’m not ju st saying that because I’m in h er office.”

-Haley Burns ’16 email.

Cadden, despite the praise, is quite modest. “I’m just trying to help students get through school and enjoy it,” she remarked,

while waving to a student in the hall. “I’m always here to listen to their problems and to applaud their successes; that’s what it’s all about.”

In the FCIAC wrestling championships, Staples finished impressively in seventh place, just one year removed from a 15th place finish. Of the nine wrestlers from Staples, five of them placed. Charles Lomanto ’15 led the way, finishing in second place in his respective weight class.

For continual updates, check inklingsnews.com