The Bear Facts March 2020

June 1, 2020 On March 11, 2020, students at Ursuline Academy of Dallas received a Remind message notifying them to remain at home due to a presumptive coronavirus case in the Ursuline community. As cases in the U.S. increased, Ursuline remained closed until the end of the school year on May 21. The Bear Facts staff was finishing up the March issue of the print newspaper when the school closed. Unfortunately, although the paper was about to go to print, the files could be accessed on campus only.

We recently had the opportunity to return to campus and were able to “rescue� the files for the March issue. We present to readers the published March issue of The Bear Facts in order to remember and celebrate the hard work of our staff.

Sarah Hui and Abigail Mihalic Class of 2020 Editors-in-Chief The Bear Facts

THE BEAR

FACTS

Ursuline Academy of Dallas

Vol. 41, Issue 4, March 2020

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Social Media Takes Over the News Cycle

By KATE GIEBLER ‘21 & SARAH HUI ‘20 When it comes to news circulation on social media, there are positives as well as negatives. Is the meme about a black hole or the comedic dance number to a soundbite about a new virus taken only as a joke? Could these jokes serve as a source for the spread of news?

A recent survey conducted by Common Sense Media and SurveyMonkey found that 54% of U.S. teens get their news from platforms such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, and 50% get their news from YouTube.

As for adults, the statistics are similar.

According to a recent Pew Research Center report, “More than half of U.S. adults get news from social media often or sometimes (55%), up from 47% in 2018.”

When the student sitting next to you in class confidently shares some breaking news, the question is how much of that news comes from non- traditional news sources. In other words, this student’s news bite may come from people or sources who are not held to the same fact-checking bar as traditional journalists.

According to the Common Sense Media and SurveyMonkey survey, “Sixty percent of teens who get news from YouTube say they are more likely to get it from celebrities, influencers, and personalities as compared to news organizations (39%).”

Whether a post or platform is spreading hoaxes or factual news, students tend to believe what they see.

For example, social media played a significant role in the Las Vegas shooting in 2017. Individuals were posting on Twitter and Instagram before they even knew facts about the events. The official investigation was still in progress as social media posts poured in accusing innocent people.

False headlines included “Vegas cop who ‘froze’ in hotel hallway during massacre is fired” and “Vegas massacre gunman was inspired by father, FBI says.”

These misleading headlines attest to the risk that lies in news distribution through social media. Social media allows for the rapid spread of fake news and untruths that can be hard to track or police for the general public. However, is it beneficial to use social media to spread news if it is trustworthy information?

When a reputable news publication has a verified account on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, it is safe to say that their posts are fact-checked and reliable.

Anyone can follow these reliable sources to provide a news element to their feeds.

Readers can also Readers can also sign sign up up for for daily daily email newsletemail newsletters, ters, ranging ranging from from compilations compilations of of top top headlines headlines to to opinion opinion columns to rundowns of movies. columns to rundowns of movies.

Sources Sources like like news news stations, stations, police police departments and other departments and other reliable reliable organizaorganizations tions can can spread spread necessary necessary information information in in seconds, seconds, as as almost almost everyone everyone looks looks at at social media multiple times a day, social media multiple times a day, scrollscrolling ing for for new new content content to to ingest. ingest. Because Because of of social social media, media, many many people people have have been been saved saved from from earthquakes earthquakes or or tornadoes tornadoes due due to others posting about the danger to others posting about the danger in in order to warn others. order to warn others.

Other organizations will use social media to get the word out about cancellations or schedule changes, such as when the Ursuline Dallas Instagram account posted about school cancellations the week after the October tornado.

However, in reference back to the idea of the spreading of false information, what are the repercussions if true information is spread in an inappropriate manner by individuals?

A recent example comes from the World War Three videos on Tik Tok and Instagram. The event that sparked the

WWIII memes was a serious political situation, the killing of General Qasem Soleimani in Iraq by a U.S. airstrike, but these social media platforms displayed videos mocking or making light of the situation.

Similarly, the coronavirus originating from China is a deadly virus that has spread around the world. The World Health Organization declared the situation a global emergency. More than a thousand people have died worldwide and yet the virus has been used as the punchline for many jokes and memes.

Mocking these situations has negative moral implications, but there might be indirect positives found in such media attention. The seriousness, although diluted, still radiates from the situational matter of the event. Students can spread the significance of current events in a way that catches the attention of younger generations, which may engross them in politics and current events.

The most important part of using social media as a primary news source is knowing which sources are reliable and how to judge if they are or not. While platforms like TikTok could increase news exposure in a roundabout way, the real test comes when teens decide who to trust and what to believe.

This is more complicated than it seems, even with the presence of reputable news organizations on social media. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube use mysterious algorithms to organize their content and news feeds, dictating what users will or will not see.

“Among all teens who get their news from YouTube—regardless of how often—exactly half (50%) say they most often find news on YouTube because it was recommended by YouTube itself,” Common Sense Media reported.

Social media continues to be an evolving giant with its own positives and negatives. But news literacy is an important goal for which students should strive, and social media remains extremely popular among teens. Combining the two seems not only inevitable, but strategic as well. With 78% of Americans age 13 to 17 saying following current events is important to them, social media is a way to encourage that sentiment.

Seemingly, that time honored adage spoken by your English teacher when assigning your research paper to “verify and attribute your sources” is also applicable to news literacy.

Image courtesy of Unsplash

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Inside

March

The Bear Facts

French Strikes Swell Traffic

Weary Haiti Still Recovering

By JACKIE THOMAS ‘20

By HELEN EMERSON ‘20

Courtesy of The Telegraph

Throughout December and January, France’s longest transportation strike in over 50 years brought major cities to a grinding halt. The strike and coinciding protests across the country, held in response to an attempted overhaul of the French pension system by President Emmanuel Macron and his administration, have had widespread economic effects while compromise still remains unreached.

Reforms to the pension system, if enacted, would consolidate the current scheme offering 2 different pension plans to French citizens depending on occupation and region into a single, universal system for every pensioner which would award benefits based on the length of time each citizen works. Additionally, the new plan would force citi-

zens to work longer in order to receive full pension benefits, with an intended increase of the legal retirement age from 62 to 6 starting in 2027. These changes would go into effect fully for those entering the workforce in 2022.

According to Macron and French Prime Minister douard Phillippe, the overhaul would bring France’s system more in line with other European countries, most of which have higher retirement ages and spend far less on retirement benefits. The administration also claims that the reforms would be a victory for women and social justice in general by assuring all French citizens pay the same amount into the pension funds and receive the same benefits.

Despite promises of nationwide improvements, many find issues with the reforms and Macron and Phillippe’s reasoning. For example, French women’s organizations refute claims that the new plan will benefit women. A spokesperson for Nos Retraites, an organization opposed to the reforms, said, “ The proposal calls into question the financial independence of women, who are sometimes forced to stay with their husbands in order to avoid financial uncertainty,” citing figures that suggest both mothers of families and divorced women stand to lose out on pension funds.

Continued pg. 11

In the first month of 2020 alone, natural disasters have disrupted communities and nations, leaving varying levels of destruction in their wake. Earthquakes, oods, volcanoes and other catastrophes have cost lives, homes, and land.

Those affected by recent occurrences, such as the volcano in the Philippines and earthquakes in Turkey and Jamaica, are scrambling to get their lives back on track. Elsewhere, many suffer under the weight of disasters of the much more distant past, as it can be incredibly difficult for individuals and nations to pull themselves from the weight of sudden, terrible disasters.

“Every year natural disasters kill around 90,000 people and affect close to 160 million people worldwide. Natural

Courtesy of AP disasters include earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, landslides, hurricanes, oods, wildfires, heat waves and droughts. They have an immediate impact on human lives and often result in the destruction of the physical, biological and social environment of the affected people, thereby having a longerterm impact on their health, well-being and survival,” according to the World Health Organization.

January 12, 2020 marked the 10-year anniversary of the 7.0 earthquake in Haiti that forever changed the nation. In its immediate wake, amidst the destruction, there was a lingering feeling of hope, which Caitlin Hu addresses in a recent article for CNN. Continued pg. 10

THE BEAR FACTS STAFF FRONT EDITORS Sarah Hui ‘20 Abigail Mihalic ‘20 INSIDE EDITORS Sarah Hui ‘20 Abigail Mihalic ‘20 SCHOOL NEWS EDITOR Natalie Ro ‘22 PROFILES EDITOR Ellie Skelly ‘21 FEATURES EDITOR Helen Emerson ‘20 GLOBAL FEATURES EDITOR Katharine Bales ‘22 SPREAD EDITOR Sarah Nguyen ‘20 SPORTS & WELLNESS EDITOR Emma Louviere ‘22

ADVISER Melinda Smith EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Sarah Hui ‘20 Abigail Mihalic ‘20 ONLINE EDITORS Grace Risinger ‘20 Emilea McCutchan ‘20 Editorial Policy Editorials re ect the sta ’s opinion and are not bylined. Opinion pieces are bylined and are the opinion of the author.

Letter policy Readers are encouraged to submit letters to be considered for publication. They may respond to an article, provide feedback on the whole paper, or address a topic not addressed in the paper. In order to be published, these letters cannot be anonymous.

Articles, story ideas, or pictures submitted by the Ursuline community will be received and considered for publication. Submissions for should be e-mailed to 20amihalic ursulinedallas.org or 20shui ursulinedallas.org, or brought to room 035.

900 Walnut Hill Lane Dallas, Texas 75229 uabfstaff gmail.com

ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Ainsley Neitzel ‘20 TRENDING EDITORS Kate Janson ‘20 Hope Whitcraft ‘20 INSIGHTS EDITOR Bethany Roberts ‘20 OPINIONS EDITOR Jackie Thomas ‘20 BACK EDITOR Kate Giebler ‘21 BUSINESS MANAGER Kate Janson ‘20 SOCIAL MEDIA & PUBLIC RELATIONS MANAGER Bethany Roberts ‘20 Instagram uabearfacts https: theuabearfacts.com

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March

Engineering Week Promotes STEM With Rockets

By SARAH NGUYEN ‘20 Even if you do not consider yourself a “STEM person”, STEM still makes up much of your daily life. Besides the required four years of math and science, we unknowingly use science, technology, engineering and math from everyday actions like calculating the price of your SAGE meal to coding in your Introduction to Computer Science class.

Marissa Ovenshire ‘20, president of Ursuline’s Computer Science and Engineering club, contributed to the overall success of this year’s Engineering Week from Feb. 17 to Feb. 21. “I really believe that engineering gives a basis of problem solving and collaboration that can be applied to anything else a person might want to pursue,” she said.

Engineering Week was an entire school week dedicated to appreciating STEM. Countless teachers and student leaders worked to offer fun, STEM-related activities to the student body.

To start off the week, the National Science Honor Society announced a trivia question in the morning over the inter-

com, which continued throughout the week. Students submitted answers, and at the week’s end three winners were chosen and awarded pins. The halls were lined with math bulletin boards, and on Tuesday the Math Club set out probability card games.

On Wednesday, the TXML, a monthly math competition, took place in every math classroom during tutorial period.

Various candies were rewarded to fivetime TXML participants.

During lunches, the engineering club and Social Studies teacher Dorothy Cassetta set up a station to construct and launch your own straw rocket. Consisting of a straw body and customized

people, so even a fun activity like straw rockets aims to encourage someone to consider applying their creativity and logic to a STEM field,” said Ovenshire.

After an eventful Wednesday of rocket launching, the following day sped by with remote-control car races.

Friday’s Hackathon finished off EngiFrom left Maggie Griffiths ‘22, Elena Velasquez ‘22 & Katharine Bales ‘22

From left Madeleine Crew ‘20, Megan Wampner ‘20, Sarabeth Debord ‘20, Teresa Valenzuela ‘20 & Marissa Ovenshire ‘20

From left Madeleine Crew ‘20, Marissa Ovenshire ‘20 & Sophia Tran ‘20

wings, each participant placed her straw rocket onto a pump. Rockets after rockets soared through the air. The rocket that traveled the furthest belonged to MC McDermott ’21.

“Engineering needs all types of

neering Week with the help of Computer Science Department Chair Eve Juarez and other contributors. Hackathon is an inter-Ursuline competition where computer-savvy students gather into teams to code and to present a solution to a global issue.

Moreover, a panel of several Ursuline alumnae gave presentations on their experiences studying as STEM majors.

The panel consisted of Cristin Beach, a sales engineer at Johnson Controls, Katie Hambric, who works at Michael Walker Construction, and Kelly Sullivan, associ-

ate attorney at Yee & Associates.

Most students do not realize that months of work are necessary for a mere week’s worth of activities. Ovenshire said, “I have been planning this week since the end of last year when I bought the kits for remote-control cars. I personally built two remote-control solar-powered cars for Thursday as well.”

Ovenshire added, “I plan to study computer engineering next year, but I have yet to decide where I will end up.

Both of my parents are engineers, so I have had a lot of exposure to the benefits of engineering, but not everyone necessarily has the same experience.”

Students agreed that many thanks should go to student contributors like Ovenshire, as well as to the Math, Computer Science and Science departments for their time and effort put into Engineering Week’s activities!

Images Courtesy of Ursuline Communications Associate Aubree Auletta

Breaking Down the 2020 Presidential Primaries

By KATHARINE BALES ‘22 & ABIGAIL MIHALIC ‘20 Only four and a half years ago, the American people selected Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump as the Democratic and Republican Party nominees for the presidency.

Although the 2020 primary process will be less complicated with incumbent President Trump essentially securing the Republican nomination, picking the Democratic nominee is shaping up to be a surprisingly tight race.

But what are primaries, and how do they choose the presidential nominee?

Each state and territory in the United States holds either a caucus or a primary in which residents vote for the candidate they want to become the party nominee.

Caucuses are much more public than primaries. Voters assemble in school gyms and town halls and group themselves in different corners for their candidate. The Iowa Caucus is the most famous, though its public nature is often criticized as undemocratic.

Most states hold primaries which take place at regular polling stations where votes are cast secretly. Primaries do differ across state and party lines with some primaries being closed (only registered party members can vote) or open (any voter can participate regardless of party).

Each state is allocated a certain number of delegates which are divided among the candidates based on the percentage of the vote they win. To win the party nomination, a candidate must win the majority of delegates at the national convention.

The presidential nominating system of today has only existed for about 50 years. After political parties were firmly established by the 1800s, caucuses composed of members of Congress were held to decide the nominee.

State primaries emerged in the 20th century after this method of nomina-

lic resulted in the current nomination process. For the Democrats, delegates are assigned by the popular vote but prominent Democrats, superdelegates, do make up for almost 20% of the delegate total.

The Republicans do not have superdelegates, but they give states more freedom in choosing the nominee.

Courtesy of KSAT

tion failed to uphold the separation of powers. Some states began to hold citizen-voting primaries, but they were ultimately seen as indicators of who could win the general election with the nomination still decided on by party leaders.

During the 1970s, a combination of backlash against candidates elected by both party leaders and the pub-

State primaries do more than just pick delegates for the national convention.

Primary elections along with presidential debates in the months leading up to the November general election, play a crucial role in informing the American people about each candidate and generating momentum for high performers.

At the time of writing, three nominating contests have already been held to

decide the 2020 presidential nominees: the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire and Nevada primaries.

South Carolina will follow before Super Tuesday where 16 states including Texas all hold their primaries on the same day, Mar. 3. Other states follow until June, with the Democratic and Republican Conventions taking place in July and August.

After the New Hampshire primary, the Democratic field narrowed down to eight candidates, listed here in order of their standing in national polls: Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden, Mike Bloomberg, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Tom Steyer and Tulsi Gabbard.

For the current juniors and senior who will be eligible to vote in the next major election, knowing about each candidate’s promises and policies is key.

Young people should be educated on all candidates in order to make a more informed decision about the country’s future.

Although there is a Republican challenger to President Trump, Former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, who has even secured one delegate so far, there will likely be no opposition to Donald Trump’s Republican Nomination.

On pages 12-13, you can find a breakdown of all the Democratic nomination hopefuls who are being voted on in the primaries.

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March

School News

The Bear Facts

Those JSB Cowboy Boots Have a Cause Behind Them

By KATE GIEBLER ‘21 Each high school girl waltzes into the ballroom dressed in her sleek black dress with each high school boy wearing a matching tuxedo jacket and bow tie.

However, glancing from the waist down to the ground, these students are also paying tribute to their Texas roots by completing their look with classic cowboy boots. This attire and spirit can only be found at the Junior Symphony Ball fundraiser event in Dallas.

Although most Dallas high school students know exactly what JSB means—live music, dancing and boots—does anyone really know what the point of the Junior Symphony Ball really is?

At its core, JSB is a fundraising event held for high school sophomores, juniors and seniors to support the Dallas Symphony Orchestra community outreach and education programs. This cause is less well-known, but provides a significant

impact.

The JSB website says, “The DSO Young Musicians program provides free instruments and lessons to students in Southern Dallas during summer camps and after-school programming.”

The event does, in fact, earn plenty

media such as letters and invitations.

Despite the hefty price tag, students around the city prepare months in advance for this dance, buying dresses and tuxes, without realizing that their ticket is donating to a worthy cause.

When considering JSB, one can agree

From left Killian Finn ‘20 and Bethany Roberts ‘20

From left Kate Giebler ‘21, Sarah Troegel ‘21, Isabella Zarmakoupis ‘21, Laine Hanson ‘21 & Tatum Costoio ‘ 21

From left Brynson Gill ‘20, Kate Janson ‘20 & Catherine Taylor ‘20

of support for the cause as 35 participating schools send students at $100$200 a ticket to the dance.

However, the event not only earns funds from ticket sales, they also raise thousands of dollars in donations through the “chairs” of the event. The JSB chairs are a group of students from multiple high schools including Ursuline, Jesuit and Highland Park who donate a certain amount to the cause.

These specific students are featured on the JSB website and in other forms of

that it is one of the most worthwhile dances of the year, as students from around the city come together “to celebrate an evening filled with live music, dancing, professionally staffed gaming tables, raffles, prizes and refreshments,” all the while assisting a charitable cause.

The highlight of the night comes when the concert begins, as JSB is not a high school dance with DJ, but an event that includes live music from wellknown artists.

The past few years have included art-

ists like Cherub and COIN, both music groups known for their popular indie or alternative music genre. These two groups provided great live music performances, and students get to enjoy the show up close.

This year, however, the organization gotbooked an artist from the hip hop side of the music genre spectrum and announced Famous Dex as this year’s live performer.

In regards to the fundraising focus of the event, students pay less for a performance, party, refreshments and experience worth much more, all the while providing for a foundation’s good cause.

So as everyone pulled on their cowboy boots and walked into the ballroom, they could remember what they were supporting while they listened to great music and celebrateed with their friends.

Images courtesy of Kate Janson ‘20, Bethany Roberts ‘20 & Kate Giebler ‘21

Seniors Share Their Favorite Service Memories

By AINSLEY NEITZEL‘20 The motto of Ursuline is Serviam or “I will serve.” Students embody this ideal throughout all four years of their academic career here. Each year, the senior class completes their time at Ursuline by working at a certain service site for two hours every Monday morning. This experience allows students to build relationships and make connections in a specific organization for the entirety of the school year. We interviewed a handful of Ursuline seniors and asked them to share their experiences so far this year.

Lauren Asher ’20 serves as a teaching assistant in a kindergarten class at Good Shepherd Episcopal School. “I love getting to see my kindergarten class every week! It is the best way to start off the week,” Asher said.

“Being able to help kids learn is so fulfilling, and I cherish every day I get with them!” One of Asher’s favorite memories was her birthday where her dad came and made pancakes with the class to celebrate.

Kate Rucker ’20 serves at John J. Pershing Elementary School where the majority of students come from non-English-speaking, economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Rucker combines her passions for art and service by helping in the art classroom. “It’s amazing what a good outlet art is for the kids because I don’t think they are used to being encouraged to find a creative outlet,” she said.

Sonia Sadler ‘20 playing with kids at her Senior service Courtesy of Ursuline Dallas Instagram

Marta Baker ’20 serves at Lee A. McShan Refugee School as a tutor.

“Connecting with the kids while teaching them how to read is what makes my Mondays great. They are so funny, and their personalities are developing each day.

I had a kid one time write sentences for an hour only talking about throwing up. It was hilarious!”

Jo Davis ’20 serves with the Young Life youth group staff each Monday, as well as serving on their leadership team. “I have gotten to plan clubs and events for some of my best friends that they get to enjoy and love getting to do. I have also met some of my favorite people and mentors through the staff and leadership. They are relationships that I hope to have for life.”

Nikki Kanzler ’20 helps at the Notre Dame School of Dallas for children with disabilities and special needs. When asked about her favorite part of serving at Notre Dame, she said “Just being around the students! They are all so sweet and fun to hang out with, and I can honestly call them friends. We’ve had a blast together so far!” Kanzler said. “Every day is a fun

experience with my kids. We’ve had dance recital practice to baking classes and everything in between. I’ve learned so much at Notre Dame, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to serve there. Monday morning service never fails to bring a smile to my face!”

Brooke Patton ’20 serves at Walnut Hill Elementary.

“The kids are my favorite part. A lot of Mondays I tutor a kid named Craig, and he always comes with a new haircut because his dad is a barber. He always shows it off to me and it’s really cute!”

Each senior has had a different, often life-changing experience. We are meeting new people, forming new relationships, and growing as individuals. It has helped us find the purest form of joy through serving others and watching how we are able to make a difference.

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School News

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March

Now We Wear The Pants

By KATHARINE BALES ‘22 As most students have heard, Ursuline now allows its students to wear pants on regular school days. Since the Ursuline uniform has always required the traditional plaid skirt, some were surprised by a new optional uniform piece.

Dean of Students Kayla Brown announced the pants’ upcoming availability at class meetings in early January.

“I believe it was a few years ago when some students brought up the idea,” Brown said. “Dr. Shurley and I knew that Hockaday offered plaid pants, so we started to look into them.”

As administrators considered bringing pants into Ursuline life, they closely examined the school’s values and whether they aligned with the idea.

“We are always trying to stay innovative while also keeping Ursuline’s traditions and values at the forefront of all decisions,” Brown said. “It is not always the easiest balance, but it is what we strive for.”

Another factor that encouraged the idea was the constantly changing nature of fashion. Brown and her fellow administrators tried to modernized the uniform since pants are now increasingly popular among teenage girls.

“We understand that fashion and trends change a lot over time and wanted to make sure we were giving our students new options when we could,” Brown said.

They then decided to execute the idea by contacting Mills Uniform Co.—the same brand that makes Ursuline’s white button-up blouse and plaid skirt—about manufacturing plaid pants.

“Once we knew that our uniform vendor could make the pants, we wanted to make sure any and all parties were aware and were okay with the decision,” Brown said.

“Our school administrative team and our campus administrative team all had to approve the decision.”

According to Brown, the pants are made of the same plaid fabric as the skirt. They have pockets, and a navy or tan belt must be worn with them at school.

“I think it’s important to still incorporate the school plaid into the uniform,” Emma Brodsky ’22 said.

Mills Uniform Co. has agreed to make the pants if Ursuline receives at least 48 orders. One pair costs $69.95, but these pants—unlike the skirts, which come in traditional, less precise sizes ranging from extra-small to extra-large—will be tailored exactly based on the student’s given measurements.

Despite this exciting new alternative on regular school days, skirts still must be worn on special assembly days. Whenever there is Mass or a school-related function during the school day, students will be required to wear their skirts.

In addition to providing an alternative uniform piece that adheres to Ursuline’s values and successfully encapsulates new clothing trends, the pants are intended to be an enjoyable change for the students— especially if they prefer wearing them instead of skirts.

Brown said, “I think they will give our students another option that they may like!”

Assuming that Ursuline submits the minimum required 48 orders to Mills Co., students will be able to start wearing the pants in April 2020, toward the end of the school year.

“I’m excited to see the pants in circulation,” Ellie Skelly ’21 said.

Some students are now intrigued to see pants replacing skirts at Ursuline. For so long, skirts have dominated the typical Catholic school uniform, so offering another option could create long-lasting change for Ursuline and potentially other private high schools where students must dress according to uniform.

Despite all the excitement that has arisen from her recent announcement, Brown doubts that many girls will buy them in the long run.

“I think a small number of students will ultimately invest in the pants. I think the skirt is pretty iconic and alums and students recognize UA by the skirt!”

Image Courtesy of Emma Louviere ‘22

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March

Profiles

The Bear Facts

Meet Ursuline’s Playwriting Music Teacher

By BETHANY ROBERTS ‘20 Jon Schweikhard, aside from having an extremely difficult-to-spell last name, works in Ursuline’s performing arts department and has worked at Ursuline for six years. Before Ursuline, however, he attended SMU and graduated in 1991, studying composition and accompanying.

He has worked on several projects of he wrote the music for a modern version the Faust story called The Bargain and his thesis project was an opera scene called “Traffic Jamn!”

“Several plays that I’ve written incidental music for included songs, s¬ome of them with a lot of songs: The Caucasian Chalk Circle and The Arsonists. I’ve

interesting to perform music styles that do not personally excite him to listen to.

At Ursuline, he is responsible for accompanying all three of the school choirs: Freshman Choir, Concert Choir and The Satin Dolls. The choirs perform at the Christmas and spring concerts, open house and Mass, among others.

“Mr. Schweikhard is the greatest. He’s super nice and caring and always helps us out,” said Tori Zaugg ‘20, a member of the concert choir.

Schweikhard also assists with the spring musical which is performed in March. This year’s musical is 9 to 5 and is being performed March 5 through March 8. Schweikhard also accompanies

“I’m able to apply the knowledge I learn in class to my compositions and performances, and I feel really proud when I can make those connections.” set Albee’s The Sandbox to music. One really fun project was a deconstructed version of Oklahoma! It gave me a chance to turn that familiar music on its ear” Schweikhard said.

When asked about his favorite piece to play, he replied that he does not have a favorite but has noticed that he finds it

Ursuline’s musical theatre classes, helping students perform solos and group numbers from Broadway shows. “[I am most delighted] watching the students at the auditions. The support they provide each other and the amount of courage they exhibit is exhilarating,” he said in response to a question about

“Mr. Schweikhard has a true love for both music and teaching, and it is an absolute joy learning with him.” his favorite memories from Ursuline.

Schweikhard has also started to teach the AP Music Theory course. Mi-Lan Hoang ’21 currently takes the class.

“I can honestly say that it is one of the most rewarding classes I’ve ever taken at Ursuline.

I’ve studied music theory before but have never truly enjoyed it until I starting taking Mr. Schweikhard’s class.

Developing that understanding of the structure of music has helped me immensely in my other music studies – I’m able to apply the knowledge I learn in class to my compositions and performances, and I feel really proud when I can make those connection. Mr. Schweikhard is always challenging me to be the best musician

and best student I can be, and I’ve never felt more connected to my music than I do now. Mr. Schweikhard has a true love for both music and teaching, and it is an absolute joy learning with him,” he said.

When jokingly asked about how often people misspell his last name, Schweikhard said, “What amuses me is when I get mail with the last name very carefully spelled but they didn’t get “Jon” right.”

A talented musician and teacher, all of Ursuline is thankful for Jon Schweikhard. Zoe Rodriguez ’21 said it best by saying that “[Schweikhard is] an amazing teacher and has definitely played a key role in my Ursuline experience.”

Courtesy of Ursuline Dallas

Double the Delegations, Double the Fun

By GRACE RISINGER ‘21 For Ursuline’s first-ever Global Week in January, student delegations from Ursuline’s sister schools Colegio Santa Ursula in Lima, Peru and Beijing Huaxia Girls’ School in Beijing, China were present for the special event.

The students from both schools led special presentations for the Ursuline community, both showcasing dances unique to their home countries among other performances.

During these presentations, the students from Ursuline in Dallas were very active and engaged. Host students are not an irregular occurrence at Ursuline. In fact, there is always a long list of students hoping to host a student from another Ursuline school.

In the case of the Peruvian and Chinese delegations, four seniors, Paola O’Rourke ‘20, Abbi Sakawat ‘20, Sarah Hui ’20 and Sarah Nguyen ’20, were very eager to host.

O’Rourke and Sakawat both hosted students from Colegio Santa Ursula in Peru. O’Rourke loved showing her new friend, Ariana Paredes, around Dallas.

Paredes, 15, would be a sophomore at Ursuline, and she had never been to the United States prior to her trip. When comparing Texas to her native Peru, Paredes said, “Texas is a big, beautiful and really fun state. The people are really nice and the state itself has its own personality.”

O’Rourke made sure that Paredes really got a sense of Dallas and its unique southern culture. The pair had a blast at Six Flags, shopping at thrift stores, running at Ursuline cross country practices,

exploring Target, participating in the Dallas was not her first venture into the Women’s March and touring Southern United States. The 15-year-old would be Methodist University. a freshman at Ursuline and found the Paredes favorite part of her visit was people in Dallas to be very friendly. “seeing new places and trying new foods Sarah Hui ‘20 and Sarah Nguyen each time.” She actually cooked a tradi‘20 loved hosting students from Beijing tional Peruvian dish called Sopa Criolla Huaxia Girls’ School in China. Hui was for O’Rourke’s family so they could try a most surprised by how mature her host new food, too! sister, Phoebe Zhao, acted for her age.

Abbi Sakawat and her host sister, AleAt only 13, Zhao would be in eighth jandra Cubas, grade in the also formed United States. a close bond However, Hui during the found that Peruvians’ Zhao’s manvisit to Dalnerisms and las. As they height made both prefer her more to adventure equivalent to and exploran Ursuline inge new freshman. places rather Zhao’s than simply hobbies ingoing shopclude listenping, they got ing to music, along quite with K-pop well. boyband BTS Courtesy of Ursuline Dallas Instagram The duo number one visited an arcade, among her favorites, learning K-pop Bishop Arts District, Deep Ellum, Six dances and reading. Her love for BTS Flags, Klyde Warren Park and the Perot and K-pop dancing led to Zhao performMuseum. Cubas’s favorite part of her ing a K-pop dance during the Chinese visit to Texas was Six Flags, whereas delegation’s Global Week presentation.

Sakawat really enjoyed “being able to Following her performance, Zhao quickhave a sister for two weeks”having a ly became friends with Ariana Paredes, sister for two weeks since she is an only Paola O’Rourke’s host sister from Peru, child, she said. who is also a fan of BTS. Cubas was most surprised by Texas’ “I think that [their friendship] fit the immense size and crazy weather. As she theme of Global Week perfectly. It’s so has visited Orlando before, her stay in great when we have two visiting delega-

tions from two very different parts of the world, but we’re all able to connect and form relationships,” said Hui. Zhao’s favorite part of her visit in Dallas was going to Fossil Rim. She also especially loved Dallas’ rainy weather. “I feel comfortable on rainy days. It’s pretty relaxing to watch the rain drop down,” she said.

It was not her first time in the United States, as she visited Boston and New York City over the summer. Sarah Nguyen’s host student, Rainie Chen, has also visited New York City and enjoyed her stay in Dallas too.

In comparison to China, Rainie felt that Texas has fewer buildings and more land. She also noticed that the sky is a “clear blue, while in Beijing it is grayer.”

Rainie is also 13 years old and would be an eighth grader in the United States.

Outside of school, she plays basketball and piano. Due to limited forms of social media in China, Nguyen and Rainie contacted each other through email prior to her visit.

The pair enjoyed eating sushi at Kura Revolving Sushi Belt, visiting the Fort Worth stockyards, and trying American fast food from Chick Fil A and Sonic.

Rainie’s favorite part of the visit was spending time with her host sister.

Nguyen loved playing chess with Rainie and her friends.

Although the Chinese traveled back to China on January 26th and the Peruvians traveled back to Peru on January 30th, the bonds they formed with their host sisters and the memories they made will last a lifetime.

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18-Year-Old Alyssa Carson Seeks Mars

By HELEN EMERON ‘20 Many young children will pass through a phase in which they announce their intent to become an astronaut or to go to space, often accompanied by helmeted Halloween costumes and refrigerator box rockets. Alyssa Carson went through the same phase, and at 18 still has not grown out of it.

Carson is now the youngest member of NASA’s team, and will likely be the first person to step foot on the planet Mars. Her dedication to this dream has led her through training camps, studies in astronautics, and other prerequisites as her peers sit in their high school classes.

“My fascination with space all started when I watched an episode of the cartoon The Backyardigans called ‘A Mission to Mars,’… [In that episode] all the friends went on this imaginary adventure in their backyard which eventually brought them to Mars. I had the poster for that episode hung on my bedroom wall for years,” said Carson.

This fascination is coming to life for Carson, as NASA plans to launch a Mars mission by 2030 with the purpose of finding life, understanding the climate and possibly preparing for colonization, all which have so far only been figments of fiction.

This mission, however, comes with many dangers including radiation,

engine failure during the 40 millionmile trip, or the possibility that a ticket aboard the shuttle might be only oneway. Many are also concerned about the psychological effects of such a long, isolating mission so far from earth.

Because of the distance, trips will have to be fully stocked for every possibility, medical and otherwise, since the communication delay from Mars to Earth is 20 minutes.

Carson, however, does not allow fear to cloud her goals. “There’s always a sense of fear that something could go wrong since no mission to space has ever been 100 percent safe. But I definitely believe that a mission to Mars, and all the benefits we can get from it, outweigh any of the risks,” said Carson.

Carson’s passion for space has led her to attend 19 space camps, national and international. She speaks several foreign languages including Spanish, French, Chinese, and some Turkish, according to her p r o f i l e on MarsOne. She has given three TED talks, with her first at the age of 13. At 15, Carson was accepted into the Advanced PoSSUM Space Academy, making her the youngest person ever to receive this honor.

Her certification in applied astronautics made her officially certified to go into orbit, according to Forbes. She is working with smart luggage company

Horizn Studios to make sure that when the day comes, passengers on a flight to Mars have suitable luggage.

She has worked with the brand to develop lightweight, vacuum sealed suitcases that will retail for a meager $50,000.

Carson has accomplished all of these things and more while completing her high school education. She is also a current freshman at The Florida Institute of Technology where she studies astrobiology.

For Carson, it is essential that she inspires others to follow their dreams, for hers may be among the most difficult and imaginative, yet she is on path to achieve it.

According to Newsweek, “Carson told Stylist that while there has been a gender problem historically, the selection process is now split equally between men and women and it is ‘awesome to see more female astronauts coming into the space program,’” says Carson .

Carson’s last two TED talks are focused on similar inspirations, one

Courtesy of Google Images

of which focuses on following dreams while the other specifies this topic, challenging young people to change dynamics and break barriers, never held back by age. For both the Mars program and all young people with similar passions, Alyssa is an inspiration in shooting for the stars.

Dr. Moody: The Man Behind the Running Shoes

By NATALIE RO ‘22 Dr. Jonathan Moody is well known as a dedicated distance runner and science teacher, but there is more him than Ursuline cross country, sophomore chemistry and now Physics II Honors.

Moody lived with his parents, older brother Judd and younger brother Kurt in the city of Indianapolis until the age of five, and then moved to Michigan. At the age of nine he moved to Texas and has continued to spend the rest of his life in the state.

For high school, he attended Allen High and was involved in choir, cross country and track. He graduated second in his class of 459 kids and was a National Merit Finalist. His first job was being a lifeguard at the local neighborhood pools.

As a middle child, Moody looked up to his older brother, Judd, and aspired to be like him. His brother ran in middle school and Moody joined him.

“I would run with my family every Wednesday in the summer and we would participate in a 5K together,” Moody said.

His older brother Judd now works at Texas A&M University and his younger brother Kurt lives in Houston working in the restaurant business.

Even during Moody’s childhood, his interests foreshadowed his future career.

He said, “[Science] always interested me and challenged me. Growing up, I liked to think about how things work and the

science behind it.”

While Moody was finishing up his teacher certification program in graduate school, Ursuline reached out and recruited him. He originally thought he would work at a public school while his wife completed her PhD. His wife, Dr. Leslie Moody, is now the senior

one in the UA community remind me of my experiences going to Texas A&M University for my undergraduate degree,” he said.

Moody’s decision to coach track and cross country from the very beginning has also contributed to his continuing presence at Ursuline.

Nowadays during cross

counditry searector son, about of medical three times From left Moody, Natalie, Caroline, and scienper week Moody Nathan & Dr. Leslie Moody tific strategy for a will wake up at 4:15 medical communications coma.m. and go on a short 1-mile jog pany. Moody has remained a teacher at after arriving at Ursuline before coaching Ursuline for almost 14 years. morning practice. Throughout the year, “As soon as I interviewed here in Moody runs an average of 64 miles each 2006, I felt a connection to Ursuline. week. He is constantly motivated by his Having been raised Catholic, and growfamily and his determination to stay fit. ing up in the Diocese of Dallas, I had Last year, Moody traveled to Boston friends who went to Jesuit, but never for his birthday week and participated knew any Ursuline girls in high school. in the annual Boston Marathon. It was a The traditions and friendliness of everynotable experience as a runner but also

gave he and his wife the opportunity to explore the city, which they had never visited before. To prepare for the 26.2mile race, he intensified his training and ran up to 30 miles each weekend.

Moody almost never uses his phone because he is either running, grading tests or spending time with his family.

With a busy schedule, it can be difficult to find time to spend with his three kids, Natalie, 11, Caroline, 9 and Nathan, 5.

“Sometimes I’ll get home when my kids are asleep, and I’ll wake up before they wake up,” he said.

However, Moody does get to spend most of his time during weekends with them. He enjoys hikes, runs and bike rides with his family and occasionally, video games.

Moody’s enjoyment of hiking contributes to his choice of clothing during school. Chaperoning the Photography in Arizona trip with photography teacher William Thompson four times has also motivated him to be prepared for anything.

“I choose to rock button-up plaid shirts – versatile thanks to vented backs and sides, copious pockets and button-up sleeves, nylon and/or convertible pants [also] with copious pockets and woolblend hiking socks,” Moody said. His father-in-law inspired him to carry the multi-tool attached to his belt.

Image Courtesy of Jonathan Moody

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The Bear Facts

No Connection: Wifi Deserts Harm Students

By EMMA LOUVIERE ‘22 When an Ursuline student sits down in a class, the first thing that is asked of them is to get out their laptops. This laptop holds every vital part of their education. The teacher then may proceed to present notes from his or her computer on the board. The first five minutes of every class will likely proceed accordingly. Then at night, the student has to complete their math homework on One Note, turn in an essay via email or submit an analysis of a history document on Teams. The procedure listed above could not be done without one thing - wi-fi.

Wi-fi is a vital part of our day at school and out of school for every Ursuline student.

They rely on wi-fi for nearly every part of the day.

But many people do not have the same luxury. Microsoft reports that almost 163 million Americans do not have access to highspeed internet.

Many of those Americans are kids that cannot do their homework because they do not have access to Wi-Fi. CBS covered a positive story on California’s Coachella

Valley. This city worked to solve the lack of Wi-Fi by putting routers on busses and parking them where there is no activity after school hours. Due to the increase in kids’ ability to do their homework and access the web the graduation rate went up 8% that year. Kids look to utilize Wi-Fi anywhere that they can to be able to do their online

two companies do not face any competition, both nearing monopoly territory. The companies have no motivation to supply their customers with adequate service because they will not make as much money if their equipment is working at its best. Instead, they can provide inadequate service, and

163 MILLION

example of Municipal Broadband allowing small towns to take Internet into their own hands.

The Internet crises is a significant issue in the world today and due to this, rising presidential candidates for 2020 have been asked about their own plans to fix the crises.

Bernie Sanders answered this question with a plan to “require that all internet service providers offer a Basic Internet Plan that provides quality broadband speeds at an affordable price.”

Senator Elizabeth Warren plans to attack the issue in a different way that the Verge reports as an “85 billion dollar grant program for nonprofits and local government to build fiber networks, as well as protections for cities that want to run their broadband services.”

There is no doubt that a change in the Internet world needs to be made, but the question is whether the government or these rising candidates will make the changes.

These changes would lead to more students having access to Wi-Fi in order to complete homework and do schoolwork. Moneyhungry companies like Comcast and Charter would be forced to make changes for the betterment of customers in need of sufficient Wi-Fi.

Americans do not have access to high-speed internet homework. NJTV has reported on, “kids sitting outside the McDonalds buying french-fries because it’s the cheapest thing on the menu and then connecting to the Wi-Fi and doing their homework in the parking lot.”

The reason that the 163 million people do not have access to the internet is because of the dominance of the top two fixed broadcast providers. Comcast and Charter divided up the U.S., each company taking different areas. Therefore there is no crossover between the two. Due to the lack of crossover, the

because they are not competing for customers, they face no backlash.

Small cities are taking this problem head-on and are not dealing with the two companies anymore. This is known as Municipal Broadband, and Harvard reports that when cities take matters into their own hands, they get faster speeds, lower-prices and better customer service. Chattanooga, Tennessee is just one example of Municipal Broadband being used in small cities. Chattanooga set up an Internet service 200 times faster than Comcast, for cheaper prices and for much better customer service. Chattanooga is a prime

Remembering Kobe: Devoted Father & Sports Legend

By GRACE RISINGER ‘20 On Jan. 26, 2020, basketball legend Kobe Bryant tragically passed away in a helicopter crash. Bryant was only 41 at the time of death. He was one of nine people involved in the fatal crash, another of which included his 13-year-old daughter Gianna.

It was not an unusual occurrence for Bryant to travel by helicopter. In fact, he frequently relied on helicopter usage to avoid the LA traffic before Lakers games.

In this case, Bryant, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others, were traveling to a Mamba Sports Academy basketball game. However, they never made it to the game.

The cause of the helicopter’s fatal crash is still under investigation. Yet the crash most likely occurred as a result of the thick fog surrounding Southern California on that Sunday morning. According to the New York Times, the helicopter received special approval to fly, even though the weather conditions were worse than usual standards for flying.

Of those involved in the crash, other victims include John Altobelli, 56, baseball coach at Orange Coast College, his wife Keri and daughter Alyssa, Sarah and Payton Chester, a mother and daughter from Orange County, Christina

Mauser, a California basketball coach and Ara Zobayan, the pilot.

In the wake of this tragedy, mourners have recalled Bryant’s reflection on how he wanted to be remembered in a 2015 ESPN interview: “I’ve always said that I wanted to be remembered as a player that didn’t waste a moment ... didn’t waste a day.”

Bryant’s impeccable skill and devotion to winning on the court won him “respect from rivals and inspired those who followed him into the game,” wrote The New York Times.

He was drafted onto the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996, leading them to five championships and earning him the ‘All-Star’ title in 18 of his 20 seasons on the team.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said, “For 20 seasons, Kobe showed us what is possible when remarkable talent blends with an absolute devotion to winning. Bryant will be remembered most for inspiring people around the world to pick up a basketball and compete to the very best of their ability.”

Bryant’s daughter Gianna inherited his love and dedication to the sport.

Nicknamed Gigi, she played at his school, the Mamba Sports A c a d e m y, and was determined to play basketball for the University of Connecticut and then in the WNBA. “The best thing that happens is when we go out and fans would come up to me and she’ll be standing next to me and they’ll be like, ‘You’ve gotta have a boy ... You gotta have somebody to carry on your tradition, the legacy.’

“She’s like, ‘Oy, I got this. Don’t need no boy for that.’ I’m like, that’s right. Yes, you do, you got this,” Bryant said about Gianna while on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Bryant and Gianna are survived by wife and mother Vanessa Bryant, as well as three daughters and sisters Natalia,

17, Bianka, 3 and Capri Kobe Bryant, who was born last June. However, their legacy will persist for over a lifetime.

“Los Angeles is mourning the loss of one of our most beloved legends and icons,” California Rep. Maxine Water said in a statement following Bryant’s death.

“Though he is no longer with us, our city will never forget what he meant to us, and we will keep his legacy alive forever.”

Outside of the Staples Center, millions of fans gathered to honor the place where they watched the basketball legend play the game he loved. Shrines and vigils honoring Bryant were spread throughout the city. Los Angeles City Hall and LAX Airport were lit up in purple and gold – the Laker’s colors – to shine a light on the man he was.

Bryant’s passing touched the world in its entirety. The Dallas Mavericks are retiring the number 24 out of respect for Bryant.

“Kobe was an ambassador for our game, a decorated legend and a global icon. Above all, he was a loving and dedicated father,” Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said in a statement.

Joe Rivas, LA resident and fan, summarized the nations’ grief: “It’s beyond basketball.” May Kobe Bryant, Gianna Bryant and the other victims rest in peace.

Images courtesy of CNBC, TMZ, Pinterest

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March

Amazon and Others Relocate Headquarters: Why?

By HELEN EMERSON ‘20 Many large corporations, such as Amazon, Boeing, General Electric and others have recently shifted their headquarters or opened new offices in urban centers.

As companies of this nature move from suburban areas into urban centers, they do not only open their doors but permanently alter the landscape and demographics of the city where they land.

Increasingly, major tech companies like Facebook and Google are trading the California sun for chilly, northeastern winters as they move across the country. Because of the implications of such a big move for any major corporation, there are many complex factors to consider.

A major factor in deciding on a new location is efficiency. “Relocating headquarters often is driven by strategic reasons. One of the overriding goals generally is to reduce overall costs through, for example, lower taxes and overhead. Relocation also can facilitate an organizational realignment that allows formerly segregated departments or functions to employ common core systems,” said Dean Uminski in an article for Area Development.

Additionally, large corporations bring jobs. For example, Dallas was among the cities which Amazon considered for its headquarters. Though there is always some backlash against a corporate giant becoming a neighbor, it greatly increases the job market. This incentivizes corporations as well, hoping to recruit talented workers wherever they land.

“Companies believe they are better

positioned to uncover and draw top talent — especially millennial talent — when they are based in major cities. In the Chicago area alone, many well-known companies are moving their headquarters from long-held suburban properties to the city, including McDonald’s, Motorola Solu-

tions, the Kraft Heinz Company, and the Hillshire Brands Company, largely motivated by their bids to attract desirable candidates from a changing workforce,” Uminski said.

Courtesy of CNBC Additional factors include the customer base and market, community relations, proximity to other facilities and public infrastructure. The most recent company move which drew media attention was that of Amazon when it decided to settle in Virginia rather than New York, a move that puzzled many people. CNBC refers to Virginia’s acquiring of Amazon Headquarters as the

“biggest economic development prize in lot of tech companies actually like to recent memory.” So how did they win it? be in a campus away from urban areas Amazon’s second headquarters because they value confidentiality and will bring 25,000 jobs and more secrecy and they want to have their own than 6 million square feet of space, Amazon’s a little different. They office space to Arlington, like to be enmeshed into an urban enviVA. For Amazon, they were ronment,” says Kelly. lured by the promise of To showcase this urban environment, talent and technological they spotlighted Crystal City and Pentafuture offered by Virginia. gon City, as well as Reagan National AirCourtesy of the Business The state was ranked as the Journals port and proximity to the DC Metro and 2019 best state for busiVirginia Rail Express commuter lines. It ness and boasts the worked. After some tough deliberations, best workforce in the Amazon settled on Virginia and left its nation with the largest other favorites behind. concentration of STEM “Virginia is a terrific place to do busiemployees. ness. They’re willing to partner with As candidates for Amacompanies, they’re willing to think longzon’s relocation, includterm and they’re willing to think big picing Dallas, ture. That’s what really stood out about Austin, Virginia,” said Brian Huseman, the vice Topresident of public policy for Amazon.

New York City was hardly left in the dust, however, as Google and others move to the banks of the Hudson to transform the city into a new tech center. According to The New York Times, ronthe number of jobs in New York’s tech t o , and sector has jumped 38% since 2016, trailL o n g Island, ing only San Francisco and Seattle. tried to lure the Ultimately, corporations relocating company with monetary their headquarters carries vast implicaprizes and offers, Virginia did the same. tions for economies. These moves also Matthew Kelly, CEO of JBG Smith, a real serve as mirrors of the times, reflecting estate investment trust, described his the priorities and criteria of corporate interactions with Amazon to CNBC. America as well as the opinions of those “We really tried to read the room and affected by the moves. This trend will understand how we position and tell the only continue, likely to bring a new story about how great this location is landscape to many major cities in the about how great northern Virginia is. A coming years.

Images courtesy of Amazon

2020 Census Faces Complications

By JACKIE THOMAS ‘20 The census has been part of American life since the publication of the Constitution, which mandates in Article I Section 2 that the government “enumerate” all citizens of the country every 10 years.

2020 marks one such year, when the federal government will take a count of all individuals and households nationwide.

This particular census, set to take place between January and April, has been the subject of discussion and controversy on both national and local levels.

Along with the constitutionally mandated count, the census also collects data concerning characteristics like sex, race, ancestry, health, education and a number of other population-related factors.

According to the Population Reference Bureau, the racial component is taken into consideration to “help communities ensure equal opportunity and determine how many people are eligible for certain government programs” and to “enforce rules against race-based discrimination.”

Indeed, the census serves to collect data for equal opportunity organizations and other efforts in order to determine the allocation of about $800 billion annually in federal funds. Its main purpose, however, is to account for citizens in a given area to determine how to redistrict and redistribute congressional seats. The Trump administration announced intentions last year to add a question address-

ing citizenship status to the 2020 census, citing districting concerns.

The administration reasoned through Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who said in a report, “I have determined that reinstatement of a citizenship question on the 2020 decennial census is necessary to provide complete and accurate data in response to the DOJ request [for more detailed voting data].”

Ideally, per supporters of adding the citizenship question, the inclusion of citizenship data would ensure than no non-citizens would factor into voting districts, which might falsely overstate the voting population in one region.

Public outrage, however, was widespread and immediate. Challengers cited civil liberties concerns, namely that many Hispanic households would abstain from responding altogether in fear of deportation of themselves or relatives, likely resulting in an undercount in several states, especially those with

high Hispanic populations like Florida, California and Texas. Additionally, some noted that such a question could result in discriminative districting, or gerrymandering.

Several groups including the Voting Rights Project wing of the American Civil Liberties Union sued the administration over these challenges, and the Supreme Court ruled in July 2019 that the bureau’s reasons for adding the question were not legitimate.

Facing what the New York Times called “a daunting hurdle,” the president and his lawyers dropped the issue soon after.

Dallas also saw local complications surrounding this year’s census. Specifically, many Texans have demonstrated concern surrounding statewide participation. According to the Dallas Morning News, Texas has amassed 4.5 million new citizens since the last census, which would likely affect districting and congressional seats in the next election cycle.

As a result, officials from highly-populated cities in the state have called for a statewide effort to raise awareness and incentivize participation.

Officials suggest that a state-organized committee focused on media and education leading up to the census could increase participation from minority groups who might otherwise abstain due to citizenship concerns or simply widespread lack of knowledge.

The Texas state government, however, elected not to fund advertising campaigns for the census, as one of few states not doing so in 2019 and 2020. To make up for this, Dallas and other cities have come up with local campaigns with albeit far less financing than a statewide campaign would provide.

The city of Dallas allocated $1.9 million to advertising firm Alpha Business Images on Jan. 7, after Houston and Harris County put $4 million toward census outreach and Travis County allocated $600,000 since last summer.

The 2020 census, like each decade’s census, will carry major weight around the country. Its effect will be even more poignant here in Texas, with a possible three seats to be gained in the House of Representatives. Following months of discussion across the country, all that is left to do is fill out the ballots and commence the count.

Image courtesy of SCOTUSblog

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Global Features

The Bear Facts

Never-Ending Disaster Recovery in Haiti

By HELEN EMERSON ‘20 Continued from Inside The world largely came together, as global media outlets covered the quake and relief efforts came from all over. Hu cites the firemen sent from New York City, sniffer dogs from China and oil from Venezuela sent to help Haiti. Support and compassion were sent out to the nation as it found its landscape and people in ruins.

Hu spoke with Harold Previl, the head of a Haitian hospital. “Right after the earthquake I felt a lot of hope, because I thought emerging from the catastrophe would make everyone a better person in the service of this country,” said Prévil.

But now, in 2020, the country has largely lost hope, unable to fully recover. “Ten years on, we still lack the basic infrastructure and services to support the people of our country,” said Haitian President Jovenel Moise.

This hopelessness is trapped in the parts of the nation that remain in ruins. For 10 years, Haitians have not seen their seat of government, the National Palace, rebuilt. The buildings that have been reconstructed hardly look capable of withstanding another earthquake, causing citizens to live in a constant state of fear. This disaster is a chronologically distant memory, but they must face it every day.

Often undiscussed are the psychological and emotional effects of such

tragedies on people. Many cannot walk down the street without flashbacks or other terrifying images plaguing them. They must also face this trauma in the midst of a broken country. Haiti faces immense inflation, fuel shortages

Courtesy of University of Pittsburgh

and hunger—additional barricades to recovery.

“The initial flurry of attention received from the international community quickly quieted down, with many of the financial pledges

not delivered -- causing devastating consequences for our recovery…little of the aid that was received ended up in Haitian hands and much of the money that was so generously given was not spent on the right projects and places…we need the same soli-

better equipped nations may suffer a blow and bounce back, while others may never recover. It is those who suffer the most who are most easily forgotten.

Last year, in remembrance of Hurricane Harvey which devastated the Texas coast, many poorer areas of Houston, Galveston and other affected areas were spotlighted.

Eventually, relief stops. Funds stop coming in. People forget about the most vulnerable, assuming that time has healed all. Meanwhile, like the Haitians, poorer members of those areas were living out of demolished houses and struggling to feed themselves since they did not have the necessary foundation to rebound.

The effects of these disasters and their aftermath demonstrates the increasing need for communities and the world to come together. This union must be prolonged, not a brief display of compassion which fades to reveal struggling economies and peoples. As the year is just getting started and disasters have already slammed numerous countries, compounded by concerns over climate darity we had after the earthquake,” change, there is a more urgent call said Moise in a statement in January. for the world to work together on a A natural disaster rarely passes large scale. From the mutual experiwithout major consequence. Howence of unplanned disasters, people ever, these consequences do not may support others in a more lasting impact all nations equally. Stronger, way, for the betterment of all.

As Australia Burns, India Faces Water Shortages

By BETHANY ROBERTS ‘20 The World Resources Institute (WRI) has found that 17 countries that contain a quarter of the world’s population face “extremely high” levels of water stress. 650 million people do not have access to clean drinking water. India, Eritrea, Botswana and many Middle Eastern nations are extremely vulnerable to drought, drawing more than 80 percent of their water supply annually. Even countries with low water stress, such as South Africa, Brazil and the United States, are running out of water. In some parts of California, the land sunk two feet after several years of drought drained groundwater.

Many cities face their own unique difficulties during this global water crisis and one of the prime examples of inequality within this crisis is Chennai. The situation is nothing to scoff at: Chennai is India’s sixth largest city and India is the second most populated country in the world besides China. India itself is struggling immensely.

According to The Guardian, a report released on June 14, 2018 reveals that “the top government thinktank for the economy, NITI Aayog, said

India was facing the worst water one name, spoke to the Huffington crisis in its history. It predicted Post about how his neighborhood in that 21 cities would run out of Chennai has dealt with the crisis. groundwater by 2020 and recomThe tanker trunks that usually mended ‘urgent and improved’ made daily runs to deliver water management of water resources.” began to come once or twice a week.

Chennai reached “Day Zero” Attempting to dig up a well a few in June, although the news has years back, Deepan’s community not been broadcasted internationsoon found they were not able to exally until recently. tract any clean water because According their neighborhood to Gina is on top of a Zierlandfill. Deevogel, pan told the an enHuffington vironPost, “This mental was ― and is scientist ― a garbage area Courtesy of New Indian Express so the groundwater has studying the water crisis at the University of this brownish tinge.”

Cape Town, “Day Zero” is a term Chennai’s officials feared chaos. used that means dams would reach Ziervogel said that “[‘Day Zero’] 13.5% capacity, which is “just put that fear into people.” Chennai barely enough water to keep critispoke out about water-saving techcal services running.” The taps niques and the mayor made house in homes and businesses would calls to urge people to cut back on be turned off and residents would water usage. The Huffington Post have to line up at “collection sites” reported, “Some regions are copto obtain rations to drink and ing with both extreme droughts and bathe. extreme floods. In 2015, [one] famDeepan, who only goes by ily home in Chennai was submerged

and destroyed by flooding that killed hundreds. ‘There was no electricity supply in our area for about 10 days,’ Deepan said. ‘The water rose up to my neck level — I am six feet tall.’”

While the government never had to shut off the taps, the situation made the benefits of being privileged abundantly clear. While the wealthier can buy private supplies and continue filling their swimming pools and fountains, those who already use less water and pay more for it are left with almost no options. Chennai residents living in “informal settlements” have always collected their daily water from communal taps, but now are forced to manage with even less. Although those who live in the informal settlements make up a quarter of the Chennai’s population, they use less than 5 percent of the city’s water supply.

The water crisis has struck fear into the hearts of the people of Chennai. Their story should touch the hearts of everyone. Immediately taking action to deal with the crisis is imperative to preserve our water supply and our world.

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Global Features

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March

Strikes and Protests Subject France to Gridlock

By JACKIE THOMAS ‘20 Continued from Inside The biggest complaints come from public sector workers in the transportation industry, who previously could receive full pension benefits much earlier than other workers within some of the 42 separate plans.

In fact, under certain circumstances, some public sector workers could retire as early as their fifties.

With widespread objection from the French public, strikes and protests began nearly immediately. Dec. 12, 2018, the day after Phillippe unveiled the proposed changes, marked the beginning of the transportation strike which reduced or stopped the function of all public transportation, including metro lines, buses, trains, trams and even air travel.

The strike dragged on for over a month, with disastrous effects across the country and especially in major cities like Paris. The combination of severe road closures due to protests and tourists’ fear of being stranded has been “catastrophic” for restaurants and hotels, according to GNI, an association of independent hotel and restaurant workers in France.

In a Jan. 16 report, the GNI said, “In total, the loss of turnover for the HCR [hotel and restaurant] sector is around 800 to 850 million euros since December 5, 2019,” a figure

equating to between 880 and 935 million American dollars. Businesses that ordinarily benefit from tourist spending over the busy holiday travel season saw huge losses.

Transportation workers were not the only ones striking, either. Other public sector workers, including

that they were open to talks and some compromise, but progress in this regard was slow, neither wanting to concede their main goals.

Macron reaffirmed his intent to continue pursuing the reforms, saying that backing down would be “a betrayal of our children, their

hospital and school staff, staged strikes also. Schools closed, union protestors forced electricity blackouts across Paris and opera performances were cancelled as their singers joined the protests.

Both sides, French labor unions and governmental officials, stated

children after them, who would then have to pay the price for our giving up.”

Many protestors, unions and common citizens alike remained unimpressed by meager attempts from the government to negotiate in late December and early January.

Courtesy of Wall Street Journal

Philippe Martinez, general secretary of the General Confederation of Labor union, said, “The government’s strategy, its conception of dialogue and listening are not likely to appease the level of dissatisfaction and mobilization that exists in our country.”

The strikes came to a reluctant and uncertain end on Jan. 20, but demonstrations continued. Within a week, protests had reached new heights, with dozens of demonstrators forcing the Louvre museum to close. Likewise, protests by public workers caused the Eiffel Tower to close earlier in the month. Along with severe economic damage and inconvenient gridlock in many major cities, conflict with protestors has taken the stage in international media, the world watching as police have been forced to disband chaotic protests with rubber bullets and tear gas.

The French strikes and protests, with unrest still ongoing, are indicative of a global culture turning more and more toward viral demonstration. Similar nationwide protests with varying degrees of violence have occurred recently all over the globe, perhaps suggesting the 2020s will be a decade of worldwide protest.

Celebrities Respond to Australian Wildfires

By NATALIE RO ‘22 Devastating wildfires still burn in Australia as firefighters hurry to put the flames out. Donations have poured in from around the world to help combat the crisis. Among them have been several from high-profile celebrity figures.

The natural disaster has left more than two dozen people dead and burned almost 25 million acres of land. Over the past couple months, authorities have accused 24 people of deliberately setting fires.

Natural disasters expert Paul Read told BBC News, “Just under 90% of Australian bushfires were caused by human activity, which includes deliberate arson, carelessness or recklessness.”

But not all fires are intentionally started. “About 13% of the 62,000 fires a year in Australia are caused by lightning strikes,” according to Read.

Thankfully, dozens of celebrities have donated to help the efforts of the Australian Red Cross and the wildfire rescue organization,

WIRES. One of the bigger donations was made by Leonardo DiCaprio through his environmental organization, Earth Alliance. He donated three million dollars towards the Australian Wildfire Fund.

“Earth Alliance launched the Australia Wildfire Fund to handle the donation, while also soliciting help from others. Per the fund’s website, 100 percent of donations will go directly to local firefighting efforts, support for affected communities and wildlife rescue operations,” according to Rolling Stone.

Many more celebrities have donated sums of more than 500,000 dollars to the cause. Chris Hemsworth and his family contributed one million dollars towards fire services.

“Hi everyone. Like you, I want to support the fight against the bushfires here in Australia. My family and I are contributing a million dollars. Hopefully you guys can chip in too. Every penny counts so whatever you can muster up is greatly appreciated. In my bio I’ve added links to support the fire

fighters, organizations and charities who are working flat out to provide support and relief during this devastating and challenging time. Beyond appreciative to everyone around the world for their well wishes and donations. It really does make a difference, so dig deep!” Hemsworth captioned an Instagram post.

Shawn Mendes, another generous celebrity, shared that he and his foundation would donate towards the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund.

“Every time I’ve been to Australia I’ve fallen more and more in love with the people & wildlife. Please join me to help support relief efforts for the devastating effects of the Australian wildfires. The @shawnfoundation & I are making donations to benefit the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund & two local organizations - the NSW Rural Fire Service and the South Australian Country Fire Service. Every donation matters!” Mendes wrote on

Instagram.

Other celebrities such as married couple Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman, Elton John and P!nk donated $500,000 each.

P!nk tweeted, “I am totally devastated watching what is happening in Australia right now with the horrific bushfires. I am pledging a donation of $500,000 directly to the local fire services that are battling so hard on the frontlines. My heart goes out to our friends and family in Oz.” At the Golden Globes, actress Cate Blanchett brought up the important issue saying, “There are a lot of Australians in the room tonight, and I know we’re all very grateful for the callouts to our fellow compatriots who are suffering under the bushfires.”

Actress Jennifer Aniston also commented at the Golden Globes saying, “Make no mistake. The tragedy unfolding in Australia is climate change-based. We need to act based on science, move our global workforce to renewable energy, and respect our planet for the unique and amazing place it is.”

Images courtesy of The Independent, Hollywood Reporter

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residential rimary Break

Despite only holding two delegates after Super Tuesday, Hawaiian congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard remains in the Democratic race.

Gabbard grew up in Hawaii but is also part Asian and is of the Hindu faith. At the age of 21, she became the youngest person to be elected to the Hawaii State Legislature. At 22, she joined the Hawaii Army National Guard to serve her country and later stepped down from political office to fight. Gabbard has addressed energy, homeland security, the environment, and veteran issues during her time in the Senate.

Mike Bloomberg was the latecomer to the Democratic race after not announcing his candidacy until November of last year. His spending numbers tell a different story. Despite other candidates campaigning for almost a full year before Bloomberg’s entrance, he spent the most on his campaign by far at over $500 million.

However, his unprecedented spending only won him a handful of delegates from Super Tuesday, prompting Bloomberg to end his campaign and endorse Biden. Bloomberg’s campaign was largely self-funded from his net worth of $62 billion as CEO of software and media company Bloomberg LP. Bloomberg is also the former mayor of New York. His policy stances like gun regulation and climate change action appeal to moderate voters. His campaign suffered from poor debate performances where candidates attacked him for previous racial and sexual comments.

Elizabeth Warren, like Berni candidates in the pool and ha Senate. As president, she plan ition, enact an “ultra-milliona over $50 million, introduce M class. Warren suffered from a primaries after 2019 national Biden. Despite stellar debate generate enough support bef the race after a disappointing endorsement.

Before the primaries, Former Vice President Joe Biden was the presumptive Democratic nominee. He had the most name recognition, strong support among African American voters and was seen as the most electable. However, his poor showings of 4th and 5th place in Iowa and New Hampshire respectively have caused his national poll numbers to fall. Biden is betting his campaign on winning the South Carolina primary to take him back to the top. Coming from the Obama administration, Biden proposes to keep Obamacare as the nation’s healthcare plan. Through his healthcare plan, Biden aims to help poor- and middleclass families afford health costs without turning to a Medicare for All system.

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elections down

By KATHARINE BALES ’22 and ABIGAIL MIHALIC ‘20

ie Sanders, was one of the more liberal as served in a prominent role in the nned to fund free public college tuaire tax” on people with a net worth of Medicare For All and rebuild the middle a disappointing showing in the earlier l polls put her in second place behind performances, Warren was not able to fore Super Tuesday and bowed out of g showing. She has not yet given her

Although only 37 years old, Pete Buttigieg already has a lengthy resume.

He graduated from Harvard Law School and went to Oxford University on a Rhodes scholarship. Buttigieg served in the Naval Reserve in Afghanistan, speaks seven languages and is the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana.

His presidency would set records as the first openly gay and millennial president. Buttigieg gained significant momentum from winning in Iowa and coming second in New Hampshire, and he positioned himself as the moderate opponent to Sanders after Biden’s disappointing earlier perfor-

Bernie Sanders ran for the presidency in 2016 and lost against his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton during the primary elections. He is known for being a Jewish senator of Vermont, and he advocates for free college tuition, universal healthcare, and raising the minimum wage to help the working class. After barely losing to Pete Buttigieg in Iowa and finishing first in New Hampshire and Nevada, Sanders is the Democratic frontrunner. He also has a very strong youth following. Since the question on all Democrats’ minds is electability, some wonder if Sanders’ labeling himself as a democratic socialist will hurt him among moderate voters.

Although Amy Klobuchar did not have much national attention before her presidential bid, she is extremely popular in her home state of Minnesota where she was reelected to her senate seat with 65 percent of the vote. She finished in an impressive third place in the New Hampshire primary and is another moderate alternative to Biden. While in the Senate, Klobuchar helped lead efforts to stop human trafficking, combat the opioid epidemic, fund infrastructure and improve consumer product safety in

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Sports & Wellness

The Bear Facts

The Downfall of Jason Garrett

By EMMA LOUVIERE ‘22 After months of anticipation, former head coach Jason Garrett’s separation from the Dallas Cowboys was finalized on Jan. 5 of 2020, concluding the six and a half years he dedicated to the program.

Garrett finished with a 59-48 game record overall including playoffs, which he was only able to take the team to three times. Garrett’s time with the Cowboys is looked back on with disappointment by fans but with absolute respect by his boss, owner Jerry Jones.

2010

Garrett began coaching for the cowboys in 2010 when he became the team’s interim head coach in the middle of the 2010 season. Garrett went on to finish the second half of the season 5-3, a significant improvement from the first half of their season which was 1-7. Fans were hopeful for the upcoming season; Garrett was new in charge and could hopefully lead the cowboys back to the glory days of the ‘90s.

2011-2013

For the next three years, this hope faded fast as 2011, 2012 and 2013 flew by all with the same record of 8-8 and no chance at a spot in the playoffs. Fans were upset, and they were expecting a coaching change after three straight years of .500 seasons.

2014

The hope for a coaching change in 2014 was lost when Jones appeared on radio station 105.3 the Fan in Dallas and stated that the cowboys were, in fact, “going forward with Garrett in 2014.”

The 2014 season came, and Garett had to perform. All eyes were on him. Jones could put up with three straight .500 sea-

sons, but could he put up with another?

Pressured by the controversy of his rehire, Garett showed up. He finished the season 12-4 and got the wild card spot into the playoffs. The cowboys were eager to win the wild card and prove that this was the team to return the Cowboys to the glory days. The playoff game was close. The Cowboys were down 26-21 with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. They needed a touch down to win the game, and Tony Romo threw one…well, kind of.

This last attempt to win the game was infamously ruled a non-catch, as the referee said that Dez Bryant lost control of the ball. But in 2018, after reevaluating the play, the NFL confirmed that the Dez Bryant did, in fact, catch the ball. The Cowboys season ended 26-21, and as Jones said, Garett led his team to be “right there playing for it” for yet another season.

Jones saw improvement along with the rest of the Cowboys nation and signed Garrett to a five-year 30-million-dollar deal after results from 2014. Nearly a year before, it had been a question of whether or not Garrett would have a job, a job that was now guaranteed for the next five years.

2015

Without the pressure to produce, Garett fell short in 2015. Tony Romo got hurt, and the Cowboys fell apart. All the positivity from the season before

Images courtesy of New York Post and Dallas Cowboys

had quickly been forgotten amid a devastating 4-12 season. Fans were questioning if firing Garrett would be worth the cost of $24 million due to his new contract.

2016

Fans were fuming going into 2015, and people that had “Keep Calm and Fire that Ginger” shirts were one more bad season away from putting them on and marching to the stadium in protest. But as Garrett had done before, he rose to the pressure and put out a winning team.

Romo was hurt again but third string quarterback Dak Prescott was every Cowboys fan’s savior and the team went 13-3. Although the Cowboys lost to the Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs, Garett was praised in 2016. Looking at Garrett’s time with the Cowboys, 2016 is the highlight. He won NFL Coach of the Year honors, and fans praised him for proving them wrong.

2017

But Garrett was not the type of coach to produce two winning seasons in a row. He liked to keep fans on their toes.

2017 did not mirror any of the 2016 season. The team went 9-7 and did not get into the playoffs, prompting headlines that screamed once again for Garrett’s removal. Just like before, Jerry Jones stuck by his coach, and Garrett stuck around for yet another year.

2018

In true Garrett fashion, he came alive when things got bad, and the 2018 season ended with a 10-6 record. The Cowboys went to the playoffs, lost in the divisional round and went home. But something was different about this time, and fans were not quick to jump on the Garrett train again.

Fans were tired of Garrett. Tired of a team that had talented players and the potential to do well but something kept going wrong. There was only one person left to blame and that was Jason Garrett. SB Nation’s headline for a feature on Garrett described the emotions of Cowboy nation perfectly.

“Jason Garrett isn’t capable of leading the Cowboys out of the abyss. It’s time to fire him.”

2019

2019 was the last year of his contract, and going into the season, Jones did not offer his coach an extension. Therefore, at any time, Jones could pull the plug on Garett and not face any financial backlash. Most fans’ opinions of Jones’ decision to keep Garrett for another year were similar to what dedicated Ursuline fan Emma Lochridge ’22 said.

“Either the Cowboys win a Super Bowl or Jason Garrett gets fired, it’s honestly a win-win.”

Garrett finished his last season with the Cowboys the same way he started it, 8-8. On Jan 5, 2020, the longawaited firing of Jason Gar rett was finalized. The program now looks to a more hopeful and consistent future with former Green Bay Packers Head Coach Mike McCarthy.

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Entertainment

The Bear Facts

Why “1917” Is Intensely Engaging: A Film Review

By KATE JANSON ‘20 It seems as if we are in a day and age where cinema experiences a new technological breakthrough every few months, yet many moviegoers, myself included among the masses, are still captivated by a film that seems to be presented as one unbroken shot. Although the idea of a single extended shot, meant to stretch the entirety of the movie or not, is not a new concept, it has the cinematic ability to keep viewers engaged in a fairly simple way.

“1917”, the new war drama from Sam Mendes, is the latest attempt at the feature-length, single-shot approach, and its technological accomplishments are undeniable. Watching the movie is like watching someone play a video game for two hours in all the best ways.

As suggested by the title, “1917” is set amid World War I, taking place in and around the “no man’s land” in northern France that separated British and German troops. The film starts with two young corporals, Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman) and Schofield (George MacKay), abruptly awoken from a light nap to report for a new assignment. Another company a few miles away, that includes Blake’s brother, is planning to attack at dawn to push the Germans back further.

However, the Germans are

expecting the attack. The 1,600 British soldiers would be walking into the death trap in just a few hours. The two corporals are sent on foot through enemy territory to inform the company to stand down and call off the attack before it can commence. The two have been assured their path is safe, yet the first glimpse of literal hell on earth as they are met with a wide-open field of enemy territory proves otherwise. The tension within the soldiers they encounter and the carnage they witness only get worse as their journey goes on.

“1917” wanted to do what most war movies do: provide a raw description of the horrors of combat for viewers whose only frame of reference for those conflicts has been history books or other movies. 1917 did just that. With the single-shot style, viewers experienced the journey almost the same as the two corporals did.

Even after my second time seeing the

film, I still felt it when Schofield cut his hand on barbed wire and, shortly after, fell with that hand ending up in an open corpse. The single-shot style required Mendes to build the complete set and walk through it with the script, so the script and set were the exact same length. Every trench, every town, and every open field had to be just the right length to match the script for the single-shot style to work seamlessly.

On those terms—the film is undeniably impressive—Roger Deakins is one of the all-time best cinematographers and his work here must have been incredibly challenging but equally some of his best work.

Mendes told IMDb, “Stories are nothing unless you are emotionally engaged. You want an engagement with two characters, for which you are given very little exposition. You don’t really know who they are, and the singleshot technique allows you,

I think, to live with them and breathe every breath, and watch the clock ticking down. And that feeling of never seeing further than the characters, always being trapped within their immediate environment, that was a very important part in why decided to shoot in this way.”

Some critics emphasized the downfalls of how Mendes deployed to tell his story, saying the single-shot method is only impactful in films that are so absorbing viewers fail to notice the technique at first. Yet, I, personally, did not leave the theater pondering the details on how the film was shot. I left the theater astonished by the incredible cinematography and realness of the entire storyline, and I found myself with an attachment to the characters and their feats.

Besides the critiques, “1917” has 161 nominations and 78 wins, including 10 Oscar nominations. It won Golden Globes for Best Motion Picture and Best Director. “1917” is raw and real, and a must-see whether you are a regular war movie connoisseurs or not.

Images Courtesy of Blog Lyric, Susan Granger

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Get Your History Lessons From Watching Netflix

By KATE GIEBLER ‘21 Everyone binges the startling crime scene stories or the tense recaps of high school dramas, but because we become accustomed to the comfort of the couch and the popcorn in our lap, we tend to forget that many of these engrossing events we watch for hours on end are taken from real life stories. However, the television industry has come up with many creative ways to teach us about these realities, while capturing our attention at the same time.

One of these binge-worthy, but reality-inspired, television series is “Stranger Things,” a science-fiction show that follows a group of young kids as they search for their lost friend in another dimension with the help of a girl with telekinetic powers. By this description, not one part sounds as if it could be based on true events. However, the show’s creators, the Duffer brothers, imbedded real past CIA experiments into the underlying storyline.

The brothers told Rolling Stone, “We wanted the supernatural element to be grounded in science in some way.” They incorporated a government project called MK-

Ultra, which formed the basis of the experiments done on one of the main characters Eleven.

According to DigitalSpy.com, “The MK-Ultra project was created by the CIA in 1953 with the aim of developing mind-control techniques that could give America an advantage against Russia in the Cold War.” The trials began with voluntary participants willing to undergo tests, but the project later evolved into an abusive experiments subjecting innocent people to physical and mental abuse in search of perfecting these “mind-controlling techniques.”

“Stranger Things” certainly illustrates the abusive behavior involved in these CIA experiments and sheds light on a very real subject typically only believed to be in television and movies.

Another show representing history is “The Crown,” a series that follows the lives of the royal family of England and, more specifically,

the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Peter Morgan, with the help of Netflix and other production companies, developed his previous film and play into this critically acclaimed, three-season series.

The television show begins with the marriage of Queen Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in 1947 and spans a period of about thirty years.

Although this show sounds like a historical documentary, Morgan directs the show to display these events in a dramatic, fast-paced fashion, including beautiful costumes, on-point acting and a smooth storyline, so the audience could not stop watching even if they tried.

One more must-see television show is “Mindhunter,” an eerie series about the beginning of the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI. This story is one not many people ask to be told, but once you begin hearing about this fascinating unit of the FBI, you won’t be able to stop asking ques-

tions.

The show describes the events that two insignificant FBI agents, Holden Ford, based on investigator John E. Douglas, and Bill Tench, based on agent Robert K. Ressler, as to how these men were orchestrators of the implication of the BAU. As the two men teach local police officers around the country about investigation techniques, they also solve some of the most infamous murder cases, and personally interview real-life serial killers.

Although sometimes unsettling to watch as the show dives into inside the mind of murderers, the audience receives an education on how one of the FBI’s most essential programs came about in order to keep America safe.

All of these shows not only make for a great binge-watching weekend and introduce characters you will fall in love with, but you can also finish each of these series with the added bonus of feeling a little bit more educated on American and British history.

Images Courtesy of Animated Extras, Pinterest and Laz Marquez

Singer Justin Bieber Returns With A New Album

By SARAH NGUYEN ‘20 It is impossible for someone to have not heard of Justin Bieber. Debuting hits “Baby” and “Sorry,” Bieber rushed into the music scene at a young age and has played a prominent role in the industry since.

Born on March 1, 1994 in Canada, Bieber grew up playing several instruments, including the guitar and drums.

His parents encouraged his music ability, prompting his entrance into the industry at an early age. After being discovered on YouTube by talent manager Scooter Braun, he eventually signed onto a record label. This marked the very beginning of fame.

His first song “One Time” in 2009 introduced Bieber to the public, peaking at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. However, his hit “Baby” in 2010 put him on the map. Many, from toddlers to the elderly, can recognize this iconic tune. “Baby” was catchy and new. And after collaborating with rapper Ludacris, he rose further in popularity in both the pop and rap scene.

As Bieber matured, America had front row seats, from his awkward puberty phases to his romance with Selena Gomez. And through the years, from childhood to teenagerhood to early adulthood, he claimed several successes on the music charts. However, his ultimate boom arrived in 2016. Every song released that

year, including “What do you mean?” and “Sorry,” was a bop played repeatedly for months. 2016 was Justin Bieber’s year.

However, appearances are not always what they seem. Although his social media displayed a lively Bieber attending parties and making jokes, Bieber was

I was hiding behind a shell of a person that I had become.”

Bieber had to find himself again and rebuild his values. Throughout a fouryear break between 2016 and 2020, he experienced several life-altering events.

He married model Hailey Baldwin, 23.

He spent more time with his family. He

secretly suffering mentally, emotionally and physically. In the middle of his Purpose tour, he suddenly pulled out. He canceled the remaining half of his tour, leaving many fans distraught. What had happened to him?

According to The Washington Post, Bieber grappled with the dark side of fame. He said, “I became resentful, disrespectful to women and angry. I became distant to everyone who loved me, and

strove to rest mentally and recovered from depression originating from dissatisfaction with himself and his music.

It is not uncommon for artists to experience a low during their career. Many artists can feel as if they are unable express themselves fully. They become dissatisfied with themselves, while also facing constant pressure from fans that can negatively affect their work ethic.

Artists like Linkin Park and Avicii have

committed suicide in the face of similar experiences.

In addition to emotional exhaustion, Bieber also developed Lyme disease, which is transmitted through a tick bite.

Symptoms include nausea, depression, mood swings and constant exhaustion.

And after getting treated for both depression and Lyme disease, he recovered with a new mentality and a fresh outlook.

On Jan. 3, Bieber released “Yummy,” a catchy, bouncy song that has already gone mainstream. The release of “Yummy” and his newly announced tour has created commotion within his fanbase, with many ready to pay hundreds to see their favorite artist after so long. Many die-hard fans are ecstatic for his return, and Bieber’s upcoming tour is predicted to be his biggest and most popular one yet.

While announcing his new album, Bieber said, “As humans we are imperfect. My past, my mistakes, all the things that I’ve been through, I believe that I’m right where I’m supposed to be and God has me right where he wants me.”

He went on to mark a new era of music for himself. “I feel like this is different than the previous albums just because of where I’m at in my life,” said Bieber.

Image Courtesy of Metro

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Timothée Chalamet’s Top Ten Style Moments

By GRACE RISINGER ‘20 Timothée Chalamet has been making waves in the industry following worldwide recognition for his portrayal of Elio Perlman in Luca Guagagnino’s “Call Me by Your Name.” However, this recognition is not only for his impeccable acting skills. Chalamet has become a pioneer in men’s fashion, taking risks in the form of tie-dye overalls, and a Louis Vuitton bib and many other bold fashion choices. He is not afraid to blur the line between masculine and feminine in floral Alexander McQueen suits and a sequined Louis Vuitton hoodie. Yet, he still stays to his industrial, NYC roots through his effortlessly cool street style. Timothée Chalamet is changing the way we view menswear and making our Instagram feeds 100 times better in the process (because who doesn’t love seeing Timmy on their feed?). And he doesn’t even have a stylist!

Below, you will find Chalamet’s top ten best style moments, as ranked by me.

Berluti leather jacket at the “Call Me By Your Name” premiere in Paris, France

10

Plaid shirt, tee, skinny jeans and pink Golf Le Fleur x Converse sneakers

9

This brown leather look marked the beginning of his Call Me by Your Name fame, and his style revolution. He manages to still look polished, wearing a not-so-typical premiere look. The unexpected combination of brown leather, a white tee, grey spotted pants and black boots present a modern, yet classic look. In Chalamet’s case, no suit, no problem!

With the plaid shirt and tee combination, Chalamet is serving major grunge vibes with this look. However, opting to wear Gold Le Fleurs rather than Doc Martens, he puts his own spin on the timeless look. Golf Le Fleurs, Tyler the Creator’s converse collaboration, brings elements of NYC street-style to the look.

Stella McCartney at the “Little Women” Paris Premiere

Prada in Manhattan

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Chalamet is the king of street style. His Prada coat is quite similar to the Prada anorak Frank Ocean wore to the MET Gala.

Wearing black joggers, colorful socks, New Balance sneakers and Fendi sunglasses topped off with bright red Sony headphones, Chalamet made the jacket more casual but no less cool.

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8

Chalamet is no stranger to wearing abstract prints.

In 2014, he sported a pair of galaxy-print joggers to the premiere of Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac. This time around, he presents a refined nod to his 17-year-old style catastrophe. If the suit itself was not already cool enough, the simple black tee underneath, chain necklace, pinky ring and white sneakers make it even better.

Celine at the Screen Actors Guild Awards

7

You can never go wrong with an all-black ensemble.

Chalamet’s black-on-black look is the opposite of understated. The combination of the white polka dots and black leather add texture and depth to the look. His black boots add extra edge to his Celine jacket, shirt and pants.

Gorillaz Tee and Isabel Marant at a “Little Women” photo call in London

Haider Ackermann at the Venice Film Festival

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In case you were not already convinced that Chalamet was a fashion icon, he wore a band tee to an official photo call and managed to look amazing. Pairing the tee with Isabel Marant Homme striped pants and laced combat boots, this edgy look only adds to his style versatility.

Now, if it is not Chalamet’s best style moment of all time. He wore a Stella McCartney suit to the Little Women premiere in Paris, but it was not just any suit. The suit was actually pulled from McCartney’s pre-fall 2019 womenswear collection. That is right; Timothée Chalamet wore a women’s suit to the premiere of Little Women. Could that be anymore suitable? Accessorizing with a silver chain and an Eiffel tower keychain gifted from a fan, he proved that magenta is definitely his color.

S.R. Studio at the Busan International Film Festival

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Images courtesy of Refinery 29, W Magazine, Who What Wear and Pop Sugar

Alexander McQueen suit at the Critics’ Choice Awards

Wearing an S.R. Studio shirt, overalls and boots, Chalamet took a risk like he never quite has before. Mixing tie-dye and overalls could go wrong in so, so many ways. However, Chalamet keeps it fresh with chunky white boots.

Louis Vuitton at the Golden Globes

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Haider Ackermann at the 76th Venice Film Festival Chalamet usually pulls from a darker color palette, so pastels are a bit of a novelty for him.

However, this futuristic, light grey and blue Haider Ackermann outfit is the perfect look for the Venice Film Festival. The modern silhouette of the jacket works very well atop his blue shirt, which adds a nice pop of color. The black boots and classic sunglasses dress down the look, making it seem effortless, yet polished.

I think this look stands for itself. I like to call it ‘‘The One that Broke the Golden Globes.’’ I think more people were buzzing about Chalamet’s look than the actual awards ceremony. Who else shows up wearing an embroidered Louis Vuitton bib? No one! And who else could pull this look off? Absolutely no

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March

Celebrating National Love Your Pet Day

By EMILEA McCUTCHAN ‘20 Who could resist the scrunched-up snoot of a bulldog or the little cottontail of a bunny? People absolutely love animals. According to The Human Animal Bond Research Institute, 57% of people report having a pet. While common pets might be dogs or cats, perhaps even a fish, there are many other interesting pets from across the United States and even from around the world.

Dogs are perhaps the most popular type of pet in the world. Statista reported that 471 million dogs were pets in 2018. They are warmly known as “man’s best friend”, and they have helped humans for thousands of years by protecting them and providing them with companionship since the earliest days of civilization.

Dogs first became pets when humans began taking care of wolf puppies, and they soon evolved into the dogs we know today. This is just a theory, but nevertheless, these domesticated wolves evolved into the best friends we cherish now.

Naturalist Mark Derr thinks that the reason we have a close relationship goes back to the days when humans hunted for food. Derr believes that humans and wolves both recognized each other as hunters.

“The dog is a creation of wolves and humans — of two equal beings that came together at a certain point in history and have been together ever since,” said Derr.

As wolves and humans worked closer together, the wolf began to evolve. Its skeletal frame shrank, its jaw shortened and social wolves traveled with humans

more, passing these genes onward to future generations.

Cats are the second most popular type of pet, with Statista reporting 373 million pet cats in 2018 alone.

However, cats have more recently

Their genetics only began to change after cats allowed themselves to be domesticated through adapting more tame and social behaviors. Soon, visible changes could be seen in the newly domesticated and evolved cat, such as distinct mark-

become domesticated. In fact, the first domesticated cat appeared during the Middle Ages. Before being domesticated, cats hung around farming communi-

ings. This led to people breeding cats with particular traits, resulting in the cats we know today.

R a b b i t s are becoming a popular

ties in the Fertile Crescent and helped humans with their rodent problems in

household pet, with 1.5 million people having one. They are gaining

return for shelter and food in return.

Cats’ genetics were unchanged from that of their ancestors, except for adding some stripes and dots like a tabby cat.

in popularity in large cities where small apartments are typical, such as China. Rabbits are very intelligent, curious creatures that have unique person-

alities.

Most pet rabbits evolved from the wild European rabbit, but like cats, pet rabbits are only recently domesticated and still have behaviors and biology similar to their wild ancestors. However, rabbits have become very social and smart animals, and they can even be taught to respond to commands using treats.

Reptiles are also becoming a normal pet to have as many people are adopting lizards and even snakes. Popular reptilian pets include turtles, bearded dragons, geckos, ball pythons and corn snakes. Bearded dragons are a popular reptilian pet, as they are easily tamed and entertaining. Snakes can be challenging to care for, but corn snakes and ball pythons are passive, easy to take care of and live for a long time. Turtles are by far the most popular reptilian pet because they live forever and do not require much maintenance.

Pigs have become a popular pet, especially after gaining notoriety in the late ‘90s for their small stature and cute curly tail. They are intelligent, clean, low maintenance and social, bonding easily with humans.

No matter what kind of pet you have, Kian Yank of the pet-sitting company Dogs, Dogs, Everywhere said the best way to make your pet feel loved this National Love Your Pet Day is by making sure they know how much you care for and appreciate them. For example, you can take your pet on a walk or give them an extra treat.

Old Hollywood Glam Enlivens New Steakhouse

By EMILEA McCUTCHAN ‘20 Old Hollywood glitz and gla.m combine with traditional Texan fare at Drake’s Hollywood, a new steakhouse now gracing Lovers Lane. With its rich red décor adorning the restaurant, heavy velvet curtains enhancing the windows,

Drake’s a must-go restaurant to see its unique and one-of-a-kind atmosphere that will transport customers back in time to a golden age.

Drake’s brings Beverly Hills-inspired flair to the traditional Texas steakhouse,

and dimly lit curved booths, the restaurant pays tribute to the kind of glitzy California restaurant,

Courtesy of Paper City

where Magazine Frank Sinatra would dine.

The WestCoast vibes Drake’s serves can be felt right upon entering the restaurant, with a red canopy beckoning diners in. Its décor and menu make

serving blinis and caviar alongside high quality steaks, cheeseburgers and other classic eats for “neighborhood prices”.

The restaurant will have a more varied menu than most other steakhouses, as

Drake’s will serve pizzas and other nontraditional steakhouse eats as well.

Speaking to Paper City, Drake’s owner Hunter Pond described how, although he grew up eating at iconic Dallas steakhouses, he does not want to compete with those like Nick and Sam’s but wants to offer a fresh take on steakhouses in Dallas.

His goal is to make Drake’s a spot not just for special occasions or monthly dining but a place Dallasites could frequently dine at, perhaps biweekly.

Pond says, “There’s great food in the area, but not a lot of options for food and fun.”

Hunter Pond is also the mastermind behind Vandelay Hospitality which is responsible for East Hampton Sandwich Company and Hudson House. Drake’s will be the third restaurant from this restaurateur group and the first of its kind to bring West Coast flair to Dallas instead of Northeast vibes like the other two restaurants.

Pond was inspired to create Drake’s while on a trip to Los Angeles to visit some friends. He became captivated with the glitz and glam of Old Hollywood

and decided that his next restaurant, Drake’s, would combine the aesthetics of iconic West Coast eateries like Musso & Frank and the Beverly Hills Hotel.

“People are really pushing the envelope and looking beyond our natural heritage of what we define as fun or high-end cuisine,” Pond said, speaking to the Dallas Morning News. “I think that the vibe is relatable across multiple generations.”

In a statement, Pond described his vision for Drake’s as “a comfortable, yet sophisticated place to hang out with friends… We [Vandelay Hospitality] are huge fans of this neighborhood, and we believe this concept will thrive due to the need for fun places to have dinner – keyword being fun.”

The restaurant will certainly provide a fun alternative to usual, humdrum evening plans by having live music Thursday through Sunday. Live jazz will accompany steaks on Thursdays and Sundays, while a DJ will spin some of today’s top hits on Fridays and Saturdays.

Drake’s is located at 5007 W. Lovers Lane and is closed on Mondays but open Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 4 p.m to 10 p.m, Thursdays from 4 p.m to midnight, Fridays and Saturdays from 4 p.m to 1 a.m and Sundays from 4 p.m to 10 p.m. Reservations recommended.

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The Bear Facts

Answering the “Why?” Behind Wildfires

By EMMA LOUVIERE ‘22 This past decade will go down in history as one of the hottest on record, and it also came with record-breaking fires— fires that forced employees out of workplaces, animals out of natural habitats and families out of homes. But how do fires get to this point of destruction? How do they grow so strong that structures once standing are soon nothing but ash?

Firefighters call the perfect storm that creates these natural disasters the fire triangle.

The fire triangle is a culmination of three conditions that must be present to start a fire. To terminate a fire, firefighters try to eliminate one condition of the fire triangle because, without all three, a fire cannot start. These three conditions all working together eventually cause massive wildfires seen in the Amazon, Australia and California.

The first condition is fuel, classified as “flammable material surrounding a fire, including trees, grasses, bush, even homes,” according to National Geo-

Courtesy of Wikipedia

graphic. The greater the fuel load, the greater the fire. Anything that can burn can then be used as more fuel to strengthen the fire. There is only one way to take fuel out of the equation, and that is by fighting fire with fire.

The CTIF or International Association of Fire and Rescue Services explains the method as a backfire or a controlled fire.

The idea is to pre-burn the area that the fire is headed, therefore burning all the available fuel. By taking fuel out of the equation, the initial fire cannot spread.

But it is not always a quick fix.

A backfire can help stop the initial fire, but there is also a risk that the backfire can start an entirely new fire.

Backfires are a unique battle on their own. They are most effective if the counter-fire is close enough to the fire front that it can be consumed by the original fire. This can only happen if the wind is cooperating. If the wind weakens, the fire will stay in one place and just burn the desired area. If not, a whole new fire can spread and create destruction.

This explains the importance of the next part of the fire triangle: air.

For anything to burn there

Courtesy of NBC needs to be a significant amount of oxygen. Air provides the oxygen that a fire needs to burn. It also helps flames travel great distances quickly.

National Geographic uses California fires as an example.

California fires escalate so quickly due to the Santa Ana winds, “hot, dry gusts that turn small blazes, often cause by humans, into neighborhood-charring infernos.” The winds can carry flames far distances, turning a once tame fire uncontrollable. When the air is hot and dry with large gusts of wind, it is the perfect environment to start a fire. There is only one thing missing: the heat source.

Although fires are classified as natural disasters, most fires are started from heat sources created by human error. According to the Insurance Information Institute, “As many as 90 percent of wildland fires in the United States are caused by people.”

People provide a heat source from careless acts of campfires left unattended, thrown out cigarettes, burning buildings and fallen power lines.

Mistakes from power companies have initiated many devasting fires. Specifi-

cally in California, The Pacific Gas and Electric Company was the cause of California’s Camp Fire in 2018. This fire was the most devastating in California’s history, and the company is eager to not cause another devastation. They intend to stop mistakes by planning blackouts.

Therefore, much of California goes without power for an extended amount of time to limit the risk of another fire starting due to errors in power equipment.

Government officials and firefighters work to stop any of the three elements that make up the fire triangle. If they are successful, people’s homes are saved, the air is healthier to breathe and animals can stay where they belong.

But the failure to stop these elements ends in catastrophe. That is why people across the country are working to find new ways to better control these uncontrollable fires.

Going Green with Mr. Aisthorpe

By KATHARINE BALES ‘22 Recycling plastic, metal and glass became popular in the U.S. during the 1970s, but recycling food scraps? Although composting may not be as recognized, the practice has existed since the early 1900s and still successfully minimizes food waste.

In a nutshell, composting is reusing organic material such as leaves, grass clippings and produce scraps.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the composting process requires three basic materials to produce effective fertilizer: browns, greens and water. Browns can include dead leaves and sticks, while grass clippings, vegetable waste, fruit scraps and coffee grounds are considered greens.

The EPA reports that a

Courtesy of Waste Management

compost pile should have a one-to-one ratio of browns to greens; doing so will provide the new soil with equal amounts of carbon and nitrogen.

The final ingredient, water, regulates the compost mixture’s moisture when added often enough. If soil is too dry, it will not fertilize plants as effectively compared to damp soil.

Mr. Aisthorpe, Ursuline math teacher and passionate gardener, has composted in his backyard since 2006—the year he moved from England to the United States. He notes that his parents have always composted in England, but he never initiated his own routine before coming to America.

As a committed compost-maker, he tends to his pile each day and gathers organic matter in a contained space so that it rots and becomes usable as fertilizer.

“I make compost daily,” Aisthorpe said. “For example, potato peelings get collected and put into the compost bin.

Then the materials take a long time to decompose.”

To compost, one can compile scraps in an outdoor area or use a storebought manual composter to isolate the matter. Aisthorpe uses a plastic green rotating composter for his pile.

Composting food scraps into fertilizer may seem high-maintenance, but

Aisthorpe claims that the process is actually much less complicated than some may perceive.

“You have to keep [composting] daily, but it’s not difficult as long as you have somewhere to do it outside,” Aisthorpe said. “[The compost] happens on its own, so there’s no real work involved.”

Produce is compostable, but meat, eggs, animal bones and dairy products can spoil the fertilizer and infect plants once it is used. Weeds, which tend to spread easily in gardens, should be kept out of the pile as well.

“I only put in fruit and vegetable scraps and leaves. I do not put in weeds or any animal products,” Aisthorpe said.

More broadly, beyond saving money on chemical fertilizer, composting has eco-friendly benefits that can drastically reduce landfill trash.

“It reduces the amount of waste that goes into landfill, and it produces fertilizer for my vegetable garden,” Aisthorpe said.

“It also provides a habitat for bugs.”

This process can lead some to a zerowaste lifestyle since they do not contribute as much waste to landfill. After all, if a banana peel can be reused for another purpose, why waste its valuable nutrients by throwing it away?

“Ideally, I would like to live waste-free,” Aisthorpe said, “but I’m not sure that’s realistic for me, so I guess I’d just like to

Courtesy of the city of Coravallis

produce less trash.”

Composting is less extreme than living zero-waste, but recycling and composting limits garbage to nonrecyclable plastics, Styrofoam, and food-tainted objects. Plastic straws and Styrofoam egg cartons, for instance, must be thrown away and not recycled.

Going completely zero-waste would force someone to live without any nonrecyclable or non-compostable items.

Aisthorpe concludes sharing his experiences in the composting realm by encouraging others to join the composting community.

Aisthorpe said, “It feels good to do it.

It encourages you to use outdoor space and to go outside.”

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March

Banish Breakouts With This Skincare Routine

By HOPE WHITCRAFT ‘20 Everyone deals with the struggle of managing and treating acne. With the crazy weather happening around Dallas, our skin has to put up with a lot.

Between the cold and the humidity, our skin has to fight hard to not get breakouts. When those tough pimples pop up, there are many ways to help clear them fast! Here are some tips and tricks along with some products to help treat those tougher seasonal breakouts.

The biggest tip for clearing up acne fast is to not touch the irritated area at all—no matter how bad you want to!

Another tip that most people do not even realize is about the washcloth you use to wash and dry your face. Make sure that it is white because the dyes in the washcloth can sometimes irritate your face even more.

Washing your face is also another crucial step in fighting back breakouts.

Some cleanser brands that are soft on skin are Cetaphil, Fresh and Tatcha. Making sure your cleanser isn’t too harsh on your skin is important because people often believe that they need to use harsher products when they break out. The idea that harsher products get rid of breakouts faster is a misconception since breakouts clear up faster when you use more sensitive skin remedies.

Try not to use facial scrubs because they can cause even more irritation on your face. Instead, try facial oils which are very effective at penetrating the skin.

Herbivore is a great natural brand that

sells amazing skin oils that treat a multitude of different problems you may be having with your skin. From oily skin to dehydration to acne, Herbivore has you covered with a wide variety of different facial oils. Facial oils have been proven to not clog your pores as much as moisturizer and also penetrate your skin more than a typical bedtime moisturizer.

Using a toner frequently to pair your

facial oil helps prevent and fight acne and minimize pores. Finding a natural toner that isn’t harsh on your skin is vital. Herbivore again is also a great brand to find really natural products that are sensitive on your skin.

For those trickier pimples to get rid of, try the Mario Badescu or Kate Somerville acne spot treatment. These two spot treatments specifically target those bigger,

Courtsey of Vector Stock

more stubborn pimples and make them disappear fast!

Apply the treatment right before you go to bed, and when you wake up, you will automatically see the improvement.

Within a week, those trickier pimples will be minimized until they are completely gone. These two treatments are perfect for people with dry skin because they go directly on the pimple instead of all over your face causing dryness on your cheeks and forehead.

Lastly, finding a good moisturizer that isn’t too thick or oily is very important in making sure that your skin remains smooth and moisturized when treating acne. A few moisturizers that are light and work well are Clinique Moisture Surge, the Herbivore Pink Cloud Rose Water Moisturize Creme and the Tatcha Water Cream. These are just a few of the many moisturizers that make your skin flawlessly smooth while not causing too much oil buildup.

Dealing with acne can hopefully become easier with these products and tips. Getting rid of acne fast and easily is tricky, but you should experiment with different products in order to find what works best for your skin type.

All these tips are safe ways to help treat acne, but the biggest tip is to wait it out. Acne will eventually clear up with time, so don’t beat yourself up too much for those tricky break outs. After all, no one is safe from the occasional pimple!

Images courtesy of Small Flower Blog and Vector Stock

Bake This Banana Bread to Warm Up Your Winter

By HOPE WHITCRAFT ‘20 This year’s Texas winter has been a particularly strange one with 70-degree sunny days followed by freezing temperatures and snowfall.

What better way to take advantage of the wintery days than by baking a delicious loaf of banana bread. In my experience, baking is the perfect activity to do by yourself while listening to your favorite music; with friends while catching up on their lives; or with family while enjoying a nice long weekend.

This recipe is one I have experimented with and used many times. It is a family recipe that has been passed down from multiple family members before my mother finally gave it to me.

In all of my banana bread attempts, this is the best banana bread I have ever tried, and my mom and I are on a mission to make sure it stays that way.

We try different kinds of banana bread whenever and wherever we can, and this banana bread continues to be the best recipe in our opinion.

This recipe is so easy, quick and, most importantly, delicious! Try this out with your friends on the weekend or with your family members as a fun way to spend a cold day inside at home. As soon as you take it out of the oven, the smell alone will make your mouth water. Try it out for yourself and see if it becomes your new favorite recipe!

Ingredients: ½ cup of butter, softened 1½ cups of all-purpose flour 1 cup of granulated sugar 3 to 4 ripened bananas, mashed 2 eggs, beaten ½ teaspoon of salt 1 teaspoon of baking soda ½ teaspoon of vanilla

Directions: Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Step 2: Whisk the butter and sugar in a separate large bowl.

Step 3: Add the two eggs and mashed bananas after the butter and sugar are completely blended together.

Step 4: In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt until completely mixed. Then add the vanilla.

Step 5: Next, combine the two bowls and mix together completely.

Step 6: If you decide to add chocolate chips, fold them in last.

Step 7: Once the ingredients are all mixed in, pour the mix into a greased glass pan or a non-stick metal loaf pan.

Step 9: Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes depending on how cooked you want yhe bread.

Step 10: Once you take it out, make sure to let it cool for ten minutes or so and enjoy!

Images courtesy of Vector Stock and Pinterest

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The Bear Facts

Invasions Into Royal Privacy Must Stop

By JACKIE THOMAS ‘20 ews and one niece in succession.

So, in effect, this break is more of a hit to the ego for the British monarchy and the public’s view of their national image than an actual threat to their governing system. Patriotism and national pride are not to be dismissed, of course, but perhaps British tabloids and concerned citizens should recall past controversies. For example, the st n Po o t divorce of ing ash W he t f

detrimental for Diana, who underwent constant invasions of privacy by tabloids and paparazzi. Harry himself evoked his mother’s treatment by the press when addressing the public on Jan. 19 as a reason for his step back from royal duties.

Recalling the damaging effects of the media on Diana, Harry said, “My deepest fear is history repeating itself. I’ve seen what happens when someone I love is

Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1995 seemed a monumental event that the royal family and country at large would not recover from. And yet, life went on and so did royal traditions.

In fact, it’s worth noting that the same media circus took over during the Charles and Diana’s marital dispute. The harassment was especially

commoditized to the point that they are no longer treated or seen as a real person. I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces.”

We must be mindful of this—that the royals are, in the end, human. They are vulnerable and overanalyzed, too, in ways that other celebrities are not.

Simple association with the royals, espe-

Cou rte sy o

From era to era, the British crown has been a constant source of drama, intrigue and controversy in Great Britain and around the world. Think, for instance, of the tumultuous rule of Henry VIII, the bloody reign of Mary I or, perhaps most shocking of all, the hideous decision of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to … focus on their family?

That’s right, as worldwide refugee rates hit an all-time high, a deadly epidemic sweeps through Asia and the rest of the globe and nuclear powers are on the brink of war, we have decided to shift all focus onto the personal lives of the (former) Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Harry and Meghan’s announcement that they would step back from traditional royal roles on Jan. 8 immediately dominated the news cycle, equated in magnitude to controversy surrounding Brexit controversy

by British press.

The media coverage of and public outcry against “Megxit,” as it has been dubbed, reveals an utter departure from common decency and empathy amplified by Twitter’s toxic call-out culture and cheap journalism aimed at pleasing readers, easy profits and disregard for journalistic integrity. The harassers of the former royals should step back and reevaluate their arguments and priorities along with the situation itself.

Consider the actual effects of Harry and Meghan’s decision. Yes, their stepping down is indeed unprecedented but seems mostly inconsequential for the British people at large. While Harry and baby Archie are technically in line for the throne (sixth and seventh, respectively), the odds that they will ever control the crown are exceedingly low, considering that they are behind Harry’s father, brother, two neph-

cially by women including Kate Middleton or Meghan Markle, results in ruthless judgement by Daily Mail columnists over their “royal etiquette”, from the way they sit, to the order in which they enter a room, to the looseness of their hairstyle, to their technique in holding a teacup. In the modern age of smartphone cameras at every turn, the scrutiny never ends, and any expectation of privacy is stolen from members of the royal family.

Some say this publicity is part of what it means to be royal, that Markle should have known what she was getting herself into when taking on the title of Her Royal Highness. It should never be socially acceptable or excused, however, for a new mother to be assailed endlessly for forgoing a press-laden public appearance days after giving birth, among many other instances of hypercriticism of Markle since her engagement to Prince Harry.

For decades, Queen Elizabeth II has been taking strides to modernize the role of the British crown and royal family and has been widely celebrated for doing so. To treat the former Duke and Duchess’s decision to dial back as a shameful, selfish, atrocious or hurtful act (as multiple publications have referred to it) is to reject progress already in motion in Britain.

Harry and Meghan’s decision to preserve the privacy, well-being and mental health of their family, not to mention their gladly forgoing public funds, is far from selfish. Rather, tabloids’ attempts to shame and deny them their necessity of peace of mind are selfish. Press and internet users alike should shift focus to real issues and let the formal royals seek happiness privately.

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Sophomores Gain Full Custody of Sadie’s Dance

By ELLIE SKELLY ‘21 After the controversy of Spring Jam (the casual mixer that replaced the Sadie Hawkins dance for a brief stint in the Spring of 2018), the class of 2021 could not imagine another unconventional Sadie’s. Their outrage at not having the chance to awkwardly ask a fellow freshman out and escort them to the gym was uncontrollable, and as the Spring of 2019 rolled around, the juniors made sure that every underclassmen from main hall to the FFC would be at their 70’s themed Sadie’s.

It seemed that everyone was happy returning to the conventional Sadie Hawkins dance, but turmoil was brewing in the class of ’22. As the spring of 2020 creeps nearer and nearer, the now-sophomores have pulled off another Sadie’s switch-up and have uninvited the freshman to the dance.

Upperclassmen were bewildered. “I didn’t think anyone would change what we seemed to fix. Also I don’t understand why you wouldn’t just want the extra money,” said Julianna Sierra ‘21, referring to Sadie’s role as a fundraiser for the Senior Snowball dance.

Sophomores, despite potential backlash from other grades, have stood stead-

fast in their decision. Surprisingly, many sophomores have voiced their support for Sadie’s, explaining that making it a sophomore-only event creates a new, unique aspect to sophomore year.

“Making Sadie’s a sophomore-only event gives us something to look forward to and makes sophomore year more special.”

Ella Tomaselli ‘22 Ella Tomaselli ’22 explained why she supports the new change in Sadie’s attendants. “There is nothing particularly exciting about sophomore year, and I

know a lot of people see it as the most boring year of high school. I think making Sadie’s a sophomore-only event gives us something to look forward to and makes sophomore year more special.”

Tomaselli has a point. Freshman have four mixers plus Homecoming and what would have been Sadie’s worked into a busy social calendar. Sophomores on the other hand only have Homecoming and Sadie’s to look forward to, so to deny the freshmen a Sadie’s experience would not leave them void of much.

Furthermore, Sophomores look forward to bonding with their own class through a shared dance experience. Sophomore year is defined as coming into your own person by taking the introduction to high school you had freshmen year and starting to make it your own.

As Abby Skelly ’22 said, “I think it will be ok without the freshmen there. They are still trying to figure out who they are going to be in high school, and sometimes it can be a bit awkward,” going on to say, “I am just excited to be able to spend time with my friends without having to worry who else is there.”

Freshmen, however, are not pleased about the shift in policy. Nadia Shaaf ’23

explained that she and her friends looked forward to the dance and are disappointed that they will not get the formal Sadie’s experience, at least not this year.

“I’m pretty upset that Sadie’s is cancelled for the freshmen,” said Shaaf, who went on to explain that because there will be less people at the dance, their will be less excitement in the atmosphere. “I think the sophomores will regret voting us,” explaining, “the dance might be dead, there just will not be enough people.”

Another aspect of the dance decision that the freshmen are upset about is that they, or their student council representation, had no say in the decision. Shaaf explained this by saying, “I think it’s unfair we did not have a vote in this decision, especially because the sophomores had the opportunity to go last year.”

Despite the disappointment of the freshman class, there is one positive that Shaaf highlights. “At least I don’t have to ask a boy.”

The saga of Sadie’s seems to have become as much of a tradition at Ursuline as the dance itself, but hopefully both parties can come to terms with the new guidelines of the dance and enjoy the Sophomore Sadie’s.

State of the Union Needs an Overhaul

By JACKIE THOMAS ‘20 The U.S. Constitution enumerates that the President “shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”

This rather vague clause evolved into what we now know as the State of the Union Address. Of late, however, the American tradition has departed from its outlined purpose, informing and advising Congress, and has shifted towards a theatrical spectacle of polarized partisan politics. The address is now another platform for presidents to pander to their base and for presidential opponents to show their visceral distaste.

Consider, for example, the most recent State of the Union Address on Feb. 4. In summary, it consisted of President Trump’s characteristic self-congratulations, a borderline pep rally by Republicans and noticeably pouty, adamant silence from the Democrats.

The airing of the address packed in as much drama as a Keeping up with the Kardashians season finale, largely thanks to the elephant in the room named impeachment. The tension culminated in Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s dramatic destruction of her copy of the president’s speech.

The current Images courtesy of CNN

State of the Union model has three main issues: the misleading or incorrect information in the speech itself, the distracting theatrics from attendees and the overall minimal effect on the American people at large. The solution?

Revert back to the norm of the 19th century and part of 20th century—a straightforward written document with no televised event.

The first issue, misinformation, sprung out of the speech’s shift in purpose from informing to pandering.

Rather than stating facts to accurately reflect the nation’s current state, presidents of both parties for several decades have presented only what reflects well on themselves. Their confusing rhetoric and oversimplification has ultimately misled viewers.

For example, President Trump said on Feb. 4, “In eight years under the last administration, over 300,000 working age people dropped out of the workforce. In just three years of my administration, 3.5 million people, working age people, have joined the workforce.”

These numbers sound objective and paint Trump’s presidency in a good light. However, his assertions oversimplify reality. According to NPR, the fall in the workforce participation rate under Obama’s administration was largely due to an aging workforce as baby boomers reached retirement age. Trump’s statement leaves out the rate of job creation, which has increased more

slowly under Trump than Obama.

An effective written address would include citations to support its figures.

This practice would convey accurate information without any rhetoric aimed at bolstering political status. A streamlined document would curb the address’s style of presidential showmanship that presents more like a campaign rally than a delivery of updates and requests.

Secondly, theatrics put on by attendees contribute to the problem with the current setup. More than anything, these political displays are a waste of time and only worsen the nation’s widening divide.

Most noticeable, perhaps, is the partisan applause that seems to erupt every other minute. Applause as a political statement during the address has taken off in recent years, with Obama’s addresses averaging at 90 instances each and Trump’s 2018 address having nearly 30 minutes total of applause, according to an analysis by CBS News.

And then there are the dramatic displays of dissent, like Pelosi’s shredding of the most recent address while standing behind the president. These spectacles waste viewers’ time. Worse, they further polarize the two parties. Elimination of the visual event altogether would help the country avoid unproductive political melodrama from such immaturity and needless quarreling.

Finally, we have the cherry on top of the issue.

Despite the drama and time-wasting

aimed towards shifting public opinion, recent polls have found that the televised State of the Union does little to change Americans’ minds, especially in the past several years.

Historically, according to New York Magazine, presidents’ approval ratings usually receive a temporary 10-20% bump following a State of the Union address. Per annual polls commissioned by the American Federation of Teachers, however, President Trump’s approval rating has only grown by between 7 and 10 points after each of his addresses.

Specifically, when looking at poll results separated by race, age and gender following the 2020 address, it seems that the State of the Union has boosted approval within the president’s base but does little or nothing to sway those outside of that subgroup. Such a result suggests, again, the atmosphere of a reelection rally.

A written address would refocus the State of the Union away from winning support and smiting an opposing party and back to its original purpose outlined in the Constitution. This change would be nothing revolutionary. It would simply pick back up again with what was normal for over 100 years in American politics.

America does not need to renew The Real Housewives of D.C. (the State of the Union). Citizens and Congress alike deserve a concise account of their country’s progress and needs, free from drama and needless partisan bickering.

The solution is clear: bring back the written address.

Into the great beyond! Here on Earth, we have been obsessed with space from the beginning of time. Whether it be worshipping them as Gods, using them to calculate our time, or finding ways to land on them, stars and planets have always been a place of humanity’s dreams and desires. Despite our existence-long fascination, there is still so much more to understand about the extraterrestrial worlds.

In galaxies far, far away, there are phenomena occurring that boggle the best modern minds.

The Spitzer Telescope’s Mission is Coming to an End

a t r S i s a B n or e h

No, not the singing poltergeist summoned by repeating his name. The Betelgeuse star is a red giant star ready to turn supernova. Scientists first noticed that the star had been growing dimmer and dimmer. Then, on Jan. 14, the star was thought to have emitted gravitational waves that seemed to signal the end of Betelgeuse. Though the waves came from a source 10 degrees away from the star, astronomers still associate Betelgeuse’s dimming w i t h an imminent demise.

Currently, the star has reached its current size by burni n g

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through the hydrogen in its core and is now using helium. When done with the helium, the star will use carbon and eventually silicon. After burning through silicon, the star will have nothing left to use and turn into a supernova. At

Though the Spitzer telescope itself is not exactly a scientific phenomenon, the images it was able to capture in its 17year circulation around Earth enabled the decade’s most groundbreaking space discoveries. For example, in May 2010 the Spitzer captured an image of a supernova remnant, known as HBH 3. The picture captured on of the oldest stars explode, leaving behind dust and particles that will be in our galaxy’s circulation for billions of years. The Spitzer was also able to capture a picture of the Carina nebula, one of the biggest stars in the galaxy, a bright s t a r at the center of the universe t h a t wreaks havoc on surrounding nebula.

L a s t l y, the Spitzer was able to capture an image of the Orion nebula, the closest and most influential source of stars to Earth.

2 ‘ : Ellie Skelly

declining in brightness from then for about six months.

Scientists Detect the Collision of Two Stars

At the annual meeting of the American Astronomical Society on Jan. 6, astronomers announced the second example of two neutron stars that violently merged, creating gravitational waves picked up on Earth. The collision happened 520 million light-years ago, but because of the time it ook for the waves to travel such a distance, it only reached Earth recently. Neutron stars are the smallest stars in the universe

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and are typically the remnants of a previous supernova explosion. The diameters of neutrons are the size of Chicago or Atlanta. However, these stars are extremely dense, and their mass is bigger than Earth’s sun. Basically, imagine two incredibly heavy, big cities violently ramming into each other.

The sizes of the stars are unusual under these circumstances, and scientists are still working to understand how such a high mass system was formed.

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Betelgeuse Star Dimming

this point, the star will implode and will likely become a condensed neutron star or a black hole.

On Earth, we will see this explosion as a bright full moon in the sky for four weeks,

Images courtesy of Space.com, MEAWW and NPR