Tower Issue #5 2018-2019

Tower The Masters School

49 Clinton Avenue Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. 10522

VOLUME 75, NUMBER 5

Editorial Although February has passed and Black History Month is over, it does not mean we can sit idly by and wait a full year to consider Black History again. It is critical that we recognize Black History as American history, and keep important topics in mind even outside their designated dates of commemoration.

FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 2019

tower.mastersny.org

Masters unveils new school schedule After the recent unveiling of the new schedule to the student body, members of the Tower staff decided to take a closer look at the different facets of the schedule and its differences from the current schedule, which Masters has utilized for the past 15 years.

Pages 6-7

◄ MATH DEPARTMENT CHAIR MICHELE Dennis announced the creation of a new centrist/ conservative affinity group to provide centrist and conservative students a space to speak comfortably among like-minded peers.

LILY WANG/TOWER

Dennis debuts centrist/conservative affinity group amina choudhry Web Design Editor Masters’ newest affinity group, the centrist/conservative affinity group, was announced by Math Department Chair Michele Dennis during a Feb. 15 speech as a space for people who identify as politically centrist or conservative to discuss their views in a safe environment.

Following an AIM survey (Assessment of Inclusivity and Multiculturalism) given to the Upper School, Karen Brown, Director of Equity and Inclusion, came to a “shocking conclusion” about the number of students who felt silenced. “The sentiment I gathered from the survey was that many students felt uncomfortable or outright censored for their views,” Brown said.

Some of the anonymous quotes gathered in the survey include: “The school is trying to include all opinions in discussions, but they’re not trying hard enough. We are in a liberal bubble where conservative perspectives often get shunned.”

“Though I am liberal myself, I also find that individuals with conservative views are looked down upon and not given a platform to voice their opinions; there is little to no diversity of opinion or thought towards many subjects.”

“I think the school does a great job of including people of all races and socioeconomics. I am liberal, like the majority of the student body and facul-

ty, but I wish we had more diversity of thought and more exposure to differing ideas. I am big believer in free speech and I feel that many voices and ideas are being squelched.”

These were just three of the overwhelming number of responses that showed a need to allow students to express their views free of judgement and stigmatization.

Following her speech, Dennis described an outpouring of gratitude from students with similar experiences. “Students came up to me in the hallway, in classrooms and some contacted me by email, kids I’ve never really spoken to before and said, ‘Thank you for making that speech. Somebody needed to say it.’”

According to Brown, multiple students have also come by her office and expressed a need for the creation of safe space to share what it feels like to be centrist or conservative.

“It takes a lot of courage for people who are not of the norm to speak up and say this is important to us. Masters has always been good at giving everyone a voice so I’m happy that this is a school where students can come together, even though it may not be popular,” Brown said.

The ultimate goal of this affinity group is to promote and support viewpoint diversity in the Masters community and according to Dennis, before we can reach that goal, it is paramount to sanction and support a place to hold those unpopular opinions.

The agenda of the centrist/conservative affinity group as Dennis describes

it is no different than the agenda of any other affinity group at Masters.

“This is not going to be a debate club.

It will be a forum to talk about issues of viewpoint diversity in the classroom and elsewhere and, in particular, how to navigate respectfully speaking up in discussions,” she said.

A major concern for many students is the potential for the creation of a hate-based group that allows for derogatory language. Senior Daniel Jaffe believes it is important to make a distinction: “Bigotry and racism is not part of any political party, the problem is that there have been groups who align with Republicans who change the image of the party.

Masters is not going to hold a place for people to express outwardly racist or homophobic views,” he said.

Dennis echoed Jaffe’s words in her speech. “This call for the inclusion of differing viewpoints should in no way be interpreted as sanctioning hateful or harmful behavior to others,” she said.

Sophomore Henry Schatz delivered a speech on MLK day recounting uncomfortable moments as a conservative at Masters, detailing moments in which he felt stifled and uneasy sharing his views.

“The fact that some of my conservative friends were afraid to go on stage with me, the fact that many students refused to go on record as a conservative, the fact that people won’t join the group out of fear of stigmatization speaks to the fact that we need this group more now more than ever,” Schatz said.

New Masters classes will accompany next year’s schedule emma LuiS Editor-in-Chief While the schedule for next year might look very different, the course request sheet for the 2019-2020 school year brings back familiar classes along with a few new options.

The newly adopted schedule for next year has an extra block, allowing students the option to take more courses than in previous years. While the new schedule will give students more blocks to take classes, according to Associate Head of the Upper School Sara Thorn, students are still recommended to take five majors, and use the extra time to take on a new minor or have “time to breathe.”

“Everyone should not start packing their schedule; that’s not healthy. The whole point of this is more time for students to be able to get their work done in a healthy manner,” Thorn said.

The extra block not only opens up extra time for students, but also possibilities for teachers to another class to their repertoire. According to Thorn, classes are proposed by current teachers through the respective department chairs, then meetings are held to discuss the new classes that are proposed before deciding to offer them the following year.

According to Thorn, among the new minors is a Department of Modern and Classical Languages class called Introduction to Arabic and the Arab World. It will be taught by language teacher Ladane duBoulay with a unit on contemporary Islam taught by language teacher Abdoulaye Ngom.

A long-time graduation requirement and sophomore year staple, World Religions, will now be divided into Eastern Religions and

Western Religions. Sophomores will now have to choose between the two half-year minors in order to fulfil their graduation requirement, but have the option of taking both courses over the course of their high school careers. There are also several religion courses being added, most of which have been previously offered, and include History of American Buddhism, Mysticism: East and West, Christianities and Religion & Social Change in New York.

Several major courses are also being added to the course options. For English, juniors will now have the choice to study AP English Language and Composition, American Studies/Literature and English 11/Seminars. In the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center, students who have already taken Computer Science Principles or demonstrate a proficiency in coding will be able to add Computer Science Applications to their course load as an elective major.

There will also be a Power for Good course, proposed by math teacher Marianne Van Brummelen, English teacher Darren Wood, CityTerm urban core teacher Trinity Thompson and CityTerm curricular leader Jason Hult.

According to Science Department Chair Frank Greally, the science curriculum will also have a slightly different structure from previous years. Two of the courses that were previously full-year majors will be split into half-year courses: Physics will become Mechanics and Electricity & Magnetism and Biology will be halved into Molecular Biology and Human Biology & Physiology. There are also a couple of new science seminars including Environmental Science: Climate Change and Environmental Science: Sustainability.

Masters prepares for various dorm improvements Jacob Strier News Design Editor In preparation for the 2019-2020 school year, both the boys’ and girls’ dorms will undergo numerous aesthetic and structural renovations during the summer months.

Head of Engineering and Maintenance Craig Dunne explained the largest projects which are set to take place: “We are going to renovate the boys’ dorm bathrooms: all six. They are being completely gut renovated,” he said.

In addition to work in the bathrooms, which Dunne described as “old” and in need of renovation, various other parts of the boys’ dorms will receive aesthetic improvements. “We will be painting the dorm hallways and all the student rooms,” he said. “We will be changing the hallway flooring, getting rid of the carpeting. We will probably put in resilient flooring, something better and cleaner,” he added.

These various projects will contribute to the “beautification” of the dorms, as Dunne put it, but the work does not stop there. Also on the agenda for this summer are landscape design and other structural renovations.

Outside the girls’ dorms, the court-

yard will receive an update. According to Dunne, his office does not have the finished designs yet, but the project will make the space more usable.

“We are redoing it to make it much more pleasant; it will be a pleasant surprise when we are done,” Dunne said.

Director of Operations Dan Pereira said plans for the new courtyard may involve a combination of hardscape, such as paved surfaces, and natural JACOB STRIER/TOWER landscape.

On the structur- THE GIRLS’ DORM COURTYARD is one of the spaces on campus which is set to be improved over al side, according to the summer. Construction on this project and others will start the day after graduation, according Dunne, an elevator is to Head of Engineering and Maintenance Craig Dunne. to be installed in Ford this summer, and possibly in Cole next summer. Dunne said do,” he said. the elevators will further this transforthese installations will continue to bring Pereira said the Dobbs Ferry Build- mation. these dorms up to ADA code (Americans ing Department ensures that any perThese various construction projects with Disabilities Act). Dunne said these mit for construction at Masters is in will be completed by both in-house elevators will improve the accessibility compliance with the ADA. He said staff, and for the larger projects, by outof Masters buildings for those who need that last year’s renovations in the girls’ side contractors. Dunne said some of accommodations. “This will make them dorms made the bathrooms ADA com- the projects are “long overdue.” “It is a more accessible. It is the right thing to pliant, and the eventual installation of lot of work to get done in one summer,”

he said. “I will have the architectural plans in the beginning of March, and I will start my hiring, planning and supplies-buying then,” he added. Dunne said construction is set to start the day after graduation.

As the Class of 2019 graduates and Masters students and faculty enter summer break, Dunne’s crew will set to work. Many components of the renovations will be done in-house by the Masters maintenance department, including painting, carpentry and mechanical work, according to Dunne. “My guys work around the clock in the summer,” he said.

Looking past this summer to longterm construction goals, Dunne said there are projects which he is excited about, but he declined to give further information. “There is going to be some major work; there will be stuff happening over the next couple of years, and people will be pleasantly surprised,” Dunne said.

Pereira said the next major construction steps will depend on the school’s needs at the time. With regard to the Master Plan, Pereira said it provides a blueprint for upcoming changes to the school. “Think of the Master Plan not as a step-by-step guide, but what we want to accomplish over the next 10-15 years,” he said.

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OP-ED

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

OpiniOn

Women’s literature is critical to equal representation Sophia BrouSSet Lead News Editor Sarah FaBer Staff Writer

The term “women’s literature,” or work written by women, draws upon the fact that a woman’s experience is intrinsically linked with her gender, thus making her narrative worthy of individual study. Male authors, and thus male perspectives, are more prominently featured in the syllabi of English courses nationwide.

Though it is undeniable that women have made great progress in this sector, with more active female authors and publishers than ever before, there is still much work to be done.

A part of the issue is that women read fiction written by men, but men don’t necessarily read fiction by women. In past centuries, renowned female authors—the Brontë sisters, George Sand (born Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin) and George Eliot (born Mary Ann Evans)—adopted male pen names in order to make their novels more appealing to male audiences. This has not changed in

modern-day—Joanne Rowling adopted the alias “J.K. Rowling” when writing Harry Potter in an effort to ensure that young boys would not be deterred by the fact that she was a woman.

Not only are men reading less women’s fiction, but they are also reviewing less of it. As found by Vida, an organization that collects statistics on the representation of women in literature, The Paris Review, Harper’s Magazine, New York Times Book Review and The Atlantic cover significantly more works by male authors. This feeds into the academic system, influencing the books that we as students consume. Only 19 out of 84 of the most frequently cited texts on the AP English Literature exams from 1970-2015 were written by women.

Of course, part of the problem is rooted in the historic tradition of male-dominance in the academic sector. For centuries, the male literacy rate was exponentially higher than the female rate. This contributed to the silencing of the female voice in literature, especially with curricula that focus on the classics and since the most renowned women’s classics

typically tell the tale of a woman of that era—in other words, a story of oppression. However, in the past de-

cades women have published novels at a rate much higher than in centuries past, with many of these novels

LILY WANG / TOWER

AUTHORS (LEFT TO RIGHT) George Sand, Virginia Woolf and Toni Morrison, as depicted in this illustration, are mainstays in American literature courses. Despite their prevalence in English curricula, many other female writers deserve recognition and study, as Brousset and Faber assert. They argue the lack of emphasis on women’s literature is harmful in the long-term.

covering topics beyond the archetypal oppression narrative while still maintaining the same literary merit the College Board’s AP curriculum requires. The Pudding analyzed New York Times best sellers, dating all the way back to 1950. Not until 1995 did women begin to experience some indication of equal representation on the list, only reaching 50/50 once in 2001.

The lack of emphasis put on the female narrative is, in the long-term, harmful. It is powerful for young girls to connect with real, three-dimensional and developed characters in the same way that young boys can. When the majority of books assigned to students depict all types of male narratives, it is easy for girls to feel boxed-in to the one or two female narratives assigned. That being said, the minimal literature written by women and about women that is typically included in school curriculum almost exclusively tells a narrative of historical and modern oppression.

While women’s experiences must be viewed through the lens of this oppression, women have many other stories worthy of sharing.

PRO: Centrist/Conservative CON: Centrist/Conseraffinity group fills needed role vative affinity group is a in Masters community paradox JacoB Strier News Design Editor

Viewpoint diversity lacks in schools Viewpoint diversity has all but disappeared from elite high schools and universities in the United States which once stood as proud bastions of intellectual exchange.

These institutions’ promise of a liberal-arts education has moved away from their original offer of a diverse set of curricula and heterogeneous mix of opinions to embody stifling political correctness and, in effect, a lack of healthy discussion.

referring directly or inadvertently to those who disagree with them as bigoted or uneducated, and thus not belonging within the “bubble.” Such rhetoric makes it near-impossible for those with different, but equally valid, opinions to make themselves heard around the Harkness table, or the lunch table, though centrist or conservative views are shared by half of our nation.

The argument for affinity groups, of all kinds In accordance with the essence of other affinity groups, the group will provide a temporary exclusive space in order to strengthen the Masters community and its various constituents as a whole. A school is composed of various

“

Dennis announces new centrist/conservative affinity group

To hold an opposing viewpoint at Masters is not only stigmatized, it is considered taboo—only a space dedicated to the exchange of heterodox views can break through the groupthink mentality in our school environment, and facilitate a true liberal education in the traditional, open-minded sense of the term.

The centrist/conservative affinity group, which is to be run by Math Department Chair Michele Dennis, will provide that necessary space at Masters. Though I do not know if the group aligns well with my personal views, I am a champion for its right to exist and the need for such a space on our campus.

Why is this group’s presence necessary?

The group will allow for students whose voices are usually silenced by their peers to speak about how such daily stigmatization has affected their personal views and their overall education. It will also provide the space for students with heterodox or unorthodox views within Masters’ political spectrum to explore, articulate and challenge their opinions among peers willing to listen without labeling them or judging them.

In fact, it is the very existence of such negative labeling which has necessitated the presence of the affinity group on our campus. Even well-intentioned liberal students at Masters paint the community as a “liberal bubble,” often

Those who try to delegitimize the group as not belonging or not having a place in the Masters community are at the root of the negative stigma which has led to the inception of the group itself.

- JACOB STRIER

working parts, and a healthy school environment allows for the personal and intellectual growth of individuals within the larger community. With a space dedicated to the growth of centrist and conservative individuals, every member of the community can grow and learn, not just those who think and act according to the status quo inside and beyond the classroom environment.

Of course, there exists the valid argument that affinity groups, particularly ideological ones, divide the community instead of serving as a unifying factor.

However, such an objection must also then apply to race or sexuality-based affinity groups, like the LGBT group “Q+,” which have allowed members of the Masters community to explore their identities in constructive ways in a space alongside those who identify the same way.

Of course, the qualifying characteristics for these other affinity groups require varying degrees of personal choice: one can technically choose to be a centrist or conservative, while one cannot choose their sexual orientation or race. Ideological identities should, however, be viewed with the same

credibility as natural ones. If we are sticking with the mentality that affinity groups allow people a safe space to explore their identities, then no affinity group should be decried as incorrect or unfitting simply because it goes against the accepted norm of what constitutes a proper “identity.” In addition, if affinity groups are designed in general to provide a respite from the difficulties of existing as a silenced minority, then the new centrist/conservative affinity group will provide that respite for those silenced and stigmatized Masters students.

What about hateful language?

Some students have argued against the existence of the group, exclaiming that it could become a space for hateful language. Such an objection is deeply problematic in two ways. First, it shows the incorrect association with different opinions as the wrong ones, and demonstrates a faulty belief that conservative or centrist ideals are hateful. In fact, hatred in multiple forms abounds on the extreme left and right of the political spectrum. Second, since the group will be teacher-led, such rhetoric assumes incorrectly that members of our faculty would ever allow for unhealthy or hateful speech.

Why diverse viewpoints ought to be legitimized and respected The same privileges of safe discussion and personal growth afforded to liberal students should be extended to centrist or conservative members of our community. Those who try to delegitimize the group as not belonging or not having a place in the Masters community are at the root of the negative stigma which has led to the inception of the group itself.

While the ideal solution would be an environment in which viewpoint diversity is valued and accepted, that atmosphere is somewhat lacking in certain spaces at Masters. There will never be a perfect solution, but the affinity group will provide a space currently unavailable to students who may feel silenced or alienated by their peers for their views, and the group’s existence may contribute to eventual acceptance of conservative or centrist views as both valid and deserving of attention by peers with left-leaning ideas.

Nora FellaS Staff Writer aNNie ruBiNSoN Features Design Editor

I

n the “liberal bubble” of the Masters community, it can sometimes be easy to overlook conservative viewpoints. Especially with our culture placing greater emphasis on political correctness, this apparent homogeneity of opinion leaves little room for alternative perspectives, creating social barriers within the Masters community and beyond.

In response to this, Math Department Chair Michele Dennis introduced a new affinity group for conservative and centrist students to express their political opinions and to discuss the centrist/conservative experience at Masters. While we commend the attempt to address a genuine concern, an affinity group is not the most effective solution. A space that is only for conservative-centrists will create a greater rift in the student body, reinforcing the “us and them” narrative.

The issue is not with a centrist/conservative affinity group, but with the very notion of any viewpoint-based affinity group. An affinity group–not to be confused with a club–implies exclusivity. This is often the point.

For example, Q+, the Asian Affinity Group and the Students of Color group all exist to forge connections between minority students. Each group functions as a space in which its members can speak freely about experiences that non-minority students would not understand. This reasoning does not stand when it comes to viewpoint-based exclusion.

Political disagreement is a universal experience, and thus does not require an exclusive group to manage the discomfort it elicits. Homophobia or racism, however, are systemic international problems, deeply rooted in our history, and specifically oppress one group.

By creating an all centrist/conservative affinity group, there is an implied equivalency between racism or homophobia and political disagreement. Although they are not always visible, sexuality and race are immutable characteristics. While one’s political viewpoints are important to one’s identity, they remain voluntary

and amenable to change, and often do as we gain life experience.

Additionally, even though conservative and centrists are a minority at Masters, there are likely to be contexts outside of school in which they are not. The same can be said for liberal students. For example, a liberal student at Masters very well may go home to a conservative household, where they will feel like the minority opinion. Therefore, the creation of a centrist/conservative affinity group fails to acknowledge the important distinction between immutable characteristics and universal political discomfort.

Finally, the goal of most affinity groups is to provide both a safe space and community for minority students, but the proposed goal of the conservative and centrist affinity group is “viewpoint diversity” at Masters. Separating students based on viewpoints seems counterproductive to this goal.

Instead of creating an all conservative and centrist space, we should encourage dialogue between students of all political opinions; the liberal student will benefit from hearing the views of the conservative and centrist, and vice versa. This is the ethos of the liberal arts education: open exchange of ideas, which won’t happen in exclusive spaces. Also, students and teachers alike shouldn’t take uniformity of opinion as a given. Rather than assuming everyone is in agreement, which effectively silences political dissidence, we should all be open to different points of view. Additionally, with advocacy as the school-wide theme for this year, we should all be vigilant to avoid instances of discrimination or judgement, and stand up for those who feel silenced.

Given our location, there is little we can do to change Masters’ political demographics. What we can do, however, is change our attitude. We can have more discussions about political tolerance, and, as always, assume good intent. Just as liberals do not always fit the stereotype of the “sensitive snowflake,” very few conservatives fit the stereotype of the “bigot.”

Instead of making snap judgments about our peers and bulldozing their opinions, we should keep a more open mind. For, in the end, political discussion is not always about right and wrong (or right and left), but about empathizing with a variety of perspectives.

OP-ED

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

3

EDITORIAL

Black history month is over. Reckoning with racism’s history must continue.

With Black History Month having come and gone this past February, the shortest month of the year, it becomes easy to turn the page in our history books and move onto the next month of awareness and remembrance.

As this cycle continues, the importance of a historic celebration often simmers on the backburner without us truly and actively appreciating historic values and contributions to our greater society.

But we, as people living in America, must not neglect that Black History exceeds a mere 28 days, a page in our textbooks and a fact at Morning Meeting.

Black History is American history and is too often underemphasized in our daily lives, in our classrooms, and in our nation’s consciousness.

Racism is very much alive in this country.

Whether it be the call for the return of the Ku Klux Klan by American citizens, racist comments by members of our government or notable politicians wearing black-face, racism and racist acts still remain in the headlines. Just two weeks ago, Goodloe Sutton, the editor of an Alabama newspaper, published an editorial in which he wrote that it is “time for the Ku Klux Klan to night ride again.”

In the same week, a Tennessee middle school teachers asked students to pretend that they were slave owners, and a white legislator from Maryland, Mary Ann Lisanti, used the n-word publically to describe her state’s predominantly black counties.

Despite our personal political beliefs, whether they be conservative, liberal or anything in between, we must all strive to respect every person as an equal no matter their race, religion, ethnicity or sexual orientation, and remember this beyond the month of February.

So while the months roll by and we turn to a new season of awareness, whether it be Women’s History, Autism Awareness, LGBTQ+ pride or Breast Cancer Awareness, we must remember that each of these months is in place for a reason: remembrance, celebration, discussion. But, these months of awareness are not limiting. We cannot confine ourselves to one month to reflect and examine the important events that compose the world around us.

editors-iN-Chief alexandra Bentzien eMMa luiS Lead News editor Sophia BrouSSet News desigN editors MorGan BrettSchneider JacoB Strier Lead opiNioN editor JoSeph GoldStein opiNioN desigN editors drew Schott Michelle wei Lead features editor aMita khurana features desigN editor annie ruBinSon Lead sports editor Shawn Farhadian sports desigN editors eliJah eMerY loGan Schiciano Lead web editor aNd adobe, aesthetiCs & arts editor tYler conwaY web CoNteNt MaNager Mitch Fink web desigN editor aMina choudhrY

PRO: Why the new schedule is an improvement academic opportunity shows through the addition of new and diverse courses being offered at the start of the Staff Writer 2019-2020 school year.

Another positive point in this new Immediately after the new sched- schedule is the elimination of double ule was announced on the morning blocks. Students often complain about of Friday, Feb. 15, I was not a fan. I having to sit through 110-minute doueven signed a classmate’s petition to ble blocks of a single class, but with disband the new schedule. However, every class being 80 minutes, double after thinking the schedule over, look- blocks have been replaced with by a ing at it and talking to classmates, I compromise between the current time realized that this new schedule was of single and double periods. These one of the best new periods are ways to resolve long enough to be our complaints very productive, This new system increases about the current but not so long opportunity, allowing schedule.

This that students will students to take more classschedule is more be itching to get es in a rotation without organized, evenly out. being crammed into a fivedistributed and One other very day schedule. erases the infaattractive compo- GABRIEL KELLER mously stressful nent of the new Thursday and Sunday night home- schedule is the 30-minute X-band in work crunch. the beginning of the day. With the One of the main complaints re- current schedule it is hard to wake garding the new schedule is the hard- up early and go to school just to sit to-follow eight-day schedule. While I in the theatre to listen to advertiseagree that this may be hard to grasp ments for events and clubs, and listen in the beginning, it is the best way to long speeches. Having 30 minutes to organize classes evenly. With this to pick ourselves up and prepare for new schedule, there are 32 80-minute the day will help students be more acclass blocks in one eight-day period. tive in class and better prepared for With this layout, students can take the day ahead. For lots of students, six majors and two minors and still the X-band period also gives us an have four 80-minute frees. This new opening to get breakfast, which many system increases opportunity, allow- of us do not have time for in the morning students to take more classes in a ing. This is just another way that the rotation without being crammed into X-band helps prepare us for our day. a five-day schedule. An increase in

CON: Bring back the good old days with the good old schedule

Gabriel Keller

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morGan brettsChneider News Design Editor

W

ith the announcement of the new schedule, it is clear that Masters is trying to make changes to help accommodate the students’ and faculty concerns in the best ways that they see fit. Although the previous schedule might have been old, it worked extremely well and to me serves the student body and faculty better than the new one will.

Every Monday, Tuesday and Friday students scatter their backpacks throughout the hallway and the library and hustle to their seats in the Claudia Boettcher Theatre before the clock strikes 8 a.m. Throughout Morning Meeting, students and faculty get the chance to share songs, speeches and ideas that matter to them.

Having Morning Meeting before classes really sets the tone for the day. Empowering speeches about injustices and other important issues affecting our community linger with the students throughout the day and work their way into Harkness discussions. This encapsulates something so special about Masters. Every single Morning Meeting we are exposed to ideas

and topics that are not included in our curriculum but somehow make their way into our conversations.

To me, this is an important part in a well rounded education. Without Morning Meeting as the first activity of the day, these conversations might not make their way into classes at the rate they do now.

In addition, the new schedule will allocate time to meet with teachers, at 8 a.m. everyday, an extreme contrast to the current schedule with extra help time after school. Having extra help at beginning of the day will be less effective as students could use this opportunity to get a few more minutes of sleep in the morning, instead of seeking help from teachers outside the classroom in the mornings.

Students could end up sleeping later and requesting teacher meetings after school, making teachers essentially have extra help in the morning and the afternoon.

As a graduating senior, it is comforting to think that Masters is trying to listen to the concerns of its students and faculty and trying to implement changes into the everyday life of a member of the masters community. While the new schedule attempts to address the concern of sleep, I do not think it will solve the majority of the problems it was designed to fix.

CorreCtions from issue 4 While Tower strives to find and correct errors and misspellings in the production of the paper, there can still be mistakes that are brought to the attention of the Tower staff after the paper has been published.

Here are corrections from Issue 4: On page 6, credit for the illustration accompanying Yasmine Pascal’s article should have been given to Lily Wang, not Wikimedia Commons.

In addition to the various roles and responsibilities of Robert Cornigans at Masters mentioned in Issue 4, he also served as the advisor of the International Club for at least eight years and possibly longer.

web produCtioN MaNager JacoB kriSS soCiaL Media MaNager GaBriel keller staff writers Sarah FaBer nora FellaS Mitchell Fink GaBriel keller aCCuraCy & aCCouNtabiLity aNd advertiseMeNt MaNager YaSMine paScal photos & iLLustratioNs editor Vincent alBan staff iLLustrator ziqi wanG faCuLty adviser ellen cowheY oNLiNe Media

For more information, follow Tower on the following platforms: Website: Tower.MastersNY.org Facebook: MastersTower Twitter: @MastersTower Instagram: @MastersTower

distributioN proCess

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sChoLastiC press affiLiatioNs, Letters aNd editoriaL poLiCy Tower is the winner of the Pacemaker Award for Overall Excellence, an award-winning member of the National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA), Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA), Journalism Education Association (JEA) and Quill and Scroll. We encourage Letters to the Editor, which can be submitted to the following email address: TowerEditors@MastersNY.org. Published approximately seven times a year, Tower, the student newspaper of The Masters School, is a public forum, with its Editorial Board making all decisions concerning content. Commentaries and opinion columns are the expressed opinion of the author and not of Tower and its Editorial Board or its advisers.

Furthermore, the opinions conveyed are not those of The Masters School, faculty, or staff. Unsigned editorials express views of the majority of the Editorial Board.

4

OP-ED

PRO: Abandoned Amazon HQ2 leaves NYC culture intact

CON: Amazon leaving NYC is a mistake and will hurt Long Island City’s economy

In a city composed of a diverse community of people, HQ2 would have polarized the population of Photo Editor New York City, creating turmoil over the costs of the headquarters.

HQ2 stands out as a business hub Plans to build Amazon’s famous– made for the Manhattan borough, or infamous–new corporate head- which holds many of the wealthiest quarters, known as HQ2, in the neighborhoods of New York, but the Queens, N.Y. neighborhood of Long company looked to a poorer neighIsland City, fell through as officially borhood to make their profits. announced on Feb. 15. Long Island In the short term, 25,000 jobs City is an industrial neighborhood would have come to New York City, known for its diversity and ungen- but in the long term, Amazon would trified charm. In the long term, be taking advantage of the tax the removal breaks HQ2 of Amazon’s would receive, HQ2 from “In a city composed of a dileading to the Queens will be verse community of people, further neglect beneficial to HQ2 would have polarized the of the city’s the area. population of New York City, deteriorating Although creating turmoil over the costs subway sysa plethora of the headquarters.” tem, public of jobs were - VINCENT ALBAN schools and to come with healthcare, as the new HQ2 the city would plant, many homes and apartment bring in fewer taxes. HQ2 would buildings would have been knocked bring in an incredible amount of down in order to pave the way for revenue, but it would not give back the $5 billion construction plans for to the New York City community. the headquarters. This would have Amazon is a company known for further condensed the already tight selling just about anything and evhousing landscape of New York City erything at an affordable rate with and would have spiked the cost of fast delivery; however, its business the remaining homes in the area, de- model can frequently lead to it pushspite real estate already being very ing out small, private businesses. expensive. According to Long Island Most of Long Island City is foundCity Post, a one-bedroom apartment ed on small businesses, and having in the neighborhood costs an aver- the heart of the corporate monopoly age $2,983 a month to rent–which that is Amazon in the middle of a has been a drop in recent years–in body of mom-and-pop shops would comparison to the average cost of negatively affect the cultural and monthly rent in New York City of economic landscape of Queens, and $3,415 a month.

New York City as a whole.

Vincent alban

“

Themes fall short without administrative support tyler conway Lead Web Editor At Masters, part of the transition from a junior to a senior entails picking the school’s theme for the following year, effectively setting the tone for the whole school year. Sitting in class meeting one week, my grade brainstormed ideas for a possible theme for the 20192020 school year. As ideas bounced around the room and I questioned each one as it whizzed by, I wondered about the themes I’ve experienced at Masters so far. And to be honest, I didn’t have that much to remember.

Sitting in that meeting, hearing all the ideas that wouldn’t come to fruition, it became clear to me that I would rather not have a yearly theme than spend time coming up with a meaningful yet unused theme.

The annual theme was held to a higher standard before I arrived at Masters, so I felt as though I was missing out by not remembering anything to associate with my time here. Recognizing that this decline in the use of the theme has likely been an ongoing occurrence, I wanted to see how far back this disconnect with the yearly theme stretches. “The last time I remember the yearly theme being enforced in my time at Masters was my freshman year, when we had a whole day devoted to race, the theme for that year,” senior A.J. Daniels said. “I don’t remember doing anything theme-related for the past two years, and I think that they should

either have more theme-related events, or just get rid of it,” he added.

As I thought more about the themes I realised that I could remember what they all were: sustainability, humor and now advocacy, but I could remember no more than two events I had participated in that were centered around the yearly theme. Both were at dance shows put on by Shell Benjamin and the dance company.

The gradual deterioration of the yearly theme is largely due to the weakening of community involvement.

“The themes were started by former assistant head of school, Adriana Botero,” former Head of the Upper School Matt Ives said. “The themes can lose direction when there’s no one adult figure designated to watch over them and make sure they are being used effectively. The senior class who picked sustainability did a strong job of working the theme into events and activities, but we haven’t seen such involvement since then. For something like a yearly theme to work, there needs to be a strong adult figure in addition to student leadership to be successful; only having one out of the two won’t do the job.”

Apparent disinterest throughout the community in revitalizing the themes suggests that we should simply scrap the themes, rather than carry them out with little to no effort put into them.

However, since the themes have proven to be effective learning tools when properly used, I would like to see the themes reinvented with greater purpose and community involvement, rather than abandoned, as in recent years.

LILY WANG / TOWER

IN RECENT YEARS, MASTERS has chosen annual themes such as humor, advocacy and sustainbility. Tyler Conway argues that these themes leave little impact on the community throughout the school year and at its conclusion. Additionally, he explores whether themes are worth pursuing in the future.

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

Drew Schott Opinion Design Editor In early November 2018, Amazon, the worldwide e-commerce company, announced that the company’s second headquarters would be split between Long Island City, N.Y. and Crystal City, Va., in addition to its flagship campus in Seattle. The announcement was a huge gain for Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor of New York City Bill de Blasio as Amazon’s arrival was expected to bring 25,000 jobs to Queens, with New York City giving the company $3 billion in tax breaks.

However, only a few months after the official announcement, Amazon has pulled out of its proposed HQ2 project in Long Island City due to a combination of citizen opposition, local government pushback and early resistance from unions. Abandoning headquarters in Long Island City may not be a loss for the company in the long run, however, New York City has lost out on a major economic opportunity with Amazon’s departure.

Long Island City, in addition to Crystal City, beat out dozens of metropolises for Amazon’s HQ2, including Atlanta, Denver and Philadelphia. With a 4 million square-foot space in Long Island City, complemented with an already-standing distribution facility in Staten Island, Amazon could use New York City to its advantage, building a powerful technology connection with other companies such as Google and Facebook, who plan to add small campuses in the city in the future. Additionally, a HQ2 in New York City was projected to generate $27.5 billion in city and state revenue over 25 years, helping to turn Long Island City into an economic hotspot and diversify the Big Apple’s economy.

A rapidly growing part of Queens, Long Island City is undergoing a population boom, resulting in 1,436 housing units becoming approved for construction, according to an Oct. 18 article by Bloomberg News. Although, the area contains Queensbridge Housing, one of the biggest public housing developments in the country, which raised questions about why Amazon was receiving tax breaks. However, despite this issue, Long Island City would have benefited from the company’s arrival in that Mayor de Blasio signed a $180

FLICKR

ONLY A FEW MONTHS after announcing a new headquarters in Long Island City, Amazon abandoned their HQ2 project in the Big Apple, creating mixed reactions among New York’s inhabitants. Drew Schott argues that by Amazon exiting the city, there will be negative economic ramifications on the metropolis, such as lower city and state revenue and a decreased job market in Long Island City. Vincent Alban argues that Amazon’s departure will bring attention to city infrastructure and cause Long Island City’s housing to become affordable. million upgrade of schools, parks and streets in the section of Queens before Amazon’s announcement. Once the move was official last November, Amazon agreed to spend $5 million for development of the area’s workforce and host job fairs at the housing development.

These actions showed Amazon’s willingness to partner with local government in order to try and benefit residents of Long Island City by attempting to incorporate them into occupations.

Additionally, the $3 billion tax breaks that were focal points of criticism for local representatives such as Democratic House of Representatives member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) wouldn’t be given to Amazon unless they created the number of jobs agreed upon, ensuring that Amazon would make an positive economic impact on Long Island City.

Even labor unions, who at first opposed the HQ2 proposal in New York City, came to an agreement with Amazon regarding how the company would respond to unionization, according to The New York Times.

As real-estate markets drop across the nation, Long Island City’s market improved with the Amazon announcement. From mid-September 2018 to mid-November 2018, housing contracts for new properties in Long Island City and Astoria totalled 79. Between mid-November 2018 and mid-February 2019, the number rose to 157, showcasing how the arrival of Amazon was expected to eventually increase real estate prices. Since Amazon has pulled out in Long Island City, real estate prices are expected to plummet.

New York City had a rare opportunity to bring new jobs and economic growth to the borough of Queens as one of the world’s largest and most influential companies handpicked the city as home for one of its new headquarters. However, due to the court of public opinion protesting the move and influencing Amazon to withdraw their bid, there will be a negative economic ricochet effect on Long Island City, one that must be halted by New York City as soon as possible, with the best way being to draw another company to Queens.

THE INTERNATIONALIST

Allegations of child abuse in Australia and sexual abuse plague Catholic authorities caSey li George Pell, once one of Pope Francis’s advisers, is now the most senior member of the Catholic Church to be convicted of child abuse. In Dec. 2018, Cardinal Pell was found guilty of five charges of abuse against two choirboys in the 1990s. Pell was subsequently expelled from a group of papal advisers. In the first trial, he was accused of raping a 13-year-old boy after Sunday Mass in St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne, Australia while he was archbishop and of sexually assaulting another boy.

The second trial that was later dismissed planned to focus on allegations of three instances of child sexual abuse dating from February 1974 to 1978 when he was a parish priest in St Joseph’s boys’ home in Ballarat, Australia. The verdict in the first trial was subject to a suppression order that barred publication of any news related to the case, citing concerns that coverage might influence a jury in the second trial; however, on Feb. 26 the second trial was dismissed, leading the judge to lift the gag order.

In the second trial, the jury was expected to hear testimony from three plaintiffs, all of whom were children at the time of the alleged as-

saults. Pell, along with the trustees of the Sisters of Nazareth, who were responsible for the management of St Joseph’s, the State of Victoria and the Catholic archdiocese of Melbourne, were sued.

The complainants were referred to as the “swimmers,” for they were allegedly sexually assaulted by Pell in a swimming pool in Ballarat. Two men accused the cardinal of inappropriate and unsolicited contact in sensitive areas on multiple occasions from 1978 to 1979 and from 1977 and 1979, respectively, when they visited a local swimming pool. The third man also recounted unsought sexual contact initiated by Pell in Lake Boga in 1975 or 1976, an encounter the cardinal explained to him was “only natural.” One of the three plaintiffs also alleged being physically attacked by the nuns for unintentional, trivial matters and being unable to consume food as a result of injuries to his face.

Under Australian law, a judge may accept and use such evidence if its probative value outweighs the risk of prejudice against the defendant. Judge Peter Kidd of County Court in Victoria ruled that it did not and subsequently dropped the case.

Pell himself dismissed the victims’

detailed complaints as a “product of fantasy,” “disgraceful rubbish” and “madness.” Pell’s lawyer claimed that the numerous accounts of child abuse were no more than a sexual encounter where the child did not actively participate and that if the victims were “truly distressed” after the abuse, they would have exhibited that distress. Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard even provided “character references” for Pell to appeal for a lighter sentence.

The Pell trial is a manifestation of the victim-blaming and suppression culture that thrives under the current judicial and social system. One judge and his gag order shaped the way the world will forever remember the sufferings of the children and the crimes committed and disguised by the Catholic Church’s lack of action in order to protect abusers.

Please Note: Because of the age range of students reading this paper, some of the more explicit details of this report have been witheld in the print version. For the full account, please refer to the opinion section of our website: tower.mastersny. org

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

OP-ED

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Features & arts

Masters reflects on the importance of Black History Month

LILY WANG/TOWER

FEBRUARY PROVIDES THE OPPORTUNITY to look at history which is often forgotten. In the past month, teachers and students took initiative to recognize Black History through small events. Next year, some community members wish to expand on the extent of appreciation.

History Month was celebrated. tural background who paved the way.”

For Director of Equity and Inclusion Black performers have continuously Yasmin Pascal Karen Brown, Black History Month endured hardship, from African slaves Accountability & Accuracy Manager was very important to her while grow- being used as a form of entertainment ing up. “When I was younger it was without regard of their feelings to black Before 1956, Black History Month the only time in the curriculum that I performers who were unable to perdid not exist, instead there were only ever heard about people who look liked form unless they were “lighter than a seven days in the second week of Feb- me being talked about. It seemed as paper bag.” She also commended how ruary dedicated to teaching school though we were somewhat erased from far the black community has come. “It children the history of black people in history and that February was the one was a historical moment to see so many America. This week was known as “Ne- time I was able to hear about the ac- African Americans awarded Oscars for gro History Week” and was introduced complishments of brown and black peo- their talent this year.” in 1912 by Carter G. Woodson and the ple.”

The Masters’ community continualAssociation for the Study of Negro Life.

According to the Upper School ly strives to include everyone’s voice in About 50 years after the week was es- Dance Teacher and Director of Dance a welcoming environment. However, tablished, students at Kent State Uni- Company Shell Benjamin, Black Histo- in terms of the effort put forth for Black versity suggested the week be extended ry Month is significant, especially as a History Month this year, it seemed to a month and be referred to as Black dancer, because it is a time to “honour somewhat lacking to some students.

History Month. In 1970, the first Black all of those unclaimed heroes in our culJunior Jaelyn Felton said, “I really

do appreciate all the effort that is put into MLK day every year, I just think there should be more dedicated to Black History Month at Masters. We make up a part of the student body and our history is important and valid.” For next year, Felton wishes there to be more performances orchestrated by black students and the continuation of black history facts read at morning meeting.

Senior Co-Chair and Onyx president Rachel Aideyan notes that there were a few things done in recognition of Black History Month, including movie nights

by Onyx and Cinema Society, the table in the library dedicated to black authors as well as the reading of black history facts. “I feel like Black History Month should be a group initiative. It should be the institution as a whole collaborating to find ways to recognize this special month.” For next year, Aideyan hopes to see more activities and events, as well as speakers, so people realize it’s not just another month.

Brown explained that this year Black History Month in the Upper School was unintentionally overlooked, due to all the time and effort put into MLK day, a few weeks prior. “As long as we have students who are interested in being a part of an initiative to do more, we can definitely do more to acknowledge Black History Month.”

Benjamin thinks that next year, there should be more field trips to famous landmarks. “I would love to see in the future the school-wide taking trips to Underground Railroad sites that are still standing in Harlem and some near Spring Valley...a lot of these places are landmarks in Harlem and they are sorely underfunded. As a part

of our mission to be a power for good in the world it would be wonderful to see what we could do in order to support.”

Upper School Librarian, Judith Murphy, was focused on bringing recognition of Black History Month to the Middle School this year. She helped bring in history author Steve Sheinkin, writer of The Port Chicago 50. Sheinkin’s book takes place during World War II, where a civil rights movement sprouted after many young black sailors were killed or injured in an explosion, while loading bombs onto a ship. After the event, the government sent those who had survived back to dangerous working environments. At the Middle School, Sheinkin worked with the students in a writing workshop.

Murphy also aided in the coordination of a book fair, where author T.R. Simon, (aka Tanya McKinnon, wife of teacher Richard Simon) spoke. Simon writes fictional novels about Zora Neale Hurston, an early 20th century author of African-American literature, imaging what her life was like in Eatonville, Fla.. For the upcoming year, Murphy “would love to have a black artist come in and do some spoken word.”

Brown concluded she believes that within the Masters community, Black History Month brings awareness to many important black figures who may have been erased from the history textbooks. “Anytime you are able to bring light to a subject that isn’t typically discussed, it’s always beneficial to the entire community. I think it enlightens us all to be able to understand people of color who have been influential in the world.”

This issue online @ Dorm stores provide community, convenience and concessions tower.mastersny.org alExanDra BEntziEn

Fiddler on the Roof: perseverance in the face of challenge Elijah EmErY, sPorts DEsign EDitor

Masters introduces exploratory course on “being a power for good” michEllE WEi, oPinion DEsign EDitor

Student performers excel outside of Masters (continued) logan schiciano, sPorts DEsign EDitor

Editor-in-Chief While the campus store is stocked with t-shirts, sweatpants, hats and other apparel all boasting some shade of purple–or the letter M–the dorm stores fuel the boarding community with a stock of snacks.

Each dorm on campus has a “store,” which, depending on the space available, occupies a kitchen cabinet or an unused room on the first floor. Most items for purchase are one dollar, with the items varying depending on what is in demand. Kept behind the doors of a locked fridge or cabinet are snacks like oreos, granola bars and pop tarts, easy meals, including mac and cheese and ramen, and the Masters campus’ only stock of Gatorade and soda.

The profit from the dorm store allows the items to be replenished, in a cycle that is best described in mathematical terms as a positive correlation: as the amount of items purchased increases, so does the profit, which in turn allows an increased number of snacks available. The income generated from the dorm store can also be used for special dorm programming.

Cole Dorm Director Adam Gimple said, “The dorm store is really based off of interest. If the girls don’t want to spend the money, that means the dorm store can’t make much profit.”

Strong Dorm Proctor Thomas West reiterated this idea. “Either we have [a store] and no one uses it and if we don’t have it everyone will complain that we don’t have it,” West said. While the dorm parents and dorm directors assist in purchasing the items for the store, which usually entails a trip to Costco , the till is managed by the dorms’ proctors, who drive the operation of the store. For most dorms, the open hours depend on the amount of interest in buying the items in stock; according to West, the food for Strong is kept in proctors’ dorm rooms when the store is

VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

JUNIOR LEO HSU (LEFT) and senior Hanlin Liu, both proctors in Thompson Dorm, manage the successful dorm store. a holiday or season, and a template lists prices for each item, which include every flavor of Gatorade and the popular favorite: sorbet from Costco. To “Other than provide keep track of the purchases, the procsnacks and drinks, the real tors keep a log of every item purchased, purpose of the dorm store is the quantity, dollar amount and name to build community.” of customer.

Thompson’s store opens at 10 p.m.

– KATIE MEADOWS each night when borders are required to check-in. closed.

“The coolest thing about the dorm The close proximity of a Stop & Shop store is that everyone wants to come branch in Dobbs Ferry can be a source downstairs and hang out,” Meadows of competition for the dorm store opera- said. tions, as many boarders will often walk While some of the proceeds are used down to the grocery store to buy their to replenish the store supply, the procsnacks instead. tors’ goal is to use extra revenue to buy “If there’s not enough influx of reve- Thompson shirts for the whole dorm. nue in the dorm store, it can be a glori- “Other than provide snacks and drinks, fied vending machine,” Gimple said. the real purpose of the dorm store is to However, Thompson Dorm has seen build community. I’m really proud of great success since its dorm proctors, the initiative our proctors have taken,” seniors Abdoul Bah, Hanlin (Sam) Meadows said.

Liu, Parsa Keyvani andVittorio StropFor organizing communal events oli and junior Leo Hsu, who took the and activities for boarders, the dorms’ initiative in the fall to run their dorm budgets are used to subsidize the cost. store, called Thompson Corners, se- Recently, Thompson used a portion of riously. Thompson Corners is located its budget to host an end-of-year holiin the building’s old security office, day dinner; at the end of last year, Cole which seems a natural space for what used its budget to decrease the individThompson Dorm Director and music ual cost of sweatshirts. Some events, teacher Katie Meadows describes as a including barbeques and brownie bake“mini-business.” The windows are dec- offs, will be personally covered by dorm orated with arts and crafts that reflect parents, according to Gimple.

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FEATURES AND ARTS

STUDENTS RESPOND TO SCHEDULE CHANGE emma luiS Editor-in-Chief After the announcement of the schedule for the 2019-20 school year, Tower emailed a link to an online survey to the entire student body asking Upper School students to respond with their initial reactions to the new schedule. 155

of the Upper School’s 501 students responded to the survey.

Participation in the survey is broken down by grade as 41 (26.5 percent) 9th graders, 47 (30.3 percent) 10th graders, 42 (27.1 percent) 11th graders and 25 (16.1 percent) seniors.

The survey was anonymous, but students had the option to submit their email if they were willing to be interviewed further.

For more on the results of the survey, go to Tower.Mastersny.org

NEW SCHEDULE FOR 2019-20 STIRS CHANGE WITHIN THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE FORMS TO CREATE SCHEDULE Shawn Farhadian Lead Sports Editor Sarah Faber Staff Writer A scheduling task force, led by Dean of Faculty Erica Chapman and school schedule redesigner Bryan Smyth from consulting firm ISM Management, is now in the revision stages after spending over a year creating a new schedule for the 2019-20 school year.

The task force also includes Upper School History Department members Brendon Barrios and Lisa Berrol, Performing Arts teacher Curt Ebersole, Middle School humanities teacher Paul Friedman, Upper School Science Department Chair Frank Greally, CITYterm Curricula Leader and Urban Core teacher Jason Hult, Associate Head of Upper School Sara Thorn and Middle School Music teacher Katie Meadows.

The scheduling committee began its meetings with Smyth and ISM Management during the 2017-18 school year, when they created a list of objectives and goals to accomplish with the formation of the new schedule. “This is very common; most schools do it every 5-7 years,” Chapman said. “[Head of School Laura Danforth] asked me to chair a committee to gather input from faculty. There was an email that went out asking who’d like to be part of this; a number of faculty members said they were interested. [The committee members] were selected in part because they represent a range of the different parts of campus.”

Head of Upper School Nikki Willis further commented on how the process behind creating the new schedule was approached.

“ISM and the committee looked at how our school functioned around our current schedule and met with students, faculty and parents and did lots of number crunching,” Willis said. One major area of concern, according to Willis, was how effectively or ineffectively the present schedule shaped the pace of the school day.

“The committee has been very mindful of rhythm,” Willis said.

“The current schedule does not allow students to switch gears. Every two classes, they should have

a break to reset in preparation to learn new material in another subject.” Willis referred to studies which have shown that students could be focused on material for a certain subject for around fifteen minutes after they are dismissed from that class. “If a student is dismissed from a math class and begins a history class five minutes later, they could still very well be focused on math for the first ten minutes of that history class.”

As a part of their initial evaluations, Smyth and ISM management recognized the value that community time brought to the general Masters community and thus implemented a block of time intended for community members of the school community to gather together, leading to the creation of the Masters Hour. “We can be flexible with what we do with this period of time, as it’ll be filled with

spring. Along the way, we presented back to the divisions at faculty meetings. We were trying to be the people making sure that there was an open flow of communication, that was really the goal.” The culmination of these faculty meetings and of faculty feedback led to four final objectives that the task force finalized in May 2018: managing energy to maximize learning and connection (greater consistency and rhythm to the school day), allowing the school community to connect and strengthen relationships with blocks dedicated to community gatherings, empowering students to take ownership over their own learning, and facilitating learning in the 21st century.

Finally, Smyth, ISM Management and the committee were challenged with the intention to diminish and nearly eliminate the amount of special schedules in a given school year. These “ISM and the committee looked at special schedules, often for how our school functioned around our delays due to snow, specurrent schedule and met with stucial assemblies and other events, tend to be counterdents, faculty and parents and did lots productive and inefficient, of number crunching,” according to both parties.

- NIKKI WILLIS “There’s never enough time in a day with a special points of connections, not fillers,” schedule, and they’re far too freWillis said. “The club time will be quent and disruptive,” Willis said. valuable, advisory and class meet- The “Assembly” period on day one ings won’t have to be as structured of the eight-day rotation and the as they are now and there will still various Morning Meeting slots be a break period across all eight were seen as the answer to such days.” concerns, as the committee has As a result, balancing work- navigated through the goal of havloads was a large secondary objec- ing speakers visit campus without tive that the committee aimed to sacrificing class time. tackle. With the current schedule, After the task force presented Sunday and Thursday nights have their input and multiple drafts been notorious for overwhelming of the schedule to Danforth right workloads, as Masters students before winter break, Danforth presince the 2004-05 school year have sented the final schedule choice to often found themselves struggling the faculty on Jan. 7 during a desto complete homework assign- ignated Faculty Professional Dements due the following day for six velopment day. “Between then and different classes. This identified is- when [the schedule] was rolled out sue, along with many others, were to students and families, we were brought to the committee’s atten- working on logistics,” Chapman tion in numerous meetings that said. included the entire faculty.

Although the task force is cur“The biggest charge of the rently in the midst of making scheduling task force was to come any necessary adjustments to up with priority areas for review, the schedule, Willis and Thorn and those were shared with ISM unveiled the new schedule to the as part of the work,” Chapman Upper School during Morning said. “We met with every single Meeting on Feb. 15 and a list of faculty member on campus in FAQs were included on the March focus groups last spring and we 1 issue of The Messenger. The final asked them the same questions. schedule will be established and in There were more than a dozen effect on Sep. 3, the first academic meetings over the course of the day of the 2019-20 school year.

X-BAND MAINTAINS TRANSPORTATION JoSeph GoldStein Lead Op-Ed Editor With the addition of “X-Band” in the new 2019-2020 academic schedule, students have the opportunity to meet with teachers for academic work at 8 a.m.. Some students may opt not to attend X-Band on a given day, and instead show up at 8:30 a.m. However, the official start to the school day remain 8 a.m., and most–if not all–students who rely on bus transportation to school will not have the option to sleep in. The official end of the school day is 3:45p.m. for both the Upper and Middle School. According to Upper School Student Activities and Transportation Coordinator Ed Gormley, “The morning [buses] are probably going to stay exactly the same.”

There are three kinds of buses that take students to and from school: around 30 are provided by the student’s home school district, five are privately run buses coordinated by parents and another five are run by Gormley. The districts that provide bussing services make up the vast majority of the buses and are the least flexible.

FEATURES AND ARTS

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

“Districts want to know when your official start time is and when your official end time is. That’s all they are interested in,” Gormley said.

The official start time will remain at 8 a.m. Those who take buses from private companies or take one of the five buses run by Gormley will face a similar dilemma: many of these buses are responsible for transporting both Upper and Middle School students. While the Middle School is changing its schedule as well, there will be no change to their start time–official or unofficial. Therefore, buses with students of both groups will have to show up by the 8 a.m.start time.

Unlike those who take buses, students who arrive at Masters through the Metro North Railroad will have some flexibility next year on days when they aren’t meeting with teachers.

Students who take the Hudson Line going North reach the Dobbs Ferry station at 7:33 a.m. and southbound trains arrive at 7:24 a.m. Both lines have trains that run slightly later, allowing riders to sleep in and get to school before 8:30 a.m. Currently, students who take the train ride Masters buses from the station to school. Gormley, who is also in charge of these buses, said, “We are going to do

our best to accomodate for those kids who take later trains.”

In a survey Tower conducted to find out students’ reactions to the schedule, some expressed frustration with the bussing situation.

“People on buses, like me, don’t have a choice if we want to come in for extra help or not. Our buses leave to get here at 8 a.m. whether we like it or not, so we don’t have the privilege to sleep in for an extra 30 minutes. So clearly that isn’t the most fair thing Masters has come up with, making us come to school 30 minutes earlier with nothing to do,” one student wrote. Another responder noted their concern with how late they might get home: “Classes will end at 3:30: how will this affect co-curriculars and sports? This concerns me with the time getting home because I live generally farther away and commute to and from school.”

Gormley hopes that students will be able to take advantage of the new schedule, specifically X-Band. Even if some students would rather be sleeping, Gormley hopes that students will make use of the additional time “Teachers will be available for extra help… they will be able to get a bite to eat.”

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SCHEDULE UNVEILED TO UPPER SCHOOL: WHAT IT ENTAILS Shawn Farhadian Lead Sports Editor For the 2019-20 academic school year, students, faculty, staff and the rest of the Masters community will operate on a new schedule aimed to enhance productivity, decrease the amount of nights filled with overwhelming workload and allow more time for community-wide gatherings.

The new schedule was unveiled to the Upper School during Morning Meeting on Feb. 15 by Head of Upper School Nikki Willis and Associate Head of Upper School Sara Thorn and was created to address issues with the current schedule. However, next year’s schedule will not feature notable facets of the present schedule, which has been comfortably implemented within the Masters community for the past fifteen years.

Next year’s schedule will rotate

on an eight-day system instead of switching between the current “Delta” and “Phi” weeks. The blocks rotate throughout each day of the schedule.

However, each day will begin with “X-Band,” a block from 8 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. designed to allow students to meet with teachers for extra-help, eat breakfast or sleep in for an extra half hour.

X-Band will be followed by a first period class for 80-minutes, but the next section of the day, deemed as “Masters Hour,” will feature spaces dedicated to extra-curricular activities and community meetings, including assemblies, club meetings, advisory & class meetings, breaks and Morning Meeting.

Willis stated in the Feb. 15 presentation that the purpose of the Masters Hour is to reduce the number of special schedules caused by special assemblies throughout the course of the school year. Masters Hour was also designed to give clubs, classes

and their advisories time to utilize during the academic day as opposed to early mornings and late evenings, and allow for students and faculty to meet with each other when necessary.

Within the Masters Hour, day five of the new schedule will feature the “Community Life” edition of Morning Meeting which, similarly to current Tuesday Morning Meetings, will hold a variety of MISH events, Matters of Spirit talks and speeches by guest speakers. The 9:50 a.m. to 10:50 a.m.

Masters Hour period will be in effect for all eight days, although it will also be divided up differently for each of day.

Two more full-length class periods and a forty-minute lunch period will follow the Masters Hour, although the absence of current Wednesday “Flex Lunches” is a notable change for many. Flex Lunch, the extended, 70-minute lunch period when students have more time to be productive or to relax, will end with the 2018-19

academic year. Times such as X-Band and clinics during the Masters Hour are viewed as replacement opportunities for students to make up for this loss. “It’s really hard for students to meet with teachers during the school day, at the moment,” Willis said. “The hope is that we’ll still be able to have dedicated blocks of time for students and teachers to meet.”

A stressful commonality that Masters students have shared over the course of the current schedule’s existence is having as many as six class periods a day on Mondays and Fridays, frequently leaving hefty homework loads on Sunday and Thursday nights in addition to having the same class two days in a row during any given stretch of the week. During the Feb. 15 presentation, Willis mentioned the fact that although class periods have been extended by 25 minutes, Masters will be transitioning from a six-perioda-day schedule to a four-period-a-day schedule, inherently decreasing the

likelihood and frequency of stressful homework and studying nights.

With the current schedule, double blocks occur on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays while Mondays and Fridays contain only single blocks, leading to inconsistent amounts of homework and time to complete assignments. Referring to next year’s schedule, Willis said, “You could only have four classes a day at the most now, and you won’t have the same class two days in a row.”

According to Willis, the scheduling committee is now in the revision stages, surveying and debating whether or not any tweaks or adjustments need to be made into the schedule and how unavoidable special schedules for snow days and other unplanned events will be implemented. Regardless, the initial schedule presented to the Upper School will more or less remain intact, ready to go into effect on Sep. 3, the first day of the next academic year.

FEWER MEETING TIMES ADD UP: AP TEACHERS ADAPT TO NEW TIMETABLE annie rubinSon Features DesignEditor With the upcoming schedule change in the Masters Upper School, many are left wondering how course curricula are to be modified. After all, for each major, the new schedule will reduce minutes of class time by four percent, and the number of class meetings by approximatly 16 percent.

Especially with Advanced Placement (AP) courses being taught to an external standardized test, it may become difficult to cover all appropriate materials when classes begin to meet between two and three blocks per week, as opposed to four. Teachers commented on the changes being made within their respective departments, with regard to both their classroom agendas and homework adjustments.

“Time is the most precious commodity we have,” History and Religion Department Chair Skeffington Young said, commenting on the schedule

change. “The contact time is going to change, and it has to be made up somehow,” he added, acknowledging that meeting with teachers fewer times per week will likely call for changes to be made in the ways in which teachers assign homework, particularly in AP courses. “You’re likely going to either have more homework, or cut certain material.,” Young said.

Young suggested–but did not guarantee–that with AP classes, it is more likely that more homework will be assigned in order to ensure that all material is covered, allowing students to productively study for the final AP exam. Nevertheless, he clarified that in the end, teachers within the department will have the choice of whether to change the amount of homework assigned, or alter the types of homework assigned. For example, in an AP course, he noted it may be more useful with the new schedule to mainly assign reading homework rather than assign writing assignments that may not be able to be reviewed in class.

Math Department Chair Michele

Dennis shares many of sentiments expressed by Young. “I think it’s going to be tighter,” she said, referring to the anticipated loss of class periods in the new schedule. However, she does believe that the math department can benefit from the schedule change. “I’m hoping that the restructuring [of the schedule] will allow for a more evenkeeled pace,” she said. “Now, with eighty minutes, even if we have to spend forty minutes going over homework, I’ll have forty more to teach new material.” She expressed that currently, the fifty-minute blocks often cause classes to fall behind on days when students have trouble with the previous night’s homework. “I won’t know for sure until I experience it,” Dennis concluded.

Above all, AP science classes are expected to be impacted the most by the implementation of the new schedule, as they will be losing two additional hours of class per eight-day cycle. Science Department Chair and AP Chemistry teacher Frank Greally shared that the science department had been

discussing the possibility of eliminating the extra double block for APs for several years, and that changes in AP exams and the Masters schedule will provide the perfect opportunity to do so.

“If you go back ten years to the exams, it was all mathematical application,” Greally explained. “Now, it’s more laboratory-based.” Greally does not anticipate that the change in schedule will deter this method of teaching. He even mentioned that for several AP science courses, including AP Chemistry, the extra double block is mainly used for testing and office hours.

As for the classes that utilize this time for learning material (AP Biology and AP Physics C), it appears that external changes may already be accommodating for the lost time. For example, according to Greally, all human body systems are expected to be removed from the AP Biology exam in coming years. According to AP Physics C student junior Jonas Kolker, the course covers a substantial amount of

material that does not appear on the exam.

Greally does not expect he will need to assign more homework in order to make up for lost time, as the longer periods will allow AP classes to explore new material while working on laboratory skills. In order to preserve time, Greally predicts that the AP science teachers will merely begin giving assessments that are shorter and worth fewer points, while also “doing something with a lab every day,” whether it be preparing for a procedure, performing an experiment, or having a postlab discussion.

While the decrease in class per cycle will be decreased with the new schedule is concerning for some, it appears that Masters may reap benefits from 80 minute class periods. Regardless of what obstacles lie ahead, several department heads note experiencing the new schedule firsthand will help them understand what further adjustments may need to be made in future years.

BROCK FOOD SERVICE CATERS TO NEW SCHEDULE TIMING amita Khurana Lead Features Editor While the new academic schedule is a drastic change for teachers and students, Brock, Masters’ food provider, will also need to adapt to this change.

According to the schedule, lunch will

now be from 12:10 p.m. to 12:50 p.m., ending 20 minutes earlier. Brock still plans on keeping the food out until 1:15 p.m., to coordinate with teacher and faculty schedules. The Middle School’s schedule contains a new lunch time from 11:30 a.m. to 12:10 p.m., to create a seamless transition between the Upper School and Middle School schedules. Also, break will

alternate from the beginning to the end of the new Masters Hour, with the duration varying from 15 to 30 minutes. Brock will still be serving cereal, fruit and toast for the whole duration of all break times. With X-Band now in place, breakfast on school days will still be served at 7 a.m. but will end later to accommodate X-Band.

Lee Bergelson, General Manager

of Dining Services, plans on adjusting the amount of food being served when the staff observes how many more, or fewer, students will attend breakfast.

“We need to see how many students take advantage [of the schedule] and sleep in later and how many of those students come and actually eat,” Bergelson said.

In terms of expanding food options,

Brock plans on keeping the already wide array of food available.

“Our responsibility is to serve the school and the students. If the decision is to extend the service periods and change the schedule, Brock is here to adapt and serve the school’s needs as they come up,” Bergelson said.

Design by Vincent Alban, Tyler Conway and Emma Luis

6

FEATURES AND ARTS

STUDENTS RESPOND TO SCHEDULE CHANGE emma luiS Editor-in-Chief After the announcement of the schedule for the 2019-20 school year, Tower emailed a link to an online survey to the entire student body asking Upper School students to respond with their initial reactions to the new schedule. 155

of the Upper School’s 501 students responded to the survey.

Participation in the survey is broken down by grade as 41 (26.5 percent) 9th graders, 47 (30.3 percent) 10th graders, 42 (27.1 percent) 11th graders and 25 (16.1 percent) seniors.

The survey was anonymous, but students had the option to submit their email if they were willing to be interviewed further.

For more on the results of the survey, go to Tower.Mastersny.org

NEW SCHEDULE FOR 2019-20 STIRS CHANGE WITHIN THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE FORMS TO CREATE SCHEDULE Shawn Farhadian Lead Sports Editor Sarah Faber Staff Writer A scheduling task force, led by Dean of Faculty Erica Chapman and school schedule redesigner Bryan Smyth from consulting firm ISM Management, is now in the revision stages after spending over a year creating a new schedule for the 2019-20 school year.

The task force also includes Upper School History Department members Brendon Barrios and Lisa Berrol, Performing Arts teacher Curt Ebersole, Middle School humanities teacher Paul Friedman, Upper School Science Department Chair Frank Greally, CITYterm Curricula Leader and Urban Core teacher Jason Hult, Associate Head of Upper School Sara Thorn and Middle School Music teacher Katie Meadows.

The scheduling committee began its meetings with Smyth and ISM Management during the 2017-18 school year, when they created a list of objectives and goals to accomplish with the formation of the new schedule. “This is very common; most schools do it every 5-7 years,” Chapman said. “[Head of School Laura Danforth] asked me to chair a committee to gather input from faculty. There was an email that went out asking who’d like to be part of this; a number of faculty members said they were interested. [The committee members] were selected in part because they represent a range of the different parts of campus.”

Head of Upper School Nikki Willis further commented on how the process behind creating the new schedule was approached.

“ISM and the committee looked at how our school functioned around our current schedule and met with students, faculty and parents and did lots of number crunching,” Willis said. One major area of concern, according to Willis, was how effectively or ineffectively the present schedule shaped the pace of the school day.

“The committee has been very mindful of rhythm,” Willis said.

“The current schedule does not allow students to switch gears. Every two classes, they should have

a break to reset in preparation to learn new material in another subject.” Willis referred to studies which have shown that students could be focused on material for a certain subject for around fifteen minutes after they are dismissed from that class. “If a student is dismissed from a math class and begins a history class five minutes later, they could still very well be focused on math for the first ten minutes of that history class.”

As a part of their initial evaluations, Smyth and ISM management recognized the value that community time brought to the general Masters community and thus implemented a block of time intended for community members of the school community to gather together, leading to the creation of the Masters Hour. “We can be flexible with what we do with this period of time, as it’ll be filled with

spring. Along the way, we presented back to the divisions at faculty meetings. We were trying to be the people making sure that there was an open flow of communication, that was really the goal.” The culmination of these faculty meetings and of faculty feedback led to four final objectives that the task force finalized in May 2018: managing energy to maximize learning and connection (greater consistency and rhythm to the school day), allowing the school community to connect and strengthen relationships with blocks dedicated to community gatherings, empowering students to take ownership over their own learning, and facilitating learning in the 21st century.

Finally, Smyth, ISM Management and the committee were challenged with the intention to diminish and nearly eliminate the amount of special schedules in a given school year. These “ISM and the committee looked at special schedules, often for how our school functioned around our delays due to snow, specurrent schedule and met with stucial assemblies and other events, tend to be counterdents, faculty and parents and did lots productive and inefficient, of number crunching,” according to both parties.

- NIKKI WILLIS “There’s never enough time in a day with a special points of connections, not fillers,” schedule, and they’re far too freWillis said. “The club time will be quent and disruptive,” Willis said. valuable, advisory and class meet- The “Assembly” period on day one ings won’t have to be as structured of the eight-day rotation and the as they are now and there will still various Morning Meeting slots be a break period across all eight were seen as the answer to such days.” concerns, as the committee has As a result, balancing work- navigated through the goal of havloads was a large secondary objec- ing speakers visit campus without tive that the committee aimed to sacrificing class time. tackle. With the current schedule, After the task force presented Sunday and Thursday nights have their input and multiple drafts been notorious for overwhelming of the schedule to Danforth right workloads, as Masters students before winter break, Danforth presince the 2004-05 school year have sented the final schedule choice to often found themselves struggling the faculty on Jan. 7 during a desto complete homework assign- ignated Faculty Professional Dements due the following day for six velopment day. “Between then and different classes. This identified is- when [the schedule] was rolled out sue, along with many others, were to students and families, we were brought to the committee’s atten- working on logistics,” Chapman tion in numerous meetings that said. included the entire faculty.

Although the task force is cur“The biggest charge of the rently in the midst of making scheduling task force was to come any necessary adjustments to up with priority areas for review, the schedule, Willis and Thorn and those were shared with ISM unveiled the new schedule to the as part of the work,” Chapman Upper School during Morning said. “We met with every single Meeting on Feb. 15 and a list of faculty member on campus in FAQs were included on the March focus groups last spring and we 1 issue of The Messenger. The final asked them the same questions. schedule will be established and in There were more than a dozen effect on Sep. 3, the first academic meetings over the course of the day of the 2019-20 school year.

X-BAND MAINTAINS TRANSPORTATION JoSeph GoldStein Lead Op-Ed Editor With the addition of “X-Band” in the new 2019-2020 academic schedule, students have the opportunity to meet with teachers for academic work at 8 a.m.. Some students may opt not to attend X-Band on a given day, and instead show up at 8:30 a.m. However, the official start to the school day remain 8 a.m., and most–if not all–students who rely on bus transportation to school will not have the option to sleep in. The official end of the school day is 3:45p.m. for both the Upper and Middle School. According to Upper School Student Activities and Transportation Coordinator Ed Gormley, “The morning [buses] are probably going to stay exactly the same.”

There are three kinds of buses that take students to and from school: around 30 are provided by the student’s home school district, five are privately run buses coordinated by parents and another five are run by Gormley. The districts that provide bussing services make up the vast majority of the buses and are the least flexible.

FEATURES AND ARTS

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

“Districts want to know when your official start time is and when your official end time is. That’s all they are interested in,” Gormley said.

The official start time will remain at 8 a.m. Those who take buses from private companies or take one of the five buses run by Gormley will face a similar dilemma: many of these buses are responsible for transporting both Upper and Middle School students. While the Middle School is changing its schedule as well, there will be no change to their start time–official or unofficial. Therefore, buses with students of both groups will have to show up by the 8 a.m.start time.

Unlike those who take buses, students who arrive at Masters through the Metro North Railroad will have some flexibility next year on days when they aren’t meeting with teachers.

Students who take the Hudson Line going North reach the Dobbs Ferry station at 7:33 a.m. and southbound trains arrive at 7:24 a.m. Both lines have trains that run slightly later, allowing riders to sleep in and get to school before 8:30 a.m. Currently, students who take the train ride Masters buses from the station to school. Gormley, who is also in charge of these buses, said, “We are going to do

our best to accomodate for those kids who take later trains.”

In a survey Tower conducted to find out students’ reactions to the schedule, some expressed frustration with the bussing situation.

“People on buses, like me, don’t have a choice if we want to come in for extra help or not. Our buses leave to get here at 8 a.m. whether we like it or not, so we don’t have the privilege to sleep in for an extra 30 minutes. So clearly that isn’t the most fair thing Masters has come up with, making us come to school 30 minutes earlier with nothing to do,” one student wrote. Another responder noted their concern with how late they might get home: “Classes will end at 3:30: how will this affect co-curriculars and sports? This concerns me with the time getting home because I live generally farther away and commute to and from school.”

Gormley hopes that students will be able to take advantage of the new schedule, specifically X-Band. Even if some students would rather be sleeping, Gormley hopes that students will make use of the additional time “Teachers will be available for extra help… they will be able to get a bite to eat.”

7

SCHEDULE UNVEILED TO UPPER SCHOOL: WHAT IT ENTAILS Shawn Farhadian Lead Sports Editor For the 2019-20 academic school year, students, faculty, staff and the rest of the Masters community will operate on a new schedule aimed to enhance productivity, decrease the amount of nights filled with overwhelming workload and allow more time for community-wide gatherings.

The new schedule was unveiled to the Upper School during Morning Meeting on Feb. 15 by Head of Upper School Nikki Willis and Associate Head of Upper School Sara Thorn and was created to address issues with the current schedule. However, next year’s schedule will not feature notable facets of the present schedule, which has been comfortably implemented within the Masters community for the past fifteen years.

Next year’s schedule will rotate

on an eight-day system instead of switching between the current “Delta” and “Phi” weeks. The blocks rotate throughout each day of the schedule.

However, each day will begin with “X-Band,” a block from 8 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. designed to allow students to meet with teachers for extra-help, eat breakfast or sleep in for an extra half hour.

X-Band will be followed by a first period class for 80-minutes, but the next section of the day, deemed as “Masters Hour,” will feature spaces dedicated to extra-curricular activities and community meetings, including assemblies, club meetings, advisory & class meetings, breaks and Morning Meeting.

Willis stated in the Feb. 15 presentation that the purpose of the Masters Hour is to reduce the number of special schedules caused by special assemblies throughout the course of the school year. Masters Hour was also designed to give clubs, classes

and their advisories time to utilize during the academic day as opposed to early mornings and late evenings, and allow for students and faculty to meet with each other when necessary.

Within the Masters Hour, day five of the new schedule will feature the “Community Life” edition of Morning Meeting which, similarly to current Tuesday Morning Meetings, will hold a variety of MISH events, Matters of Spirit talks and speeches by guest speakers. The 9:50 a.m. to 10:50 a.m.

Masters Hour period will be in effect for all eight days, although it will also be divided up differently for each of day.

Two more full-length class periods and a forty-minute lunch period will follow the Masters Hour, although the absence of current Wednesday “Flex Lunches” is a notable change for many. Flex Lunch, the extended, 70-minute lunch period when students have more time to be productive or to relax, will end with the 2018-19

academic year. Times such as X-Band and clinics during the Masters Hour are viewed as replacement opportunities for students to make up for this loss. “It’s really hard for students to meet with teachers during the school day, at the moment,” Willis said. “The hope is that we’ll still be able to have dedicated blocks of time for students and teachers to meet.”

A stressful commonality that Masters students have shared over the course of the current schedule’s existence is having as many as six class periods a day on Mondays and Fridays, frequently leaving hefty homework loads on Sunday and Thursday nights in addition to having the same class two days in a row during any given stretch of the week. During the Feb. 15 presentation, Willis mentioned the fact that although class periods have been extended by 25 minutes, Masters will be transitioning from a six-perioda-day schedule to a four-period-a-day schedule, inherently decreasing the

likelihood and frequency of stressful homework and studying nights.

With the current schedule, double blocks occur on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays while Mondays and Fridays contain only single blocks, leading to inconsistent amounts of homework and time to complete assignments. Referring to next year’s schedule, Willis said, “You could only have four classes a day at the most now, and you won’t have the same class two days in a row.”

According to Willis, the scheduling committee is now in the revision stages, surveying and debating whether or not any tweaks or adjustments need to be made into the schedule and how unavoidable special schedules for snow days and other unplanned events will be implemented. Regardless, the initial schedule presented to the Upper School will more or less remain intact, ready to go into effect on Sep. 3, the first day of the next academic year.

FEWER MEETING TIMES ADD UP: AP TEACHERS ADAPT TO NEW TIMETABLE annie rubinSon Features DesignEditor With the upcoming schedule change in the Masters Upper School, many are left wondering how course curricula are to be modified. After all, for each major, the new schedule will reduce minutes of class time by four percent, and the number of class meetings by approximatly 16 percent.

Especially with Advanced Placement (AP) courses being taught to an external standardized test, it may become difficult to cover all appropriate materials when classes begin to meet between two and three blocks per week, as opposed to four. Teachers commented on the changes being made within their respective departments, with regard to both their classroom agendas and homework adjustments.

“Time is the most precious commodity we have,” History and Religion Department Chair Skeffington Young said, commenting on the schedule

change. “The contact time is going to change, and it has to be made up somehow,” he added, acknowledging that meeting with teachers fewer times per week will likely call for changes to be made in the ways in which teachers assign homework, particularly in AP courses. “You’re likely going to either have more homework, or cut certain material.,” Young said.

Young suggested–but did not guarantee–that with AP classes, it is more likely that more homework will be assigned in order to ensure that all material is covered, allowing students to productively study for the final AP exam. Nevertheless, he clarified that in the end, teachers within the department will have the choice of whether to change the amount of homework assigned, or alter the types of homework assigned. For example, in an AP course, he noted it may be more useful with the new schedule to mainly assign reading homework rather than assign writing assignments that may not be able to be reviewed in class.

Math Department Chair Michele

Dennis shares many of sentiments expressed by Young. “I think it’s going to be tighter,” she said, referring to the anticipated loss of class periods in the new schedule. However, she does believe that the math department can benefit from the schedule change. “I’m hoping that the restructuring [of the schedule] will allow for a more evenkeeled pace,” she said. “Now, with eighty minutes, even if we have to spend forty minutes going over homework, I’ll have forty more to teach new material.” She expressed that currently, the fifty-minute blocks often cause classes to fall behind on days when students have trouble with the previous night’s homework. “I won’t know for sure until I experience it,” Dennis concluded.

Above all, AP science classes are expected to be impacted the most by the implementation of the new schedule, as they will be losing two additional hours of class per eight-day cycle. Science Department Chair and AP Chemistry teacher Frank Greally shared that the science department had been

discussing the possibility of eliminating the extra double block for APs for several years, and that changes in AP exams and the Masters schedule will provide the perfect opportunity to do so.

“If you go back ten years to the exams, it was all mathematical application,” Greally explained. “Now, it’s more laboratory-based.” Greally does not anticipate that the change in schedule will deter this method of teaching. He even mentioned that for several AP science courses, including AP Chemistry, the extra double block is mainly used for testing and office hours.

As for the classes that utilize this time for learning material (AP Biology and AP Physics C), it appears that external changes may already be accommodating for the lost time. For example, according to Greally, all human body systems are expected to be removed from the AP Biology exam in coming years. According to AP Physics C student junior Jonas Kolker, the course covers a substantial amount of

material that does not appear on the exam.

Greally does not expect he will need to assign more homework in order to make up for lost time, as the longer periods will allow AP classes to explore new material while working on laboratory skills. In order to preserve time, Greally predicts that the AP science teachers will merely begin giving assessments that are shorter and worth fewer points, while also “doing something with a lab every day,” whether it be preparing for a procedure, performing an experiment, or having a postlab discussion.

While the decrease in class per cycle will be decreased with the new schedule is concerning for some, it appears that Masters may reap benefits from 80 minute class periods. Regardless of what obstacles lie ahead, several department heads note experiencing the new schedule firsthand will help them understand what further adjustments may need to be made in future years.

BROCK FOOD SERVICE CATERS TO NEW SCHEDULE TIMING amita Khurana Lead Features Editor While the new academic schedule is a drastic change for teachers and students, Brock, Masters’ food provider, will also need to adapt to this change.

According to the schedule, lunch will

now be from 12:10 p.m. to 12:50 p.m., ending 20 minutes earlier. Brock still plans on keeping the food out until 1:15 p.m., to coordinate with teacher and faculty schedules. The Middle School’s schedule contains a new lunch time from 11:30 a.m. to 12:10 p.m., to create a seamless transition between the Upper School and Middle School schedules. Also, break will

alternate from the beginning to the end of the new Masters Hour, with the duration varying from 15 to 30 minutes. Brock will still be serving cereal, fruit and toast for the whole duration of all break times. With X-Band now in place, breakfast on school days will still be served at 7 a.m. but will end later to accommodate X-Band.

Lee Bergelson, General Manager

of Dining Services, plans on adjusting the amount of food being served when the staff observes how many more, or fewer, students will attend breakfast.

“We need to see how many students take advantage [of the schedule] and sleep in later and how many of those students come and actually eat,” Bergelson said.

In terms of expanding food options,

Brock plans on keeping the already wide array of food available.

“Our responsibility is to serve the school and the students. If the decision is to extend the service periods and change the schedule, Brock is here to adapt and serve the school’s needs as they come up,” Bergelson said.

Design by Vincent Alban, Tyler Conway and Emma Luis

8

FEATURES AND ARTS

TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

Student performers excel outside of Masters

The Masters School is well-known for its performing arts; between musicals, poetry showcases and instrumental concerts, it is quite easy for students to become involved. Nevertheless, many of Masters’ performers display their talents outside of school. Here, Tower takes a look at eight students who are performing with their might beyond the campus grounds. Visit tower.mastersny.org for performance profiles on Elizabeth Oakes and Patrick Curnin-Shane.

All stories written by Annie rubinson, FeAtures Design eDitor, AnD logAn schiciAno, sports Design eDitor

Senior explores Broadway in professional environment

PHOTO COURTESY OF BROADWAY WORKSHOP

SENIOR LEAH CUNNINGHAM RECEIVES performance feedback from Broadway actress Sierra Boggess at a Broadway Workshop master class. She has recently begun working on a production of Sister Act, directed by Broadway Workshop founder and Broadway actor Marc Tumminelli.

“

With five Upper School musicals, four Fall Plays, four productions of Spring Shorts, two Middle School musicals and one Phoenix Presents under her belt, it is no secret that senior Leah Cunningham loves drama and musical theatre. Throughout her eight years at Masters, she has taken every opportunity offered by the Department of Performing Arts (DOPA) to nurture her skills and share her talent with the school community.

However, this spring season, rather than acting in the Spring Shorts as she usually does, she will bid

“[Marc Tumminelli] is such an inspiring person, and an amazing director.”

- LEAH CUNNINGHAM, ‘19

adieu to Masters performances in pursuit of an exciting new opportunity.

“I will embark upon a production of Sister Act, beginning on March 3,” Cunningham said. She was selected from a pool of 250 auditionees as one of 50 cast members in the production. The show

McGowan releases Floor 124 While DOPA has nurtured many included that since he is not profiting talented and dedicated performers, off his SoundCloud music, he is able Masters remains a place that encour- to find inspiration from tracks online ages students to pursue a variety and incorporate them into his work. of interests in and out of school. For McGowan added that most of his example, while senior Ben McGowan songs are recorded over a short span may be most commonly known for his of a few hours. work on the sports fields, he has si“I’ve always been a creative person, multaneously been exploring various and I really like poetry,” McGowan independent music said, pondering his projects.

“There’s always going to favorite aspects of McGowan rebe people that don’t like music production. cently released a my music, but it’s cool to “My favorite part is hip-hop and R&B know that some people writing lyrics,” he album of origido.” added. Additionalnal songs, entily, McGowan mentled Floor 124, to - BEN MCGOWAN, ‘19 tioned that he enjoys SoundCloud. “I’ve exploring a wide always messed around with music,” variety of genres on his musical jourMcGowan said, recalling his initial ney–while his recent releases mostly inclinations to begin producing songs. fall under the R&B category, he also He added that as he became more enjoys exploring rap and hip-hop, and comfortable using sound equipment, hopes to learn to play the guitar and the decision to publicize his pieces be- spend more time singing (as opposed came instantaneous. “As I create more to rapping). music, I learn more about what I’m Finally, McGowan appreciates redoing,” he said. ceiving feedback from other SoundMcGowan describes his process: Cloud artists. “There’s always going to “If I find a beat that I like, I’ll try to be people that don’t like my music, but make something out of it,” he said. He it’s cool to know that some do,” he said.

“

will be produced by a nonprofit organization called Broadway Workshop, based in New York, which Cunningham describes as an “organization that connects teenagers with people in the performing arts world,” specifically through vocal intensives, industry showcases, workshops and mainstage productions. The mainstage productions, this season’s being Sister Act, are all directed by Marc Tumminelli, founder of Broadway Workshop and former Broadway actor. Interestingly enough, Tumminelli once shared the Broadway stage with Masters Drama teacher Jessica Bogart in a 2006 production of Gypsy (also starring Patti LuPone). “He [Tumminelli] is such an inspiring person and an amazing director,” Cunningham said.

“Broadway Workshop has really helped me grow as an artist,” Cunningham said, reflecting upon the impact of the program on her performance skills. Cunningham also expresses her gratitude for the organization for their consistent guidance throughout the college application and audition processes, as well as the opportunities they have provided for her to work alongside New York’s up-and-coming Broadway stars.

“Andrew Barth Feldman was in my last Broadway Workshop production, Wind in the Willows, and he is now playing Evan Hansen in Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway,” Cunningham said.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID LEVIN

JUNIOR SAM LEVIN WAS awarded the International Acoustic Music Award.

Levin is the youngest winner of this award since Meghan Trainor in 2009, and will release his third studio album, General Air of Regret, on Mar. 12.

Levin makes music history

Junior Sam Levin has been involved in music at Masters ever since his middle school days, performing in talent shows, being a member of student performing groups, Dobbs 16, Jazz Band and more. Levin’s musical achievements go far beyond the confines of Strayer Hall, as he has already released four singles, one extended play record, and two albums (Frame of Mind and I Am) by the age of 17.

Levin recently earned the International Acoustic Music Award (IAMA) first prize in the AAA/Alternative category. The award “promotes excellence in acoustic music performance and artistry” according to the IAMA official website. He explained that it was quite a long process -- after he submitted his songs, it was announced he was a finalist

for the award, and then the judges took a while to decide who would be selected. Nevertheless, Levin was still elated. “It was super cool. They sent me a bunch of music equipment which was pretty nice,” he said. Levin was also the youngest person to win this award since Meghan Trainor in 2009.

This award comes at a very busy time for Levin as he recently released his new single, “Bookmark,” on Feb. 27. He is also getting ready for the launch of his newest album, General Air of Regret, which he explains is a fusion of all the material he’s been learning. “It’s the hardest I’ve ever worked on an album,” he said. Levin said he hopes the album, which will be available on Mar. 12, sets a precedent for how his music will sound moving forward.

Sharenow performs en pointe Olivia Sharenow has been in pointe shoes nearly her whole life, as the current Masters junior began ballet when she was only three years old. Love for the art-form at a young age led the junior to get more serious about dancing when she reached the age of 12. Part of the Hudson Valley Youth Ballet, a ballet company in Harrison, N.Y., Sharenow danced in classics: The Nutcracker (twice) and Sleeping Beauty, starring as Aurora.

After a back injury, Sharenow’s busy dance schedule has regressed a bit of late, yet she continues to dance once or twice a week and enjoys it. “It’s freeing for the mind, to totally immerse myself in that world [of ballet] and really concentrate on steps. It takes a lot of focus and precision, but that’s what I like about it,” she said. Sharenow also noted that she’s been able to dance with many of the same people since she was young, so the family aspect of ballet is definitely a highlight for her.

Sharenow explains that ballet is often a lot more difficult than people think. “It’s very athletic and physically demanding. It takes a lot of practice and training to perfect your skills,

PHOTO COURTESY OF ALARIC CAMPBELL

JUNIOR OLIVIA SHARENOW POSES in a photoshoot for Sleeping Beauty in which she played Aurora. She has been dancing ballet since she was only three years old, and remains dedicated to the activity even with a back injury. which can sometimes be frustrating,” she said.

Ballet is often considered the foundation for all other forms of dance, according to Sharenow, yet it still has its special qualities. “It’s unique in the ways that you can tell a story with your

body, and certain moves and actions represent certain things,” she said.

While she is still working through her injury, along with the busy workload of junior year, Sharenow said she hopes to continue ballet as she moves on through high school and beyond.

Senior speculates Shakespearean sonnets Gould works as junior director

Senior Daneal Senderovich, football A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Laertes enthusiast and Model United Nations in Hamlet, Mark Antony in Cleopatra, delegate, also seemed to find his call- and John Talbot in Henry the VI: Part I. ing for theater outside of Masters at Senderovich emphasized the intrithe Children’s Shakespeare Theater cacy and complexity of Shakespeare, in Rockland County, N. Y. After eight mentioning that line memorization was shows, Senderovich shares the impact the most difficult aspect of the activity. of Shakespeare on his life as a perform- “Shakespeare had a very ornate way er and in general, and of saying things that provides insight on “There’s such a great mixdoesn’t come naturalhis favorite parts of ture of nerves and excitement ly to a modern English the activity. as you’re putting all of the speaker,” he said. He “I knew some kids pieces together. “ added that the meter at my public school of Shakespeare’s plays who had done [Shake- DANEAL SENDEROVICH ‘19 increases the difficulspeare]. I saw a couple ty of memorization. of the shows, tried it one year, and real- To top it off, Senderovich spends more ly enjoyed it,” Senderovich said, reflect- than nine hours per week rehearsing ing upon the beginnings of his Shake- both individually and with his cast. He speare career. Aside from working on is currently playing various small roles the technical crew for his two Middle in a production of Henry VI: Part II, School musicals, Senderovich had sel- premiering on March 22. dom experimented with theater. Some Senderovich shares his favorite asof his favorite roles include Lysander in pects of Shakespeare and acting in

“

at Westchester theater company

COURTESY OF ELI SENDEROVICH

DANEAL SENDEROVICH PORTRAYS JOHN Talbut in Henry VI: Part I.

general: “Opening night,” he said is the highlight of theater for him. “There’s such a great mixture of nerves and excitement as you’re putting all of the pieces together,” he added. He even mentioned that the Children’s Shakespeare Theater has a separate program for adults, which he would consider trying if he still lives in the Rockland area.

Prior to her arrival at Masters second grade. I help them with dancthis year, freshman Alana Gould es and with memorizing their lines has already accumulated an exten- and songs.” Gould, having only begun sive musical theatre repertoire at the working on The Aristocats in JanuRandom Farms Kids’ ary, is already enjoying Theatre in Westchester, “I love working directing children in N.Y., participating in a with kids. There’s one Random Farms. “I love wide range of produc- kid who plays the vilworking with kids,” she tions – from Annie to The lain in the show that said. “There’s one kid Addams Family – begin- reminds me a lot of who plays the villain in ning at the early age of myself as a kid.” the show, who reminds nine. However, recently, me a lot of myself as a she has decided to take - ALANA GOULD, ‘22 kid.” her theater commitment In the midst of her to the next level by becoming a junior new activities, however, Gould still director for young actors. remains dedicated to performance. At “I’m helping out their [Random Masters, she is currently a member of Farms’] main directors with a cast The 1877, a choral music ensemble at of The Aristocats,” Gould said. “The Masters, and recently performed in actors are in kindergarten through the Musical Revue on Feb. 1 and 2.

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TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

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Lacrosse teams stick together to prepare for season Off-season losses? Re-lax Gabriel Keller Social Media Managers After losing many talented players during their offseason, Masters’ boys varsity lacrosse team is ready to start anew with young talent and strong leadership. The team, co-captained by seniors Ben McGowan and Ben Klein, will be seeing many more new faces after losing many of last years’ stars.

The graduation of Joost-Olan Sheehan ‘18 and the departures of Will Stark, Jordan Scherer and Dylan Canell have left several spots open on the starting roster.

Despite the losses, McGowan remains positive. “Some players have to step up this season, but we have a lot of young talent, and we’re excited. I’m looking forward to finding out what we have,” McGowan said. He also noted the return of several players. “We have some veteran players returning, such as Aden Khurana, Dan Jaffe, Mikkel Reid and Ben Klein. We have to perse-

vere this year, but I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

The lacrosse team is returning after the success of their 2017-18 season that led to a New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) finals berth versus Long Island Lutheran, during which the team lost 18-10.

Freshman Nathan Meyer, the team’s new starting goalie said, “I’m feeling pretty optimistic. I think that we have a good group of players.” Meyer has been playing lacrosse for nine years. “We’ve all got along really well.

The seniors and the older kids have been really nice to me and a lot of the younger players. We don’t think about grade when we are playing when we step on the field,” Meyer added.

A constant theme among the players of the team is that they understand how much they have lost over the offseason, but they are all optimistic for this year. Their first game is away against Columbia Preparatory and Grammar School on Apr. 5.

VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

MEMBERS OF THE GIRLS’ varsity lacrosse team group up at the end of a practice in the Strayer Gym. This is the second season in which the team has been coached by Meghan MacWilliams, who is focused this year on building a lasting program.

Girls’ lacrosse shoots for teamwork reed Gilmore Contributing Writer

VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

MEMBERS OF THE BOYS’ varsity lacrosse team hoist their sticks during a huddle at the end of a practice in the Strayer Gym. The team has to cope this year with heavy off-season losses.

Boys’ tennis ready to take the court niors Magill and Parsa Keyvani. The team will carry fourteen players and ten will start in matches: four singles players and three doubles teams. AcAs spring sports at Masters begin, cording to Keyvani, the two weeks the boys’ varsity tennis team looks to before spring break will be used for start off its season on a strong note tryouts in order to finalize the varin order to build team camaraderie sity and junior varsity rosters. After and improve each player’s skills. Last break, athletes will split into their reyear, the team had a solid season, fin- spective squads, with varsity practicishing with a 6-6 record. Additional- ing on hard courts and junior varsity ly, former team captain Oren Vassar practicing on clay courts.

‘18, currently playing collegiately at Keyvani, who helps Lesser lead the College of William and Mary in drills and ensures the team is in a Williamsburg, Va., won the Fairches- “tennis mood,” hopes the team will ter Athletic Association (FAA) singles take all practices and matches serichampionship. ously throughout the season.

After having a 2-7 record during “I hope they’re putting in their the 2016-17 season and a 5-5 record 100% effort,” Keyvani said. “Effort in the 2017-18 season, head coach is everything and that’s the most imGreg Lesser believes the team will be portant thing I hope to see.” guided by some of the “same goals” as Magill, who won’t return to playseen in previous seasons. ing until Apr. 22 as he recovers from “As you go into the season, you a SLAP tear, a labrum injury, is exwant to improve cited to spend from what you the first monthhave right now “As you go into the season, you and-a-half of the to where we are want to improve from what you have season helping at the end of the now to where we are at the end of the coach the team season,” Less- season.” and working er said. “Somewith players to times it’s hard - GREG LESSER improve their to improve when skills on the you’re only focused on matches, but court. In practice, he hopes to incorworking on individual skills and in porate more footwork drills and exan individual sport like tennis, hav- ercises as a unit “so we can grow not ing a sense of team is an important just as a team, but as players.” thing.”

This season, the team’s schedSophomore Max Miller, the only ule contains a mix of schools rangfreshman on varsity last season, is ing across various leagues such as optimistic about the upcoming sea- Brunswick School from the FAA and son, but senses that athletes will Columbia Grammar and Preparatohave to take on greater responsibili- ry School from the New York State ties in matches by sometimes playing Association of Independent Schools higher seeds from other schools.

(NYSAIS). At the season’s conclu“We have a lot more young talent sion, like the rest of Masters’ athletwith two or three more freshmen on ic teams, the boys’ tennis team will the team this season,” Miller said. leave the FAA, a decision that Magill “[But] the team has a different vibe approves of. since we don’t have Oren anymore “I think it was too far [for our team and Alex Magill is hurt. Kids are go- to travel],” Magill said. “NYSAIS ing to have to step up.” would be better as there are closer In preparation for this year’s play, matches and more competitive [ones] Lesser said that athletes, specifically for us.” the “younger guys,” have been trainThe boys’ varsity team has their ing since the offseason this fall and first match on Apr. 3 at home against winter. According to Lesser, five or FAA opponent King Low Heywood six players will move up to the var- Thomas. sity squad this year, captained by se-

drew Schott Opinion Design Editor

“

Going into a second season under the tutelage of head coach Meghan MacWilliams, the girls’ varsity lacrosse team is looking to capitalize on the foundation the program established last season, as this year’s roster will feature more returning players than any season in recent memory.

Although the team finished with a losing record last season, MacWilliams admits that the program is in a “building phase,” highly dependent on the growth and seasoning of young, returning lacrosse players. For the 2017-18 spring season, the girls’ lacrosse roster only had three returning players, while this year’s squad will include twelve veterans who are sure to help navigate the team through formidable, yet familiar opponents.

“Last year, we did an amazing job of creating a team,” MacWil-

liams said. “We didn’t win a lot of games, but this year I’m hoping to change that.”

In the eyes of captain junior Audrey Corrigan, the team will rely heavily on their athletic defensive units and on team veterans to help maintain the upward trend of enthusiasm and success that the program has strived to accomplish.

“The girls from last year now have a year of experience under their belt and the new girls are already proving to be very athletic, so we’re definitely going to have a reason to Pack the Den,” Corrigan said.

MacWilliams and Corrigan are both excited to watch players including captain Mollie Roth, Izzy Godwin and Franny Mann. Roth, previously a goalkeeper for the team, will now be leading her team as a midfielder. Izzy Godwin, one of the more seasoned members of the team, will be heading the offense, hopefully tallying a winning number of goals throughout the

season.

This season, girls’ varsity lacrosse will face-off against a number of competitive programs within the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) league, but when asked who their most formidable opponents are, both Corrigan and MacWilliams replied begrudgingly “Columbia Prep,” a team which handed Masters a tough loss at the end of last year’s season. Masters’ returning players still hold that bitter memory, however, and are determined to flip last season’s outcome during their Apr. 18 contest against the Lions.

Girls’ varsity lacrosse, with more experience, athleticism and technical ability than last year, will play their first game against Long Island Lutheran High School on Apr. 2. The Panthers’ first home game will be against Spence School on Apr. 8.

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TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

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Masters’ sports teams compete in championships: a rundown of each team’s postseason All stories writen by: Logan Schiciano, Sports Design Editor and Mitch Fink, Staff Writer

Boys’ and girls’ fencing flourishes in final fight In a year that had one of the greatLockett, who also earned first est turnouts in recent memory, Mas- place individually for sabre, exters’ fencing program capped off its plained how teamwork allowed the seasons on a high note at the ISFL Panthers to be so dominant this year.

Team Championships in February. “We worked as a cohesive unit. The The Panthers, who fight three dif- team has grown together and we’ve ferent weapons (sabre, epee and foil) all improved so much,” she said. for both boys’ and girls’ had great reIn addition to Lockett, first place sults. accolades in foil were claimed by Most notably, the girls’ sabre freshman Sunny Shi and senior capteam, consisting of starters sopho- tain Daniel Berov in epee. Sophomore more Sophia VisSophia Viscarello carello and juniors (sabre) and senior Audrey Lockett “We worked as a cohesive Kasper Veliz (saand Michelle Wei unit. The team has grown tobre) coupled for and substitutes gether and we’ve all improved so third place. Close sophomore Ariella much. “ behind was seUribe and junior nior Jenna BossSophie Lai, were - AUDREY LOCKETT ‘20 hart who finished crowned tournafourth overall in ment champions. In addition, the the epee discipline; fellow seniors girls’ foil and boys’ epee squads both Eli Emery (ninth for sabre) and Matt placed third in their respective com- Decker (eighth for sabre) and sophopetitions. more Sophie Neale (seventh for foil) These performances were just a finished in the top ten for the season. snippet of a year that saw the Pan- Such results demonstrate the consisthers rack up a series of team and in- tent success Masters experienced in dividual decorations. For the season, their winter matches. the girls’ sabre team also earned first Aside from this season’s accomplace, while both girls’ epee and foil plishments, Lockett is very much placed second. Boys’ foil and eppe looking forward to competing next were third for their respective weap- year. “I don’t want to lose a single ons. bout,” she said.

“

Boys’ squash strengthens team bond Boys’ varsity squash began their championship season with a trek to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., to participate in the 2019 HEAD United States High School Team Squash Championships. Though the team was ranked as the number one seed in their draw, they were without some of their starters, and ended up losing their first match, 6-1, against Tabor Academy.

Following the opening defeat, Masters was edged by Brooks School, 4-3, but came right back and mustered a 4-3 victory over Suffield Academy. In that contest, senior captain Youssef Aly, senior Noel Gorodetsky, junior Garrett Wenberg and Masters’ top-seeded player Taha Dinana walked off the court victorious. Wenberg had a very successful tournament, going 3-0 in his matches. Despite the team’s loss in the first round, senior player Ben Miller was content with the team’s effort in

Nationals. “Everyone gave it their all and I’m proud of my teammates for grinding it out,” he said.

More coverage on the team’s performance at Nationals is available in Vol. 75, Issue 4 of Tower.

The squash team headed back to campus and less than a week later, visited the Brunswick School to contend in the FAA Championships. Masters beat Rye Country Day School in the first round, but fell short against Hopkins School. Falling into the consolation bracket, the team made the most out of their final match, winning against King School and taking third place in the tournament.

Most recently, the team took part in the NYSAIS Championships. Holding the fifth seed, they hosted No. 4 Dalton School in the Fonseca Center on Friday, Feb. 22. Home court advantage proved beneficial as the Panthers clawed the Tigers to sweep the quar-

ter-finals matchup 7-0.

With momentum on their side, the team traveled to Hackley School to face off against the top-seeded Hornets, although Masters went down 6-1 to the team who would go on to win the NYSAIS Championship.

Sophomore Reed Gilmore recalled some positive aspects of the experience. “We didn’t give away games, and there was a mutual appreciation from everyone on the team. When I would come off the court, three or four of my teammates would be there to give me tips and encourage me,” he said.

Gilmore also referenced freshman George Chang, who was new to squash at the beginning of the season and fought hard as the No. 6 player for Masters in the tournament. Dinana had the lone victory for the Panthers in a five-game battle against Hackley’s top player.

Indoor track sprints strongly to the finish One constant throughout the winter season was the consistent success of Masters’ indoor track team. Their season was capped by a trip to the NYSAIS Indoor Track Championships at The Armory in New York City, and the Panthers came home with several accolades.

Most notable was the performance by seniors Vittorio Stropoli and Luke Ferrando and juniors Dorian Gilmartin and Judah Francella as they captured an impressive second place finish in the four by two-hundred meter relay; the time of 1:35.86 was also good for a new school best. In addition, Gilmartin came fifth overall in the 55m and the 300m races. His time in the 300m (37.23 seconds) was also a personal

best. Ferrando also chipped in his own personal record, as he came in foutth in the 600m with a time of 1:28.49.

However, the road to the championships was made more difficult than expected, when the team’s final two meets before championships were cancelled due to inclement weather and a conflict relating to Masters not being an official member of the Ivy Preparatory League. Junior captain of indoor track Max Levy explained the downside to the situation. “It affected us negatively only slightly. We didn’t have as much race experience for championships, and some of the people on the cusp of qualifying didn’t get a chance to perform,” he said.

The team’s balance of young talent,

leadership and mix of athletes from all four grades has seemed to work out well for the team given their outstanding results.

It’s clear that the success of indoor track is growing each year, even though the prospect of running on a metal track like the one in the FC is not appealing to many potential indoor track athletes.

Francella said, “When I talk to people about doing track, they get kind of hesitant, because they don’t want to run on our indoor track.”

However, according to Francella, that shouldn’t turn people away from the sport. “I think it [indoor track] will grow as people see it’s not so bad as people think,” he said.

Boys’ basketball scored-on in FAA playoff VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

JUNIOR ELLA FURNISS AND senior captain Marcus Diaz helped the swim team achieve new records this season. Furniss won the swim team’s first medal at NYSAIS on Feb. 27 in the 200 meter individual medley, and Diaz placed second overall at the FAA championships on Feb. 23 in the 100 meter freestyle race.

Swim teams splash records Though the program is only in vance to the finals. Four more team its fourth year, Masters’ boys’ and records were broken, including two girls’ swim teams have been mak- by Ruehlmann in the 50-meter freeing names for themselves, coming style (26.95 seconds) and 100-meter off strong performances in both the butterfly (1:07.79).

FAA championship meet and NYDay two, Feb. 27, was for both inSAIS championship meet which dividual finals and team relays, actook place in February. Many per- cording to Susan Greally, Director sonal records (PRs), team records of Aquatics and swim team coach; and even a few podium spots were the swimmers really stepped up to claimed by the Panthers. the occasion in the concluding meet.

The FAA championships took Senior Michael D’Angelo had one place at Hopkins School on Feb. 23 of seven team records on the day as Masters’ swimmers put together in the 100-meter backstroke, Diaz an impressive showing in a compet- upped his times in the 50-meter and itive atmosphere. In the individual 100-meter freestyle races and Furevents, sophomore Carly Grizzaf- niss inked a record in the 200-meter fi (in the 200-meter freestyle and individual medley with her time of 100-meter backstroke) and junior 2:22.02 to win a third place medSophie Ruehlmann (in the 50-meter al. All these accomplishments gave freestyle and 100-meter butterfly) Masters seventh place overall out of secured team records in their re- seventeen teams for boys and tenth spective events. Additionally, senior out of twelve teams for girls.

Marcus Diaz set team records in the Greally noted that healthy team 200-meter and 100-meter freestyle comradery boosted the morale at races; his time of 51.33 seconds in NYSAIS championships. “It was the latter race was exciting.

The good enough for a swimmers were silver medal in the “It was exciting. The swimmers psyched. They championships. were psyched. They were all support- were all supThe quartet of ive, cheering eachother on, and even portive, cheerRuehlmann, Grizthough it was a long day, they all fo- ing each other zaffi, sophomore on, and even cused and got through it together.”

Vasilisa Ioukhthough it was a novets and junior long day, they - SUSAN GREALLY Ella Furniss had all focused and impressive times in the 200-meter got through it together,” she said. medley relay and 400-meter freeGreally also recalled how the style relay that were also good for team set themselves up for their the Masters record books. success. “They practiced really hard As spring sports got underway, and took it seriously. We always a select group of swimmers capped tell them that what they put into off their season by competing in practice is what they get out in the NYSAIS championships at Lehman meets,” she said. That theory clearCollege. The first day, which was for ly held true in the championships individual preliminaries, saw sev- with all the impressive times. en of eight Masters swimmers ad-

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Coming off a historically great season, sometimes repeating the magic can be harder than getting there the first time. That seems to have been the case with Masters’ boys’ varsity basketball team. Having lost major contributors Sebastian Pacheco, Nick Rivera-Torres, George Corrigan ‘18 and Diego Medina ‘18, the Panthers knew it would be tough to follow up their NYSAIS championship winning season in 2018-19.

The team had to call on players who hadn’t played major minutes before on varsity or call up new players from the JV team. While many of these players, including sophomore Tim Mathas, junior Mike VanDemark and senior Aden

Khurana were able to chip in many productive minutes, the team still didn’t have the experience of last year’s squad.

The team got off to a disappointing 0-2 start with losses to FAA rival Hopkins School and Hyde School, but began to hit their stride as the season rolled along. Senior forward Fritz Pingel said, “We got on a little bit of a roll before winter break.”

That “roll” consisted of three wins against Brunswick School, Springfield Commonwealth Academy and Peddie School.

However, as the schedule turned to 2019, the competition quickly got significantly more stiff, and the Panthers suffered a rough stretch, going 1-4 in their first five contests

in the new year.

“We faced some of the best teams in our league and went through a bit of a losing streak then, but towards the end of the season we won a few games which redeemed that,” Pingel said.

The Panthers were able to top King School twice and rout a Hopkins team they had lost to earlier in the year to bounce back.

Although the Panthers suffered a blowout loss to Greens Farms Academy in the first round of the FAA playoffs, the season served as a facilitator of experience for the Panthers’ young talent, which will need to step up once again next season.

Masters says goodbye to the FAA The 2018-2019 school year will be the last for Masters in the FAA, as Athletic Director Kevin Versen confirmed the school would be leaving the league at the conclusion of the spring season. According to Versen, there were many reasons for the school to withdraw their affiliation.

Versen explained that across the board, NYSAIS offers a “more level playing field” in terms of competition. This is because schools within the FAA utilize the rule that allows for fifth-year students to participate in athletics; in turn, they have one more year of experience which also creates a more competitive program in order to contend within NEPSAC (which permits postgraduate students). “Some schools have their athletes repeat a grade just so they can play an extra year,” Versen said.

In addition, the “travel experience is better for everyone” when traveling to NYSAIS and other local venues, according to Versen.

Currently in the FAA, all but three schools (Masters, Rye Country Day School and School of the Holy Child) are located in Connecticut, and some such as Hopkins School, located in New Haven, Conn., are upwards of one hour away. Playing in the NYSAIS would allow for

more local competition compared to that of FAA and New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) schools.

Though there are just a few fifth year players on Masters’ athletic rosters currently (across all three seasons), according to Versen, the move to the NYSAIS would mean any fifth year students at the school would not be allowed to compete in the athletic program. Versen explained the benefits of this policy.

“This gives us the ability to play locally against Catholic schools and public schools as well,” he said.

Essentially, Masters will have

“

“This [not having any fifth year students in Masters’ athletic program] gives us the ability to play against Catholic schools and public schools as well.”

- KEVIN VERSEN

more freedom to schedule games against a wide-variety of opponents and the ability to participate in big meets and tournaments in the greater-Westchester area, for which being a member of the FAA would not allow.

Sophomore Brenna Hazen, who runs cross country and track at Masters, expressed her excitement

in regards to these new opportunities. “This will be be a great change, to race against bigger teams at bigger events. It’s going to benefit us and I can’t wait to see how we improve,” she said.

When it comes to the playoffs, Versen explained that all Masters’ teams will be able to participate in NYSAIS championships and potentially in public school state championships.

Sophomore Mariano Russo, a member of the boys’ varsity soccer team, which lost to Hopkins in last year’s FAA championship, explained the downside to no longer competing in the FAA playoffs.

“The team was definitely disappointed because we were hoping to play our rivals in upcoming years,” he said.

Nevertheless, another key benefit to the change would be the coverage Masters would receive from local news outlets, including LoHud and News 12. “It gives the school more exposure in Westchester, which is not just good for our school, but also our athletes,” Versen said. Recently, the girls’ varsity basketball team was victorious in the NYSAIS championship and a video recap was posted on the News 12 website later that night.

MASTERS GIRLS’ VARSITY BASKETBALL team won the NYSAIS championship on Mon. Feb. 25, against Horace Mann School. The 65-49 victory was the first NYSAIS girls basketball championship in school history. Read more about the team’s road to glory on page 12.

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

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TOWER/MARCH 8, 2019

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11

Masters’ sports teams compete in championships: a rundown of each team’s postseason All stories writen by: Logan Schiciano, Sports Design Editor and Mitch Fink, Staff Writer

Boys’ and girls’ fencing flourishes in final fight In a year that had one of the greatLockett, who also earned first est turnouts in recent memory, Mas- place individually for sabre, exters’ fencing program capped off its plained how teamwork allowed the seasons on a high note at the ISFL Panthers to be so dominant this year.

Team Championships in February. “We worked as a cohesive unit. The The Panthers, who fight three dif- team has grown together and we’ve ferent weapons (sabre, epee and foil) all improved so much,” she said. for both boys’ and girls’ had great reIn addition to Lockett, first place sults. accolades in foil were claimed by Most notably, the girls’ sabre freshman Sunny Shi and senior capteam, consisting of starters sopho- tain Daniel Berov in epee. Sophomore more Sophia VisSophia Viscarello carello and juniors (sabre) and senior Audrey Lockett “We worked as a cohesive Kasper Veliz (saand Michelle Wei unit. The team has grown tobre) coupled for and substitutes gether and we’ve all improved so third place. Close sophomore Ariella much. “ behind was seUribe and junior nior Jenna BossSophie Lai, were - AUDREY LOCKETT ‘20 hart who finished crowned tournafourth overall in ment champions. In addition, the the epee discipline; fellow seniors girls’ foil and boys’ epee squads both Eli Emery (ninth for sabre) and Matt placed third in their respective com- Decker (eighth for sabre) and sophopetitions. more Sophie Neale (seventh for foil) These performances were just a finished in the top ten for the season. snippet of a year that saw the Pan- Such results demonstrate the consisthers rack up a series of team and in- tent success Masters experienced in dividual decorations. For the season, their winter matches. the girls’ sabre team also earned first Aside from this season’s accomplace, while both girls’ epee and foil plishments, Lockett is very much placed second. Boys’ foil and eppe looking forward to competing next were third for their respective weap- year. “I don’t want to lose a single ons. bout,” she said.

“

Boys’ squash strengthens team bond Boys’ varsity squash began their championship season with a trek to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., to participate in the 2019 HEAD United States High School Team Squash Championships. Though the team was ranked as the number one seed in their draw, they were without some of their starters, and ended up losing their first match, 6-1, against Tabor Academy.

Following the opening defeat, Masters was edged by Brooks School, 4-3, but came right back and mustered a 4-3 victory over Suffield Academy. In that contest, senior captain Youssef Aly, senior Noel Gorodetsky, junior Garrett Wenberg and Masters’ top-seeded player Taha Dinana walked off the court victorious. Wenberg had a very successful tournament, going 3-0 in his matches. Despite the team’s loss in the first round, senior player Ben Miller was content with the team’s effort in

Nationals. “Everyone gave it their all and I’m proud of my teammates for grinding it out,” he said.

More coverage on the team’s performance at Nationals is available in Vol. 75, Issue 4 of Tower.

The squash team headed back to campus and less than a week later, visited the Brunswick School to contend in the FAA Championships. Masters beat Rye Country Day School in the first round, but fell short against Hopkins School. Falling into the consolation bracket, the team made the most out of their final match, winning against King School and taking third place in the tournament.

Most recently, the team took part in the NYSAIS Championships. Holding the fifth seed, they hosted No. 4 Dalton School in the Fonseca Center on Friday, Feb. 22. Home court advantage proved beneficial as the Panthers clawed the Tigers to sweep the quar-

ter-finals matchup 7-0.

With momentum on their side, the team traveled to Hackley School to face off against the top-seeded Hornets, although Masters went down 6-1 to the team who would go on to win the NYSAIS Championship.

Sophomore Reed Gilmore recalled some positive aspects of the experience. “We didn’t give away games, and there was a mutual appreciation from everyone on the team. When I would come off the court, three or four of my teammates would be there to give me tips and encourage me,” he said.

Gilmore also referenced freshman George Chang, who was new to squash at the beginning of the season and fought hard as the No. 6 player for Masters in the tournament. Dinana had the lone victory for the Panthers in a five-game battle against Hackley’s top player.

Indoor track sprints strongly to the finish One constant throughout the winter season was the consistent success of Masters’ indoor track team. Their season was capped by a trip to the NYSAIS Indoor Track Championships at The Armory in New York City, and the Panthers came home with several accolades.

Most notable was the performance by seniors Vittorio Stropoli and Luke Ferrando and juniors Dorian Gilmartin and Judah Francella as they captured an impressive second place finish in the four by two-hundred meter relay; the time of 1:35.86 was also good for a new school best. In addition, Gilmartin came fifth overall in the 55m and the 300m races. His time in the 300m (37.23 seconds) was also a personal

best. Ferrando also chipped in his own personal record, as he came in foutth in the 600m with a time of 1:28.49.

However, the road to the championships was made more difficult than expected, when the team’s final two meets before championships were cancelled due to inclement weather and a conflict relating to Masters not being an official member of the Ivy Preparatory League. Junior captain of indoor track Max Levy explained the downside to the situation. “It affected us negatively only slightly. We didn’t have as much race experience for championships, and some of the people on the cusp of qualifying didn’t get a chance to perform,” he said.

The team’s balance of young talent,

leadership and mix of athletes from all four grades has seemed to work out well for the team given their outstanding results.

It’s clear that the success of indoor track is growing each year, even though the prospect of running on a metal track like the one in the FC is not appealing to many potential indoor track athletes.

Francella said, “When I talk to people about doing track, they get kind of hesitant, because they don’t want to run on our indoor track.”

However, according to Francella, that shouldn’t turn people away from the sport. “I think it [indoor track] will grow as people see it’s not so bad as people think,” he said.

Boys’ basketball scored-on in FAA playoff VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

JUNIOR ELLA FURNISS AND senior captain Marcus Diaz helped the swim team achieve new records this season. Furniss won the swim team’s first medal at NYSAIS on Feb. 27 in the 200 meter individual medley, and Diaz placed second overall at the FAA championships on Feb. 23 in the 100 meter freestyle race.

Swim teams splash records Though the program is only in vance to the finals. Four more team its fourth year, Masters’ boys’ and records were broken, including two girls’ swim teams have been mak- by Ruehlmann in the 50-meter freeing names for themselves, coming style (26.95 seconds) and 100-meter off strong performances in both the butterfly (1:07.79).

FAA championship meet and NYDay two, Feb. 27, was for both inSAIS championship meet which dividual finals and team relays, actook place in February. Many per- cording to Susan Greally, Director sonal records (PRs), team records of Aquatics and swim team coach; and even a few podium spots were the swimmers really stepped up to claimed by the Panthers. the occasion in the concluding meet.

The FAA championships took Senior Michael D’Angelo had one place at Hopkins School on Feb. 23 of seven team records on the day as Masters’ swimmers put together in the 100-meter backstroke, Diaz an impressive showing in a compet- upped his times in the 50-meter and itive atmosphere. In the individual 100-meter freestyle races and Furevents, sophomore Carly Grizzaf- niss inked a record in the 200-meter fi (in the 200-meter freestyle and individual medley with her time of 100-meter backstroke) and junior 2:22.02 to win a third place medSophie Ruehlmann (in the 50-meter al. All these accomplishments gave freestyle and 100-meter butterfly) Masters seventh place overall out of secured team records in their re- seventeen teams for boys and tenth spective events. Additionally, senior out of twelve teams for girls.

Marcus Diaz set team records in the Greally noted that healthy team 200-meter and 100-meter freestyle comradery boosted the morale at races; his time of 51.33 seconds in NYSAIS championships. “It was the latter race was exciting.

The good enough for a swimmers were silver medal in the “It was exciting. The swimmers psyched. They championships. were psyched. They were all support- were all supThe quartet of ive, cheering eachother on, and even portive, cheerRuehlmann, Grizthough it was a long day, they all fo- ing each other zaffi, sophomore on, and even cused and got through it together.”

Vasilisa Ioukhthough it was a novets and junior long day, they - SUSAN GREALLY Ella Furniss had all focused and impressive times in the 200-meter got through it together,” she said. medley relay and 400-meter freeGreally also recalled how the style relay that were also good for team set themselves up for their the Masters record books. success. “They practiced really hard As spring sports got underway, and took it seriously. We always a select group of swimmers capped tell them that what they put into off their season by competing in practice is what they get out in the NYSAIS championships at Lehman meets,” she said. That theory clearCollege. The first day, which was for ly held true in the championships individual preliminaries, saw sev- with all the impressive times. en of eight Masters swimmers ad-

“

Coming off a historically great season, sometimes repeating the magic can be harder than getting there the first time. That seems to have been the case with Masters’ boys’ varsity basketball team. Having lost major contributors Sebastian Pacheco, Nick Rivera-Torres, George Corrigan ‘18 and Diego Medina ‘18, the Panthers knew it would be tough to follow up their NYSAIS championship winning season in 2018-19.

The team had to call on players who hadn’t played major minutes before on varsity or call up new players from the JV team. While many of these players, including sophomore Tim Mathas, junior Mike VanDemark and senior Aden

Khurana were able to chip in many productive minutes, the team still didn’t have the experience of last year’s squad.

The team got off to a disappointing 0-2 start with losses to FAA rival Hopkins School and Hyde School, but began to hit their stride as the season rolled along. Senior forward Fritz Pingel said, “We got on a little bit of a roll before winter break.”

That “roll” consisted of three wins against Brunswick School, Springfield Commonwealth Academy and Peddie School.

However, as the schedule turned to 2019, the competition quickly got significantly more stiff, and the Panthers suffered a rough stretch, going 1-4 in their first five contests

in the new year.

“We faced some of the best teams in our league and went through a bit of a losing streak then, but towards the end of the season we won a few games which redeemed that,” Pingel said.

The Panthers were able to top King School twice and rout a Hopkins team they had lost to earlier in the year to bounce back.

Although the Panthers suffered a blowout loss to Greens Farms Academy in the first round of the FAA playoffs, the season served as a facilitator of experience for the Panthers’ young talent, which will need to step up once again next season.

Masters says goodbye to the FAA The 2018-2019 school year will be the last for Masters in the FAA, as Athletic Director Kevin Versen confirmed the school would be leaving the league at the conclusion of the spring season. According to Versen, there were many reasons for the school to withdraw their affiliation.

Versen explained that across the board, NYSAIS offers a “more level playing field” in terms of competition. This is because schools within the FAA utilize the rule that allows for fifth-year students to participate in athletics; in turn, they have one more year of experience which also creates a more competitive program in order to contend within NEPSAC (which permits postgraduate students). “Some schools have their athletes repeat a grade just so they can play an extra year,” Versen said.

In addition, the “travel experience is better for everyone” when traveling to NYSAIS and other local venues, according to Versen.

Currently in the FAA, all but three schools (Masters, Rye Country Day School and School of the Holy Child) are located in Connecticut, and some such as Hopkins School, located in New Haven, Conn., are upwards of one hour away. Playing in the NYSAIS would allow for

more local competition compared to that of FAA and New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) schools.

Though there are just a few fifth year players on Masters’ athletic rosters currently (across all three seasons), according to Versen, the move to the NYSAIS would mean any fifth year students at the school would not be allowed to compete in the athletic program. Versen explained the benefits of this policy.

“This gives us the ability to play locally against Catholic schools and public schools as well,” he said.

Essentially, Masters will have

“

“This [not having any fifth year students in Masters’ athletic program] gives us the ability to play against Catholic schools and public schools as well.”

- KEVIN VERSEN

more freedom to schedule games against a wide-variety of opponents and the ability to participate in big meets and tournaments in the greater-Westchester area, for which being a member of the FAA would not allow.

Sophomore Brenna Hazen, who runs cross country and track at Masters, expressed her excitement

in regards to these new opportunities. “This will be be a great change, to race against bigger teams at bigger events. It’s going to benefit us and I can’t wait to see how we improve,” she said.

When it comes to the playoffs, Versen explained that all Masters’ teams will be able to participate in NYSAIS championships and potentially in public school state championships.

Sophomore Mariano Russo, a member of the boys’ varsity soccer team, which lost to Hopkins in last year’s FAA championship, explained the downside to no longer competing in the FAA playoffs.

“The team was definitely disappointed because we were hoping to play our rivals in upcoming years,” he said.

Nevertheless, another key benefit to the change would be the coverage Masters would receive from local news outlets, including LoHud and News 12. “It gives the school more exposure in Westchester, which is not just good for our school, but also our athletes,” Versen said. Recently, the girls’ varsity basketball team was victorious in the NYSAIS championship and a video recap was posted on the News 12 website later that night.

MASTERS GIRLS’ VARSITY BASKETBALL team won the NYSAIS championship on Mon. Feb. 25, against Horace Mann School. The 65-49 victory was the first NYSAIS girls basketball championship in school history. Read more about the team’s road to glory on page 12.

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

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Girls’ basketball captures first NYSAIS title Logan Schiciano Sports Page Editor Mitch Fink Staff Writer The girls’ varsity basketball team finished their season in style, capturing their first NYSAIS championship in program history. The team, which had a regular season record of 14-6, capped off their playoff run by defeating Horace Mann School in the NYSAIS finals on Feb. 25.

Masters was a force in league play within the FAA, going 8-1 and only losing a thriller against St. Luke’s School on Jan. 29. St. Luke’s, who finished atop the FAA standings, went on to win the FAA Championship. Masters, however, took a different route and entered the NYSAIS playoffs as the No. 2 seed.

After a bye in the opening round, the girls began their quest for NYSAIS glory against Portledge School on Friday, Feb. 22. The Panthers, the second overall seed in the tournament, dominated on the defensive end by creating turnovers, enroute to a 74-40 blowout victory. Senior Kendra Cooper-Smith led the way recording 24 points and was honored after the game along with fellow seniors Emily Brieant and manager Madison Stewart on Senior Night.

Sophomore Brooke Tatarian also pitched in with 23 points, many of which came via the three point shot.

Tatarian had been strong all season, scoring 421 total points and earning LoHud Player of the Week honors in December.

The Panthers got right back on

the court Saturday afternoon with local rival Hackley School standing in their way of a potential finals appearance. The semi-finals matinee saw the team get out to a fast start.

Led by junior Noemia Massingue’s aggressive play (11 points in the first-half), Masters was blowing out Hackley at halftime, 42-15. The team did not let up down the stretch and with a 62-48 win, Masters advanced to the NYSAIS Finals. Tatarian and junior Gwenn Sabato pitched in with 13 points apiece. Others, including eighth grader Dakota Daniello made an impact as well; she had two baskets on the game, and handled the ball with care, only committing one turnover.

With the stakes high, the girls, accompanied by a riled-up crowd of Masters students and faculty, made their way into the gym at Ethical Culture of Fieldston School to contend for the NYSAIS championship against the No. 1 Horace Mann School team. This was the second year in a row Masters had reached the finals, losing last season to Dalton School.

The Panthers, who were defeated by the Horace Mann Lions earlier this season, got out to a slow start, falling behind 9-2, though they would get it together behind strong play from Tatarian, who propelled the Panthers to a 17-0 run midway through the first quarter. “We went down, but we didn’t let our emotions get to us. We turned it around, got the momentum, and our shooting was on fire. Next thing you know, we looked up at the scoreboard and we were up ten points,” said sophomore Allie Koziarz, Masters’ starting point guard.

VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

THE GIRLS’ VARSITY BASKETBALL team celebrates the historic victory after defeating Horace Mann School in the NYSAIS championship game. The team, led by head coach Nick Volchok (left), defeated Portledge School and Hackley School to get The team never looked back as the adrenaline of the moment sparked great intensity on both ends of the court. Sabato led the way with 22 points, most of which came in the second half, and Tatarian poured in 17 as well. When the final buzzer sounded, Masters students stormed

the court and surrounded the players in celebration of a 65-49 victory and a NYSAIS championship.

Team captain Cooper-Smith, who was appreciative of all the support the team received, explained how the team was able to win the title. “We couldn’t have gotten this far without

dedication and lots of hard work,” she said.

The victory was the perfect end to an incredible run, and a fantastic cap to what has been an action-filled winter season. “We finally did it,” Koziarz said.

Golf team prepares for spring training trip Track teams strive for PRs MicheLLe Wei Opinion Design Editor Head Coach and Director of Technology Bhavin Patel and the student-athletes on Masters’ varsity golf team are all looking forward to a successful spring season which will begin with a trip to Orlando, Fla..

The annual trip will occur during the second week of spring break for four days and is intended to help the team prepare for the upcoming season by practicing, watching and bonding over the sport. The trip has varied in the past, but it always includes spectating one professional golf tournament, this year’s competition being the Valspar tournament.

Because he is the only senior on this year’s team, Alexander Lockhart is prepared to take on more of a leadership role and become more of a role model. Regarding watching past professional golf tournaments, Lockhart said, “It was really different to watch the pros play and see what type of mindset they maintain. This year we’re really focusing on playing more golf. I’m focused on developinmy mindset for the season.”

With no captain chosen yet, the members are focused on “accountability” for themselves and for others, Lockhart said. To junior member Michael VanDemark, that means that everyone is responsible and self-motivated.

“In golf, your main opponent is yourself so it’s really just about self-improvement,” Lockhart said.

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“In golf, your main opponent is yourself, so it’s really just about self improvement.”

- ALEXANDER LOCKHART ‘19

Lockhart’s sentiment is reflected in his off-season conditioning for the sport; in summer, he plays five days a week. In fall, Lockhart participates in the golf co-curricular, then he transitions to playing indoors once or twice a week once November hits, and through winter. Junior team member Sebastian Sawhney, who has been golfing for six years, also strengthens and stretches his muscles all year to stay flexible for the season.

According to Sawhney, although

golf is really an individual experience, navigating the complicated rules of golf with a team is helpful because he has someone else to look at the situation. VanDemark also appreciates feedback the team provides, and the team dynamic helps motivate him.

Patel hopes this season will consist of teamwork and cohesive team chemistry. While the squad lost members John Kinsley ‘18 and Jake Barnett ‘18, who both graduated last year, there’s also some new talent, with eighth grader Jonathan Oakes joining the team.

Oakes has been golfing since he was four, and currently golfs year -round. He and Lockhart go to the same country club in Ardsley to practice and Oakes participated in over 20 tournaments with the Metropolitan Professional Golfers’ Association junior tour during the summer of 2018. For his first season with Masters’ team, Oakes is most looking forward to exploring the different courses in the area for more experience.

Patel said he hopes that with the new talent on the team, the goal is to win half of the head-to-head matches the team will play.

JoSeph goLdStien Lead Opinion Editor Masters’ boys’ and girls’ track and field teams are looking to build on the record-breaking winter season of the indoor track team. According to senior Luke Ferrando, the focus is specifically on increasing participation.

The team’s growth can be attributed to the indoor track team’s success over this past winter. Ferrando, along with senior Vittorio Stropoli and juniors Dorian Gilmartin and Judah Francella, broke the Masters record for the 4x200 meter event at the NYSAIS Indoor Track Championship on Feb. 21.

“More kids want to do track now after we had such a successful indoor season,” Ferrando said. The team’s physical growth should allow them to become more competitive during meets this season.

Ferrando has high expectations for the team and for himself. He is looking to set a number of school and personal records (PRs) in events, including breaking “both the 400 meter record and the 800 meter record for the school.” Ferrando is also looking for the team to perform well, setting the

goal of winning the Fairchester Athletic Association championship in Track and Field. Although, Ferrando made a point to emphasize that accomplishing that goal is “going to take everyone’s commitment, time and effort.”

After the respective departures of former coaches Jam Shakwi and Ford Palmer, head coach Kenyetta Iyebele will be joined by fellow Hoka NY-NJ Track Club teammates Stephanie Vanpelt, Chris Giesting and Isaac Updike to round out Masters’ 2018-19 track and field coaching staff.

The new coaches should help the team’s progress, who Ferrando described as “really nice and encouraging coaches who know what they’re doing.” However, one struggle the team has often faced in previous years is accommodating everyone’s skill level as many Masters students must join sports teams to fulfill the Athletic Curriculum Requirement. Ferrando mentioned that while all the coaches are understanding of each athlete’s capabilities, they are able to “focus on kids who take it seriously while also helping the other kids improve and get through their workouts.”

Masters’ track and field’s first meet will be at home on Greene Field against Riverdale Country School on Apr. 2.

Boys’ volleyball bumps-up expectations aMita khurana Lead Features Editor

VINCENT ALBAN/TOWER

SENIOR ALEXANDER LOCKHART AND eighth grader Jonathan Oakes practice putting. Both players have a great deal of experience in the game; over the summer, Lockhart practiced or played five times a week, while Oakes competed in over 20 tournaments on the MET PGA Junior Tour.

After placing second in the New York City Athletic League (NYCAL) and the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) tournaments, respectively, during the spring 2018 season, the boys’ varsity volleyball team is ready to put their best foot forward to win the championship this year.

Coached by Chanel Flowers and Kaina Bazard, the team has lost many key players this year such as August DuBeau ‘18, Jaiden Feliciano ‘18 and Diego Medina ‘18, leaving several spots open for new players to join the sport. Senior captain Noel Gorodetsky sees this as an opportunity for

such players to hone-in on their skills.

“We have a really young team; [the new players] all have a lot of potential. Just in the first three trainings, it was evident that all the young kids are going to get so much better.” Gorodetsky said.

Freshman player and girls’ varsity volleyball manager Caleb Jakes is anxious to improve his skills on the court. “Even though we haven’t had any games yet, we’ve started to build a community between each other. We already have a team pact and I think that’s really important to have a relationship with the other teammates,” Jakes said.

With seven other teams in the NYSAIS league, the squad’s biggest concern is The Calhoun School, the team that defeated Masters’ volleyball

squad in the NYSAIS final last year.

“We’re trying to improve on last year’s season by hopefully winning NYSAIS this year,” senior starter Youssef Aly said. Likewise, senior captain Fritz Pingel is excited to see the hard work of the team pay off.

“Judging from the few practices we’ve had so far, our team looks very good. It doesn’t matter what other teams are doing as long as we are putting in work. We will have a shot to win every game,” Pingel said.

The boys’ varsity volleyball team will kick off their 2018-19 season with three matches on the road, starting on Apr. 2 at the United Nations International School. The squad will look to get its NYSAIS final revenge against the Calhoun Cougars when the team holds its first home match on Apr. 12.