The Union - Milpitas High School - November 2021

GIRLS’ SPORTS UNIFORMS SEXIST (2)

MX. BARR TELLS XYR STORY (5)

ART SPREAD: FROM BOB ROSS TO BANANAS (6-7)

POLL: APPLE MUSIC OR SPOTIFY? (8)

INJURED ATHLETES (10)

THE

NOVEMBER 2021 VOLUME XXXIIII ISSUE II

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STUDENT VOICE OF MILPITAS HIGH SCHOOL

District provides mental health services after student death

By Ryan Teoh

Vyomi Seth | THE UNION

Students mingle on the dance floor by the large gym at the end of the homecoming dance on Oct. 23.

Homecoming Dance 2021 breaks attendance records despite setbacks

By Vyomi Seth

On Oct. 23, MHS’s homecoming dance had a record number of 900-1,000 attendees despite rain, which was more than expected, ASB secretary and dance coordinator Vyvy Nguyen said. The theme was “A Fairly Odd Dance.”

The dance, which was originally planned to be on the tennis courts, was extended to the area in front of the gym and portable classrooms due to concerns of rain, Nguyen said. because of county-wide COVID-19 guidelines, the dance could not have been hosted indoors, she added.

All students allowed in the dance had to have been fully vaccinated or show a negative COVID-19 test from the past three days.

Following the strict guidelines proved to be a challenge, according to Nguyen. But with the help of additional funding from ticket sales, they were able to make it happen. Due to a lack of volunteers checking ID and vaccination cards, the line to get into the venue was 45-50 minutes long for many students. A majority of

students kept their masks on outside.

While the main dance area was located in front of the gym, there was a selection of games and activities available on the tennis courts: air hockey, beanbag toss, bowling, ladder toss, and a themed photo backdrop.

Behind the rumbling mosh pit, several classrooms were open as shelter from the rain. There were cartoons playing on the TVs and they had a few games, such as Apples to Apples and Telestrations, but they were sparse. No food or drink was allowed indoors, and masks were mandated.

The theme, “A Fairly Odd Dance,” continued the cartoon theme throughout homecoming week. It was finalized by Nguyen, who said she “asked around what everyone’s favorite childhood cartoon was, and mostly got ‘Fairly Odd Parents.’”

The radio station 99.7 NOW served as the DJ for the dance.

The music selection consisted of latest hits and throwback 2010s dance music. Some songs played

were “Good 4 U” by Olivia Rodrigo and “Baby” by Justin Bieber.

Nguyen pre-approved all songs.

There were a few options for food or drinks: Celsius Ice Cream (only drinks), Indian Express Food Truck, and Hawaiian Poke.

“I think there should have been more... but the food smelled good,” senior Anthony Tran said.

This was his first homecoming experience, and he recommended underclassmen to attend in the future.

An unusual presence at the dance was the enigmatic student dressed head-to-toe in a Spiderman costume.

However, the dance wasn’t as enjoyable for some students.

Homecoming royalty nominee, EJ Loria, said “I don’t want to be here”, in tears. He described his experience as underwhelming compared to Homecoming 2019.

The last song of the night was “Crank That” by Soulja Boy. On the way out, students were handed a slip of paper to redeem for “One Free Homecoming 2021 Sticker.”

Principal Rojas proposes PE waiver for marching band, NJROTC, color guard, athletics

By Riya Vyas

A proposal for allowing students in the marching band, color guard, Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC), and athletics to get physical education (PE) credit for their electives was proposed by MHS Principal Francis Rojas at the Milpitas Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 9 following parent and student appeals.

If the proposal is approved, students would still have to take PE their freshman year, but get PE credit for their second year in their elective, Rojas said. Future seniors in marching band, color guard, or NJROTC who took PE their freshman year may be able to earn credit for PE through their elective participation, Rojas

said.

“A lot of my students have to take zero period for PE to meet the requirement, and if they’re in an academy, they have to get out of the program,” Jackson said. “I think that [the PE waiver] would be very beneficial to them and provide more opportunities for them to take something they would like to take.”

If a PE waiver were offered, it would be easier for students to organize classes, get enough sleep, and finish homework, senior Gina Huss, who plays tenor drums in the marching band, said in an interview. Some students have to wake up early for zero period PE, stay in school as late as 9 p.m. for marching band, and then finish their homework, she said.

“Marching band is way harder

[than PE],” Huss said. “My drum is the biggest instrument that marches … it weighs 32 pounds.”

The PE waiver would also help the marching band recruit students because they would be able to offer more than performances and recreation, Huss said.

“In color guard, we start off with a dance movement warm up, which is already more strenuous or demanding than basic stretches done in PE,” senior and color guard captain Rachel Yen said.

Having to take PE and color guard in the same year was draining because the classes were only a few hours apart and both required strenuous physical activity, Yen said.

“My sophomore year, I had to SEE PAGE 12

MUSD has provided mental health services to support students in the aftermath of the death of a MHS student, Principal Francis Rojas said in an interview.

Even before the student’s death, the district had been working to create its own mental health support team to be self-sufficient and not rely on outside resources, Superintendent Cheryl Jordan said.

“Whenever there is a crisis or tragedy at the school campus, the school or district has a crisis response team, and we meet immediately to discuss what students might need,” Assistant Principal Jennifer Hutchison said. “We made a plan of support we would be giving to students and staff, both at MHS and at other schools or communities that might be affected. We set up the library as a counseling station where kids could come in and meet with support staff, which included our school counselors, CASSY therapists, school psychologists, and partnership with the Bill Wilson Center.”

The Bill Wilson Center is an organization that works with schools in crisis to meet needs that arise, Hutchison said.

School administrators drafted letters and sent them to families, contacted teachers who had the student in their classes, and had mental health professionals go to each class the student was in when the announcement was made, Hutchison stated. They also hosted staff meetings to inform staff how to look for signs a student needs help, Hutchison added.

“Our assistant principals, especially Mr. Mach, have kept in touch with the student’s close circle of friends, to support them with coping,” Principal Francis Rojas said. “He has planned some activities for that close circle of friends for that.”

In addition, MHS administration is looking to hold an optional school-wide assembly where experts can talk about what happened for interested students, Rojas said.

Instead of a crisis response, the assembly is meant to aid students dealing with unresolved emotions and to help students to move forward, Rojas added.

“Other than that, staff here, we’ve tried to give as much support as possible to the family,”

Rojas said. “As a community, we’re there for them.”

MHS has added more counselors in the last few years, leading to a total of eight from previously four, in addition to CASSY, a counseling and support service for youth on campus, Hutchison said.

“Hopefully, in a couple of weeks, we’ll start looking at one-on-one mentoring staff, with students who are struggling, and making sure that our students have an adult advocate here on campus that they can turn to for advice or advocacy with their teachers, or anything else that they may need,” Rojas said.

The mentoring program was implemented during distance learning for ELD students, and now MHS is looking to extend it to other students, Rojas added.

“I think the adults here on campus thought, ‘We’re going to come back to school and everything’ll be alright again,’ and the answer is, it’s not,” Rojas said. “A lot of people will say this year is actually harder than last year.

Think about our freshmen and sophomores. Some of them came straight from seventh, sixth or eighth grade. That’s going to create immaturity, uncertainty.”

The lack of social interaction for more than a year and a half has caused a lot of conflict, even among adults, Rojas said.

“We have to really be patient with ourselves, give each other grace and space to transition back in, know that we make mistakes, but also know that we’re not alone,’’ Rojas said. “That’s the biggest thing.”

All students can go to school counselors or the CASSY counselor on campus, or check MUSD’s website under “Get Involved” to see mental health resources such as CareSolace, Jordan said.

Crisis Lines Suicide Prevention Hotline: (800)-273-8255 Bill Wilson Center: (408) 8506125 CASSY: (855)-278-4204 Bilingual Spanish Hotline: (800) 572-2782 Crisis Text Line Crisis Text Line is a texting service for emotional crisis support and is available 24/7 for those who need help.

To speak with a trained listener, text HELLO to 741741.

Ryan Teoh | THE UNION

Counselors are available for students in the office.

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OPINIONS

THE UNION

PRO Thanksgiving culture highlights human connection With the falling of autumn many people tend to sway to the leaves, a steaming home-cooked side of pessimism, taking one meal on the table, and families day to switch that around is a gathering together, Thanksgiv- great way to start having a more ing is a time to acknowledge and positive outlook on life. appreciate the things that are Additionally, Thanksgiving important to you. Originally, culture ref lects the interconThanksgiving was a feast made nectedness of people on multito celebrate the first harvest of ple levels, whether it is among the year, but in America it also family, different cultures, or is associated with a gruesome humanity as a whole. Among genocide of indigenous commu- cultures, it gives a chance for nities at the hands of Euorpean an exchange of traditions and settlers. Of course, food. For example,sauwe should acknowlerkraut has become a edge the damage popular Thanksgivdone, but the holing dish in Maryland iday itself doesn’t due it ’s large Gerdeserve the backman-American populash as it has grown lation. Pumpkin emby pushing forth a pa nadas, stemming positive message from Mexican roots, and bringing people are favorites in New together, rooting THEA SEEBERGER Mexico and Arizona. meaning and tra“Thanksgiving presdition into various ents an excellent opcultures. portunity to include people Despite its controversial or- from different countries and igins, a modern Thanksgiving cultures in an American tradihas new meaning. It is no longer tion. International exchange about how it came to be, but is program participants have the instead centered around the opportunity to learn American virtue of gratitude. “Gratitude customs and values from their is the inward feeling of kindness host families, peers, and menreceived. Thankfulness is the tors while in the United States. natural impulse to express that Americans benefit as they form feeling. Thanksgiving is the fol- lasting connections that help lowing of that impulse,” Amer- us better understand our interican author Henry Van Dyke connected world.” Becca Bycott said. Many studies have shown from the U.S. Department of a strong link between gratitude State said. and positive emotions: gratitude Though Thanksgiving is genis often associated with greater erally celebrated within the happiness, according to Har- United States, Canada, Grenavard Medical School. Though da, Saint Lucia, and Liberia,

many other countries around the world have their own versions of the holiday. For example, during Chuseok in South Korea, families gather together to give thanks to their ancestors for an abundant autumn harvest. It is said to be one of, if not the most, important holidays in Korean culture, celebrated with ancestral worship, special foods, an exchange of gifts, and the underlying idea of thankfulness.

In the United States, a traditional Thanksgiving features a family feast and going around the table saying what each person is thankful for. In addition, many traditions have grown popular, such as viewing the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade, watching a game of football, turkey trots, and of course, Black Friday sales. “Holidays are now an outlet in which to connect, regardless of what cultural traditions may or may not be present. This allows for new holiday events and occasions to be created, as more families and friends intertwine their traditions and customs to create new ones that celebrate personal tradition,” said Locke Hilderbrand, executive vice president and chief insights officer of CultureWaves.

With all the negativity that is easy to get wrapped up in, why not take a day to focus on the things that matter? Take Thanksgiving as a reminder to focus on the positives and appreciate the people around you.

CON Say no thanks to Thanksgiving When you imagine Thanks- attacking them. The alliance giving, you probably picture ended after 50 years due to the turkey, a huge feast, and maybe pilgrim’s relentless abuse of the even the Charlie Brown Thanks- land and the Wampanoag peogiving special. Thanksgiving ple. When the alliance broke, it is widely seen as a day when led to a war that a history proyou give thanks fessor at George Washto appreciate ington University, David what you have Silverman, called “one in your life. But, of the most horrific cothat’s not everylonial Indian wars on one’s image of record.” The war is estiThanksgiv ing. mated to have caused the This is because death of about half of the of Thanksg ivIndigenous people in the i ng ’s h i stor y New England region. and the harm By telling this false acit perpetuates count of Thanksgiving DAVID RENDON towards Indigeas is, we avoid thinking nous people. about the genocide of InPeople often digenous people. It’s not learn that Thanksgiving is the uncommon for people to view historic occasion when the pil- the Wampanoag tribe and its grims were taught how to farm people as obsolete and ancient. by the Wampanoag tribe and ate But the fact is that they still exa meal together to celebrate the ist: there are about 4,000-5,000 work they put into making the members of the Wampanoag meal together. We think of them tribe living in the New England sitting at a table and giving area today. The traditional story thanks and bonding over their of Thanksgiving makes it seem commonalities. We now try to like they’re some long-gone peomirror that behavior for our ple, but they are very much still Thanksgiving celebrations, but alive. This erasure is unacceptthat’s not how the first Thanks- able. giving went down.

But, as I mentioned, this isn’t Many events claim to be the the only origin story of Thanksfirst Thanksgiving, and few of giving. In 1637 over 700 Native them are friendly. If we contin- people were slaughtered in the ue with the Wampanoag nar- Pequot massacre. The governor rative, we need to look at the declared a day of Thanksgiving context of the event. When the to celebrate the slaughtering pilgrims arrived, the Wampa- of Indigenous people because noag had been overwhelmed by it supported his agenda of a countless diseases. They’d also “cleansing.” been attacked by other tribes Many Indigenous people tosurrounding them. The Wampa- day consider Thanksgiving to noag were in a weakened state be a national day of mourning. and were not looking for more Thanksgiving is often heralded problems. So the Wampano- as a day of celebration and to ag allied with the pilgrims to be thankful for, but at no point not have to have another group are people considering the lives

lost. This view sharply contrasts the image Thanksgiving many of us were taught when we were younger. Indigenous people mourn on Thanksgiving and hope that America does not forget all the blood shed. The story of Thanksgiving is often used to cover up massive genocide, relentless mistreatment, and the making of a caricature of Native culture. I remember when my kindergarten class had us make feather headdresses and act in class as an insulting mischaracterization of Indigenous people.

Similarly, Allen Salway speaks on his experiences in his own article titled “Thanksgiving: The National Day of Mourning” and remembers “schools allow[ing] students to make up their very own ‘Indian name’.”

Thanksgiving ultimately serves as a greater insult to Indigecous Peoples. At the same time, they face countless issues, like overt racism, systemic inequality, and an indifferent country that seemingly doesn’t care about them.

Next time you celebrate Thanksgiving, remember what it is you’re celebrating. It’s important not to ignore its effects.

Thanksgiving supports and leads to the erasure of Indigenous history. You fundamentally can’t separate Thanksgiving from its brutal history. We could stop teaching children this false whitewashed version of history.

It benefits no one to tell a corruption of a bloody history. You can continue to celebrate the holiday but think about what it is you’re celebrating. It is good to give thanks, but maybe we should find other ways to do it rather than celebrate Thanksgiving.

NOVEMBER 2021

Girls’ sports uniforms objectify, impede female athletes’ progress This past October, the Inter- can make girls drop out of sports national Handball Federation because they feel uncomfortended the bikini bottom require- able in unflattering and exposing ment for female handball athletes uniforms which might showcase following a protest during the their bodily insecurities. Fear of summer competition. Tradition- menstrual blood leaking through al sports uniforms objectify and clothing is another common consexualize women’s bodies. MHS cern that is completely disregardshould enact a change to sports ed. Zipp adds that “skin-exposing uniforms so that they stop acting uniforms make it impossible for as a hindrance to girls’ athletic girls and women from Islamic performance. and other religious communities The difference between girls’ to compete.” Even if they are aland boys’ uniforms is striking. lowed uniform accommodations, Female MHS tennis players have they might feel overly conspicuto wear low-necked tank tops and ous and uncomfortable in differshort skirts which ride up when ent clothing. Exposed skin also they jump or move around. Male pressures girls into waxing or tennis players, on the shaving their body hair other hand, wear loose, for fear of ridicule and knee-length shorts and body shaming. short-sleeved t-shirts.

Girls who are unFemale golf players comfortable with their must don skirts as uniforms are implicwell, whereas the male itly discouraged from players are allowed to speaking up because wear full-length pants the uniform is “norinstead. Even cheermal”—it’s existed for leading, a sport played years, so why should RIYA predominantly by girls, new female athletes be VYAS gives male players more bothered? The normalskin coverage: girls are ization of these unirequired to wear a skirt, while the forms in the media and in school boys wear pants. creates a silencing effect where Across the board, girls are ex- girls are afraid to speak out for pected to show more skin. Akilah fear of being called uptight.

Carter-Francique, an executive As for alternatives, there aren’t director and associate professor many. During practice, tennis at San José State University, stat- players can bring their own skirts, ed in an interview with NPR that but they have to be skirts. Cheersports act as a “microcosm of our leaders can wear pants, but only society,” enforcing rules to make if it is freezing cold. The list goes female athletes fit into societal on. While girls may be allowed to expectations of femininity. Wom- choose a different uniform, the en and girls are expected to wear fault lies within the default which short, tight, and restrictive cloth- alienates girls who choose to opt ing, regardless of how impractical out. The school should not treat it is, to somehow “prove” their these uniforms as the default for womanhood. These expectations female athletes. It should proare not innocuous: they cater to vide girls with options, including the male gaze by framing girls’ the current boys’ uniforms with bodies as public property, free to greater coverage, and not develop be ogled at with or without their an expectation towards one unipermission. form or the other.

Sara Zipp, author of the article Young girls should not have to “Sexism and sport: why body-bar- be unfairly hindered by school ing team uniforms are bad for girls policies while their male counterand women,” said that uniforms parts are allowed to thrive.

Social media: Hodge podge of misinformation, cyberbullying

Over the past decade, techno- Stewart, “rather than bias toward logical advancements have been a certain political leaning, social a blessing, making it easier for us media algorithms are often bito connect with people from all ased toward outrage—they push around the world. The daily rou- content that people have an emotine of posting, liking, and com- tional reaction to and are likely to menting on social media has be- engage with.” Not only does this come intertwined with our busy increase political polarization, schedules. While social media but it also causes political views to has made it easier to reach a broad stem from false or misconstrued audience , meet new people, and information.

Additionally, social media enlearn about others’ experiences, it has its disadvantages as well. I ables the monitoring of accounts. believe that social media’s harms Social media companies require of spreading misinformation, ob- people to provide private information including structing privacy, and their address, phone worsening mental health numbers, employer, outweigh its benefits. credit card number.

Social media can reach Not only do private a broad audience, makcompanies use this ing it easier to spread information to promisinformation. Anyone vide users with interwho has a social media est-specific content, account can post fake but the government news without any sort of MUSKAAN uses it as a means of verification. This misinMAHAJAN mass surveillance. formation makes it difBetween different ficult for people to know sources of surveilwhat is true. It is especially true in the field of politics lance, according to Zak Doffman where algorithms give viewers of Forbes, “89% of the world’s one-sided stories that they al- internet users are being activeready align with. Some fake news ly monitored.” Law enforcement stories involve vaccine conspiracy has also used this information theorists, the Jan 6 Capitol riot, for questionable practices such and QAnon. According to Emily as finding immigrants’ political

NOVEMBER 2021 views, tracking students, and monitoring political activists.

Moreover, hackers also use social media to steal and leak information. According to Peter Suciu, a writer for Forbes, more than 100,000 social media influencers’ information were leaked after the breach of Preen.Me, a social media marketing company. Social media leaves a digital footprint that puts people’s personal information at risk. The information can be used to create false lookalike accounts to target someone’s friends and acquaintances.

Thus social media puts people’s private information at risk of being shared to the whole world.

Lastly, social media worsens

mental health by popularizing beauty standards and providing an avenue for cyberbullying. Social media creates an environment for teenagers to feel inferior to their peers by encouraging teenagers to compare themselves with people they perceive to be better looking or more accomplished. This is highlighted in the comments section of social media, where the majority of the comments are about the person’s appearance. While this might make some people feel good about their looks, it makes others feel unattractive and as if their value is based on their appearance. This reduces self-esteem and makes people feel that they need to meet

EDITORIAL these beauty standards to be accepted. This leads teenagers to try unhealthy ways to meet such standards such as dieting, plastic surgery, and excessive exercise.

Furthermore, social media also has created a platform for people to communicate false and hostile information to specific users. It is much easier to hide behind a keyboard than bully someone in person. Therefore, social media has increased cyberbullying and has led to lower self-esteem among teenagers.

As technology advances, the impacts of social media will continue to change. We must realize and address the negative implications of it before it is too late.

EDITOR I A L : The Opinion of The Union

Boards, bikes create hazard for school, students With a student population of 3,132 students, it is paramount to have a safe environment for all students attending in-person classes. Although MHS does try its best to make sure school is comfortable for everyone, it fails to maintain an essential policy whose negligence can endanger students, staff, and administration: no skateboards, no bikes, and no rollerskates.

We, The Union, believe that these modes of transportation disrupt the school setting and end up becoming major liabilities for all parties involved.

Although skateboards and bikes are appropriate for recreation and transportation, they have no place on an already crowded campus. The MHS campus has many places that are often overcrowded during passing periods, such as the entrance to the lower L building and the space between the E and F buildings. Walking through these areas is a major hassle, as students either have to slowly shuff le through or bump into one another to make it to class. Skateboarders only exacerbate this issue, because they act more as moving obstacles that students have to avoid with barely any room to do so.

Speaking of moving out of the way, nothing good ever happens when a student accidentally

collides with a skater. Students should not have to actively think about being injured where they should be learning, and recreational bikes and skateboards hinder campus safety and instead create a major nuisance for everyone on campus.

By policing move heavily, MHS would have less of a risk of injury to bystanders, not to mention the perpetrators on skateboards and bikes being afflicted by this reckless behavior. Being lax about the policy only encourages more people to engage in this reckless behavior and thus increases the chances of bodily harm. Prevention by MHS staff is key to stop this type of behavior and keep school safer.

Skating and biking on campus can also be a major liability. At least when skaters get injured at a park, there is no inherent liability associated with the injury if it was accidental, like failing a kickflip and breaking an arm. If a skateboarder or biker were to ram into and harm a student, a potential lawsuit could involve the school, as the injured could reasonably ask why the school did not prevent these sorts of incidents from occurring in the first place. Vast sums of school district funds could potentially go to paying for expensive lawsuits that can easily be avoided; obviously, this money would be

better used on education.

In addition to frivolous legal fees, skating and biking on campus can cause property damage.

Although skating tricks involving rails and public architecture look amazing on video, they ultimately end up creating more public hazards through chipped surfaces and scratched rails that can easily cut someone.

Again, the school could avoid the costs of fixing these damages by enforcing the policy that is already in place.Closing down areas for proper construction and restoration would just waste both money and time.

Students are dealing with more problems than they should be due to skateboards and bikes roaming in the middle of the school day. We, The Union, encourage MHS to actually enforce these bans and sanctions on campus, rather than hope a vandalized sign on the K building deters all offenders. Unsafe skateboards and bikes have no place in what is supposed to be a safe campus, and administration should already be carrying out the regulations their amendments said they would.

Some steps to further ensure campus safety would be to send out messages or announcements whenever reckless activity regarding skateboards and bikes occurs.

EDITOR I A L : The Opinion of The Union

MHS admirably promotes diversity Milpitas High School has a very diverse student body. With so many cultures on campus, the school has made it one of their goals to promote inclusion and tolerance. The Union believes MHS has been doing an admirable job at meeting this objective.

MHS has recently added an ethnic studies class, in addition to the Facing History class, which has been available for many years.

These classes focus on the struggles of various minority groups, many of whom are often not highlighted in core classes. MHS has shown great initiative; it began the process of adding ethnic studies to its curriculum far before California passed a law requiring it be offered at schools for the 2025-26 graduating class.

The course will be a graduation requirement for the graduating class of 2029-2030.

The administration’s attempts to foster an inclusive school environment through the years are also worth noting. It was only 2 years ago when an MHS teacher was fired for wearing blackface for a Halloween costume. After that incident, the school sent out

a lesson regarding the history of blackface after nationwide coverage and backlash. That event showed the Milpitas community that we were not as civilly literate as we may have believed.

We believe the school has made leaps and bounds from that instance at creating a more accepting school environment by having more school-wide events and newsletters touch upon this topic in a manner that promotes open-mindedness. Notably, the school’s English departments have pursued efforts in adding more ethnic literature to their curriculum in 2020. During the various civil rights movements during the summer of 2020, the school also issued supportive statements to the many protestors and Black Lives Matter. The school could have easily kept its silence on these issues, but MHS moved forward and made a video project supporting BLM. Furthermore, when there was an outbreak of violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders during the pandemic, the school spoke out against such deeds and spread awareness and informa-

tion about AAPI hate. Of course, the school and the student body still have issues with discrimination and prejudice, as does the larger society, but the fact that MHS has taken such an active effort in tackling such issues is worth acknowledging.

Ultimately, MHS students have to make their own choices when they decide how they want to treat others. However, the school still plays a large role in molding people’s outlooks on different cultures. This fact makes it all the more valuable that the school views promoting acceptance and understanding across various minority groups as one of its key objectives. As a place that has “cultural diversity” in its very school anthem, at least MHS is not merely preformative in its efforts to encourage positive relations between its students’ cultures.

The school has made a good effort in promoting an inclusive community. The school still needs to continue its efforts to teach respect and tolerance for others to the student body, but so far, the progress still seems quite promising.

THE UNION

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FEATURES

THE UNION

Muslim Student Association students gather to hold Friday prayer in room H01.

NOVEMBER 2021

Fardin Haque | THE UNION

Muslim Student Association brings mosque to campus

By Fardin Haque

Muslim Student Association (MSA) is an organization at MHS that is representative of Muslim students on campus who participate in Islam—the second largest religion in the world. Recently, they have been making big changes to how they hold meetings, and have even been able to offer weekly Jummah prayers for Muslim students on campus.

Jummah prayer is group prayer that is done on Fridays in addition to the five daily prayers that Muslims partake in. Jummah prayers have been offered to students since October of this year, and the process of making prayers available on campus was not as difficult as it first seemed, junior Himika Rahman, MSA’s president, said in a Zoom interview. “The only person we needed to inform really was our club advisor,” she said. “And luckily, we were able to get her classroom free every Friday. So during lunch, we would all go to our advisor’s classroom and pray.”

Members go to the classroom by 1:10 p.m., take off their shoes, and begin prayer on their prayer mats, mirroring the customs of praying in a mosque. Praying in a classroom is similar to praying

in a mosque and no extra permission from staff members was necessary, Rahman said. At mosques there is often a speech or talk that is given before the actual prayer called the “Khutbah,” and MSA has been able to incorporate this aspect as well.

Khutbah is given before the start of the prayer and students are able to choose whether they want to give one or not. The process for giving a Khutbah is a little different than how it is typically held in a mosque. MSA has “a Google spreadsheet, or a Google Doc, where we have all the weeks of prayer listed … and we have little sections where the boys can fill out their names, and they could put in their topics for the Khutbah. So it’s a completely voluntary thing,” Rahman said.

These talks are given in this manner so students do not feel burdened, but nonetheless there has been consistent participation, according to Rahman. On Friday, October 29th, junior Afnaan Waqas volunteered to give a Khutbah before the Jummah prayer. Waqas had been part of MSA since his freshman year and joined again this year. “Today when I was giving Khutbah,

I tried to include some more formal Arabic parts in the beginning and in the end, and some other traditions,” Waqas said in an interview. “So I think we’re on track; we’re improving. I think today really emulated what happens at the mosque, just on [a] smaller scale.”

MSA has brought the mosque experience to MHS, recreating the atmosphere and customs typically seen there. With the convenience of being able to pray on campus and having more interactive meetings with the members, the member attendance has been increasing as well, according to Rahman.

Members such as senior Aariz Iqbal also mentioned that he has been able to feel the impact of MSA’s meetings and opportunities.

“I would say the prayer held at MSA is more convenient for me as I do not have to leave the campus to pray ... before, in person, we did not have Jummah and there were less productive meetings,” Iqbal said in an email interview.

MSA plans to add voluntary programs to get students more involved in the larger Muslim community, Rahman said.

Students show high energy at homecoming game

By Stephen Huang

On Friday, Oct. 22, MHS hosted one of its first major school gatherings in over two years: the homecoming football game.

Many students, parents, and teachers came together to celebrate this school tradition.

Tickets to the game were $6.

Upon passing the gates, I was immediately greeted with the immense wave of school spirit.

Football players were warming up on the field, cheerleaders were stretching, and the marching band was prepping their instruments. Cheerleader Hannah Marquez sang the national anthem, and with a call from the announcer and a whistle from the ref, the homecoming football game began.

A total of two games were played on Friday. Varsity football player Justin Barillas said in an interview that the team came to the game with a ready mindset.

At 7 p.m., the varsity football team got off to a good start with an incredible touchdown 30 seconds into the game, setting the exhilarating mood of both the crowd and the team for the rest of the game. Trojans achieved an imposing victory over Homestead, with a score of 35-7.

“We came with confidence; we knew we were going to win,” Barillas said. “We did our jobs… and I would do the whole thing again, and, I’m proud of my team-

mates.”

A parade on the football field began at 6:30 p.m. A melting pot of clubs, class officers, the homecoming court, and sports teams celebrated and showcased their school spirit by walking around the track. ASB was towing the cartoon-themed class floats.

During halftime, the homecoming crowning commenced on the track. A glamorous red carpet was laid out with NJROTC members forming a walkway with their swords drawn. Side-by-side with their partners of choice, the court nominees walked the red carpet until they reached a podium, where “Pokéballs” hovered over the candidates. Then after a countdown, a string was pulled and confetti fell from the Pokéballs to reveal the homecoming royalties: Harshul Satija and Catherine Fung.

“Running for Homecoming Queen really pushed me out of my comfort zone, and the experience taught me the importance of putting myself out there,” Fung said. “I realized what the high school experience was supposed to be: a celebration of our youth as we mature and grow.”

ASB, alongside Leadership, had prepared for this event for the past month, working tirelessly during and after school to make the night perfect, Class of 2023 Vice President Pauline Ngyuen said in an interview. Each class’s floats were themed with a differ-

ent cartoon; Co ‘22 was “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” Co’23 was “Spongebob,” Co ‘24 was “Looney Tunes,” Co’25 was “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.”

“Looking back on all the work we did, it was definitely worth those 30 seconds walking across [the track],” Ngyuen said.

“There was a lot of stuff that wasn’t communicated properly for ASB,” 2022 Commissioner Aiden Carbonell said. “A lot of stuff could be improved.”

MHS alumni Claude Ellis received his much-overdue high school diploma. Ellis graduated from the class of 1981, but due to circumstances, he never walked the stage at graduation, School Board President Chris Norwood said in an email. Being a homeless 12th grader at the time, with his family living in D.C., Ellis struggled. He was a drum major for the marching band while he was in high school, and was glad to be able to see the field he used to march on. With the help of Mayor Rich Tran and Norwood, Ellis was given what he well-deserved 40 years ago.

Both the cheerleading team and marching band gave stellar performances during the halftime show. Throughout the game, the chants and t-shirts thrown by cheerleaders, combined with the perfect harmony of drums and instruments, worked together to engage the audience and create a thrilling atmosphere.

Courtesy of Ava Woodhams

Ava Woodhams holds up “Fire, a Girl, and Far Too Many Aliens.”

Girl power: Sophomore Woodhams publishes novel

By Riya Vyas

Sophomore Ava Woodhams published a full-length novel entitled “Fire, a Girl, and Far Too Many Aliens” earlier this year.

The book follows a young girl, Kiranesha Alykas, and her group of friends as they fight an alien invasion at their school.

Woodhams said she began writing the book after the idea struck her in fourth grade during an intruder drill. “In the beginning, it was just a really simplistic, spur of the moment thing,” Woodhams said. She paused writing it for a while, then continued in seventh grade and polished it over the pandemic.

“It came in handy that there was a class where I could explicitly write; it was the Maker’s Dojo elective at Russell,” she said.

What started off as a whim is going to end in a series of books which will follow four girls who have to fight against a villain.

“This series is near and dear to my heart. I know exactly where it’s going,” Woodhams said. She has already written the second book and is nearly finished with the third installment. These days, she writes whenever she finds the time: a few spare minutes after class and during the weekends.

Woodhams said she was inspired by her favorite book series, “The Enchanted Forest Chronicles,” to write female characters who defied harmful stereotypes.

“A lot of female characters are either super girly and then they’re vilified for that, or they’re made into this ‘Yeah, I’m not like other girls,’” Woodhams said. “I was like . . . I can do better.” The main character’s last name, Alykas, means “intelligent” in Finnish.

Woodhams added that she is a character-focused writer. She said that “fleshing out the characters, making them feel real and human and like they have their own emotions, their own life” is really important to her. “Knowing the characters, connecting with them, is a huge starting point for everything,” Woodhams said.

Woodams chose the pub-

lishing company Atmosphere Press because she liked how author-friendly it was. She submitted her story through a link and eagerly waited for a response.

She remembered “being overjoyed” when she learned they had accepted her story. Then, she worked with an editor to revise her book and a cover artist who created the book cover. She sent the cover artist ten words to describe her book, which included “aliens” and “girl,” and received about ten different covers to choose from.

When she isn’t writing books, Woodhams participates in Science Olympiad, writes for the Art & Literary Magazine (Arras Periodical) at MHS, and crochets. She dabbles in the occasional poem or short story, but has trouble keeping them short. “The problem with short stories is it sometimes gets out of hand for me, and then I’m planning an entire book plot,” Woodhams said.

Woodhams said she has always loved writing because it gives her the freedom to create any universe she wants, with its own rules and systems, and the ability to escape into a simpler world.

After high school, Woodhams said she is sure she wants to continue writing, whether that’s as an author or an English teacher. Her mom, a teacher, inspired her to follow in her footsteps.

Woodhams wants to be an English major in college and get a doctorate.

Even though she is a published author, Woodhams said she is still a high-schooler and has to deal with various mundane high school activities. “My book was on Amazon, and I had to finish up an English essay. It was very jarring.”

For those interested in writing a book, Woodhams advised, “Write down whatever is interesting to you. Anything that seems good, anything that seems even remotely interesting, just write it down. And, you know, sometimes two pieces that don’t seem at all connected can be connected.”

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Mx. Barr shines light on xyr life experiences

By David Rendon

It is no secret the classrooms at MHS are often devoid of natural light. Few classrooms have any sun coming through their windows, but E08 is different. One of the first things one notices in this room is the fact that it has two windows and a perpetually open door flooding the room with light. This setting is perfect for the sunny personality you meet when you enter the room, one of MHS’s newer teachers, Mx. Sanjana Barr, whose pronouns are xe/xem.

Barr started teaching at MHS during the 2020-2021 school year.

Xe teaches English 1A and English 4 and prefers to teach with a historical orientation because of xyr background. Before Barr was a teacher, xe worked as an intern for the National Archives, writing articles for its blog. In fact, before deciding to become a teacher, xe considered becoming a museum curator.

Barr’s undergraduate degree was in European history with a minor in classical studies, and xe has a dual credential in English and history. After xe decided to become an educator, xe earned a master’s degree at Santa Clara University. Xe talked about xyr experience in the program.

“You really don’t have a lot of time on your hands because you student-teach your class in the morning, and then in the afternoon or evening, you go to your own classes, and then you have to plan for the next day and grade, so I did not really exist as a person outside of a classroom for about a year there,” Barr said. “So it was— it was difficult, but I mean, I think it was worth it.”

Barr has enjoyed xyr time at MHS and said xyr coworkers and students are great. But xe has faced difficulties working here; Barr is a disabled teacher with a chronic condition and experiences issues with xyr joints.

“The English classrooms are about as far from a parking lot as you would imagine,” xe said. “So there are some days where the walk from the parking lot seems awfully long. Or if I have to pick something up from the office, the walk seems awfully long, so I have to kind of structure my days carefully and plan for when I’m going to go on a long jaunt across campus.”

Barr is deeply interested in creative pursuits and can often be spotted knitting in xyr classroom while teaching. Xe will often make socks in class as it is a simple craft xe can make without having to look at it.

“When I get a creative idea, it takes over my brain. It’s like an itch I have to scratch… As soon as my brain is like, ‘Hey, what if you did this?’ I just I have to. I had a dream one time where I was like, ‘Hey, what if I had William Shakespeare but as a bear?’ It was William Shakesbear. I woke up, and I was like, ‘I have to knit this immediately.’”

Barr said xe enjoys teaching in person more than online for a unique reason: getting a visual reaction to xyr jokes.

“When I tell awful jokes, or I’m sarcastic, it’s nice to have some visual recognition,” xe said. “And last year, I talked to myself in a room alone for six hours, which is a way to become certifiably insane. So this year, I could see when people are rolling their eyes and groaning and generally be-

ing exhausted with my bad jokes, which is certainly more fun for me.”

Xe advises everyone to read “The Scarlet Pimpernel’’ because it has everything: “espionage, historic fiction, romance, [and] the French.” When asked to give advice to students, xe said students need to be proactive. “In general, the thing I see most with high schoolers is just kind of a hesitancy to stay on top of [their grades],” Barr said.

Barr said that the term ‘nonbinary’ is the best way to express existing outside of definitions that our society holds, which led to xem discussing how the intersectionality of xyr gender, race, and disability affects labels and identity. Xe said xe believes it is important to be authentic to xyr identity, in all ways, whether that be xyr disability or gender identity. Xe believes it is important not only for xemself but also for xyr students.

“I share a lot of my life with my students, so it would be odd to hide my gender,” Barr said. “And I also know that sharing who I am is important to students. The first year I was teaching, I talked to parents at Back to School Night about the fact that their kids would see me with a cane or neck brace or whatever—that it wasn’t a big deal. And the mother of a child who had diabetes was thanking me for being open about my disability because it made her feel better that her student would have a role model. I know that growing up, I did not have role models who were queer, or people of color, or disabled in most of my school life, so it is important for me to be the representation that I needed.”

Malik breaks school record for volunteer hours; pursues meaningful community service

By Archanaa Ramakrishnan

“Community service to me is being able to give back to the people and community that have given so much to me, and I think a lot of my upbringing and who I am is based on the people in my life that took out time from their own life to help me. I think that’s made me who I am today.”

Shanaya Malik, a senior at MHS, just completed her 1,441st hour of community service far exceeding the minimum requirement for graduation. Malik said her dedication to volunteer work over the years jump-started her interest in community service.

Malik’s had her first experience with community service in her freshman year, when she participated in the foreign exchange student program. A girl from the Philippines lived with Malik for a week.

“I got 40 hours hosting one of the girls,” Malik said. “Her name was Petrine and she stayed with our family for a week. So we took her places and I showed her around the campus, and I had a lot of fun doing that. I then realized that I wanted to do more.”

From that experience, Malik progressed into tutoring. She tutored for two summers at Read Write Discover, a tutoring program for K-8th grade students.

She has also volunteered for Words Alive, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting reading and writing to young children. Malik earned over 900 hours of community service from her position as a volunteer orientation leader at this organization, where she held orientations to recruit more volunteers to help out. From that position, she was promoted to manage 1,200 volunteers.

Malik, learning from her tutoring experience and other leadership positions, started her own nonprofit organization with her close friend. “[The nonprofit organization] is about providing free tutoring to students in Silicon Valley,” Malik said. “So I’ve been getting hours through that as well since summer. It’s called S & J tutoring.”

Malik has many interests, but in terms of her career, she said she is working towards becoming a software engineer. By working in the software engineering field, she hopes to help people by creating helpful apps and websites, she said. However, this work will not keep her from her own passion for reading and writing in her free time, Malik added.

“I think that one of the main morals I have is that you should be open to helping people for free,” Malik said. “A lot of what you do in life is going to be on the basis of receiving help.

Whenever my mom was sick, my neighbors would come over and bring soup or take care of me when I was a baby, and I think that’s what’s important— having a strong community—so practicing that early on about giving back is really helpful.”

Although Malik was first motivated to do community service just to fulfill the school’s graduation requirement and earn a maroon cord for graduation, she realized that her love for helping others was more than a graduation requirement, she said.

When asked about favorite experience in volunteering, Malik said, “I think my favorite experience was actually getting

to start a non-profit, because I think after having 1,200 hours, I finally wanted to venture out into something of my own and start my own type of organization that fit what I wanted to help people with.”

Malik said she balances her school workload, volunteer work, her social life, and other priorities by keeping a well-organized planner, in which she writes everything she must do for the day and crosses it out when she is done.

With this system, she is able to complete her schoolwork and volunteering at the same time without conflicting schedules. However, Mailk makes sure that she does not over-do her work for the day or even the entire week, and if she decides not to do anything for a day, she lets herself rest instead of feeling guilty so that she can do even more the next day.

“I think the main advice I would give [is] not to be worried about the number of hours because once you find something you like, you’re going to want to do that, even after you’ve completed your graduation requirements,” Malik said. “It’ll become less about the hours, and essentially, the goal is to enjoy the volunteer work so much that logging the hours seems like more work than doing the volunteering.”

Shanaya Malik is far from finishing her volunteer work in high school, as she wishes to continue with her nonprofit organization and positions in other organizations after graduation. From breaking the school record for number of community service hours, Malik learned that the most rewarding part of volunteering is giving back to the community and shaping who you are as a person by helping others.

Anannya Bhuskat | THE UNION

The cafeteria depicts the new vegan options available for students.

‘Plant-Based Pit Stop’: Dosanjh helps launch new vegan menu

By Anannya Bhuskat

Earlier this year, senior Sarah Dosanjh, in partnership with MHS’s Environmental Society (E-Society), launched a new menu for the MHS cafeteria consisting of vegan food alternatives. The “Plant-Based Pitstop’’ includes many cultural, environmentally friendly, and nutritious options such as a bean burrito with salsa, an Asian salad with edamame, a veggie black bean burger, and the most popular, garbanzo curry with lemon rice.

Dosanjh, who began working on the project in July, said in an interview she had an internship over the summer with a non-profit organization that aimed to educate about the dangers of factory farming. She learned about harmful methane emissions, greenhouse gases, and other pollutants released by such a system, and her work inspired her to bring change to MHS. Being on the path to veganism herself, Dosanjh has experienced the difficulties in finding nutritious and filling food options in the limited variety of vegetarian school lunches. “Over the years, there’s a common saying that school cafeteria food is gross,” Dosanjh said in a Zoom interview. “I knew this was a problem.

I wanted people to actually enjoy what they eat at school, especially because our school is very diverse and students have different diets.”

Dosanjh, who also regularly volunteers at the cafeteria, said she observed that the perception of school lunches definitely has changed with new vegan alternatives. Students can now make intentional choices in their diet, whether that is vegan food or not.

These choices further allow them to be in control of their meals and eating habits and let them know it’s only going to get better from here, she said.

The effects of these new options can be seen throughout the school as more vegetarian and vegan students and teachers have started consuming the new alternatives. Senior Joyce Wong, who had stopped eating cafeteria food due to her becoming vegan, said in an interview that she was pleasantly surprised when the food debuted at MHS. “I actually regularly now do [eat school lunches] after the vegan options became available,” Wong said. They’re really flavorful and also diversifying. I feel like the quality is definitely better than other school lunch options I have tried.”

The implementation of such a colossal and innovative change on

a large scale was not easy, Dosanjh said. The most challenging part of the project was emailing, communicating, and negotiating with the MUSD administration and nutritionists. From finalizing vendors, formulating prices, and finding distributors, to meeting and maintaining California nutritional standards, Dosanjh said that simply trying to understand the confusing process took her a long time. She also added how it felt inaccessible to do something so large as a single individual, and thus she made her decision to partner with E-Society. Dosanjh wanted to enable the already environmentally proactive club to help be part of a bigger advancement at school.

Dosanjh’s project was a perfect fit for E-Society and coincided exactly with their purpose—awareness, unification, and student involvement, president Lena Doan said in an interview. “Having students have the problem of deciding what to eat at school because there aren’t many options is a heartbreaking thing. So I wanted to have that be one of our projects this year. We wanted our projects this year to make big impacts.”

E-Society’s motivation is to be a community of people who care about their impact on the environment, E-Society vice president Satvika Iyer said. And thus, opening up the cafeteria with multiple vegan food options was one of the initiatives they took to help the members and all the students of MHS. Because the meals are free now, Iyer said, having vegan options enhances the lunch experience. She also said that she would like to see more MHS students try the various options and come back for even more.

“Don’t let the stigma around [veganism] stop you,” Dosanjh said. “I have dealt with my own difficult conversations with the usual jokes or insensitive comments, but it’s usually just coming from a place of misunderstanding. The more you move past it, the easier it gets because you also empower other people around you to make their own choices.”

Dosanjh and the members of E-society plan to expand this project in the upcoming months.

They are looking into more varieties of vegan food options, sides, and condiments. One specific type of food they are looking into is Greek food, as well as actual meat substitutes. They plan to make their plates and utensils more sustainable and less harmful to the environment as well.

In addition, they hope to expand this project to a district level, and provide these meal alternatives.

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No mistakes, just happy little accidents: Painting with Bob Ross

By Mia Liu

Bob Ross—the creator and host of the television show “The Joy of Painting.”

His positive attitude and calm nature were an inspiration in many people’s lives as he taught oil painting to the public.

As someone who had watched Bob Ross for much of my childhood, I figured it was time to head down memory lane and actually attempt one of his tutorials.

The specific tutorial I found on YouTube and followed was “Secluded Bridge” from Season 10, Episode 4. My first thought was that the material list was rather extensive. For someone who doesn’t have that much experience in painting, it could be very difficult to find the correct supplies. It could also be very costly if they don’t purchase the correct ones.

For example, Bob Ross uses a number of different and very specific paint colors such as “Van Dyke brown” and “alizarin crimson.” He also uses a variety of brushes and a palette knife to achieve different types of brush strokes and textures. Brush types may also differ based on the medium.

Additionally, oil paints require more care. Water will not be able to wash off the paint, so artists will use a thinner such as Gamsol. Oil painting can be toxic, so it’s important to be safe while painting.

My point? Bob Ross’s painting tutorials are not beginner-friendly. You should have some background knowledge in

oil paint, or substitute the oil paint for something like acrylic paint instead.

My next main issue with Bob Ross’s tutorials is that it is very difficult to do an entire painting on one layer as he does.

Usually, artists will paint in multiple layers, letting each layer dry in between coats. However, because of the structure of the show, Bob Ross must finish the painting in one sitting, and therefore in one layer.

In my opinion, this feat is very difficult to achieve well. Paint will end up smudging or colors will stop layering altogether.

This could lead to a very messy end result of blurry colors and sloppy paint.

Despite these two critiques, painting with Bob Ross can be a therapeutic experience. His voice is very calm and can be very relaxing. He stays positive and repeats constant reminders that it’s okay to make mistakes.

In addition, Bob Ross gives a lot of room for creative liberty in his tutorials.

He allows the audience to place trees, bushes, and rocks in places that they see fit. Wherever they decide a tree should go, that’s where it goes.

Overall, I definitely recommend painting with Bob Ross. Be prepared for patience as it takes longer than expected to follow along. In the end, it is a very positive experience to be constantly reassured that there are no mistakes in art, only “happy little accidents.”

World tour: Art from multiple cultures

By Archanaa Ramakrishnan

“Coffee The Ethiopian Ceremony” by Wosene Kosrof (2002) This abstract painting depicts cultural traditions of the people of Ethiopia and Eritrea. It illustrates an Ethiopian coffee ceremony in which many people spend time with close friends, talking to other people, and learning about life from different perspectives. The viewer sees the many faces within the carefully put-together colors across the painting.

“Venice” by Alexandra Exter (1924) This painting, portraying the city of Venice, is eccentrically articulated as Exter aimed to capture the many lights and colors of Venice as well as the bustling atmosphere.

The vibrant colors of the portrait illuminate an evening the busy city. The viewer can see people conversing with each other, buildings in every direction, and a joyful composition as the many elements in the painting and the colors tie together Exter’s view of Venice.

By Archanaa Ramakrishnan

“Cadangan-cadangan Untuk Negaraku”

by Liew Kung Yu (2009) From a glimpse, this collage of cut-out images depicts what the artist’s home country, Malaysia, would look like in the future or in some alternate dimension.

Railways, skyscrapers, and cars present a bustling urban atmosphere. This collage also combines the traditions and festivities of Malaysian culture with a futuristic image for the country.

“Los Héroes Están Cansados” by Dagoberto Nolasco (1992) “Los Héroes Están Cansados” or “The Heroes Are Tired” depicts suffering during the civil war in El Salvador from 1980 to 1992. These painful memories from El Salvador’s citizens are exemplified in the image of a tired soldier and a woman kissing his cheek. There are many different elements in this painting which communicate the overall exhaustion of the country during this time period.

Why has contempo We have all seen it before, and it sullies the name of art: the banana duct-taped to the wall worth over a hundred thousand dollars. From intricately drawn paintings, capturing every feature possible, to a cheapened product mass-marketed to short attention spanned viewers, the name of contemporary art has been besmirched.

Like any other art period, contemporary art is supposed to emulate the values and cultures of society at the time and accurately express the voice of the people.

While there are many good pieces of art that fulfill this expectation, the rush of social media and other platforms shortened viewers’ attention spans and their sense of comedic irony skyrocketed, affecting the art delivered as well. Let’s go back to the “art piece” of the banana duct-taped to the wall by the Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan. The overpriced work was loved by social media platforms for its irony and supposed humor, which questions the purpose of art itself. What draws the line between ironic art and expressive art illustrating the voice of our generation? This exact problem feeds into the issue of how art is perceived. Art is not supposed to be only for the über rich to purchase or viewers to scroll past with a quick laugh, but works open for anyone to indulge in, find solace in, and appreciate.

Another reason art has become far too elitist is because of an ongoing issue with the artists themselves, where a large percentage of them are statistically those who live comfortably, without the worry of protecting their livelihood. According to Art-

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Student artist spotlight: Linda Zhao

‘Untitled’ Using gouache and oil paint, this piece, which is a part of her portfolio, depicts a self-portrait of Zhao and her thoughts. Like a storm of ideas, she said she gets overwhelmed with the thoughts and inspirations that come to her head.

Like a vibrant hurricane of dreamy feelings and ideas, the thoughts flow through her head and whirl around, she stated. It’s a beautiful and gratifying feeling to be inspired, but she also feels that she’ll never amount to the expectations her ideas set for herself, which is why this piece seems counterintuitive: drowning but floating at the same time.

By Anannya Bhuskat

Junior Linda Zhao loves to indulge in various types of art. Zhao founded and runs an art club called MHS Youth Arts Movement where a welcoming community of artists comes together to collaborate, network, and share inspirations. Zhao is also taking choir, band, and AP art this year, such that half of her schedule is dedicated to fostering her passion. She said she has been pursuing her interests in art ever since she could hold a pencil and has picked up knowledge on painting and sketching through classes she was enrolled in since she was young. Zhao’s preferred form of art is digital, yet she thinks some of her best works can be considered to be more traditional. The options for digital media are endless, and as society is delving more into STEM, Zhao feels that digital art and graphic design are more closely intertwined with how the world functions today. “ I also feel that since I never took classes for digital art, I am not bound by specific obligations or rules for making an art piece “look good,” unlike the ones for other mediums that always linger at the back of my mind,” Zhao said.

‘Tian’ Tian— the Chinese word for “sky” or “heaven.” Our minds drift off to daydream and unrealistic scenes of comfort, which is what Zhao wanted to illustrate in this painting. Using watercolor and acrylic, Zhao created the whimsical vibe of a forest clearing with an enchanting portal that is labeled to lead you to a sky of vibrancy and dreams.

Through this, she wanted to show an escape from reality, a safe haven from the brooding nature of expectations set on ourselves.

Walk through San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

By Angelina Barnes

ANANNYA BHUSKAT | THE UNION

orary art become so elitist over time? net News, over 80 percent of artists today lowing bananas taped to the wall and blank come from wealthy families, which adds red canvases to be considered expensive and revered art, while other, to the idea that only the upper higher-quality art is disreclass people in society are being garded. expressed in contemporary art, In the world today, there are as opposed to minority groups millions of artists who haven’t and the lower classes. While been given a chance to show this shows an issue as to how their artworks to society. This art is being made and viewed as could be due to lack of financa society, it also robs minorities es to jumpstart their careers, of a public voice and gives them the need for other jobs in ala slimmer chance to show their ternative workforces, and also possibly immersive and revolusimply because of the short tionary work to the world. attention spans of possible While I am not one to rave ARCHANAA viewers. Voices from higher about classical art, since it runs RAMAKRISHNAN classes and lack of imaginainto a similar problem of social tion flurries in social media class as contemporary art, each platforms, being sold for milpiece of classical art has some form of technique and uniqueness, which lions of dollars, and why? This issue is inimmerses viewers immediately. There was finitely bigger than it seems due to the fact a standard for art before the rush of con- that art pieces define a period of time and temporary art, but due to the buildup of express the voices of the world. The only social media and finding humor in irony, question left to ask is- is this what we want the bar has decreased to its maximum, al- to be defined as?

Courtesy of Maurizio Cattelan

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, widely known as the SFMOMA, is known for its collection of over 200,000 pieces of art. As a result of various reviews that I have heard about the famed museum, I decided to visit San Francisco and view the collections of art for myself.

Tickets for the museum are free for those under 18, and they range from $19-$25 for adults depending on various age groups.

The museum is easily accessible to the public, as it is located by a BART station and can be reached through various bus lines across the city. The architecture is attention-grabbing; the building includes a two-story-high “living wall” covered in native plants. Inside, the layout is fairly open, with relatively high ceilings and a clean interior design. Many floors in the museum are well-lit, and the pieces are spread out across the floors in order to minimize the crowds on busier days. Although the layout can be somewhat confusing as a result of the collections, which are not organized based on era or medium, the museum provides maps to visitors.

The museum features many well-known artists, such as Ansel Adams and Frida Kahlo, in its permanent collection, as well as numerous paintings and photographs.

There are seven floors of exhibits, which include sculptures, paintings, neon installations, and media art. One of the main exhibits includes a series of Warhol pieces and other pop art, as well as German art from previous centuries.

The highlight of my visit to the SFMOMA was being able to observe the works of Emory Douglas, Leah Rosenburg, and many others that work with the Twin Walls Mural Company to create murals. Not only were these murals beautifully crafted, but they actively engage with pressing issues of our time. A majority of these projects are focused on social isolation, racial injustice, and the long term effects of the pandemic on daily life. If you spend less than an hour visiting, you will barely be able to scratch the surface of all the art presented. I suggest setting aside a few hours so you can visit most of the exhibits and observe dif-

angelina barnes | The union

ferent mediums of art.

One of the downsides of my visit was that I did not know that special exhibits required another ticket. These exhibits are extra as a result of being limited-edition collections that won’t remain in the museum permanently. However, many viewers are often willing to pay the extra amount to visit these sections of the museum. Despite not being willing to pay the additional cost for specific exhibits, I was able to enjoy the various sections of art that the museum offered without feeling as though I was missing out.

SFMOMA also offers a number of free guided tours to their viewers, including “immersive walks” that can last anywhere from half an hour to a full hour. The tours themselves give brief descriptions of the art pieces and their origins, but the guides move you along at a faster pace in order to ensure that you view as many works of art as possible during your visit. Those that prefer live tours are also in luck; the museum offers architecture tours and specific exhibit tours, as well as tours that focus on a single artist or piece of artwork.

Overall, I would highly recommend visiting the SFMOMA. The pieces of artwork include many different styles and forms, as well as numerous guided tours and interpretive pieces from various eras. One recommendation that I would offer to those who plan to visit is to purchase tickets online; it’s better to plan ahead and be able to fully enjoy the artwork without having to worry about the lengthy lines.

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THE UNION

ENTERTAINMENT

NOVEMBER 2021

RATING KEY ChaLLENGER DIamond GOLD BRONZE IRON Vyomi Seth | THE UNION

Two players communicate in-game, sharing a friendly greeting in “/all chat” and hostile words in “team chat.”

OP: Riot Games nerfs ‘League of Legends’ communications leads to fun banter and makes In a “League of Legends” game the game more enjoyable, since it update released Oct. 12, Riot doesn’t feel like playing against a Games declared they would be rebot. On many occasions, I’ve bemoving “/all chat” in patch 11.21 in friended an opponent using “/all an attempt to reduce negative inchat” and continued to play more teractions. There are two ways to games with them later. It is one of communicate with fellow gamers. the few things in this game that “Team chat’’ is sent to only playbuilds a sense of camaraderie. ers on your own team, while “/all Most would agree that toxicity chat” (named after the function in chat in “League of Legends” required to use it) is visible to both mostly comes from your own teams; either chat can be muted. team. Because of the After receiving a lot of heavily group-based backlash from the comgameplay, mistakes by munity, Riot Games one player affect everymade the decision to one. More so, toxicity only implement the from your own team is removal of “/all chat” much more hurtful for certain regions, the than the other team names of which haven’t and affects gameplay. been released yet.

Obviously, removing The absurdity of this “team chat” would be decision is obvious VYOMI preposterous, but resince “/all chat” is comSETH moving “/all chat” fixes pletely optional and is nothing. turned off by default.

This new update was even more Any player using “/all chat” does disappointing to those who were so by choice. The game update hoping for the addition of a voice also states that other interactions chat to the game. Voice chat comfrom the other team (emotes munication is very common and and dances) will not be removed. useful in team-based games, so These are usually the perpetrators players have been asking for it for of toxicity from the other team by many years. “Valorant,” “DOTA,” flashing mastery and spamming “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six emotes, both things that show Siege,” “CSGO,” “Overwatch,” and poor sportsmanship.

“Fortnite” have had voice chat While there might be some bad for years. While concerns of unmoments, “/all chat” generally

pleasantries still remain, players should at least be given the choice to have voice communications. In fact, many gamers have tried implementing full team voice chat in their games, using links to voice channels in Discord servers, an application meant for gaming. I have joined these voice calls myself and even created some. In my experience, people are much less negative when they are talking to each other through voice as opposed to texting.

Additionally, typing to teammates negatively impacts gameplay, since it’s impossible to play the game and type messages at the same time. Since the game requires fast-paced decisions and intricate team-planning, text chat does not even effectively help collaboration.

If Riot Games really wants to address negative interactions, they need to improve their banning and player-reporting process.

Serious actions are rarely taken when players are reported for toxic behavior. More so, the game is known for its bugs, which frustrate players and causes disputes during games. Instead of addressing serious concerns, the decision to remove “/all chat” is yet another example of how the large video game developer is out of touch with its player-base.

Nice spice: ‘Dune’ delivers thrills RATING: 4.5 out of 5

of planet Arrakis.

Many people were initially skeptical about the release of “Dune”,

By Matthew Nguyen and for good reason. The “Dune” books are filled with so much One of the most anticipated lore, backstory, and information movies of the year, “Dune,” was that many thought a film like this released on Oct. 22. Directed by would be hard to translate to the Denis Villeneuve, director of “Ar- big screen with a limited runtime. rival” and “Blade Runner 2049,” Furthermore, past film adapta“Dune” is a cinematic master- tions of the “Dune” books, like Dapiece that truly has the potential vid Lynch’s 1984 adaptation and to be the best movie of the year. the “Dune” television series that For those unfamiliar with aired in 2000, did not live up to ex“Dune,” it is a film adaptation of pectations according to reviews.

Frank Herbert’s science fiction However, unlike the previous adnovel of the same name, which aptation, I think Villeneuve’s adcan be best described as a sort of aptation truly lived up to the hype galactic “Game of Thrones.” of the series. Although there “Dune”’s story mainly deals is so much backstory for the with houses, alliances, backaudience to understand, stabbing, and schemes, all Villeneuve does a great job MOVIE of making the information in order to try to obtain the REVIEW digestible for someone like most powerful resources.

The most important reme, who has never read the source in the “Dune” universe is books or seen the previous adapcalled spice. In “Dune,” spice is a tations. drug that grants people heightVilleneuve, as expected, consisened abilities, extends lifespan, tently blows you out of the water and even gives certain people the with his incredible directing in ability to see into the future. Sev- “Dune”. With stunning visuals, eral powerful groups, called hous- magnificent set pieces, amazing es, are in constant war and polit- production design, and an immerical conflict to try to gain control sive soundtrack, the movie feels of the harvesting of this spice so like a living, tangible world that that they can become strong and you can live in. With that being wealthy. However, this spice is said, this movie is definitely not only harvestable on one planet something you should not watch in the entire universe, planet Ar- on your tiny, little cellphone. rakis. This brings us to the main Instead, to get the complete exfocus of the story: Paul Atreidis, perience, you should watch the played by Timothée Chalamet, film in an IMAX theatre, because the heir to the noble Atreides the visuals are so spectacular house that is fighting for control that it would be a major injustice



to yourself if you watched it on anything other than the biggest screen you can find.

In addition, the acting in this film was stellar. Timothée Chalamet was excellent, and this might be my favorite performance of his yet. I also loved Oscar Isaac, Rebecca Ferguson, and Josh Brolin, who all played key roles in the movie. Stellan Skarsgard, who plays Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, steals the scene every time he is shown. Skarsgard truly portrays a menacing character and antagonist. To the disappointment of many fans, however, Zendaya primarily exists as a vision that Chalamet’s character is having and plays a limited role in the movie.

Across the board, the acting cast for “Dune” was stacked and had great performances all around as expected.

Once again, Hans Zimmer outdoes himself in his creation of the film’s score. He creates a soundtrack that sounds incredibly unique, compliments the spectacular visuals of the movie very well, and gives the audience chills throughout the movie.

This movie is genuinely masterful. That being said, it is incomplete. The movie is only part one of a two part series. Thus, the movie ends with a massive cliffhanger and some people may be disappointed with that. Once part 2 does come out, however, this series has the potential to become one of the greatest movie series of all time and I recommend you watch it as soon as you can.

Battle of the music apps: Apple Music vs. Spotify

By Arsh Ali

Apple Music and Spotify are locked in a battle to be the most popular music-streaming service in the world today. Both feature tens of millions of songs and have millions of users worldwide. Their popularity and positions as the top music services made me wonder: which platform comes out on top? It all depends on what type of listening experience you want.

If you’re looking for a free music-streaming service, the Spotify free plan is the way to go. However, you can only play music on shuffle, and the 30-second ads every 15 minutes become annoying fast. Three consecutive 30-second ads frustrated and distracted me while I was working. The Spotify Web Player allows you to pick and play music in whatever order you want, but the ads are still present. Apple Music requires you to pay to use it. If you don’t mind paying, you have several options to choose from. Apple Music and Spotify both have multiple plans with similar costs; Spotify Premium’s standard plan and Apple Music both cost $9.99 per month.

Apple Music gives three months of free trial while Spotify gives one or two months based on the package you decide to try.

In terms of the quality of music, Apple Music takes the win here.

On the surface, I found the quality of Apple Music better than the quality of Spotify on its free tier.

After getting Spotify Premium, it was still difficult for me to tell the difference in quality between them. But, after listening to both for some more time, Apple Music still had slightly better music quality. Apple Music and Spotify Premium, not the free-tier, have equalizer presets, which you can choose to suit different genres of music. Some examples include the “Hip-Hop” equalizer that increases the bass of songs and the “Vocal Booster” equalizer that increases the sound of vocals. Apple Music’s equalizer settings are better than Spotify, but Spotify’s is much easier to access and use. Apple Music also recently introduced Spatial Audio with support for Dolby Atmos to their platform, providing a

high-quality listening experience with compatible devices.

When it comes to personalization and interface, Spotify has the edge over Apple Music. Both have playlists that are created based on listening preferences, but, often, Apple Music’s missed the mark and did not provide much new content for its subscribers. On the other hand, Spotify’s playlists were much more personalized and provided many more playlists. In addition, the interface was much more user-friendly than Apple Music. Apple Music’s sound settings are located in the Settings App, while Spotify’s sound settings could be adjusted in the app itself. It was easier to access my profile and see what I played recently on Spotify as well.

Heck, Spotify even greeted me with a “Good Evening.”

When it comes to the amount and type of content, it’s purely user-based. If you like to listen to music and are interested in radio shows, Apple Music is the way to go. It has over 75 million songs with numerous radio shows focused on different music genres and trends in music. If you are looking for podcasts to go along with your music, Spotify is the best choice, with approximately 70 million songs and over 2.5 million podcasts, which cover a wide variety of genres such as sports, comedy, news, video games, murder mysteries, and more. Apple Music will give you more content while Spotify gives you more variety.

Both Apple Music and Spotify have their ups and downs. But, the best choice all comes down to what you want. After using both of these platforms, I prefer Apple Music over Spotify since I’m more interested in the quality of the music I listen to and I don’t mind paying for it. If you want a more casual listening experience that is personalized and easy to use, go for Spotify. However, to unlock most of the benefits of Spotify, you will need to pay. If you don’t mind the ads and don’t want to pay, use Spotify’s free service. The best platform is the one suited to your desires and preferences.

Arsh Ali and Vyomi Seth | THE UNION

NOVEMBER 2021

Social media creates unhealthy body dysmorphia

By Vania Castro

You’re scrolling through your social media feed and you see a photo of your friend on the beach.

Further down, you see an acquaintance’s IGTV video showing their toned physique, followed by a classmate’s photo dump of their most recent mirror selfies.

You take notice of their attractive features and before you realize it, you’re looking in the mirror repeatedly, noticing flaws too minuscule for anyone else to see.

These are just some of many symptoms of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), which is defined by Johns Hopkins Medicine as a mental health problem wherein one can become so upset about their bodily flaws that it impedes a normal lifestyle.

In a 2019 study called “Selfie Harm,” British fashion photographer Rankin took photos of 15 teenage girls and asked them to edit the images to make them presentable for social media. The girls altered their photos to smoothen their complexions, add makeup, and change their facial features, yet most of them claimed they preferred the unedited version.

We all know that actions speak louder than words. Their words

prefer their authentic selves, but their actions unfortunately show otherwise, exposing areas in which they feel insecure.

Social media can contribute to body dysmorphia and is linked to having a negative body image.

An article from the journal “Body Image” surveyed 227 young women and found that they compare their appearances negatively to other women on Facebook.

Additionally, the Florida House Experience reported that in a study of 1000 people, 87% of women and 65% of men compare their bodies to images on social media. From these numbers, 50% of women and 37% of men view their bodies as unfavorable in comparison.

500 women and 370 men out of a thousand may not seem like a staggering statistic, but if you put these numbers in the MHS setting, it would create a sizable population. Just imagine having 870 students on campus who suffer from BDD. Snapchat in particular has such a large impact on the younger generation that a phenomenon called “Snapchat dysmorphia” is being used to describe its effects. The term was coined by a

LIFESTYLE London cosmetic doctor in 2018 after noticing that patients desired to have procedures done to achieve features and appearances that filters give them, according to an article from Triple J. The primary motivation for these surgeries are to look better in selfies, according to more than half of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery surgeons.

Statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons show that teenagers as young as 13 are having surgical procedures done.

This should raise a red flag for everyone. Though insecurity isn’t always the reason for getting cosmetic surgery, it’s concerning that teenagers that young have procedures to feel satisfied in their looks.

If you are suffering from BDD, there is hope. Therapy is available, especially if the case is severe.

Cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) is a psychological treatment for BDD. It is the only treatment backed-up by research, according to an article from HelpGuide.

Therapists can help patients identify what factors induce their anxiety and assist them in developing healthy coping mechanisms.

Social media and its standards have infiltrated the minds of the youth. You can seek help through CBT, take time off from using social media, or explore healthy emotional outlets such as keeping a diary.

How to make easy, delicious mashed potatoes

By Sharon Talaia

With Thanksgiving around the corner, help out in the kitchen by making an iconic holiday dish: mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes can be served either smooth and creamy or chunky and thick.

Unlike a lot of other holiday foods, mashed potatoes can be made easily by chefs of all skill levels. When paired with simple sides like ready-mix gravy or canned cranberry sauce, this easy-to-make dish is much better than its dehydrated or frozen counterparts and can be served alongside your holiday meal’s main courses.

Ingredients: -3 large baking potatoes

-2½ tablespoons of butter -1 tablespoon of milk -⅛ teaspoon of salt -Aluminum foil Directions: 1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Use a fork to poke about six sets of holes throughout each of the potatoes.

3. Wrap your potatoes in aluminum foil.

4. Put your wrapped potatoes in your heated oven. Wait 1 to 1½ hours for the potatoes to fully bake. If the potatoes are still hard, keep them in the oven until they soften.

5. Take your baked potatoes out of the oven and allow them to cool for 10 minutes.

6. Once they are cool enough to handle, peel the aluminum foil and skin off of the potatoes.

7. Put the peeled potatoes in a large bowl, and add the milk, salt, and butter.

8. Using a large fork, mash all the ingredients together.

9. Mash until most of the large chunks of potato are gone. The longer you mash, the smoother the finished product will be. Adjust your mashing time accordingly.

10. Serve while warm and feel free to add gravy or ham to the dish. Enjoy!

9

THE UNION

Brian Dinh | THE UNION

Chikin Drip cooks hot stuff

By David Rendon

Since the Chicken Sandwich Wars began in 2019, people have been met with an oversaturated market of chicken sandwiches from just about every fast food place. But, you’ll never find the real winner of these wars in a restaurant. You’ll find it on the street.

Chikin Drip is a food truck known for its halal hot chicken.

They recently had an accident in which another car crashed into them. Still, they have persevered and reopened better than ever.

They are located in San Jose, open from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. every day, and you can definitely count on them serving up some delicious food.

I went to Chikin Drip on a Friday night and saw an area that, despite being packed with people, felt like there was almost no congestion.

The line moved quickly, and I got my order within minutes. Part of the ease is due to how limited the menu is. You only have three options: a sandwich, a tender, or a bowl. All orders come with pickles, fries, and their signature secret sauce. They have a variety of heat

levels, including Holy Chick which requires you to sign a waiver.

When I got my order, the first thing I noticed was the mouthwatering smell coming from the sealed container. I could smell all the spices they used and couldn’t wait to dig in. I ordered a bowl and the portion of food was generous and well worth the price. The chicken had a great heat to it that you feel in the back of your throat, and the pickles were so fresh I assume they were homemade. The fries were a bit soft but had their own seasoning that resembled a cajun spice that made up for it.

Everything about the meal was fantastic, and no flavor overpowered another. The only complaint I had was that it needed more of their secret sauce; I just couldn’t get enough of it. The sauce complimented the food well and provided a sweet and spicy flavor.

I can’t help but recommend Chikin Drip. The food is delicious.

If you decide to check them out, bring cash or Venmo, the only forms of payment they accept. You can check out their Instagram, @ chikindrip, for their exact directions. Chikin Drip gets five stars in my book.

Priya Thoren | THE UNION

Example of dark academia fashion pictured above, including dark trousers, blazers, and trench coats.

Fall fashion tips: Trying dark academia style

By Priya Thoren

Autumn vibes are finally here, with the warm coziness of pumpkin spice lattes and endless Harry Potter marathons to watch. But getting into the fall spirit, especially in bright and sunny California, can be a bit of a challenge. Luckily, there is a simple solution: style.

Dark academia is a style that combines education and the arts.

The dark academia aesthetic’s elegant yet dark color palette fits right in with the stunning shades that come with fall. Dark greens, reds, and especially browns will make you fit right in with the rich autumn atmosphere.

Here is a list of dark academia must-haves and how to wear them:

Sweater vests ~ Pair a sweater vest with a short-sleeved collared shirt to brace the California breeze but still stay cool. The most common colors for this pairing include a classic white shirt with either a plain or patterned sweater vest.

A popular pattern for this style is argyle, which is a fun way to add a statement piece to your outfit.

Dark trousers ~ Dark academia is a more subdued aesthetic, so a dark pant is the perfect way to be simple and sleek. Pair these bottoms with the aforementioned patterned sweater vest to create a staple outfit without being too busy.

Blazers ~ Blazers put the ‘academia’ in dark academia. Look studious as you stay cozy during the cooler months. Instead of

a boring semi-formal outfit, blazers can also make for the perfect business-casual look.

Trench coats ~ For chillier days, trench coats make any outfit look put together. Not only will trench coats give you a mysterious aura, but they are a great way to pull together an otherwise average outfit.

Doc Marten boots ~ Any type of boots are perfect for crunching leaves! Black Doc Martens go with any colored outfit and give a scholarly and sophisticated vibe. For a more vintage look, try a deep brown boot.

Now that you know how to achieve the dark academia aesthetic, get into the spirit of fall with these new clothing items added to your closet.

Tiffany Lieu | THE UNION

10

SPORTS

THE UNION

NOVEMBER 2021

Injured athletes reflect on their sports seasons

By Tiffany Lieu

Courtesy of Milpitas High School Music Department

Marching Band and color guard celebrate first place at the Scarlet Regiment Tournament on Oct. 25.

Marching band, color guard earn 2nd at regionals, highest score in school history

By Vania Castro

The MHS marching band and color guard displayed their excellence as they placed 2nd at the Western Band Association (WBA) Regional Championship on Saturday, Nov. 13. They finished with a score of 84.50, the higest score the band ever achieved since 2010, according to Band Director Moises Fagundes.

The marching band scored 72.35 in their first competition followed by 74.2 in their second, according to the MHS Music Department’s Instagram page. All scores are out of 100, Singal said in an interview.

“We have eight-hour practices on Saturdays and three-hour practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” Singal said. “In these practices, we add new visuals, revise music, and do the entire show. A lot of time, dedication, and effort goes into this, but I think that is what allowed us to have good scores.”

Visuals are body movements similar to dances that enhance a show and give the spotlight to a color guard member performing a solo, flute sectional head Lina Lee said in an interview.

Visuals also eliminate instances where the marching band just stands still, Singal said.

To help her section for the competition, she gave them pep talks before they ran a show, Lee said.

She spoke to them about their responsibilities, work ethic, and improvements, she added.

“I noticed that they really appreciate [pep talks], because our section is quieter than most,” Lee said. “But then once we actually have the energy up, we can be really loud and get engaged into our own show.”

Trumpet sectional head Marco Valle prepared his section by spending most of practice showing them what to do and where they made mistakes, and he was thankful that the members quickly fixed them, he said.

“Right before we perform, most

of the time, it’s a pep talk from me, like, ‘We got this far. What’s the point in giving up now? We’re so powerful, so play out,’” Valle said.

Helping to lead the marching band as a drum major was more difficult than she expected, Singal said. The drum majors’ duties consisted of advising sectional leaders and the 113 band members on what to do and where to go, she explained.

“It feels very good for the morale of the band,” Singal said, describing how she felt about their three-win streak. “For the first three comps, we’ve had little to no competition, but even though this is true, our scores have been really good. Our show this year is amazing, better than any show that we’ve ever done. I’m just really happy with how the season’s going this year.”

Valle said that they were bound to win their first competition by default, as there were no other bands to compete against there.

Despite that disclaimer, it felt amazing to play and win competitions over and over, particularly the second and third shows, he said.

“Since we’ve won three competitions, our energy has increased a lot and everyone is more excited to go during more competitions,” Lee said. “We’re creating a tighter bond within the band.”

However, their year was not exactly a smooth road, especially since they faced an unusual situation at the beginning of the season with more members.

“I think the biggest challenge for us starting this year was that we had two years, classes 2024 and 2025, who never had marching experience,” Singal said. “[Moving] forward with so many new people was really difficult at first, which is why starting in July, we had summer workshops just so people could come and learn basics and all the visuals. It was really helpful.”

The marching band also faced issues with an initial lack of con-

fidence, Valle said.

“Most of us haven’t really come out of our shell yet, so we really weren’t comfortable with playing loudly and confidently,” Valle described. “With visuals, we were shy doing specific jumps and tricks. But we worked through that. As the season progressed, we got more used to it.”

During the competitions, Lee took joy in performing with everyone and growing with her section, she said. Her section pushes her to improve and they are her motivation to remain in the marching band, she added.

“For me, because I’m a drum major, I’m one of the people accepting the trophies,” Singal said.

“It’s just so cool to be there, hearing our school and the parents cheering for us in the back.”

Valle advised future marching band competitors to make friends, have fun, and properly hydrate.

“Go out there, have fun, show whoever’s watching that you’re from Milpitas and you’re proud of it,” he said.

On Nov. 6, the marching band competed against three other schools in their fourth competition held at Independence High School. They took home awards for Best Visual, Best Overall Effect, and Best Color Guard, said Lee. Lynbrook High School clinched first place with a score of 82.075, followed closely by MHS at 81.925, according to the Western Band Association (WBA) website.

Because the Nov. 13 competition was their last, emotions were high among the band members, especially for the seniors, Singal said via Instagram. Although the winning school took all the awards, the MHS band came close to winning music and visual awards, and it was still a great way to end the season, she added.

“The energy was really good [on the competition day], and our performance was probably the best we have ever performed in this entire season,” Singal said.

Injuries loom as a possibility in any sport, but the risk may be hard to fully realize until it becomes a reality. One misstep, running a mile too many, or a stray ball hurtling through the air can quickly change the course of an entire season for an athlete. While being injured can be both physically and mentally taxing, many players recover with important lessons for themselves and other athletes.

When senior Shania Bognot, girls tennis captain, was first injured, she felt indifferent. “I’ve been told that it might have been just shock,” she said.

About a month into the tennis season, Bognot tore her ACL outside of practice. Before receiving her MRI scan, Bognot attempted to resume practicing after a few days of rest.

“I did attempt to hit tennis balls normally again. It was very hard, and the only thing I could do was serves,” she said. “I was too injured to do anything.”

From then on, Bognot’s role on the team was relegated to managing emails and behind-the-scenes work. Although she said that her injury did not significantly change how she viewed tennis, her desire to play the sport was amplified.

“I suppose I haven’t actually wanted to play tennis as badly as I do now,” Bognot said.

Looking back, she said that she underestimated the importance of stretching and warming up.

“If you don’t warm up you’re going to hurt yourself, and regret it for the rest of your life.”

Senior Brianna Flores has played many sports throughout her life. But, with 6 years of cross country experience, running is one of the sports she has done for the longest.

In the middle of the season, Flores developed shin splints after racing at Crystal Springs, a particularly hilly course. The injury forced her to sit out of several practices and miss a race.

“It felt horrible, because you know your potential,” Flores said.

“You know what you’re capable of, but when you’re injured, it’s like you feel this weight on you—this restriction. You can’t really do anything about it, and you just want to continue doing what you know you can do.”

When Flores returned to practice, her injury still limited her by making running more difficult.

This physical pain also affected her mental health, she said.

“Before, I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it,” Flores said. “But really, now, I understand that I am capable. It just requires that extra push—that extra motivation.”

Flores said that even after she had mostly recovered, the possibility of a future injury loomed.

“You just get... scared you’re going to intensify or enhance that injury.”

While this setback did not significantly affect her athletic career, it will still affect her future endeavors, Flores said. It will serve as a reminder to recover from exercise properly and as inspiration to keep going when she feels like quitting, she added.

“Always push through your limits,” Flores concluded. “Don’t doubt yourself... If you know you have that potential, go ahead and strive towards it.”

In the case of senior Ilya Krasnyy, past injuries profoundly affected his athletic career today.

Back and muscle injuries from years ago can still affect his fitness and cause him pain, Krasnyy said. Despite these limitations, he found a home in the world of water polo.

“Throughout the years, you find a way to basically improve your condition by exercising, listening to doctors, et cetera. And it could help you to continue that sport,” Krasnyy said.

While he has swum since his early childhood, it was only during high school that Krasnyy started competing in water polo and swimming. Because of his past injuries, Krasnyy wasn’t able to play many sports, which was one of the reasons that he began doing water sports. But this is not to say that these activities are not also dangerous; Krasnyy suffered concussions during both this water polo season and the 2019 season.

“Although the sport itself is pretty dangerous, I’m enjoying it.”

Krasnyy said. “And, in my opinion, it is worth to continue to play it although it can worsen my condition.”

Being a senior has only exacerbated the mental burden of Krasnyy’s injuries. In his last year, he was hoping to perform at his complete best, but having to take time off limited his ability to do that. Reflecting on how he felt after losing a game, Krasnyy said, “It was kind of painful to understand that it is partially your fault because you weren’t able to practice.”

Despite his pain and injuries, Krasnyy remained dedicated to practicing. However, he believes it is also important for everyone to understand their own abilities in the wake of an injury.

“With enough patience, you can get anywhere,” Krasnyy said. “ If you’re willing to get somewhere, you can get there.”

Senior Kerr finds solace on tennis courts

By Priya Thoren

Senior Kathryn Kerr grew up playing tennis with her family and has continued that legacy throughout her high school years. Kerr is the captain of the girls’ tennis team and finished the last game of the season on Oct. 28. Now, in her final year of high school after competing at MHS for all 4 years, Kerr discussed in an interview her origins in the sport, how much effort she put into the sport, reflections on her time playing, and future goals in regards to tennis and life in general.

Q: How long have you been playing tennis and how did you first get interested in the sport?

A: “I’ve been playing tennis since I was seven years old,” Kerr said. “[I got interested because] my dad plays tennis, my mom

plays tennis… I’m just [part of ] a tennis family, and I grew up next to the courts.”

Q: How many hours do you spend playing tennis in order to balance sports and school?

A: “During the season, I play six days a week, every day for around two and a half hours.”

Q: If you are planning to go to college, which one is your top choice?

A: “I hope I can get into UC San Diego.”

Q: Do you plan to continue playing tennis in college?

A: “I’d want to possibly play tennis for a club on campus.”

Q: What has been one of your favorite memories playing tennis?

A: “I really like when we do the

cheer excessively loud, especially when it’s much louder than the other team’s cheer because it asserts our dominance as a team.”

Q: What or who is your greatest source of motivation?

A: “My dad, because I don’t want to make him disappointed, and I want him to be proud of me.”

Q: Do you have any advice for aspiring athletes at MHS? A: “Don’t get stressed out.

Sports are supposed to be fun and something you really enjoy that is not academic, and that can help you destress with your friends.”

Q: Do you have any other comments or advice you would like to add?

A: “Enjoy life. It’s too short to be stressed out about every little thing.”

Courtesy of Joanna Butcher

Kathryn Kerr returns the ball with an overhead smash in a match.

ADVERTISMENT

NOVEMBER 2021

From the District Office & Board of Education

THE UNION

VOL.1

NOVEMBER 2021

AVA THE AUTHOR

STUDENT IMPACT

Milpitas High School sophomore Ava Woodhams had her first book of a new series published in October through Atmosphere Press. Her literary work, titled "Fire a Girl, and Far Too Many Aliens," is available on www.amazon.com now!

Woodhams, now a published author, was honored at the MUSD Board of Education Meeting on October 12. She was joined by her mother and MUSD teacher Stephanie Woodhams as well as her younger sibling. She started writing this book while at Alexander Rose Elementary School and finished polishing it up her 8th grade year at Thomas Russell Middle School and freshman year at Milpitas HS. Please share your accomplishments with us at musd-supt@musd.org.

Student members of the Milpitas High School Marching Band and Colorguard, as well as from the Navy Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (NJROTC), shared their voices with the Board about why they should receive Physical Education (PE) credit for participating in those activities. With direction from the Board of Education, Milpitas HS is working with the District Office's Learning and Development Team in formulating a NJROTC for Physical Education (PE) Credit Course. An update was expected at the November 9 meeting, where next steps in the course and policy development will be shared. Tune in to our MUSD school board meetings via Zoom or YouTube or join us in the boardroom at 1331 E. Calaveras Blvd. in Building 500. Public comments, especially our student voices, are welcomed.

JACK IS BACK

TAKE CARE OF YOU

The Jack Emery canned food drive is back in 2021 Student leaders at Milpitas High School organized a virtual kick off this month for the annual district-wide canned food drive that helps to feed about 4,000 local families throughout the year at the Milpitas Food Pantry. "We hope that the Jack Emery drive will give the students, staff and parents at your school an opportunity to connect, celebrate, and build even stronger community bonds this holiday season," shares Kush Brahmbhatt and Vicky Ly. "With so many families in our community facing hardship in this winter season, our contributions to the Milpitas Food Pantry will be so impactful for the City of Milpitas." Be on the lookout for the many ways you can be part of the rewarding community effort!

Follow Us On Social Media:

@MilpitasUnified

11

As WE enter the holiday season, please pause and make the time to take care of you and check in with loved ones. We continue to navigate uncharted waters amidst this ongoing global pandemic that impacts each of us in different ways.

Please know that you matter and you are never alone in this with your family, friends, peers, and, of course, our MUSD family here to always support you and be that shoulder to lean on. Please continue to check in on your loved ones and, most importantly, remember to take care of you. MUSD has partnered with Care Solace, a complimentary and confidential care coordination service that can help you quickly find mental health or treatment options: Call 888515-0595. Support is available 24/7/365 in any language OR visit www.caresolace.com/milpitasfamilies.

@MUSDfamily

@MUSDfamily

12

THE UNION

NEWS

NOVEMBER 2021

In Memoriam: Hayden Nguyen Lee

Courtesy of Joanna nguyen

Through the 5-Star platform, students can earn prizes, such as snacks, candy, and Trojan gear.

ASB partners with 5-Star platform to promote school spirit, increase student partcipation

By Ryan Teoh

ASB has partnered with 5-Star Students in an effort to use their app as a way to incentivize students to participate in school activities through a rewards system, ASB 5-Star manager Joanna Nguyen said in an interview.

The goal is for ASB to be able to measure how students are engaged on campus and reward students for participating, Nguyen said.

“We are trying to promote community by trying to make events throughout the year that anyone can be a part of,” Nguyen said in a written statement. “The points earned go towards the class spirit count, so you can contribute to your class anytime during the year. You also now get to earn personal rewards for participating in days like spirit days.”

The difference between this platform and the other systems MHS uses, like ParentSquare, is that the platform is more focused on informing students of upcoming events and giving them points for being a part of campus, Ngyuen said.

“After we complete the beta phase, it will also communicate all of the activities available on campus, including club meetings, athletic events, and more,” Nguyen added.

Soon, students will be able to redeem their points for rewards and prizes, such as mystery bags, tickets to future events, and candy among other things, Nguyen said.

“It is one centralized place that will list all the events,” Activities

Director Jerell Maneja said in an interview. “It’s sometimes difficult to sort through your emails or social media to find out what events are happening, so we want to rely on a platform that is a onestop shop that allows students to see the calendar, see all these events that they can participate in, and join other students and staff.”

The platform will also total up student contributions to their overall graduating class, similar to the Harry Potter system, Maneja said. If students attend events, they not only earn points for themselves, but for their class too, Maneja added.

“For simply dressing up, [students] earn two points as our base default, and we can increase it per event if we want to generate more attention,” Maneja said.

Due to COVID-19, ASB is still in the process of setting up a store where students can redeem their points, Maneja said. Currently, students who want to redeem points should contact Nguyen or him directly to set up an appointment, Maneja said.

5-Star Students provides the software and initial training for school administrators in charge of using the platform, Chance Hroach, the Assistant Technology Officer at 5-Star said.

The company helps the school set everything up as well as provide technical support by running and pulling different data the school might be interested in. A yearly subscription for the systems ranges from $1,200 to $3,000 depending on the size of

the school and package, Hroach said.

“It wasn’t much,” said Principal Francis Rojas. “I think it was maybe $2,000 or $4,000, which in the grand scheme of things in my budget of $1.2 million is not a lot.”

After discussion with ASB students, he decided it would be a worthwhile investment, Maneja stated. The PTSA, administrators, and Principal Rojas approved the idea, and costs are being paid through the school’s climate funds, which are funds allocated for promoting stronger school climate, Maneja said.

“What sets us apart from competitors is that, as a company, we’re very flexible and like to work with each school individually,” Hroach said. “We are a onestop shop. You can track positive behaviors, events and activities, as well as run surveys and voting through us.”

The 1.7 star rating on the app store can be explained by “frustrated” students, according to Hroach.

“The issue with the ratings is generally what happens is a student is frustrated, and they look at their app. Maybe it’s not set up right, and they don’t have the prizes they want,” said Hroach.

“They’ll then give the app these poor reviews, when in reality it’s not actually the app’s fault.”

After using the app to vote for homecoming royalty, he thinks it is a good, easy way to ensure every student is able to vote and participate in democratic processes, senior Tyler Guo said.

Courtesy of lee’s family

August 25, 2006 - October 13, 2021

United as Trojans: Jack Emery drive to stress unity

By Sharon Talaia

This year’s Jack Emery food drive will be undergoing changes to emphasize community building rather than competition, ASB Jack Emery lead Victoria Ly said in an interview.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it might be financially difficult for some students to donate to the Jack Emery Drive, Ly said.

For that reason, this year’s drive will focus less on class and student competitions and be more centered around working together towards rewards, Ly said.

“People might feel pressured, or it [can be] hard to have resources or money to donate,” Ly said. “So we are just focusing on making things as easy as possible for everyone.”

As of early November, rewards for Jack Emery donations have not been finalized yet, said Karina Kwok, ASB Jack Emery outside collection and business letters team member. The dollar-to-can ratio used in previous years, $1 to two cans, will still be implemented by ASB, Kwok said. Previous Jack Emery drives will also serve as a basis for how this year’s Jack Emery will run in-person, but with COVID-19 regulations still in place, Kwok added.

“We will be collecting during fifth period approximately every other day, “ Kwok stated. “Then, we’ll probably do can sorting outside. But then again, can sorting is usually just a group of students, not too many people, so COVID restrictions shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”

Another change to this year’s Jack Emery is that Winter Wish-

es has been renamed as Winter Auction and is now part of Jack Emery, Kwok said. In the past, Winter Wishes had an auction system in which money raised was used to grant the wishes of MHS students, she said. The Winter Auction will run under a similar system, but the proceeds will now all go towards Jack Emery, Kwok stated. The Trojan Calvary may also assist in this year’s Jack Emery, she added.

“Trojan Calvary is new this year,” Kwok said. “It’s a way to incorporate more students to help out our school, so it’s not just limited to leadership only. Let’s say there are students who want to be in leadership, but they can’t due to other commitments. Then, they can still have the opportunity to help out at the dances. For Trojan Calvary, we did have them help us set up for the [Homecoming] dance. In return, they get community service hours.”

The money and cans donated to the Jack Emery Food Drive all goes towards the Milpitas Food Pantry, ASB Jack Emery publicity team member Paulina Nguyen said in an interview.

“It’s a whole MUSD district kind of effort or project,” Ly said. “I believe that a lot of the food pantry’s donations come from the drive, especially with the Thanksgiving season and everything like that— giving thanks and giving back to the community.”

ASB still wants to aim high with its goals for this year’s Jack Emery despite the changes to the student rewards and prizes system, Ly said. Their minor goal is 20,000 cans and major goal is 22,000 cans for this year, Ly stated.

Principal Rojas proposes PE waiver to school board FROM PAGE 1

Anannya Bhuskat | THE UNION

take PE, but I would rather have taken our color guard class,” Yen said. “[With the waiver], we wouldn’t have to take PE, which would open up space for other electives, or even the color guard class.”

Senior Chief of the NJROTC and senior Leonel Jarquin said in an interview that the armed drill team has to carry around heavy rifles for about two hours during after school practices. Marching is more demanding than regular walking because it requires coordination and practice, he said.

“If we have the waiver, that would help us recruit more,” Jarquin said. “We can have more

people stay … Some people leave because they need to take a year of PE.” The marching band appealed to the school board about the PE waiver two years ago, but progress was halted due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Huss said.

“We’ll request the superintendent to follow up with the principal of the high school in terms of the scheduling, as well as the additional requirements, if there are any, to ensure that [the waiver] has the opportunity to move forward,” Chris Norwood, Milpitas School Board Trustee President, said at the board meeting after listening to appeals.