First Day of School Special V94

Newtonite ◆ Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015 • Volume 94

Newton North High School, 457 Walnut St., Newtonville, Mass. 02460

Newton teachers seek pay equity This article is current as of press time last Tuesday. Please see thenewtonite.com for more updated information on the negotiations, including the School Committee’s perspective.

Emily Moss Most students remember the yellow t-shirts that North teachers wore every Tuesday last spring with the words “competitive wages = excellent schools” printed on the back. Many have also seen blue yard signs on their neighbors’ lawns asking them to “support Newton educators.”

Although school has been out over the summer, these images remind students that the teachers’ contract negotiations that began a year and a half ago are still underway. by

Objectives

In broad terms, teachers across the district—represented by the Newton Teachers Association (NTA), an affiliate of the National Education Association—are looking to maintain competitive wages with teachers in nearby towns, including Brookline and Wellesley, among others, according to NTA president Michael Zilles.

In all of these towns, including Newton, teacher pay increases with years on the job. Teachers in Lexington and several other school districts, however, reach the top of their pay scales after only 12 years, while in Newton it takes 17 years to reach the top—a discrepancy that has left Newton teachers frustrated and discouraged.

Art teacher Eileen Gagarin noted, “When you know you’re doing the same job as someone

15 miles away, but you’re paid significantly less, you feel like you’re not as important.”

Similarly, English teacher Kate Shaughnessy said, “I think it’s been frustrating for teachers across Newton to feel that their hard work is not being valued.”

According to the Newton TAB, teachers with 12 years of experience in Newton would make $22,525 less than teachers with similar experience in Wayland and $15,070 less in Lexington.

“Realistically,” said Zilles, “teachers should earn more with more experience. But it doesn’t take 17 years to become a master teacher—it takes 10 or 12.”

The School Committee declined to comment until the union ratifies a contract.

Besides aiming to decrease the number of years required to reach the top of the pay scale, Zilles said teachers are seeking to increase their cost-of-living adjustments, which account for inflation from year to year.

Josh Shub-Seltzer

On the ball: Junior Sydney Hurwitz blocks the ball in a preseason scrimmage against Lincoln-Sudbury Tuesday, Sept. 1. early 2000s—ranking eighth in 2004-05 and fifth in 2005-06. More recently, however, Newton’s rank has declined, and in the 2012-13 school year, Newton came in 71st—behind all of the neighboring districts mentioned. That year, the average salary in Newton was $76,904, while the average salary for teachers in the highest-paying district in the state, Worcester, was $91,504, according to the Massachusetts Department of Education.

“We’ve just not kept pace,” said Zilles. “It used to be that when we negotiated, the city’s financial officer always argued that Newton was paying more than almost everyone else in the state. They could never make that argument now.”

Negotiation process

40

Zilles added that the teachers’ contract is renewed every three years, and that “salaries have been a real sticking point” for the past two or three rounds of negotiations.

Furthermore, Zilles said that each round of negotiations in Newton has taken much longer than in most other school districts. Teachers and School Committee members in Somerville, for example, were able to negotiate a contract after just seven meetings, according to Zilles.

Not long after the financial crisis of 2008, when the economy was still in a deep recession, Zilles said Newton teachers understood that it was necessary to make certain sacrifices. However, despite the fact that the economy has improved significantly since then, Zilles claims the School Committee has continued to resist reasonable increases in teacher pay.

As a result, Newton teachers have been working without a contract since the beginning of the last school year—a situation that Zilles said has been “dispiriting” for teachers.

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Newton implications

Background

According to the Massachusetts Department of Education, which publishes the annual average teachers’ salaries in every Massachusetts district from the 1996-97 school year to the 201213 school year, teacher salaries in Newton have declined in relation to other Massachusetts school districts since the late 1990s.

Back in the 1996-97 school year, Newton had the 20th highest average teacher salary in the state, behind towns such as Weston, Concord, Lexington, and Belmont, and ahead of Wellesley, Brookline, and Needham. Newton nearly rose to the top during the

Ranking of Average Teacher Salary

Rank in Massachusetts

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Valeria Dountcheva and Maria Trias

Year

Until a new contract is negotiated, teachers continue to work under the conditions of the previous contract.

At this point, the failure to agree on a new contract should have no effect on students, as teachers have continued to work as they did when they had a

contract, including unpaid afterschool commitments.

However, there are important rights that teachers lack in the absence of a new contract, according to Zilles. For example, if the district refuses to recognize a grievance put forward by teachers, Zilles said, the affected teachers are not legally permitted to seek a third party to mediate.

In addition, Zilles said he worries that the lower salaries in Newton might lead job applicants to turn down positions here and go elsewhere. Although he noted that no “systematic” trend of this sort has yet been documented, he has heard anecdotally that some applicants are showing a preference for other districts. In fact, according to Zilles, one Newton elementary school lost two finalists just this past year.

Gagarin expressed similar concerns about recruiting teachers, noting although she is very happy at North, were she now beginning her teaching career, she would have been very tempted to choose a job in Brookline over a job in Newton. She added that even some teachers who have been in Newton for a number of years are beginning to feel inclined to look at jobs in other districts.

Zilles wondered whether fewer applicants may be applying to teach in Newton in the first place, since it is now well known that salaries are higher elsewhere.

“My fear,” Zilles said, is that the School Committee will find out about the problem “when it’s too late to fix.”

Aronson to concentrate on North’s current programs

Jackie Gong “The biggest thing for me is that I want to do a good job,” said Mark Aronson, this school’s interim principal.

The former Riley housemaster will serve as interim principal for the 2015-16 school year. He is preceded by North Andover Public Schools superintendent Jennifer Price, who served as by

North’s principal for nine years.

In contrast to the great deal of change this year in administration, Aronson plans to maintain and improve on the existing programs at North.

Despite the administrative changes, Aronson said that all students should still expect North to “continue to be a safe, supportive, and challenging

learning environment with opportunities for every student to be successful,” and said he believes that there will not be a “noticeable difference from one school year to the next.”

According to Aronson, the decisions and circumstances of his new position as interim principal will be very different from his previous role as a housemaster,

including less student interaction and more big-picture oversight.

“There will be situations where difficult decisions have to be made that ultimately will rest with me, where in the past I haven’t had those,” said Aronson, recalling Price’s decision whether the location of last year’s graduation would be at North or Boston College. With a questionable

chance of rain forecasted for that day, Aronson realized that Price’s choice to hold graduation at North could have backfired if it had rained.

“I had never even thought about it before, but watching her make that decision, I realized how big it was,” said Aronson. ◆ continued on page 5

See inside for new teacher introductions, a feature on the green efforts at North, and an overview of where North students travelled this summer.

page 3

pages 6-7

page 10

opinion

2 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

North enrollment growth causes space shortages Last year, new lockers were installed to provide locker space for the incoming freshman class. As a result of dwindling free space, some of the lockers covered up a mural painted by a graduated senior.

The struggle to have school resources, like lockers, match student population compromised North’s support for student expression, something this school prides itself on.

editorial The new lockers are just one example of how this building, though entering only its sixth school year, is already too small to contain the increasing population, as this year’s freshman class is over 80 students larger than the graduating Class of 2015.

To be fair, North’s rapid enrollment growth would make designing a properly sized school difficult. The City of Newton’s enrollment analysis states that North’s population grew 14.5% from the 2009-10 school year to the 2014-15 school year, an increase of 258 students. Between the 2004-05 school year and the 2009-10 school year, however, enrollment shrunk by 11.9%.

Building and designing a new school takes time, and it would have been difficult for the

School Committee to predict such rapid change so far in the future.

In addition, public anger over predicted costs of the new building sparked efforts to reduce the budget, resulting in cuts to the size of the auditorium, library learning commons (LLC), pool deck, and other areas of school.

Though these cuts may have satisfied budget concerns, current North students suffer the hardships of this decision.

The cafeteria has already shown its limits, as it did not have enough tables to contain the current sophomore class last year during lunch. The school had to purchase more tables and chairs in order to accommodate the additional students in the already crowded cafeteria.

The growing school population has also caused increasing section sizes, something Newton has made an effort to combat by hiring more teachers. Though this model has been successful so far, Newton’s enrollment analysis predicts that North will grow by 200 kids over the next five years, an addition of about eight more classes in every core subject. North only has so much office and classroom space, and the additional teachers will strain this al-

ready limited resource.

The LLC, as well, suffers from a lack of space. A limited number of passes are available for freshmen and sophomores to use the LLC as a homework space during cancelled classes, leaving the crowded, noisy cafeteria as the only alternative.

The computers, tables and chairs in the library are often used to the point of capacity. Students resort to sitting against bookshelves or sharing armchairs to do homework.

In addition, there is nowhere at North large enough for the entire community.

This design flaw means that the Thanksgiving pep rally is optional and poorly attended and graduation is held either in the stadium, scarcely large enough for the family and friends of the graduating class, or Conte Forum at Boston College, which costs thousands of dollars.

Unfortunately, North has many inadequately sized spaces and now students suffer the effects. But the future is not without hope.

Computer carts available to students in the library and in the cafeteria would allow students to work on homework without a pass or a seat.

Creating places for students to spend time, such as

Josh Shub-Seltzer

Bump-start: Junior Lily Marcus concentrates while practicing her bumping during a volleyball drill Tuesday, Sept. 1. improving the Student Union, would give students more options of places to congregate and study, freeing up space in the LLC. Office space is crucial, but hiring more teachers does help soften the effects of rising enrollment. Hopefully, through creative and efficient use of space, Newton Public Schools is able to continue this model.

It was hard enough for the City of Newton to muster $197 million to construct this building, but only five years have passed and space is already an issue.

Hopefully, the administration will address these issues.

In the meantime, insufficient space will become an increasingly frequent problem seemingly without end.

One School One Book choice motivates, confounds

by Isabel

Joyce Talent Is Overrated by Jeff Colvin, the fine and performing art department’s choice for this year’s One School One Book, discusses an intriguing topic and is ultimately a smart choice for a back-to-school read, despite Colvin’s disorganized, dull, and slightly pretentious writing style.

column The book’s message serves as a valuable lesson: “intelligence” and “talent” come from hard work, not luck.

Colvin argues that the concept of “talent” is misleading; truly successful individuals work hard to reach their high levels of performance. Colvin suggests that these individuals

are able to achieve what they do through what he calls “deliberate practice”—working hard with the ability to identify and focus on one’s weakest areas.

Students tend to categorize themselves into two groups: those who are smarter, stronger, more musical, more “talented,” and those who lack that one identifiable strength. Talent Is Overrated inspires readers to try a new activity or work harder at a sport or class, because, according to Colvin, “natural ability” is a false concept. Rather, hard work separates the “talented” from the rest of society.

Colvin’s fascinating stories of successful individuals were especially entertaining to read.

His stories range from Mozart’s childhood to a father proving Colvin’s theory by having all

Newtonite The Newtonite, founded in 1922, is the news source of Newton North High School, 457 Walnut St., Newtonville, Mass. 02460.

Editors in chief — Camille Bowman, Maxwell Kozlov Managing editor — Jessica Tharaud News director — Jacob Sims Speyer News editors — Jackie Gong, Cate Waters Sports director — Adam Rabinowitz Sports editors — Blake Krantz, Andrew Mannix Arts editors — Rose Bostwick, Amy Morrill Features director — Emily Moss Features editors — Maya AbouRizk, Maya Metser Opinion/Blogs editors — Adam Clements, Isabel Joyce

On Campus editor — Lucy Lu Talk of the Tiger editor — Nour Chahboun Photography managers — Devin Perlo, Josh Shub-Seltzer Graphics managers — Valeria Dountcheva, Maria Trias Advertising manager — Astrid Kugener Business manager — Rachel Adamsky Technology manager — Michael Tang Advisers — Tom Fabian, Derek Knapp, Amanda Mazzola Photo staff — Teddy Everett Talk of the Tiger staff — Maria Melissa, Mary Solovyeva

The Newtonite staff does all its reporting and photography to post content daily to its website, theNewtonite.com. Student editors make all content choices.

The Newtonite serves as a designated forum for student opinion.

Readers are invited to submit guest articles and letters to the editor.

Letters should be put in the Newtonite box in the main office or emailed to thenewtonite@gmail.com. The Newtonite reserves the right to edit all letters for length.

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three of his daughters win chess championships. Colvin’s stories help the reader realize that “talented” celebrities are normal human beings with exceptional motivation.

Despite this inspirational topic, Colvin’s writing style and lack of organization inhibits the reader’s ability to enjoy the book.

Throughout the book, Colvin often references what will be covered in later chapters, instead of answering the direct question or topic of the designated section. Nonfiction texts usually state what will be covered in each section in the Table of Contents. Instead, Colvin references the future topics in the midst of important information: “we shall see in chapter 10,” “we devote an entire chapter

to it (chapter 11),” and “we’ll examine this phenomenon more closely in chapter 10.” These phrases are unnecessary and cumbersome.

Colvin asks unnecessary questions, another one of his bothersome writing techniques.

His inability to answer a topic immediately beneath the heading contradicts the book’s educational purpose and clouds the reader’s comprehension. “Does deliberate practice fully explain high achievement? Will someone who does twice as much of it as someone else be twice as successful? The answer to these questions is clearly no,” Colvin writes. With Colvin’s writing style, the first paragraphs to appear underneath a title are most often riddled with unnecessary and pretentious

rhetorical questions that inhibit full understanding.

In the afterword of the book, Colvin pompously mentions the impact his writing has had on various individuals. He narrates the story of a father asking him to sign the book for his son who aspires to become a baseball pitcher, but believes great pitchers “glide to eminence.”

Although the ending of Colvin’s book proved the most wellwritten part, Colvin managed to turn what was supposed to read as a courteous gesture into a pretentious finish.

As a One School One Book choice, Talent is Overrated will motivate students to increase their effort this school year, but the structure and style Colvin utilizes make the book a frustrating read.

Be aware of carbon footprint Adam Clements Earlier this year, I was shocked to learn that, for the most part, North does not recycle. Although recycling bins appear throughout the school and in every classroom, everything in them is disposed of as trash.

There is legitimate reasoning behind this (see this issue’s centerfold). Although it would be great if the school had a complete recycling program, what I took away from this discovery was how little awareness there is of this school’s environmental impact, generally. by

column This school’s effect on the environment concerns everyone, and every member of the North community should take the responsibility of staying informed about issues such as this school’s carbon footprint, lack of a recycling program, and use of resources, and do his or her part to address them.

North is a large school in

terms of both building size and population. With 413,000 square feet of space and over 2,200 people using the building daily, reducing the school’s negative environmental impact requires sizeable effort.

A carbon footprint represents the total amount of carbon dioxide produced by humans in a year, and the average U.S. resident’s is over 20 metric tons, five times the worldwide average. Considering that North’s facilities are used by thousands of people for extended periods of time, there is potential for serious environmental damage.

There are a few simple ways to individually reduce our environmental impact, such as finding an alternative to driving to school or eating less meat, as cows produce large amounts of greenhouse gases. There are also more ambitious improvements that can be made, such as the school’s switch to the most energy-efficient lighting.

North is LEED certified, which indicates it was con-

structed with the intention of being as sustainable as possible.

However, there is significantly more to be done, and members of our community should remain conscious of the need for further improvement.

This awareness would raise many questions: why does North not recycle? How efficient is our use of natural resources?

How big is this school’s carbon footprint? Can these problems be fixed?

Being aware of the problem is a good first step, however there are also many ways legitimate progress can be made.

In this issue’s centerfold, the Newtonite highlights the ways in which this school attempts to address these issues.

In reality, there is only so much the community can do at one time, but the environmental issues facing our community and how they can be improved is a topic that should, at the very least, be openly discussed, and involve more of the school population.

news

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 3

New faculty members exemplify North’s diversity Janet Braggs

Meghan Burns

Background: Braggs earned a bachelor’s in mathematics from U. California, Los Angeles.

Excited about . . . “meeting some wonderful students.”

Fun Fact(s): Braggs enjoys travelDevin Perlo ling the world and has seen wild orangutans and hyenas while travelling through Borneo.

Background: Burns received a bachelor’s in philosophy from Franciscan University and a master’s in secondary history education from Boston College.

Excited about . . . “meeting all of my Josh Shub-Seltzer students and growing as a professional.”

Fun Fact(s): Burns is a big Boston sports fan and loves to play basketball.

Rebecca Comiskey

Katie Connolly

Silvia Dupont

Background: Comiskey received bachelor degrees in creative writing and English literature from Wheaton College and a master’s in education from Lesley University.

Devin Perlo Excited about . . . “being a part of this awesome community.”

Fun Fact(s): Comiskey hitchhiked across Europe.

Background: Connolly earned a bachelor’s in history from Providence College and a master’s in education from Quinnipiac University.

Excited about . . . “teaching a new Josh Shub-Seltzer subject,” AP Psychology.

Fun Fact(s): Connolly is new to Massachusetts and has participated in the Pan-Mass Challenge.

Background: Dupont received a master’s in second language acquisition from Università Ca’ Foscari in Venice, Italy.

Josh Shub-Seltzer Excited about . . . “being able to contribute to the education of the Italian students.”

Fun Fact(s): Dupont taught at colleges for 19 years.

This September, North welcomes 23 new full-time faculty to the community. compiled by

History teacher

Guidance counselor

Camille Bowman and Maxwell Kozlov

Special education teacher

History teacher

Italian teacher

Justin Goding

Tom Gwin

Background: Goding received a bachelor’s and master’s in mathematics and a doctorate in electrical engineering from U. Rochester.

Excited about . . . interesting experi- Josh Shub-Seltzer ences doing “engineering projects.”

Fun Fact(s): Goding biked seven miles to his former workplace every day, regardless of the weather, and enjoys both chess and pipe organs.

Background: Gwin received a bachelor’s in biology from Dartmouth College, a master’s in technical writing from Northeastern University, and a Devin Perlo doctorate in education administration from Boston College.

Excited about . . . “coming out of retirement.”

Fun Fact(s): Gwin plays tennis with North teachers.

Andrew Fusco

Heather Irber

Dani Johnson

Background: Fusco received a bachelor’s in chemistry from Dartmouth College and a doctorate in atmospheric physics from U. Colorado.

Excited about . . . “teaching my first class.”

Fun Fact(s): Fusco enjoys travelling and skiing.

Background: Irber received associate degrees in hotel management and culinary arts.

Excited about . . . “meeting a bunch of new teachers.”

Fun Fact(s): Irber enjoys playing sports including golf, tennis, and softball.

Background: Johnson earned a bachelor’s in English literature from Northeastern University and a master’s in high school English education from Lesley University.

Excited about . . . “meeting the file photo students.”

Fun Fact(s): Johnson is “a baseball enthusiast and looks forward to trying out roller derby.”

Science teacher

Math teacher

Jillian Hall

Interim science department head

Culinary teacher

Devin Perlo

College and career counselor

Background: Hall earned a bachelor’s in history from Bowdoin College and a master’s in school counseling from Suffolk University.

Excited about . . . “making a differ- Josh Shub-Seltzer ence through one-on-one interactions with students.”

Fun Fact(s): Hall played basketball in college.

English teacher

Josh Shub-Seltzer

Colleen Moore

Yaelle Nisinzweig

Daniel Orazio

Background: Moore earned a bachelor’s in English from Providence College and a master’s in education from Boston College.

Excited about . . . “joining an amazing community of people.”

Josh Shub-Seltzer Fun Fact(s): In her spare time, Moore blogs about being a mom and teacher.

Background: Nisinzweig received a bachelor’s in special education from Boston University Excited about . . . “watching students grow in their last few years of school.”

Fun Fact(s): Nisinzweig recently learned how to crochet.

Background: Orazio earned a bachelor’s in classical philology from U. Dallas and a master’s in classics from Tufts University.

Excited about . . . “defining more clearly my own philosophy of teachfile photo ing.”

Fun Fact(s): Orazio “tortures the piano from time to time.”

Ethan Peritz

Mike Schlegelmilch

John Shea

Background: Peritz earned bachelor degrees in music and psychology and a master’s in education from Boston University.

Excited about . . . “the excellent Josh Shub-Seltzer academics and the outstanding athletics.”

Fun Fact(s): Peritz enjoys rock climbing, competitive obstacle racing, and crossword puzzle solving.

Background: Schlegelmilch received a bachelor’s in English literature from U. Chicago and a master’s in teaching from Bard College.

Excited about . . . “figuring out Josh Shub-Seltzer what makes my students excited and inspired to learn.”

Fun Fact(s): Schlegelmilch plays the guitar.

Background: Shea earned a bachelor’s in business from UMass Amherst and a master’s in special education from Endicott College.

Excited about . . . “running my own classroom.”

Devin Perlo Fun Fact(s): Shea is a big sports fan and especially enjoys the U. North Carolina Tar Heels.

Krystal Skwar

Katie Stahl

Kathryn Teissier

Background: Skwar received a bachelor’s in English from U. Delaware and a master’s in secondary English education from Boston College.

Excited about . . . “meeting with Josh Shub-Seltzer my students and teaching American literature.”

Fun Fact(s): Skwar, in her free time, is a freelance writer.

Background: Stahl received a bachelor’s in English from U. Vermont and a master’s in education administration from San Francisco Josh Shub-Seltzer State University.

Excited about . . . “coming back to Newton and getting to know the students well.”

Fun Fact(s): Stahl graduated from North.

Background: Teissier received bachelor degrees in French and international studies and a master’s in English as a second language from Simmons College as well as a master’s in sustainability and environDevin Perlo mental management from Harvard Extension School.

Excited about . . . “being a part of this community.”

Fun Fact(s): Tessier worked at a California winery.

Jessica Volmer

Gail Wang

Valerie Young

Background: Volmer received a bachelor’s in English from Saint Anselm College and a master’s in counseling from Salem State University.

Excited about . . . “meeting all my Josh Shub-Seltzer students.”

Fun Fact(s): Volmer enjoys reading, jogging, and spending time with her 18-month-old.

Background: Wang received a master’s in English and English education from the Beijing Foreign Languages Institute.

Excited about . . . “working with higher level language learners.”

Fun Fact(s): Wang enjoys reading, Josh Shub-Seltzer travelling the world, and especially gardening.

Background: Young earned bachelor degrees in English and theatre and a master’s in education from Boston College.

Excited about . . . “meeting and working with students at North.”

Fun Fact(s): Young saw the musical Josh Shub-Seltzer Hamilton in New York City this past summer.

English teacher

Math teacher

English teacher

Guidance counselor

Latin teacher

Special education teacher

Josh Shub-Seltzer

English teacher

Assistant special education department head

Chinese teacher

Special education teacher

French teacher

English teacher

retirement

4 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

Roberts supports, cares for students

Lucy Lu Riley house office has always been a special place for students. Behind the front desk adorned with pictures of her grandchildren, Riley house secretary Maura Roberts, with smiling eyes and a subtle Irish accent, is renowned for her greeting, “hello, love.”

After 29 years of supporting students, Roberts will retire this September. Her warm guidance and welcoming aura will be remembered long after her years in the Newton Public Schools.

Born and raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Roberts said she had a happy childhood being one of 11 children despite how little she had. She attended St. Comgall’s High School, where she graduated in 1959. While in Northern Ireland, Roberts found her first job as a stitcher, making clothing for factories and later as a sales assistant. At 22, Roberts moved to the United States to become a mother’s helper.

“I never realized how poor I was until I moved to the United States,” Roberts said. “People here had so much more than I ever imagined as a child in Ireland.”

In 1986, Roberts saw that North was hiring and applied to the human resources department. “No one was more shocked than me when I got the job,” said Roberts. “But even so, I had a lot of adjusting to do. I remember being asked how many words per minute I could type, but I knew that was only if I could spell them first.”

Several years later, in 1996, Roberts started working in Riley house and was “both nervous and excited, like any new transition.” Although she had become familiar with the duby

ties of her previous role, Roberts was nervous because now she was going into a “new role, with new people and new responsibilities.”

In her new role, Roberts worked closely with people who would affect the rest of her North career, including then Riley housemaster Mark Aronson, who she described as an “inspiration as well as a partner.”

Now interim principal, Aronson also saw that they worked in “a true partnership.”

Despite their individual roles to perform, “many times they overlapped,” he said. “We bettered each other—she made me a much more effective housemaster.”

Being from Northern Ireland, North was a window to life and education in the United States for Roberts. “North provides a great effort to integrate students of all backgrounds to diversify the academic experience,” said Roberts. “Students are truly privileged to have access to such a tremendously valuable academic opportunity, and I am pleased to see many take advantage of it.”

Over time, Roberts soon was so accustomed to her new job that it “didn’t feel like work anymore,” mainly because of her interactions with students.

“Students reminded me of my own experiences and I really tried to understand what they were going through—whether it was with their parents or their teachers.”

Aronson attested to Roberts’ ability to understand diverse groups of students: “Not only does she give me perspective with parents, she is also very good at helping me to know when something is going on with a student who needs sup-

Josh Shub-Seltzer

“Students reminded me of my own experiences and I really tried to understand what they were going through—whether it was with their parents or their teachers,” said Riley house secretary Maura Roberts. port,” he said. He added that students often express appreciation for Roberts’ concern and insight.

For Roberts, last year was particularly special because one of her grandchildren, Matthew Brambilla, entered North

Photography

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Staff photographers usually shoot two to four assignments a month. Common assignments are taking pictures of sports games and theatre productions. We supply the cameras. If you know Photoshop or are interested in learning, staff photographers can edit pictures as well.

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as a freshman.

Brambilla spent much of his childhood visiting Roberts at North. “I will not be able to see her in Riley house everyday anymore, but North will remember her legacy,” said Brambilla. “I’ve always ad-

mired how much she loved her job and how dedicated she was to this school.”

Roberts is grateful she had the opportunity to work at North and work with students.

“This was different from any job I’ve ever had in that I was able to work with different people and understand different lifestyles and personalities,” said Roberts. “Through my years here, I’ve learned that not everybody thinks like me.

And just because they don’t think like me doesn’t mean I’m right and they’re wrong. Everybody’s different.”

After retirement, Roberts plans to spend more time doing the things she enjoys, such as reading and spending time with her seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. She also looks forward to having more time to travel as well as watching Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood for great retirement ideas.

Looking back on her career, Roberts is proud of how far she has come from her childhood in Northern Ireland. Flipping through old letters, Roberts read one that her mother sent years ago applauding her brother for being “a tycoon and having a desk with a phone and green car with two doors.”

Despite all the ups and downs, Roberts said she believes her mother would be proud to see her working in a school, a job she never imagined having.

“You may not believe me when I say I will miss the work, but this job is unlike all others,” Roberts said. “I will miss both the people and the work— because the work is all about people, the work is about lives, it’s about inspiring potential. I feel honored to have been part of that.”

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Blogs Blogs staff write short, informal articles, posted either once a week or every other week. They are centered around a specific topic, such as music or cooking. Writing a blog for the Newtonite is a way to discuss something you care about in a less formal setting, with pieces that can be as short as a few paragraphs. Blogs can also be written by two or more students, so feel free to call up your friends and talk about collaborating on a blog.

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features

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 5

Winston brings wisdom, experience, organization to administrative team Cate Waters Interim principal Amy Winston “has trust and respect from this building and the central office,” said interim principal Mark Aronson, noting that both trust and respect are important qualities in running a school and in Winston’s new job. Winston, previously science department head, will be interim vice principal for this school year.

Winston, like Aronson, hopes to help transition the school between different principals.

“We have had the same leadership for a while now, so we see it as a transition year for us at North to really think about how we keep what’s most important to us, while also supporting teachers who we know are overstressed. We are trying to think about how we can let some things go, while still maintaining the excellent education that we have here at North,” said Winston.

Additionally, Winston said her position as department head has prepared her for the multitasking and organiza-

tion that is required to be vice principal, but there will also be challenges in her new position.

For example, Winston has been able to organize her tasks in the science department, but “there will be a new set of tasks that I have to learn how to prioritize and think of what is most important for the school to function successfully,” she said.

Aronson also pointed out that she was selected for the position, in part, because she is organized and experienced.

Winston said that the biggest difference between science department head and vice principal is “that I won’t be supervising teachers, as a primary supervisor, but I will be a contributing evaluator for the librarians” and the IT department.

History department head Jonathan Bassett said he has no doubt that Winston was the right choice to be interim vice principal.

“She is super organized, super competent and really nice,” said Bassett.

Physics teacher David Me-

Jake Sims Speyer Former special education assistant department head Scott Heslin loves working with students, and now as Beals housemaster, he will have the opportunity to develop a more personal connection with his students.

Heslin filled newlyappointed interim principal Mark Aronson’s vacancy in the housemaster team beginning this school year.

Receiving the position of housemaster reinvigorated Heslin as an educator who described the promotion as giving him the opportunity to work with students personally and not just as a classroom educator. “ The main reason I am looking forward to this job,” Heslin said, is that “I will have a lot of interactions with kids.”

A 15-person panel selected Heslin after he and two other finalists participated in a daylong assessment that included interviews and a speech to this school’s Leadership in a Diverse Society class.

“There were a lot of good candidates, and I think the committee could have gone in different directions with their choice and either way, we would have had a really strong housemaster,” said Heslin.

Since beginning at North in 2003, Heslin has spent time working in multiple positions in the special education department, most recently as assistant department head, as well as co-teaching subjects including mathematics and history.

Additionally, Heslin has coached golf and girls’ ice hockey at this school.

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shoulam had a similar opinion, saying Winston is a “wonderfully caring leader. As science department chair, she has been supportive of our innovative work while also juggling many of the big-picture issues that face our department, teachers, classrooms, and students. She brings steady and thoughtful leadership into her new role as vice principal.”

Winston hopes to learn more about running a school and supporting the students and families of North. She also hopes to get to know the Newton community better.

“I really look forward to working with Mr. Aronson. We both have different strengths and skill sets so I know I will have an opportunity to learn a lot from him.”

Once the search for a new vice principal begins, “I will have to decide if I want to apply for the position moving forward or if I want to come back to department head,” said Winston.

She continued, “I have always said that I absolutely love my job as department head for

Devin Perlo

Amy Winston is a “wonderfully caring leader. As science department chair, she has been supportive of our innovative work while also juggling many of the big-picture issues that face our department, teachers, classrooms, and students,” said physics teacher David Meshoulam. science and engineering. I was a physics major in college, and science and engineering are really an important piece of who I

am and why I went into education. On the other hand, I have no idea what next year is going to be like.”

special education teacher Tracy Ryan, a colleague of Heslin. “He went above and beyond and put in countless hours outside of the school day. Mr. Heslin believes in the good that the special education department does and helped to highlight and build on our strengths.”

Moving into his new position as housemaster, Heslin noted that there are no “glaring” changes to be made. However, he still plans to contribute suggestions.

“If I have ideas that I think will be helpful, I will definitely implement them,” said Heslin.

Although Heslin said he does not have any immediate plans yet, he is excited to work with the other housemasters to continue to support students.

“I am a pretty big team player,” he said.

As with any new position,

Heslin noted that it can be challenging adjusting to a completely new routine. And in addition to the hurdles that any new job presents, Heslin is tasked with meeting and getting to know a grade of over 530 students.

According to Heslin, Aronson’s departure has left the new housemaster with large shoes to fill. Aronson is “one of the most respected people in the building by staff and by students,” noted Heslin.

“His ability to connect with everybody is unparalleled.”

Ryan said that Heslin has plenty of experience with students.

“Mr. Heslin is approachable and brings a love of the NNHS community and a ‘students first’ attitude to this leadership role,” she said.

Heslin embraces new role as housemaster

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Josh Shub-Seltzer

“Mr. Heslin is approachable and brings a love of the NNHS community and a ‘students first’ attitude to this leadership role,” said special education teacher Tracy Ryan.

“Mr. Heslin took on a tough role in the special education department during a time of change and restructuring,” said

Aronson hopes to foster comfortable environment

Josh Shub-Seltzer

All students should still expect North to “continue to be a safe, supportive, and challenging learning environment with opportunities for every student to be successful,” said interim principal Mark Aronson.

◆ continued from page 1 “Ultimately people will look to me for leadership, and I think that will be the biggest change for me. I’m expected to lead—as opposed to sitting back, and waiting for things to come my way—and I intend to do that.”

Aronson said that this school year will be different because it will provide the opportunity for the school to reflect on its programs.

“As an interim, you’re not thinking so much about the long-term; you’re trying to maintain and support the existing programs,” he said. “I won’t be bringing any new initiatives to the table, so we can look at what we do now and decide, Are these things working? Do we want to maintain them? Do we want to make changes? It’s a chance for us to do a little selfexamination while continuing the high standards we have.”

In terms of his personal goals for the school year, Aronson does not have his own agenda except to “see what people are thinking about, what they’re interested in, and then figure out how we may be able to make those things happen,” he said.

Aronson also wants to make sure everyone has a chance to voice their opinions, and encourages students and staff to feel comfortable going to see him.

“I hope to work on communication with staff, parents, and students. I think that there are staff and students who don’t necessarily feel like they have a voice sometimes,” he said. “I want to have an environment where people are comfortable sharing different ideas, and I’d love to see us get to a place where people can disagree but work together toward solutions at the same time.”

Aronson commended the strong programs that Price has built in her time here, noting that she has left the school in great shape.

“The reality is that Dr. Price has done a phenomenal job here. She has left real structures in place that will remain. If we didn’t make any changes at all, we would still be in a great place,” he said.

Price has also helped Aronson with his transition into the role of principal.

“She has been incredibly sup-

portive of me, and she’s given me a lot of her time to share information, and get me up to speed on things,” said Aronson.

“If she hadn’t taken the time to help me, I know that I would not be as prepared.”

As for whoever fills his shoes next, Aronson said he believes that it is up to them to decide how much help they need.

“I am going to work with the new principal in whatever way they are comfortable,” he said.

“I will give them as much input as I can, if that’s something they want. If they’re looking to come in and go their own way, then I will certainly let them do that. I think that they’ll decide how I can best support them.”

Aronson said he understood that consistency and teamwork are crucial to his position.

“I have to keep in mind that Dr. Fleishman asked me to do this job because of who I am. I have to remember to stay who I am, be who I am, rely on others as I always have, and count on the fact that it’s not just one person that makes a building work, it’s a community that makes a building work,” he said.

6 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 7

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

Realities of North’s Climate Change Response Green efforts leave room for student involvement The Solomon Islands have already begun to be swallowed by the sea, the polar vortex is pushing cold air from Alaska into Massachussetts (think 110 in. of snow), and president Obama recently appealed for urgent efforts to address climate change.

Although, as with any large school, North contributes to the gradual destruction of our planet’s delicate environment, the new building was constructed with many environmentally friendly systems designed to decrease its carbon footprint, conserve precious resources, and cut costs.

As growing enrollment further strains natural resources and increases waste, students may begin to ask what they can do to limit their and their school’s impact on the environment. There are areas in which North could improve. While the building does much to help conserve the environment, some changes are simply infeasible for the system as a whole.

Yet these are changes students can make themselves.

According to Newton’s sustainability director Andrew Savitz, “students at North can do many things to create a more sustainable environment.”

The following explanations detail North’s sustainability successes and areas for improvement.

Electricity, Solar Power, and Lights

Jackie Gong Solar panels, motion detector light switches, and LED lights: this school has made numerous effots to conserve electricity and money.

This June, the City of Newton worked with North to install new high-efficiency lighting in the SOA, saving 241 watts per fixture and $14,500 per year, according to Newton energy project manager Bill Ferguson.

A greenhouse gas reduction of 60 metric tons of carbon dioxide is expected from the new bulbs, which is equivalent to taking 12 passenger vehicles off the road, said Ferguson.

The school decided to install LED lights after discovering that the original lighting fixtures were failing and expensive to repair.

According to a Boston Globe article about the lights at North, “North’s electric bill runs about $750,000 a year...about 63 percent lower than it was in the old school, despite increased requirements for ventilation fans and other electrical uses.” Saving electricity in the school with environmentally-friendly lights and solar power has saved the school large amounts of money, and has also helped the city become more energy efficient.

The rest of the school also uses an energyefficient lighting system. Classrooms contain occupancy sensors that can pick up motion and body heat and turn off lights when the room has been empty for half an hour.

According to Newton Public Schools physical plant manager David Stickney, other spaces, including some offices and community spaces such as the SOA, are controlled by local switches.

The current primary areas of concern for Stickney are the corridors and emergency lighting in offices and stairwells. Newton residents who pass by the school at night may notice the school’s brightly lit hallways and staircases, which may create the impression that the school is not being as energy efficient as possible. These spaces in the school are solely controlled by a Building Automated System, however, meaning lights in these areas must be on when the building is occupied. Due to custodial presence throughout the night, these lights in the school are in use from 5 a.m. Monday to 8 a.m. Saturday, even when they are not needed.

Stickney is currently working with Ferguson to obtain funding for motion sensors in these locations as well.

The solar power used by the school has saved the city over $50,000 since July 2014.

All the electricity generated goes into the grid, and Eversource, an electric services company, credits the city.

All of these changes save the City of Newton over $1,276,000 annually.

The abundance of windows around the school provides further savings, said Chris Schaffner, founder of The Green Engineer, Inc., the green building consultant for the construction of the new building. In addition to providing natural light to classrooms that allows artificial lights to be kept off, the windows are covered with a high-performance glaze with a low-e coating, which minimizes the amount of heat the glass absorbs, to allow light in but prevent heat from passing through, said Schaffner. by

Recycling Maya Abou-Rizk “Reduce, reuse, recycle,” is a familiar phrase to people of all ages; however, despite North’s other efforts to be environmentally friendly, most recyclables do not end up being recycled.

About once a week, custodians go around the building, emptying both trash and recycling from classrooms into the same bin even though outside the loading dock there are both recycling and trash dumpsters that are emptied regularly by the city.

Junior Danae Lally took matters into her own hands this year with the idea of starting a recycling club. “After I interviewed the head custodian of North for a different club, I learned that North used to have a recycling club that was very helpful to the custodians. Unfortunately, the club did not continue once the leaders graduated,” said Lally. “So, I decided that I wanted to revive it. And although the club isn’t official yet, I plan to start by collecting the recycling for the janitors weekly.”

Graphics teacher Tom Donnellan said, “The bottom line is the custodians are overworked.

They are understaffed and should not have the responsibility of walking around the building twice to collect our waste.”

Over the years, Donnellan has seen the number of custodians employed at this school drop extensively. “The major problem with that is the amount of responsibilities they have in the school hasn’t.”

“There’s an easy solution to this problem,” he said. “Assign the job of collecting the paper from recycling bins around the school to students once a week to help out the custodians.”

According to Donnellan, he and his students fill approximately two large bins of paper a day in graphics class. To ensure that these bins are properly recycled, he gives his students the task of walking them down to the two of four large dumpsters labeled for recycling outside the loading dock.

English teacher Nick Grant said that it is important that the custodians are not blamed.

“The school/district makes it difficult for custodians to recycle,” he said. “Plus, recycling is not the custodians’ issue—it is a school/community issue.” If North is going to become more green, it is crucial, according to Grant, “that someone step up and take responsibility.”

Grant has already started to do so. In his classroom, he has separate bins for paper, cans and bottles, and trash. When the recycling bins become filled, he personally throws the paper in North’s recycling dumpster and takes the cans and bottles to the transfer center near his home in Natick.

“I try to take care of the little piece of the school that I am responsible for,” said Grant.

“I can’t control what the school does, nor can I control what my colleagues do, but I can control what I do.” by

AC and Heat Usage

Chemical Waste

Joyce If not disposed of properly, hazardous waste from chemicals used in science classes could pose serious environmental and health risks.

In order to diminish these risks, North’s science department maintains strict guidelines regarding the disposal of chemicals used in science classes.

North’s science department has a specific protocol outlining the disposal of hazardous waste, which follows the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) rules. These rules determine what chemicals can be put in the drain and what chemicals must be disposed of through Clean Harbors, the company that North uses for hazardous waste disposals.

This official protocol, distributed to science teachers, defines hazardous waste as anything containing toxic heavy metals, strong oxidizers, any acid with a pH below two, any base with a pH above 12, and any flammable liquid.

Additionally, the sheet describes how teachers are permitted to go about dumping the hazardous waste, explaining which containers to use and to label all materials dumped.

At the bottom of the protocol sheet, the “waste checklist for teachers” handily provides a step-by-step basic checklist for all teachers to follow to ensure chemical waste safety.

According to interim vice principal Amy Winston, former science deptarment head, all science teachers are trained every fall on waste management and are responsible for teaching students proper waste management for each laboratory experiment.

But even with diligent teacher supervision and training, accidents happen and the risk for improper disposal of chemicals remains. As a safety mechanism, the new building was built with an acid/base management system that neutralizes everything that flushes down the drain before it leaves the building. This system provides another defense against hazardous waste contamination.

In addition, the science department has “worked hard to redesign experiments to minimize waste,” said Winston. As a result of their efforts, she said, “We now produce much less waste and only need a waste pick-up every other year.”

Jackie Gong This building’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system bears none of the old building’s HVAC system’s issues—one of the first motivators for a new building. The current system has been far more efficient and effective than its predecessor, keeping North at a comfortable temperature while saving energy.

There are 32 air-handling units on North’s roof, serving all of the building’s spaces for heating, cooling, and air exchange according to Newton Public Schools physical plant manager David Stickney, who monitors and manages each HVAC system at all 22 of the Newton Public Schools.

Students may sometimes complain that certain floors or classrooms are noticeably warmer or chillier than others. Stickney explained that “the system reacts to occupant loads over a period of time, [such as] windows, exterior doors, or human concentration.”

Science, art, and CVTE classrooms are also required to bring in 100% outdoor air due to American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers standards, which slows reactions to outdoor temperatures and occupant loads, said Stickney.

Management of temperature settings, operation times, scheduling and manipulating programming to utilize outdoor air, makes the HVAC system very productive. Each unit only draws the energy required for maximum efficiency, allowing it to be conserved, said Stickney.

Automatically and manually controlled, the system has a “four pipe” component, meaning heating and cooling are independent of each other. To switch from air conditioning to heat, or vice versa, Stickney monitors weather trends in the spring and fall, and adjusts the programming according to predicted future weather trends.

According to Stickney, programming modifications have been made since the building began fully operating, allowing the school’s HVAC system to save 900,000 kilowatts, a 17% reduction, equivalent to the electricity usage of 90 U.S. households.

Stickney believed that, “the programs implemented afford us the best system for optimizing energy usage in our HVAC systems,” and is confident that the school has, “captured substantial reductions in electricity use without compromising occupant comfort or safety,” he said. by

by Isabel

Gray Water Paperlessness and Water Usage

by Isabel

Cate Waters Every time someone flushes the toilet, washes their hands, or cleans up from an experiment, water is used. To limit the amount of water wasted and save money, North has a gray water system to collect rainwater in order to irrigate the green space around the building and uses faucets and toilets that use less water.

According to Newton Public Schools chief of operations Michael Cronin, North’s gray water system moves rainwater from the roof into a 40,000 gallon holding tank. The water in the tank is then used to water the fields.

Architects designed the system for the new building in 2010, making North the only building in Newton to have a gray water system in place, according to Cronin.

Additionally, architects designed ultra low flow toilets and urinals that conserve water on each flush.

The toilets at North use approximately one gallon of water per flush, while older toilets typically use three to five gallons per flush. The low flow toilets perform the job of a normal flush toilet while saving water.

In some Newton schools the faucets are sensor activated, said Cronin, and the use of sensor activated faucets makes sure that water only comes out when people need the water.

Also, the faucets cannot be left on when no one is using them.

Aerators, which are on the faucets at North, mix air into the water to prevent splash and to use less water. Aerators also limit the amount of water coming out of the faucet.

All of the systems in place limit the amount of water that is wasted. This allows the city to conserve this limited resource and lower its water bill. by

Joyce As the world as a whole shifts online, major newspapers now have online publications, retailers expand their online shopping options, and people connect, communicate, and socialize online. North, as well, has followed this trend, beginning its paperless evolution in conjunction with the completion of the new building in 2010.

The paperless trek began with the jump in 2010 from every news announcement mailed home to only two letters sent home during the first half of the school year with final report cards mailed in June. The following year, the only letters mailed were schedules to rising freshmen. Now, information reaches families through ParentConnect.

This school’s newspaper, the Newtonite, which issued print copies every two weeks, also switched to online in September 2012, limiting print editions to four times a year.

For students, the switch from paper to online has more advantages than disadvantages. The ability to complete homework online reduces the load students carry to and from school and allows for homework to be done “easily on the go,” said junior Kris Collins.

“More and more I find myself bringing my laptop to school in order to type up notes or assignments,” said junior Irene Wu. “Not only is it more environmentally friendly, but [it’s] an easier, more compact way to organize all of my work.”

Wu also noted that despite the shift to online information, the school still uses paper textbooks, which are “heavy, non-interactive, and a huge paper waste when outdated.” And even though students are provided with a textbook at the start of every year, Wu said that she uses the digital versions of her textbooks whenever possible.

On the other hand, sophomore Sam Kesselman said that he still believes that the use of paper in school is unavoidable. “In the end, when homework online is complete, it has to be printed so no one wins. The same amount of paper is wasted, but ink is also wasted.”

Composting

Cate Waters Every day, after lunchtime is over, the waste from thousands of lunches stuff the trash cans.

Ways to mitigate this waste have been considered, according to Newton Food Service director Solange Morrissette, who said she would be interested in beginning composting at North, but “it would be a district decision, because there is expense involved with composting.”

In the Tiger’s Loft, the culinary teachers try to reduce food waste as much as possible. “We make stock from scratch so the majority of our food scraps/prep are reserved for stock,” said culinary arts instructor Lisa McKinney. “What isn’t used for stock comes home with me for my animals and the Natick Community Farm, where I am a volunteer.”

Newton Public Schools chief of operations Michael Cronin said that “as for large scale composting, we have explored this avenue, but we haven’t yet figured out a process which we feel would be successful.”

Morrissette also said that she is a strong believer in composting and was involved in pushing composting at a previous district she worked in. There, Morrissette said the department of public works came and took away the food waste from the schools. “Unfortunately the city itself discontinued it because it got so expensive to haul the leftover food away.”

But as Morissette has experienced, composting can be difficult to implement in schools.

Morrissette said that the main problem she had with composting was trying to find someone to take that composted food away.

In any case, Morrissette said, “We don’t throw out a lot in the kitchen itself.”

Schools have few options to begin composting. They can either pay for the food to be hauled away and composted off-site, or they can purchase a composting machine to do it themselves.

Both are costly, according to Morrissette.

Once composting is set up at a school, it can also be hard to teach the students how to separate food scraps from trash. Depending on where the compost is going, what can be included may vary.

For instance, if the composted food is going to an animal farmer it must be made up of only food.

Compost brought to the Newton composting center at the Rumford Avenue recycling depot can contain inedible products like cardboard, but cannot contain meat, grain, dairy, or oilbased food products.

Because composting would be difficult for the city to begin at North, Cronin said that “another item we are looking into is a dehydrator.

This unit would take the day’s food waste and extract all the fluids sending them down the drain while leaving the remaining solids as ash.

The food bulk is reduced 99%. We are considering these units in the new elementary schools.” by

designed by

Maria Trias

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8 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

A Tour Of Newton North SOA

Career & Tech. Ed.

Simulated Outdoor Area

Gym

Pool

Cafeteria

Lecture Hall

ADAMS

Tiger Drive

Tiger’s Loft

TV Pr

Deck

perch

Fitness Center

Auditorium

Design

ion Observat

Little Theatre

1

Graphics Photo ART

Riley

Chorus

Greengineering

Main Office

Nurse Film

Plowshares

Theatre Entrance

Band

Language Lab Ba rr y

o du ct

2

io n

the New ton

ite

BEALS

World Languages

Library Learning Commons

Stadium Theatre

Athletics

English & History Business

Walnut Street EDCO

3 Computer Lab

ELL

MusicLab

ring ouse Sco Greenh

Math & Science

Pe r Tutorein g

4 Computer Lab

Map by Maria Trias

Check us out online at:

the

Newtonite.com

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 9

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

How much do you know about North?

Student advice: For freshmen:

“I would say do something after school whether it’s a sport, play, or X-block. Don’t skip your study halls.”

—sophomore Kevin Seuch “Do be ready to try new things, and keep an open mind. Don’t expect to keep all of your friends from middle school, and don’t only hang around people you know. Lastly, bring tons of extra lined paper if you want friends.”

—sophomore Ben Schwartz “Do tape your schedule to the front of your planner, and don’t forget to charge your phone overnight.”

—sophomore Carrieanne Mamba

For sophomores:

“I’d say to focus on yourself in every way. You can help no one but yourself.”

—junior Gina Bellevue “Make sure you take advantage of X-blocks. That doesn’t only mean meeting teachers but using the library as well.”

—junior Nick Zhang “Do things that make you happy, don’t do things because society expects you to.”

—junior Gabe Jasper

For juniors:

“We made it through junior year, so you can too.”

—senior Victoria Spitaels

“Have your SAT and ACT test schedule planned out so you can balance school and the tests.”

—senior Nick Johnson “Don’t stress about junior prom—it’s not as great as you want it to be. Be a role model for sophomores and freshmen since you’ll be leading the school soon enough.”

—senior Eleonore Kugener

For seniors:

“Make sure to do CAPS. It allows you to explore nearly anything and is a guaranteed highlight of high school. With that, don’t pass up opportunities to try/experience new things that won’t necessarily be available after high school.

For me, the best parts of senior year involved various activities that I had only begun that year.”

—Alex Klavens ’15 “Do try new things. Especially second semester, there’s a lot of free time. Don’t waste it; find a new passion and pursue it, through a new club, through CAPS, or through your classes. Don’t choose colleges based on rankings.

It’s really easy to choose an Ivy League school just because it’s an Ivy League, but really think about what colleges are right for you. In the end, your drive is more important than your school.”

—Daniel Ruttenberg ’15

Antoine’s Pastry Shop Specializing in Italian, American, and French Pastry 317 Watertown Street Newton, Mass., 02458

Across 2. Beals’ new housemaster 3. One of the two middle schools that feeds to North 5. The type of board in every classroom at North 7. Number of continents North students visited this summer (see pg. 10) 8. Day homeroom announcements are made at North 10. Nickname for the area outside the cafeteria 12. North lost in the final round of this show in season six 13. The joint North-South team that placed at the First Worldwide Robotics Competition 14. The CVTE department head

16. The title of this year’s One School One Book 19. Number of fall sports at North 21. The fine and performing arts department head 26. This school’s gospel choir 28. Our school color, along with black 29. The other high school in Newton 30. One of the two middle schools that feeds to North

Down 1. The student-run restaurant at North 4. The lights installed in the SOA over the summer 6. The Newtonville bakery that closed over the summer 9. This school’s newspa-

per 11. The Mexican restaurant in Newtonville 15. The interim vice principal 17. The interim principal 18. Theatre Ink’s December musical 20. The street north of North 22. North’s rank in Newsweek’s high school ranking in MA 23. A popular place for North students to work and eat 24. Our school mascot 25. The century the seniors were born in 27. The team North plays against in the Thanksgiving football game 29. The village of Newton that North is located in

(617) 527-6747 (617) 527-9193 1-800-266-6747

www.AntoinePastryShop.com

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10 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

North students travel around world this summer Peru “We went to a Quechua community where they only spoke Quechua. The community dressed us in their traditional clothing and threw flower petals on us. They were very nice and welcoming. We made our lunch in a pit of hot stones and tried alpaca and guinea pig.”

—sophomore Jacob Jampel

file photo

Senior Sammy LeBrasseur visits Tetouan, a city in northern Morocco and the former capital of the Spanish protectorate of Morocco.

Morocco “It’s basically my second home because my mom is from there. The country [has a] relaxed and very familial lifestyle. It’s considered normal to just go knock on someone’s door. This is the most underrated part about Morocco.”

—senior Sammy LeBrasseur

file photo

file photo

Sophomore Jacob Jampel visits a remote Quechua community in the Andes.

This statue of Heracles is part of the Antalya Archaelogical Museum’s collection.

Turkey “In the southern city of Antalya, there’s a very small museum filled with ancient artifacts all found in the city. There are statues of Greek gods and goddesses and clothes worn in the Ottoman era.”

—junior Isinsu Bastepe

Key Countries North students visited this summer

Cambodia “One night, we visited a small community of homes all on the side of the water. One school must pump out water daily to keep afloat. Two of its classrooms are now underwater.

[This] helped to put things in perspective for me.”

—senior Aaron Schwartz

Canada “It was incredible. It’s a great experience to use the language you’re studying at school outside of the classroom. My favorite part was experiencing all the new food. My favorite foods were poutine and croburgers.”

—junior Noah Gilman

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Croburgers, burgers on croissants instead of bread, are popular in Montreal.

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Two Cambodian children pose for a photo in Battambong City, Cambodia.

Australia “I went to Mt. Buller in Victoria for a ski camp.

The area was very cool and the vegetation was unusual. We also went to the Gold Coast. It’s a beautiful area with some of the best waves I have ever surfed.”

—sophomore Frazier Bourgoin

file photo

Sophomore Frazier Bourgoin skis down Mt. Buller in Australia.

Norway “My grandparents live in northern Norway above the Arctic Circle. We traveled up to our cabin to do some construction work, fish in the lake, and cut down a few trees.[Those] are big parts of Norwegian culture. [My family cooked] a full leg of lamb on stones in a ditch underground. [It file photo was] the most tender cooked meat The sun sets over the City of Trømso in northern Norway.

I’ve ever eaten.”

—senior Thomas Gunnberg Sundheim compiled by Camille Bowman, Maya Metser, and Maria Trias

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Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 11

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12â—† Newtonite, Newton North

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Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2015

Close to home?

Superior medical, surgical and specialty care?

Convenient access to top-quality physicians?

Friendly, caring staff?

Collaboration programs with Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s?

however you choose a hospital...

the answer is yes.

Choose Newton-Wellesley Hospital for all your health care needs. For more information about our programs and services or to locate a physician, call CareFinder at (866) NWH-DOCS (694-3627) or visit www.nwh.org.