Vol88i6 by The Newtonite

Ligerbots, EDCO team compete at national level—See page 9

Newtonite

Non-proﬁt org. US postage paid Newton, Mass. Permit no. 55337

Newton North High School, 360 Lowell Ave., Newtonville, Mass. 02460

◆ Friday, May 1, 2009 • Volume 88, Issue 6

Teddy Wenneker

Student Faculty Administration Board members voted 18-3 to extend the restrictions on sophomore open campus to juniors. The measure makes juniors

who earn D’s, F’s, N’s and/or I’s ineligible for open campus. This week, the board heard a proposal from Riley housemaster Mark Aronson about ﬁeld trips.

Juniors will need to earn open campus

REBECCA HARRIS Only those juniors in good academic standing with satisfactory attendance will have open campus next year. Wednesday, April 15, the Student Faculty Administration Board voted 18-3 in favor of junior Camilla Jackson’s proposal to give juniors the same open campus restrictions that are in place for second-semester sophomores. “Good academic standing consists of a grade of C- or better in each class,” the proposal says. Juniors who earn D’s, F’s, N’s and/or I’s will be ineligible for open campus. “It seems counterintuitive to allow students who are struggling academically to have open campus,” the proposal says. “We have clearly identiﬁed an achievement BY

gap at North, and this proposal focuses on closing that gap.” Out of 466 sophomores, 173 did not qualify for open campus in the fourth term, according to Principal Jennifer Price. Acting housemaster for the Class of ’11, Annie Blais, will chair a committee to discuss how to make sophomore studies more productive, Price said. The committee will be open to all students and faculty, she said. Calling for “thoughtful implementation” of the policy, Price cited increased computer access as a possible improvement. “Small changes may actually be big,” she said. Price said that there hasn’t been a formal decision about which grades — ﬁnal or fourth term — to use to determine a student’s eligibility.

“The consensus among housemasters was that it should be the year grades,” she said. The measure emphasizes the value this school places on academics, Price said. “These are my core values,” she said. “There are things as a leader that you really stand behind.” Riley housemaster Mark Aronson said this proposal will allow students to talk with adults about academic performance. “I think we need to create opportunities for juniors and staff to have conversations,” he said. Senior Philip Engelke and sophomores Jared Kalow and Emma Leader, all on the SFA, voted against the proposal. Leader said the measure is disciplinary rather than supportive.

“It doesn’t matter how many times you say in here that it isn’t punitive,” she said. “It is.” The board also discussed a proposal from Engelke that would have required students who are struggling academically to meet with their counselors. “Simply imposing a policy on students who have received D’s, F’s, N’s or I’s ignores the fact that these students are having trouble for different reasons and plans must be made for them on a case-by-case basis,” Engelke’s proposal says. Five sophomores who are not on the SFA were present at the April 15 meeting to show their interest in the issue, said sophomore Sachi Hashimoto, who attended. At this week’s meeting, Aronson proposed higher standards

for field trip eligibility. To be eligible for field trips that involve missing more than one day of school, students would have to receive a C- or above in all their classes and “demonstrate good citizenship,” the proposal says. However, students participating in field trips that are considered curriculum requirements would not have to meet these standards, it says. “The philosophy behind it is not to exclude kids or prevent them from participating in activities,” Aronson said. “This proposal is another way to make conversations happen.” Price said that this proposal would not affect foreign exchanges because all exchanges already have this requirement. ◆See related opinion page 2.

MATT KALISH When the School Committee passed next year’s $164.4 million budget Tuesday night, it avoided what principal Jennifer Price termed a “worst-case scenario.” Instead of losing 13.9 FTEs, both high schools will lose a combined total of seven FTEs. “I was very pleased that the School Committee understood what the impact of losing 13.9 FTEs would be and restored a significant number of them,” Price said. Also, instead of what the superintendent’s ofﬁce called “extremely high class sizes,” the increases will be more moderate, Price said. “I feel that this is a critical time for the preservation of the depth of our programs,” Price said. Losing 13.9 FTEs would have caused a signiﬁcant impact on the quality of this high school, she said. Even with the reduction of FTE

cuts, the school will eliminate or condense some programs, she said. The electrical program will be cut, and levels of world language classes will be combined, Price said. On campus programs might also be fewer next year, she said. The physical education requirement will still change from seven semesters to ﬁve. Also in next year’s budget, an additional $100,000 will go to textbooks and the restoration of funds to per pupil allocation. Additional money from federal funding, additional allocation from the city and a decrease in health insurance rates add more than $1.8 million in available funds to the FY 10 budget. Tuesday’s vote ended a long period of discussion among the mayor David Cohen, the School Committee and superintendent

Jeff Young, said School Committee chair Marc Laredo. “The process was very lengthy because of the high level of uncertainty with the actual money we had to work with,” he said. “When we learned how much we had to work with, we had to ﬁgure out how to spend the money and where to allocate it. “The situation we were dealing with was very similar to what other towns also had to cope with because while additional money was coming from the federal stimulus plan, budgets were being cut because of a reduction in state aid.” Because the exact amount of state aid Newton will receive is uncertain, the School Committee is holding $750,000 in reserve funds. These reserve funds would pay for a system-wide study, additional funds for musical instruments and science equipment, and one high school FTE.

Fewer cuts to personnel, programs in FY10 budget BY

courtesy Edan Laniado

In Beijing on a music tour: Junior Ryan Vona stands with primary school children after a concert. See story page 3.

opinion

2 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Friday, May 1, 2009

Students need to take responsibility for themselves

utting students in a study hall does not necessarily mean that the students will seek help, and giving them open campus does not necessarily mean that they won’t. Before vacation, the Student Faculty Administration Board voted to give juniors the same open campus restrictions as are currently in place for secondsemester sophomores. According to principal Jennifer Price, 173 out of 466 sophomores did not qualify for open campus in the fourth term because they earned D’s, F’s, N’s and/or I’s in the third. Newton North’s mission

editorial

says the school provides students with “the opportunity and freedom to discover and reach their potential as individuals.” Clearly, too many students are not reaching their full potential. The new measure the SFA passed emphasizes the need to improve students’ academic achievement. We are pleased to see that the SFA has established an Implementation Committee to try to improve study halls. Currently, for instance, getting permission to leave study halls to see a speciﬁc teacher help can be a lengthy,

arduous process, as there is currently no set procedure to follow. In order to truly make a difference for students, this committee needs to improve study hall procedures so that students can get the help they need. Computer access and teacher access are both important. Students just have too much at stake to opt for Newtonville rather than trying their hardest and working toward a better future for themselves. In current economic times, being without a postsecondary education greatly limits options in later life. Ultimately, it falls to the students to help themselves.

Julia Belamarich

Existing study halls don’t help students grow.

School, SFA need to communicate better T

PHILIP ENGELKE he Student Faculty Administration Board takes pride in its supposed openness to the school community. Observers are allowed to attend meetings, and SFA policy gives them the right to speak before the board. Unfortunately, however, the SFA is not as transparent as it should be, and consequently there is a general lack of accountability in the SFA. Students and faculty at this school can be greatly affected by the resolutions passed by the SFA. For example, the SFA just passed a measure that takes open campus privileges away from juniors next year with averages of D, F, N or I. These students will be assigned to study halls when they do not have classes. The rationale for the proposal is to provide an incentive for juniors to work harder academically. Is this idea the best way to help students academically? Maybe, but not necessarily. Keep in mind that most of the members of the SFA have not BY

guest column

experienced academic trouble. Do they know what second semester sophomore study halls are like, the closest existing analogy to the proposed junior study halls? No. Not one member of the SFA has been in one.

Lack of shared experiences

So although the SFA is trying its best to help students who need help, the SFA does not necessarily know the best means for achieving those ends. In addition, people on the SFA can make decisions that could negatively affect certain students or even be considered unfair simply because the majority of the school community does not know what is happening in the SFA. Therefore, to a certain degree, the SFA lacks accountability. Several weeks ago, the SFA voted down a proposal to allow sophomores to leave the cafeteria when they have a cancelled class, as juniors and seniors are currently allowed to do. The reason for voting against the proposal was sensible enough:

Newtonite The Newtonite, founded in 1922, is the newspaper of Newton North High School, 360 Lowell Ave., Newtonville, Mass. 02460. Editors in chief — Eli Davidow, Matt Kalish, Ellen Sarkisian News editor — Marena Cole Arts editor — Alicia Zhao Feature editors — Emily Amaro, Jay Krieger On campus editor — Olivia Stearns Sports editors— Meredith Abrams, Josh Bakan Photography editors — Shira Bleicher, Gaby Perez-Dietz, Teddy Wenneker Graphics managers — Prateek Allapur, Peter Taber-Simonian Advertising managers — Joe Connors, Chris Keefe Business manager — Chris Welch Circulation managers — Caleb Gannon, Dan Salvucci Exchanges editor — Georgina Teasdale Adviser — Helen Smith Production advisers — Sue Brooks, Tom Donnellan

News staff — Rebecca Harris, Rebecca Oran Features staff — Jacob Brunell Sports staff — Evan Clements, Nicole Curhan, Emmett Greenburg, Jeremy Gurvitz, Becca Oran, Elliot Raff Arts staff — Eliana Eskinazi, Kate Lewis News analysis staff — Kellynette Gomez Art staff — Julia Belamarich, Puloma Ghosh, Anna Kaertner, Hannah Schon Photography staff — Anna Gargas, Helen Gao, Jaryd JusticeMoote, Lucy Mazur-Warren, Jesse Tripathi Circulation staff — Spencer Alton, Jackie Assar, Rebecca Kantar, Sydney Massing-Schaffer, Stoddard Meigs, Brooke Stearns, Daniel Tabib Production staff — John Synott, Alison Wu

The Newtonite staff brings 16 issues a year to camera readiness for a circulation of 3,000 and goes on line daily during the academic year. To place an ad in the Newtonite or contact us by phone, please call 617-559-6274. Yearly subscriptions cost $20. Readers can also reach us at Newtonite@newton.k12.ma.us. To ﬁnd the Newtonite online go to www.thenewtonite.com

There simply is not enough room in the library for more students. But the SFA could at least have given the issue more thought. If more of the sophomores had been aware of the proposal, and they knew which representatives supported it and which representatives opposed it, the situation might have been different. And currently, another proposal is being discussed that would restrict students from going on multi-day ﬁeld trips on the basis of their grades. This proposal seems like a slippery slope to me, especially when the SFA is discussing these things without most of the school community knowing. Representatives ought to represent their constituents. But what kind of accountability do representatives have if students do not know the positions their representatives are taking?

If more students did know their representatives’ positions, would they re-elect the same people? For a body that has so much direct inﬂuence over everyday life at this school, it is especially important to make great efforts at transparency. At the same time, the school community should try harder to be informed about what happens in the SFA. I admit that the SFA bulletin board and suggestion box that I proposed in December have failed to achieve the intended level of awareness within the school community about the happenings in the SFA.

7 a.m. meetings too early for most

What should be done then? For one thing, having meetings at 7 a.m. is not particularly conductive to attracting observers from the school community.

That is not to say that the timing of the meetings was not carefully thought out, for good reasons, but it is something to consider. Secondly, there should be more effort on the part of the SFA to announce what it is doing to as many people as possible. A combination of a more frequently updated bulletin board, mentions of SFA debates on the Wednesday announcements, and perhaps an SFA Facebook group where students could communicate and argue with representatives could help promote transparency and accountability. And lastly, the school community ought to care more. What the SFA does can affect you directly, and you have the ability to speak out about your ideas. So be aware. Be active. It is your responsibility. SFA meetings are Wednesdays at 7 in the library.

Administrators discuss impact of a new superintendent MARENA COLE aving a new superin tendent will change the Newton Public Schools and could change this school in particular. With superintendent Jeff Young leaving to work in Cambridge after 11 years in Newton, school and school system administrators Newtonian gave their comJon Bassett ments about what could happen here. Jon Bassett, history and social sciences department head: “The superintendent sets the tone and management style for the entire district. “His or her priorities and style inﬂuence the leadership team of every school by giving us a sense of what matters to the district and what’s less important.” Tom Fabian, English department head: “Dr. Young really moved the district into a new era when he came nearly 15 years ago. “At that time, this school was just getting exposed to MCAS and standards based teaching, as well as moving ahead with efforts to BY

symposium include as many students as possible in mainstream classrooms. I think a new superintendent will have to think about how we move on from those realities, which are here to stay. Any new superintendent would certainly have to consider how as an institution we help all students develop the skills they ’ll need in the 21st century.” Nancy Marrinucci, world language department head: “Through his or her leadership, a superintendent estabNewtonian lishes a vision Nancy for the school Marrinucci district and works with the leadership team: principals, department heads, and coordinators to implement that vision. “He or she also works to provide the support and resources that the schools need to effectively implement that vision.” Ed Mulligan, EDCO director: “Dr. Young has been very sup-

portive of the EDCO program here and at Day Middle school. I hope that the new superintendent will place the same value on having the EDCO program here in Newton.” Cheryl Turgel, Newton Teachers Association president : “I don’t believe having a new superintendent will affect Newton North, initially, in any signiﬁcant way, since the leader of your school is your principal, Jen Price. As far as the new building, I would hope that it would not affect it in any signiﬁcant way either, since the project is well on its way to being completed.” — ELI DAVIDOW CONTRIBUTED TO THIS STORY.

Letters Readers are invited to submit guest articles and letters to the editor. Letters should be put in the Newtonite box in Beals House or emailed to newtonite@newton.k12. ma.us. The Newtonite reserves the right to edit all letters, which must have the writer’s name, class and homeroom. The Newtonite serves as a forum for student opinion.

news

Friday, May 1, 2009

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 3

Musicians visit Jingshan School MARENA COLE In the Forbidden City Concert Hall musicians from this school and from Jingshan combined for a rousing performance, including John Philip Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever.” Sophomore Anna Kaertner, a cellist, called the performance “amazing.” “It was a huge stage that seated about 1,000 people,” she said. “There was a huge banner that said ‘Welcome’ to us on it.” Seventeen musicians from this school left for Beijing Thursday, April 16 for a visit with Newton’s sister school in China and returned Saturday, April 25. With them were assistant principal Deborah Holman, music teacher Sheldon Reid and ﬁne arts department head Todd Young. The students gave the concert in the Forbidden City Tuesday, April 21 and performed in a Jingshan branch school in the Beijing suburbs Thursday, April 23. Sophomore Annie Gombosi, a violist, said sightseeing was one BY

courtesy Edan Laniado

At Olympic stadium: Sophomore Edan Laniado, a pianist and a singer, goes sightseeing.

of the best parts of the trip. The group went to the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven and the Lama Temple, she said. Another great aspect of staying in China was spending time with host families, she said. “They were so generous and hospitable,” Gombosi said. “It was so nice to just be a part of their home life.” Young said the best part of the trip was sharing music between students from China and from this school. “Being a music group, the goal was to immerse ourselves in the culture, to share our music and to learn from the Chinese students as well,” Young said. Shared selections included a contemporary gospel, “Kumbaya,” “Be Like Him,” an African folk piece arranged by Kirk Franklin, and “One More Time,” a traditional spiritual, along with pieces that ranged from Mozart to ragtime to Broadway. “It really shows you the power of music,” Young said.

Massillon students complete this year’s exchange EMILY AMARO Junior Laura Valley said that her exchange student from Paris pointed out aspects of the culture here as different. For instance, Valley’s exchange student, Camille Drouet, said Newton North is less strict than Massillon. Drouet also said that this school is “enormous—huge. I just can’t understand how people can’t get lost.” From April 4 to 24, 21 Massillon students attended classes, went sightseeing in Boston and stayed with Newton North host families. Newton North students had been in France in February with Massillon hosts. While the Massillon students BY

Matt Kalish

Visiting the Newtonite: Franck Mudiayi works on an article in room 101 for Mirettes, this school’s French publication.

Committee seeks nominations for Elicker Award

MARENA COLE Nominations for the Paul E. Elicker Award for excellence in teaching are due Monday, May 18, said Alieu Jobe, a teacher of French. The 12-member Elicker Committee, which Jobe chairs, includes parents, students and faculty. “ We read the nomination forms from students and parents and link them to the criteria that , we’re looking for,” Jobe said. The forms are available in the library, house ofﬁces, the Tiger’s Loft, the cafeteria and the school website, nnhs.newton.k12.ma.us, he said. Criteria include an appreciation and knowledge of subject matter and overall excellence in teaching, he said. “Winners are not based on the number of nominations, but on how the teachers have affected students in their teaching careers,” he said. “Everybody should think seriously about nominating someone who has a positive impact on their life. “That’s what we’re looking for.” People can drop off completed forms in Jobe’s mailbox in Adams house or email them to him, he said. In honor of Paul E. Elicker, BY

in brief principal of Newton High from 1932-1949, his son, Paul Elicker ‘40, established the award in 1991. Since then, two teachers have received the award each year.

Junior semi-formal next Saturday night

PRATEEK ALLAPUR Juniors will have their semiformal dance next Saturday starting at 7 at t h e Pa r a d i s e Rock Club in Boston, said Eliana Eskinazi, the class Newtonian president. Eliana Planning Eskinazi the dance with Eskinazi are the Class of ’10 vice presidents: Rocco Donohue, Scott Giusti, Eddie McAuliffe and Zoe Talkin. Eskinazi said the dance will be during a week of AP testing, but that she hopes students will attend and have fun for one night, despite the fact that it is during a stressful season. “We hope all juniors can take a night off to dance the night away,” she said. Tickets cost $50 and are on sale through Monday. A bus will be available to and BY

from school the night of the dance without extra charge, Eskinazi said. Space on the bus is on a ﬁrstcome, first-served basis, she said.

Intro. Physics exam to be in late May

MATT KALISH So that teachers can better assess what to emphasize in the final week before the June Physics MCAS, the freshmen will take their physics final in late May, principal Jennifer Price said. “The Academic Standards Committee voted to allow this exception so fewer freshmen fail the Physics MCAS, a requirement to graduate,” she said. Freshmen will take the final during two regular blocks during the end of May, Price said. “All of the freshman teachers will have to make a sacrifice because we have asked that they not assign homework during this time,” she said. “It is very tough when students fail the Physics MCAS because they have two high-stakes, intensive MCAS tests during their sophomore year.” Also, according to the Academic Standards Committee report, “The Phyics MCAS differs from the English and math exams because it is a specific, end-of-course exam, focused on particular content. “English and math, by conBY

junior Will Zhang “The exchange is good because it gives students a chance to broaden their horizons about different cultures.”

were here, they went on a skywalk in the Prudential Center, walked the Freedom Trail, took a tour of Harvard University, traveled to New York City, and visited Plimoth Plantation, the John F. Kennedy Library and the Museum of Fine Arts. Junior Will Zhang said it was trast, are more general exams that test certain key skills with less prescribed content.”

Environmental Club begins school-wide recycling system

MARENA COLE To create a more efﬁcient and organized system of recycling in the building, the Environmental Club is putting recycling bins in every homeroom, said senior Trevor Romich, an ofﬁcer. “In the past, the school’s recycling system hasn’t worked,” Romich said, citing a lack of bins in the school. “We’re providing homerooms Newtonian with cardTrevor board recycling Romich bins.” Every Thursd a y, h o m e rooms can bring their recycling to larger recycling bins in the hallways, and there will also be bins for both bottles and cans, he said. Environmental Club members will take the larger bins to be picked up and recycled later in the day, Romich said. “The recycling program has been a responsibility of the club up until now,” Romich said. “It hasn’t been an effective system. BY

fun showing the exchange students around. “The exchange is good because it gives students a chance to broaden their horizons about different cultures,” he said. Zhang said that he enjoyed getting to know his exchange student, Franck Mudiayi, because he is from another part of the world. “Everyone is very similar even though we are from different places,” Zhang said. Fiona Blyth, a teacher of French, said that Parisian and Newton students have developed a wonderful relationship. The exchange dates from 1978. “Recycling is good for the school and the environment. We hope to start this as soon as we have enough cardboard bins for every homeroom.” Romich said the program will begin over the next few weeks. The club meets X-2 in 202.

College admissions to be focus of program

REBECCA ORAN To educate juniors and their parents about the college admissions process, the counseling department will give a program Wednesday, May 13, from 7 to 8:30 in Lasker Auditorium. Admissions ofﬁcers from Tufts, U. Mass. Amherst and Wheaton will be here, said Irmhild Liang, a career center counselor. “They will discuss the process of applying to college and what they are looking for in the application process,” Liang said. “Each of the representatives will describe their college’s ideal transcript, curriculum, admission testing policies, essay and other qualities of admissions. “Each college values different aspects of the process, and we hope the night will help to clear up confusion among types of schools and help to show the differences.” Career center director Brad McGowan will facilitate the panel, and there will be a chance for juniors and parents to ask questions, Liang said. BY

arts

4 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Friday, May 1, 2009

Seniors present their best work in exhibit

Three artists won keys in Boston Globe Scholastic competition ALICIA ZHAO epresenting the culmination of four years of work, the Senior Art Show serves to put a cap on the students’ efforts here, art teacher Shannon Slattery said. “Students created the artwork and did the publicity and hanging for the show,” she said. “The whole event is student-organized and student-produced.” Three of the pieces won honors at the Boston Globe Scholastic Art Awards. Angelina Zhou’s drawing, “Interior Space,” received a Gold Key. The drawing focuses on a closet with its door open so that the clothes hanging inside are visible. Right behind the door is a book shelf filled with dolls, books and porcelain. By sketching her room, a truly personal place, Zhou is letting the viewers into her world. Nolan Gargas’ untitled photograph is a Silver Key winner. It shows a girl standing in the middle of a field. The field and the dark sky above it take up most of the picture, making the girl comparatively small. Gazing into the distance, the girl tries to reach a destination. But the sky and the field seem to end elsewhere, coaxing the girl to go there instead. This image conveys hope and determination, showing viewers the bigger picture with its proportions. Emma Kornetsky’s photo graph, “Bridge in Berkshires,” also won a Silver Key. It shows a view from a bridge’s supporting beams. Emphasizing depth, the scene starts out clear and crisp but becomes blurry as the viewer tries to look further into the picture. Such a perspective suggests a lucid present, yet a worrisome future. Among the other highlights BY

Gaby Perez-Dietz

In the library: Freshmen Nellie Robinson and Allison Wu admire artwork in the Senior Art Show.

review of the art show are Jasmine Pullen-Schmidt’s drawing, “Apples,” which illustrates an apple in six stages. As the stages progress, bites into the apple increase— The ﬁrst few bites are clear to see, but as more bites appear in the apple, the change is less obvious. Because change is a gradual process, this image seems to hint at how people tend to overlook significant changes until they

compare the current state of something to what it was like in the beginning. Another interesting work, “Untitled,” a black and white photograph by Melanie Segal, captures water shooting out of a drinking fountain. The water seems to ﬂow on and on, creating a pool on the surface of the sink. This simple, every day moment seems much more significant in the photograph than in real life, portraying what one can notice by stop-

ping and appreciating the small things. Providing an unusual point of view, Erica Efstratoudakis’ pastel, “Untitled,” displays a human body from the back. With a red background, the body is also mostly red mixed with gray and white. The viewer can see the body physically, and at the same time, decipher emotions through the texture and color of the piece. For their portfolios, ﬁve of the seniors received scholarships

from the Newton Art Association Thursday, April 16, Slattery said. At ﬁrst place, Robin Hayashi won $500, and as honorable mentions, Leah Medin, PullenSchmidt, Fiona Stoltze and Zhou each won $100. Also, there will be an exhibition tea Friday from 4 to 6 in the art department, art teacher Sandra Truant said. “We’re displaying the art department’s work from this year,” she said.

Small ensembles concert to be in little theatre Sunday ALICIA ZHAO Small ensembles will perform Sunday at noon in the little theatre, ﬁne arts department head Todd Young said. “Unlike at concerts for our larger ensembles, the audience will get to listen to chamber music up close and personal,” he said. “It will be more intimate.” Music teacher Adam Grossman will conduct String Ensemble, Young said. Orchestra students auditioned for the group in February. The program will be an nounced at the concert. Brass Ensemble will perform under the direction of Ed Harney, a professional trumpet player. On its program are “Fanfare” BY

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Todd Young “The little theatre gives small ensembles an appropriate venue to express their music” by Charles Falken and “Canzon Pian’e Forte” by Giovanni Gabriel, Harney said. “The ﬁrst piece is a brass fanfare written by a student at MIT for his commencement,” he said. “The second piece is an octet originally written for two voice choirs.” Additionally, Young said, he expects that senior Mariam Raffeld, junior Amalia Golomb-Leavitt, sophomores Anne Gombosi and Caroline Ellison and freshman Anna Kaertner will perform the first and third movements of Mozart’s “Oboe Quartet.”

Young said the group also played the quartet during its trip to the Jingshan School in Beijing during vacation. “One of the great things about the ﬁne arts department is that we give a lot of opportunities for students to perform,” Young said. “The greater challenge is where and when all these students will perform. The little theatre gives small ensembles an appropriate venue to express their music.” Tickets cost $5 at the door. special message

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arts

Friday, May 1, 2009

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 5

Conservator says art needs special care JAY KRIEGER OLIVIA STEARNS All 85,000 of the art objects in the Rhode Island School of Design museum need care and cleaning—sometimes with toothpicks and special brushes, said Ingrid Neuman, a conservator and a Newton North parent. Taking care of art also means doing annual checkups on it, and monitoring the light and heat of the rooms where it is on display, she said. “What can be the most damaging to art is the oil in your ﬁngers,” she said. “The conservators must wear cotton gloves when handling art. “Not only do your fingers damage paintings, but they can permanently damage metal sculptures by leaving a neverfading ﬁngerprint that shows up years later.” Conservators also use distilled water and saliva that has no acid in it for cleaning artifacts, she BY

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on campus

said. “We use brushes similar to those of cosmetic brushes to clean the art because we need soft bristles to ensure that we don’t damage anything,” Neuman said. Art also needs to be checked frequently to avoid insect infestations, she said. Neuman, who gave a Huntington lecture here January 8, returned to speak with students and faculty about her work Thursday, April 9 in the little theatre. A sculpture conservator at RISD, she is collections care instructor in the Graduate Museum Studies Program at Tufts, has worked at the Smithsonian and the Museum of Fine Arts, and has had her own conservation business for nine years in Newton. Her current project is repairing a 1,000-year-old hollow wooden Buddha. “An art conservator takes

care of sculptures and paintings in storage and on the museum ﬂoor,” Neuman said. “Most museums only show about three percent of their art and keep the rest in storage. “What a lot of people don’t know about art conservators is that they must document all of the art they work on. “Reports must include the condition that the art is in that day, so in 10 years they will know how it has aged.” Neuman also talked about the Visual Rights Act, which says that conservators must ask the artist, if living, for permission to ﬁx a work of art if it needs repair. Talking about contemporary artists, she said that they may use recycled materials, such as rubber, foam and plastic. “In ancient times, artists used bronze and marble in their sculpting, materials that would last a long time,” Neuman said. “That concept has become less important to modern artists.”

Matt Kalish

“Most museums only show about three percent of their art and

keep the rest in storage,” says Ingrid Neuman, who spoke here Thursday, April 9 in the visiting artist series.

Illustrator of children’s books tells about her career FATEMA ZAIDI Laura Rankin, illustrator of 15 children books, said knowledge of theatre is helpful in her work. “A book is like a little play,” she said. “There is a set, costumes, characters and a dramatic development.” Rankin has been drawing all her life, and while she was at the University of New Hampshire, she took courses in art as well as in theatre. “I took costume design, stage make-up, set design, and how to draw in perspective classes,” Rankin said. She said that she did not know that she would pursue art at the time, and that theatre helped in her artwork and illustrations. Rankin said her professional career began in the early 1970s when she began doing courtroom illustrations of murder trials for the CBS TV affiliate in Buffalo, N.Y., because cameras were not allowed inside. She also worked on The Buffalo News and illustrated for entertainment magazines. “For 15 years, I worked on a deadline,” she said. Books she has illustrated include ◆“The Wriggly, Wriggly Baby” by Jessica Clerk ◆“Fluffy and Baron,” which she also wrote ◆“Ruthie and the (Not So) Teeny Tiny Lie,” which she also wrote ◆“The Handmade Alphabet,” which she also wrote ◆“Rabbit Ears” by Amber Stewart ◆“No Babysitters Allowed” by Stewart ◆“The Handmade Counting Book,” which she also wrote ◆“Swan Harbor: A Nature Counting Book,” which she also wrotee ◆“Merl and Jasper’s Supper Caper,” which she also wrote, and ◆“Harriet Bean and the League of Cheats” by Alexandar McCall Smith. Rankin won the Boston GlobeHorn book honor award for “The Handmade Alphabet.” Her publishers are Alfred A. Knopf, Arthur A. Levine, Bloomsbury USA, Dragonfly Books, Puffin Books, Scholastic, Inc., and Tandem Library Books. Rankin said her first trade picture book was “The Handmade Alphabet,” which has all the hand shapes for each letter of the manual alphabet in American BY

‘The Handmade Alphabet’ a useful guide to sign language FATEMA ZAIDI aura Rankin, illustrator of 15 children’s books, illustrated and wrote “The Handmade Alphabet.” In it, she carefully displays the handshape for each letter of the manual alphabet. Along with the handshape, there is a corresponding picture of an object that represents each letter of the alphabet. The book contains realistic images of the hands, and it portrays all different shades of skin color. It is realistic to the family photo point where it even shows the shadow of Laura Rankin the hand and whatever object the hand is holding. Even for the letters like “J” and “Z” where you have to move your hand, Rankin clearly illustrates the motion of the hand. The initial handshape is sketched without color, kind of like a ghost’s hand, and the ﬁnal handshape is shown with a realistic hand. My favorite illustration in “The Handmade Alphabet” is the illustration for the letter “J.” It clearly portrays the dipping motion necessary for “J” with jam. There is even some jelly left on the little ﬁnger, and the jam looks realistic. “The Handmade Alphabet” easily allows a BY

Sign Language. She said her aunt and uncle were deaf and as is her stepson, and she wanted to celebrate the beauty of sign language. Having continued as a book illustrator, she said it is rare in publishing to meet the author.

courtesy Laura Rankin

“Handmade Alphabet” is Laura Rankin’s ﬁrst book.

review

novice in sign language to learn the manual alphabet, a part of American Sign Language, and to and celebrate this beautiful language. It helps bring awareness of the communication Deaf people use, and it is a great introduction.

“It’s easier not to meet them,” she said. “Writers have speciﬁc ideas on what the artwork should look like, and it would stiﬂe my creativity. “I need to be free to explore my own ideas about the feel of the book and its characters. Then

I’m able to ‘fall in love’ with the work, which is important when you’re drawing and painting for months on end.” Rankin said she has an extra bedroom, which is her studio, and it has art supplies, a computer and a photocopying machine.

“I love my editors, but they are in New York and I am in Maine, so we don’t get to see each other in person, and we communicate mostly over e-mail,” Rankin said. It can take from three months to a year to illustrate a book, she said. “The magic number for the number of pages to illustrate for a children’s book is 32,” she said. These 32 pages include the front matter, title page, copyright page and dedication, Rankin said. “Then you have to figure out the pacing, the characters and how they look, and the interest from one page to the next,” she said. Rankin said she first makes rough thumbnail pencil sketches, which she eventually makes into a book dummy. “The book dummy is a book made by hand by pasting in the pencil sketches and the story type, or copy,” Rankin said. “It’s roughly the size the finished book will be. It is sent to the art director and editor so they have an idea of the flow and look of the book and can discuss whether they want changes made on any of the drawings.” Then they critique it, Rankin said. Animals are Rankin’s favorite. “I like to anthropomorphize, which means I like to make animals represent children and dress them up and give them human qualities,” she said. She said her favorite animal to illustrate is a fox, and that porcupines are pretty cute too. Currently, Rankin said, she is working on a book about a porcupine who is graduating from kindergarten. Everyone gets a balloon except for her, and so she is trying to get one. The title of the book is “A Balloon for Emily.”

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6 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Friday, May 1, 2009

Soloists outstanding in their work with Orchestra

Musicians present enjoyable Springfest D

ALICIA ZHAO elivering their pieces with passion, five music groups made Springfest a moving experience—especially the senior soloists who played with the Orchestra. The concert began with singers under the direction of music teacher Richard Travers and then built toward the solo section. Travers, who has been recovering from shoulder surgery, led Concert Choir in “Three Folk Songs” by Johannes Brahams and arranged by Walter Ehret. This a capella selection included a fast, minor melody, in contrast to a slower, grateful song. “Song for the Mira” by Allister MacGilvray, which Stuart Caherti arranged, was a blissful, nostalgic piece. Freshman Melissa Weikart accompanied at the piano. “I wish I was with them again,” the performers sang, sending across peaceful images like bonfires and dancing children. Family Singers sang “A Jubilant Song” by Norman Dello Joio, a strong, pulsing piece, with junior Nathan Harris at the piano. After a fast opening, the song slowed and became quieter as junior Hayley Travers sang the soprano solo. As the pace sped up again, the altos and sopranos held their high notes, and the basses and tenors hummed in rapid staccato. Next, Symphonic Band performed two pieces. Fine arts department head Todd Young directed Peter Warlock’s “Two Dances from ‘Capriol Suite,’” which Johnnie Vinson arranged. The dances have lively percussion sections and melodies. Next, senior Patrick Alves conducted Mark Williams’ “Mirrors,” a vigorous piece that picked up speed at the end. After that, Young came back to conduct Wind Ensemble. John Cacavas’ “Aria For Winds” was a slow, magical piece, and Robert W. Smith’s “The Ascension” built energy throughout. Orchestra came on stage for the final section of Springfest with its conductor, music teacher Adam Grossman. In each piece, soloists gave remarkable, lyrical performances while the Orchestra accompanied skillfully. Senior Sandra Chan, a flutist, soloed in the first movement of BY

courtesy Sherrie Deng

Senior Sandra Chan plays in Carl Reinecke’s “Flute Concerto.”

courtesy Sherrie Deng

Senior Patrick Alves interprets Carl Stamitz’s “Clarinet Concerto No. 3.”

courtesy Sherrie Deng

Senior Elizabeth Cooke performs in Max Bruch’s “Scottish Fantasy.”

courtesy Sherrie Deng

Music teacher Richard Travers leads Family Singers in Norman Dello Joio’s “A Jubilant Song” at Springfest April 14.

review Carl Reinecke’s “Flute Concerto.” With light, free-spirited melodies, Chan played impressive trills and high notes, complementing lower

notes from the orchestra. In the ﬁrst movement of Carl Stamitz’s “Clarinet Concerto No. 3,” Alves soloed on the clarinet. He played detailed melodies with clarity and strong expression,

smoothly delivering the vivid piece. For the closing piece, senior Elizabeth Cooke soloed in the second movement of Max Bruch’s “Scottish Fantasy.” Play-

ing the violin with striking speed, Cooke mesmerized the audience with her intensity and ended the concert with a powerful performance. special message

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Parents of 2009 Congratulate your senior. Place an ad in the graduation issue of the Newtonite. Show how proud you are.

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Friday, May 1, 2009

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 7

High schools to present ‘Macbeth’ at South KATE LEWIS “Macbeth” will provide a chance to explore the effects violence has on relationships, said its director, Dev Luthra. “This play is about how people’s better impulses are undermined when fighting in a war for a long time,” Luthra said. “It shows the consequences of war on our moral choices. “The play touches on the limitations of violence. As a long-term way of living, violence seems corrosive of our better intentions.” In the 26 th annual NorthSouth Shakespeare production, a cast of 31 will present “Macbeth” Thursday, May 14 through Saturday, May 16 in South’s Seasholes Auditorium at 7:30.

Dev Luthra

“The play touches on the limitations of violence. As a long-term way of living, violence seems corrosive of our better intentions.” In the play, Macbeth becomes hungry for power and with the aid of his wife, he kills a king and others who get in his way. South senior Alex Caron, who plays Macbeth, said he can’t relate to someone killing his best friend and his king, but he can relate to Macbeth’s inner conflicts over duty to others and to himself. “It’s difficult to find reality in such an emotionally complex character,” Caron said. “He has been at war for an extended period of time, and he’s

been corrupted by the conditions around him. “Life in a war zone essentially colors Macbeth’s entire world.” South sophomore Maddy Schulman will portray Lady Macbeth, and playing the witches are South senior Rachel Insoft and South sophomores Rina Friedberg and Jocelyn Weiss. After Macbeth kills the king and acquires the throne, Malcom, the king’s son, must take authority. Playing Malcolm, sophomore Derek Butterton said that he will

Graduate describes her novel

South, will have a contemporary military focus, Luthra said. “The costumes for the witches and apparitions will be more stylized,” he said. Luthra trained as an actor in London and at Shakespeare and Company in Lenox. The artistic director of And Still We Rise Productions, a company focused on the struggles of those trying to rebuild their lives after involvement with the prison system, Luthra also teaches and directs at the Winsor School in Boston. Additionally, he has taught in the Brookline schools and at Boston College and Emerson. Tickets to “Macbeth” cost $7 and are on sale beginning next week.

Poet recites work, shares his experiences

Won Heintzelman twice, was editor of ‘Thoughtprints’ PRATEEK ALLAPUR Diana Spechler ’97, an awardwinning writer while she was a student here, visited and spoke on campus about her first book, “Who by Fire.” “Writing this novel was a complicated two-fold process that took four and a half years,” Spechler said Monday, April 13. “It involved researching orthodox Israeli families and their daily lives.” Spechler said that she spent months in Israel talking to Orthodox rabbis and discussing family and relationships. She said she also used resources, such as askmoses.com, an online chat room for Orthodox rabbis. The second part of the process involved the actual writing itself, she said. Harper Perennial has published her book. During her years here, Spechler won two Heintzelman awards: for poetry and for a short story. As a junior, she received honorable mention in the 40th M. Roland Heintzelman Memorial Award Contest for a collection of nine poems. Then, as a senior, Spechler won again, tying for first place with a short story, “Praying to Anthony,” about a girl with an eating disorder. “Writing is the thing about myself that I’m most proud of,” Spechler said at the time. “To be rewarded for it and to share my writing with people is huge.” Having had three poems published in Thoughtprints, this school’s art and literary magazine, her junior year, Spechler was its literary editor in her senior year. In addition, she said, she tried to write for at least an hour every day “to make sure I keep the creative juices flowing and I don’t lose any ideas.” After graduating, Spechler earned her bachelor ’s at the University of Colorado and her master ’s at the University of Montana. She was a Steinbeck Fellow at San Jose State University.

portray an idealistic character who has to deal with the fact that he is the rightful king, even though Macbeth is the actual king of Scotland. The set by South junior Ari Shvartzman will depict a desert area where war has taken place for a long time, Luthra said. He said he envisions a Middle Eastern look for the show, inspired by the battle at Fallujah in the Iraq War. “I also can see the play taking place in a city,” Luthra said. “An urban, street-fighting kind of set would communicate the claustrophobia of seeing into Macbeth’s and his wife’s minds.” Also, costumes by Martha Heller, the costume designer at

Talks about importance of articulation in poetry

MARENA COLE Taylor Mali, a poet and a teacher, emphasized the importance of being articulate. “We’ve been infected by a tragically cool tone,” Mali said. “What has happened to our conviction? Where are the limbs on which we used to walk? Did they get chopped down with the rest of the rainforest? “Contrary to what the bumper stickers say, it’s not enough simply to question authority. You have to speak with it.” Mali described his experiences and gave recitations of his poems on campus Thursday, April 16. BY

Prateek Allapur

Visiting poet: Taylor Mali says it’s crucial to speak with authority. He gave an on campus presentation Thursday, April 16.

Advocates ‘like-free’ zones

One poem he recited is about an eighth-grade girl he taught. She said “like” so often that he made his classroom a “like-free zone.” “She couldn’t speak for a week, and when she did she said, ‘This is l— hard,’” Mali said. “I encourage you all to make your mouths a ‘like-free’ zone.” As a child, Mali said, he was often exposed to poetry because his father was a poet. “My father wrote poems—poems he would recite a wedding and birthdays,” Mali said. “At a very early age, I got to see what it was like to entertain people.” Mali recited a poem he found in a book of poems his father wrote, dated New Year’s Eve, 1964. “I was born in 1965, so that would have been a few months before I was born,” he said. “I can imagine my dad reading that to my mom that night, and that through the mufﬂed walls of my mother’s stomach I might have heard my very ﬁrst poem.” Mali said he found that the skills of writing a poem differ from those involved in reciting one. He referred to his involvement in poetry slams, where poets perform original pieces for judges and an audience. He said he began competing in poetry slams as a graduate student at Kansas State University. Mali earned his bachelor’s in English at Bowdoin in 1987 and his master’s in English/creative writing at Kansas State in 1993.

‘No such thing as “slam poetry”’

Taylor Mali background.

Prateek Allapur

recites his poetry and describes his

“There is no such thing as ‘slam poetry,’” he said. “There are poems that work well in slams and poems that do not work well in slams.” Mali recited more poems, with topics including a dyslexic Scrabble champion, a three-legged dog, a student who had cancer, the importance of proofreading, and being a poet while teaching math and history. In response to a question from the audience about his writing process, he said, “Luckily I’m inspired from 8:30 in the morning unti1:30 every afternoon. “If you sit down at the same time every day, pretty soon your muse will know that’s when she has to show up. “A letter to my brother is the ﬁrst draft of my poem sometimes. “Poets are not journalists. If I need to change the facts to get the message across, I reserve the right to use poetic license, to change the facts to make a better poem.”

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Friday, May 1, 2009

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 13

Days of Remembrance Movie depicts Rwandan genocide

Day of Remembrance: Elisee Rutagambwa speaks in the film lecture hall Monday, April 6 about the genocide in Rwanda.

ELLIOT RAFF Rev. Elisee Rutagambwa, a graduate student and priest, traced the history of the genocide in Rwanda. Rutagambwa told students Monday, April 6 that more than one million died in the genocide, and he expressed his distaste for the world’s reaction. “Everyone knew a genocide was being prepared, and the world turned its back,” Rutagambwa said. The lack of response created fear because it gave the impression that the United Nations was sanctioning the murder of hundreds of thousands of people,

OLIVIA STEARNS One of the hardest parts of thinking about the Holocaust is to realize that no one will ever know why it happened, said Elizabeth Dopazo, a survivor. “It’s like a puzzle, and at the end there will still be pieces missing, which is frustrating because nobody will ever know how or why everything happened,” she said. “Many people have written, denying that the Holocaust ever

he said. “You have no idea what it’s like to have backs turned on you by the entire world,” Rutagambwa said. The genocide was a result of longstanding conflict between the government and refugees and was sparked by the plane crash of the Rwandan president, Juvenal Habyarimana, he said. Police and the army were actively using force against their own citizens, he said of the violence between the Hutus and the Tutsis.

“It was difﬁcult to separate the people because despite their ethnic differences, they shared everything,” Rutagambwa said. “The division was manufactured, calculated. It did not happen by accident.” The Rwandan government has since established laws to suppress the divisions that had prevailed for years, Rutagambwa said. Now, he said, it is illegal to form political parties based on ethnicity. Rutagambwa also presented a documentary of the history of Rwanda entitled “Rwanda: Will the Scars Ever Heal?” It traces escalating conﬂicts

that have been present between the Hutus and Tutsis since Belgium granted Rwanda independence in 1962. The ﬁlm shows images of large graves into which bodies were bulldozed. Survivors and relatives of survivors give their accounts of the slaughter. One woman tells her story of the initial arrival of the refugees in 1990, after Rwanda’s borders had been closed. Suddenly, she says, every refugee was an enemy, and the government was encouraging the murder of its own citizens.

happened, and I want to make sure that people know that it did.” The Nazis’ records have made it almost impossible to ignore the evidence, she said. “It is not as important to know exactly how many millions of people were killed in the genocide as it is to keep in mind that every individual who died was somebody’s family member or somebody’s loved one.”

Dopazo was born in 1929 in Sachsenburg, a small town in Southeast Germany, and lived there in the beginning of World War II. Her parents belonged to a small Christian sect, and they suffered persecution because of their religious afﬁliation, she said. “Both of my parents were taken by the Nazis and put in jail,” Dopazo said.

Eventually, she said, her mother was released. “After my mother was released, we ran away to a small town in Northern Germany to hide at my grandparents’ house,” she said. “My father was sent to Sachsenhausen, a concentration camp for ‘enemies of the state,’ where he was killed by the Nazis. “Once we moved, we couldn’t have any friends or talk to any-

one.” Offering advice to the current generation of teen-agers, Dopazo said, “Try not to get too hung up on material things because they can go away in a second, even without a war or genocide. “Get involved whenever you see something that is wrong in the world and always have your eyes and ears open for ways you can help.” Dopazo gave an on campus presentation Tuesday, April 7.

region, in what is now Eastern Turkey but which Armenians refer to as Western Armenia.

Ottomans but then came home to communicate to this country and to the world about what was going on. He collected about 30,000 documents, the film says. Then, in 1923, in the aftermath of the Greek and Assyrian genocide, Morgenthau helped save survivors by leading relief efforts in Greece, the film says. Two of his grandsons, Henry Morgenthau III, a television producer and an author, and Robert Morgenthau, just retired as district attorney in New York City, and one of Henry, Sr.’s greatgranddaughters, Pamela Steiner, comment in the documentary. All three discuss Morgenthau’s life and their position on Turkish acceptance of the genocide, which Turkey still officially denies. Henry Morgenthau III says that instead of denying the genocide, Turkey should “find redemption by accepting what happened and trying to make restitution.” He also says he likes to think of himself as “an honorary Armenian” because of what his grandfather achieved in efforts to alert the world. Robert Morgenthau comments, “If the world had reacted to the genocide of Armenians, Hitler would have been reluctant to go out and kill Jews in a wholesale fashion.” Near the end of the film, Steiner, who has a master’s in government from Harvard, explores what reconciliation means: ◆stating the truth ◆acknowledging the truth ◆reparations ◆restitution ◆giving a promise not to repeat. ◆memorialization, and ◆changing the history books. At the end of the presentation, Torosyan and Hagopian greeted another of Morgenthau’s greatgranddaughters, English teacher Helen Smith.

“Victory at Van:” Roger Hagopian, whose father was a survivor of the Armenian genocide, introduces his ﬁlm on campus during a Day of Remembrance Wednesday, April 8.

Gaby Perez-Dietz

on campus

Survivor discusses causes of the Holocaust

Two show their films about Armenian massacre

ELLEN SARKISIAN If the world had reacted strongly and immediately against the Armenian genocide, the Nazis would not have been able to kill 11 million people during World War II, Apo Torosyan said. Torosyan, whose father survived the genocide, showed his documentary “The Morgenthau Story,” and Roger Hagopian showed his film “Victory at Van.” “In 1915, one and a half million Armenians were murdered,” Torosyan said. But he said his message was “not hate, but hope.” “I believe every single one of you can make a difference,” he said to the students and faculty assembled in the ﬁlm lecture hall Wednesday, April 8. “ We c a n n o t s a y, ‘ W h o cares?’” Because there is now a “global environment,” Torosyan said, even if problems are taking place far from home, they deserve thoughtful attention. “It could happen in your backyard if you don’t care,” he said. Torosyan cited a lack of punishment for the actions of the Ottomans toward the Armenians. He also said the world’s inattention was what led Hitler, the night before the Nazi attack on Poland in 1939, to ask rhetorically, “Who remembers the Armenians?” Hagopian, a ﬁlm maker whose father was a survivor of the genocide, said that in 1915, Armenians in the Ottoman Empire were deported and murdered. Of more than 2 million Armenians, 1.5 million were killed, he said. “We are still, at this moment, striving for recognition around the world,” he said. The first movie on the program, “Victory at Van,” tells of an uprising during World War I of Armenians living in the Van BY

Citizens of Van take stand, defend selves

After locating the area, the film goes on to show that the people in the city of Van did not want to “go down like sheep.” Newsreel footage shows them defending themselves in spite of their lack of weapons and resources. The Russians, who were ﬁghting in World War I against the Ottoman Empire, took control of the Van region in 1916. They aided the Armenians but retreated in 1917 when the Czar’s army collapsed. The area fell again under Turkish control and to this day remains part of Turkey. “The Armenians were pawns,” Hagopian said.“The Russians were not invading to defend the Armenians.” Survivors walked for three weeks, desperate for water and food, and the city of Yerevan, the capital of Russian Armenia, “was filled with corpses,” the ﬁlm says. Turkish censorship delayed news during this time, but Clarence Ussher, who had been the head of the American hospital in Van, set up a relief committee in the United States in late 1915 to help refugees in Russian Armenia who had been evacuated from Van.

Morgenthau aimed to raised awareness

The second ﬁlm, “The Morgenthau Story,” is about the efforts of Henry Morgenthau, U.S. ambassador to Turkey from 1913 to 1916 during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson, to stop the Armenian genocide and to alert the world that it was going on. In 1915, while Morgenthau was serving in Constantinople, he unsuccessfully appealed to the

Matt Kalish

sports

14 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Powder puff unlikely this spring ELI DAVIDOW Powder puff football captains from the junior and senior classes said a game this spring looks fairly unlikely. The two teams had a game scheduled November 23 at Albermarle Field, but it didn’t happen because the city did not turn on the lights there. Tom Cahill of the Parks and Recreation Department said afterward that no one from this school had gotten a ﬁeld permit from the department, which would allow the lights to be turned on. Afterward, athletic director Tom Giusti said the event would be good if it were “organized properly” compared to years past. “I would want the powder puff game to be played in a healthy sense,” he said this week. “I don’t want division between the classes.” Also, it would help if there were a supervisor who would “seek a proper ﬁeld permit, date and time for the game beforehand,” Giusti said. Senior Diana Salvucci, a cocaptain for ’09 with seniors Alyssa Hansen, Sarah Lavalle and Lizzie Weilburg, said the chance of the game occurring “just depends on how many people still want to play.” “Both teams have all the shirts made up and all, so we have everything that we need,” she said. “I still hope that it happens.” Junior Jess Fugazzotto, a cocaptain for ’10 with juniors Sammy Alpert and Jenny Mullin, said many of the coaches, who are members of the football team, play sports in the spring. She said that it lessens the possibility of a game happening.

Friday, May 1, 2008

Teddy Wenneker

She’s out: Senior Tiffany Hamann tags out a runner Monday, April 13 against Braintree at Cabot Park. The Wamps won 10-0.

Softball has five-game winning streak EMMETT GREENBERG Having won its last five games, softball is on a roll. But hosting Needham today the Tigers, 8-4, can expect a challenge, coach Lauren Baugher said. “I hope we keep playing well as a team, and everyone is able to contribute,” she said. Against Framingham Monday, the Tigers need to take care of the little things, Baugher said. “We just need to play good defense and hit the ball the way we did last time against them when we won 3-0,” she said, referring to the Tigers’ victory in Famingham Tuesday, April 14. Braintree, which made it to the semi-finals in the States last year and beat the Tigers 10-0 in Braintree Monday, April 13, hosts BY

the Tigers next Friday. Baugher predicted the game “will be a good test for us.” Mental errors were a problem in the previous Braintree game, said senior Kate Pellegrini, a right ﬁelder. “We let their record scare us,” she said. “We’re a solid team and we can go in and win any game we want. “Our hitting is solid, and we’re strong on offense.” Pellegrini said that she enjoys the unity the team has. “We’re energized, uniﬁed and we’re really close together,” Pellegrini said. “The best part of the team is just working together and being able to learn life lessons from each other. “We have great players, and

some good freshmen.” Senior Tiffany Hamann, an inﬁelder, cited seniors Rae Copan and Allison Clott and freshman Katie Caruso as key players. “Rae is doing a really good job pitching,” she said. “Allison has been on varsity for four years and played through the pain of a thumb injury. “Katie is doing well adjusting to the varsity level of playing, and she’s playing like she’s always been on varsity.” Wednesday, the Tigers won 28-7 in Brookline. “ We just hit really well,” Baugher said. “We put the ball in play, and made the run.” The Tigers defeated Belmont 2-0 Tuesday in Belmont, and Milton 5-2 Monday at Milton.

Against Belmont, “Rae Copan was one for two with an RBI and struck out eight people, and Melissa Jewitt was one for one with two stolen bases,” Baugher said. Saturday, with seven runs in the ﬁfth inning, the Tigers defeated Lincoln-Sudbury 8-4 in Sudbury. Earlier, at Weymouth April 16, the Tigers won 13-3. “All of our starters had at least one hit,” Baugher said. “We just hit really well overall.” Wednesday, April 15 Walpole beat the Tigers, 8-7, and Tuesday April 14, the Tigers beat Framingham 3-0 at home. “We were prepared,” Baugher said. “At one point, we were winning 7-2 and then Walpole scored ﬁve runs in the third inning.”

Senior biker rides 3,012 miles from coast to coast

EMILY MCLAUGHLIN o notice and experience this country, senior Dan Kulla biked 3,012 miles from Savannah, Ga., to Los Angeles last summer. With initial encouragement from his older sister Jill Kulla ’08, the idea “grew on me,” Kulla said. He said he never thought he would visit rural Mississippi or Arkansas, which he described as “unexpectedly beautiful.” “Cars are sealed shut and don’t let you experience the world,” Kulla. Instructed to pre-train and condition before the journey, most of the group— 12 other teen-agers and two leaders— decided not to, making the ﬁrst week tough on everyone, Kulla said. A bike carrying clothes, sleeping gear, water and repair tools weighs about 40 lbs., and pedaling all day is exhausting, he said. Taking the trip, called American Challenge, costs $5,295, according to the Overland Co. Website. Every day the group would BY

Dan Kulla “It’s humbling to think that I rode my bike for six weeks across the country, then took a six-hour plane ride home.” go grocery shopping, which was always fun, Kulla said. “Walking around in your Spandex bike shorts and cleats with metal on the bottom sounded like tap shoes clanking up and down the aisles,” he said, laughing as he remembered the looks they got from shoppers. “Everyone got along pretty well, but each person had up and down days,” he said. Both the back and front of the line were nice— the back because you could talk with others and the front because you were ahead so you ﬁnished faster giving you a longer rest, he said. Rest was important because after “biking 80 miles, no one was bouncing off the walls,” Kulla said.

Traveling through Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri, Colorado, Arizona and California, the group avoided the interstate because it is illegal for bikers, Kulla said. A secondary interstate was good because it was straight and direct, with less traffic and wide shoulders, Kulla said. Talking about challenges, Kulla said that mountain passes and head winds made biking hard. “You had to put forth more effort to push through the winds while they blew directly at you,” he recalled. “Kansas was difficult because of the headwinds, and it isn’t as flat as they say,” Kulla said. “Tail winds, on the other hand, made it fun because they pushed you along.” Remembering when he finished and reached the Pacific Ocean, Kulla smiled. After 3,012 miles and 44 days, he accomplished the trip. “It’s humbling to think that I rode my bike for six weeks across the country, then took a six-hour plane ride home,” Kulla said.

courtesy Brian Ash

On the road: Senior Dan Kulla rides his bike to the end of his cross-country trip from Georgia to California.

sports

Friday, May 1, 2008

Newton North, Newtonite ◆ 15

Boys’ lacrosse to focus on communication

MEREDITH ABRAMS Eliminating undisciplined mistakes with better communication is a focus for the boys’ lacrosse team, said senior Brian Tully, a captain. “We need to work as a unit on offense, getting six guys on the same page,” Tully said. Younger players such as sophomores T.J. Ryan, Dia Berger and Josh Winik, are large contributors, Tully said. Hosting Natick today, the Tigers “have to continue to improve because Natick is a strong team,” coach Bussy Adam said. Braintree would be another

challenge Monday, as it is typically a “match that is usually pretty physical,” Adam said. Wednesday at Dedham, the Tigers are “the better team, so it should be a game we can dominate,” Adam said. In Weymouth Friday, the team hopes to repeat its victory. The Tigers defeated Weymouth 11-10 Tuesday, April 14. “It was a very close game, but was good because five different people scored goals,” Adam said. This time, he said, the Tigers are going to have to shoot bet-

ter. Visiting Wellesley Monday May 11 and Brookline Wednesday May 13, the Tigers will have to play well to win, but they still have plenty of time to improve, Adam said. In a “big win,” the Tigers defeated Brookline 6-2 Friday, April 17 at home. “That game was probably our best game yet,” Adam said. “It was especially important because it was a Bay State Conference game. “We need to work together to have all 10 players working as a

ELI DAVIDOW By putting emphasis on its offense, girls’ lacrosse, 2-5, is beginning to earn some victories, said junior Kim Gillies, a co-captain with seniors Allysa Hansen and Amanda Taylor, and junior Brittany Jaillet. “In the beginning, we focused a lot on defense because we didn’t have a lot of returning players there,” she said. “But recently, we have shifted our focus around the offensive zone.” Senior Mary McGrath and junior Julia Dzambia have had major roles in the Tigers’ offensive improvement, Gillies said, noting that Dzambia “has gotten some key goals.” Today, the Tigers visit Natick, a team that is “having a bit of trouble this season,” Gillies said. Monday, the Tigers visit Braintree, which has given the Tigers “good competition” in the past, Gillies said. “Last year, both games that we played against them were pretty close,” she said. Wednesday hosting Dedham, the Tigers expect to play “a generally physical team,” Gillies

said. “They also go for all the 50-50 balls,” she said. “They’re a quick and scrappy team, so I hope that we surpass their aggression.” A solid Weymouth team visits the Tigers Friday, Gillies said. “They have a very strong player who plays attack, so we’re going to focus on shutting her down,” she said. Monday, May 11 in Wellesley, the Tigers will play an élite team, Gillies said. In order to beat Brookline here Wednesday, May 13, the Tigers must play the way they did the ﬁrst time they played them, Gillies said. Before vacation, the Tigers got a big victory in Brookline Friday, April 17, winning 15-4, Gillies said. “It was a rough start because it was pretty even,” she said. “But then we settled in and we started connecting passes. “Brookline is not known to be the best team, but we came out to win because we knew we needed it. “We’ll have to just score a few quick goals and have quick

transitions,” she said. “We’ll have to keep moving around on offense.” Wednesday, Framingham defeated the Tigers here 15-2. “Framingham is a really strong team,” Gillies said. “We weren’t able to possess the ball on offense, and they kept getting the fast break.” Monday, Needham beat the Tigers 17-5, in a game Gillies called “a blow-out.” “We were unfocused in the first half, scrambling around,” she said. “There was some confusion in who was marking whom.” Wednesday, April 15 Milton edged the Tigers 8-7. “We started off well, but towards the end of the first half we got a lot of calls,” Gillies said. “They capitalized on our off moments, and it brought our heads down.” The Tigers got their first victory defeating Weymouth 13-10 Monday, April 13. “Overall, our transitions from defense to offense were great,” Gillies said. “We began to pass the ball down the field, not run. “We weren’t afraid to take a shot.”

Down the ﬁeld: Sophomore Cristina Leone cradles the ball from Neeham defenders Monday. The Rockets won 17-5.

JOSH BAKAN Despite its lack of experience of players, boys’ tennis, 5-4, is ﬁnding ways to win. “We don’t have much depth,” coach Phil Goldberg said. “We’re a young team. We only have four seniors.” Senior Ben Cassidy, a captain with senior Andrew Whittum, also said inexperience has been “a weakness,” but he cited sophomore Zev Cariani and freshman Parker Swiston for their improve-

ment. “They’re very versatile,” he said. “They can play many positions in he lineup.” Today the Tigers visit Needham, which is “having a good comeback season after a down year last year,” Cassidy said. “They have two very good freshmen at ﬁrst and second singles.” Monday, the team visits Framingham, which “plays very hard,” Cassidy said. The Tigers host Natick Wednes-

day and then host Braintree Friday, having defeated the Wamps 3-2 here Monday, April 13. Senior Parv Mital made the difference, winning at third singles. “Natick has usually been a weak team, but they have relatively strong singles players,” Cassidy said. Monday, May 11, the Tigers visit Dedham and then Weymouth Wednesday, May 13, both of which are “relatively weak teams,” Cassidy said.

Thursday, May 14, the Tigers face stronger competition in their second visit to Wellesley, which beat the Tigers 5-0 Thursday, April 23. “They dominated us,” Cassidy said. “They’re one of the top two or three teams in the state. They’re very deep.” In recent action, Brookline beat the Tigers 5-0 here Wednesday, when the Tigers’ ﬁrst singles player, junior Dan Stein was out sick, Cassidy said.

Girls’ lacrosse adjusts its approach on offense BY

team, instead of relying on just one or two guys,” Adam said. “We’re taking small steps to improve every day. “The team is working hard, so there is a big sense of improvement, especially on ground balls.” However, Adam said the Tigers need to shoot more accurately. “Shooting and shot selection are important, but the biggest thing is to maintain possession of the ball and avoid giving the ball up and having unforced errors.” At Framingham Wednesday, the Tigers won 11-3.

“We won off hard work and hustle,” Tully said. “Going into the fourth quarter, we were up 4-1, and we just executed plays and put our shots away.” Needham defeated the Tigers 13-7 Monday, and Lincoln-Sudbury defeated the Tigers 16-5 at home Wednesday April 22. Regarding Lincoln-Sudbury, Adam said the game was “probably our worst game of the season. We had 28 turnovers.” Wednesday April 15 at Milton, the team won 13-4, with juniors Scott Giusti and Mike Vaglica each scoring four goals.

Teddy Wenneker

Boys’ tennis, 5-4, lacks experience but compensates BY

“Everyone had to move up a spot,” Cassidy said. “It was difﬁcult because Brookline is a pretty deep team.” At Milton Monday, the Tigers won 5-0. The Tigers won 5-0 hosting Weymouth Friday, April 17 and hosting Walpole Wednesday, April 15. Framingham, which has the best player in the state, senior Fan Del, beat the Tigers 5-0 Tuesday, April 14, Cassidy said.

Girls’ tennis builds chemistry NICOLE CURHAN Girls’ tennis needs to stay focused for each match, said senior Anitra Kloczewiak, a captain with senior Peri Silverman. “Tennis is a very mental sport,” Kloczewiak said. “You have to pump yourself up. If you lose a point, you can’t let it get to you, and you have to try your hardest no matter what the score is.” The team, 5-2, has also strengthened its chemistry overall, she said. “We’ve gotten to know each other a lot better even though tennis is an individual sport,” she said. In Needham today and in Framingham Monday, the Tigers match up well to their opponents, coach John Gautschi said. BY

Teddy Wenneker

At Newton South: Junior Micah Dornfeld plays second singles.

“Whether we win depends on the ﬂexibility of our team and how our players play,” he said. “We have to play strong. “If do well against Needham and Framingham, we have a chance of success this season.” Against Natick Wednesday, the match is expected to go smoothly, Gautschi said. When the Tigers visit Braintree Friday and host Dedham Monday, May 11, they are not expecting a challenge, Gautschi said. “We will be able to handle both of them,” he said. Thursday, May 14, the Tigers’ match here against Wellesley will be difﬁcult, Gautschi said. “It’s not out of reach at all for us, but by the time we play them, we need to be ready to go,” he said.

In recent action, the Tigers defeated Brookline 5-0 Wednesday at Brookline. “It was a great match,” Silverman said. Matches were “tough, with several going into a third set, but we came through.” At Milton Monday, April 27, the Tigers won 4-1. “In the ﬁrst doubles we were tied at 1-1, but by the second doubles we were in control,” Gautschi said. “It was icing on the cake to win.” Friday, April 17, the Tigers won 3-2 hosting Weymouth. Wednesday, April 15, Walpole edged the Tigers here 3-2. Tuesday, April 14 in Framingham the Flyers defeated the Tigers 4-1, and Monday, April 13 the Tigers beat Braintree here 3-2.

sports

16 ◆ Newtonite, Newton North

Both track teams cruising along MEREDITH ABRAMS JOSH BAKAN oys’ and girls’ track will send team members to the Weston Twilight Invitational tomorrow. Then they compete in Needham Tuesday before sending individuals to the Coaches Meet at Durfee next Saturday and then to Framingham Tuesday, May 12.

Boys make up for injuries

Speaking about the girls, senior Michele Kaufman, a captain with seniors Sophie Duncan, Emma Kornetsky and Carolyn Ranti said, “Practices are a lot more focused. “Everybody is ﬁne-tuning and getting ready for the bigger meets.” At the Weston Twilight Invitational, “there will be strong competition, and it will be good for new runners to experience a night meet,” Kaufman said. Visiting Needham, Kaufman said, the meet will not be difﬁcult. “They have good runners, but they just don’t have as much depth or experience,” she said. After the State Coaches Meet, the girls visit Framingham for “a good match,” Kaufman said. According to coach Joe Tranchita, “The team is doing really well at this stage of the game, but we still need consistency, mainly in sprints and in general.” Against Braintree Tuesday, the Tigers won 94-35. The Tigers defeated Weymouth 78-58 Tuesday, April 14. Yesterday, the Tigers were to have visited Norwood.

JOSH BAKAN aseball, 2-5, has struggled on offense without senior Billy Uberti, the Tigers’ best hitter, but the team has compensated with pitching and defense, coach Joe Siciliano said. “Our pitchers are spotting the fastball and throwing the curve for a strike,” Siciliano said. “All the pitchers are better than they were their ﬁrst time out.” About the defense, Siciliano said that the team strives for two errors or less per game. Sophomore Lucas Mosca has improved at hitting on offense, said senior James Krasker, a captain with Uberti and seniors Alex Clark and Lenny Tocci. Top pitchers have been juniors Eric Howard and Borja Jones, Krasker said. Today, the Tigers visit Needham, and Monday they visit Framingham. “Needham is a fundamentally sound team,” Siciliano said. “They get timely hits, which make for tough outs. They’ll be quite a challenge. “Framingham pitches well and hits well. You have to be on your ‘A’ game against them. One of their pitchers threw a no-hitter this season.” Wednesday, the Tigers host Natick, a “young team,” and Friday hosting Braintree they’ll play a team with good pitching and good hitting, Siciliano said. Natick coach Josh Hanna described the squad as “underBY

AND

Girls work on ﬁne tuning

Pitchers, defense boost baseball Tigers visit rival Needham today

For the boys, senior Tony Chen, a captain with seniors Sam Arsenault, Jared Forman and Dan Hamilton will miss the rest of the season because of an arm injury. “He’s our top hurdler and triple jumper,” coach Jim Blackburn said. However, the Tigers have been able to make up for injuries well, Blackburn said. “We don’t have many weaknesses,” he said. “We’re good in every event.” Hamilton said the Tigers’ strengths are “the throwing team and the distance team.” In Needham, the boys will face a team that’s “not so strong,” Blackburn said. At the Coaches Meet, “all our top people will participate,” Blackburn said. Framingham has “more people then usual and a few better runners then they’ve had in past years,” Blackburn said. Tuesday at Braintree, the Tigers won 85-47, having won 82-53 Tuesday, April 21 in Weymouth. The Tigers were to have visited Norwood Thursday.

Friday, May 1, 2008

Gaby Perez-Dietz

At shortstop: Senior James Krasker, a captain, warms up for Weymouth here Friday, Aptril 17. Weymouth won 12-6.

classman-dominated. “We have played a difficult schedule up to this point and we’ve had ﬁve one-run games, but the team has a positive attitude.” Monday, May 11, the Tigers visit Dedham, which is young and struggling, Siciliano said. The competition will be more challenging Wednesday, May 13 when the Tigers visit Weymouth and the next day when they visit Wellesley, Siciliano said. In recent action, Brookline beat the Tigers here 3-2 Wednesday. Monday at Milton, the Wildcats beat the Tigers 9-6, a game in which the Tigers “struggled defensively,” Krasker said. Friday, April 24, Catholic Memorial beat the Tigers here 1-0. “Eric Howard pitched very well for us,” Krasker said. “We just couldn’t get many hits off their pitcher.” Wednesday, April 23 at Xaverian, the Hawks won 4-1 and Friday, April 17, Weymouth beat the Tigers 12-6 here. Weymouth led 9-0 in the second inning, but the Tigers came back in the ﬁfth, trailing 9-6. “We got our bats going, but the game was called off in the middle of the eighth,” Krasker said. Wednesday, April 15, the Tigers beat Walpole 7-3. Braintree beat the Tigers 7-3 at Braintree Tuesday, April 14 and Thursday, April 9, the Tigers beat Framingham 9-8 in the 12th

Volleyball has second chance to beat Natick JACOB BRUNELL oys’ volleyball, 5-1, has been successful despite inexperience, senior Jon Lee said. “We have a more athletic team than expected,” Lee said. “We’re more athletic than we’ve been in previous years. “Occasionally we get down on ourselves because of our errors, but when we play to our potential potential, we can beat almost anyone.” Freshman Luke Westman has stood out, he said. “He’s been able to take over the leading role of being our starting setter,” Lee said. Along with contributions from young players, the Tigers have been effective under the leadership of Lee and senior Chris McCann, coach Richard Barton said. “Not only have we worked on the basic skills like setting, passing and spiking, but also we have worked on a new, more advanced type of offense that we hope will help us continue winning this season,” Barton said. Today, the Tigers host against Natick, the only team they have lost to so far this season in a match Natick won 3-2 Monday, April 6. “Natick is definitely one of the better teams in the state, and one of the best in our conference, so it will be interesting to see what happens the second time around,” Barton said. Monday the Tigers will host Framingham, a team the Tigers defeated 3-1 here Wednesday, April 8. “They’re a very scrappy team,” Lee said. “They have a lot of talent, but they don’t play toBY

gether.” The Tigers will visit Brookline Wednesday for a rematch, having won the ﬁrst match here 3-1 Monday, April 13. “They’re a great team,” Lee said. “They’re more experienced than we are. They have some great returning players.” Friday, the Tigers visit Norwood, “a very well-rounded team,” and then Monday, May 11, they visit Braintree, “a team with a lot of experienced play-

ers,” Lee said. Wednesday, May 13 the Tigers visit Weymouth another team with “a lot of juniors and seniors,” Lee said. In recent action, the Tigers beat Needham here 3-1 Wednesday. “After we lost the ﬁrst set, we were a lot more focused,” Lee said. Monday, the Tigers beat Weymouth 3-0 here. “Our passing was above aver-

age, our setting was very good and our hitting was unstoppable,” Lee said. Friday, April 17, the Tigers beat Braintree here 3-2 after beating Norwood here 3-0 Wednesday, April 15. “We got off to a good start and then we took over the game,” Lee said. Monday, April 13, the Tigers beat Brookline here 3-1. “They’re a great team, but we really played our own game,” he said.

Teddy Wenneker

Hosting Brookline: Senior Chris McCann, a captain, goes up for the spike. The Tigers beat the Warriors Monday, April 13 3-1.