PALO ALTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT PALO ALTO HIGH SCHOOL 50 EMBARCADERO RD. PALO ALTO, CA 94301 NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE
PAI D PALO ALTO PERMIT #44
The Campanile
Vol. XCIX, No. 7
Palo Alto High School • 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94301 • www.thecampanile.org
Friday, March 3, 2017
Proposed bill threatens student tech privacy Career Month
Assembly Bill 165 would allow school administrations to search messages and photos
speaker series in full swing ASHLEY ZHANG
NEWS AND OPINION EDITOR
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Proposed legislature would enable public school administrators to seize and search a student's personal electronic device without needing a formal justification or warrant.
PAARTH SHARMA
STAFF WRITER
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new California state legislature bill that aims to allow school administrations to demand that students hand over any personal electronic devices without a warrant has recently generated immense controversy. Assembly Bill 165, introduced by Assembly Rep. Jim Cooper (D – Elk Grove), would allow school employees to seize any student’s cell phone, laptop or digital music player and view its contents, including private messages, photos and social media accounts.
The bill’s exact intentions are simply to remove any application of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) at any public educational institution.
“I would definitely feel violated if one of my teachers were to take my computer and look through everything on there."
Daniel Logan Junior The ECPA “prohibits a government entity, as defined, from compelling the production of, or access to,
California students file lawsuits against Trump
electronic communication information or electronic device information, as defined, without a search warrant." As a result, Bill 165 would allow authorities at a school to take and search any student’s electronic device “on the spot," an idea that worries many of its opponents. Dissenters of the bill add that the bill itself is unconstitutional and a violation of the Fourth Amendment, which states that people have the right to prevent government seizure or search of themselves or their property without a warrant. In this case, those against the bill claim that it would force students to
turn over certain kinds of property to officials, making it a direct violation of the Fourth Amendment. “This would give staff far too much power, and some teachers are sure to abuse it,” said junior Daniel Logan. “I would definitely feel violated if one of my teachers were to take my computer and look through everything on there.” However, supporters of the bill argue that it would allow for schools to combat the prevalent issue of cyberbullying much more effectively. Since the bill would allow for school offiBILL 165
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or the ninth time in Palo Alto High School history, the annual Career Month will be held from Feb. 28 to March 9 during lunch in the English Writing Center and Library Conference Room. The two-week speaker series will feature an array of presentations by professionals working in fields ranging from art to Indian dance to civil engineering. Like previous years, pizza and burrito lunches will be provided for the first 250 students in attendance every day. “Our goal is to provide students an opportunity to explore different jobs, and learn about the journeys of successful adults and what their experiences were like when they were our age and in college,” said Stella Wan, President of the Career Month club. “Our goal is also to encourage students to pursue what intriguesthem, and to give them an in-person connection with adults who have found fulfilment in their work.” In October, the six-person Career Month committee began to plan for the event. However, as the previous year’s team consisted of all seniors and just one sophomore member, the new team operated with minimal guidance. “All the students who organized this event last year graduated and I was the only one left,” Wan said. “[Former Paly Career Advisor and Community Service Coordinator] Ms. [Christina] Owen also does not CAREER MONTH
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Choir and staff perform at Pops Concert
Faculty addition to choir festivities brings community together
Suit alleges Trump violated Constitution EDAN SNEH
STAFF WRITER
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hree college students in California have joined the dozens of other people filing lawsuits against President Donald Trump in the two months he has held office by challenging his ban on immigrants from seven Muslimmajority countries. The three students have accused Trump of violating the Constitution of the United States and of discrimination, citing that his Jan. 27 ban specifically targets a group of people based on their ethnicity. The students, a freshman at Stanford with a student visa, a 23-year-old student at University of California (UC) San Diego and an anonymous student from the UC Berkeley, are suing through the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) organization.
"Mr. Trump's constitutional violations are immediate and serious, so we were forced to take legal action."
Noah Bookbinder Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington The situation began when the Stanford student, Hadil Al-Mowafak, was unable to visit her husband in Yemen due to Trump's immigration ban. The executive order banned citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from enter-
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ing the United States for 90 days. The Royal Bank, a multinational financial service company, has estimated that this ban would outlaw roughly 218 million people, the total population of the seven countries. However, in the case of Al-Mowafak and many more, the ban affected people living in the United States today. The student from UC Berkeley has decided to remain anonymous, but claims that Trump’s new order has jeopardized his or her job offer from a successful Silicon Valley company. This student has also identified that they carry the F-1 visa common among all three of the students. This is not the first time Trump has possibly violated the Constitution, as evidenced by dozens of lawsuits. “It was our hope that President Trump would take the necessary steps to avoid violating the U.S. Constitution before he took office," said Noah Bookbinder, the Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. "He did not. His constitutional violations are immediate and serious, so we were forced to take legal action.” The controversy over the immigration ban centers on whether it is religious discrimination, or a conflict between nations. The suits claims: “The federal government has made it clear that it intends to favor Christian immigrants over Muslims.” The White House claims that the TRUMP
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SAM OWENS/CREATIVE COMMONS LICENSED
OPINION
PETER GOLD/THE CAMPANILE
Senior Jason Pollak performs a solo in front of a packed crowd of students, parents and staff members as choir members look on.
CHARLOTTE CHENG
STAFF WRITER
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alo Alto High School’s choirs performed their annual Pops Concert in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) on Feb. 14 and 15. The concert, following the theme of “Sounds Like Teen Spirit,” featured songs from the ‘90s, including hits by the Backstreet Boys, NSYNC and Boyz II Men.
For the first time ever, Paly’s choir program partnered with the Rise Together Foundation. Held under the supervision of Paly’s choir teachers, Michael Najar
LIFESTYLE
ELAINE THOMPSON/FAIR USE
Lies and lead poisoning
Impact of travel ban at Paly
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The national effect of a series of cover-ups and lies in Flint, Mich.
Profiles on citizens with ties to countries on the banned list.
and Brittney Kerby, the concert was performed by all of the choir groups at Paly: the concert choir, Madrigals, Spectrum Choir and all five acapella groups. For the first time ever, Paly’s choir program partnered with the Rise Together Foundation, a nonprofit that helps “high achieving and lowincome students that are college bound,” according to Paly principal Kim Diorio. The foundation was founded by Laura Marcus-Bricca, a special education teacher at Paly, and its goal is to “provide mentoring and financial assistance to low income Palo Alto High School students,” as stated on their website.
ARIEL SKELLEY/CREATIVE COMMONS LICESNSED
In the past 17 years, the Pops Concert only featured Paly students. This year, however, some Paly teachers were introduced into the program. Hoping to attract more attendees by adding a teacher performance, the Pops Concert also held an auction outside of the auditorium. A percent of the proceeds earned by the concert and auction went to the Rise Together Foundation and the rest went to the Choir program at Paly. Choir president Taylor Duncan expressed her content with the new addition to the Pops Concert. “Having teachers perform was great because they got to see what we POPS CONCERT
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CREW/CREATIVE COMMONS LICENSED
SPOTLIGHT
SPORTS
An inside look at how affirmative action impacts Paly students.
Cutting edge equipment is often unnecessary for proper training.
Affirmative Action policies Flashy gear, dull skills
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