Polygon: March 2022

POLY PREP’S Student Newspaper VOL. CVI ISSUE V March 2022 Issue

the

POLYGON

Zuercher Zips to New Opportunities EMMA SPRING & CARLY PYLES EDITORS-IN-CHIEF

D

irector of Health and Well-Being Sarah Zuercher left Poly on Friday March 11. Head of School Audrius Barzdukas informed the Poly community in an email to parents and faculty on March 1. “[Zuercher] has cared for our community throughout the pandemic by leading our Health & Safety Team, nurses on both campuses, school counseling group, health education department, and anti-sexism working group. It is fair VIA POLY PREP COMMUNICATIONS to say that we could not have kept school open the way we did without lum for 7th and 9th grade, focusing only Sarah’s compassionate and competent on health. “We’ve been really trying leadership...We always want good things to make sure that the curriculum is sex to happen to good people, but we will positive, recgonizes intersectional idenmiss her expertise and contributions to tities, and helps students understand how our community’s health and well-being,” health outcomes are impacted by societal wrote Barzdukas. structures as opposed to just being about After serving as the director of a mo- individual behavioral choices,” said Zubile health center, Zuercher arrived at ercher. Zuercher shared that the aspect Poly following the departure of Nurse of Poly she will miss the most is teachPatricia Murphy in the fall of 2020. “The ing. “I’m very sad to leave my students. main thing that drew me to Poly was that That’s actually the hardest part about I was really interested in working with leaving is the students that I teach,” said the challenge of how to keep school open Zuercher. “My 9th grade students have during COVID,” said Zuercher. been so thoughtful and we’ve had such In addition to her responsibilities as great discussions. My 7th graders are the Director of Health and Well-being, just hilarious and fun and that’s always Zuercher taught seventh and ninth-grade one of the highlights of my weeks. I’ve health classes, working to revamp the also been working with students on the health curriculum. Over her stint at Poly, service board of the health committee…

Zuercher created a new curricu (continued on page 3)

polygonnews.org

What Was the Tower Times?

CHARLOTTE ARZOUIAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

E

ditorials, opinions, features, and other pieces of writing all fill the pages of The Polygon, Poly’s monthly student newspaper. However, if you visit any of The Polygon’s meetings, you’ll realize most staff members are high schoolers.

Actually, there are only a couple of middle school writers to date, although The Polygon would like to have more.

Middle schoolers now have their own section of The Polygon, called “The Middle School Corner,” where the Poly community can read news and other stories written by middle schoolers. However, due to a lack of articles, The Polygon occasionally decides to remove this section and incorporate what middle school stories are written into the other sections.

There used to be a separate student newspaper called The Tower Times, and it was for middle schoolers only. Founded in the school year of 1995-96, The Tower Times quickly became the central hub for information. It would discuss anything from a look into Commons revamps to advice to cope with students’ problems like tough homework and disorganization.

The Tower Times was founded by former middle school English teacher Gail Karpf upon former 6th-grader Joe Gallina’s request. Karpf said she loved to assist students in the processes of “brainstorming, drafting, editing, and revision.”

Not only was The Tower Times a helpful resource, but it was also incredibly influential to its members. “For me, it was probably my very first time ever writing

for a newspaper of any kind. I remember [Karpf] worked us pretty hard and it was a good deal of fun, figuring out how exactly to write something that wasn’t just made up, that required paying attention to what was around you and telling the truth. That was a big lesson,” said author Ross Barkan. Today, Barkan has written three books and works as a columnist for Guardian and a contributor to the Nation.

Barkan is one of the many members of The Tower Times who work for big newspaper domains today. Being exposed to such rich journalism at a young age made an impact on young writers.

The Polygon spoke to 5th- and 6thgrade history teacher Caesar Fabella, who co-led the newspaper alongside Karpf. In an interview, Fabella mentioned that the newspaper met after school, instead of in a club block like Poly’s newspaper today.

The Tower Times stopped printing a number of years ago. When asked why The Tower Times isn’t around anymore, Fabella shared that it was simply too much work. Teachers weren’t compensated for running The Tower Times either, so everyone involved purely created the newspaper for the love of writing and editing.

“There came a time when there were so many after school activities, that students had to make some difficult decisions. There were play rehearsals, sports events, etc., and the paper began to lose members of our staff,” added Karpf.

Most student newspapers are run by older students, and while this makes sense (continued on page 14)

Strike 3…Years of Normal Softball and Baseball EMMA SPRING EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

T

he first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of Poly is the 24-acre campus with ponds, animal life, and extensive sports fields. But when many seniors reflect back upon their high school years at Poly, they are more likely to attribute the backfields to time spent learning outdoors on lawn chairs with whiteboards, not necessarily the time they spent cheering on teammates. Because of the back field renovation, which started in September, every senior baseball and softball player will have had only one full and proper year of their sport in high school. (The reporter of this article is a member of the Poly Prep Softball Team.)

A full year of spring sports typically means one with home-field games, NYSAIS championship brackets, no COVID restrictions, and a season that spans more than six weeks. Poly spring sports train from the first week of school in September through the end of May. They were lucky enough to have had a full season in 2019.

However, after months of preparation, spring sports were quarantined in 2020 due to the outbreak of COVID-19. The fields upon school’s return in autumn accommodated tents, and spring packed scrimmages

within a period of six weeks. There was no championship to play for, and little to no on-campus games due to Poly’s tight COVID protocols.

This school year, Poly began bulldozing for the backfield renovation in September. The makeover, which will be named after Head Baseball Coach Matt Roventini, includes revamped baseball, soccer, and softball fields with stands, bullpens, press boxes, and dugouts, and potentially more football stands with a clear pathway to the street. “In that regard,” said senior and softball player Ella Carter, “I am happy for the future athletes that will get to enjoy this future renovation, but, selfishly, I wish my peers and I didn’t have to bear the brunt of every inconvenience the past three years have brought.”

In an interview with the Polygon in November, Head of Athletics Richard Corso said he hoped the project was to be finished

by April 1. Since the start of construction, however, with ripped up grass and piles of dirt, confidence that the fields would be completed in time for the spring season has dwindled as snow and ponds of rain started to occupy the construction zone.

“We are beholden to the weather gods,”

lay pipes and level the land.

You’ve got that beautiful piece of real estate, but you couldn’t use it because it was six inches under water.

Those days will be gone,” said Corso.

According to Corso, Poly’s baseball field will be comVIA WILLIAM LING-REGAN pleted in time said Head of School Audrius Barzdukas. for the season, “If the ground is frozen, you can’t dig. If followed by the softball field. “In some it’s a big rain, you can’t dig or lay things form, we will have baseball out here [on down. Our hopes and dreams are to have the field] this year. It’s hard to believe when it open [come April], but if you have any you look out there. April 1, that’s when we influence on weather, exert it…there’s a would like to do it. Once they put up the lot happening and it’s got to happen some- fencing, I believe the next thing is that they where.” put out the turf. That will go quick[ly]....”

Corso is still confident that the project The field will be officially opening on April will be done this spring. “I can’t pin it down 30. “[Softball] will be ready for the sumbecause of the weather. The majority of the mer. They will be on the road for the whole work is underground because they had to season. They know that. We have another (continued on page 2)

2

MARCH 2022

NEWS

Spring Break Post-Pandemic

FIELDS (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1)

ALIDA LISSAK ARTS EDITOR

F

or the past two spring breaks, traveling and socializing have been greatly limited due to the pandemic. So what are our students doing this spring break as the threat of COVID-19 has fallen substantially?

Spring training trips for spring sports resumed, chock-full of team bonding and competitive games for many students. Girls’ Lacrosse headed to Connecticut, while Boys’ Lacrosse and Girls’ Softball flew out to sunny Universal in Florida.

Poly alumna Calliope Lissak ’21 emphasized her adoration for the softball trip: “The Florida trip gave me the opportunity to bond with the team, specifically the upperclassmen and was a highlight of my sports experience at Poly.” Senior Ella Carter said, “With such a young team getting some bonding time was vital, but none of us expected to get as close as we did in the five days we were together. We spent every second together and got closer as a team, and we’re leaving Florida as friends and teammates.”

Similarly, many students took trips with their families and friends. A group of seniors headed to the Bahamas for some fun in the sun. Emma Cahill said, after much thought, “It was memorable.” Many juniors, meanwhile, used this spring break to visit colleges.

With the mask mandate recently lifted, return from spring break may be a major COVID concern. The Washington Post reported in February, “‘While the trajectory of the pandemic looks positive for spring at the moment, we know by now that this could still change,’ says Lindsey Roeschke, a travel and hospitality analyst at Morning Consult. ‘So protecting trips with insurance is advisable.’” Poly’s COVID protocols post-spring break are as Sarah Bates commented, “Our covid policies

will remain the same: mask optional, weekly testing on Sundays, and following the guidelines if you contract the virus or are a close contact to someone with covid. It seems as though we are on the other side of the pandemic but need to remain vigilant and attentive to protect ourselves and others.”

Where did this tradition of spring break come from? Well, the arrival of spring has been celebrated throughout history. According to Mental Floss, the Ancient Greeks and Romans paid tribute to their respective gods of wine, Dionysus and Bacchus, in the spring.

In 1928, Fort Lauderdale built their first Olympic-size swimming pool, attracting floods of the best college swimmers in the country during their break. Eventually, non-athletes began to follow this yearly migration for a break in the sun and soon enough the spring break phenomena of heading to Florida took root.

Then in 1960, MGM released Where The Boys Are, which followed four college women on spring break, furthering how mainstream this event was becoming. Other cities also started welcoming “spring breakers” and the tradition became even more deeply ingrained in American culture.

Many students hope the break will refuel them for the final push of the school year, specifically for finals and AP tests. Junior Bess Hort commented, “The few months in between spring break and summer are some of the most hectic months of Poly.” Hort went on to say how “break is crucial as it gives us some rest which will energize and help us do our best for the rest of the year.”

Junior Emily Mansfield remarked, “I think a lot of juniors really need this spring break, especially this year, if anything, to get our sleep schedules back on track.”

The POLYGON Managing Editors Maerose Daniels Lola Pitman News Editor Jordan Millar Opinions Editor Selah Ilung-Reed

stadium for them down the street past [Fort Hamilton],” said Corso.

Many baseball players are excited about the upgrade. Senior baseball player Warner Young said, “The [baseball] team is very excited for the renovation, and we believe the new facilities will only attract more players to Poly and further establish our program as one of the best on the east coast.”

Senior baseball player Issey Gestel added, “The new field is a dedication to Coach Roventini’s hard work and success for the Poly Prep Baseball program. We don’t lose that much besides time on the field, but even then, Coach Roventini finds a way to get our work in to get ready for the season.”

Corso explained that the reason the baseball field will be completed first is that construction crew started from the street from the baseball field and moved inward toward the softball field. “We wanted to get all of the drainage and superstructure built here and then go this way. Softball knew that. They get it. They’re just so excited for it to be ready for the fall,” said Corso.

Carter, the senior softball player, will not be able to play in the fall given her impending graduation from Poly. “Poly’s complete and total disregard for the fact that the athletes affected by this renovation have had up to half of their high school seasons stripped of them as it is, is senseless,” said Carter. “Every senior baseball and softball player has now only had the opportunity to play their freshman seasons. We won’t have our senior days, live streams, or any of the other aspects of our seasons that we train all year for. All the fun weekend games and family Saturdays had been the highs of my Poly experience.

Now we have corners of the turf, and trips to the fort to look forward to. It feels like a total disregard for our already tainted high school experiences.”

Given the weather issues, the Polygon asked why the bulk of the project was not set for the summer, a period free from competitive sports, snow, and frozen conditions.

Corso said, “[We] can’t let the gift sit there.

[We] wanna do it right away. [The] field’s not

going to get any better during the pandemic or after it. If we weren’t doing it now, there would be six to eight inches of water out in left field. It was even worse for softball. The fields we’ve been able to secure for them now—their training field is at the fort and then we have a NYC softball field that’s kept up pretty well. Now is the time.”

Barzdukas also mentioned the lack of time to get the fields done without any interruption of some sort. “It’s been an open mud pit for way more than the eight weeks of summer. It isn’t the kind of project that is going to be completed in two months. There’s no way to avoid impacting a school year for a project of that scope…There’s really no good time because you’re looking at a campus that operates 12 months a year. This upcoming summer, we aren’t going to have camp because of all the construction projects,” said Barzdukas.

The construction projects this summer, Barzdukas mentioned, include the impending arts center in addition to further construction on the fields. “I think that the way these things go is you can have the field laid down, but you still have to put in dugouts,” said Barzdukas.

Junior Summer Hornbeck, a member of the softball team, offered that while she is excited for the new fields, she expressed her frustration with year after year of setbacks.

“Back at the beginning of the pandemic, spring sports were the only teams to have missed their season. I remember attending a total of two softball practices before going into quarantine. Similar to this, 2021 spring sports will also have their seasons interrupted yet again through additional complications. I was very excited to play again this year and even though I am extremely grateful for the new fields, it is sad to watch another year on our field go by,” said Hornbeck.

The COVID pandemic has taught athletes around the world and at Poly to adapt to ever changing circumstances. Corso emphasized that the same mindset applies with the backfield renovation. He said, “The most important thing is you have a place to train, you have to pivot, and you go from there.”

Editors-in-Chief Carly Pyles Emma Spring

Sports Editors Ben Mansfield Samantha Rodino Middle School Editors Lucas Basham Brianna Sylvain

People Editor Chelsea Lin

Photography Editors William Ling-Reagan Caroline Hanna

Features Editor Seanna Sankar

Online Managing Editor Marta Balikcioglu

Arts Editors Brianna Khrakovsky Alida Lissak

Layout Editors Danielle Jason Sidney Rothkin

The Polygon is published at least eight times a year by the students of Poly Prep Country Day School. We welcome both letters to the editor and guest opinions pieces of interest. All submissions should be emailed to polygon@polyprep.org and must include the author’s name. The Polygon reserves the right to edit all submissions for spelling, grammar, and length. Letters should be no longer than 200 words, and opinion pieces should be no longer than 750 words.

Faculty Advisor: Rachael Allen The Polygon c/o Poly Prep CDS 9216 7th Avenue

3

MARCH 2022

NEWS

ZUERCHER ZIPS TO NEW OPPORTUNITIES (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1) it’s really hard to leave doing those projects with those guys. But they will continue on and we’ll find a good way to transition.”

Zuercher will be leaving to pursue a clinical position at the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. At the foundation on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, Zuercher said she will be “providing primary care to people living with HIV and people at high risk for HIV and other STIs.” With this new job, Zuercher will continue to focus on providing sexual and reproductive health care to people who face barriers to receiving adequate healthcare. “I went into healthcare with the intention of working with marginalized populations and communities because those communities should get the best healthcare because they face the most challenges to health, but it often doesn’t work that way,” said Zuercher. “Before I came to Poly, I was in clinical practice and since I’ve been here, I have thought about how to go back to that. Now that COVID is kind of more stable, you could say, I felt like this was a good time to transition back into doing clinical work.”

Zuercher stated that she took the job in mid-February after a few months of conversation with the organization.

While she asked the organization if she could wait out until the end of the school year, Zuercher explained that it was not possible. “Other organizations are not on the school calendar so [it’s hard] to ask a healthcare organization that needs a provider if they can wait for four months...It came down to either giv[ing] up that opportunity which is a really good fit for me or leav[ing] a couple months before the school year ends,” said Zuercher.

Poly is currently in the process of searching for a replacement. In the time being, all questions and concerns regarding COVID policy matters should be directed to the Assistant Head of School, Strategic Initiatives, Rebekah Sollitto. The school nurses, psychologists, and Assistant Head of School Michal Hershkovitz may also be contacted for other health matters.

Barzdukas said he is looking across the country to ensure that he finds the right replacement for Zuercher upon her departure. “Our timeline for every position at the school is the right person. Rather than basing some kind of artificial self-imposed deadline, what we always do is we try to find people,” said Barzdukas.

Barzdukas cited five characteristics that he is looking for in a new hire: strong leadership skills, organization, and being “technically competent,” as Barzdukas put it, and not just an administrator. Further, they should serve as a role model for the students, and go beyond the traditional scope of what is expected of a school nurse. Lastly, they need to be a good cultural fit. “Poly is kind of different. You have to fit into our culture. You know, our third peripular identity, Brooklyn; you have to kind of fit with us. We’re gonna look until we find that person,” said Barzdukas. He said Poly is looking for a replacement who emulates Zuercher. “I think someone like Ms. Zuercher.

Creative, a little bit of energy, a person who’s not afraid to speak up,” said Barzdukas.

The question remains, however, whether the position of Director of Health and Well-being will remain the same. Barzdukas said, “I think we still want someone who

has the competence and the scope to manage [COVID and its changing guidelines]. It’s a big job. I would like our health curriculum to be something that is the best. I think [the title] is going to remain the same,” he said.

Zuercher added, “My role was new when I came. I think we kind of learned a lot. I think some things about it really really work and I think there’s some areas that I worked on that need even more attention. For example, building out our health curriculum program. We’re kind of right now trying to figure out what the best structure is.”

However, with regard to the question of what the position will entail, Zuercher said, “I defer to Mr. Barzdukas on what the Director of Health and Well-being role will look like after I leave.”

In the meantime, Zuercher shared that the number of nurses on each campus will remain the same after her departure. In an email to the Polygon, Barzdukas said, “Nurse [Sara] Siller is our Interim Head Nurse.” She will also be taking over Zuercher’s COVID responsibilities.

Siller has worked as a nurse at the Lower School since 2020. Barzdukas also noted that Poly has since added a temporary nurse for the rest of the year: Morlon Mitchell.

“I told her that I was and I will be, forever, her best reference in terms of being able to tell the story of what she did for our school,” said Barzdukas of Zuercher in an interview with the Polygon. He continued his message in his email to the community, writing, “Thank you, Sarah, for your leadership and care of our community—we will never forget you.”

How are books chosen for Poly’s English Classes?

A Book Q&A with the English Department SAMANTHA RODINO SPORTS EDITOR Nowakoski: All classes are fundamentally the same— we think about what we would like students to learn both in terms of content and skills and choose books accordingly. For single courses, I meet with individual teachers and discuss choices, ask questions, and make suggestions. For courses with teaching teams, I meet with those teams in a similar capacity.

Rearick: For an AP class, the AP teacher decides. I’m the VIA SIDNEY ROTHKIN only one teaching AP Lit, which is also a specialized class.

Three of Poly’s Upper School English I have a lot of experience teaching the teachers, Christy Hutchcraft, John AP so I try to find books that would Rearick, and Head of English Departbe good for students to use on the AP ment Peter Nowakoski, were intertest. We also try to keep an eye on other viewed about how books are chosen for goals that we have. For instance, one their classes. Their responses have been of the pillars of the school is diversity, condensed and edited for clarity. so we try to teach books that reflect all kinds of diversity.

Which English classes do you teach at Poly?

Hutchcraft: I can’t speak for my colleagues, but I think there is a delicate Nowakoski: Right now, tenth grade, balance between honoring really exThe Writer’s Craft elective, and The traordinary texts that have withstood Postcolonial Lit elective, but I am also the test of time and continue to speak to the chair of the department. our own time in really prescient ways and opening the door to new voices, Rearick: This year I teach 10th grade identities and ways of existing on the American Literature and AP English page that haven’t been spotlighted. I Literature. am interested in doing both things, so I am always reading and on the lookout Hutchcraft: This year I am teaching Enfor new authors and voices that extend glish 9 and the Creative Writing elecbeyond my own formal education. Detive for grades 10-12.. signing a curriculum for any literature course, if done thoughtfully, is always How does the English department a work in progress. It is never finished. decide which books are going to be used in the curriculum that year?

How often are the books assigned for

the curriculum of a class changed?

Every few years? Every year?

Nowakoski: As a general principle, for me, a 3-5-year cycle per book is good for both students and teachers. At first, you figure things out, then you really sing along, then you start to look around for the next book...Teachers are always reading and getting excited about new books or re-investigating old favorites.

Hutchcraft: In the years that I have been at Poly, I would say that we introduced about two new texts each year in the Grade 10 course (up until this year, since we changed all of the courses quite a bit). All of the teachers are still finding their footing with the new courses that have developed this school year. I’m sure there will continue to be even more fluidity with our book lists.

We’re adding Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel, Persepolis, to the 9th-grade curriculum next year, which I am excited about.

Rearick: I think every teacher would like to teach a book two or three times at least because then you get to really know the book. The first time, you’re experimenting yourself. The second time you feel a little bit more confident, and the third time you think “okay, I know what I’m doing.” So it’s good to hold on to a book for a few years, but sometimes a different class will want the book and you have to give it up. For instance, in AP Lit, I used to teach Invisible Man. The American Literature people came to me at the time and said they would like to teach it.

What is your favorite book that your students are reading or are going to read this school year?

Nowakoski: That’s like asking which student I like the most or which of my children I love more. There might be one on any given day, but I’m certainly not going to tell you...

Hutchcraft: I would say that Kafka’s The Metamorphosis still holds up after over one hundred years and has been fascinating to discuss during the pandemic. A man turns into a cockroach after losing himself by working too much. He is essentially quarantined in his room for months by his own family, and some would interpret that they are fearful they might catch his “disease.” You can’t get any more timely than that. Great literature has the power to generate a multitude of readings. I think the 9th graders have been challenged by this one, but in a good way.

I’ve been impressed with their interpretations of it. And students will still tell me that they always remember reading and talking about The Metamorphosis.

What book would you like for students to be able to read in your classroom in the future?

Nowakoski: Ha! So many... we had novelist and poet Zack Linmark here this week, and his work is amazing. I read Colson Whitehead’s Harlem Shuffle over winter break, and it’s amazing (as are all his works), and in no particular order some titles that I’ve been turning over in my mind include The Thousand Crimes of Ming Tsu, A Brief History of Seven Killings, Midnight’s Children, and Empire of Wild.

Hutchcraft: A few years ago, a writer friend introduced me to Brazilian author Carolina Maria de Jesus, a single mother living in the slums of Brazil during the 1950s who kept a diary of (continued on page 4)

4

MARCH 2022

NEWS

Books (continued from page 3)

Adiós APs! ANJALI BUDHRAM AND REESE ROAMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

P

oly held a Chapel in early March discussing the removal of AP classes for future school years. This was the first occurrence where students had formally learned about this decision and it left many students concerned and wanting clarity on the reasoning behind the recent decision.

The main concern with the absence of these AP classes is college admissions. Throughout the application process, a significant way to stand out is through the number of AP classes taken, as they allow colleges to differentiate students’ academic abilities. This new decision has brought up a multitude of opinions throughout the student body, as many students feel lost without APs, not knowing how they will stand out to prospective schools.

“For one, the AP system allows us to have credits for college. When we don’t have those

“I don’t think there will be a change in the way colleges view Poly students with APs vs. Advanced courses.”

- Douglas Wong credits, people will have to redo those classes and that will be annoying. However, teaching to the AP system doesn’t allow much creativity,” said Georgia Horan ’23.

However, on the contrary, this removal is also a relief for many students, as there is now less academic pressure.

“I feel like I can now really focus on specific topics of interest to me versus feeling overwhelmed by APs and the preparation for college. The rigor that remains in the more

course-specific classes is good because I still feel challenged but on a more reasonable level,” said sophomore Kaia Scott.

Francesca Corsalini, a current senior, partook in five AP classes over the course of her high school career. “AP classes next year take away an opportunity for distinction among students. Enrolling in APs demonstrates you are pushing yourself above the average expectations. I’m not sure how students will differentiate themselves from their peers next year,” she said.

Douglas Wong, one of the upper school deans, directly observes the college application process annually. Wong explained how this change might not affect the college process as much as some think. “I don’t think there will be a change in the way colleges view Poly students with APs vs. Advanced courses. The majority of colleges don’t accept AP grades as college credit — students cannot really ‘graduate early’ — so AP vs. Advanced courses serves to indicate students’ deep academic interests and show them taking challenging classes. In both cases, this is conveyed regardless of whether it is called ‘AP’ or ‘Advanced,’” said Wong.

Michal Hershkovitz, assistant head of school, also gave her insight into how students can remain diverse inside and outside of the classroom with the upcoming lack of APs. “Ideally, students differentiate themselves daily by pursuing their individual interests in their own inimitable ways; in doing so, they reflect and enhance our community’s diversity, making us all better,” wrote Hershkovitz in an email to the Polygon.

The most common question asked among the student body when concerning the removal of the AP classes is the intention behind

this decision. In response to this question, Wong said, “I think we were vastly underutilizing the expertise of our teachers. Many of our teach-

“The move away from the AP program, like all curricular changes we make, is intended and deliberately designed to positively affect students.”

-Michal Hershkovitz

ers have advanced degrees in some interesting subjects, but with an AP curriculum, we had to teach specific AP topics.”

Hershkovitz added, “The move away from the AP program, like all curricular changes we make, is intended and deliberately designed to positively affect students. We expect our new advanced courses to be far more robust, intellectually rigorous, and interesting college-preparatory courses. The short answer to this question is that we are confident that the removal of AP courses will make our students’ curricular experiences at Poly richer and more meaningful.”

Nationally, statistics show that more than 1.24 million students who graduated from American high schools in 2018 took a total of 4.22 million AP Exams, according to the AP Program Results and Data on the College Board.

Poly hopes that shifting away from AP classes will help students relieve stress and expand their knowledge in subcategories of subjects they are already passionate about. Allowing students to develop within narrower fields is part of Poly’s attempt to academically prepare students for the college level.

thor Carolina Maria de Jesus, a single mother living in the slums of Brazil during the 1950s who kept a diary of her experiences. She would collect scraps of paper in the favela because she had nothing else to write on and use that for her diary entries. They were later published under the title Child of the Dark after being discovered by a local journalist.

This is a text I would love to explore with students. She suffered great hardship, but the poetic power of her voice and her resilience are completely humbling. This first-hand account teaches the reader about what it means to live in abject poverty, and I think that is something that we as a school culture and a society don’t often want to look at closely. Yet despite these dire circumstances, this writer found language and poetry to be compelling sustenance. I think it would be a meaningful experience for students to spend time discussing a voice like this.

COVID Puts Poly’s Mask Optional Policy to the Test BEATRICE LARKIN STAFF WRITER

P

oly’s new mask-optional policy has proven to be a relief to students who do not want to continue to wear their masks. Some students, however, have been worried that there are more COVID-19 cases. However, this is not the case — students are simply being made more aware of the minimal spread of cases because Poly has begun contact tracing again, according to Sarah Zuercher, former Director of Health and Well-being who departed Poly this month.

The mask-optional policy did not show an increase in the number of cases, according to Zuercher. In fact, there was an evident decrease in cases over the past few months: During the surge of Omicron Poly’s all-time high was 53 cases, and at gate testing upon returning from break there were, according to Interim Head Nurse Sara Siller, only 2 positive cases across both campuses.

Zuercher shared that Poly stopped contact tracing in January and February during the Omicron surge. She said, “We just assumed everybody had contact with people who were positive.” If the contacts were already masked up, they were already following the protocol when exposed to COVID-19.

While many Poly students might be worried about the amount of contact-cases there are, but Zuercher assuaged concerns with a key detail. She clarified, “we were exposed as case-contacts every day during January and half of February. It was because we weren’t notifying people of every single exposure it did not seem as overwhelming.”

Zuercher said, “we’re always considering making changes, but right now we’re doing well, from my perspective…during the height of Omicron we had many cases every day, now we do not have that many cases but because we are contact tracing, people are scared when they hear that they were exposed.”

The logistics of the cases and who is contact-traced are complicated. Zuercher said, “if someone tests positive and they were in school for their infectious period, we contact their classes, team, or any other group they are a part of.” Therefore, anyone involved with that student with COVID would be informed. They would also be told to wear a mask for the next 10 days, as a preventive measure in case they test positive. The reason why we started contact-tracing was so we could keep track of who was exposed.

“Contact-tracing stopped during the surge of Omicron because we just assumed everybody had contact with people who were positive.”

-Sarah Zuercher Zuercher said in early March that about 200-300 people have been contact-traced since we have gone mask-optional, but there has been a great decrease in cases since the end of the Omnicron surge. The two-week period before spring break when we took our masks off, there were several COVID cases. At the height of the Omnicron strain upon returning from winter break from January 4 to 17, Poly had 53 positive cases according to the New York State official website. Poly had a total of 16 student cases from

VIA CAROLINE HANNA March 2 to 15, the weeks before spring break. The Sunday before returning from school from spring break, March 27, there were only 2 positive cases, according to Siller.

Junior Abby Contessa was told she was a COVID contact on March 9. She stated, “I am diligent in wearing a mask, but I definitely know people who are contacts who are not.”

Zuercher said, “We are counting on students who are close contacts to wear their masks, but you can imagine logistically…Going around and making sure everybody

“We’re always considering making changes, but right now we’re doing well, from my perspective.”

-Sarah Zuercher who’s contact traced is wearing a mask…We just don’t have the ability to do that.”

Junior Sidney Rothkin said, “it is concerning that people will not wear their masks because we are so close to the end of the pandemic.” Having the privilege of not having to wear masks comes with responsibility Rothkin said as she believes “everyone’s compliance will help in getting us closer to stop the spread of COVID.” Zuercher mentions that Poly is keeping a look out for groups that are being affected. “We’re going to keep an eye on it — we had a few cases associated with the Upper School Musical, and we look and see what’s happening in different groups like grades,” she said.

When asked about any possible changes that will be made, Zuercher said, “we are transitioning from strict COVID protocols; we are getting toward getting to lift other things too, but we’re not there yet.”

5

MARCH 2022

OPINIONS

U.S. vs Russia: Who are we to compare atrocities?

EMMA SPRING EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

P

eacefully sitting at my desk near the front oval, I’m ardently typing up my next exposé, waving to friends in the hallway, windows open, basking in the fresh air. Amidst the bliss, Fort Hamilton sounds an alarm I’ve never heard before. Ash infiltrates the breeze as a loud boom and radiance fills the army base next door. I rush to the art wing—it’s a shelter if you didn’t know—when another loud boom hits the Veteran’s Hospital.

Russia is coming to Brooklyn. The next few weeks entail the bombings of more hospitals, children’s hospitals, apartment buildings, refugee centers, parks, and school becomes second to surviving.

Right now, Russia is attacking Ukraine, and it’s evil. Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, thinking he would face complete surrender

by Ukraine, did not get what he had hoped for. Facing dissatisfaction, Putin goes, “let’s just kill everyone.” Russia is bombing cities, destroying villages, killing civilians.

In America, President Theodore Roosevelt adopted the proverb, “Speak softly and carry a big stick,” asserting American dominance as a moral duty to protect countries from the intervention of European powers. Under this guideline, American military presence in Vietnam,

Korea, Afghanistan, and Iraq with millions dead soon followed. Given our history, many are asking, who are we to condemn Putin for disregarding sovereignty?

Americans believed that Iraq garnered weapons of mass destruction and spread the message around through the free press. Many Americans condemned George Bush Jr. and did so without consequence. The United States has the right to think what they want. Russia does not.

The United States has been selling arms to Saudi Arabia for intervention in Yemen, injuring thousands and leaving countless hungry and starving. There’s no doubt in my mind that this is wrong. We have committed many cruelties, many of which were disguised for moral purposes. At the same time, there is a degree of difference between selling weapons and carpet bombing an entire country with no clear motive.

Ultimately, what difference does it make if the United States has committed atrocities? So what if we’re being somewhat hypocritical? Let’s be hypocritical in a good way. Maybe I’m being näive, but I think peace and freedom matter. If we were huddled in the art wing covering ourselves from the shellings, we wouldn’t care where the outrage and pressure came from.

The Polygon’s Editorial Policy Editor’s Note: This is an excerpt of the Polygon’s new editorial policy, which was discussed and written by the Polygon’s editors and faculty advisor. The full version can be found on polygonnews.org.

T

he Polygon is the official student newspaper of and funded by Poly Prep Country Day School (prior to 1914 the school paper was called the Polywog). The Polygon publishes a monthly print edition and publishes stories online at any time at polygonnews.org. The Polygon is designed for student expression to freely and robustly inform and entertain readers through published material, and serve as an embodiment of Poly Prep student character. The Polygon strives to be accurate, equitable, and impartial in its coverage of all matters; the Polygon permits free expression of student opinions, always striving to do so in an open and respectful manner. The Polygon staff has adopted the following editorial policy to express the rights, responsibilities, and philosophy of the Polygon newspaper.

The Polygon Editorial Board is the decision-making body of the newspaper which governs its day-to-day operation.

The Editorial Board includes the Editor(s)-in-Chief, section editors, photography editor(s), managing editor(s), and social media editor(s). The Polygon regularly consults with its faculty advisor to ensure that it meets the highest standards for publication. Although the advisor may give advice and opinion, the final decision rests in the hands of the Editor(s)-in-Chief.

All final decisions regarding the Polygon and its publications rest in the hands of the Editor(s)-in-Chief without prior review or restraint from school administrators.

Articles in the Polygon are the work of the editorial board and contributing writers under faculty advice. All content does not necessarily represent those

of the Polygon or the administration of Poly Prep Country Day School. Poly Prep Country Day School is not responsible for the accuracy and contents of the Polygon and is not liable for any claims based on the contents or views expressed therein.

The Polygon will not publish anything deemed slanderous, defamatory, or false as determined by the editorial board. A critical opinion about someone or the revealing of an unpleasant truth is not defamation when constructive and supported by facts. Libel, as defined by the Student Press Law Center, “is the willful or negligent publication of provably false and unprivileged statements of fact that do demonstrable harm to a living person’s reputation.” All articles must be fact-checked by an editor, with opinion column articles fact-checked on a case-bycase basis. The Polygon prohibits the publication of articles that meets a category of speech not protected by the First Amendment or local law, that are a violation of copyright, promotes illegal products or services as defined by state or federal law, or incites students as to create a clear and present danger of the commission of an unlawful act. The Polygon will generally avoid the publication of articles identifying minors by name accused of criminal or disciplinary infractions, though exceptions may be made where there is a compelling editorial rationale. Unwarranted invasions of privacy are forbidden, which occur when a publication publicizes highly personal, intimate information about an individual without consent or with no newsworthy justification.

Read more at polygonnews.org.

The Press on Ukraine LUCAS BASHAM MIDDLE SCHOOL EDITOR

O

n February 24, 2022, President Vladimir Putin announced “a special military operation” and invaded Ukraine after weeks of gathering Russian troops along the border. Ukranians were panicking and gearing up to either fight or flee. Me? I was sitting in bed, doing homework late at night, watching CNN, and posting screenshots of New York Times articles on my Instagram story.

I was thinking things along the lines of what a lot of teenage Americans were thinking: “wow, I can’t believe how evil Putin is,” or maybe, “If I read the New York Times and repost things on social media, I’ll seem (and therefore be) knowledgeable and responsible,” and, of course, the somewhat joking but also serious speculations on a nuclear World War III. While the conflict, for now, is unlikely to severely impact the lives of everyday Americans, we still need to keep ourselves informed to understand the fundamental qualities of democracy and freedom that are being overrun in Ukraine. But it’s very difficult for Americans to really be informed on and talk about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine responsibly considering the U.S.’s own history of invasion and attack on civilian areas such as in Iraq and Afghanistan along with the great difficulty of finding responsible and unbiased media coverage. Nevertheless, it is still important to go out and learn from several reputable and reliable sources.

To be honest, I hadn’t even thought about Russia’s invasion in the context of the U.S. ‘s history of invasion until my English teacher, Mr. Paolo Javier, brought it up in a conversation we were having as a class about the conflict.

Intrigued by what he had said, I interviewed him to get a deeper understanding: “It’s imperative for Americans…to be reminded of our own history of invasion,” he said. “We ourselves are invaders. We invaded Iraq by duping the American public into believing that Saddam Hussein was in possession of weapons of mass destruction and this was a coordinated deception.”

The U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003 for a few reasons, including disarming “Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein’s support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people,” according to President George W. Bush’s radio address to the people in March 2003.

Another motivation for the invasion was, of course, punishing Al-Qaeda— the terrorist group based in Iraq responsible for 9/11. But it was later found that Iraq had never possessed nuclear weapons, nor had Hussein ever had an operational relationship with Al-Qaeda.

Hussein was an abusive dictator, like Putin, who consistently violated human rights throughout his 24-year regime. But the connection I want to make clear between the invasion of Iraq and the current invasion of Ukraine

by Russia is about media coverage.

For one, the media often got the facts completely wrong. The New York Times was, and still is, one of the American people’s primary sources for news.

Throughout the war, they continued to support the justification to invade to disarm Iraq of nuclear weapons. In fact, one of their writers won a Pulitzer Prize for her reporting on terrorism in Iraq, and later reporting of hers was found to be factually inaccurate.

Furthermore, according to a fea-

ture story reported by UC Berkeley NewsCenter, television news viewers were far more likely to be pro-war during the Iraq invasion, which shows the power of the media whether it is striving to hold viewers and make money or to actually uncover and report the truth.

Since the start of Russia’s invasion, several “trustworthy” news outlets including CBS, French network BFMTV, and even Al-Jazeera—an international news network I have come to rely on to balance my consumption of American media—have had to apologize for statements that were clearly unsupported and bias, according to Axios.

These biased statements, particularly about Ukrainian refugees compared to Middle Eastern and other non-white refugees reflect “the pervasive mentality in Western journalism of normalizing tragedy in parts of the world such as the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and Latin America,” said The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association. “It dehumanizes and renders [non-white refugees’ experiences] with war as somehow normal and expected.”

In 2021, the U.S. was ranked 44th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders, an organization focused on safeguarding and reporting on the

The best we can do is go to lots of different sources—local, mainstream, national, and international—to get our news with the intention of forming our own accurately informed and independent perspectives.

right to freedom of information, citing widespread misinformation and distrust of mainstream media as well as the relative disappearance of local news. Norway was ranked first for the 5th year in a row. Costa Rica, New Zealand, and Jamaica also landed in the top 10. The U.S. has the highest GDP in the world and has the highest government spending in the world, but clearly money doesn’t solve our problems.

If Americans don’t trust mainstream media, they go to social media, where misinformation is rampant. On social media, Americans just see headlines, videos, and quotes from accounts they either follow or were recommended, and have no intent of checking the reliability and accuracy of what they see. After all, many resort to getting their news from social media because it’s easy to access and so that they don’t have to think too hard about it.

As Mr. Javier put it, it’s important “to pursue nuance in thinking about this conflict because it’s not so cut and dried—it’s not so black and white. The bad guys and the good guys are not so clear cut and loyalties really boil down to so many different factors that average Americans are unable to comprehend because of the coverage of a conflict.”

The best we can do is go to lots of different sources—local, mainstream, national, and international— to get our news with the intention of forming our own accurately informed and independent perspectives, not perspectives shaped by the one or two news outlets we always rely on.

MARCH 2022

OPINIONS

6

Winston’s Commons Crusade CAROLINE HANNA PHOTO EDITOR

E

ver wonder why Jared Winston, Director of Student Life, started yelling on his loudspeaker and telling you to throw away your trash even when you only sat down to eat your chicken and rice five minutes ago? Well, it is actually an initiative to improve school culture and to encourage students to throw away their trash.

When I spoke to Winston, he told me that he began to do this because we needed a time and place for the school to be together and have short and quick announcements as a community. In high school, Winston’s school had daily morning announcements where they would shout out community members and recognize recent accomplishments. He called it, “a special moment at the beginning of the day that could center the community.” Once I considered it, I thought it was a little weird that Poly has never done it because it seems like such a Poly thing to do. We have Chapel, but usually that time is prioritized for other things. Since I’ve been at Poly, it’s become less of a time for community announcements and more for special guests and insight into some of Poly’s specific programs.

As Winston explained, our PA system is not properly wired to hold morning announcements because we would wake up our neighbors around campus. So instead of installing an internal announcement system at Poly, which

would be a much longer and delayed process, he decided to make lunch a little more interesting.

Additionally, the seven-day schedule makes it difficult for the whole community to meet at once. Winston pointed out that due to the scheduling, “we often can go up to two weeks without communing together in the same space and feeling like the individual is part of a larger whole.” This really spoke to me. I think people can come to feel extremely lonely throughout the day, as they are going from class to class, not able to participate in communities, because the only extra time they have is used for speaking with teachers or in extracurricular activities.

Commons is the one place where you can sit back and enjoy the people around you and understand that you are not alone at all.

The other thing pressing on Winston’s mind was students not cleaning up after themselves in the Commons.

It’s important that we take care of the physical spaces in our community and acknowledge the responsibility we have to do so. As a community, we desperately needed to “update the community on important cultural moments, and also enforce cultural norms and expectations,” said Winston. Understanding that “culture takes time to change,” Winston said he came up with the bright idea

to set up a speaker in Commons and accomplish both of these goals by surprising us with very loud, energetic, and unexpected announcements. Winston told me that he was pretty angry with the fact that students were not taking care of Commons, and he used that frustration and turned it into something positive and productive. “I get to connect with students, I get to have informal conversation, and I get to build rapport and trust.” These interactions in Commons build trust in our community and promote cultural growth.

We develop community in so many ways at Poly Prep.

We have athletics, arts, academics, clubs, affinity and alliance groups, upstander workshops, and now a microphone in Commons. Winston is confident that the relationships that he is able to create in a space like Commons will allow us to “try new things in good faith to improve community.” I agree. The goal in the future is to involve students in these announcements and to create a robust program that’s run by students with an eye towards community and culture development. This initiative to startle us in Commons with positive messages and Winston’s “you better be cleaning up that garbage in 20 minutes” face is going to jumpstart an amazing program at Poly and will inspire the community to grow stronger.

Poly Potties

The Upset With Teacher Offices

BEATRICE LARKIN STAFF WRITER

SUMMER HORNBECK CONTRIBUTING WRITER

O

T

ne question that many Poly students have, even though it is simple, is: Why aren’t there more bathrooms?

Our school is quite large, and throughout all three floors of the main building there are only two for boys, and two for girls.

The first floor girls’ bathroom in the main building between classes is so crowded that oftentimes there is not enough space to wait your turn, with people slamming the door into those waiting in line when they open it. Junior Hannah Gross stated, “there is not enough room for the rush of students in between classes, there are not enough stalls either.” Clearly, this situation is less than ideal.

It is difficult to use one of the three stalls on the first and second floors between classes.

There is not enough space to wait in the bathroom. A reasonable solution would be to have bathrooms with more stalls on both the first and second floors of the main building because that is where they have demand. Every student who needs to go to the bathroom near their class should be able to. Gross added, “often if I want to make it to class on time, I cannot go to the bathroom because the wait is too long for the five-minute break we have.” More bathrooms near the main building would solve this problem. It simply does not make sense that there is an abundance of stalls in the Novogratz where people rarely are, yet in the most high-traffic areas there are tiny bathrooms with only three stalls.

It is possible that structurally,

VIA BEATRICE LARKIN we cannot fit more bathrooms in the main building. Head of Upper School Sarah Bates wrote in an email to the Polygon that “the bathrooms (and all of the plumbing associated) have not changed in my 11 years at Poly, with the exception of new bathrooms installed in newer buildings. The main building is over 150 years old, so moving spaces like bathrooms that require significant plumbing and building codes is difficult, I imagine.”

In the Novogratz Center, a newer building, we have an abundance of bathrooms — the girls’ bathroom has about fifteen stalls, which there is not enough demand for because there are never enough people there to need that many stalls.

Still, our school, with all of its facilities, needs one of the most basic ones. Before we make any new additions to our school, it is necessary that we think about adding bathrooms. New bathrooms with more stalls would be a great addition to our school, given Poly’s many resources.

here aren’t enough desks for teachers.

How can we expect them to be productive, efficient, grade our assignments on time, and create lesson plans when they don’t have the proper work space or environment? Teachers seem to be either cramped in one office or spread out, working in different classrooms or separate offices searching for empty and quiet spaces.

The reasoning behind department offices is for convenience—to have all teachers, books, and textbooks in one space. If students need to meet with a teacher or make up a test, spending time searching for a quiet space, or sitting in a distracting office with a department full of teachers also trying to work, is not the best use of one’s time.

After an intensive math class, I often find myself confused and in need of extra help, like many students at Poly. It’s not uncommon to seek help, so I sprint to the first floor and burst through the welcoming doors of the math office. This office is huge, spanning the width of the entire first floor, including desks for every math teacher with additional space for students to take tests, meet with teachers, and study alongside a room full of support. My eyes frantically dart around the office, searching for my calculus guardian angel, Ms. Liao. She’s not here. But I have a test tomorrow. I catch Dr. Sharma and I run over to him. “Do you know where Ms. Liao is?” I’m on the verge of tears. “She’s in a meeting,” he says. “But I can try to help you out.” I look up and a wave of relief washes over me. This is an extremely realistic example of a scenario I find myself in quite often. It’s amazing to have a room full of teachers in one place in case I need help.

However, having all teachers in a department in one room is not always ideal.

For example, take the history office. It’s a charming, oak-lined, book-covered nook that also must serve as a place to take a makeup test. Noise is the first problem. I don’t want to take my teacher away from their desk and computer, but in a crowded and overfilled room, as a student it’s hard to focus, so I can only imagine how the teachers must feel.

This applies even to the math office, too.

After speaking with a few of the history teachers, despite the advantages of an end-

less supply of books and teachers who can help bounce ideas off of each other in one office, there are also physical constraints.

“Ms. Beiles is kind of squeezed in between Mx. Blanford and Dr. Shmookler and these are just the upper school teachers not counting Mr. Sivin who has his own office,” history teacher Dr. Virginia Dillon notes.

There are teachers whose desks can’t even fit in the office, so they must search for alternative accommodations. This may include looking for an empty classroom, having a separate office, or having a semi-permanent desk in a classroom. As one can assume, this is not ideal. Searching for a classroom is only a temporary solution to a long-term problem, and it wastes precious time. Also, who knows when the next class will have to take over the workspace. It is essential to have an environment that will allow productive behavior. After I spend weeks working on an essay, I know

A balance must be reached between common space and quiet space, not one extreme or the other. my teachers would like to sit down and go through the work without distractions, but it cannot always be done.

Another problem that arose was mess and organization, specifically in the English department office. There is a lack of shelves, as expressed by English teacher Rebekah Delaney. I have personally been to the English department, and, frankly; I have been quite overwhelmed by the abundance of people, books, and supplies. “In terms of a productive space, to be able to do our work, it’s not conducive to that because there’s not enough room for all of us,” said Delaney. Not to mention, there is no space for students to meet with teachers. The teachers deserve enough room to effectively complete their work and feel comfortable.

Department offices are the center of so many resources all in one space, but overcrowding may hinder the benefits. Ultimately, a balance must be reached between common space and quiet space, not one extreme or the other.

7

FEATURES

FEATURES

MARCH 2022

Where Are Poly ’s Archives?

BEATRICE LARKIN AND MAC COLEMAN STAFF WRITER AND CONTRIBUTING WRITER

P

oly’s archives are a collection of old magazines from the school published, yearbooks, photos, old Polygons, and artifacts dating all the way back to the 1800s.

These archives, a collection that started back to when the institution opened, are a representation of what Poly was back in the day, with documentation of artistic, athletic, and academic achievement.

Over the years, the location and accessibility of these archives have shifted, leaving many students not knowing the extent of Poly’s archives in the first place.

Poly Prep has a long history, dating back to 1854, much of which the student body may not be aware of. In searching for old school archives, community members uncovered some of the school’s little-known history.

History teacher AJ Blandford, who is working with the archives in her history class, “Hidden Histories: Poly Public History,” shared, “we have digital copies of all the student newspapers going back to the early 1900s.” Blandford explained that these student publications date back to early in Poly’s history, when at its very beginning, it was both a college and a high school. While showing a picture of an all-male class from the early 1900s, Blandford explained that the picture showed a fraternity at the time.

Poly started as a college preparatory school when it opened in 1854. A style of education unheard of now, the older Poly was a place where one could complete both high school and college. “Students would either spend a couple of years here and go onto Yale or Harvard,” Blandford said. “Some students would just graduate and would have the equivalent of a college degree.”

Many would assume that the old college was dissolved, leaving what Poly is now to remain. However, that is not the case. Blandford explained that Poly did split up, but they also “decided to create a separate polytechnic, which is now a part of NYU.” One part

of what was initially Poly is now NYU, and many of our archives from the time the two schools were united are there at NYU. The remaining part of the school became Poly Prep, which is our high school today.

Director of Arts Outreach and former teacher Robert Aberlin revealed that the majority of archives had been tucked away in a closet in the alumni building, however, not all archives are stored in one place. He explained, “Some are in the headmaster’s office, in a closet, or in the business office.” Aberlin, along with other volunteers, assembled the archives for Poly’s sesquicentennial in 2004 as the archives hadn’t had a set place. School librarian Brian Lorenzen is considering moving them to the library where they can be more accessible for both students and faculty to browse and uncover more Poly history.

For the most part, the archives have consisted of relatively the same materials, such as old articles, papers, documents, Polygons, Polyglots, and photographs of the past.

Aberlin elaborated on what exactly the archives contain. “The archives consist of old magazines from the school published from around the late 1890s, yearbooks from the early 1900s, tons of photos, old Polygons, [and] some artifacts,” he said. The agglomeration of old publications helps give a broader picture of Poly many decades ago.

According to Blandford, “Anybody can work in the archives, the issue is the archives are not cataloged. The school is trying to create a proper storage system so anybody can access the materials.” This is why it is essential to digitize these records, Blandford explained, so they are easier to access. While these archives are from the late 1800s to early 1900s, they show us all of the changes Poly has undergone throughout its history.

Three Polygon articles and headlines found in the archives dated October 23, 1929, April 10, 1981, and October 14, 1932 (left to right).

Parenthood and Marriage in a Pandemic for Faculty at Poly LUCY GOLDBERG CONTRIBUTING WRITER

W

e all know our teachers pretty well, but what about their life outside of school? Who has gotten engaged during the pandemic? What was it like giving birth with a mask on?

Up until a couple weeks ago, Middle School Spanish Teacher Kristin Ginty has been on maternity leave, as she recently had her second child during the pandemic.

She had her first child in August of 2019. Although studies have shown that the first pregnancy is more difficult than the second, Ginty said “giving birth during a pandemic, in a mask, was more challenging than in the first time around.”

Besides from her stressful birth, Ginty noted that the pandemic has brought some positive differences from

her first childbirth experience. She said that the pandemic “has afforded [her] a lot of time to be with [her] children [and] spending that time at home.”

Ginty said that the time she spent with her two kids at home is mostly in Spanish.

As a language teacher, Ginty wants to bring language into her home by raising her kids bilingual. She added that she wants to have those “touch points with them all the time” when bringing language into the home.

Overall, Ginty says that having children has made her a better and happier person because she is always thinking how she can help others.

But she also believes that her teaching has improved as a teacher explaining that she wants her students to know,

“they are being listened to, their needs and concerns are being met, and that I’m going to push them really hard because I know that they’re capable of a lot.”

Upper School Dean Douglas Wong, who has been working at Poly for five years, got engaged during the pandemic. Like many others’, however, his plans were disrupted by the pandemic, specifically his engagement plans.

Wong said he had his engagement all planned out and then “the pandemic happened and literally ruined those plans.” He said that it had worked out after all, being that it was “something very simple and quiet.”

Wong says that not much has changed after being engaged except the fact that

people are more invested in his relationship now. He also added that his feelings haven’t changed much, however as “you get closer to [the wedding date] it gets a little more exciting.”

A number of other Poly faculty have had big events in their lives. Associate Head of School Kyle Graham had a daughter, Dylan Graham, on January 25, 2022. “We now have two daughters, Dylan and Darby. Darby is attending Poly this fall in the nursery class of 2037,” wrote Graham in an email to the Polygon. History teacher David Reid also had a baby.

“My wife gave birth on January 31, 2021 to our first baby, who is named Harris,” Reid wrote in an email to the Polygon. “He brings us joy everyday!”

Top: This telescope was found in between the top floor ceiling and the roof of the main building here at Poly.

It is from the time the building was built 1917 and made in Troy, NY. Bottom: A photo from a 1890 Polywog (the former Polygon).

VIA ROBERT ABERLIN

VIA AJ BLANDFORD

8

FEATURES

MARCH 2022

THE DAY POLY WENT How Did We Get Here? A look back at COVID at Poly LUCAS BASHAM, LILLY BELFORD, AND NOAH YAFFE MIDDLE SCHOOL EDITOR, CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

W

here did COVID-19 originate?

Community Updates: In the Poly Community, the rapidly worsening issue of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020 was discussed in a March 5th email from Former Assistant Head of School Hung Bui that detailed Poly’s early covid precautions, including asking community members who had been to a Level 2 or Level 3 country over spring break to self-quarantine. As Bui wrote, at the time, “The Centers for Disease Control specifically states ‘that schools are not expected to screen students or staff to identify cases of COVID-19. The majority of respiratory illnesses are not COVID-19.’”

The origins and effects of Covid-19 were unknown, and the prospective significance of the pandemic’s impact was not yet clear. Nevertheless, the language of the email exhibits an underlying sense of concern, and a simultaneous commitment to togetherness in the beginning of an unprecedented time for our school and our world. Bui wrote, “I have unwavering confidence in our community to navigate through the days and weeks ahead.”

National Context: Covid-19 originated in Wuhan, China. However, the original source of the virus still hasn’t been determined. Many of the early infectees were workers at the Huanan Seafood Market so, it has been suggested that the virus might have originated from the market. However, other research indicates that visitors may have introduced the virus to the market, which then facilitated the virus.

ed the virus while traveling in Iran.

When did the stay-at-home order start? What did virtual school look like at first?

On the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday before Spring Break, Poly students were at home for COVID-19 precautions and to test out Virtual Poly. Ironically, the week before, Upper School students were stuffed into chapel for an assembly discussing the potential for Poly to go virtual. As Head of School Audrius Barzdukas put it in an email on March 9, 2020, according to the Polygon, “Let’s run [Virtual Poly] while we’re still here so that we can have two weeks for the geniuses [Charles Polizano and the Technology Department]…to fix it. If we have to do it when we come back, we’re fully ready to go.” (continued on page 9)

When was the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S.? In NYC? Community Updates: When the issue of the Covid-19 pandemic was first discussed broadly among members of the Poly community in Bui’s March email, there were 22 confirmed cases of the infection in New York, which feels miniscule now, but at the time was grounds for widespread concern.

National Context: The first U.S. laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 was on January 18 in Washington state. The infected man was in his 30s and a resident of Snohomish County, Washington. He developed symptoms after returning from a trip to the region around Wuhan where the outbreak began.

On March 1, 2020, it was confirmed that a 39-year-old-woman in Manhattan contract-

VIA WILLIAM LING-REGAN

How Did Students and Faculty Respond?

Students

Faculty

DEVAN KODALI AND JULIA BELLE REYFMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

SOPHIA CHAMORRO, SURYAN KAMBLE, AND CHLOE YAFFE CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Jenna Reyfman, Grade 5 “[The last time I was in school without a mask was] 2020 and I was 8…I am turning 11 in May. It was a little weird, without the mask and seeing everybody without it. I thought it was surprising to see everyone’s faces without the mask.”

Kyra Neamonitakis, Grade 9 “Seventh grade [was the last time I didn’t have to wear a mask], and now I am a freshman in high school.”

Chloe Yaffe, Grade 10 “I really like it. It’s nice to not have to wear a mask anymore, but it obviously feels a little weird and I find myself reaching for my mask that isn’t there. It’s taking a little bit of getting used to, but overall I like it.”

Lily Drye, Grade 11 “I think it’s good, as long as it’s safe, as long as we continue to test and if we see a lot of breakouts and everybody getting COVID, then we obviously should go back to having masks.”

Charlie Plym, Grade 11 “I felt for kind of a while now the masks were unnecessary, and they were just an annoyance. I think students overall were happier as there have been studies that show seeing one another smile makes us happy.”

Ben Rosenberg, Grade 12 “I’d say it feels very different from two months ago, but not so different from say two weeks ago.”

Overall the majority of students on campus have chosen to not wear a mask. These opinions are not reflective of every student of Poly Prep.

AJ Blandford Upper School History Teacher “Well, obviously I don’t agree with the new policy because I’m wearing a mask.

And I think Poly is in a really special position because we were able to create a community that’s fully vaccinated and we have testing and that’s because of resources that we have that other schools don’t have… While I understand the scientific rationale for unmasking, I think that one thing this pandemic has really pointed out to me and many people is the structural inequities that we have in our society.”

Señor Rubinson Spanish Teacher “I feel liberated, although sometimes I feel like something is missing, and I am like OMG. I have to put the mask on.”

Dr. Omari W. Keeles Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion “I think the science has proved that it’s pretty safe for people to go maskless at school, but you know since I’m around people who have compromised immune systems I just prefer to wear mine, but we all feel a different way about it.”

Patti Tycenski Health Teacher “I like the fact that people can choose, but I’m also ready to throw it back on and wear it the whole rest of the year if COVID numbers go back up.”

Jared Winston Director of Student Life “Generally, the sentiment that I have picked up from students is that they are happy with the new policy. I definitely see more smiling faces, but that’s not to say they weren’t smiling when masked.”

9

MARCH 2022

FEATURES

MASK OPTIONAL

What Was It Like on Campus?

JESS DOSIK AND CHARLOTTE ROBERTS CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

M

VIA CAROLINE HANNA

arch 2020 marked the beginning of mask mandates, leaving faces a mystery.

Glimpses of full faces could be caught in Commons or between sips of water, but never in full. For those who chose not to comply, hearing the phrase “mask alert!” quickly became a part of their daily routine. The casual smile given to friends throughout passing periods could now only be seen through the smile shown through eyes, or the replacement gesture of a wave. The swarms of disposable and clothed masks

didn’t only create a physical barrier, but also a metaphorical one, as they covered up the universal language of connectivity and friendship, a smile.

At last, two years later in March 2022, the mask mandate has been lifted, and many faces are uncovered. Walking through the building, the energy before the pandemic is restored, as full faces can be seen along with the emotions they carry. Students and faculty alike are able to arrive at school and be greeted with the warm smile of a friend. The

sun shines through the windows of Commons, illuminating the full faces of many members of the Poly community. However, some masks can still be seen worn either with full coverage or just below the nose of those more hesitant to take off their masks. With the mandate no longer in place, people are now able to choose whether to wear a mask. But no matter what one’s choice is, there is no doubt that the lively Poly spirit has returned.

How Did We Get Here? (continued from page 8) Despite consistent hope to return to school at some point, Poly was virtual for the whole rest of the school year. Students attended classes through Zoom and Google Meet. An updated grading policy established that students’ grades could not drop below what they had before Virtual Poly, but could still improve.

NYC Context: Governor Andrew Cuomo’s original plan: All public schools would close the week of March 16. Remote learning would begin on March 23, and last until at least April 20. Programs would be implemented to provide access to childcare and meals.

When did NYC and Poly students return to in-person school? What did that look like?

At the end of the 2019-20 school year, Poly students, teachers, and faculty did not know what school might look like in the fall, according to the Polygon.

Community Updates: The return of Poly students to in-person school came after what felt like an eternal spring—stuck inside and learning through the computer screen, with little knowledge of what the future might hold. Having fought through the difficult circumstances of Virtual Poly, the community was prepared to conquer a new learning environment. Poly had announced their intention to begin school in the fall on the backfields, where they had erected a sprawl of tents, and bought camping chairs for students to lug from class to class.

While these conditions were not ideal, in the grand scheme of things, many thought that any form of in-person school was most certainly an upgrade. Specifically, Barzdukas put into perspective the growing joy among community members to be together again. In an email on the first day of Poly’s 2020-2021 school year, Barzdukas wrote, “students engaged in their classwork, recounted summer adventures, played, and made plans for future socially distant social engagements. They were kids being kids, and it all was such a gift to behold.”

When did mask mandates first begin to change?

To double masking? To no masks outdoors?

Community Updates: Poly’s position on mask wearing has been clear ever since the return to in-person school. Students have been expected to wear a mask that covers both their nose and mouth for the entirety of their time in school, save for whilst eating or drinking. This policy didn’t change for over a year, and was consciously enforced by faculty members. However, especially in the first part of the current 2021-2022 school year, the commitment to mask wearing had waned among students, and many had become lackadaisical towards keeping their mask up, or wearing one at all. This reality was clear to

faculty, as is evident by the following excerpt from an email sent by Director of Health and Well-being Sarah Zuercher in late December 2021: “We MUST BE MORE VIGILANT about mask-wearing. The relaxed approach that some Dyker Heights community members had begun implementing towards mask-wearing will not be tolerated. Families can expect to come to campus and pick up students who: Do not arrive at school wearing a properly fitting mask Do not wear their masks appropriately at all times indoors, except while eating/drinking.

Do not have multiple masks in their backpacks.”

This particular policy of sending kids home for violating the mask policy received significant push back and didn’t last very long. According to the Polygon, “Poly quietly curtailed the practice of sending kids home, first informing faculty on Thursday and notifying students a day later.” Zuercher’s reasoning behind this change, as shared in an email to employees obtained by the Polygon, was that “Cases at school and in NYC are declining. Students are wearing their masks much more consistently. We have not seen evidence of major in-school transmission.

Therefore, we will quietly end our practice of sending students home if they are not masked properly.”

When did mask mandates begin to be completely lifted?

State Context: Statewide mask requirements in schools were lifted on Wednesday, March 2, 2022.

The announcement came on February 27.

Community Updates: Poly’s path towards lifting the mask mandate had many twists and turns. On February 9, Poly announced their intention to drop the mask mandate, effectively immediately, for all students and staff. Opinions about this decision were mixed, and because Poly was the first NYC school to announce such a decision, many felt as though the issue was being rushed.

Just a few days after the announcement had been made, Zuercher sent an email notifying the community that she had “received clarity today from the NY State Department of Health and the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene that such a measure [was] not permissible under current state- and city-wide restrictions.” Finally, on February 28, with state- and city-approval, Zuercher announced in an email that Poly would be mask optional beginning Wednesday, March 2.

This project was put together by the students in Rachael Allen’s journalism class.

VIA WILLIAM LING-REGAN

LISTEN IN! Scan the QR code below to listen reactions from the Poly community on Day 1 of Poly being mask-optional.

BESS HORT, TJ IANNELLI, AND SEANNA SANKAR CONTRIBUTING WRITER, STAFF WRITER, AND FEATURES EDITOR

10

PEOPLE

PEOPLE

MARCH 2022

Sunday Routine With Ms. Perez Ten questions with Dean Alexis Perez about her typical Sunday CHELSEA LIN PEOPLE EDITOR What time do you wake up?

“I try not to set an alarm on the weekends, but because I wake up so early all the time for work, I normally wake up pretty early. I would say anytime between 7:45 a.m. and 8 a.m.. I also have a dog, so I have to let her out, take her outside—she uses the bathroom, I feed her breakfast, we play a little bit, and then I have my breakfast, which definitely starts with coffee.”

cause we work in very different spheres—almost all of my friends are actors or performers of some sort,

What do you eat for breakfast?

“Lately I’ve been really into avocado toast. I also don’t eat meat, so I have to figure out what I can eat that’s going to be healthy but still fill me up. For example, yesterday, I had avocado toast with everything bagel seasoning and nutritional yeast and a cup of coffee or two. But sometimes, on Sundays, I’ll go to brunch with my friends, which is also delicious and fun.”

What are some things you have to do every Sunday?

“I like the weekends because I am able to spend more time with my dog, because when I’m at work, she’s just at home hanging out, so I’m able to take her on a nice walk. I also really like to clean—I like to keep my apartment looking nice, so I spend some time on the weekends getting everything organized. I’ll usually do a couple loads of laundry on Sundays; I check my email and make sure that I’m not behind for the week.

Last night I did some grading for my senior plan class, so usually just those things—getting myself caught up and ready to go. Sometimes I’ll catch up on shows—I just finished watching Love Is Blind Season 2.”

Who do you spend time with on Sundays?

“One of my closest friends lives a couple subway stops away from me, so we usually try to get together on the weekends, so I did see her this weekend. I try really hard to connect with my friends on the weekends be-

VIA ALEXIS PEREZ which is my background too, so we don’t really get to see each other as much, because our schedules are so opposite, so on the weekends I make an effort to really spend time with them, which is really fun.”

What do you eat for dinner?

“Sometimes I’ll go out, sometimes I’ll make a little something, sometimes I’ll have leftovers because I went out the day before. It’s easy for me because I can be flexible, since it’s just me.”

What do you like about Sundays?

“I really like being able to get up in the morning, having the whole day ahead of me. Sometimes I have things planned, but I like waking up in the morning, having my coffee, and sitting with my dog and just

being like, ‘okay, today is the day I’m going to do all these fun things.’ I love to write a to-do list—I do that at work, but also during my daily life, so if I have a couple of little chores I want to take care of or something like that—I like to work through those things. I also—though I talk to them all the time—like to really make an effort to connect with each member of my family. I’m the oldest—I have a brother and a sister and they live far away from my parents, so it’s nice for all of us to check in at least once a week, so I talked to both of my parents and my sister yesterday and my brother’s out of town, but I was able to check in with him briefly, which was good. It’s just nice to kind of come back together in that way.”

What’s one thing you like to do every night before you go to bed?

“I really like to read—I’m a huge reader. I just finished In the Dream House, which was an amazing book—I loved it so much. Normally I read before bed, sometimes I watch a movie or a TV show, but I try to turn screens off at least an hour before I go to sleep because I don’t want something to keep me awake. Going back to my dog, I have to take her out as well before I go to bed.”

What time do you go to bed?

“Early—earlier than is cool, probably. I really like to go to bed early because I like to feel rested. Sleep is really important to me, and I’m a pretty good sleeper, so I want to get all of that sleep that I can. Last night, I went to bed around 10 p.m. As soon as the sun is down, I’m like, ‘oh maybe I can go to sleep!’ It could be 6:30, it could be 9:30, but I like to wind down during the evenings—I think I’m most productive in the morning and afternoons, and during the evenings, I like to just chill.”

Inside the Security Booth

A profile of Jason Savarese, a dedicated member of Poly’s security team CARLY PYLES EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

J

ason Savarese is the first person you see driving into Poly and often the last person you see as you leave. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Savarese lived here for 21 years before moving to Staten Island, where he currently resides. He has worked at Poly for the last six years as a member of the security team.

You can usually find Savarese at the front security booth by the 92nd Street gate. He opens the gate at 6 a.m. and doesn’t leave until around 4:30 in the afternoon. Almost nobody goes a full day at Poly without a warm greeting from Savarese on their way in or out of school.

Savarese is beloved by the students, especially the senior class, who have the most opportunities to encounter him throughout their day, as many of them are newly licensed drivers.

Senior Emily Melcer said, “Jason was the first person to congratulate me on finally getting my license. He remembers the little things about us, like sports games and tests, and is always there to wish us good luck.”

Savarese believes his personality makes him a good fit for the job. He shared, “It comes natural to me. I’ve always been a talkative, easy person.”

All students and faculty across campus

would agree that Savarese never fails to have a smile on his face and an optimistic outlook for the day. Everyone stops at the booth on their way in and out of campus to chat with him, even if they are in a rush home or if it holds up the line of cars behind them.

Senior Ella Carter shared, “I see Jason first thing in the morning every day when I drive in, and now my day cannot start without saying ‘hi’ to him.”

When asked about the funniest part of his job, Savarese reflected on several daily occurrences that make him and the students laugh every time; he has been known to search seniors’ cars for any food that may accidentally make its way back to campus, assist students who had trouble getting their cars up the infamous hill, and in some cases, even had to pull kids out of trunks and backseats to ensure that no one was leaving campus without permission.

Savarese may sometimes be hard on the students, and this is because he wants them to remain safe both on and off campus. He reflected on one of his own childhood experiences in the fourth grade, when Savarese ran off his school campus and got hit by a car in the middle of the street.

“The warmest feeling I had as a child is the warmth and love of my fellow students and teachers that came to check up on me either during my stay at the hospital, at the house, or even a quick phone call. It was amazing to know people really cared.”

On his days off, Savarese spends his time with his four-year-old twins—one of whom is a recovering leukemia patient in remission. His kids, Isabella and Anthony, are “always on the run,” playing around the house and the yard with their father for hours.

Savarese is also an animal lover, as shown through his adoration for the friendly campus cat Peaches. Peaches has been with the Poly community for years, who would always be found next to Savarese at the 92nd Street entrance. However, most students don’t know the extent to which Savarese cared for Peaches.

“Years ago, I came into work one day and she had a huge infection in her eye, and I brought her to the vet and there was a claw stuck in her eye,” shared Savarese.

“They had to perform surgery on her.”

Recently, Savarese noticed that Peaches had stopped eating her food, and she had a harder time moving around. He even tried bringing her food from home to try,

VIA CAROLINE HANNA but she wouldn’t eat. Savarese took her to the vet again, and they made the difficult decision to put her down.

“There are times when I sit in the booth and I see shadows to the bottom left and right and I think it’s Peaches,” he continued.

Even so, Savarese continues to put a smile on everyone’s face in the morning.

He is always willing to go above and beyond for the community, not even truly aware of how appreciated he is.

PEOPLE

11

What Is Cryptocurrency?

MARCH 2022

An interview with Charles Polizano, Head of Technology WILLIAM RORECH CONTRIBUTING WRITER In the past year, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have been at the forefront of the news and world politics. But what do these obscure terms like hashing, mining, and blockchain really mean? What are the positive and negative implications that these new digital transactional systems bring?

Charles Polizano, our director of technology, explains.

How would you explain blockchain technology to a toddler?

“Blockchain technology is a way of keeping track of transactions, and it’s a way of doing it so that no one person owns effectively the book with all of the transactions. Instead, we have a whole group of people that are able to have their own copy of it, verify it, and make sure that everything is legit before trying to have a transaction financial or otherwise exist between multiple parties—so that’s at the core the basis for it. What makes the blockchain unique and able to be verified and protected are some really complex mathematical equations that get factored into everything at the core of the technology of the blockchain.”

How does bitcoin mining or crypto mining in general play a role in keeping the entire blockchain system functioning?

“Each blockchain is going to have its own set of rules that it abides by so we’ll stick with bitcoin. It’s the most popular one and that’s the one that started everything. Basically, the way that mining works is you’re solving a puzzle that’s all it is. Every computer that’s connected to the bitcoin network that is trying to mine is effectively trying to find a number. For example, in the bitcoin network, you use the Shah Asha hashing algorithm, an algorithm that was developed by the NSA. It’s primarily for creating a unique hash for every input. The hash is just taking some form of input

running it through an algorithm and generating a fixedlength string as a response. For bitcoin to successfully mine a block, you have to generate a hash that satisfies a certain difficulty level. The difficulty level is a hash that has a whole bunch of zeros at the front and, depending on what the input is, you’ll get different hashes.

Whoever finds that particular block that generates a hash that satisfies the [difficulty level], congratulations that person can submit the block [and] the rest of the network verifies that the block is in fact valid. The block deck then gets added to the chain and the person that successfully mines the block gets rewarded with a fixed amount of bitcoin. Over time, the number of bitcoins that someone gets rewarded decreases until eventually there’s no more reward because no more bitcoins can be mined."

Computers all over the world working to crack the hash consume a lot of energy so is bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general, even worth it in your opinion. What socioeconomic benefits does it provide that really make up for all this energy consumption?

“Anyone tonight can just use a laptop. [Before,] graphic processing cards became really popular [because] they’re able to perform so many floatingpoint operations on mathematical operations—basically for computing hashes faster than a CPU and computer code. Eventually we got to the point where you have

Winston’s Words of Wisdom

these giant mining rigs and warehouses. The problem now is that the amount of energy that’s required simply to mine a coin is insane and not sustainable, in my opinion. Blockchain-like NFT is a great example of something where we’re consuming a tremendous amount of energy, effectively, to create a receipt for something. So is this sustainable? I don’t think so. Not until we find the ultimate means of providing power, as opposed to relying solely on fossil fuels.

I think the biggest problem right now is the idea of crypto being a currency, and trying to compare it to currency. We need to have a fast computer transaction.

While bitcoin transactions are a lot faster than driving over to your house to give you a few bucks to buy something, it’s still insanely slow compared to the number of transactions Citibank can do for credit card transactions. The other problem is that people have to spend [their currency]. A lot of people are using [bitcoin] more for investment purposes than actually performing any type of transaction. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a place. I think the idea of decentralizing a currency, as we see with inflation now in this country, as we see with what sanctions against Russia has done to their economy, and the 2008 collapse of the housing bubble, there are clearly issues with centralized currency and banking. I think [crypto] is a fantastic, amazing step forward. At this point, looking at what we’re doing to the environment it’s hard to be on team, (continued on page 15)

WILLIAM LING-REGAN PHOTO EDITOR

“I had heard the word ‘tryhard’ used as a pejorative so I wore ‘try hard’ on my chest…It’s cool to care.”

“Honestly, that one was more for myself. I’ve been going through some personal things and that was kind of a reminder for myself…It can certainly be a personal affirmation, but [it’s] also a community affirmation.”

“I think to myself: ‘Why not visualize for students what we’re thinking?’”

“I sometimes wonder what students think the adults in this building think and feel about them and their experiences. And I know for a fact that each and every adult on this campus cares deeply about our students and their outcomes and their relationships and their health.”

PHOTOS VIA JARED WINSTON

12

ARTS

ARTS

MARCH 2022

POLY’S NEW VISUAL ARTS COMPETITION

ALIDA LISSAK ARTS EDITOR

process.” This competition wants to further recognize and motivate visual artists at Poly.

In addition to creating opportunities for artists to add to their college resumes, this contest, according to Fonstein, will enrich the student body and allow for a greater appreciation of the visual arts. All types of submissions are welcome, including fashion, graphic design, photography, and sculpture for example. Fonstein has put together a panel of five upperclassmen and two faculty to choose the winners.

The deadline for submissions is Friday, April 8, after spring break. There will be prizes awarded to the winners, as well as Spirit Cup points doled out to their respective teams. Art students additionally can differentiate themselves from others by the recognition of these awards. The arts department, as well as upperclassmen, are reaching out to pull in new artists as well to the Poly arts community through this competition.

MARCH PLAYLIST Fallen Fruit Lorde CANDY Rosalía A Dream With a Baseball Player Faye Webster Tamagotchi Omar Apollo ONE IN A MILLION Rex Orange County The Girl From Ipanema Amy Winehouse Bambi Clairo

ART BY JOCELYN LU, VIA @POLYPREPARTS

P

oly is rolling out a new student Visual Arts Competition this April. Senior Tasha Fonstein developed this idea as a way to encourage and award students for excellence in the arts. Fonstein said, “Art has always been close to my heart and I saw a need to promote the Poly art department more because the teachers and community in the studios is my favorite part about going to school here.”

Chinese Satellite Phoebe Bridgers ‘03 Bonnie and Clyde Jay-Z, Beyoncé Tulsa Jesus Freak Lana Del Rey

The panel of judges and organizers of the competition will “highlight your work as you navigate the college admissions process.”

– Jared Winston Director of Student Life Jared Winston wrote in an email to the student body in mid-February that the panel of judges and organizers of the competition will “highlight your work as you navigate the college admissions

3 AM (feat. Thundercat) HAIM, Thundercat Miami Will Smith As It Was Harry Styles Ms. Jackson Outkast

ART BY LEO YIHAN WANG, VIA @POLYPREPARTS

Compiled by Danielle Jason and Emma Spring

THE SLAP HEARD ’ROUND THE WORLD

Everything you need to know about this year’s Oscars awards ceremony SAMANTHA RODINO SPORTS EDITOR

O

n March 27, the 94th Academy Awards took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, hosted by comedians Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer, and Regina Hall. The ceremony was filled with many memorable moments, including history being made in several categories and a very big “what just happened” moment from Will Smith and Chris Rock.

According to movie fans, many of this year’s Oscar wins were no surprise and very well-deserved. Dune won in six categories, some being “Best Original Score,” “Best Cinematography,” and “Best Film Editing.”

For the “Best Actress in a Leading

Role” category, Jessica Chastain won for her performance as Tammy Faye Bakker in the biopic, The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

Apple TV’s Coda won three Academy Awards, making it the first film from a streaming service to win the “Best Picture” category. The film also won “Best Supporting Actor” for Troy Kotsur’s performance, making history as the first deaf man to win an Oscar for acting. After accepting his award, Kotsur delivered a very emotional speech, dedicating his win to his father, who lost his ability to sign from being paralyzed in an accident.

As for another history-making win,

Ariana DeBose won “Best Supporting Actress” for her role as Anita in Stephen Spielberg’s West Side Story. DeBose is the second Latina to win an acting Academy Award, the first being Rita Moreno for the same role in the original West Side Story film. DeBose is also the first openly queer actress of color to win an Oscar.

And finally, the biggest event of the night. Closer to the end of the awards ceremony, comedian Chris Rock stepped on the stage to present the Oscar for “Best Documentary Feature.” Before delivering the award, Rock joked about Jada Pinkett Smith, who was diagnosed with alopecia a (continued on page 13)

TROY KOTSUR, VIA SHUTTERSTOCK

MARCH 2022

ARTS

13

THE SLAP HEARD ROUND THE WORLD (continued from page 12) few years ago and shaved her head in December 2021. Rock said he couldn’t wait to see her in “G.I. Jane 2,” causing Pinkett Smith to roll her eyes while husband Will Smith laughed. After seeing his wife annoyed and uncomfortable by the joke, Smith went on stage and slapped Rock across the face, resulting in laughs from the audience that thought it was a staged performance.

However, everyone realized quickly that this wasn’t staged after Smith returned to his seat and shouted twice at Rock, “Keep my wife’s name out of your [expletive] mouth.” Audience members and the millions watching at home were completely shocked by Smith’s reaction. Several actors, including Denzel Washington, quickly checked on Smith during the commercial break.

The live broadcast in the United States censored

this moment, but countries such as Japan did not, which caused the clip to go viral on social media.

Moments later, Smith accepted the “Best Actor in a Leading Role” award for his performance as Richard Williams in King Richard. In his speech, he apologized to the Academy and his fellow nominees for his actions, but did not apologize to Rock.

Smith said, “I look like the crazy father, just like they said about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things.”

The day after the Academy Awards were broadcasted, Smith posted on his Instagram an apology to Rock. Smith wrote, “I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”

Poly’s New Art Installation CAROLINE HANNA PHOTO EDITOR

A screenshot of Will Smith’s Instagram apology to Chris Rock

Jill Bolstridge Departs Middle school drama teacher exits stage left EMMA SPRING EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

VIA POLY PREP COMMUNICATIONS The art installation designed by Sarah E. Brook is named, “WORTHY: how (who) do I stand” and was installed in early January. The artist told writers at the Poly Pulse that she challenges people to think about the “position and stature and structure of where we stand and who we stand with.” She encourages us to ask questions like “Who am I in the world? What do I care about? What do I dream of? What are my responsibilities? What is difficult for me to see?”

Three Cheers for Curtains!

ALIDA LISSAK ARTS EDITOR

VIA LINDA BUSETTI

The Poly Theater Department put on Curtains, a comedic murder mystery, directed by drama teacher Mariko Watt. In Curtains, the characters perform Robbin’ Hood, making it a musical inside a musical. Watt commented in the Director’s Note of the Playbill, “Being a high school student is hard. Being a performer is hard. Being a high school performer during a pandemic is even harder still. But it’s also rewarding.”

VIA POLY PREP COMMUNICATIONS

M

|iddle school drama teacher Jill Bolstridge left Poly this past month after years of teaching and directing middle schoolers on the theater

stage.

In an email on February 24, Head of the Arts Department Michael Robinson informed faculty of Bolstridge’s leave. “I learned from our middle school drama teacher, Jill Bolstridge, that she will be leaving Poly in order to pursue new opportunities,” he wrote.

Bolstridge has taught and directed kids all over the United States, trained and managed staff members in educational programs, and managed several summer camp and after-school programs. Namely, Bolstridge is the director and acting teacher for Ohana Arts’ summer musical theater technique program and musical theater production program in Honolulu, Hawaii. At Poly, Bolstridge’s headlining directing credits included “Footloose,” “13,” “Shrek,” “The Taming of the Shrew,” “Guys & Dolls,” “The Wiz,” “Robin Hood,” “Grease,” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

In a following interview regarding the reason behind Bolstridge’s leave and new pursuits, Robinson said, “Personnel matters are really a matter of privacy. She made major contributions to our middle school theater program and for which we are appreciative and greatly benefited.”

Robinson will take over Bolstridge’s role in directing the middle school musical this spring.

Head of School Audrius Barzdukas wrote in an email to the Polygon, “Ms. Bolstridge empowered her students to fully explore their potential in the dramatic arts. Her shows were creative, exciting, and inspiring. We wish her all the best on her next adventure.”

The Polygon reached out to Bolstridge for comment, who wrote in a text, “The end of my time at Poly Prep was very abrupt and very heart-breaking, but I am truly at peace with the separation. I spent a remarkable 14 years directing some of the most glorious productions with some of the most amazing colleagues, and, most notably, some of the most talented and fabulous students whom I have ever had the honor to teach. I will miss my students and colleagues immensely, and I wish everyone the very best.”

Additional reporting by Charlotte Arzouian.

MARCH 2022

14

MIDDLE SCHOOL CORNER TOWER TIMES (continued from page 1)

A deep dive into the legacy of Poly’s former middle school newspaper because most have more experience in the field and produce more enticing stories, it also means that middle schoolers also don’t get nearly as much of a chance to write. With The Tower Times gone, middle schoolers’ opinions aren’t as voiced.

Although the middle school no longer has its own newspaper, the lessons taught will forever stick with the members.

When children’s book author Jacqueline Woodson came to Poly for a book signing years ago, former Tower Times writer Katie Camuso explained her excitement when she interviewed her. “I had prepared a few questions and went in with my yellow notepad after all of the students got their signed book,” said Camuso.

Other Tower Times members similarly remember their experiences reporting for the paper. Now reporter Alfred Miller “had enough of people driving into Poly through the gate that was then marked “exit, do not enter.”’ He decided to write an expose article to photograph “the Poly traffic violations.” Miller explains that this experience had an

everlasting effect on him, and even convinced him to pursue journalism more seriously.

“I think I joined [The Tower

“I later discovered that working for the middle school paper gave me a voice and an outlet for my creativity. It made the world seem smaller and more fun.”

-Alfred Miller Times] at first simply because my parents thought it would be good to have an extracurricular activity. But I later discovered that working for the middle school paper gave me a voice and an outlet for my creativity.

It made the world seem smaller and more fun,” said Miller.

The front page of a Tower Times, VIA WILLIAM LING-REGAN

The Day That Changed Everything GRACE MOORE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

T

hat was the day that changed everything about my life. I was eight years old, and I was coming home from a dance class when I asked my mom, “What is the difference between racist and racism?”

She was shocked when she heard the question, and then she told me a story from when I was six years old.

I was at a Texas BBQ in Austin, Texas and we were the only black people there. I was playing in the play space with about eight of my friends, none of them black, when a small white boy, around five years old, came up to us and said, “hey little black girl.”

My friends were appalled by what he had just said. They all yelled, saying, “you can’t say that” and immediately ran over to tell my mom.

I remained on the playground as if nothing was going on. On the other side of the Texas BBQ, my friends were all talking to my mother, saying something like, “He just called your daughter a little black girl; he can’t say that.” It prompted my mother to come over and ask me if I was okay. She asked, “What did you do when the little white boy said that to you?” I just looked over my shoulder, wondering where the little black girl was.

When my mother finished telling me the story, she explained to me that what the boy said that day was racist. She then proceeded to ask why I had requested to know what the difference between racist and racism was, at the young age of eight.

I told her that Beatrix (a girl in my class at school) had whispered in my ear that “white people are smarter than black people, and if I was so smart, I would say that I was black and not brown,” among other things that I no longer remember. My mother was expectedly disgusted at this.

Over the next few weeks, she emailed the teachers countless times. But they kept making stupid excuses stating that “I had misheard her,” or “I didn’t remember what had happened properly,” questioning my memory. However, there was one teacher that reacted differently at first. He was a white man married to a black woman. He said things like, “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry that this happened to you,” and asked, “What can I do to help?” But in a later email, it became evident that he had been swayed to the other side by other faculty members. They said that he had to be indifferent about the cause, or in this case, biased towards the white girl.

After many long emails and weeks, parent-teacher conferences came around. The teachers showed my mother the same piece of work from the first week of school. She

found out that I had not written anything for six weeks. The fact that she had only just discovered this infuriated her. She could only assume that the reason I had stopped writing was because of all of the things that Beatrix had said to me over time. (At this period of my life, I am no longer able to confirm whether my mother’s theory of Beatrix’s words had anything to do with my not writing for six weeks. However, I do think that what Beatrix said most likely intimidated me and threatened my confidence enough for me to stop writing for that very long amount of time.)

In my opinion, this experience is similar to To Kill a Mockingbird, which we recently read in my English class, as Dill had a similar perspective on the case of a wrongly convicted man, Tom Robinson. Dill thought that what was going on in the courtroom was very wrong because they were treating Tom Robinson as if he was not as good as the other white people around him. He ended up running out and crying because they treated Tom Robinson as if he was something other than a human being. All the white people in the

I was eight years old, and I was coming home from a dance class when I asked my mom, “What is the difference between racist and racism?” courtroom chose to think that he was guilty, even though it was very clear that he wasn’t.

In the same way, the small white boy from my mother’s story about me when I was six didn’t know what he had done wrong because he didn’t know any better. He was most likely taught by his parents to treat black people in this way, as was Beatrix. This behavior was enforced by all other adults in their life because they didn’t have the courage to speak up.

I learned the lesson that not all people are treated equally because of my experience in Texas. From this story, it was shown that at that time, I didn’t realize what my skin color meant to others. I was not aware that people might think of me differently because of the color of my skin. This experience kind of made me grow up in ways that I should not have had to at such a young age. I learned that people who look like me are not always treated thew same way as any other white person.

15

MARCH 2022

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Cryptocurrency (continued from page 11) climate change, and also the rise of crypto.”

How is bitcoin different from other popular cryptocurrencies in terms of energy consumption?

“Energy consumption across the board is just very high. When we look at bitcoin, the difficulty increases and the reward for bitcoin mining decreases. There’s a fixed number of bitcoins, which is very unique compared to any other currency. At the end of the day, we can always print more. Obviously that devalues, whatever is out there, but there is not a finite amount of money per se in any currency based system, whereas with crypto there is. In terms of the differences, every currency has its own set of rules and what it’s trying to accomplish. Another popular currency like Ethereum is built on the idea of smart contracts, and smart contracts are unique. When I bought my house, I had to sit there and sign about 200 pieces of paper, wait for the appraisal, the lawyer, the bank, and more. With

a smart contract, we can have a contract on something that is verifiable each piece, [and] it is contained in the ledger so any person that is privy to that contract can see all the things that have happened. Furthermore, it’s immutable so once it has been committed to the blockchain, you can verify ownership. We’ve had tremendous supply chain issues because of COVID, and with a smart contract, you can really verify each step along the way of the supply chain. It’s a unique use case in the U.S. I think they’re amazing opportunities outside where we’re pretty lucky here that most people improve their identity. I have a card in my wallet that says I’m Charles Polizano and there’s documentation to back that up. I own this house, I have the paperwork; in other countries that doesn’t really exist in the same way or it’s just not as protected or as sacred as it is here. But having things on a blockchain that is decentralized and distributed that can easily be verified will go a long way towards protecting people’s rights. Though we are not there yet, I believe that that is a tremendous use case for blockchain. There are tremendous applications for it once we could figure out how to stop killing the planet, in the meantime.”

POLY’S POLLUTION PROBLEM

Be a part of the solution, not the pollution!

LALITHA JAYARAM AND AND ELEANOR KEMPF CONTRIBUTING WRITERS (With help from The Pond Committee: Charlotte Merchant, Genevieve Simmons, Kiana Freeman, Lila Suter-Chung, and Nora Panzo)

VIA CAROLINE HANNA

I

t has come to our attention that there is an excessive amount of trash polluting Poly’s pond. During recess on March 3, 2022, we found wrappers and Gatorade bottles as well as tissues and other things in the pond—items that could possibly end the life of an animal. Not only does this trash harm animals, but it destroys the aesthetics of the pond that uplift the Poly community.

Fish with trash and litter surrounding them have been found washed up dead on the shore of the pond. Poly used to have adorable bunnies running around its campus nibbling on the thriving grass, fish swimming joyfully in the clear blue water, shy cats hiding behind the track sheds, and turtles peacefully gliding in their underwater habitat. These scenes are now an extremely rare sight. Looking around the pond the other day, we spotted only one turtle and not a single rabbit or living fish. But we did see trash, lots of trash, everywhere. Some new students didn’t even know about the animals on Poly’s Dyker Heights campus until recently.

English writer Thomas Fuller once said, “We never know the worth of water till the well is dry.” Polar explorer and environmental advocate Robert Swan eloquently stated, “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” Have you ever seen some trash lying on the ground and considered picking it up, but then thought that someone else would do it? That is the greatest threat to our planet as you someday need to realize that every little thing you do can make a difference. Think about how many other people will think that exact same thing or that dropping a tiny wrapper on the sidewalk isn’t a big deal or when they see that same wrapper bobbing around in the wind. About 7.5 million people! That would be about 37.5 million grams of trash that could be discarded.

French explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau once said, “Water and air, the two essential fluids on earth on which life depends, have become global trash cans.” Think of all the animals you can hurt by simply throwing one bottle on the

ground or in a body of water. This may seem like it doesn’t make a big impact, but it sets the wrong example for millions of people. If you have free time, you should go take a look around the pond. Look at the excessive amount of trash in it. Some of it looks like it has been there for months. Maybe it has. The point of these quotes is for you to make yourself look at the world from a different angle. To see other people’s perspectives.

We have given you a lot of examples of pollution, but here are some ways to help out. Some sixth-grade girls have created a pond committee. This includes Lila Suter-Chung, Kiana Freeman, Charlotte Merchant, Eleanor Kempf, Lalitha Jayaram, Nora Panzo, and Genevieve Simmons. We all are in 6RM. We created this committee during our recess when we were skipping rocks along the surface of the pond. Every time we would skip one pebble and it would glide along the surface and then disappear instantaneously in the turbid waters of the pond, a piece of trash would be floating right beside where the pebble had made the water ripple. Soon though, it was not just trash we found in the pond water, it was fish. The fish were limp and lifeless and surrounded by plastic bottles and other litter. This was what led us to create a petition. We created this petition as a way to raise awareness for the pond. After the school day was over, we walked around the pond to take pictures of the trash in the pond and see how much there was. The number was surprising. It almost seemed as if the amount had grown since earlier this morning.

But it’s not too late to help clean the pond and bring a diversity of life back to Poly and restore Poly’s beautiful campus to the way it might have been many years ago. If you want to help, you could sign the petition, but if you would like to go a little further, you could pick up a piece of trash that isn’t yours. You could also remind a friend to pick up a piece of trash they may have left on the floor. You could possibly set a goal for every day. Regardless of whether you sign the petition or agree with this cause, you should pick up any trash that you might have dropped on the floor. Remem-

The students at Poly Prep could do a better job at discarding their trash, so Poly can have a diversity of animals, less trash in and around the pond, and a beautiful campus in general. ber, this is not only for the pond and the animals in it but for Poly’s health.

We interviewed Zoe Panzo in eighth grade. “There was an abundance of wildlife during my first year at Poly, 5th grade, but since then I haven’t seen as many animals around campus lately,” said Panzo. A large percentage of the kids at Poly were not students there last year so they have never seen Poly’s campus at its peak with its beautiful lush greenery, clear and lively pond, as well as a neat and clean campus in general. We also interviewed Zoe’s sister, Nora Panzo in sixth grade. “Last year there were a lot more turtles than this year. They would live in the water, as well as the land. Now I rarely see them. There are only a few animals left which could affect the ecosystem at Poly,” she said.

Fifth grader Cooper Brenner said, “Around the pond,

there are a lot of pieces of trash, and there are a lot of tennis balls in the pond too.” Fifth grader Noah Poindexter added, “The pond is really dirty, and being a part of the community, we should keep the pond clean. We should also try to keep Poly clean.”

Next, we went to Jared Winston, the director of student life. “I do want to thank our grounds and facilities team for the hard work that they do on covering over twenty-six acres of space on a daily basis,” said Winston. “Oftentimes I

Polar explorer and environmental activist Robert Swan eloquently stated, “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” think it’s easy to take for granted the privilege that we have of coming to a beautiful campus like this and just assuming each and every day that it’s going to be beautiful. The fact that it is beautiful and pristine on a regular basis is a testament to people that don’t necessarily get credit where they deserve it.”

“When we walk onto campus and we see how gorgeous it is—that is not a natural occurrence,” Winston added. “There is hard work being done by hard working individuals that are part of the Poly community to make sure that we are able to benefit within this school. That said, could we always improve? 100 percent. I think that goes for everything that we do whether being in the classroom or within our facilities or with our teaching or with our athletics that we as a Poly community should always be striving to reach our full potential.”

We should always remember the ground team, run by Head of Operations Matt Stelluto, is always working. The fact that there is a lot of trash in the pond indicates just how much trash we throw into the pond and all over campus that even our hard-working facilities and maintenance crew can’t keep up with. We have been overlooking how much they do for our community and leaving everything to them.

Seventh-grader Flora Jakobson said, “I just think it’s really pretty to see the pond, really beautiful, and I think it’s just not very nice to walk out of your classroom and then see a bunch of plastic in the pond.” If you look outside your classroom, would you like to see a lot of trash, or a clean, beautiful campus? We would like to see a clean beautiful campus, personally.

The students at Poly Prep could do a better job at discarding their trash, so Poly can have a diversity of animals, less trash in and around the pond, and a beautiful campus in general. There are many steps you could take to help this cause.

First of all, you could sign the petition, which at this moment has 126 signatures from students and teachers around Poly’s campus! How you can sign the petition is you can come to our advisory room any day around 8:50 a.m. in room 122.

Second of all, you could just throw away your trash in the bins around Poly’s campus. Third of all, you could remind and encourage a friend to sign the petition or pick up the garbage that they may have dropped on the ground. And if you want to take it a step further you could even just pick up any trash you see on Poly’s campus. This will restore Poly’s campus into the beautiful campus underneath the trash that may lie atop.

MARCH 2022

16

POLY TRACK TAKES ON NYSAIS MIA EDWARDS AND KAYVAN DYK CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

T

his year Poly’s Indoor Track teamproduced amazing results at the meets they competed in throughout the winter season, with a multitude of the team’s members qualifying for the NYSAIS Championships.

On February 25th, the team made its way to the New Balance Armory in Manhattan and placed third overall in the competition.

Senior Samantha Chiaino placed top 10 in the girls 300m dash and 3rd in the 55m dash, coming in at 7.72 seconds in the finals. In an interview with Chiaino about her experience at NYSAIS she said, “I think it was very challenging getting back into a competitive state after not having a season last year, but that made it so much more rewarding when I did well in an event.”

Freshman Jack Bogner came in third for the 55m hurdles, finishing in 9.19 seconds, and junior Theodore Drye and freshman Kofi Rossi crushed the competition, placing first in the 300m and 600m dash at NYSAIS, respectively. Both boys competed at the New York State Championships on March 5th.

Rossi has proved to be a very impressive athlete, having competed in the Junior Olympics last summer, and being ranked nationally in his respective events. He noted that, “NYSAIS is great, and everybody there is fun and great to compete against.”

He added, “I thought that there would be faster people in my events, but I guess I’ll wait until outdoor nationals.”

Rossi said he used to do track with a club. “The dynamic while competing was really toxic,” he said. “At NYSAIS, when

you’re on the track you are representing your school. I feel that at Poly the environment is very healthy.”

Our long distance competitors also gave it their all and placed well in their respective races. Sophomore Jack Ryland placed 4th in the 1600m.His brother, eighth-grader Sam Ryland, competed in the middle school division at State Championships and placed 4th in the 1000m at NYSAIS. Team captain

girls’ high and triple jump, placing fourth in both events. Sophomore Chantal Guthrie, along with junior Justin Mondesir, dominated the competition in the boys and girls shot put with Mondesir placing first and Guthrie placing second. Mondesir also placed first in the boys’ weight throw, allowing both athletes to compete in the State Championships.

Last but not least, Poly’s boys 4x400 re-

VIA POLY PREP COMMUNICATIONS Brianna Kwan competed in the girls 55m hurdles, and praised Sam, sayings she’s, “so proud of our 8th grader Sam Ryland, who got 2nd in the 8th grade mile at nike nationals and 1st in the youth nationals.”

Additionally, freshman Isabella Leyton placed in the top ten for the girls 1500m and 5th in the girls 3000m, the longest race offered for girls competing.

Senior Spencer O’Connell placed 2nd in the Boys’ Long Jump , and senior Tamia Dubidad represented Poly skillfully in the

lay team, which consisted of freshmen Kofi Rossi and Jordan James, and juniors Theodore Drye and Fox Kloske, came in first at NYSAIS, finishing in 3:43.77 seconds.

Poly’s girls 4X200 relay team had senior Samantha Chianio, as well as juniors Brianna Kwan, Atiya Pope and Mia Edwards, competing. They came in second, finishing in 1:55.57 seconds. Both teams qualified for and represented Poly at the NY State Championships on March 5th.

Freshman Jordan James shared his

thoughts and experiences from being on the track team and competing at NYSAIS. James said he has had to deal with the expectations that come with being Poly’s beloved Coach Richard James’ son. “[I was] not very experienced in Track & Field, so my initial thought of the competition was horrible. I thought everyone was going to beat me, and because I do happen to be Coach James’ son, I also thought I was going to be a huge disappointment,” he said.

“When I actually went to the track meets, my performance was way better than I thought it would be. I also placed really well compared to my initial thoughts.”

James also spoke positively about the team environment stating, “the track team is an amazing team, all the people are extremely welcoming. Even if you come in with no skill, you’ll leave way better than when you came. The coaches work very well with each other, and they all have fun personalities. On the track team, everyone is there to see you succeed.”

As the team prepares to head into the outdoor season, captain Brianna Kwan views the team’s success in NYSAIS as an accomplishment that “really sets a strong mindset for outdoor season.” She is especially hopeful for the future of Poly’s track and field team since “there are a lot of underclassmen (who) are so willing to grow by consistently coming to practice.” Kwan encouraged more Poly students to join the track team emphasizing that “there are no downsides” especially if “you play another sport and want to improve your athleticism.”

Who Are Poly’s College Commits?

BEN MANSFIELD SPORTS EDITOR

P

oly Prep has a history of shipping out elite athletes to play at elite-level colleges and universities, and this year is certainly no different. This year’s senior class, so far, has publicly shared that a whopping four Division I athletes are going to top schools, with Alex Semenenko committing to Brown University for wrestling, and the baseball team having a trio of prolific talents in Devan Kodali, Gio Colasante, and Holden Lipton committing to Vanderbilt, Harvard, and UPenn, respectively. They’re all looking forward to the next steps in their athletic and scholastic journeys.

Semenenko, co-captain of the Poly wrestling team, committed to Brown University earlier this year, making this season a sort of victory lap for him. When asked what separated Brown from the rest of the crop, he said that it was “because [Brown is] one of the best educational schools and they gave me a spot.” Of course, it doesn’t hurt that his parents “also really liked it.” Semenenko started his wrestling career all the way back in the 8th grade, but ended up coming to Poly in the 11th grade. He’s had to learn to make new friends quickly, and he hopes that by the time he arrives at Brown he’ll have a solid

community around him. He said, “[I have] friends at Brown, so hopefully when I get there I won’t be ‘too new’ to the environment and I’d like to get really close with the team.”

Kodali also voiced the importance of program success as well as academic success, saying that in his decision-making process, he didn’t want to “sacrifice one for the other, and Vanderbilt was the best combo of both.” Kodali started playing baseball at Poly all the way back in 6th grade, and started playing the sport when he was just six years old, saying that his parents “saw it as a few free hours of babysitting every weekend.” Suffice it to say that those hours of babysitting helped Kodali blossom into the elite athlete he is today.

To any potential future Poly recruits, Kodali and Semenanko have some words of advice. When asked about what he’d tell himself as a freshman, Semenanko said to “take school more seriously…if I got better grades in my sophomore year, I think I would’ve done even better with the recruiting process.”

Kodali also spoke of the importance of focus, advising to “not get caught up in the hype, just focus on getting better every day, have a good process, it’ll come in due time.”