September 2018

redwood

bark.

Volume LXI, No. 1 • September 13, 2018 • Larkspur, CA

Examining the proposed parking policy Read more on p. 6

Cover by Max Gilberg

redwood

bark.

Diabetes in Marin

10

Star athletes commit

13

Birdwatching

redwood high school ● 395 doherty dr., larkspur, ca 94939 ● volume LXI, no. 1 ● September 13, 2018 ● www.redwoodbark.org

20

Proposed parking policy unpopular among students

By Jack Parsons On Sept. 4, Principal David Sondheim sent out an email to students and parents that became a topic of hot debate and discussion in the following week. This email drafted a new parking plan, which, if implemented fully, will assigns spots with priority based on geographical distance to the school and carpooling, close the campus at lunch for those who park and limit the number of permits given out to the number of spots available.

The draft is currently being reviewed

by Sondheim and Assistant Vice Principal Saum Zargar. The email included a survey for students and parents to submit feedback regarding the draft. That survey yielded 858 responses that Zargar and Sondheim are using to make a final decision. Along with the survey, Zargar and Sondheim held three lunch forums to offer students an opportunity to freely discuss their opinions and suggestions on the draft. While there is no clear release date, the final draft of the proposal will be made within the coming weeks, and Sondheim noted that there are a variety of factors that he will take into consideration with his decision.

“The last student forum was [Friday] at lunch, and we will be looking at the survey responses, information from the student forums and anything else that has been passed down to us,” Sondheim said.

According to Sondheim, the survey indicated that measures to assign spaces with priority to carpooling yielded both negative and positive feedback, while prioritizing based on distance resulted in mostly negative responses. Closing the campus for permitted students during lunch was overwhelmingly unfavored by

students. Despite the strong opposition, the lunchtime provision is the “least likely to change” if any reform is made to the original draft, almost entirely because of safety concerns, according to Sondheim.

“We get reports from the neighbors [in the Riviera neighborhood] and police that [driving to lunch in the allotted time] is unsafe, and we need to stop it before an accident happens,” Sondheim said.

Amongst students, there seems to be heavy opposition towards the proposed lunch rule. Students such as junior Delaney Anderson said that Redwood’s open campus is an integral part of the culture, and that despite being able to walk or bike, not having a car will make finding food an unnecessary challenge.

“While I understand that driving out to lunch can cause some safety hazards, driving to lunch is such a big part of our school spirit and culture. I do understand where the administration is coming from, though,” Anderson said.

Anderson also stated that she would rather take a spot in the parking lot than be able leave campus in a car at lunch. There are ways to adjust to the proposed semiclosed campus at lunch. Students will still be able to get food delivered to locations close to campus, walk or bike to lunch and bring their own lunch. Although students have brought up the idea of food trucks, it is illegal for them to come onto campus, according to Assembly Bill No. 1678 of California.

A widely accepted possible amendment to the original draft is to prohibit sophomores from parking on campus by making the permit application window short and early in the year, limiting the amount of students who would be eligible

Photo by Jack Parsons

WALKING THROUGH THE front lot, upperclassmen have spoken out about the unpopular parking policies. to park. However, sophomores, like Lara Burgert, have looked forward to the opportunity and independence that comes with driving themselves to school.

“I would be bummed out if we weren’t allowed to drive to school because it’s something that [sophomores] really look forward to,” Burgert said.

Sondheim said he is unsure of when the final decision will be made, but it will most likely happen within the next couple of weeks. With any attempt at reform, the possibility of unintended consequences pervades in any institution, according to Sondheim. However, he said that he will be open to making adjustments if a problem arises after implementation.

Although there is a general feeling of opposition amongst students, this plan has inspired many to speak up. With the three forums that have been held, students have had opportunities to voice their opinions to administration. It is unknown, yet, whether student feedback will be reflected in the new plan.

This is written based on information as of press time at 9 p.m. on Sept. 10. Look at the online version at www. redwoodbark. org for recent developments.

jparsons@redwoodbark.org

New superintendent Dr. Tara Taupier brings fresh perspective to the district

By Eislyn Snyder Effective on June 30, Dr. David Yoshihara resigned from his position as superintendent. The Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) was informed as a whole by a two-paragraph email which stated the fact of his departure, without reason. For the remainder of the summer, Valerie Pitts and Walt Buster were appointed as co-interim-superintendents, serving as a temporary solution to Yoshihara’s resignation. On Aug. 28, however, the position of superintendent was officially filled by Dr. Tara Taupier, the previous Assistant Superintendent in Educational Services of the TUHSD. The board attributes her nomination to her extensive experience within the district and her enthusiasm for maintaining a healthy academic community.

As Assistant Superintendent in Educational Services, Taupier was considered to be the Chief Academic Officer, where she handled tasks such as tracking test scores, observing grading, student performance and quality of teaching to ensure students had ample opportunities for

Photo by Eislyn Snyder

SIGNING OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS, board president Leslie Lundgren Harlander and new superintendent Dr. Tara Taupier look forward to working together.

achievement. The President of the Tam District board, Leslie Lundgren Harlander, can vouch for Taupier’s dedication to the field. “[Academics] are what we value in the district: making sure the students have the best curriculum possible and that teachers are offered the support they need. [Taupier] really devoted herself to that area,” Lundgren Harlander said. “She worked a lot on equity; she opened up our eyes to the issues of students having an equal opportunity to access programs.”

Walt Buster, one of the former co-interimsuperintendents, explained the different tasks that are asked of a superintendent.

“The superintendent reports directly to the board.

[Their] job is maintaining the overall health of the district. Teachers that get hired, budgets that get balanced, curriculum that gets written, [they] delegate that to people. The district holds [superintendents] accountable for making sure things go well.”

Having served in administration for the majority of her 16 years working in the district, Taupier is more than familiar with the duties asked of the superintendent, according to Lundgren Harlander. Through her time working in the TUHSD, Taupier has also formed a broad range of relationships across the district, which she finds invaluable. She believes that involving students, parents and others from the community in the decisions of the district is crucial.

“I’m an advocate for going through a decision-making process with your entire community. I think you have to go out, be open and gather ideas because there are people who have ideas you would never think of,” Taupier said.

“Sometimes it’s helpful to put every crazy solution on the table, [and] don’t say ‘No, that’s absolutely wild.’ Put it out there, because from that crazy solution, something might distill and you might find that the whole thing’s crazy, but if you adjust a little piece of it, maybe that works.”

According to Taupier, this outlook will be applied to the district-wide deficit. The district has been trying to keep cuts as far away from the students as possible, however financial adjustments must be made as the deficit has risen from $6 million to $8 million since March.

“We’re going to have to see what the community says [about cuts], and from there, we might make the recommendations based on the input we get … Sometimes you think you know what the community values and then they come back and you’re like ‘Oh, I didn’t see this,’” Taupier said.

A Google Form is on track to be sent out to both parents and students within the district, where suggestions can be made about the TUHSD budget. Taupier and the rest of the administration encourage district members to consider suggesting not just potential cuts, but also recommend tactics to raise and/or adjust revenue, or to alter expenditures.

“We are in a place where [the deficit] has to go down, or else we become insolvent. That’s just not an option for us. Let’s get the community around this problem solving and have a conversation about who we want to be as a Tam District, and how collectively can we get there, acknowledging that we might have to do a little more with less than we’ve been used to in the past,” Taupier said. “It is a loss, but there’s also the way to look at it where we still have more than other districts. We’re still really fortunate.

We’re lucky to have the community that we do and the fact that we are as well funded as we are. It’s an adjustment.”

Even with the financially uncertain future that lies ahead for the TUHSD, Lundgren Harlander believes Taupier will be able to handle it as she has consistently shown that she’s more than capable of dealing with difficult issues.

“If you think of the big picture of what the superintendent does, they’re the CEOs of the district.

She’s basically the person in charge of everything. To do that, you need to be a very strong manager, leader, always open to learning, looking ahead, inspiring people and looking at the mission of the district and making sure we’re moving in that direction,” Lundgren Harlander said.

“She’s demonstrated that she has all those qualities. She loves the district. She’s been here a long time—there’s no surprises for her. Her heart’s here.”

esnyder@redwoodbark.org

September 13, 2018 bark Page 2 • News Lack of space creates tensions between Ross Valley Charter, White Hill

By Nate Charles On Aug. 20, Sonoma County judge Allan Hardcastle released a tentative ruling on Ross Valley Charter’s (RVC) request for more space, granting the school an additional 999.17 square feet on the basis of special education for the upcoming school year. Although RVC had asked for two to three more classrooms in order to accommodate their growing enrollment, Judge Hardcastle stated that they did not demonstrate enough of a need to warrant such an expansion. RVC has not released their actual enrollment yet for the 20182019 school year, but they are projecting an in-district enrollment of 144 students by next April.

Despite RVC’s initial request for space being denied, Director Luke Duchene remains optimistic in that some district negligence was exposed.

“I think some see it as a win for our school in that the judge found the district had not allocated us enough space,” Duchene said. “We don’t have the final ruling from the judge [for space], which we’re clarifying, but in general we’re happy to have our school.”

Angela Barker, mother of Redwood senior and former White Hill Middle Photo by Nate Charles School student Adam Barker, is a member of STAND (a grassroots organization that AS TENSIONS CONTINUE to escalate between Ross Valley Charter and White Hill Middle School, local residents have taken to opposes RVC). She said that although active protesting. reactions varied, they were mostly positive on both sides. in this situation is the requirement for ruling at all,” Duchene said. “I have a expanding their out-of-district enrollment.

“People from STAND felt like the public schools to share space with charters, positive working relationship with the “I can tell you that if they try to make it district offer was fair and justified and something Duchene said the Ross Valley administration at White Hill.” into an additional classroom for specifically the people in the charter school think Unified School District failed to do.

Although RVC’s website defines more students out of the district, then a lot otherwise,” Barker said. “Everyone thinks “When we found that the district had charter schools as “tuition-free, public of schools will be very upset about that,” it was a win and everybody thinks they underallocated space, we came up with schools open to all students that wish to Smith said. won.”

Duchene listed different applications our calculation that we would potentially attend,” Smith said that RVC tried to argue Despite the positive feedback, Barker be allocated two or three rooms [more],” they were not a public school in order to for the new square footage, saying the plan said that the recent ruling is putting even Duchene said. “We started reaching out give itself more flexibility with out-of- as of now is for RVC to use that space for a more of a strain on an already variety of classes. to the district to talk district enrollment. tumultuous relationship “Right now the plan is to use it for art, “Prop 39 specifically says that the to them and we were between RVC and White saying all along we school district is only obliged to provide music, Spanish or P.E. on a rainy day, but Hill, which currently share should be allocated them with classrooms for their students a lot of public schools around here have classrooms and a campus. that come within the district boundaries, additional rooms. That’s something that we more [space].”

The primary purpose of Darren Smith, a and a lot of us feel like they’re trying to get don’t have,” Duchene said.

Proposition 39 is to reduce Both Smith and Barker said that there Mill Valley public more space and fill it with kids from out the percentage of votes school teacher and of the district because otherwise they are is an inherent lack of regulation for charter needed by a school board schools in California and that legislation member of STAND, financially insolvent,” Smith said. to pass bond measures.

Barker said she applied for a list of needs to be passed to not only change said that any space However, it also states that granted to RVC enrolled students under the Freedom of the existing Proposition 39, but also public schools are required is going to cause Information Act and found private emails provide more oversight on charters in the to share classrooms with potential problems for detailing attempts to falsify enrollment state. Because of this, the upcoming state neighboring charter schools superintendent election on the November intentions at RVC. White Hill.

Angela Barker, if space is requested, much “You had people sending in forms ballot is critical.

“Anytime that the STAND member like the case between RVC “The superintendent race is going to be middle school has saying they intended to enroll in Ross and White Hill. to give up space it’s Valley Charter School when they actually super important and there is legislation that “Nothing is getting going to be a burden. had no intention whatsoever of doing is going to be voted on that has to do with better in terms of the relations [between It was already very impactful having the that,” Barker said. “These people are quite charter regulations and the elimination of the two schools],” Barker said. “I think charter there at all, so finding more space willing to cross all kinds of lines to hit their any for-profit charters in the state which most people understand that Prop 39 is a is going to be difficult,” Smith said. would be a really huge step in the right numbers and do what they want.” big fraud that needs to be adjusted because Though Judge Hardcastle only granted direction,” Smith said. “Any kind of Despite a perceived negative it’s so tilted in favor of charter schools and coexistence, Duchene said he is on good RVC the additional space for their special legislative action that is being taken that districts have very little recourse.” terms with the teachers at White Hill and education program (which is designed to looks like it’s going to help to regulate the Although the main purpose of that the problem is not as severe as those accommodate students with special needs), charter industry, I personally support it.”

Proposition 39 is to reduce the percentage some may think.

Smith is wary of what the charter may try of votes needed, the more relevant clause “I don’t know if I would change the to use that space for, including possibly ncharles@redwoodbark.org

Nothing is getting better in terms of the relations [between the two schools].

Photo Survey

What is one positive thing about school starting?

“I’m ready to meet more people and make some new friends.”

Nicholas Meilbeck freshman

“I am looking forward to taking harder classes, and the new course options to take as a sophomore.”

Asal Razavizadeh sophomore

“I can’t wait to start filming “I’m really excited for football season because I new episodes for Redwood TV.” get to practice for a couple hours a day with some of my closest friends.”

Jackson Miller junior

Katie Donick senior

bark Senior Nick Cook wins Bay Area-wide art competition Page 3 • News

www.redwoodbark.org

By Emma Ingledew On Wednesday Sept. 5, senior Nick Cook was selected as one of the five winners of the San Francisco Muni art competition, which included some of the most skilled artists in the Bay Area. Since January of last year, newly decorated Muni buses of San Francisco have been rolling through the city streets, bringing ordinary vehicles to life with art. This year the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, San Francisco Beautiful and the Poetry Society of America have partnered up to give artists in the community an opportunity to compete and display their artwork on the buses. Cook saw this an artistic opportunity as well as a platform to voice his ideas.

“I have the ability to spread a message.

I want to use my art ability to spread a message of love, especially on the buses that are going all over the city. I have somewhere I can put that message and have it go everywhere,” Cook said.

The Muni Art Competition was the ideal way to support Cook in expressing his voice. Since 1947, San Francisco Beautiful, a non-profit organization dedicated to making the city a more colorful and culturally diverse place, has made efforts to improve the beauty of the city. They have not only introduced art to the Muni buses, but have also completed different projects in the community, such as planting the Civic Center Plaza Victory Garden and building greener schoolyards.

San Francisco Beautiful collaborated with The Poetry Society of America for the competition, jointly creating the theme for this year’s competition: “The Art of Poetry in San Francisco.” Cook’s work fit the theme with motifs of love spread throughout his piece.

Cook, an Advanced Placement art

student, likes to think that there is more to art then what is presented on paper.

“I like color and I’m a quiet person.

I like to have my clothes or art make a statement. Before someone comes up to talk to me, someone can get an idea of who I am as a person,” Cook said.

For Cook, creating images for himself is not the only reason for his artistic drive.

He hopes to also make his art more well known across social media, which he also uses as a platform to express his unique personal style.

“Pictures of me are received better than my art. That’s the way people use Instagram. If they see something they recognize, they can stop [scrolling through their feeds], but I want my art to become something that will make people stop scrolling,” Cook said.

The Muni Art contest was Cook’s first official competition as he only started taking his art seriously last year. Cook believes his style of art is unique when compared to his fellow contestants.

“I use childlike mediums like collage or crayons, and it’s a professional competition, so obviously I’m going against people who have already gone to college or art school.

I think it’s funny to be doing something childlike in a professional place and still compete with other people,” Cook said.

Cook’s current art teacher, Lauren Bartone, admires his distinct style and effort to broaden his practice, both artistically and personally.

“He has his own distinctive perspective on fashion and design. It’s interesting to see him take that perspective to traditional assignments I give drawing and painting students,” Bartone said.

Not only does Bartone recognize Cook’s willingness to try new techniques in class, but also his motivation to take the

Photo courtesy of Nick Cook

DISPLAYING HIS ARTWORK, Nick Cook shares his unique style of art, the same style that led Cook to winning the competition. next step and enter his work into recognized competitions.

“I always share art competitions with students, but every year there are very few students who apply and submit work. It’s exciting to see someone make amazing work and connect with a larger audience,” Bartone said.

While Bartone continues to guide Cook in class, she is not the only person to notice Cook’s artistic abilities. Senior Ulla Wilcox, another AP Art student, has seen Cook’s artistic work develop since the beginning of freshman year.

“Nick has a very unapologetic way of creating art. He doesn’t follow the rules which is great and that’s what makes it interesting,” Wilcox said.

Voting for the Muni Art Competition ended Aug. 31, and Cook received the news of his achievement on Sept. 5.

Now that Cook has made a difference with his art, he hopes to carry his artistic abilities with him after he graduates. He hopes to attend Parsons School of Design in New York to pursue fashion or textile design, or to independently create his own clothing company. No matter what direction he takes, according to Cook, he will continue to spread his unique works of art and message of love with the people he meets along the way.

eingledew@redwoodbark.org

Programmers create Team RHS and Redwood High App

By Karl Somerville

This year, a group of students known as Team RHS decided to build a community in which they would create applications to help solve student issues.

Team RHS, founded by junior Ethan Davis, aims to creating apps to make student life easier. According to Davis, he currently does most of the programming and decision-making in the group, while the other members of the team test what he creates. The first app he made this year revolves around allowing students to see their classmates, which at the moment is not available on eSchool.

“I was waiting for the schedule to be released by the school at the start of this year. Once they released it, I was able to figure out how it was formatted and how to retrieve the information through student accounts. I got it done in an hour,” Davis said.

Team RHS started as a Discord server (a form of communication through voice, video and text chat) back in August 2017.

“It started as something that I had put out there for students to use as an option, but eventually it gained a lot of traction across different grade levels. It was kind of unexpected. I decided to run from that and build Team RHS from there,” Davis said.

Redwood sophomore Evan Halliday, another member of Team RHS, realizes that Team RHS cannot compete with other forms of social media such as Snapchat and Instagram.

“I feel that most students wouldn’t be on our Discord server because not all students have it or want to install it because it requires a third party sign up,” Halliday said.

Halliday still sees potential in Team RHS due to the fact that it offers tools other than communication.

“We already have 200 students using our common tool database, and at least 100 students that use Team RHS chat on Discord,” Halliday said.

Other students have pursued similar online platforms to that of Team RHS. Three days after school ended last year, Redwood Senior Elias Deuus began working on what he now calls the Redwood High App. He found certain aspects of the Redwood website complicated and thought that he attempt to make it easier to navigate. This year, Deuss has many goals for the application.

“I want to focus on adding more tools targeted at freshmen or people that have never been to the school, [such as] easier ways to contact teachers or to find classes,” Deuus said. Right now, 190 people use the Redwood High App each day and 250 people have downloaded the app in total.

Deuss says that he wants at least 1,000 students using the application by the end of the school year.

Davis and Deuss have discussed coming together to work on the Redwood High App due to the similarities that the Team RHS program and the Redwood High App share. Right now, Team RHS is focusing on updating RHS Chat, an application equivalent to text messaging, which was released Aug. 19. Deuss sees RHS Chat as something that could be useful to the Redwood High App and that he may implement after further discussion with Davis.

Davis and Deuus both believe that combining Team RHS and the Redwood High App will increase user traffic and get more people using their tools.

In the meantime, Redwood students can download the Redwood High App on the Apple App store and the Google Play store. Students can also expect updates from Team RHS and Deuus on potential collaboration between the two in the near future.

Photo by Karl Somerville

AIMING TO CREATE apps to assist high school students, Ethan Davis founded Team RHS.

ksomerville@redwoodbark.org

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opinion

Page 4

First day of school fails to bring expected Redwood spirit

By Skylar Strotz Nearly 2,000 students feel bittersweet as they come back to school, leaving their stress-free summer and all of its adventures behind. The excitement of starting the next grade, getting a new schedule and seeing classmates after months apart lifts spirits enough to carry students to the parking lots of Redwood for the first day of school. For the second year in a row, Redwood started off the year with the “Giant Kickoff.”

This year’s first day was significantly different due to the loss of the advisory class. Although it was a relief to not have a heavy workload on the first day of school, the school-planned activities did not quite achieve the intended effect or show off the school’s strength through spirit or energy.

For freshmen and juniors, the morning started off in the gym with guest speaker Shaun Derik. Although his overall message to not give up was slightly unclear, students were engaged and participating through the entirety of the speech. In my opinion, the best part of the speech was the danceoff between four students at the end.

During this time, the sophomores and seniors were spread out around the campus participating in class bonding activities.

After about an hour, the grade levels switched.

Senior Maggie Robison enjoyed Derik’s speech and found his motivation helpful.

“I liked his overall message and how he was positive with his [message] because a lot of speakers can just be like ‘oh, let me state the facts’, but he was relatable,” Robison said.

Based on students I interacted with, the overall consensus was that he was one of the most relatable speakers Redwood has had in recent years. This was the highlight of the day by far.

During this time the juniors and freshmen participated in an individual class bonding activity that tried to get students

Illustration by Bella Roesler

to mingle with people that they would not normally talk to. The students started the activities as one large class and then divided into smaller groups. The questions initially asked were about favorite foods and holidays, but quickly transformed into sharing religious beliefs and ethnic background. Generally speaking, these are not typical conversation topics. This activity was already getting uncomfortable, but then the teachers transitioned students into even smaller numbered groups to share stories of times in which they felt like they didn’t belong.

Although in theory these activities sound like an interesting way to get students to connect with new people from their class, this was not the case. People still found ways to avoid the questions in order to just be with their friends. I even saw a few kids who realized they did not have any close friends in their assigned group run back to join the other group where their friends were. When the teachers asked the students to find someone with the same number of siblings as they did, I immediately thought of my two best friends and walked right over to them. This totally defeated the purpose of the activity, adding to its pointlessness.

The middle of the day ran relatively smoothly with ten-minute classes, sevenminute passing periods and an hour long lunch. It was nice to get a chance to see who was in your class and to get a feel for your new classes and teachers. In my opinion, this was the section of the day the students felt to be the most useful and of value.

The end of the day is where it all went south. Students were under the impression that there would be a rally.

Rallies at Redwood are usually spirited and get lots of people involved, providing a fun activity for a group of 2,000 people.

Unfortunately, this “rally” turned out to be a school gathering, not the typical lively Redwood rally.

After walking into the gym at the beginning of the “rally,” you still might have believed you were entering a rally because there was loud music and people hustling to sit in their grade’s section of the gym. Shortly after the teachers took over the microphone, they had students come sit on the floor. What was lacking was the usual charismatic activities and energy our previous rallies had. I felt bad for the freshmen because I knew this would be their impression of Redwood and its “fun

rallies.” There should have been some sort of upbeat competition or performance to get students fired up for the upcoming school year.

Some students opted out of the morning activities, some the end of the day rally and some both, only coming for their classes in the middle of the day. The schedule perfectly accommodated this, which added to the poor construction of the day’s activities. Junior Vanessa Comins explains why she skipped the schoolplanned activities.

“Last year we had a rally on the first day of school and I didn’t really enjoy it.

I only really needed to show up for my first period class and the rest of my day,” Comins said.

She made it clear that she did not feel it was necessary to go to either, nor did she believe she would get any information out of it that was needed.

When teachers asked the next day what students thought of the first day’s activities, the overwhelming consensus in my classes was that they would have rather just have had a regular day of school. I found this sad because I think the “Giant Kickoff” is a great idea with a lot of potential. With better planned activities it will start the year off right.

For future years, teachers and students in charge of planning the first day of school activities should understand that after a summer apart, the student body’s spirit and togetherness is already strong. The long, deep conversations are unnecessary.

We appreciated the effort and the relaxed aspects of the day, but missed the upbeat spirit that a competitive gym of high school students brings. Next year, let’s adjust the first day of school to start off our year on the right foot.

sstrotz@redwoodbark.org

Manafort and Cohen indicted: Why not add the president while we’re at it?

By Natalie Cerf

that the President was not above this action because he was not king. However, only a few months later it was Impeachment is defined as the action of calling into also decided that the courts were not required to treat question the integrity or validity of something. Indictment the President like any ordinary citizen, a sentence that is defined as a formal charge or accusation of a serious essentially admits that the president is above the law. crime. The first is an action allowed to happen to a Undoubtedly, there are many signs that Trump was president, the latter is not. fully involved and aware that money was being used to Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump’s campaign pay off his various affairs. When Cohen was in court, he manager, was found guilty of eight financial crimes on admitted guilt to having used $130,000 of the campaign Aug. 21. He is currently in jail and faces up to 80 years funds illegally to pay off one of the women Trump was in prison. Michael Cohen, President Trump’s long-time rumored to have had an affair with, Stormy Daniels, lawyer, agreed to a plea deal admitting to eight charges implicating Trump’s involvement with and knowledge and acknowledged he had discussed or paid hush money of the felony. Cohen most likely would never admit to a to two women who had alleged affairs with Trump in order crime of that nature if there was nobody else involved to to keep them silent during the campaign, take some of the blame as well. He violating campaign finance laws. Now, would simply not be willing to admit over two weeks later, no major strides guilt to that large of a crime without have been made towards punishing Crimes of this caliber have never knowing that there was someone else Trump. to take part of the blame, whether Trump was almost undoubtedly been connected to any other past or not Trump will in actuality be involved in the crimes that Cohen was affected. arrested for, especially if Trump’s “fixer” United States President.

With that being said, let me go was using his money during the campaign back to the fact that the likelihood for illegal activity. Normally, that would of Trump being actually indicted for automatically mean that Trump would these crimes is extremely, extremely be indicted just like Cohen was, but unfortunately nothing low. However, crimes of this caliber have never been has been done in effort towards impeachment. Manafort connected to any other past United States President. My and Cohen were indicted for serious crimes, and Trump guess is that Congress just does not know where to begin. would be right alongside them in the courtroom was he not Arguably, at this point there is not enough concrete the commander-in-chief. evidence to impeach or indict Trump with 100 percent Precedent was set for incidents such as these in two certainty. It is possible Trump has been going through the past cases. The first was Richard Nixon’s Watergate and past two and half years completely blind to everything the second was Bill Clinton’s Monica Lewinsky scandal. going on around him. It is possible he had no idea Although both former presidents were impeached, neither thousands of dollars were going from his campaign fund were indicted for any charges. More likely than not, the to two women he had allegedly previously had affairs with same situation would happen to Trump. The worst-case in order to keep them quiet. However, I would like to give scenario for him is being forced to resign from office, a our president more credit than that. I do not believe that simple resolution to major crimes. he is a stupid man and I do not believe that he would be Back in 1807, the first time a president could have been so utterly unaware of all the crimes that were committed impeached or indicted, Chief Justice Marshall determined by his right-hand man. I doubt that he gave his money to

Illustration by Natalie Cerf

Cohen absentmindedly.

Unfortunately, the crimes that were committed in the last two years in order to get Trump into office were beyond corrupt. From foreign government involvement in the presidential election that helped one candidate while hurting another, to Manafort and Cohen’s combined 16 guilty charges and a direct sign of campaign finance cover up that Trump knew about, all rational signs point to indictment for many reasons.

When impeachment is the best case scenario, something must be wrong. When a significant number of U.S. citizens are advocating for the indictment of the president, something must be wrong. Having a sitting president involved in this type of crime is unprecedented, but that, after all, seems to be a theme. ncerf@redwoodbark.org

Page 5 • Opinion

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Get more without a tour Evaluating the pros and cons of college tours

By Melissa Block As a group of eager parents dragged their kids to the front of the tour group, bumping past me and interrupting the tour guide with their anxious and obnoxious questions, I was begrudgingly pushed to the back of the crowd, unable to even hear my tour guide describe the “aweinspiring” historical significance of the building in front of us. I had already spent over $500 on the plane ticket and hotel rooms that I needed for the weekend to Southern California, and was not ready to leave the tour early. But, as I irritatedly trudged along with the rest of the group, I began to wonder what, if any, were the benefits to college tours. From the various college students I’ve talked to it seemed clear to me: if you don’t go on a college tour, then you’re not a strong candidate for your top schools.

Especially in our community it appears that college tours are a necessary part of the college application process.

But if you’re the average high school applicant (like me) who doesn’t know what they want to do or where they want to go, then what do you expect to learn on an hourlong tour that you could easily learn in some other form?

Before I begin, if you are going on a college tour to show your “demonstrated interest” then so be it. That’s fine. However, if you’re going on a tour because you think you have to, it’s not worth your money or your time. There are multiple alternatives, two of which I will be exploring below, that can provide you with similar insight from the comfort of your own home.

Why you should visit reason 1: The money College is a financial decision, like buying a car or a house, and you need to see it with your own eyes. If your parents will be spending thousands of dollars on tuition, or if you will have to pay back student loans, then you should visit it firsthand to see if you want to make that decision.

Why that’s wrong: Yes, college costs a lot of money. That’s a fact. But, is it necessary to spend additional money to travel and see it in person? The tours provided by colleges are no different than visiting their online site and watching a virtual tour of the school. Trust me— I’ve spent hours perusing schools on college websites, and I end up finding out even more

information online than I ever received on a tour. On a computer you have access to view all the facilities, see the study halls (places you often don’t even get to see on a standard tour), and from there you can read about opinions of the school and of the programs. Some helpful college search sites include Niche, Cappex and College InSight.

Why you should visit reason 2: See the people You want to walk down the main quad and see sophomores throwing a frisbee back and forth on the lawn, or students working on a paper in the library.

You want to look in the student section of the football stadium and watch them cheer enthusiastically at every play. I admit, it’s important to get a sense for the community at a school and to see how they connect.

Why that’s wrong: While it’s important to see people and understand the culture on the campus, the whole touring experience is arbitrary. You don’t know who you’ll see and how that will make your experience different. For instance, you could be on a tour with a really enthusiastic athlete who majors in biomed and that makes you even more interested in the club he mentions. Or, you could have a lackluster tour guide that’s there just for the paycheck each month. You could walk into the dining hall and see your favorite restaurant serving food, or the hall could be closed for maintenance and you could starve all afternoon. According to New York Times writer Erica Reichner, “Whatever students see or experience during a brief campus visit—whether it’s a sunny day or an illprepared tour guide—will inevitably stand out and have a disproportionate effect on their decision-making.”

In other words, the whole experience is random, and sadly one bad day could ruin your interest in applying completely.

For those of you juniors, who even after reading this piece, are still dying to go visit schools first-hand, I have some advice to make your visit more impactful.

One suggestion is to visit a school with a prescribed list of questions and search for regular students to ask.

Don’t just ask the students who sign up to tour because it’s clear they love their school. Instead, ask the students who will give you a honest answer, and address some of your more personal concerns. If you want to learn more

Illustration by Spencer Ferguson

about what it’s like to be in a club, or to take a particular class, you should hear their original, personal perspective.

One thing you should not forget while going on a tour is the fact that you may be very different than the students you encounter. During a visit, you may connect with a student that has an appealing experience. But, for all you know, their interests and values are quite different than your own. It’s important to be considerate of that.

And lastly, remember that you shouldn’t rely on a college tour to validate your decisions. There are so many other ways to get affiliated with and knowledgeable about a school, so spending the money for a quick visit is not worth your time. mblock@redwoodbark.org

Fighting for incarcerated rights: time to talk about inmate pay

By Emily Sweet What can I buy with 40 cents? Not much.

That’s a question incarcerated men and women in California deal with daily.

Despite a honest good-days’ worth of work, they earn 40 cents an hour, a whopping 3.6 percent of California’s minimum wage for the rest of us.

For decades, prisoners have been working while incarcerated. Whether it is making license plates or doing laundry, prison labor is not a new issue. However, the debate over its morality has recently

been amplified with the over 2,000 prisoners helping to fight recent California wildfires, for pay that is roughly $1 per day according to the Washington Examiner.

For a few weeks now, prisoners across the country were striking to protest against inmate pay. Across the nation, prisoners volunteering to work are being paid either a few cents per hour or nothing at all. The bottom line is that prisoners should be paid a just and reasonable amount for doing work while incarcerated in order to prepare them for life in front of bars, not behind them.

Here are the facts. In a regular non-

Illustration by Emily Sweet

bark

industry job, as an incarcerated prisoner in our country, the maximum hourly salary could be $2—Minnesota is the only state with wages that high, according to the Prison Policy Initiative. To students in Marin, who often complain about getting paid less than $15 per hour to babysit, this number should be especially shocking.

Even in our own state, prisoners only earn roughly 40 cents per hour for nonindustry jobs. A handful of states don’t even pay prisoners for working, including Texas, South Carolina and Georgia.

According to the New York Times, many inmates are struggling to pay for basic aspects of prison and life: phone calls home, deodorant and other goods from prison commissionaires.

Take it from Chandra Bozelko, an author and previously incarcerated woman— working during her days in prison was the best taste of the real world she could get. She worked in a kitchen, earning a salary of between 75 cents and $1.25 daily.

“My prison job made me feel like I was fulfilling my existential duty to society: I was contributing,” Bozelko wrote in the LA Times.

Yes, criminals have committed crimes.

Most incarcerated men and women around the country are incarcerated for a reason.

But it makes no sense to cut off a method of rehabilitation that many prisoners enjoy. By paying little to nothing for volunteer work (which, by the way, is work that we as the public often benefit from) we give prisoners no incentive to rehabilitate themselves through work and prepare for life outside.

Yes, first and foremost, prison is a punishment for bad behavior. But what is the point of allowing people to rot behind bars when they could be doing beneficial work for themselves and for the country?

Not only is it logical to allow this work, but to provide them with compensation to use the skills they’ve learned when they are released. And, enough compensation to not only cover trivial day-to-day basics of living, but to begin planning for the future. If the prison system cannot get its act together enough to figure out that rehabilitation is the most essential part of incarceration, what are they doing? It’s dehumanizing to pay workers amounts that cannot even buy them toothpaste, and this injustice has needed addressing for some time now.

Prisoners are risking a lot for this strike. According to USA Today, they face possible time in solitary confinement as well as their good behavior records being barred. If this strike means enough for a prisoner to sacrifice a potential early release, it should mean enough for the country to take a long, careful look at the issue.

I’m not suggesting we flush inmates with cash, but wages under $1 an hour are absurd. Even paying inmates under minimum wage would allow them to start planning for life outside of the confines of control. At present, there are states that simply don’t have the money for this, and there are other states that don’t have the support. However, it’s time the government, whether it be federal or state, takes initiative to reform the prison system.

A strike doesn’t last forever. Too often are issues like this swept under the rug as soon as the media stops frequent coverage.

It may seem that inmate pay is an issue that is far away from home, but the reality is that this is an injustice and no matter how far away an injustice may seem, the gates to San Quentin are a lot closer. esweet@redwoodbark.org

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Page 6 • Opinion

September 13, 2018

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Redwood High School 395 Doherty Drive Larkspur, CA 94939 www.redwoodbark.org

Editors-In-Chief Lily Baldwin Neva Legallet Saamya Mungamuru Emily Sweet Head Copy Editor Sydney Hilbush

Illustration by Olivia Ray

editorial Admin disappoints with proposed parking plan “Time for students to take the wheel”

POLICY: All editorials are unsigned and have been approved by the majority of the Bark staff.

On Sept. 4, an email was sent out to the Redwood community by Principal David Sondheim outlining the draft of newly proposed parking restrictions for the 2018-2019 school year. The new measures are being considered to mitigate problems with “safety, environmental impact/resource use, commute traffic congestion and student, parent and community impact,” according to Sondheim’s email. A survey was issued to students and parents to obtain feedback about this proposal; however, it will only be viewed and considered by Sondheim and Assistant Vice Principal Saum Zargar before a final draft is made.

A mere three days were given to submit responses, but it is unclear whether this feedback will create discernible change to the policy.

The proposed changes include limiting the number of permits to the number of spaces available, assigned parking spots with “carpools given highest priority and long distances from school being given the next highest priority,” according to the email. The draft also prohibits all students in the school parking lot from driving their cars off campus at lunch and break.

The proposal has, rightfully, been met with outrage by the student body and members of the community. The administration’s proposed parking plan is inefficient, disregards the individual needs of students and largely fails to take student opinion into account.

Past parking policy has accepted all applications from upperclassmen, with this privilege extending to sophomores as of the 2016-2017 school year, creating a high demand for parking. Although this system was less than ideal, the proposed draft takes us from one end of the extreme to the other, with far too many restrictions.

One of the most protested changes is the assigned spots, which is an asinine attempt to monitor students’ parking at an excessive level of detail. The major flaws with this are two-fold.

The enforcement of such assignments will fall on campus security officers, who are tasked with ensuring student safety, not monitoring individual parking spots. Additionally, when assigned spots are empty due to absences, administration has said they will be given to visitors or substitutes, but not other students. Saving spaces for hypothetical needs defeats the purpose of finding a lasting solution to the problem for all involved, especially given our limited amount of parking spots.

Two criteria (carpooling and distance from school) for prioritization of permits given have been proposed, both of which are inconsiderate of student and community circumstances. Carpooling demands regularity in student schedules, which is rare; afterschool jobs, sports, family obligations and excused absences require flexibility in transportation options.

While the policy is meant to encourage carpooling, there are significant irrationalities that render it A BARK to Shake Shack coming to the Bay Area. We only have fr(eyes) for them.

A BITE to the freshmen who block the hallways during passing periods. You’re supposed to have a damn good year, not a good dam year.

A BARK to Amazon for reaching a trillion in market value. That’s some prime work.

A BITE to the woman who raised $400,000 on GoFundMe for a homeless man and then kept the money for herself. She took the name too literally.

A BARK to the U.S. Open.

People are making quite a racquet

counterproductive.

Distance prioritization is another major issue with this proposal. Such priority would allow students living in areas such as Belvedere-Tiburon a greater chance of receiving a permit, despite their access to chartered Marin Transit buses. For students who live in areas such as Greenbrae or Corte Madera, there is an insufficient bus system to transport them to and from school, bringing into question the equity of student transportation. Although these areas are closer to school, walking to school is impractical as even two miles could take at least 40 minutes, nullifying the reasoning for the distance qualifier.

Not only is this proposal an inefficient use of our paid administration, as they will have to sift through complex details regarding distance and carpooling before issuing permits, but it is also a careless use of our monetary and spacial resources.

The most effective solution would be to issue as many parking permits as are requested within a designated time frame in the fall, which would lower the estimated 800 requested permits and allow a first-come-first-serve system, which has worked in the past. With this process, absences would not leave open spots, and students who need parking on any given day can fill them.

Administration believes that the entirety of the consequences of the proposed parking changes cannot be gauged until the changes are made. Unintended and unpredictable repercussions are inevitable with such an extreme strategy. Instead of overcompensating for the lax parking plan of past years, a better strategy is to start with a less drastic measure, such as simply limiting time for applications, and observe whether this alone will be sufficient to improve the situation.

If there is enough evidence that the initial measures are ineffective, then administration would be justified in enforcing additional restrictions, such as assigning parking spaces.

Last year’s parking situation wasn’t optimal by any standards; there is no ideal solution for the parking problem simply because of the disparity between the number of people who want to park on campus and the space available. However, restricting our parking to this extent is not just logically flawed, but also sends a message that student and community voice are not adequately considered in school-wide decision making.

Have an opinion regarding anything that appears in the Bark or in general? We encourage our readers to submit letters to the editor. Letters to the Bark should be 500 words or fewer, typed if possible and signed. They must be submitted to room 177 or in the Bark mailbox. They may also be emailed to bark@redwoodbark.org.

about it.

A BITE to Marin being one of the riskiest wildfire zones. We must be extra flammable from all the freshman cologne.

A BARK to finding Dorothy’s ruby slippers after 13 years.

Looks like the yellow brick road was a lot longer than we thought.

A BITE to Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings. A straight party vote is the worst kind of party.

A BARK to football season starting again. Finally, the male population at Redwood has something to talk about other than Fortnite.

A BITE to the breathalyzers at the BTSD. Either they need some new batteries or that Kombucha was way more fermented than we thought.

A BARK to Manafort and Cohen being indicted. Orange really is your color, Trump.

A BITE to all of Redwood’s classrooms. Sincerely, the rats.

BARKS and BITES are the collective opinions of the BARK staff concerning relevant issues. BARKS are in praise of accomplishments, while BITES criticize decisions or events.

Copy Editors Maria Alexander Mikaela Beberman Drake Goodman Sabine Lloyd Maddie Loebbaka Justin Newhard Ryo Weng News Editors Audrey Hettleman Katherine Muller Opinion Editors Lauren Steele Sam Warren Feature Editors Natalie Cerf Josephine Yee Sports Editors Jacob Klionsky Matt Smallbach Review Editors Sydney Steinberg Skylar Strotz Lifestyles Editors Melissa Block Eislyn Snyder Spanish Editor Julia Scharf Video Editors Harrison Segal Charlie Werner Business Manager Lucie James Social Media Manager Karl Somerville Survey Manager Aaron Kim Art Consultant Max Gilberg Web Developers Erin McCarthy Bennett Somerville Reporters Evelyn Bailey Jack Benbow Grace Bouton Emma Carpenter Nate Charles Taylor Charles Anna Compagno Garrett Cook Jenna Dahlin Alexa Erickson Shane Fricke Nicole Fuches Dean Griffin Emma Ingledew Alex Johnson Devon McClain Julia Merron Amanda Morse Sachi Nahas Jack Parsons Alexandra Polidora Bella Roesler Alix Salzer Morgan Salzer Meera Srinivasan Bennett Vasquez Sarah Young Adviser Lindsey Kornfeld

español

Página 7

Estudiante viaja al extranjero para suministrar apoyo físico y emocional Por Sabine Lloyd

Despertándose a las 6:50 de la mañana y empacando su uniforme, guantes, redecillas, mascarillas y una bata de laboratorio fue su rutina típica de la mañana que estudiante de cuarto año Rachel Nielsen adoptó este verano.

Nielsen pasó tres semanas en La Romana, República Dominicana con un programa llamada Gap Medics, especializando en internados pre salud. Cada semana, Nielsen estaba puesta en un departamento diferente, empezando en sala de emergencias después transfiriendose a especialidades como obstetricia y ginecología y tuvo la oportunidad de estar en el quirófano.

Según Nielsen, se adaptó fácilmente a la cultura y el trabajo por sus experiencias anteriores estando en el extranjero en Ecuador y Nicaragua.

“Fui a Nicaragua y fue una experiencia emancipadora.

Me recuerdo la primera noche en Nicaragua, estaba acostada pensando, ‘si puedo hacer esto, y si logro hacer esto, puedo ser cualquier cosa.’ Regrese a casa con un nuevo sentido de sí mismo y no tener miedo de tantas cosas,” dijo Nielsen. “Quería tener otra experiencia como esa. Nicaragua que un reto físicamente—estaba viviendo en condiciones de pobreza extrema; Me despertaria a las 5 de la mañana para bañarme con una cubeta cada día y yo lavaba frijoles—entonces quería algo más desafiante emocionalmente.”

La oportunidad de seguir sigilosamente a doctores, aves en cuando ayudarlos y hablar con los pacientes se sentirá como una manera significativo para cumplir este deseo según Nielsen. Nielsen no solo contribuyó ayuda médica en la República Dominicana, pero ayuda emocional también, ella pudo comunicar y confortar a los pacientes en español.

“Yo creo que yo tuve una experiencia enriquecida porque puedo hablar en español y mucho de los otros no podían, entonces yo entendía a la gente y como sus estilos de vida los llevaron al hospital y los retos que enfrentaron,” dijo Nielsen.

La gemela de Nielsen, Amy, también viajó a Latinoamérica y reconoce el impacto de poder conversar en otras idiomas tiene para hacer conexiones con los locales y como las conexiones pueden promover más entendimiento de la idioma.

“No aprendí mucho de los tensos, pero creo que aprendí

como no tener miedo de tratar de hablar en español,” dijo Amy. Este mismo lógica estaba adoptado por sur hermana.

Rachel, también.

“Construyendo conexiones con gente me ha dado un nuevo sentido de confianza. Me ha enseñado que afuera de tu burbuja, hay gente con quien puedes realmente conectar.

Me emociona para el futuro,” dijo Rachel.

Amy tiene una opinión similar, creyendo que relaciones globales auténticas son inevitable y unirá a el mundo.

“Ende vez de enfocarnos en diferencias entre países, es importante enfocarnos en las semejanzas. Viajando a algún lugar diferente, cientos o miles de millas en la distancia, hace el mundo parecerse más chico, y haze el mundo sentirse más como una comunidad. Enseña que valioso es para los dos países cuando dos personas de diferente culturas interactúan, y enseña que ambos tenemos cosas de enseñar uno al otro,” dijo Amy. Interactuando con uno al otro y apoyando se expande la perspectiva de uno ambos en casa y globalmente, según Amy. “Creo que [sumergiéndote en otra cultura] es importante porque si no tu vista global está cortada y muy unilateral y limitado a donde creciste. Y cuando viajas se hace más complejo y tomas en consideración otras problemas—socialmente y económicamente—que no pensarias considerar si no vas y experiencias como viven otras personas,” dijo Amy. Estudiante de tercer año Sophia Lanciault quien acompañó Rachel en el viaje tuvo una realización similar.

“En la República Dominicana, muchas cosas que hacen es muy distinto de los estados unidos. En el quirófano, había una persona designada para matar las moscas.

Estábamos estupefactos de todo lo que andaba pasando porque estaba muy distinto de lo que pasaría en los estados unidos,” dijo Lanciault.

La diversidad no solo amplió la perspectiva de Lanciault, pero también la de Rachel, en una manera más profunda y terrenal.

“Yo creo que mire el todo el espectro de la experiencia humana. Había esta mujer, tenía cáncer ovárico y cáncer de mama y sida. Estaba gimiendo de dolor. Estaba pensando, ‘adonde te lleva el cuerpo humano?’” dijo Rachel. “Y la próxima semana estaban con los ginecólogos y vi nacer a bebés y la euforia de las mamas. Había una contraste muy

Foto por Rachel Nielsen

ACUNANDO AL PRIMER bebé que vio ser entregado, Rachel está hipnotizada por el nacimiento natural que acaba de mirar. grande. Mirando esa contraste de la vida Dominicana fue muy profundo. Pensé, ‘no puedo creer que me andan dejando ver esto.’ El primer nacimiento que mire, yo llore.

Solo andaba pensando que la vida es increíble.”

slloyd@redwoodbark.org

El viaje de aprender inglés: cómo los estudiantes de ELD mejoraron Por Mikaela Beberman El principio de un nuevo año escolar en la clase de English Language Development (ELD) presenta otra oportunidad para los estudiantes que vienen del extranjero para mejorar su inglés, además de su autoconfianza y su confianza en la escuela.

Desde que algunos estudiantes empezaron en Redwood y pasaron múltiples años en ELD, observaron que sus habilidades con el inglés mejoraron. A medida que la junior Ruthielem “Ruth” De Britto y la sophomore Saidy Reyes comienzan un nuevo año en la clase de ELD, reflexionaron sobre su experiencia en la clase y el sistema de apoyo que les ayuda con el inglés.

De Britto vino en 2015 a los Estados Unidos desde Goiânia en Brasil. Asistió a Pinole Middle School en Richmond para el curso ocho. Aunque De Britto estaba en una escuela Americana antes de llegar a Redwood, no hablaba mucho inglés y se esforzó por interactuar con la gente.

“Tenía miedo porque mi inglés no estaba bueno, así empezar en una nueva escuela con personas diferentes y no conocer a nadie era un poco difícil. Pero la clase de ELD, señora McCrea y todos me ayudaron mucho,” dijo De Britto.

Para ayudar a mejorar el inglés de los estudiantes, la clase de ELD se enfoca en mejorar las habilidades de leer, escribir, hablar y escuchar a través de la colaboración y la conversación. De Britto observa que conversar con los otros en la clase la ayuda más.

“Digo a todos que puedo sobrevivir.

Creo que [mi ingles] esta bien. Puedo ir a la escuela, comprar cosas, hablar con la gente, entonces pienso que está mejorando,” dijo De Britto.

Foto por Mikaela Beberman

ESTUDIANDO LAS NOTAS de su carpeta, Madu Ferreira Vidal y Ruth de Britto se ayudan a estudiar.

Debbie McCrea, una profesora de ELD, es una sophomore de Guatemala. Ella Español AP y de ELD, estaba enseñando se mudó de Quetzaltenango, una ciudad ELD en Redwood durante mas de 10 ubicada en las tierras altas al oeste del país. años. Según McCrea, su esposo inmigró Cuando llegó a los Estados Unidos en 2017, de México, así que entiende las luchas que Reyes no hablaba mucho inglés porque su los alumnos enfrentan cuando tienen que escuela en Guatemala no tenía una clase de adaptarse a un nuevo país, y quiere proveer inglés apropiada.

“Entiendo siempre lo que dicen los un apoyo académico y emocional para ellos. Dice que está impresionada por la maestros, [pero] hablarlo, no mucho. Creo ética de trabajo diligente de los estudiantes, que todos tienen ese miedo al hablar otro idioma,” dijo Reyes. además de su afán por aprender.

Aunque Reyes dice que es tímida y solo “Yo admiro mucho estos estudiantes que vienen a Redwood y desconocen el puede decir algunas palabras, reconoce la idioma, la cultura. La verdad [es que] me importancia de hacer un esfuerzo cuando inspiran porque trabajan tanto. Aprecian habla inglés. Es esencial para progresar en la educación, aprecian las oportunidades Redwood.

“Ya entiendo [el inglés] y se que necesito que hay en Redwood. Es muy lindo,” dijo hablarlo porque si no trato de mejorar, si McCrea.

Reyes, otra estudiante en la clase de no lo hago yo misma, nadie lo hará por mí,”

dijo Reyes.

Durante los años que McCrea ha enseñado ELD, observó que muchos estudiantes entran en la clase con un conocimiento muy basico del ingles. Pero, después de solamente un año de estudiar, McCrea señaló que hay una mejora significativa para la aptitud de la lengua.

“El crecimiento es fenomenal. Llegan estudiantes que no hablan nada, y dentro de un año hablan. Dentro de dos o tres [años], todos hablan. Es increíble. Muchos reciben el diploma. El año pasado, tuvimos siete u ocho [estudiantes] del programa que se graduaron,” dijo McCrea.

Aunque la mayoría de los estudiantes de ELD terminan el programa con un inglés sobresaliente, aprender un nuevo idioma requiere un trabajo y una dedicación inmensos en todo el proceso de desarrollo del lenguaje y más allá. De Britto y Reyes todavía luchan con su inglés, pero piensan que están más avanzados con el inglés que si no hubieran tomado la clase de ELD. Reyes piensa que para desarrollar habilidades en inglés rápidamente, es importante que los alumnos nuevos en la clase de ELD tengan confianza en sí mismos y no tengan miedo de pedir ayuda. “[Es importante que los alumnos de ELD] tengan confianza en sí mismos. No gasten el tiempo, que se enfoquen en el inglés. Siempre preguntarle a los maestros, y si tus maestros no te entienden, preguntarle a alguien más, como a la maestra ELD, Ms. McCrea. Siempre no te enfoques en lo que piensan los demás y piensa en lo que tu crees que es correcto,” dijo Reyes.

mbeberman@redwoodbark.org

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Page 8

District hopes Measure J will stitch up budget cuts

By Sarah Young and Garrett Cook What would Redwood be without art, music and the library? The varsity sports programs, leadership and the wellness center? This year, departments are already facing severe cuts, but completely eliminating these programs could be a reality within three years. Over the last 10 years in the Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD), there has been a 32 percent increase in student population, according to a report by the TUHSD. Despite this increase, the district does not receive additional revenue, as the majority of the district’s budget comes from local

to larger class sizes and less classes being offered. pass, it will also affect all TUHSD residents living in the “If we don’t have the money to maintain these facilities district, even if they do not have children attending one of the class sizes will get a lot bigger, causing the quality of the district’s high schools. the experience of the student to significantly decrease,” “Public schools drive the value of a community and Loebbaka said. education is the foundation for why people live in a certain However, TUHSD is taking action to prevent the area,” Loebbaka said. “People seek out Marin because of need for these dramatic changes. As of June 2018, each the great public schools located here.” department in the district has been directed to reduce their According to Loebbaka, if the quality of schools start spending by 25 percent. to struggle, property values will diminish because there Although every department is facing the burden of will be less of a demand to live in Marin County. Tam, the budget deficit, the library has been affected more than Drake and Redwood are the top-rated public schools in the others; their funds have been cut 50 percent for the 18-19 area, resulting in the highest property values. According to year according to Redwood librarian Adriana Perez. Perez US News, Redwood is ranked 30th in California for 2018 was worried starting this school year off knowing that and Drake is rated 67th, compared to Novato High School some of her resources were going to be cut. In the past, the which is 201st in California for 2018 and San Rafael High library has been able to buy books for students studying School which is unranked. Because of this, San Rafael and a specific topics when they don’t have other resources, as Novato have lower property values than residential areas well as provide a quiet space to learn and research. With like Larkspur, Mill Valley and Tiburon. The TUHSD is the library being hit harder on budget very spread out, spanning cuts compared to other programs the distance from the such as art and music, Perez says Golden Gate Bridge to there will definitely be some changes Stinson Beach, which in the amount of books, computers makes it harder to get and other supplies the library will votes on Measure J. have available in the upcoming years.

“It’s a far-reaching “Right now I’m thinking this is district, and while our maybe a one-year problem, so I’m community around holding my breath on if the [parcel] Redwood is most likely tax passes and taking this one year at all on board there are a a time,” Perez said. whole bunch of people that Richard Esteb, an engineering we still need to educate, teacher at Redwood, is also facing inform and hopefully get similar challenges. them to vote,” Loebbaka “We’re making projects that said. require less money, like less 3D Trying to pass the printing, even though the new parcel is proving to be curriculum requires new purchases,” extremely difficult.

Esteb said.

“It’s going to be hard; While Esteb is aiming to improve it’s going to be important the student experience and provide for us to explain to people as much as possible for his classes, Karen Loebbaka, what it is that we are trying materials and supplies cost more President, RHS Foundation to accomplish, especially than what his budget will support. to those people that aren’t The wide-format paper that is needed in the parent community in the class is expensive and hard to get, which causes … as well as people who have young families. They think problems when the budget is tight according to Esteb. that it [the budget situation] will be fixed by the time they With a new curriculum requiring new equipment, but get there. It won’t be if people don’t take action now,” less money to go around, Esteb must find Loebbaka said. creative ways to teach and restrict usage However, Loebbaka believes of materials in his class. Esteb might have if enough people spread the word to regulate who can use the 3D printer, or to the community, there is a real fully restrict it some days. chance at making positive and “If we don’t pass this parcel tax, we necessary change for our high will have to make severe cuts to the tune schools. of possibly 40 teachers across the district,” Loebbaka said. “We will have to eliminate

or severely reduce the programs offered and we would not be able to maintain let alone improve facilities.”

According to Loebbaka, if the Parcel Tax doesn’t bark@redwoodbark.org

If we don’t pass this parcel tax, we will have to make severe cuts to the tune of possibly 40 teachers across the district ... eliminate or severely reduce the programs offered and we would not be able to maintain, let alone improve facilities.

Photo by Garrett Cook

SERVICING HUNDREDS OF students, the library at Redwood High School provides educational needs everyday.

property taxes rather than government funding. The influx of students has required substantial additions in resources over the past decade, yet because the budget has not grown to accommodate for the rising student population among other factors, the TUHSD faces an eight-million-dollar deficit for the 2018-2019 school year.

A supplemental parcel tax, the Measure J Parcel Tax, is going up for a vote soon. It will cost each household an additional $149 per year, lasting four years, with the money going directly to the district. If this passes, the TUHSD will receive an additional $5.1 million for the 2018-2019 school year, and the amount will increase by three percent every year. Karen Loebbaka, President of the Redwood High School Foundation and Co-Chair of the Measure J Parcel Tax Campaign, is trying to spread the word.

“We have added 1,200 students over the last 10 years, which is the equivalent of Drake’s student population,” Loebbaka said. “It’s a whole new high school.”

TUHSD is a basic aid school district, meaning the majority of its money comes from property taxes instead of the government. The taxes have only increased five percent in the last 10 years, a significant difference compared to the increase in student population, meaning the district needs the extra money the parcel tax would provide.

“The important thing to remember is that we are going out and asking for $5.1 million, but the district is also taking means to reduce some of their expenses to the tune of about three million dollars,” Loebbaka said.

The three million dollar reductions are just for the 2018-19 school year, but TUHSD will continue to make budget cuts next year, even if the parcel tax passes. If the parcel tax does not pass, the district reserve will run out of money in two years, and have to make even more severe cuts according to a TUHSD report.

According to Loebbaka, the Redwood portables would most likely be affected first. Constructed to address the issue of student population overflow, they would have to be removed if the parcel tax does not pass. This would lead

Photo by Garrett Cook

INSTALLED THIS SUMMER, four new Redwood portables were made to accommodate for the influx of students in the 2018-2019 school year and beyond.

bark

Page 9 • Feature

www.redwoodbark.org

Reduce. Reuse. Rethink.

New restrictions from China force Marin to reexamine recycling

and don’ts list that they convey to their customers as far as what can and cannot Looking around Marin County, be put into their recycling programs, and one might infer based off the endless some of what we’re seeing is those lists redwoods trees or green Mt. Tam that this a are getting more community dedicated to and appreciative strict,” Devine said. of the nature around it. However, recent Devine said import restrictions from China as a part that although Zero of the ongoing “trade war” have brought Waste Marin is to light a serious environmental problem more of a supervisor in Marin: recycling. for recycling in In past years, China has purchased the county, they over 60 percent of all recycling in too have ways California, according to Plastics for consumers to Recycling Update, and in turn processed reduce their waste. all the materials, saving California the “We’re certainly added work. Now, China is no longer monitoring the a viable option for this outsourcing of situation. A lot of labor, as they have stated their processing what we do at Zero plants will only accept materials that Waste Marin is a have 0.5 percent contamination or less. campaign going This policy aims to protect Chinese called ‘Shop Smart factory workers in an ongoing effort to Waste Less,’” shift the Chinese government’s stance Devine said. “In on the environment that includes better most instances you can buy products working conditions for those in factories. that can reduce waste to begin with, so Kimberly Scheibly, Director of you might have an opportunity to use a Compliance & Customer Relations for reusable product instead of something that Marin Sanitary Service, believes that is disposable even if it’s recyclable.”

China’s withdrawal from the California Scheibly said that reducing consumer recycling system is a major blow to waste is always a priority, but it can be recycling in California. The effects challenging to get people on the right are especially felt in Marin, where the track. However, she thinks Marin Sanitary countywide recycling rate of 40 percent Service may have a solution. is far short of the state-mandated 75 “People really want to do the right percent for all counties by the year 2020. thing with what they purchase but they “Most of our market has been China, just don’t know what is recyclable and so they buy almost all of our material. what isn’t,” Scheibly said. “For now, we’re We don’t really have any other markets working on an app that customers can … in California,” Scheibly said. “We’re just put in whatever the item [is] and it will tell crossing our fingers hoping that markets you ‘It goes in the landfill container’ or ‘It will open up a little goes in this side of the bit so we can move [recycling] bin.’” our material.”

The app is called The material that ‘Where’s It Go, Joe?’ in Scheibly referenced is a nod to the company’s currently stacked high owner Joe Garabino, above the ground in but has not yet been the lot behind Marin released to the public.

Sanitary Service, and It is being developed it’s growing every

by ReCollect, a tech day. With nowhere company that has to sell the recycling already made several to, the company has products designed to been forced to keep promote recycling. it. Other companies in Sustainable the area face similar Agriculture and issues, and Steve Kimberly Scheibly, Advanced Placement Devine, Program Director of Compliance & Environmental Science Manager of the Customer Relations for Marin teacher Joe Stewart also Waste Management recognized the current Sanitary Service Division at Zero crisis and said that Waste Marin, noted Marin has had problems that companies in in the past with waste the area are beginning to crack down management. on recycling policies as those issues “Marin has, at times, been the largest continues to grow. per-capita waste production county in the “Each company has its own dos United States,” Stewart said. “We do want

By Nate Charles

People really want to do the right thing with what they purchase but they just don’t know what is recyclable and what isn’t.

Photo by Nate Charles

SORTING RECYLING HAS become crucial with China now accepting only the cleanest materials.

to think about reducing our trash but also our recycling. The best thing to do is just not produce waste at all. We are producing too much waste.”

S t e w a r t also said that recycling, while it is better than the traditional landfill, is not an end-all-be-all solution to waste in general.

“There’s only so much space.

There’s no such thing as away. We can throw things away but it’s still there,” Stewart said.

R e d w o o d ’s Environmental Action Club, which is supervised by Stewart, ran an initiative last year than involved placing recycling bins in the CEA to promote sustainability. Senior Gabe Johnson, who was a member of the club last year and plans on continuing this year, said that despite the club’s best intentions there’s still work to be done.

“A lot of the stuff that comes with our lunches here is recyclable so if you have a recycling bin then you can [put] this stuff away,” Johnson said. “One problem is a lot of people still aren’t recycling … so I think the game plan this year is to create a lot of posters, just get the word out there that the stuff you have can be recycled because it makes such a big difference.”

Joe Stewart, Devine said Zero Science Teacher Waste Marin also believes in the practice of waste management over recycling, as it helps to reduce strains on the environment and keep harmful materials out of nature.

“Recycling a lot of times can kind of be a cop-out in terms of making it someone else’s problem. Recycling is generally better than landfilling or incineration but there’s still environmental impacts,” Devine said. “In terms of the hierarchy of reduce, reuse and recycle, waste reduction and reusing is way more important than the recycling piece.”

Though reducing and reusing are

more effective, Stewart said recycling is still much better than the alternative of landfilling.

“Our landfill [in Novato] is expected to be full within the next couple of years,” Stewart said. “There’s a finite amount of resources on the planet so by recycling, instead of them ending up in a place where they’re not usable, they end up in a place where they are usable.”

Scheibly said that while consumers can alleviate the situation, higher-level changes are necessary in order for recycling to continue being sustainable.

“I think consumers can buy materials that have recycled content in them. Take more time to look over the product, look over the package,” Scheibly said. “To solve this problem, it’s really going to take a lot of things happening all together and manufacturers being responsible for the products that they make. They have to know what’s going to happen at the end of its life.”

Both Scheibly and Devine said that creating more local opportunities for processing recycling will be crucial to California’s quest to remain green, as foreign markets are no longer available.

“Hopefully what’s going on currently will be a wakeup call to look for opportunities to bring some of the recyclable processing capabilities back more locally so that there will be more reliable options and outlets for material,” Devine said.

Johnson said that it is important for students in high school to take action to help fight climate change, even if they don’t see immediate gratification.

“This whole environmental issue, its so big, that attacking it is really hard especially when these kid are in high school,” Johnson said. “A lot of people are like ‘I don’t want to go out of my way’ because they don’t see the effects of climate change on their own lives … [but] when you recycle it saves so much energy because things don’t need to be remade, you don’t need to get the raw materials.”

We do want to think about reducing our trash but also our recycling. The best thing to do is just not produce waste at all. We are producing too much waste.

ncharles@redwoodbark.org

Photo by Nate Charles

FORCED TO STORE all their recycling behind their facility, the Marin Sanitary Service no longer has China available as an option to send their waste.

Fighting the phenomenon:

By Sydney Hilbush

As medical assistant Julie Roddy sits down with a new patient at the Braden Diabetes Center to discuss her diabetic plan, Roddy can’t help but notice that her patient appears in great health, maintains a balanced diet and exercises regularly—practices that would normally deter the development of Type 2 diabetes. However, Roddy’s patient is prediabetic—and so are half of Marin County adults, according to the Marin Independent Journal.

Although Marin remains the healthiest county in California and holds the ninth-lowest obesity rate in America, according to Niche, 50 percent of adults are on the path to developing Type 2 diabetes.

Without prediabetic intervention, up to 30 percent of adults will develop Type 2 within five years, and as much as 70 percent will develop the disease in their lifetime, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Developing prediabetes is usually associated with being overweight, inactive, having high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Although only 15.7 percent of Marin adults are considered overweight or obese, according to Healthy Marin, one in every two adults has prediabetes.

Fortunately, only two percent of the population has actually been diagnosed, so what is the correlation?

Causes for development of prediabetes Prediabetes, also referred to as impaired glucose tolerance, is a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but not enough to merit a diabetes diagnosis.

Individuals who are prediabetic face a much higher risk of eventually developing Type 2 and cardiovascular disease later in life.

According to the California Center for Public Health Advocacy, 46 percent of adults in California, about 13 million people, have prediabetes, while another nine percent, about 2.5 million people, are already diagnosed with the disease.

Type 2 is a form of diabetes that restricts a person’s pancreas from producing enough insulin to maintain normal blood sugar levels.

According to the American Diabetes Association, the prevalence of Type 2 diagnosis increased sixfold in the last 100 years. Diabetes risk factors such as obesity and physical inactivity have played a major role in this dramatic increase.

Braden Diabetes Center outpatient dietitian and educator, Katy McDermott, noted that developing prediabetes or Type 2 is not solely related to obesity or physical inactivity.

The risk of developing Type 2 or prediabetes also increases with age, and as the average age for residents in Marin County is 46, according to Data USA, the older population is more vulnerable to developing the disease.

“The misconception about prediabetes and diabetes in general is that you have to be obese to develop Type 2.

Yet, although this is one factor, multiple factors are coming together to create a diagnosis. For Marin, specifically, we see the prevalence of Type 2 in our older population, which is a good majority of residents,” McDermott said.

is the principal provider of medical care to low-income Marin residents.

The majority of patients Bedagkar serves rely on Medi-Cal, the Medicaid program in California which provides health coverage to people with low-income and asset levels who meet certain eligibility requirements.

The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes not only increases within lower socioeconomic communities, but is exceedingly higher among minority populations as well.

According to a UCLA study, the incidence of prediabetes among young adults is 36 percent among Latinos and 38 percent among AfricanAmericans, compared to 29 percent for Caucasians.

Diabetes not only takes a toll on an individual’s personal health, but it can also pose an extreme financial burden especially for struggling families and individuals lacking insurance benefits.

According to the Braden Diabetes Center, individuals with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of $16,752 per year, an expense 2.3 times higher than the cost of medical care in the absence of diabetes.

For Type 1 diabetics, individuals who are insulin dependent and do not receive insurance spend over $1,000 per month on insulin alone, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Roddy noted that because of the fiscal burdens associated with diabetes, many individuals with prediabetes will not take the

Disproportionately affected populations

Infographic by Emily Sweet

Diabetes disproportionately affects minority populations and the elderly, and its prevalence is likely to increase as minority populations grow and the U.S. population becomes older.

According to Avani Bedagkar, a quality improvement manager at Marin County Community Clinics (MCCC), the majority of the clinics’ diabetic and prediabetic patients come from lower income neighborhoods pocketing Marin, including parts of San Rafael and Marin City.

Bedagkar noted that the prevalence of diabetes among lower income neighborhoods is directly correlated to the inequitable access to resources for poorer neighborhoods.

“In lower socioeconomic classes you have less access to green spaces or safe places to be outside, or even just healthy food to eat. I think that is definitely a leading factor in the higher rates of prediabetes among lower socioeconomic classes in Marin County especially,” Bedagkar said.

The MCCC, with offices in San Rafael and Novato,

necessary steps towards fighting the disease before it fully develops in order to avoid financial costs until it becomes completely necessary.

“Many individuals who have prediabetes could stop the Type 2 from developing right in its tracks, but they lack the necessary resources to see a doctor or visit a diabetes center because of transportation issues, and by the time they acknowledge the problem

Why half of Marin adults are prediabetic

Illustration by Alexa Erickson

it has already progressed into Type 2. These people might try to supress the problem and continue on with their lives as they might not have the financial resources to get diabetic care once it progresses to that stage,” Roddy said.

Personal impact: Catie Duys Diabetes is not only a disease, it is a diagnosis that changes the way an individual lives, thinks and acts, according to senior Catie Duys, a recently diagnosed Type 1 diabetic.

Type 1 is a form of diabetes inherited genetically, in which the body stops the production of insulin necessary for survival.

Although Type 1 is inherently different from Type 2, both types of diabetes in and of themselves require profound lifestyle and economic changes.

When Duys was diagnosed this past May, she experienced profound psychological shock after learning of her diagnosis.

According to Duys, the diagnosis came as a complete surprise as no members of her nuclear or extended family have Type 1, even though the disease is usually hereditary.

“In my mind I was not educated about diabetes at all. I thought Photo by Sydney Hilbush that having diabetes and not being born with it meant that I had developed Type 2. I was very confused because I try to eat very SENIOR CATIE DUYS holds her Dexcom, a machine that she carries with her wherever she goes that displays her healthy and I do yoga and kickboxing and maintain a generally insulin levels. healthy lifestyle. When they eventually told me I had Type 1, it was almost a relief,” Duys said. scary,” Duys said.

For example, the clinic hosts Health Hubs on Although Duys has learned the rudimentary basics for a Although diabetes is the leading cause of death in Wednesdays at their San Rafael location and Thursdays diabetic, such as the United States, according to the American Diabetes at their Novato location to provide healthy food for their Association, Duys noted that many individuals remain low income patients. uneducated about the disease and make wrongful “Health Hubs are essentially small fairs that our assumptions usually targeting the Type 2 community. clinic has that offers a free farmers market to families “People can be really prejudiced towards people that who otherwise might not have access to fresh foods,” develop Type 2 diabetes because they believe it was their Bedagkar said. fault that they developed the disease, caused by their diet MCCC partnered with the Braden Diabetes Center and their lifestyle choices, but that is definitely not the in 2013 to provide a variety of resources for patients case all the time,” Duys said. “It is also caused by your across the socioeconomic spectrum. The Braden Center socioeconomic status and your location and a lot of things conjunctly offers a wide range of diabetic resources, out of your control, like your access to healthy food. such as community classes, nutritional health services, People are putting blame on people for this disease when seminars, festivals and one-on-one diabetic care. it’s not necessarily their fault.”

It provides health classes specialized in recognizing prediabetic signs and symptoms and offers personalized resources to individuals at risk of developing Type 2.

According to Bedagkar, prediabetic and diabetic resources have accumulated in the Bay Area over the past 10 years as the prevalence of diabetes has dramatically increased.

Bedagkar hopes that future organizations will focus To accomodate for the on educating Marin’s youth about the signs of prediabetes growing number of diabetic and and the significance of the disease itself and noted the prediabetic residents in Marin, increasing need for accessible and cost-effective diabetic numerous clinics and health care centers have resources.

“Surprisingly, there are a lot of resources available in opened practices in and around the county to provide understanding the operation of her insulin quality diabetic care regardless of race, ethnicity or Marin and Sonoma counties but it’s just the question of pen and the tracking of her blood sugar through accumulating all of them and then finding the right way socioeconomic status. a Dexcom, an insulin monitoring device, every MCCC provide medical, nutritional, behavioral, of disseminating them to our patients in a way that is day presents a new challenge in coping with and dental and specialized care for diabetic patients and understandable, digestible and accessible. It is one thing learning from her diabetes. ensure cost-effective practices for those individuals to just be like, ‘Oh yeah, there’s the resource,’ but another “Once I learned more about the disease, it struck lacking the economic means to afford a private is to say, ‘Here is how you can access it,”’ Bedagkar said. me that this disease is forever, and it’s really hard endocrinologist (diabetes specialist). to imagine myself as an 80-year-old lady testing her The clinics offer group classes focused on nutritional blood sugar level and giving herself insulin for her or prenatal care as well as stress management with an food. The timeline of the disease was just so broad, emphasis on whole-person care. shilbush@redwoodbark.org and knowing I am going to have it forever is kind of

Diabetic services in Marin

sports

Page 12

Star athletes commit to play at the next level

By Shane Fricke Many seniors are currently going through the stressful process of applying to colleges. The seemingly endless amount of questions on the Common Application, “What is your parents boss’ name?” or “What is your favorite word and why (500 words minimum)” are enough to make someone go crazy. On top of those questions, seniors have to deal with adults constantly asking “So what colleges are you looking at?” and “That school is really hard to get into, are you sure you can get in?”

Luckily for seniors Maddie Pero and junior Sophia Curtaz, they are freed from this college stress. Both students have already committed to colleges for soccer.

Pero committed to Tufts University in Massachusetts and Curtaz committed to Chico State in California.

Curtaz and Pero both began playing soccer when they were six years old for Novato United. According to Curtaz, when she first started playing soccer, it was less about the game and more about being active.

“I didn’t really know what I was doing. I would just run around. I didn’t know the rules or anything but I loved to run so I liked playing,” Curtaz said.

After learning the rules and techniques of the game, Curtaz and Pero made the same jump to the Marin Football Club (Marin FC). With the transition to Marin FC they continued to improve, and, according to Pero, that is where her love for soccer was born.

“I knew I wanted to play college soccer since I started playing [Marin] FC. I would go two weeks without soccer and would hate every day that we didn’t have practice, so I knew I couldn’t give it up because I would miss it so

Photo courtesy of Maddie Pero

BATTLING FOR POSSESSION, Maddie Pero (left) committed to play soccer at Tufts University.

Photo by Jacob Klionsky

CROSSING THE BALL, Sophia Curtaz kicks a corner kick against Marin Catholic last winter. Curtaz recently committed to Chico State in the summer. much,” Pero said.

Pero and Curtaz now play for Redwood varsity soccer and the Marin FC Blue Team, the highest level team for their age group. According to Pero, she practices with people all over the Bay Area, and her teammates are what she loves most about the game.

“Our team is so close; I look forward everyday going to practice because I just love getting to see them,” Pero said. “It’s really fun to see my friends who live in the city or in Santa Rosa that I don’t get to see every day.”

Curtaz’s interest in soccer stems from her love of competition.

“It’s the feeling of winning and losing that drives me,” Curtaz said. “My favorite part is the feeling you get when you win really big tournaments or beat really great teams.”

This competitive edge was a major factor in her commitment to Chico State over the summer.

“They’re really competitive and one of the best Division II schools on the West Coast, so that really appealed to me,” Curtaz said.

For Pero, there were two main reasons for committing to Tufts. The school happens to follow the same system as her Marin FC team, so she can play the same position that she plays now: attacking midfielder. The other reason she choose to attend Tufts was due to its engineering program, a field of study which interests Pero.

Pero is also looking forward to enjoying the college life outside of sports. Since Tufts is a Division III school, the preseason starts a month later than most colleges and the spring practices are not as often, allowing the athletes to focus on academics and internships.

Another athlete that committed last year is senior Stevie Gould. Gould is a five-star tennis recruit, according to The Tennis Recruiting Network, and is ranked 33rd in the country. Gould committed to University of Washington

in Seattle for tennis last February.

Gould first started playing tennis when he was six years old when his dad, who has played tennis his whole life, taught him how to playe. Ever since his childhood, it was always Gould’s dream to play Division I tennis and next September he will fulfill that dream.

Gould’s main motivation through his childhood was his own expectations.

“You’re out there alone, so when you mess up, [when] you lose or you fail, you have to take all the accountability, and that’s my favorite part about tennis,” Gould said.

Gould knew he wanted to play at Washington ever since he visited last December, when he immediately fell in love with the campus and community.

“It’s a big school which I really liked. I wanted to be on a big campus with a lot of people. It has a great community and is a big part of people’s lives in Seattle,” Gould said.

On top of the beautiful campus and the great community, the tennis coaches also stood out to Gould.

“They treat you not only as a player, but as a person, and I feel like I can trust those guys with anything whether it relates to tennis or just life in general,” Gould said.

Although all three athletes are already committed, they still have at least one more season to play. Curtaz and Pero are both currently playing club with Marin FC and will be participating in the Redwood soccer season this winter. Gould is playing in The Tiburon Challenger, a Pro-A m $100,000 tennis tournament, on Sept. 22 and will be on the Redwood tennis team in the spring. sfricke@redwoodbark.org

Photo courtesy of Stevie Gould

STRIKING A BACKHAND, Stevie Gould committed to play tennis for University of Washington last winter.

Page 13 • Sports

www.redwoodbark.org

bark

New coach and strong roster motivate girls’ varsity tennis team

By Jack Benbow Every sports team at Redwood comes into a new season with fresh faces, updated goals and one main objective: to win. The girls’ varsity tennis team is looking to do just that, as the countdown to opening day has already begun.

After a full week of tryouts has been completed in late August, the team’s roster is set and ready to compete for the upcoming season. However, according to returning tennis players sophomore Gabriela Rosenfeld and junior Lindsay Dubin, obtaining a roster spot this year was more difficult than usual because of the growing number of players attempting to make the team.

Rosenfeld, who was a part-time starter last year, said that at least 45 players attempted to place on the team, roughly 15 to 20 more players at tryouts than in previous years.

Dubin added on that, “Last year there was just a [small amount] of cuts, probably around five girls. This year over 20 girls got cut.”

Despite the overwhelming amount of competition at tryouts, Dubin was still extremely confident in her game and and played to the best of her ability at tryouts.

“The competition has only made us upperclassmen work a lot harder to maintain our position on the team,” Dubin said.

Senior Quinn Perozzi, one of the team’s three captains this year, echoed a similar sentiment. Perozzi noted that it will be a challenge for her to stay as the best player on the ladder as freshman Georgia Harms, a new player on the team, is right behind her.

“I will need to be on top of my game when facing Georgia. She’s a great player and I love the challenge,” Perozzi said.

Despite the rise in competition on the team this year, Perozzi noted that the girls still have a great bond together.

“Despite some bickering here and there over what’s best for the team, at the end of day, it kind of really is a family,” Perozzi said. “We feel like a family, and that’s what I love about this team. I come back every year and the camaraderie just gets better and better.”

According to Perrozzi, the team looks forward to seeing how new head coach, Charlie Fager, will integrate his new methods to help the team improve this upcoming

Photo by Jack Benbow

PRACTICING HER VOLLEY during warmups, junior Lindsay Dubin prepares for practice. Redwood won their first league game against San Marin 7-0. season.

Fager, who for the past several years has been a lacrosse coach at Redwood, is starting his first season as the girls’ tennis coach. Fager saw the open position as an opportunity to improve the team and decided to take it due to his past experience of coaching high school tennis.

“I’m coming into a tennis culture, which is really exciting,” Fager said. “I’ve worked as a head coach at other high schools where a lot more beginners were on the team, so it’s really fun to come in and work with the girls on a more strategic mentality.”

One method that Fager uses in running a team is to let the captains take command of most daily activities, such as practice.

“As a coach, I rely on my captains for a lot, because they really become pure leaders on the team. Whether it be practice management, or helping the team in their matches,

my captains are extremely useful for me,” Fager said.

In addition, Fager said he would like to see his players be much more aggressive while playing some of the better high schools like Branson and Tam. “What we’ve been working on in practice is approach and attack, and you have to have a certain skill set in order to execute that process,” Fager said. “I’m trying to get them to be more aggressive in terms of moving in with an approach shot and then finishing the point at the net.”

Fager hopes the team will be able to execute this plan and play more effectively during upcoming matches.

The girls’ varsity tennis team next plays at home against Drake High School on Sept. 17.

jbenbow@redwoodbark.org

Official field hockey league offers expanded playing opportunities

By Lauren Steele

The 2018-19 school year is just the fourth season of the girls’ field hockey team. In past years, the field hockey season spanned seven weeks because there were only a few local teams to compete against. This year, the team joined an official MCAL league whose season will last 12 weeks. The team will also have the opportunity to play a number of different schools around the Bay Area.

The other schools participating in the league are Marin Catholic, Tamalpais, Drake, Berkeley High School, University and Lick Wilmerding. Tam and Drake have brand-new field hockey programs this year, and Lick Wilmerding will be playing their second season.

This year’s tryouts were competitive: 66 girls tried out for 32 spots, and over 20 of the girls who tried out were freshmen.

Since the program began four years ago, the number of girls trying out has increased steadily. And this year, according to coach Jen Reidy, the freshmen showed up to the

tryouts interested and highly experienced.

“We had freshmen come out that were really strong athletes and had done camps [over the summer], so it’s really an evolution of the team,” Reidy said.

Senior player Mathilde Caindec added to her coach’s thoughts on the new players.

“You can already see from their play on the field how hardworking the new girls are, and how interested they are in learning this new sport. You can tell they have a lot of potential,” Caindec said.

This influx of freshmen bumped some returning players off the roster. Reidy explained that seniors can’t play JV, so they had to be at a much higher level of play and commitment in order to make the team. In addition, many of the freshmen were already well-versed in the rules of field hockey. “[The freshmen] showed up athletic, focused and with great skills,” Reidy said.

“We’re looking to build the strongest team possible, especially now that we’re in a league with a championship. And, it’s a varsity team. We coach to win, we play to

Photo by Max Gilberg

SHOOTING ON GOAL, senior Nicole Notter strikes the ball in a 3-0 victory against Marin Catholic.

win.”

According to Reidy, in past years, with many new players, it was difficult to mesh as a team so early in the season. However, Reidy describes the atmosphere within the team this year as incredibly supportive.

“It starts with the culture. The girls hear me talk about women supporting women, about how we’re all one team, about how we’re the best we can be when we show up and play,” Reidy said. “When you’re having fun and you’re relaxed, you play better. The culture here is very much about show up, work hard and have fun.”

Senior captain Caroline Soja added her own perspective about the team’s supportive atmosphere.

“We have so many new freshmen, and it’s the start of a new school year, so one of my personal goals this season is just to make sure that everyone feels comfortable and has fun. We seniors need to step up as leaders and have a positive impact on everyone else on the team,” Soja said.

Even though many girls who tried out didn’t make the team, Reidy says 32 girls is already a big roster. However, MCAL rules let coaches split their rosters into two teams.

“I decided, as a coach, when I started this team, that I wanted to take as many athletes as possible. I started this program to give young women the opportunity to play for their school. Taking 32 for one team is a lot, but the league allows me to divide into a JV and a varsity team, which will help us be more competitive,” Reidy said.

Reidy anticipates the team’s toughest competition this year will be University High School, who, in previous years, was a member of a different league. They decided this year to join the new MCAL league, and will be playing Redwood more frequently.

Soja added that the team is continually advancing. The Girls’ level of play, knowledge of the sport and interest in joining the team is exponentially

Photo by Max Gilberg

KEEPING THE BALL inbounds, senior captain Caroline Soja hits the ball increasing.

“Our sport at Redwood is new, so the first year there weren’t as many people and nobody knew how to play, so tryouts were really just about forming a team. But now that we actually have a team, and every year it’s progressing, it’s getting much more competitive,” Soja said.

The team is looking forward to a longer season and tougher competition this year.

Reidy voiced that it’s difficult to find the balance between giving all girls the chance to play while maintaining a competitive team.

“We want to give as many players as possible the opportunity to play, but we’re here to win,” Reidy said.

Fans can witness this competitive spirit at the Giants’ next game on Sept. 17 at Lick Wilmerding High School. lsteele@redwoodbark.org

bark

Page 14 • Sports

September 13, 2018

Sports Spotlight

Photo by Amanda Morse

Ella Spaethling

Alex Aguero

Photo by Jack Benbow

By Jack Benbow

By Anna Compagno Walking inside after a long day of school, senior Ella Spaethling, unlike her fellow classmates, is just beginning to start her day. She packs her dinner, changes into her volleyball gear and drives an hour and a half to the South Bay. After practicing for two and a half hours, she drives home. At about 9:30 p.m., she finally walks inside ready to start homework and wind down, hoping to go to bed at a decent hour.

Although this may sound strenuous, Spaethling uses her commitment and work ethic to her advantage. A three-year varsity player, Spaethling is a key asset to the girls’ varsity volleyball team. If being a captain, honorable mention in MCALs as a junior and being featured in the Marin Independent Journal as Prep of the Week isn’t impressive enough, she is already committed to play Division I volleyball at San Diego State University in the fall of 2019.

With a father who rowed and a mother who played basketball in college, it was obvious from a young age that Spaethling would be an athlete. Growing up watching her sister, Marguerite Spaethling, play volleyball she was inspired to try out the sport herself. Marguerite graduated from Redwood in 2016 and currently plays Division III volleyball at Colorado College.

“I spent of a lot of time watching [Marguerite] play in tournaments, whether it was in San Mateo or Denver, or just going to her games when she played in high school,” Spaethling said. “When I was younger we would go together and watch Ursula Kunhardt, [the current girls’ varsity volleyball coach], when she played here. It definitely drove me to want to play volleyball.”

Spaethling started playing CYO volleyball for St. Patrick’s School in fifth grade. Wanting to advance her level of play, she joined a local club volleyball team, Absolute, in sixth grade.

Playing for the top teams from ages 12 to 15, Spaethling decided to switch club teams and join Vision her sophomore year. Vision is located in Los Gatos and in 2016 they ranked 10th in the nation, third in the state and first in northern California. During her sophomore year, her team came in first place at Junior Nationals, the largest tournament in the country in the national division.

Although it is only her first year coaching at Redwood, Ursula Kunhardt has already marked Spaethling as a key player and leader on the court. According to Kunhardt, when she first saw Spaethling play at tryouts she was excited to work with her this season.

“She reminds me of girls I have coached in the past because of her style of play and how powerful she is on the court physically and as a leader. She’s already exceeded a lot of my expectations. She’s such a solid and reliable captain,” Kunhardt said.

Along with being a standout player, Kunhardt also praised Spaethling for her sense of humor, communication skills and drive to keep improving her game.

“She is a workhorse. Always asking questions and wanting to get better, even as a senior. When I was a senior, I was complacent with where I was once I knew I was going to play in college. She’s going off and playing [Division I] volleyball next fall, and the fact that she is not settling and still striving to get better shows that she is meant to be a starter and meant to be leading this team,” Kunhardt said.

Co-captain, senior setter Britney Klein, has been playing volleyball with Spaethling since fifth grade. They played alongside each other in CYO, club volleyball at Absolute and all three years of varsity at Redwood. According to Klein, she admires Spaethling because she pushes her teammates to work hard in a positive way. “[Spaethling] brings so much energy, and we look to her to hype us up when we need it. She cares a lot about volleyball and brings a certain intensity to the court. She definitely keeps us focused and serious, but in a good way,” Klein said.

What started as a way to bond with his older brother Dixon Aguero, has turned into a chance to play football at one of the highest levels for senior Alex Aguero.

Aguero, the starting running back on Redwood’s varsity football team, is on track to play Division I football in college as he enters his final year of high school.

Through the first two games of the 2018-2019 season, Aguero has rushed for a total of 501 yards and six touchdowns, putting him on pace to potentially break some of Redwood’s long standing records. In his two prior seasons of playing varsity football, Aguero rushed for a total of 1,179 yards and 15 touchdowns as the leadback on the team. This year, since taking over the full workload, he has shown nothing short of what looks to be a very substantial year, especially if he can keep up with his current average of 10.9 yards per carry.

Aguero has not always been one of the most talented players on his team, but he attributes his success to a strong work ethic.

“I usually go to the gym at least three times a week, whether that be upper body, legs, or footwork drills depending on the day. I did a lot of conditioning with sprints and running long distance over the off-season so I think that’s how I’ve really gotten faster,” Aguero said.

At just nine years old Aguero was first introduced to football, playing alongside his older brother Dixon. After entering the sport and initially playing with the Southern Marin Broncos, a youth tackle football league, Aguero’s dedication towards football began to grow into what it is today.

“The program I played for was really passionate about football, and the coaches as well were extremely influential to me... they taught me a lot of life lessons, and it is what made me want to continue to the next level,” Aguero said.

Now, playing on the boys’ varsity team eight years later, Aguero might have the opportunity to play football at the Division I collegiate level, a goal he has been trying to accomplish through his years playing for Redwood. Although Aguero preferred not to mention what schools have expressed interest in recruiting him, he said that he does have some offers in mind.

“I can’t really imagine anything because I don’t know where I am going to end up. I’m trying to focus on our team right now because that’s what matters, but I would definitely go if I have the opportunity,” Aguero said.

He also elaborated on some of the individuals that have had an impact on him such as long time friend, fellow teammate, and mentor, former Redwood running back Nick Calzaretta.

“I definitely looked up to Nick because I was behind him as a running back, I was younger and because he was setting records; but mostly because he has been an older brother to me for my entire life,” Aguero said.

Aguero described Calzaretta’s work ethic to be very similar to his own. He said he strives to compete and play just as well as Calzaretta did during his time at Redwood, if not even better.

This year Aguero’s goal for the team is to get Redwood back into the playoffs and to make a run for the MCAL title.

“I’d like to see our team go far in the playoffs more than my personal goals.

[Redwood has] only won a single playoff game in history, so it would be an amazing thing for the school, and for me in general, to win [a playoff match],” Aguero said. “I’d love to be able to do that with my team in my last season.”

Aguero and the varsity football team play at Tamalpais High School on Saturday, Sept. 15.

acompagno@redwoodbark.org

jbenbow@redwoodbark.org

Sports Spotlight

review

Page 15

Unappetizing “Insatiable” difficult to digest with negative themes

Photo courtesy of Netflix

By Jenna Dahlin The new Netflix original series “Insatiable” has met mixed criticism regarding the show’s tasteless message and shaky storyline. Released on Aug. 10, the story follows Patty Bladell, played by Debby Ryan, as an overweight, cliché high school nerd who loses 70 pounds after a homeless man breaks her jaw. Her unexpected weight loss catapults her into popularity, which she uses to seek revenge on her peers by manipulating them with her newfound physical beauty. Before the show’s release, the trailer sparked backlash from viewers and even generated a petition on Change. org with over 234,000 signatures to revoke it from Netflix, due to concerns about

its toxicity regarding diet culture and objectification of women’s bodies.

The message behind “Insatiable” promotes body shaming and implies there are positive outcomes from eating disorders. After Bladell dramatically loses weight, she is instantly seen as desirable by her male peers. Her new physical beauty leads her to good fortune and new opportunities. However, the creator of the show, Laura Gussis, insists that the show is highlighting the issue of teen bullying and insecurity with satirical intentions.

“This show is a cautionary tale about how damaging it can be to believe the outsides are more important—to judge without going deeper. Please give the show a chance,” Gussis said on Twitter.

Although the creators may have had intentions of irony, any such attempt is masked by content such as offensive body shaming comments and degrading humor.

The toxicity presented by the show has no place in the eyes of impressionable young girls.

Frankly, the show is chaotic and confusing. With an unorganized storyline and unnecessarily dramatic events, the show is difficult to follow. In the first 20 minutes of the pilot, the viewer is strung along for a lawsuit with a homeless man, multiple incidents regarding molestation and statutory rape, beauty pageants, attempted arson and charity events for anal cancer. As the episodes progress, the plot grows increasingly bland; the show

compensates with radical twists as a way to shock the audience into entertainment.

For example, in episodes seven and eight, Bladell learns that she absorbed her twin in the womb, which she believes is the source of her demonic behavior. At the same time, Bladell’s lawyer, love interest and beauty pageant coach has an affair with his male enemy. The soap opera-esque drama at times attributes to the appeal of the show.

With its shocking unpredictability, the plot can be compared to a car accident you cannot look away from.

Riddled with cringey southern accents, the show tries to compensate for poor acting with constant voice-overs. The dialogue is confusing and sporadic, so regular narration is a must in order to convey the events that are unfolding. In the pilot, narration takes up the first two minutes and 11 seconds of the episode, a poor substitute for actually developing the background and introducing characters.

Although it is overused, at times the narration fosters a sense of situational irony, giving the viewer more information than is known to the characters.

The show’s humor could be appealing to some audiences, but the overlying problems are far greater than the positives.

The plot lacks a strong base, leading the writers to resort to shock humor. Themes including intimate relationships with minors, high school angst and beast-tobeauty transformations are overused and lack entertainment value. The connotations of “Insatiable” are unavoidable, despite the creators’ intentions, and are reasonable cause to skip this show when browsing through Netflix releases. jdahlin@redwoodbark.org

“Mission: Impossible - Fallout” has action not substance

By Ryan Bell Tom Cruise reprised his role as Ethan Hunt this summer in “Mission: Impossible - Fallout,” three years after the release of the last film in the critically acclaimed “Mission Impossible” franchise. The series has long been known for its over-the-top action sequences accomplished with mostly practical effects, especially considering Tom Cruise has built his acting pedigree on doing his own stunt work.

Fans of the franchise will be satisfied to hear that this hasn’t changed with “Fallout;” in fact, it seems like Cruise physically pushed himself further than he ever has before during this film’s production.

For example, Cruise broke his ankle in three places while jumping between two buildings, halting production for seven weeks. The take in which Cruise receives the injury is the one used in the full film, in all its painful detail.

The action sequences only get more impressive as the film goes on, keeping the two-and-a-half-hour runtime enjoyable.

One scene that stands out involves Cruise and co-star Henry Cavill performing a high altitude military parachuting (HALO) jump from the back of a plane. Such a scene would usually be filmed on a green screen, but in “Fallout” the jump is not only real (and rehearsed about 100 times, according to a behind the scenes clip), but the entire stunt is shown in one unbroken shot. It’s incredibly satisfying to watch and even more remarkable upon knowing the context in which it was shot. “Fallout” goes the extra mile for its action wherever possible, and the end product is significantly more entertaining than the average action film because of it.

The clean, steady cinematography is

Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures

also a refreshing change of pace from the annoyingly shaky, “cut-every-second” style that other action films, notably the Jason Bourne series, rely on. It’s exciting to be able to actually see the fight choreography instead of vague, blurry aggression. Additionally, the score

by Lorne Balfe (prodige of legendary composer Hans Zimmer) stays fast paced and engaging throughout the duration of the film and complements the action sequences.

Unfortunately, many of the other aspects of the film aren’t quite up to par with the beautifully choreographed action sequences. Although it has two twists which are well executed and surprising, the plot of the film is dull and predictable.

There’s a huge reliance on the plot of the previous film, which makes some things difficult to understand for those who

aren’t well-versed on the series. Most of the characters were introduced in previous movies, so the viewing of the first few films is required to avoid being left in the dark on character development. There was never a point in the film where it got too confusing as most elements are straightforward, but it’s easy to get stuck a few times trying to connect names being said to faces.

On top of that, the story is riddled with cheesy moments and clichés. While some might see them as an homage to the old Bond movies that it occasionally imitates, none of these moments appear to be tongue-in-cheek or ironic to me. For example, there’s a sequence in which two people need to cut the wires on a bomb in a specific way to stop it from going off, but it seems like it’s being played completely seriously. That’s spy movie 101 right there, and definitely shouldn’t be included in

a 2018 action film without some hint of intentional comedy. Additionally, some of the dialogue scenes in the movie drag the pace down a little bit. An opening scene where Hunt receives a message, for example, functions as little more than an overlong backstory dispenser.

“Fallout” will no doubt keep fans of the franchise and action fans in general satisfied for it’s relatively long runtime. There’s a lot to appreciate in the practically-executed action, impressive cinematography and tone-setting score. Unfortunately, the film’s clichéd plot and long-winded exposition dumps hold back the latest excursion by Ethan Hunt from being the quintessential, compelling action film it has the potential to be. rbell@redwoodbark.org

bark Page 16 • Review

September 13, 2018

SUMMER

Ariana Grande- “Sweetener” Trippie Redd- “Life’s a Trip”

By Natalie Cerf Ariana Grande’s newest album “Sweetener” almost immediately hit the Top 40 list after its Aug. 17 release date.

The album is undoubtedly pop, with catchy loop beats and features from Missy Elliott, Pharrell Williams and Nicki Minaj. Nevertheless, “Sweetener” pleases the ears with its combination of soft tunes and upbeat mixes.

Tracks such as “blazed” (feat.

Pharrell Williams) and “the light is coming” (feat. Nicki Minaj) have catchy baselines. Although they sound like typical radio-repeat songs, Grande’s vocals maximize the best parts of each song.

The vocals single-handedly turn a classic pop album into something different, something much more enticing to listen to, which is especially noticeable in “goodnight n’ go.”

Grande’s vocals don’t only stand out in her pop songs, they also make her otherwise slightly less thrilling songs like “pete davidson” (an ode to her new fiancé) or “everytime” a little easier to endure. Admittedly, after listening to the entirety of the album in a row, the songs start to blend together as many of them have extremely similar melodies.

Differentiating one song from the next on the album requires an attentive ear.

The album surprises with thoughtful yet cutsie lyrics, leaving the listener with an overwhelmingly happy feeling.

Covering a wide range of feelings and relationships in each song, from her

By Aaron Kim

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

anxiety in “breathin” to her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller in “everytime” and “better off ” to her new love in “pete davidson,” each lyric carefully creates a picture for its listeners.

“Sweetener” provides an unassuming space to listen to quality songs from one of the world’s most famous pop stars.

Grande’s release had 16 number one songs, the most of any other 2018 album, which was certainly deserved.

“Sweetener” is undoubtedly an enjoyable album to listen to, especially for someone who is in search of their next music obsession. ncerf@redwoodbark.org

“To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”

By Maria Alexander

“To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” is the kind of film to watch and rewatch in pajamas with close friends and a pizza.

The movie is perfectly predictable and heartwarming, qualities that separate it from other dramas, as it is pure, positive and lacks unnecessary negativity that is commonly found in teenage romance films.

The Netflix original film was released Aug. 17 and is based off the popular novel by Jenny Han. Actress Lana Condor plays Lara Jean Covey, a witty but shy high schooler. Covey’s most secret possessions are her five letters that are all written to her most intense crushes. The letters were always meant to remain secret, until they are mysteriously sent. One of the boys who received a letter, Peter Kavinsky (Noah Centineo), proposes a plan to Covey that they endure a fake relationship to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. Covey never knew she could fall for Kavinsky again, until she does.

The film is instantly captivating because of the viewer’s emotional connection to Covey as she navigates her way through the complexities of high school life. In a way, this is what makes the film relatable to teenagers—many of whom have dealt with complicated relationships in a society that projects a negative attitude towards young people.

The audience can empathize with

Photo coutesy of Netflix

Covey, who, in the process of adolescence, has fostered romantic feelings for a couple of boys, but has never received love in return. With spot-on references to relevant social media platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, the filmmakers were successful in relating the story and its characters to its teenage audience. However relatable the high school atmosphere, the film sets unreasonable expectations for a romantic partner. Kavinsky’s scheme for a fake relationship would not be very probable in real life. Most people would not live a lie to cover up romantic feelings, and in theory, that sounds exhausting.

Innocent and uplifting, “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” is a true feel-good movie.

It emphasizes pure kindness, touching the hearts of even those who least expect it. malexander@redwoodbark.org

After not releasing an album since Oct. 2017, Trippie Redd dropped his third studio album titled, “Life’s A Trip,” on Aug. 10. The album consisted of 14 songs, with an addition of his pre-released song, “Dark Knight Dummo (feat. Travis Scott).”

Unlike past albums, Redd acquired all new featured artists including Diplo, Young Thug, Reese LaFlare and Travis Scott.

Before his recent release, Redd’s features were usually limited to SoundCloud rappers, but Redd significantly expanded his fanbase by drawing in new crowds of people and revealing a different style to his music. Along with these new features came a unique tone that is unlike Redd’s usual flow. In the past, Redd primarily released songs with energy and hype; however, his new album takes a different approach by slowing the pace of his songs and incorporating catchy and straightforward beats. By doing this, the listener can focus on Redd’s voice without sacrificing the underlying melody of the song.

The album encompassed somewhat of a depressing message focusing on Redd’s love life, beef with other rappers and dark thoughts. However, Redd avoided making the listener feel his depression through his music, and instead created songs that are upbeat with an underlying message of his depression.

Although the album primarily consisted of slow-paced songs, songs such as “Missing My Idols,” “Bird Sh*t,” and “How You Feel,” were faster paced, providing a variety of paces throughout the album. In doing this,

Photo courtesy of Caroline Distribution

Redd kept the listener on their feet, making them wonder whether the next song will be fast or slow.

The best part of the album was Redd’s use of slow beats. Whether it was piano, guitar or synthesizers, the underlying beat allowed for a smooth melody to set the pace for the rest of the song. As a result, “Taking A Walk,” the second song on the album, is on track to be one of Redd’s most famous tracks.

Despite the growing popularity for “mumble rap” and vulgar lyrics, Redd avoided these attributes in his latest release and produced a memorable album that will have you vibing alongside the rapper himself. akim@redwoodbark.org

“The Meg”

By Garrett Cook “The Meg,” starring an ever-so-intense Jason Statham as a deep sea rescuer, is certainly no “Jaws” but still manages to deliver an entertaining time at the multiplexes. The film gets bogged down by thinly written characters and a predictable plot, but stays afloat thanks to its quick, funny tone and of course, the giant computer-generated shark.

Directed by Jon Turteltaub, “The Meg” follows a team of researchers stationed off the coast of Guam as they explore the deepest point in the ocean: the Mariana Trench. Their research takes a dark turn when they discover the supposedly extinct Megalodon shark hiding in the pitch black waters. The shark follows the team up to the surface, and an action-packed chase through Asia ensues. The team must capture the killing machine before it eats up one of the most densely populated beaches in the world.

“The Meg,” produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, plays off more as a video game introduction rather than a feature film. The film offers genuine thrills but occasionally prompts you to laugh at the film, not with it. Turteltaub tries his best to salvage the unrealistic premise by keeping the film moving quickly—without ever pausing to let the audience take a breath.

His attempts to add depth to this film consist of diminishing the shark’s central role in the film and focusing on the main characters’ stories, but unfortunately, they do not have much to offer in this shark tale.

One main reason to see this movie is

Photo courtesy of Warner Brothers

for the giant prehistoric shark. Turteltaub and company know this fact and use it to their advantage. The shark is kept hidden for a good chunk of the first act, adding a layer of suspense and anticipation that lures the audience into a semi-believable plot. The Megalodon does not have a lot of screen time, but when she starts chasing the heroes through the depths of the ocean, the audience is at the edge of their seats, with some scenes even drawing audible gasps.

“The Meg” offers nothing revolutionary and is a film more focused on style and action rather than character development, but it will deliver an enjoyable time to anyone who does not have their expectations set too high.

gcook@redwoodbark.org

Page 17 • Review

www.redwoodbark.org

bark

IN REVIEW Travis Scott- “Astroworld”

By Meera Srinivasan Travis Scott released his third studio album to date, “Astroworld”. It has since reached the top of the Billboard 200— maintaining a number one spot for a consecutive three weeks. The album has propelled Scott into the spotlight, making him one of the summer’s top artists to watch. “Astroworld” is Travis Scott’s best album thanks to its stellar production quality and unique basslines.

Named after a discontinued amusement park in his hometown, the album pays homage to Houston, Texas.

Various samples and recording styles make the album distinct in its effort to recreate the Houston rap scene. For example, the track “RIP Screw” is a tribute to one of Houston’s musical innovators, DJ Screw, and cameos by Three Six Mafia, Big Truck and 2 Live Crews add to the track’s dark, yet melodic sound.

The album’s sound production is undoubtedly one of its finest qualities, tying together the vocals of several artists, widely different samples, and mainstream Atlanta beats. This beat change is what makes “Sicko Mode” such a hit on the charts; it surprises the listener, yet, the beat is too good to turn off.

While the album succeeds in sound quality and artistic elements, Scott’s lyrics are, for the most part, distasteful and mainstream. His references to drugs and money dilute the beauty of the album by bringing it back into cookie-cutter rap culture.

By Alex Johnson

Photo courtesy of Epic Records

Despite lackluster lyrics, the collaborative aspects of the album are perhaps what make it so fully-realized.

Stevie Wonder’s feature on “Stop Trying to Be God” is transcendent, revealing Scott’s willingness to try a new sound. The beats in the track switch between dreamy and the classic Atlanta-trap style, giving way to a track that mimics those of Post Malone’s on “Beerbongs and Bentleys”.

Astroworld” is a beautifully cut-andpaste masterpiece of sound that fulfills listeners looking for a refreshing yet familiar album.

msrinivasan@redwoodbark.org

“Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again”

By Ryo Weng

The first scene bursts with color as I reorient myself with the newly remodeled Villa Donna that Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) has been working on.

The cinematography captured in Croatia matches the grandeur that comes with the highly anticipated sequel of Mamma Mia! The movie “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” can be described as a feel-good and surely nostalgic movie, identifiable as an instant classic.

The film takes the audience through young Donna Sheridan’s (Lily James) scandalous endeavors, revealing how she met Sophie’s three potential fathers.

As the movie fast forwards to a grownup Sophie, she is overcoming unexpected obstacles regarding her hotel, in addition to drama with her significant other. The director, Ol Parker, manages to intertwine the two time periods to create an organized storyline.

In the past, I have not enjoyed musicals because of the sporadic and often random scenes which result in the characters breaking out into song.

With that being said, “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” matches its songs to the setting of the scene, making the spontaneous singing and dancing more enjoyable.

The movie’s soundtrack appealed to me, as the songs tended to brighten the audience’s mood, especially with the alltime classics, “Mamma Mia” and “Dancing Queen.”

Many songs were brought back from

YG- “Stay Dangerous”

Photo courtesy of Universal Studios

the original movie such as “Super Trouper” and “Honey, Honey,” but new songs were also introduced including, “Why Did It Have To Be Me?” and “Angel Eyes.”

With these two songs, they featured new singers, highlighting the differences of this youthful cast.

“Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” fulfills anyone seeking an aesthetically pleasing movie. The beautiful backdrop of Croatia is appropriately displayed throughout the movie.

This film is waiting for someone who wants to feel the warm breeze of the sailboat drifting through the Adriatic Sea, experience the stress and recovery of Sophie as a hotel manager and lastly, party with many familiar faces recognizable from the original Mamma Mia!

rweng@redwoodbark.org

On Aug. 3, fans of Keenon Daequan Ray Jackson (YG) got the chance to listen to an album they had been waiting over a year and a half for. YG came out with his first big release since “Red Friday,” a 7 song EP released in December of 2016. YG was searching for the type of success that his wildly popular 2014 album, “My Krazy Life,” produced, but failed to do so.

“Stay Dangerous” is a 15 song, 50-minute album that includes prominent features such as Quavo, Big Sean, 2 Chainz and A$AP Rocky. The album also includes smaller features such as Jay 305 and Mozzy. The majority of the songs are produced by DJ Mustard, but other producers like Mike Will Made It and producers from popular record production team 808 Mafia are scattered throughout the album. The album is home to 13 entirely new songs that have never been listened to by the public, but YG added two of his previously released hit singles, “SUU WHOOP” and “BIG BANK,” as well.

The first half of the album contains fastpaced beats and includes the majority of YG’s more well-known features. The lyrics often include boasting about committing crimes and it is hard to listen to a couple of lines without hearing a sexual reference.

Each song depicts a very graphic picture of the things that YG does to women, which becomes old very quickly. Halfway through the album, the beats slow down, but the sexual references do not.

As song number 13 (“DEEPER THAN

Photo courtesy of Def Jam

RAP”) starts, the flow of the album changes and surprisingly begins to become tolerable. YG finally dives into topics more sophisticated than violence and sex and begins to talk about his family. More specifically, he mentions his needs to support them financially and his an urge to protect his daughter and get her a good education. The final two songs include an almost two minute interlude of his friend calling from jail, warning YG to get off the streets. He then closes with a slow jam explaining why he is the most exceptional person to come from his home of Compton, CA. Ultimately, “Stay Dangerous” failed to reflect YG’s best work and will be quickly forgotten by rap fans. ajohnson@redwoodbark.org

“Crazy Rich Asians”

By Katherine Muller As a seemingly endless stream of romanticcomedy movies with identical plots and similar characters have dominated the theaters for decades, “Crazy Rich Asians” delivers a much needed, unique rom-com hit with an entirely Asian cast, the first Hollywood movie to do so in 25 years. With continuous controversy surrounding representation of minority actors in Hollywood, many recent movies—including Black Panther—have been very popular, resulting in huge profits in the box office.

“Crazy Rich Asians” is no different, breaking multiple box office records and reducing Asian stereotypes in the process.

Adapted from the book by Kevin Kwan, the film follows Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) and her boyfriend Nick Young (Henry Golding) as they travel to Singapore for Young’s best friend’s wedding. Although originally excited to visit Young’s family, Chu finds herself anxious to meet them when Young is revealed to be an heir to one of the largest fortunes in Asia.

Since Chu is the low-class American girlfriend of Young, she is immediately isolated from his family and friends and becomes the victim of many immature taunts. The audience sympathizes with Chu, but feels the connection between her and Young is too strong to die at the hands of his family, specifically his mother.

Although the ending is somewhat predictable, like any romantic comedy, it is set up in a unique and interesting way that settles every dispute the movie covers and leaves viewers feeling warm-hearted and reminiscent.

In the end, the story proves that family—no matter the literal definition—comes above everything else.

Typically in American culture, Asian

Photo courtesy of Color Force

Americans play the victims, outcasts or nerds. Just look at quiet and wide-eyed Lily in “Pitch Perfect” or short Long Duk Dong in “Sixteen Candles,” who constantly speaks broken English and doesn’t know how to use a fork. In “Crazy Rich Asians,” however, there is a span of characters from playboys to fashion designers, giving the media a new outlook by diminishing hurtful stereotypes.

“Crazy Rich Asians” also happens to be the first Hollywood film in over two decades to feature an all-Asian cast, as the last was “The Joy Luck Club” in 1993. The diversity and modern take on the traditional romcom make “Crazy Rich Asians” refreshing and a must-see for anyone that enjoys movies that will pull at your heartstrings and give you a good laugh.

kmuller@redwoodbark.org

lifestyles

Page 18

Face to Face: How is illegal immigration affecting the US?

By Maddie Loebbaka

Face-to-Face is a feature that allows two members of the Redwood Community to grill each other, argue, or simply converse about a relevant issue or event. We provide the topic, and they do the rest. This month’s participants are juniors Morgan Hunt and Layla Isherwood. They are discussing the pros and cons of illegal immigration.

How does the recent murder of Mollie Tibbets relate to the larger issue of illegal immigration?

Morgan Hunt: I think in matters like in these America needs to find a way to tighten up its crime system.

Unfortunately in this case, the suspect didn’t have a previous criminal history so it was hard to track him down. And also the fact that he was an illegal immigrant made it harder to track him down because he was undocumented.

Layla Isherwood: It was not the fact that he could’ve been an undocumented immigrant that caused this. It was because of other things in society, especially because what we have heard so far from authorities is that he murdered her because he made romantic or sexual advances on her and then she rejected them. I think that is the problem. I think that it’s a little callous to focus on bigger political issues, especially because the family is still grieving. The funeral was days ago. Since it is happening, if we are to focus on an issue, it should be on the kind of culture that allows or even encourages that to happen.

Do you believe that illegal immigrants raise crime levels in the US? MH: The problem I have with illegal immigration is that there is no vetting when the illegal immigrants come into the country. That means that the government has no way of keeping track of them and that can be potentially dangerous. I’m a big supporter of immigration in general.

I believe that one of the things that makes America great is that people can come in through the citizenship program and they can become a part of this country from all around the globe. They’re not following the rules, they’re not becoming a citizen and passing the citizenship test.

Because of that, there is no way to keep track.

LI: The U.S. saw a 118 percent increase in its immigration population, documented and undocumented, from 1980 to 2016, but the rate of violent crime fell by 36 percent. In other studies it shows that immigrants, documented and undocumented, are much less likely than native U.S. born citizens to commit crimes.

So I think that although the system

Layla Isherwood - vs Morgan Hunt is flawed, I think that we shouldn’t be punishing the illegal immigrants that are already here for that.

How big of a role should fluency in English play in being able to become a citizen and should illegal immigrants be required to know English?

MH: If you’re to become a citizen of the United States you should at least be able to communicate in English. Another reason I’m against illegal immigration is that if it’s so easy to come in here, especially in California where we have these sanctuary cities, the illegal immigrants are in no way in danger of being caught by law enforcement and being deported. There is no incentive to assimilate into the culture. Especially living here, I’ve actually known some people who are undocumented immigrants, and it’s very difficult to communicate with them. If you want to come to this country, one of the things I think you must know is, you should be able to communicate basically in English.

LI: Although assimilating into the culture is important if people want to be in the U.S., they should be in the U.S. and a part of it I don’t know if making them learn a lot of English beforehand is necessary. I think that the best way to learn a language is through assimilation, and so by being here, they should learn more and more and maybe

eventually become fluent.

What are positives or negatives of sanctuary cities and should San Francisco continue in its status?

MH: I don’t think San Francisco should be a sanctuary city. Mainly because my views on illegal immigration, especially deportation, are pretty strong. I think that if you come in here illegally, it is a crime and you should be deported and removed back to your previous country. I think sanctuary cities are actually unconstitutional in that they prevent law enforcement from properly enforcing the law.

LI: I think that if people come to the U.S., they want to be a part of the American dream,which hypothetically they’ve come looking for. If they want to come to this country I believe that they do want to be a part of it. I think that sanctuary cities are good because living on your toes, always looking over your shoulder for law enforcement is not a very good existence. Although it’s true that they did not come into this country through the legal processes, I think that they should be given a chance to show that they deserve to be here.

How does deportation affect our country? How does it affect the people being deported?

MH: I think deportation is necessary in order to follow the laws of the country. I think a country ceases to be a country when they don’t have strong borders and part of this means that they don’t let people in randomly, when they want to come in. In order to enforce that law, deportation is necessary. I’m a supporter of organizations like ICE because they are enforcing the law correctly.

LI: I think that deportation in many cases is a cruel practice. Especially because many of these people have families and fully fledged lives here in the US. I think that if an undocumented immigrant has not committed a crime, then they should not be punished. I think deportation is a little cruel and I think ICE’s practices are bad.

mloebbaka@redwoodbark.org

Page 19 • Lifestyles

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Giving a Giant welcome to Redwood’s new faculty Story and photos by Bennett Vasquez

Every year, Redwood welcomes new faculty members to the community, many of whom have unique and interesting backgrounds. This year, Redwood welcomes three relatives of other faculty members (Matthew Samet, Vanessa Kristal and Grace Detore) and several locals of Marin County. However, the similarity they all share is their drive to be a positive influence on campus and introduce their creative styles of teaching to Redwood.

teachers that are still here were really important in my teenage years— they were guiding forces.

I loved going back and visiting; it has always been a fun place for me to be… I saw it as a dream job to come back and be able to try to share the love that all the teachers shared with me when I was a student.”

Cera Arthur Department: Wellness outreach specialist Quote: “I help connect students to the staff in the Wellness Center … I help put on and create events about mental health and do a lot of outreach for different things like sexual health, mental health, substance abuse and triage a lot of students and get them connected.”

Rob Barde Department: Physical Education Quote: “[I’m excited] to get to know my students and to be involved with the school community and the school culture and build relationships with my students and my fellow PE teachers and other staff on campus.”

Laurie Friedman Department: Applied Technology Quote: “I guess it does come down to seeing more girls enter Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math (STEAM) fields. I would be excited to see an upward trend [of girls entering this field] and compare that to what my colleagues in the sciences and math departments are doing and how their numbers might be increasing.”

Jessica Alegria Department: Health Specialist Quote: “I chose [this] school district because I felt like it was a step in the right direction. When I was going to high school in San Francisco, it was close to the end of my time there when they started opening up a Wellness Center there, and I saw the positive influence it had on students. [It] also provided an opportunity for youth to become engaged and become leaders and I wanted to be a part of that here.”

Amy Robinson Department: Science Quote: “ I’m thrilled with my colleagues who are supportive, friendly and welcoming. I have enjoyed the kids, I’m thrilled with almost everything. I am really happy to be here.”

Alberto Aparicio Department: World Language Quote: “I like teaching in an open environment with total freedom and using new teaching methods. Now here, [at Redwood], I know that I can [do] all the things I have learned throughout my professional life and especially I’m open to doing the TPR Storytelling (method of teaching foreign languages that uses a mixture of reading and storytelling to help students learn) teaching which is very interesting to me.”

Laura Taylor Department: Science Quote: “[I’m excited to get] to know [the] students, what they are doing, what they care about and helping them on their journey, to wherever that is.”

Vanessa Kristal Department: English Quote: “Giving back to the community I grew up in is super exciting to me because I have never taught in Marin County. So to experience the educational system here really excites me, [and I’m excited] to collaborate with the English department [because] they seem really awesome and the students are just super exciting—they seem really bright and really hungry to learn.”

Matthew Samet Department: Science Quote: “There is a lot of good energy and being an educator is a profession that allows me to take pride in my work, and that allows me to have my own unique product instead of working with someone else’s or another company’s product. My own product would be my own style of teaching or my own particular set of students.”

Frank Labudzik Departement: Special Education Quote: “[Redwood] has a family feel here. It feels much more tight-knit. As a special education teacher, some schools in the past [make] you feel like you’re this other department; you’re all by yourself. But here, there is a lot of collaboration between other teachers and our department and also between students. The special education students aren’t isolated by themselves. They are very intertwined and everybody is like one big family here.”

Adriana Crespin Department: Paraeducator Quote: “[I’m excited about] the fact that one day [my students] can say, ‘I know this because Mrs. Adriana helped me,’ or they get an A on the test and it was just because we studied together or we put the effort to go the extra step.”

Grace DeTore Department: Math Quote: “I’m excited to return to my alma mater and I can’t wait to represent the math department.”

Annie Nelson Department: Special Education Quote: “[I’m excited because] kids are interesting.

Finding out their personalities, finding out about their home life, everyone’s various interests, struggles, things people are going through. People are interesting Mark Summary Department: Science Quote: “Because [Physics in the Universe] is a new class here, I’m getting a big opportunity to collaborate with the science teachers and it is interesting to hear their perspectives on the same basic lesson.”

Joy Gordon Department: Paraeducator Quote: “[I’m excited for] working with the kids.

Everyday I come [to Redwood]I smile all day because [the [students] are amazing and [their] energy is amazing and I love seeing [them] flourish.”

Adam Rosenthal Department: Paraeducator Quote: “Redwood changed my life and a lot of the

Not pictured: Sarah Wolf and Shannon Keehan bvasquez@redwoodbark.org

Junior has a bird’s-eye view of nature

By Evelyn Bailey

Junior Caleb Jordan-McDaniels was introduced to nature at a very early age.

He spent his childhood immersed in the countryside, attending the Summerfield Waldorf school and living on a farm in Sonoma. Since then, Jordan-McDaniels has created a daily routine in Tiburon centered around wildlife so he can always be in the outdoors and observe what it has to offer. These habits include birdwatching on his regular hikes, making him one of the only bird watchers at Redwood High School, according to Jordan-McDaniels.

Every day, he explores or learns something new about the environment, whether it is on his morning bike rides, night walks or canoeing out in the bay.

Jordan-McDaniels notes what it is like to be one of the few highschool bird watchers at Redwood.

“Not too many people here like birds a lot so when I do find someone who does it’s very easy to connect … it’s just something to do whenever I’m anywhere that there’s birds. I’ll always have fun identifying them and learning new calls,” Jordan-McDaniels said.

Until Jordan-McDaniels was 11 years old he spent his youth surrounded by nature.

“I went to a school that was against technology for young kids, so I did a lot of playing outside, going up the creek and catching frogs and snakes, just having fun,” Jordan-McDaniels said.

On any given school day JordanMcDaniels rides his bike up Ring Mountain, stopping to explore anything interesting off his normal path. JordanMcDaniels spoke of some of the wildlife he gets to see is during his daily routine riding to school.

“I have a nice bike ride to school: I go over Ring Mountain and there I get to see birds. This morning I saw a WhiteTailed Kite, a Merlin and some Doves,” Jordan-McDaniels said.

Ellen McDaniels Sanford, Jordan-McDaniels’ grandmother, spoke about how her grandson’s personality traits led him to have a strong fascination in nature.

“He has always been very quiet, reserved, thoughtful and observant.

He started noticing the patterns of nature and what happens with birds and animals through the seasons from the time he was four or five years old,” Sanford said. Jordan-

McDaniels has shown that he is very observant and he has always been into making sculptures or tools.

Ever since Walter Sanford, JordanMcDaniels’ grandfather, can remember, Jordan-McDaniels has been intrigued in engineering by constantly building different tools and contraptions with his hands. He has created different tools for the poison dart frogs that he keeps as pets to make it easier for him to feed them when he is away. Recently, he made a selfdispensing machine to feed his frogs.

Jordan-McDaniels’ family is frequently traveling as far as Ecuador or short weekend trips to Sonoma. Since Jordan-McDaniels is constantly traveling he wanted to have a way to properly feed his frogs with no one to do the job. This problem led to him creating a feeder that will automatically give the frogs fruit flies on a timed basis according to Walter.

According to Jordan-McDaniels, he enjoys observing nature working together in various ways, as it gives him a sense of peace in a stressful society, and he gets to experience different things that other people don’t usually see in the outdoors. Being in nature helps calm Jordan-McDaniels and gives him a feeling of security.

“It’s a great way to get away from the stress of

Photo coutesy of Ellen McDaniels Sanford

school. It’s nice to go out and look for birds. I get to do a lot of things that other people don’t do, [such as] finding new places,” Jordan-McDaniels said.

Because of the positive role nature has played in Jordan-McDaniels’ life, he decided a few years ago to do volunteer work within the community to assist in an area that he knows a lot about.

Jordan-McDaniels has done so by working with wildlife at the Richardson Bay Audubon Center and Sanctuary where he helps sort through different types of vertebrates and assists with projects. Jordan-McDaniels has also learned how to bird band through a class he took two years ago, a skill where one catches a bird, individually identifies the bird, then attaches the given band around one leg and then releases it back into the wild.

Additionally, Jordan-McDaniels has volunteered at the Tiburon Salmon Institute for over a year, where he has cared for the salmon and completed maintenance work in their warehouse.

Jordan-McDaniels’ enthusiasm for the environment has led him to pursue nature photography, something he has received local recognition for.

“Recently, he has gotten really excited about bird photography, so he will go up on to Ring Mountain with his camera. He has been invited to be in an exhibit at the Corte Madera Library and display his photographs there,” Walter said.

Jordan-McDaniels hopes to take his love for the outdoors to the next level and pursue this appreciation by helping wildlife when he is older. According to Jordan-McDaniels, he hopes to study biomimicry, a field that involves finding sustainable solutions for environmental damage caused by humans by studying patterns found in nature. The beauty in nature is evident through its amazing features, as Jordan-McDaniels noted the beauty and harmony found in wildlife.

“There’s so much about it, just being away from people and everything seems to go more smoothly… of course there [is also] beautiful scenery, and everything works together and is efficient,” Jordan-McDaniels said.

ebailey@redwoodbark.org