Sejong Academy

SEJONG ACADEMY

Volume 1 - May 2024

INAUGURAL

SEJONG ACADEMY

INAUGURAL ART + LIT MAGAZINE

Volume 1 - May 2024

Publication produced by Orion Kim and Claire Kim, graduating students at St. Paul Academy and Summit School

Special thanks to Yejin Hong, Sarah Olson, Anna Taddei, Youwha Kim for compiling submissions

Art and Literature pieces produced entirely by students at Sejong Academy

Front cover art by Ophelia Love

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGES 6-17

STILL LIFE PAINTINGS

P. 6-7 ....................................

THE BUDDA AND THE LOTUS // (8.5” x 11”), Hla Wat Yee

P. 8-9 ................................................

THE TRUE RICHES OF LIFE // (8.5” x 11”), Sea Ter

P. 10-11 ................................................

FUN MOMENT WITH DAD // (8.5” x 11”), Gay Wah

P. 12-13 ...........................................................

P. 14-15 .................................................

P. 16-17 ...................................

ANOTHER LIFE // (8.5” x 11”), Paw Eh Soe

MY DEEPEST VALUE // (8.5” x 11”), Joseph Doh

BLOOMING WITH PURPOSE // (8.5” x 11”), Klo Kwe Say

PAGES 6-21

MISCELLANEOUS ART

PAGES 26-27

P. 19 ..........................................................................

P. 18 .......................................................................... UNTITLED (8.5” x 11”), Ophelia Love

P. 20-21 ...........................

UNTITLED (8.5” x 11”), Hsa Nay Than Soe

LOVE EMOTION THROUGH LIPS (8.5” x 11”), Htee Ku

P. 22-23 ....................................................

ROOTED GROWTH (8.5” x 11”), Hanelle Dipman

P. 24-25 ....................................................

MY FLORAL WISH (8.5” x 11”), Ophelia Love

PAGES 18-25 staff profiles

JOURNALISM WORKSHOP

P. 26-27 .............................................................. staff profiles P. 28-29 ..............................................................

P. 30 ...............................

P. 31 ............................................................ group news story

P. 32-33 .............................................................

P. 34-35 ...........................

P. 36-37 ...................

opinion stories by Eh Tha Bo Thaw, Sea Ter, Paw Mu Thaw, Orion Sirny

P. 38-39 .................. group review about the journalism workshop reviews by Paw Mu Thaw, Sea Ter, Violet Mork, Ester Moo

opinion stories by Paw Kue, Eh Tha Wue Moo, Ester Moo, Violet Mork

The Buddha and the Lotus

still life painting: (8.5” x 11”), Hla Wat Yee

Buddhism has been with me as long as I can remember. It has taught me many memorable lessons, like how little things in life don’t matter, that you should let things go, and why you should not care about materialistic things.

I also made some of the happiest memories at the temple, helping my parents out. The painting style I use is called impressionist style. I try to depict the lights and shadows in a way that it can deliver the impression that I had with the objects that symbolize my religion and the experiences. I also try to use colors that are not that loud in the background so that the Buddhist statue and Lottus can catch people’s eyes first then they can enjoy the rest of the details in my painting.

“I also made some of the happiest memories at the temple, helping my parents out.

The True Riches of Life

still life painting: (8” x 11”), Sea Ter

The body we have is a fragile object that will eventually wither away. We are made from flesh and blood. That is why life is so precious. We often take the life that is given to us for granted, often pursuing the materialistic aspects of life. However, when we choose to stray away from materials and focus on the beauties of life such as the happy moments, love experiences, and euphoric events, we then can learn the values of life as well as to treasure those gifts. In the artwork, there is a bag filled with coins as well as two teeths. The coins represent the materialistic aspect of life while the teeth represent us and how our body will eventually become an inmate object, both inevitably having no value once we die. The purpose of this artwork is to encourage viewers to appreciate the non-materialistic aspects of life because of our immortality.

“We often take the life that is given to use for granted, often pursuing the materialistic aspects of life.

Fun moment with dad

still life painting: (8.5” x 11”), Gay Wah

When I was little I loved to garden with my dad. It was one of the most memorable memories I have ever had. In my drawing I included mango, tomatoes and roses. Mango plays a role in our story because dad would always pick mango to eat with me. Sometimes he would use a stick to hit it down and sometimes he would climb up the tree and pick it. I draw tomatoes in my still life because my family loves tomatoes. We would often make them into soup or spice to eat with rice. My dad loves planting flowers and I chose rose for my still life because he would often offer it to the buddhist offering tray to show respect every time he prayed or meditated. As a whole painting represents my happiest memories with my dad.

“

Mango plays a role in our story because dad would always pick mango to eat with me.

Another life

still life painting: (8.5” x 11”), Paw Eh Soe

My still life that I drew was a flower and it represents how I changed my religion. My drawing has to be a fake flower because I was drawing to make it look like giorgio morandi art painting, just as you know that everything he drew looked fake and it looked like he didn’t copy the picture, but he made it up to draw like a fake. I drew a flower because back than I use to be buddha and I change my religion to christian, and whenever I go to temple I just go for fun and sometime it getting boring,it because my mom force me to go, so I change it to christen and as I start go to church I feel like everything changed and it make me happy, just like the flower, when the flower are in the church it looked beautiful and you can see yourself that you really enjoy everything because flower make everything bright. Also I get to have another chance to make myself happy.

“

... I feel like everything changed and it make[s] me happy, just like the flower.

My deepest value

still life painting: (8.5” x 11”), Joseph Doh

When I was young, there was a moment when everything drastically changed around me. The more my parents started arguing, the more I became isolated, and left out to face obstacles by myself. I needed some bandage to my wounds, because my heart was bleeding from the pain. With all the weight pressed down on me, I soon started to abuse drugs to cope with how I’m feeling. Many would have guessed I was doing fine based on my looks, but they would have never imagined how a child like me had to undergo such difficulties at a young age. This is the message I wanted to express through my painting, “Don’t judge a person until you’ve walked in their shoes or heard their story.” The notebook and pencil shows how we need to find out details about someone before we can make the full summary. The shoe in the painting describes how we should imagine ourselves in someone’s situation, and try fitting in their struggles. Overall, I just deeply wanted to express this message through my painting: “Don’t judge a person until you’ve walked in their shoes or heard their story.”

“

Don’t judge a person until you’ve walked in their shoes or heard their story.

Blooming with purpose

still life painting: (8.5” x 11”), Klo Kwe Say

In my still life, I wanted to represent flowers to show my life goals and dreams. As my goals evolve, old dreams wither similarly like unwatered plants. By showcasing dead flowers and seeds, and new blooming flowers in the same vase, I wanted to portray myself continuing the journey of discovering, and developing dreams. Though some dreams may not come true, dreaming takes me right back to my childhood, recalling the colorful and warm memories.

“

As my goals evolve, old dreams wither similarly like unwatered plants.

Untitled

pencil on paper: (8.5” x 11”), Hsa Nay Than Soe

Since I was young I have liked to draw. The only items I used were pencil, eraser, notebook or paper.

In addition, drawing has been an important tool that regulates my emotions. Whenever I got tired, overwhelmed, or even happy, I drew.

““

... drawing has been an important tool that regulates my emotions.

Sometimes my drawings turn out goofy or funny but I truly enjoy the creative process. What I’m tryna to explain about my art is i wanna show what did i like when i was young.

pen on paper: (8.5” x 11”), Ophelia Love

I believe lips are doors to our emotions. Lips are important to me because important communications for my emotions are shared through lips. In my drawing, I tried to visualize four important emotions through lips, such as happiness, love, anger,and sadness. When I’m happy, When I am in love, my heart beats. When I am angry, When I am sad, I feel like someone is squishing my heart . In my life I want to be the happiest person in the universe planet by planet with my lover who is alway there for me. but sometimes we get mad at each other but we handle it like nothing happened and sometimes we are sad but we were there for each other. Our love is cycle love. That is the meaning of 4 emotion lips.

““

Lips are important to me because important communications for my emotions are shared through lips.

love emotion through lips

miscellaneous painting:

(8.5” x 11”), Htee Ku

Rooted Growth

digital painting: (8.5” x 11”), Hanelle Dipman

For the next 25 years I want a clean planet to live on. I want to be able to play with my sister in a world where I don’t need to worry about if the air is clean or if the water is dirty. I want a world where I can go outside and see the sun shining and be able to play in the fields without worrying about stepping on something dangerous that somebody littered. I want to spread the word and do anything to help this world become a cleaner and safer place. I think doing daily, cleaner tasks, such as recycling, can help our planet grow. I made recycling a watering can because you need to work on your plants consistently, every day to see growth and improvement. I made the word google sprouting because google can be the base of spreading the word. And I made the L a little green plant to symbolize that even in the most familiar of places (such as the word google), you can still grow something great. Once you grow these changes, they are now rooted in you. I made this drawing in the hopes of being able to change peoples lives, lifestyles, and futures.

My floral wish

miscellaneous painting: (8.5” x 11”), Ophelia Love

What makes you feel comforted? Where do you go when you need a break? My wish for the next 25 years is to have a big flower garden for my community. The garden will have trees, colorful flowers that attract life, and a trail with benches where people can walk and sit down. Firstly, I really love how the flowers look and smell, especially when they form a garden. In a garden full of flowers, I get the feeling of comfort, warmth and safety. To build a garden, it takes a lot of time and effort, which gives you joy, happiness and a sense of achievement. Second reason is that I want to have a safe space for other people where they can appreciate nature. In St. Paul, MN, there aren’t many flower gardens where you can be surrounded by colorful flowers. So by building my flower garden, I want to provide a sanctuary for my community where they can spend time outdoors with their families and friends. Furthermore, my flower garden can develop into a community garden where people can get together to keep the garden growing. I hope my hopes for a safe space and dreams for an aesthetic environment can bring the community together.

““

To build a garden, it takes a lot of time and effort, which gives you joy, happiness and a sense of achievement.

STAFF PROFILES

Paw Kue

My name is Paw Kue (별이) and I am in 8th grade. I’m interested in journalism because it seems fun and I wanted to try something new to find a new hobby. My MBTI is INFP/ INFJ. I go to a Korean school.

Ester Moo

My name is Ester (영자), and I’m in 9th grade. I joined journalism because I thought it was interesting and it caught my eye. One fun fact about me is I like to watch The Full House. Another fun fact about me is I like to take pictures a lot.

Eh Tha Bo Thaw

My name is Eh Tha Bo Thaw (주안) and I am in 8th grade. I was interested in journalism because I thought writing about a topic would be fun and I love being productive. My hobby is practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jutsu and I love improving myself a lot. P.S. My hair is naturally curly, not permed.

Violet Mork

My name is Violet Mork (규아) and I am in 8th grade. I am interested in journalism because I love writing and I want to get better at it. I went to a camp in Korea hosted by the Korean government. I play volleyball.

Sea Ter

My name is Sea Ter (인규) and I’m in 11th grade. I am interested in journalism because I love people. A fun fact about me is that I am the only student from Sejong that has been to 숲속의 호수 Korean Language Village as a staff and a villager.

Paw Mu Thaw

My name is Paw Mu Thaw (채연) and I’m in 9th grade. I joined journalism because I decided it was finally time to try something new, and I learned that it’s a good way to express viewpoints. In the future, I want to be somewhere in the medical field! I’m a perfectionist and can’t stop doing something until it’s perfect to me.

Orion Sirny

My name is Orion Sirny (성찬) and I’m in 8th grade. I am interested [in journalism] because people recommended and I enjoyed it. One fun fact about me is I’m a previous world champion in MMA. I am optimistic.

Eh Tha Yue Moo

*student was not present for photos

My name is Eh Tha Yue Moo (지영) and I’m in 9th grade. I’m interested in journalism because I want to learn more about people and learn how to be good at journaling. In the future I’d like to be a mechanical engineer. I really like to play instruments, for example guitar and ukulele. I want to still learn more instruments.

JOURNALISM WORKSHOP

workshop

With the guidance of our mentor Professor Scott Winter and our supervisor Ms. Yejin Hong, we designed a four-week journalism workshop for middle and high school students at Sejong Academy. Each week focused on a different aspect of journalism: why journalism matters, news writing, arts and entertainment writing, and opinions writing. By incorporating resources from journalism workshops we have attended in the past (CSPA Summer Journalism Editorial Leadership and the Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference) and from our time on the Rubicon staff at St. Paul Academy and Summit School, we hoped to teach students the fundamental skills of journalism and provide the opportunity to report on issues that matter to them. The following pages feature stories written by Sejong students, both individually and together as a class.

about the Sejong Academy journalism

Presence of student council seen in event planning

news story, interviews conducted by students and story written by class

While some people know nothing about the Sejong Academy student council, others think it plays a large role in shaping school events and student life. Even though 9th grader Eh Ler Say is a student at the school, he knows nothing about the council. On the other hand, 9th grader Hay Thar said the student council is “pretty fair and doesn’t discriminate between students.”

Student council president La Po Sell joined the group because she wanted to contribute to the Sejong community, especially because it was originally going to be discontinued. Some events the student council has organized are homecoming, an origami contest for prom, and Spirit Week.

For the end of the year, the council president has been collaborating with the upper school principal to organize a special event; her primary role has been sending letters to people outside of the school.

“

Student council is a great help for the school.

-Upper School Principal Lisa Thompson

More generally, Upper School Principal Lisa Thompson also said, “Student council is a great help for the school.”

Although many people think the student council has had a positive impact on the Sejong community, they also think there are improvements that could be made.

Sell said, “It was kind of new for us to have everything in student hands for planning … but we could have had more efficient planning.”

8th grader Dah Lay Poe felt that although the field trips and homecoming events that the student council provides have been fun, they could improve in general.

Although the Sejong council has contributed many events for the school, students feel there are still errors that could be fixed and more positives that could be added.

7th grader Gabby Robinson said that the student council helps with all schoolrelated things, and “If I could join the council I would.”

Raising Cane’s chickens die semi-honorably for satisfactory meal and exceptional service

arts and entertainment story, written by class

Have you ever wondered what Raising Cane’s tastes like? Have your taste buds ever been tickled? Cane’s is the place!

Although the box and combo options at Cane’s are more popular, the largersized tailgate options shouldn’t be overlooked. The 25-piece tailgate is a great amount for families, but the high price of $40 makes it less accessible and wanted. The ratio of chicken to dollar is not worth the price.

The chicken itself was both crunchy and juicy, but it could always be juicier. It was also stringy, which can be good and bad depending on the person. Although the chicken could use more seasoning, the Cane’s sauce makes up for it, which is included in the tailgate option. The sauce is tangy and sour, with a little bit of spice, which is very important for a sauce.

Although the box and combo options ... are more popular, the largersized tailgate options shouldn’t be overlooked.

The order process was very convenient and the chicken came within 5 minutes, even though the staff seemed very busy. The location also makes it easy to order, as there are 17 locations in Minnesota, making Cane’s accessible for everyone.

Overall, the chicken died honorably for this meal, and the service avenged its death.

3.5/5 stars

REVIEW PRACTICE

Love it or hate it, it’s

the only option...

arts and entertainment story, Paw Mu Thaw

At Sejong, there’s a variety of lunches. However, it’s one single option a day. On a particular day on May 8, 2024, students were served soft-shell turkey tacos. In addition, they were given a pear, beans with corn, salad, and milk.

The taco was meaty yet bland. It was uncomfortably juicy. The wrap was very wheaty and semi-bitter. The beans were cold, the salad was ranchy, the pear was sweet, and the milk was tangy.

Most students don’t favor this meal, but the lunch ladies are incredibly nice and always invite the students to grab seconds.

1.5 / 5 stars

““

...

the lunch ladies are incredibly nice and always invite the students to grab seconds.

Bland chicken and rice,

is it worth the price?

arts and entertainment story, Sea Ter

Bland chicken and rice, is it worth the price?

On May 9, 2024, Sejong Academy provided students with a warm meal of rice paired with chicken. The rice lacked many essential flavors that rice should have. The chicken, however, was delightfully soft and juicy and easily fell off the bone. The meal as a whole looked very appealing and appetizing.

4 / 5 stars

““

The meal as a whole looked very appealing and appetizing.

My extraordinary experience with rice and chicken

arts and entertainment story, Violet Mork

Dry rice, how’s life? Recently, I had the chance to try my school lunch of rice and chicken. My initial reaction of the chicken was that it was pretty tender in a good way. After that, though, I realized that there was something off with how it tasted, but I’m not exactly sure what. In comparison to the chicken the rice was more dry. The taste was kind of weird as it was both bland and overseasoned at the same time. We also got salad, an apple, and milk but I didn’t try those.

Overall, the meal was edible but not very flavorful.

2.5 / 5 stars

Untitled

arts and entertainment story, Ester Moo

Overall, the meal was edible but not very flavorful. ““

[Have] you ever wondered what food at Sejong Academy tasted like? On May 8 at Sejong Academy, the school had served the students soft shell turkey taco, beans, salad, fruits, and milk. The soft shell turkey taco was very salty, the beans were soggy, the milk was cold, the fruits were rotting, and the salad had too much dressing. To conclude, there are many improvements the school can make regarding the lunch.

opinions story, Eh Tha Bo Thaw

Our school’s normal lunch schedule is not tasty and boring which can make students waste more food. Most students rarely eat the lunch, including me. Every day I see bags of food going to waste every day due to this. Although lunch can be easily accessible and free, it doesn’t matter if it’s all going to waste. My solution would be to make better food. It doesn’t have to be difficult dish, it can be simple but delicious. If the food is delicious, students will eat more, which can prevent more food waste.

OPINIONS

WRITING

““

Although lunch can be easily accessible and free, it doesn’t matter if it’s all going to waste.

opinions story, Sea Ter

Students at Sejong Academy should be able to have the option of wearing uniforms. Even though the current uniform policy requires students to wear uniforms, the majority of students do not wear them. Although uniforms promote inclusivity many students feel as if it’s having an opposite effect on school. Sejong should give students the option of whether to wear uniforms or not.

““

Although uniforms promote inclusivity many students feel as if it’s having an opposite effect on school.

opinions story, Paw Mu Thaw

Getting to choose our own classes matter. At Sejong Academy, the classes are prechosen for the students. This is a problem because most, if not all, of our electives are mundane and uninteresting. Many students are not happy about this system. The system should change so that it’s more beneficial for the students. Many researches have shown that students are more engaged when they attend classes they are genuinely interested in. According to the Journal of Education Psychology, letting students choose their own classes has many benefits such as increase in motivation and learning.

If the students could choose their own classes, that would give them the opportunity to explore different subjects. It can also help set up success for their future career. For example, if cooking class was an option, a student that wants to be a chef could start and expand their knowledge through the class.

““

If the students could choose their own classes, that would give them the opportunity to explore different subjects.

Some people may argue that if they changed this system, then there would be an uneven distribution of students in classes due to classes being more popular than others. They may also argue that the system is more organized when students don’t choose.

However, if they continue with this system, they will lose even more students. Some ways this situation could improve is to give students the chance to request more classes, or the school could provide a greater variety of classes. One way they could do that is to incorporate clubs into the school schedule and make that a class or an elective. They could also start by adding classes that the majority of students want to join.

Although Sejong Academy is a good school with many language opportunities, there are still many things they could improve to make it a better school for all students.

opinions story, Orion Sirny

Most students feel like they should be able to choose their classes. Students are tired of doing classes that can’t do anything for them. Students are saying that they’re tired with their classes and learning useless stuff for their future. Some of the stuff they learn is important even if it’s not important for them like SS. The administration should add more classes because I think everyone would do better and enjoy it.

““

Students

are saying that they’re tired with their classes and learning useless stuff for their future.

OPINIONS CONTINUED...

opinions story, Paw Kue

Being able to choose classes is an important part of school life. Students should be able to have the freedom to choose their own classes. They should also have more variety of classes to choose from. For example, many students want cooking classes, but the only classes available are Music and Design class. Although having a variety of classes could be fun it could result in an uneven distribution of students; however it’s more important to have classes where students are really engaged rather than pre-assigning classes that students aren’t interested in.

““

... it’s more important to have classes where students are really engaged.

opinions story, Eh Tha Yue Moo

The school uniform policy isn’t being followed. The current uniforms are lame and it’s hard to find sometimes. Many students aren’t wearing them either. The colors are basic. It doesn’t have any design. Some think it’s good to wear uniforms to know which school you go to. [However], the school is small that teachers already know which students go there. I will find a way to design a logo for the school.

““

The current uniforms are lame and it’s hard to find sometimes. Many students aren’t wearing them either.

opinions story, Ester Moo

““

At Sejong Academy, there is a uniform policy, but most students don’t follow that policy very well. Many students think that if the school wants to have students following the policy, the school should have their own uniform rather than just wearing clothes with certain colors. For example, the students at HCPA wear shirts, hoodies, and pants with their school logo on it. Although lots of students think that having no uniform is better, it could lead to bullying for those who don’t have clothes from popular brands, a sense of not belonging, and more. To conclude, the school should make their own uniform to help students feel more comfortable.

opinions story, Violet Mork

Students don’t get many choices for the classes that they take. Most students feel like they should be able to choose which special classes they want. Students in 7th-10th grades really only get PE, Design, and Music as their extra options. Students wish they got classes like MMA, Cooking, and Band. It’s easier for the administration with less classes. Even though it’s easier, it would still benefit the students with more options. Maybe we could combine grades for the elective classes.

Although lots of students think that having no uniform is better, it could lead to bullying.

““

Even though it’s easier [for administration], it would still benefit the students with more options.

ABOUT THE MAGAZINE

Our names are Claire Kim and Orion Kim, and we are part of the Class of 2024 at St. Paul Academy and Summit School. We designed the Sejong Academy Art and Literature Magazine as part of our senior project, a student-designed capstone that spans the month of May, to add on to the four-week journalism workshop we started at Sejong.

As former co-editors-in-chief of our student publication, The Rubicon, we hoped to use our experience with writing, designing, and leading classes in our senior project. For this magazine, we worked with Sejong teachers Sarah Olson, Anna Tadei, and Youhwa Kim to gather art and writing created by students.

We hope this project showcases the diverse interests and artistic abilities of Sejong students, and motivates them to continue creating. We would also like to thank our SPA publications advisor Kathryn Campbell, our primary Sejong supervisor Yejin Hong, and our project mentor Scott Winter for everything they’ve done to make this project possible.

Orion Kim ‘24

Claire Kim ‘24