December 2015 | The Pine Needle

The

Pine Needle

St. Christopher’s School

Richmond, Virginia

December 2015

Volume XCIX

Number 2

Is Political Correctness Destroying America?

Page 6

The Game Room...

Gone Forever?

Page 7

Is The Middle School Watching You?

By Gunther Abbot Junior Staff Writer

Installed on the computer of every Middle School student is a program that has the ability to watch, track and control nearly every aspect of the device.

The Middle School adopted it alongside the 1:1 program primarily to combat computer distractions in class. The program, known as LanSchool, has been met with mixed responses from students and generally posi-

tive responses from parents.

While one student calls it the school’s “attempt to emulate a totalitarian surveillance state circa 1984,” the Middle School administration called it a “responsibility to keep track that [students are] on task.” Middle School Head Phil Spears and Director of Student Conduct Craig Chewning insist they’re not constantly watching, and say the program is only periodically used.

Much of LanSchool’s functionality, the administra-

tion said, teachers either do not use or do not have the ability to use. The school has set up LanSchool to function only on the St. Christopher’s network. While on the school network teachers can monitor student computer screens. They can also access the microphone, view browsing history, take control of the screen, adjust the volume and manipulate the cursor.

Mr. Spears, Mr. Chewning and Middle School Technologist Brian Zollinhofer said that those features

haven’t been used as much.

“It’s mainly just used for monitoring to make sure kids are where they’re supposed to be,” Mr. Zollinhofer said in an interview last year. Mr. Chewning compared the use of the program to a traffic cop sitting on a median on a highway.

“Think about driving down I-64, lots of people are speeding,” he said. “The police officer isn’t going to catch everyone and isn’t always there… to slow down the group. Often individuals get

consequences for that.”

A primary goal is to tackle what Mr. Zollinhofer describes as “free surfing.” That can mean “playing games, checking ESPN scores” and generally things that students are not supposed to be doing on their computers in class. The most common use for teachers is a tile view where all student screens can be seen at once. This shows the current application and the website or file currently open. “If they’re in Chrome it Continued on page 7...

Christmas Memories

Basketball’s Best Season Ever

By Jack Holdaway Senior Staff Writer

Last February the St. Christopher’s basketball team reached heights the program has never seen. The Saints made it all the way to the final four of the VISAA Division I State Tournament, the first appearance in school history. Yet that accomplishment may only be a glimpse of the heights Saints basketball can reach.

Scott Gym welcomes back nearly all you could could want in a basketball team: experience, chemistry and

plenty of talent. Leading scorers Nick Sherod ’16 and Alexander Petrie ’17 highlight the group of veteran players returning to build off the successes of last year.

Sherod, the program’s alltime leading scorer, was an All-Metro selection last year as he averaged 25 points and nine rebounds per game. To put it simply, the five-year varsity player can fill up the stat sheet with his shooting ability and strength in the lane. Still, Sherod is looking to cement his legacy at St. Christopher’s after coming off a summer that included

committing to play at the University of Richmond and winning the Adidas Uprising Championship with his AAU team, Team Loaded Virginia.

“Playing on the Adidas circuit taught me how hard you have to play every night.

Every game we would go against some of the best players in the country and if you didn’t bring it you would get embarrassed,” Sherod said. “It taught me the championship level effort required if you want to acContinued on page 3...

Upper School Head Tony Szymendera remembered a funny chapel from years ago, when Mrs. Hollerith got Mr. Richard Towell, the former math teacher, to read “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” to the students and faculty.

Mr. Towell was known for having a seemingly grumpy personality and even wore a Santa hat while reading beside his trusty dog Max. “The fact that he would play along, kind of poke fun of himself, in the spirit of the day and the season, they just loved it,” said Mr. Szymendera.

— John Szymendera

Ampersand Director Rusty Wilson’s favorite part of a St. Christopher’s Christmas is helping underprivileged families with his advisees. “It’s fun doing

things with my advisory, and helping these families really puts me in the spirit of giving,” he said.

One specific memory is when his advisory made a scrumptious homecooked meal for a family in Midlothian. While the group waited at the house, a highspeed cop chase was going down at 90 mph. Eventually the family came home and was extremely grateful for the generosity.

— William Rodriguez ’18

Melissa Hollerith had planned Christmas chapels for years; with colorful costumes like Mr. Kiefer as a pirate Santa, Mr. Wood as an elf, or Mr. Towell as the Grinch, no one is more in touch with St. Christopher’s Christmas traditions than the Reverend.

Continued on page 7...

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The Pine Needle

December 2015

Ampersand Spells Success

By Henry Rodriguez Sophomore Contributor

If you didn’t find some time to view Ampersand’s phenomenal performance of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” musical, you must be a saxicolous troglodyte.

Those words are featured in the bee, and they basically mean “a caveman who lives under a rock.” Actors, students and teachers alike were asked to spell out loud similar words in an interactive performance where audience members were invited up alongside actors on stage to participate.

Six young contestants, alongside four real spectators, compete in the annual county spelling bee in an elimination tournament where the winner will receive $200 -- and each loser, a juice box. Each competitor is quirky and memorable, and they strive to convince the audience that they have a personality outside of being “automatons.” Their hilarious and sometimes

risqué interactions with each other on their quest to be Putnam County’s top speller make the play an exciting and fun experience, decidedly lighter than Ampersand’s recent performances of “Amadeus” and “Twelfth Night.”

The award for best actor goes to Jeffrey Pohanka ’16 as William Barfeé, a stuffed-up, sarcastic, overachieving contestant who is clearly in it to win the prize and prestige, not to make friends. He possesses a “magic foot,” which spells out his words for him on the floor, a trait that only inflates his ego. These aspects make his relationship with fellow contestant Olive Ostrovsky (Katie Jennison), which starts out as a fierce (but one-sided) rivalry, seem that much more unlikely yet heartwarming as Barfeé develops a crush on her and they become friends by the end of the play. For her part, Jennison’s expert delivery of the song “I Love You” was appropriately sad and haunting, providing a contrast to the lighter nature of the musical that seemed fitting. Another amazing performance was by James

Cocuzza ’17 in his first role at St. Christopher’s as hapless hippie Leaf Coneybear, an enthusiastic boy who spells words in hypnotic trances and must defend his intelligence from his large family in an energetically performed solo, “I’m Not That Smart.”

The set design was simple but effective. The cast was seated on bleachers with a separate table for the two judges. Two large basketball hoop props (unfortunately not used by any of the characters during the performance) on either side of the stage named the setting as an indoor gymnasium, though their purpose was not originally clear. The most impressive part of Ampersand’s stage design was, once again, the backdrop: an impressive display of long, “spelling bee type” words such as “ostentatious” on a bold background of red that looked bright pink when the lights dimmed. The ambience was well illuminated and only dimmed during characters’ expositional flashbacks.

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” was quite provocative. Parents who brought their younger kids might have been surprised at some scenes, particularly Chip Tolentino’s (Pierce

Walmsley ’16) early elimination from the competition due to being distracted by the awakening of puberty while gazing at one of Leaf Coneybear’s sisters. The characters also touched on contemporary pop culture and political figures, notably Donald Trump. This was often funny but other times seemed hackneyed and unnecessarily trendy.

The play even humorously mocked stereotypical gay fathers Dan Schwartz and Carl Grubenierre (Jess Reynolds and Cameron Lovings).

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” played Nov. 12-14 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. It was performed in McVey Theatre at St. Catherine’s School.

Tickets were $5 in advance and $7 at the door (for St.

Christopher’s students only).

The music was composed by William Finn.

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” kept audiences shocked, awed and entertained throughout its two-hour duration. Ampersand took more than a few risks with their newest production and has certainly set the bar much higher for its winter one acts.

Dr. Beorn Visits Upper School

By Will Bird Sophomore Contibutor

In a recent chapel talk, Dr. Waitman Wade Beorn ’95, the newly hired executive director of the Virginia Holocaust Museum, quoted the novelist Robert Louis Stevenson: “In each of us, two natures are at war – the good and the evil. All our lives the fight goes on between them, and one of them must conquer. But in our own hands lies the power to choose – what we want most to be we are.”

During his chapel talk, this theme of humans having free choice as it relates to genocide was a powerful message that Dr. Beorn tried to convey by using a personal anecdote.

The 1995 STC alum used a story at the beginning of his lecture that took place when he was a cavalry officer in Iraq.

While at an Iraqi military base a gunner targeted a potential bomb threat in a civilian vehicle. The dilemma was whether they should shoot or wait

to make sure that the car wasn’t a threat. The orders were to come from Beorn who hesitated. In the meantime, the vehicle stopped and an innocent father with his sons got out and laid harmlessly on the ground. The family had made an almost fatal decision to cut through the military base during a cav-

alry assault.

The purpose of this story was to depict three significant ethical lessons: ethics is a muscle that must be trained, we have more time than we think to make crucial decisions, and that we define ourselves by our action as well as our inaction, he said. “I would have been fully

justified in firing. What I had was time, more time than you might think… I would not be the same today if I had shot those people.”

Dr. Beorn expounded upon this point to further examine our role as onlookers to genocide, which caused the students and teachers in attendance to rethink their

response to such events as the Holocaust.

“When the next genocide takes place, and it will takes place, we must choose who we will be,” he said. “Will watch the synagogues burn or will we stop the evil doers at the door?”

These points all come back to his idea of either good or evil conquering the other and with it our decision over which force wins out. There is no neutral, and as Dr. Beorn concluded, “Inaction is a form of action.”

Dr. Beorn received his undergraduate education and at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.and his master’s and Ph.D. degrees at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is the author of “Marching into Darkness: The Wehrmacht and the Holocaust in Belarus,” published by the Harvard University Press in 2013. It was the winner of the Thomas J. Wilson Memorial Prize for the best first book in any field published

by Harvard Press.

December 2015

The Pine Needle

The Student Council Report nitely not content with the status quo.

Senior Editor The way events are orMany students at St. ganized has changed. Each Christopher’s find themmajor event has a senior selves wondering, “What leader who can focus just does Student Council even on that, allowing each to do?” With careful examinareceive more attention than tion, it would seem that it if the president took the enactually does quite a bit. tirety of the responsibility.

Despite the lingering The big events aren’t sentiment of inconspicuthe only things that help ousness, this has been the the Student Council gain council’s most visible year respect. Small occasions like yet with new events, use of when the council bought social media chips and and a more queso and commanddistribing presence uted it to the in everyday hungry mob school life. during lunch Presikeep them at dent Noah the forefront O’Neil ’16 of students’ attributes minds. the council’s The use newfound of social productivmedia has Student Council members run ity mainly to been another the Class Cup. the revamped way that this Class Cup events the council year’s council has managed organized. Previously existto promote their image. ing only as a little known Senior Ross Abrash, manelement of spirit week, the ager of the Student Council Class Cup is now a yearTwitter (@STC_STUCounlong, full fledged competition cil), said, “We are really just between all grades. trying to put our name on Students may remember everything we do.” Abrash the teacher trivia competisays that by posting clever tion in chapel or the X-block tweets student council beof games for Class Cup comes a more frequent and points. These new events relevant part of students’ stand in addition to some of lives. “We all look to them the most constant traditions for great tweets,” said Jack of Student Council: HallowHoldaway ’16. een costume contest chapel, This year’s student all dances and Spirit Week. council has been more active A new spirit of proactivthan ever in trying to serve ity is evident at the weekly the student body by directStudent Council meetings. ing school resources towards An atmosphere of an earnest what students want. As desire to improve themselves secretary Gunther Abbot pervades; there is a produc’17 said, the goal of student tive sort of chaos as students government is to “act as a yell out pros and cons of past liaison between the school events. This group is defiand the students.”

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By Max Dodge

Basketball Continued from page 1 complish your goals.”

If Sherod is Batman, Petrie is your Robin. The guard arrived on the scene during his sophomore campaign, dazzling spectators with his ball-handling skills and an explosive scoring ability similar to his senior counterpart.

Now he helps form one of the best one-two punches in the state.

“I definitely have not had as explosive a duo while I’ve been here,” said Head Coach Hamill Jones ’00. “I think they will go down as the two best guards to ever play at St. Christopher’s, so having them together is really nice.

Still, one of our challenges is making sure we don’t sit and watch them. Other players have to get involved.”

Throw in the returning

contributions of Ned Tazewell ’16, Noah O’Neill ’16, Ameer Bennett ’17, Eric Thompson ’17 and Justin Jasper ’18 and the Saints have plenty of complimentary players capable of getting in on the action.

Tazewell and O’Neill, cited by their coach as “incredible defenders,” will provide veteran leadership and help anchor the Saints on the defensive end of the floor. Bennett has improved his explosiveness and should be an imposing presence down low. Jasper can do it all and do it well, whether it’s defending, rebounding, driving to the basket or shooting the ball. Out of all the team’s contributions, Coach Jones was quickest to mention Thompson’s ability to defend the ball and its importance to the team’s success.

“Eric has been phenomenal. He is a complete menace to the opposition’s

Smith, Peete Learn to Make St. Christopher’s Great Again

By William Rodriguez Sophomore Staff Writer

Two seniors entered the packed raceway stadium, sitting down and blending in with the enthusiastic crowd of thousands. But Colin Smith and Boyd Peete weren’t there to watch NASCAR. Instead, they donned their “Make America Great Again” hats to listen to 2016 presidential candidate and media sensation Donald Trump who traveled across the nation to give a speech right here in Richmond.

“The biggest thing for me was curiosity,” Smith said. “I wanted to see what a Trump campaign was like. It’s a big deal when a frontrunner comes to our city.” The two seniors, both in AP government classes, explained that regardless of one’s political affiliation, it’s important to listen to politicians in person.

“Listening to Trump was different than how the media portrays him,” said Peete.

The two expected a normal, pre-conceived speech, but instead heard something entirely different. What they got was a powerful speaker, point guard and makes it so hard to get up and down the court and into your offense,” he said.

In Coach Jones’ eyes, Thompson embodies the principle that he is most impressed with in this year’s Saints: understanding your role. The junior point guard recognizes his strengths and is willing to do whatever it takes to help his team win, whether it will show up in the stat sheet or not.

Each player embracing this mentality will ultimately determine if the Saints can reach their goals in the Prep League and beyond.

“A lot of things have to go the right way: we need to stay healthy, our chemistry needs to be good, we need a new bounces to go our way,” said Coach Jones. “It definitely won’t be easy, but this team has in it them to win a Prep League and state championship.”

one who came in not with a concrete speech but rather spoke from a stream of consciousness. “Each speech is unique,” said Peete. The billionaire businessman’s style of launching off one topic into another one, from illegal immigration to foreign policy, energized the teeming crowd of supporters. Trump’s fluid way of talking and debating is exactly what moved him from being the the butt of jokes about his peculiar hairstyle a few months ago to a frontrunner in the race for the presidency (though he’s still the butt of hair jokes). “I think he continues to do well because his speeches portray an image of momentum,” said Smith.

Both students were surprised by how animated his constituents were. “Everybody there was extremely happy to see ‘The Donald,’ ” Smith said of the cheering

spectators. “And the group there is more diverse than you might think.” Latino protestors and Latino supporters of Trump stood near each other, creating an interesting parallel. “There were still old, fat white people though,” he said.

The two were interviewed by news program France 24 during the rally and talked about their views on the candidate.

In the end, the seniors’ opinions of Trump only changed a little. While they thought he turned out to be more legitimate than people give him credit for, they believe he probably won’t be an electable candidate. Smith and Peete would like to show up to whatever political rallies come to town, Republican or Democratic.

Said Peete, “Go to as many events as you can, definitely try to get both sides of the story, and make your own decisions.”

The experience of making a run to the final four and going against the some of the best teams in the state gave the Saints a feel for what it takes to improve on last February’s finish and reach the sights of their head coach.

“Last year’s state tournament run gave us a taste of the success that we wanted,” said Sherod. “It taught us how hard we had to work to get there and what we needed to do to win. We now know what it takes to get there, and we now have motivation to get back and close the deal.”

In addition, completing what Coach Jones considers to be the toughest schedule in program history will prove invaluable once postseason play comes around. The Saints will play an unprecedented amount of games and test themselves against some of the the metropolitan area’s best public schools in

both the Richmond Times Dispatch Invitational and the Henrico Holiday Hoops Tournament before competing against several competitive Prep League rivals in league play.

“The league is as deep and as talented as I can remember. We’ll have to show up every night because every team can bring it,” said Jones.

St. Anne’s-Belfield School fields the returning player of the year, Duke University commit Javin DeLaurier.

Trinity Episcopal School, led

by Trevion Armstrong and Aaron Duhart, and Woodberry Forest School are talented.

The Collegiate School returns a good group of veteran players. Still, Jones is confident in pitting his team against anyone.

“Our experience and cohesiveness will be hard to surpass.”

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December 2015

Student Spotlights James Armstrong

By John Szymendera Senior Editor

During a recent practice, James Armstrong ’17 wrestled from the middle of the circle against different guys subbing in every minute. He had to go for up to seven one-minute spurts.

Coach Gitomer was trying to exhaust him, but during the fourth or fifth round, Gitomer noticed a switch flipped. The junior embraced all the tiredness, exhaustion and soreness and just kept working. He brought the energy to anyone subbing into the circle and kept trying to score.

Those close to him note a correlation between wrestling and the way Armstrong approaches life. “The way he wrestles is the way he approaches everything he does,” said Coach Gitomer.

“Wrestling is almost like a metaphor for his personality,” said his mother. She sees wrestling as not a highly publicized sport that involves intense effort and discipline and believes this matches him perfectly.

The junior participates in a lot of different activities. From music to athletics to academics, all are approached with this same persistent and relentless attitude. He isn’t looking for the credit, however. “I’m not the most outgoing person,” he said. “I don’t like a ton of attention.”

Armstrong is a strong student and is taking seven classes this semester, including BC Calculus, a year ahead of the advanced group. Math always came naturally to him, and he remained persistent after skipping AB Calculus.

Strong academics runs in the family as both his parents and two siblings went to Princeton University. Ellen Armstrong, James’s mother, believes that they have managed to put a healthy and not excessive amount of expectations on her son. “We pressure him to live up to his potential,” she said.

Armstrong concurred and believes his parents would never force him into anything he felt strongly against. He also doesn’t feel pressure to follow in his family’s footsteps to Princeton, and is considering some non-Ivy

League options such as Duke University and the University of Virginia.

His talents don’t stop at academics as he began playing piano when he was 6 after begging his mom to sign him up. He learned a little violin, the trombone, and then got involved with singing when he came to St. Christopher’s in ninth grade.

While piano is his favorite instrument, he has really loved singing, and often sings while doing homework. “It’s more expressive than other instruments,” he said. “There are a lot of things you can do with your voice that you can’t do with an instrument.” His mother believes that it gives him solace and comfort.

Armstrong’s talents don’t stop there. He joined Saints for Social Justice to help better the St. Christopher’s community, as he hears jokes that can be more harmful than they seem.

The junior also plays football but particularly enjoys and excels in wrestling.

“It’s very physical but it’s also very mental,” he said.

“It builds mental toughness which carries over to my academics.”

While Armstrong isn’t highly publicized, Coach Gitomer certainly believes he should be. “I think some guys don’t get recognized when they need to,” he said, “James never just goes through the motions...I want people to know who James Armstrong is and what kind of attitude and energy he brings to school and practice.”

Armstrong with his older brother and sister

Henry Barden

By Collin Mistr Senior Staff Writer

In Lower School athletics, Henry Barden always felt like he was on the bottom.

When his relay team came in last, he was blamed. When teams were picked, he was always the last one chosen.

This is some of what this freshman has had to deal with in life. But Barden has never been one to be deterred. “When you have any adversity put in front of you, if you stop at that adversity, you’re not going to get anywhere,” he said. “You’ve got to find a way to get over that adversity.”

Barden has had a physical disability known as cerebral palsy, or CP, since weighing only 3 pounds at birth and arriving 13 weeks early. CP

causes a delay in his muscular actions. Although he, “can’t sense it,” its effects are apparent.

Barden started noticing the effects of the disease in first or second grade, mainly during physical activity. During gym class, Barden was put down by other students.

Deciding to trying to educate the bullies, he organized a speech to tell his classmates what it’s like to have CP. He, his mother and two physical trainers spoke to the Lower School and had students perform activities simulating what it’s like to have CP. Afterwards, the way other students viewed him changed. At first, he felt glad because most of the bullying stopped. However, he soon realized that people

were treating him with pity instead. Despite this, Barden maintained a positive outlook.

In third grade, Barden had surgery in which his calf muscles were stretched to accommodate his growing legs.

As a result, he had to wear a cast around each leg.

Once removed, he fell backwards and realized that he was unable to walk properly. After some experimenting, the therapists found that he learned best by attaching electrodes that shocked the muscles in his feet and legs to angle his foot the right way and basically retrain the muscles. The therapy worked in getting him mobile again.

As time has gone on, people’s views have slowly changed, and Barden feels more and more a part of his community each day. Middle school was a significant time of growth and development.

Coleman Cox sophomore year. His first

By Durk Steed Junior Staff Writer

What started as a cough following exposure to a small mole in his grandmother’s basement turned into a serious case of Lyme disease when he was 11 years old.

After being too skinny to the point he could not walk and then gaining 260 pounds, he remembers difficult times of suffering, wondering why this was happening to him.

The antibiotics he took were ineffective, and the drugs created a new problem. After nearly five years with the disease, he finally had to undergo detoxification to recover. “Nothing ever goes the way you plan it,” he said.

Many students associate Coleman Cox ’16 with humor.

His talent for imitations was clear with his impersonation of Mr. Mauck in front of the entire Upper School during the annual Halloween Costume Contest. Cox says he picks up on the “little things” when working on an impersonation of someone, generally a faculty member.

Cox ironically enough started by mimicking his dad mimicking his grandmother. Gradually he began impersonating “other family members, people at church, then just everyone.” For Cox, impersonations were an important way for him “to meet people and to break the ice.”

Cox remembers doing impersonations to introduce himself to people when joining St. Christopher’s his “Henry was willing to try new things, shared terrific corny jokes and odd, fun trivia regularly, gave my office dogs love and affection, earned a Great Saint award from the seventh grade faculty for his kind, positive way, and offered a unique perspective on most any subject,” said Middle School Head Phil Spears. “It was a pleasure to work with him.”

He worked in publications in the afternoons this fall and is now managing the ninth grade basketball team.

“It’s now leveled out more, and I’m just Henry now,” said Barden.

He now

day he was “scared out of [his] mind” and recalls being drenched in sweat after the first day because he was so nervous. When recovering Cox said he used to be more bitter but learned that used humor is often the best way to cope because people can relate to it.

However, there is much more to Cox than his impersonations. He is part of an all-year acting group called Character Works, something he started in the winter of his sophomore year.

He started out nervous with a serious case of stage fright, but this year he performed his first major role in a play, Mr. Banks from “Mary Poppins.” Its two-week run was largely sold out.

Spiritual life is extremely important for Cox, who until his freshman year considered himself a Christian “but never understood what it meant to be.” Now he is a devout Christian after reading C.S. Lewis’s “Screwtape Letters” which changed the whole way he thought about things.

Christianity was a main topic for Cox’s recent Thanksgiving talk, where he combined humor and religion to conclude the “Reasons for Thanks” service. His talk had received 785 hits at the time of this newspaper deadline.

Ever since his sophomore year Cox said he had always wanted to give a chapel talk and used humor to let the audience “sit back, laugh and still gain something from it.”

no longer worries about the mental aspects of his disability, but only has to concentrate on the physical aspect of it. He has periodic physical therapy checks and does strength training twice a week. Barden feels as if he is slowly but surely beating the disease.

“Whenever CP related challenges pop up in my life, I feel like it’s one more part of CP I have to beat and take

December 2015

The Pine Needle

Alex Johnson

By Parker Krey Freshman Staff Writer

Alex Johnson never does anything halfway.

From Sharpie pens to reading to sneakers to fitness, this freshman has always has some newfound craze. Johnson’s many interests are not exceedingly mainstream.

Being an author is one of them. He writes his books in his limited free time, generally around 20 minutes a night and an hour during the weekends. Johnson has always loved to read. “I can escape reality when I read a book,” he said. Once an avid science fiction reader, he now reads and writes CIA thrillers.

“If you read, it will make

your mind better,” his father Lunsford Johnson always told him. His son took these words to heart and continues to read whenever he finds the chance. Johnson’s grandma, Frances is 95 years old and is still very healthy; Johnson attributes one reason for her good health to reading.

When Johnson was younger he studied the school yearbook, Raps and Taps, and could recall students names and grades, what activities they were involved in and even numbers they wore on jerseys. “I like to get to know everyone,” he said. “I don’t have a photographic memory.

I looked through the Raps and Taps every night because I love the pictures.”

Johnson adores tennis shoes because they show the

personality of the person who wears them.

He would like to open up a sneaker pawn shop where he could buy and sell different sneakers. Johnson himself sports a pair of Roshe Runs, but on the day of the interview wore a basic pair of navy blue Nikes, his everyday school shoes.

Johnson uses his artistic flare to customize sneakers he buys. Enamored with art and design, he uses his talent to draw on tennis shoes. Most recently, Johnson embel-

Lower Schoolers Perform in the Nutcracker house before I calmed down,” he said.

Junior Staff Writer Both boys have been practicThis Christmas season, Lower ing for two and a half hours each School students Ben Atherton ’23 Saturday and Sunday since early and Oliver Gardner ’23 bring out fall. In addition, they both take balthe magic of the holidays through let lessons on Wednesday nights.

Tchaikovsky’s, “The Nutcracker” While both boys admit that being with the Richmond Ballet. Both have in the production is a big time commajor roles in the mitment, they production, which say that it’s nothis impressive ing they cannot considering this handle. year is both stuBut they both dents’ first year of admit that they ballet. are nervous. “I’m The Richmond going to be throwBallet’s perforing up a bit,” said mance of “The Atherton. HowevNutcracker” is a er, both are very Christmas tradiexcited to playing tion in Virginia important roles and is often cited in such a critias one of the best cally acclaimed ballet perforballet. mances in the “I love being country. up on a stage.

Ben Atherton ’23 (front) Gardner, who is It’s nerve racking and playing the role of that’s what I really Fritz, was first inspired to take ballet love about it,” said Atherton. “Then after his fourth grade class paronce you’re finished you feel really ticipated in Minds and Motion. The relieved that you’ve done it.” program consists of playing games while teaching ballet. Gardner loves the fastpaced nature of dance. “It’s fun to get moving,” he said.

Atherton is playing the role of Green Boy and never expected to get such a major part while he was so young. He was ecstatic when his family received an email saying he got the part.

“I ran about five laps around the

By Ricky Stockel

Oliver Gardner ’23

lished a pair of shoes with cartoon action words drawn on them such as, “Boom!” and “Crash!”

Currently Johnson is obsessed with fitness, scrolling through bodybuilding websites learning new ways to improve his health. His favorite, bodybuilding.com, is one that he scrolls through diligently most days. This avid soccer player enjoys building his own programs that focus on either losing or gaining muscle. Johnson said, “A lot of people think I’m too obsessed

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with fitness, but I think it’s a way of life...

I think that working out and staying fit will help me.”

He believes that he will get stronger, see results and will continue to work out for the rest of his life.

Johnson is also working towards learning more languages than the school offers.

On a recent November day, he took the leap to becoming a polyglot. Freshmen shocked by hearing Yiddish phrases being splurted out began asking questions. Johnson responded, saying that he has decided to try and become multilingual.

Johnson said, “Language binds culture,” that connecting with people is vital in life, and languages help him with that. He said, “I feel like if you know more languages, you get to know more people better.”

College Sports Commits Matthew Fernandez ’16 University of Richmond Tennis

Fernandez joins four other students with his commitment to Richmond. “The team chemistry stood out the most, and seeing everyone so close and tightly knit made me want to be a part of that environment,” he said. He hopes to make an impact early and be Top 100 collegiately.

He also plans on taking advantage of the science classes and is deciding between med school and business school.

Jack Hodgson ’16

Washington and Lee University Lacrosse

Hodgson, a faceoff specialist, will head to W&L for its combination of academics and the impressive lacrosse program.

“Washington and Lee is a great school academically, and in lacrosse they’re always able to pull together a really strong team each year,” he said. He said his sister, who also attends, influenced his decision as well, and he is looking forward to the challenges that the school has to offer.

Maddison Furman ’18

Virginia Commonwealth University Baseball

The sophomore committed to the nearby college early, before even playing on varsity. “It was close to home, which makes it easier for my parents and family to see me play,” Furman said. He was impressed with the facilities and coaches as well, saying, “I love the idea of pitching at the Diamond in front of a huge crowd.” He hopes to become a weekend starter and reach the College World Series.

[

6]

The Pine Needle

December 2015

Is Political Correctness Destroying America?

By Neil Dwivedi Junior Staff Writer

People have become far too sensitive and it is for the worse. Countless hours are wasted in bickering over make-believe “problems.”

Now, to clear up any possible misconceptions before we begin; cuss words, hate groups or other things malicious in intent have nothing to do with oversensitivity. The “n” word, for example, is intended to be derogatory for insinuating that black people are inferior and ignorant. Words, statements, or actions meant to harm are obviously incorrect and rude and in no way am I condoning them or their usage.

What I take issue with is people White Knighting things that, quite frankly, don’t even matter: minute things that don’t make anyone’s day difficult but manage to trigger the modern social activist. Their good intent is visible as they try to construct an environment that is inclusive and makes sure that at the end of the day, nobody has hurt feelings. Their goal is pure, but as all things, nothing can stay pure forever and their activism has quickly devolved into whining and harping on the smallest issues.

In January of this year, an angry mother called for the Tennessee school system to replace all the brake lights on their school buses. Why? Because they looked like an upsidedown Star of David or a Pentagram.

She was offended because she considers herself a devout Christian and doesn’t want the school system shoveling Satanic propaganda down the throats of their students through their brake lights.

Does she not have anything better to do with her life than discern the shape of tail lights of a bus? The issue is not that she is insulted; she is allowed to hold her opinions near and dear and voice them freely. The issue is that she is sensitive enough to be enraged by tail lights.

Nowadays people have become far too sensitive, deriving offense from anything and everything. Many folk entirely unaffiliated with the issue hop on the bandwagon and ride it until their cause fades into obscurity, quickly taking to Twitter or Facebook to voice their concerns, and in believing they have actually made a

some people cry censorship. I’m not sure when we as a society shifted Editor-in-Chief from freedom of speech to speech without consequence, but it’s not doAmerica is being destroyed. No, ing much to help us have conversanot by ISIS. It’s not government tions about these tough issues. surveillance, or police brutalAsk any writer: our language ity, or mass shootings. It’s not has immense power. A single even rampant consumerism word has the power to change enslaving us to rich corporathe tone of an entire piece. tions in exchange for social Some people shirk off issues of status. No, what’s really “political correctness,” but to destroying America is political people they affect, these issues correctness. are of dire importance.

Or at least, that’s what you’ll be Use of discriminatory language told if you ask just about any GOP perpetuates the cycle of prejudice. presidential candidate, your racist For instance, one person casually grandpa, or any editorial writer at a uses the term “faggot.” Hearing this, major news source (hey, you do what others think their homophobia is you gotta do to sell papers.) validated.

They go on to discrimiI loathe the term “politically nate against LGBT individuals and correct.” If I avoid the use of terms condition younger generations that may offend, I’m not doing it to that this kind of thinking is not advance my standing among others only okay, but like some normal, and the politician runcycle repeats ning for office; “I’m not sure when we as a itself. This (alI’m trying to society shifted from freedom though admitprovide basic tedly simplified) of speech to speech without respect for is what the marginalized consequence, but it’s not Virginia Center groups in a doing much to help us have for Inclusive society that Communities often turns its conversations about these describes as the back on them. tough issues.” cycle of prejuSome dice. suggest that Beyond by calling that, “politically incorrect” language majority groups out for their use of and slurs are simply hurtful.

It offensive language these oppressed truly ruins my day each time I hear groups are doing exactly what society someone offhandedly throw around has done to them, turning the table the word “faggot.” I have a lot of on the majority’s control; they would bad days. These kinds of emotional have you believe that the minority is responses are not unique to me – now censoring the majority. I on the many minority groups speak about other hand would contend “you can’t them all the time if you’re willing call me a faggot,” is a little different to listen. Perhaps it’s impossible to than “you can’t be gay.” understand the impact these words White people and non-black people have unless you or a loved one have of color are expected to not use the been on the receiving end.

N-word. This is not controversial; While it’s true that work is the slur’s origins are rooted in the necessary to amend the “gotcha!” oppressive history our country has style call-out culture we so often see with black lives and slavery. To use today that discourages asking questhe term casually is to belittle that tions and personal growth, basic history and enforce the institutional respect does not create a wall imracism that plagues our society. peding tough conversations; in fact, This standard extends to both othit encourages it.

By adjusting our er offensive slurs and hateful speech language to make minority groups in general. Simply put, language that feel more included, we open doors to marginalizes and oppresses has no real discussion. place in the daily vocabulary of a St.

difference, do no more. Their lack of commitment is even more of an issue, showing how little they actually care.

Illustrating the issue is a hot topic, the Washington Redskins’ obviously repulsive team name.

The National Annenberg Election Survey in 2004 polled 768 people who identified themselves as Indians if they found “Redskins” to be offensive, 90% said no. The numbers more than likely still hold.

“There are more important things like busing our kids to school, the water settlement, the land quality, the air that surrounds us,” said superintendent of the Red Mesa school district Tommy Yazza.

If the majority of Native Americans don’t actually care, who does?

The so-called activists of course, take offense. And in getting offended by a harmless symbol of professional football, important issues are being pushed under the rug. If they really cared for the American Indians they would help out with the real and, honestly, appalling problems they face.

One out of four lives in poverty.

Deaths due to alcohol in Native American communities are four times higher, and yet here we are, complaining about a name. So, as you can see, they (the activists) don’t actually care.

How is changing the Redskins to something else going to improve the lives of Indians -- oh yeah, it won’t.

Also, take notice, that the issue was such a big deal a while ago and now nobody cares anymore.

Real issues are just swept under the rug while superficial “issues” like this receive more attention and find their way onto the front page.

People need to realize that, in a nation with the freedom of speech, anyone is allowed to express anything and certain thoughts or words may be insulting.

Build a bridge and get over it.

It’s quite embarrassing really, to see that people are busy fighting over the new Starbucks “antiChristmas” cup or the Confederate flag when we have Americans starving on the streets and children lacking education and futures. This needs to stop now. Give important issues the spotlight and work to fix what is wrong with our nation and abroad to create a better tomorrow instead of trashing what we already have.

By Alyx McKinnon

Mr. Alexander spoke in the Lower School auditorium with kindergarten through second grade at 11 a.m. and third through fifth grade at 2 p.m.

He talked about the publication of “The Crossover” and about what it was like to be shut down by so many different publishers.

The Lower School boys were jumping out of their seats as Mr. Alexander made sure that the audience took part in his speech. Starting out, he said, “When I say ‘Kwame,’ you say, ‘cool,’ ‘Kwame’.” “Cool,” the students yelled. Mr. Alexander also stopped during his talk to let the boys fill in words.

Struggling numerous times on his

journey to get a book published about basketball and twin brothers written in poetic verse, Mr. Alexander was rejected more than 18 times by publishers saying, “Boys don’t like poetry, girls don’t like basketball, and basketball and poetry don’t mix.” A core message of his for the Lower School students was “You can’t let the nos define you, nos are a part of life.”

Mr. Alexander decided to publish the book himself. However, a week later at 7:16 a.m. he received

Christopher’s student or anyone else.

In being held to this standard,

Author Kwame Alexander Visits Lower School

By Parkey Krey Freshman Staff Writer

Rhyming in his head and writing stories while sitting in Panera Bread to escape the noise of his children in the house, Kwame Alexander shared a bit of his life story with Lower School students in early November.

Mr. Alexander was the recipient of the John Newbery Medal for his book “The Crossover.”

His first poem was written on Mother’s Day. It started, “Dear Mommy, I hate Mother’s Day.” The next time he was introduced to poetry was in college, and he quickly fell in love with it.

a phone call from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt telling him that they wanted to publish “The Crossover.”

He said, “once the nos come and go, all that’s left are the yeses, and you only need one yes.”

December 2015

The Pine Needle Cafeteria Cockfight

By Jack Holdaway Senior Staff Writer

Don’t get me wrong, the cafeteria makes great food. The staff provides us with exceptionally well-crafted meals each and every day, and the entire student body is grateful for what they do.

All we ask is for the kitchen staff to mix it up a bit. We have eaten so much chicken the past three months that I’m surprised the school hasn’t had to turn Knowles Field into a poultry farm. What has happened to burgers and fries on Friday? What about the coveted Philly cheesesteaks, mac and cheese and tacos? All are favorites, but all have been mostly forgotten.

A lot of the meals we have spent our years eating and enjoying are nowhere to be found.

The whole student body would greatly appreciate if the cafeteria staff could spice up what they put on our plates. Personally, I would like to see more meals that cater to the interests of high schoolers.

I remember two years ago when pizza, something almost every boy

would love to eat, was a common dish. Having the steady option to chow down on delicious pepperoni pizza was a memorable experience, yet that memory is slowly fading.

More and more students, including myself, have started to eat lunch at St. Catherine’s, simply because their staff cooks more enticing meals. All would agree that the food here at St. Christopher’s is better, but who would turn down burgers and fries up the street over the normal daily dose of chicken?

Our school is blessed to have a kitchen staff that provides us with nurturing and appetizing meals, but so far this year the food has been onedimensional. The grumbling among the student body has steadily increased – we call for change.

Game Room... Gone Forever?

By Rob Jessee Junior Staff Writer

Walking through the Luck Leadership Center at St. Christopher’s School, one might pass a locked, dark room filled with the laughter of many free periods past. Members of our school community may not even know of the room’s departed glory, this place that formerly held the title of “The Game Room.” This poses the question, “What went wrong?”

No one knows exactly why the students are banned from the room, though some have made assumptions: “Careless people broke stuff,” said Durk Steed ’17.

The constant mess in the game room had always been key in its downfall, causing frequent temporary closures. The current situation of the game room, though, is permanent, and the student body has stopped asking questions about it -- as though nothing happened.

Closed to the Upper School student body, the sign on the door says “Reserved for Middle School Extended Day Students ONLY.” Middle schoolers alone may use the game room currently, causing an outrage among the Upper School student body.

From the intense ping pong games to the crowded pool competitions, the student body has countless memories of the room that had

become an impactful part of their lives at school. “It is a good place to relax...after getting exhausted by a test,” said junior Neil Dwivedi.

Many students who tried to bring the game room back have given up on the place they once knew and loved. In fact, some former game room enthusiasts get emotional when asked about their loss.

“It’s a serious blow to the social culture at St. Christopher’s School,” said Sam Barden ’17. Students say the game room was a central meeting place that brought boys from different grades together, adding a sense of unity to our student body.

By taking this away, the administration has done away with what, for some, was a crucial portion of their day, allowing them to unwind and relieve some of the dayto-day stresses of teenage life.

The students are the only ones to blame for the repossession of the game room because of its poor treatment. Those who ravaged the room left behind one pool stick, a broken pocket, foosball players without legs and broken ping pong equipment.

Dean of Students Billy Abbott said, “If the students came up with a plan we would be willing to listen to it.” To revive the game room students need a system to monitor its well being. However, no group of students has yet to pursue this idea.

By Gunther Abbot Junior Staff Writer

Waiting in line for lunch, I look over my options. I behold the partially de-thawed hot dog in a bun, endless bags of plain sun chips and rows of soggy buns with their corresponding patties lying beside them. Next to that sit artificial cheese stacks just pulled out of a freezer, shipped from some nondescript factory in the Midwest.

Contrary to what some may believe, this is not a scene from St. Christopher’s cafeteria. This is, in fact, the lunch room of the public middle school I used to attend.

It might now become apparent why I cringe when people complain about our dining hall. Everyday, we have a warm meal prepared, with plenty of options to choose from.

We have a salad bar prepared fresh every day -- all with real, natural foods. Some public schools have never heard the word “salad” uttered

LanSchool Continued from page 1

tells me what the site is,” Mr. Zollinhofer said. “So I can see if they’re on YouTube or on Google Docs, that sort of thing.”

Mr. Zollinhofer installs the program on every student’s computer when they enter the Middle School.

“He basically asks for my computer and says he’ll need it for a little while,” a Middle School student recalls, “and from there just installs it using a flash drive.” During installation, the student types their computer password to allow the program full access to the computer. Mr. Zollinhofer said, “You need to give me permission by entering your computer password, but because you’re here that is something you kind of need to do.”

Some students are fully unaware of the program and retain it into

— Alyx McKinnon ’16

7[

in the lunch room before. We have an amazing sandwich bar with different kinds of meat and many other things. A perfect sandwich is waiting just around the corner, granted one exerts the effort to make it.

Often heard among the ranks of anti-dining hall legions is the battle cry against “chicken and mashed potatoes.” Some may enjoy our dining hall offerings more if they chose more that just the warm food option and moved on. Nobody is forcing anyone to just eat the chicken and mashed potatoes. What about the daily soup? The salad or sandwich bar? I’ve never heard anyone complain about those things, unless they’ve made themselves a bad sandwich.

I encourage those disillusioned with our dining hall to explore the numerous other options our dining service has to offer. Our lunches truly do rival those of some restaurants. You just have to know where to look. We’re very lucky to have such great lunches and dinners every day, and consider our options when we make empty complaints about the great food we are given. the Upper School. “There have been times when kids have forgotten to come to me to get it uninstalled, so even now I actually have seen Upper School students at the bottom of my list,” Mr. Zollinhofer said. “I ignore them because they’re not part of the Middle School anymore.”

According to administration, LanSchool’s purpose is rooted in benevolence with the overall purpose to let students know that somebody is watching at some times and to keep them thinking they should probably be working instead of trying to play a game.

In addition, in the event of a “major disciplinary event,” Mr. Spears said the program could be used more extensively. He said, “We will in most any circumstance appropriately use whatever is at our disposal to help make sure students are kept safe and that the right learning is occurring.”

Christmas Memories No doubt then it was hard for her to step away from the planning one year to have surgery. She put the job in the hands of Robert Johns knowing he would keep the tradition intact.

Recovering at home, Mrs. Hollerith went to answer her front door.

Had she expected to see the entire Upper School on her front lawn, she might have put on more than her bathrobe. “They got school buses to come to my house, in my front yard,” said Mrs. Hollerith. Mr. Johns had brought the entire Upper School Christmas caroling.

“When I think about it I get so overwhelmed,” said Hollerith, “I could not even talk, I could not even form words it was so incredible.”

]

(cont. from pg. 1)

Trekking through the Middle School during Christmas time, one may encounter a plethora of bright lights strung across a wiry, old Christmas tree. Instead of customary tree ornaments, paper angels are hung across the dangling branches with specific gift requests.

One reads “Boy, age 10, tablet.”

Mr. Steed, Middle School chaplain, annually organizes the Angel Tree in the weeks before Christmas break, asking Middle School students and their families to help underprivileged children to have a dream present to open on Christmas morning.

He motivates the Middle School to give gifts by telling them: “Think of your favorite gift that you have ever received and imagine being the giver of that gift.”

— Durk Steed ’17

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The Back PagE The St. Christopher’s Presidential Debate BY John Szymendera William Rodriguez Durk Steed Neil Dwivedi Alyx McKinnon

Make America swole again!

Coach Blanton

The First Lady and I will implement a non-scuffing shoes policy for every basketball court in America.

Mr. Jones

Mr. Wood

Nate Smith

I WILL read, mark and annotate the Constitution, then rewrite it in iambic pentameter.

If I’m elected, the Pledge of Allegiance will no longer be required in order to avoid any confusion.

Edward Anderson Ms. McCully

I advocate everyone rides a bike to school, along with an annual UCI World Championship in Richmond.

Every day will be a National Bake Sale Day for Peter Paul Developement Center.

Mr. Horner

The Pine Needle

As President, I PROMISE we will eventually get to watch “Batman.”

Editor-in-Chief Alyx McKinnon

Senior Editors

John Szymendera Max Dodge

Junior Editor

Junior Staff Writers

Gunther Abbot

Ricky Stockel Durk Steed Neil Dwivedi Rob Jessee

Senior Staff Writers Jack Holdaway Collin Mistr

Sophomore Staff Writers

Freshman Staff Writers

William Rodriguez Henry Rodriguez Will Bird

Faculty Advisor

Parker Krey

Freshman Elf Artist Baylor Fuller

Mrs. Kathleen Thomas

Dr. Hamon

No taxation without MISSrepresentation.