Gryphon Gazette, Issue 1, 2016-17

Double the standards, double the controversy pg.15

A long way from home pg.3

The

Straight Outta Compton (Aquatics Center) pg. 4

Life in the phonefast lane pg.8

Money on their minds pg.11

Gryphon Gazette

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

The Student Voice of St. George’s Independent School

• Volume XV, Issue I •

1880 Wolf River Blvd. Collierville, TN 38017

• thegryphongazette.org

PHOTO: KATELYN GRISHAM ’18

Senior Shoaf Robinson carries a tray of drinks at Ridgeway Country Club. Robinson has been working as a server’s assistant for almost a year now.

Hard Day’s Night

Students balance work and school Iona Yates ’17 A&E Editor

J

unior year. It’s the most daunting time in any St. George’s student’s life. The heavy course load, the beginning of the college process, the games, the prom - it can all be overwhelming. This was especially true for senior Shoaf Robinson, but to this, he added 30 hours of work per week.

Robinson has been working at Ridgeway Country Club as a server’s assistant for almost a year now.

“Once you start working you realize how much time you have,” Robinson said. His strict daily schedule made it difficult for Robinson to have time for anything but school or work.

Robinson’s routine consisted of “waking up at five, going to school, leaving and packing my work clothes in my car and then going to Ridgeway and working there most days until closing.”

However, he describes his work experience as something that is “more than just making money.”

Robinson said working at

Ridgeway has introduced him to many prominent people in the Memphis area. He has also made strong relationships with his fellow co-workers, one being bartender Kobie Grimes. Robinson describes him as a “relatable and an interesting person.” Grimes is someone that has opened Robinson’s my mind up to new perspectives.

Senior Beck Sims also works in the restaurant industry at Folk’s Folly Prime Steakhouse in East Memphis. He has worked there for almost a year now and said that his work experience thus far has been nothing but positive. Not only is he making extra money for himself, but he is learning tangible life lessons. Like Robinson, time management is an important lesson Sims is learning.

“In school, if you are late you get a tardy,” Sims said, “but at work if you are late, you have the chance of getting fired.”

Though Sims and Robinson are some of about 54.9 percent of students who work year round, according to a survey sent to the Collierville Campus, sophomore Katie Schaefer, like many others,

works over the summer and occasionally during the year.

Schaefer has a natural knack for kids, so working as a lifeguard and at Little Georgie’s all summer was the perfect fit for her. Schaefer works about 11 hours a week, which can sometimes get in the way of church, one of her favorite pastimes.

“If we do stuff after school, or if I want to do something at church sometimes, I can’t,” Schaefer said.

“Most nights I don’t go to bed until midnight.” Schaefer benefits from working because it helps support extra spending and church trips.

Time management has become an important factor to the daily routine of Schaefer’s life, a skill that became crucial for her when studying for AP World History.

Schaefer stated that she almost wanted to drop the class due to the fact that she had to stay up until 1:00 a.m. one night after work to complete notes.

“Make sure you like what you do, because if you don’t love what you do, it’s not going to be fun,” Schaefer said.

Meanwhile, junior Braylyn Little has ventured into the land of retail. Little, who works at Stein Mart, said that her job has taught her about responsibility. Little does not believe that everyone should get a job, but she believes that everyone should find something that makes them feel a sense of responsibility.

When asked about responsibility, Little was reminded of the time

in which a rat made its way into Stein Mart. Not certain about how to handle the situation, Little went back to her training, which led her to contact customer service about the problem over the intercom.

This action backfired when all of the customers began to freak out.

Cont. on page 13

PHOTO: KATELYN GRISHAM ’18 SENIOR SHOAF ROBINSON FILLS UP A PITCHER OF WATER. ROBINSON HAS BUILT RIDGEWAY COUNTRY CLUB.

STRONG RELATIONSHIPS WITH HIS CO-WORKERS AT

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The Gryphon Gazette

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

News

The Gryphon Gazette Vol. XV

S TA F F

Issue 1

Co-Editors-in-Chief

Miriam Brown ’17 Annie Vento ’17

Advisor Dr. Margaret Robertson

Layout Editors Katie Boyle ’17 Laura McDowell ’17 Carolyn Lane ’18 Kaitlyn Bowman ’19

Copy Editors Caroline Zummach ’18 Annie Murff ’18

Photographers Rachel Ducker ’17 Faith Huff ’17 Matthew Blum ’17 Katelyn Grisham ’18

Illustrator Elle Vaughn ’17

Communications Laura McDowell ’17

News Editor In-depth Editor A&E Editor

Merryn Ruthling ’18 Caroline Zummach ’18 Iona Yates ’17

Sports Editor Bayard Anderson ’17

Opinion Editor Web Editors

Annie Murff ’18 Dawson Smith ’17 Carolyn Lane ’18

Reporters Regine Miller ’17 Lauren Purdy ’18 Bart Mueller ’18 Annika Conlee ’18 Emma Bennett ’19 William Brown ’19 The Gryphon Gazette is dedicated to serving as an authentic voice for the students of St. George’s Independent School.

We at the Gryphon Gazette strive to be an open forum for student expression, to act in the best interests of the student body and to embody the principles of journalistic excellence.

The Gryphon Gazette is affiliated with the Tennessee High School Press Association and the National Scholastic Press Association.

The Gryphon Gazette is funded by St. George’s Independent School and is published once every six weeks during the school year by the Memphis Daily News. The Gryphon Gazette prints and distributes 400 copies of each issue by hand to 700 students and faculty on the St. George’s upper school campus.

Bylines indicate the primary writer(s) of each article. Additional contributors are indicated in the shirttail. All corrections and retractions appear in a box in the news section.

The Gryphon Gazette provides free advertising for student clubs, events, and activities. The Gryphon Gazette welcomes letters to the editor and article submissions. To submit a letter, article or request advertising, email our staff at gryphongazette@sgis.org.

St. George’s Independent School 1880 Wolf River Blvd.

Collierville, TN 38017 901-427-2000 Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

GRAPHIC: EMMA BENNETT ’19 DATA FROM THE MEMPHIS BUSINESS JOURNAL IN APRIL 2016 SHOWS THE DECLINE IN PRIVATE SCHOOL ENROLLMENT. IN COMPARSION TO FIVE OTHER PRIVATE SCHOOLS IN THE AREA, ST. GEORGE’S ADMISSION RATE DROPPED LESS DRASTICALLY, AS SEEN IN THE BAR GRAPH ABOVE.

Drop in enrollment reflects larger trends Lauren Purdy ’18 Copy Editor

S

t. George’s has always been known as a small independent school, yet the number of students in the Collierville Campus has shrunk significantly in recent years.

In the past, over 100 students were enrolled in each middle and upper school class, but as of today, there are only 225 students in the middle school and 388 students in the upper school.

Yet St. George’s is not an outlier in the wave of admission downtrend. Independent schools locally and nationally are feeling the enrollment pressures.

Memphis Business Journal found in April 2016 that enrollment numbers of some of the largest private schools in Memphis decreased by over 10 percent, a loss of over 400 students in the last year.

Only eight of those schools increased in enrollment and, together, grew by only 136 students.

Although St. George’s is among those that had less drastic drops in admissions, there are still fewer students. But why?

Upper School Director Mr. Tom Morris said that downturns in enrollment are normal, and they essentially are occurring because of the evolving Memphis area.

“Our situation here is attributable primarily to market forces like demographic change in Memphis,” Mr. Morris said, “and we can’t control those forces.”

One factor to consider is the great financial commitment to be made in independent schools. The admissions section of the St. George’s website lists that the middle school’s tuition is $19,200, and the upper school’s tuition is $19,500.

According to Director of Admissions Mrs. Olivia Buffington Hammond, the St. George’s experience also helps families decide whether the school is worth applying for.

“St. George’s is in a great place in Memphis because we are so different from the other options available, and our experience and approach to education stands out,” Mrs. Hammond said. “We have a variety of programs, such as our partnership with Choose901, the Senior Independent Study, the Science and Innovation Lab and our hands-on-approach towards learning.”

Some families that seek out a better experience for their students outside of independent schools have left and even returned.

Junior Gabby Acker left St. George’s for Houston High School at the beginning of her sophomore year due to her siblings’ spring break schedules and the less expensive education. She later returned in the middle of the school year, unhappy with her public school experience.

“I couldn’t work with the teachers at Houston as well, and it seemed like they didn’t care as much,” Acker said. “The academics are better at St. George’s, and I got used to how nice and calm it is. I feel like I belong here, and I didn’t belong there.”

As for Head of School Mr. Ross Peters, the school’s primary focus should be on the experience of current students and families, like Acker, and not on the number of students enrolled.

“Independent schools have to be more flexible, more resilient, more willing to

ask big questions about how we do what we do and how we can do it better,” Mr. Peters said. “If we do that really well, we’ll be valuable, and people will start to find us.”

Mr. Morris believes that the school can find a solution to this problem, but it is more complicated than what it seems.

“For one, it is delivering the best experience we can for kids and families. Also, it’s executing on the new schedule and all its possibilities at a very high level,” Mr. Morris said. “Then, it is making sure that the school is communicating with kids and families the way it needs to.”

Mrs. Hammond suggested that the role of admissions also falls into the hands of students and families, which betters the school itself and its place in the independent school market.

“Over 80 percent of people who are looking at independent schools are doing so because of word of mouth. Admission is not just an office of admission endeavor, but rather, our entire school,” Mrs. Hammond said. “Students are the best people to tell others about our story.”

In reality, students should not let the drop scare them, and according to Mr. Peters, they should work together to make a greater school environment instead.

“We’re not helpless victims of a changing world,” Mr. Peters said. “What we control is how good are we. We all have a responsibility in a school like this to make it a better place [and] to make it the school it’s supposed to be.”

CORRECTIONS AND RETRACTIONS: The St. George’s Gryphon Gazette strives for accuracy in all articles. However, mistakes are sometimes made. When this happens, you will see corrections here.

The Gryphon Gazette

News

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

Lebanon native Abed Maita joins the class of 2018

3

Merryn Ruthling ’18 News Editor

6,

522 miles. That is the distance that Abed Maita, or Abdul as he prefers to be called, traveled to

join the class of 2018. He spent six weeks studying at the “Lodge” before returning to his home in Lebanon.

“I wanted to have a new experience,” Maita said. “I wanted to see how the colleges and schools are here, so that if I came to college in the U.S., I could be used to it.”

Maita had been living with his aunt and uncle, who were the ones who contacted St. George’s and asked if he could attend the school. Although there were many schools to choose from in Memphis, Maita chose St. George’s for several reasons.

“I didn’t want to go to a public school because I know that the studying there would not be appropriate for me,” Maita said. “This is a private school and a good school from what I’ve seen. We came and talked to Mr. Morris, and he is a good man.

I didn’t know about St. George’s before, but we heard it was a good school, and that’s why I came.”

While he was here, Maita immersed himself in the social and academic life and attended social events, such as football games. Additionally, he made friends within the St. George’s community.

“We’re very open to everyone, and we never turn anyone away,” junior Winston Margaritas said. “We’re very accepting to everybody. We’re a great school. I love St. George’s.”

Head of Upper School Mr. Tom Morris also said he was pleased to be able to have Maita study at St. George’s.

“I think it’s a great experience for Abdul,” Mr. Tom Morris said. “I think it’s great for our kids to see a variety of perspectives and experiences and also understand that there is an incredible commonality in the high school experience, whether it’s Lebanon or Memphis.”

St. George’s does not currently have a formal foreign exchange program, but Abdul was not the school’s first foreign student. Last year, Csenge Petak traveled from Budapest, Hungary, to join the class of 2016 in an experience similar to Maita’s.

According to Mr. Morris, having more foreign students like Maita and Petak may be an option in the future.

“There are tons of opportunities for programs like these,” Mr. Morris said. “We would want to make sure that the value for the kids is what it needed to be and kids could be safe, but there is nothing to say that we couldn’t have a more formal program. We’ve been fortunate with Abdul this year and Csenge last year that they’ve found us, and we were more than willing to accommodate.”

Although Abdul immersed himself in the various things that Memphis and St. George’s had to offer, there were still some aspects that remained unfamiliar to him, the oddest of which he considered the driving customs.

“I have to wear a seatbelt,” Maita said.

“In Lebanon, there are no police officers

Rotated in!

Students adjust to a new routine PHOTO: KATELYN GRISHAM ‘18 A STUDENT WALKS TO THEIR NEXT CLASS. STUDENTS HAVE FELT MORE CALM SINCE IMPLEMENTING THE NEW SCHEDULE. Caroline Zummach’18 Features Editor

Y

ou wake up in a frenzy because your alarm didn’t go off, quickly get dressed, brush your teeth and run downstairs. But, when you get to the car, you realize that school doesn’t start for another hour. With a sigh of relief, you go back inside and hit the snooze. This late start time is just one of the things that has changed about the St. George’s Collierville Campus this year, and many students are enthusiastic about the changes.

Of the 191 responses taken from a survey

of Collierville Campus students and teachers, 37.2 percent of respondents rated the new schedule a five, 39.8 percent a four, 17.3 percent a three, 4.2 percent a two and 1.6 percent a one. When asked to use one word to describe the new schedule, responses included “confusing,” “efficient” and “stress-free.”

Let’s start with the morning. School now begins at 8:30 a.m on everyday except for Wednesdays, where school starts at 9:00

around the corner to give you a ticket. There also aren’t any stop lights.”

Overall, Abdul seemed happy with his decision to study at St. George’s over his summer break.

“I love this school,” Maita said. “There are not a lot of things to do in Memphis, but this school system and everything is good.”

A long way from home

PHOTO: MARGO VALADIE ‘18 ABDUL SMILES IN THE MIDST OF A CONVERSATION OUTSIDE OF THE ST. GEORGE’S LUNCH ROOM. ABDUL RECENTLY TRAVELED FROM LEBANON TO STUDY WITH THE CLASS OF 2018 FOR SIX WEEKS.

a.m. due to faculty meetings. This new start time was implemented so that students would get more sleep and thus be more refreshed and focused during the day.

“It’s more refreshing because you are so used to getting up and getting here at 8,” junior Winston Margaritis said, “but now you feel like you are a little bit late but you are actually early.”

Another new thing in the mornings is morning tutorial. As opposed to last year where tutorial was only in the afternoon, tutorials now take place from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. as well as 3:15 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.

Seventh grader Alyssa Aghabeg appreciates this change.

“There’s more chances to meet with the teacher and ask questions,” Aghabeg said.

Upper School Mathematics Chair Ms. Page McMullen agreed with Aghabeg, as she appreciates the new tutorials for helping students with math.

“I think in math it’s good because it spreads out the number of students I have to help at one time,” Mrs. McMullen said.

Another new component of the schedule is that only four classes meet each day as opposed to the previous six or seven, depending on your schedule, and these classes meet for 70 minutes instead of 55.

There are some mixed feelings about this new implementation, but overall, students say they feel more relaxed.

Senior Kendall LoCascio enjoys the schedule’s resemblance to a college’s schedule.

“In college you only meet two, maybe three times a week for a long period of time,” LoCascio said. “I like that I’m getting a little glimpse into it.”

However, LoCascio believes that this structure only works well for upperclassmen.

“I don’t think a sixth grader needs to be exposed to college life,” LoCascio said.

“They really need structure.”

Some students love everything about the

spread out classes. For Margaritis, he enjoys being able to take time in classes to learn.

“You can get more done, and you are not trying to cram everything in,” Margaritis said. “You can harness all of the information into one class period.”

Aghabeg agreed, citing the smoother transition time between classes.

“I like there is a break between classes,” Aghabeg said. “Some teachers let us do homework for the last 10 minutes so you can get a head start.”

In addition to these day-to-day changes, St. George’s is now on a semester schedule as opposed to a trimester schedule, meaning there will be report cards and exams only twice a year. All around, students agreed that switching to semesters was a good decision.

“I love semesters,” Ms. McMullen said.

“With trimesters, we were having to stop and review so often. We only have that slow down and review twice.” Mrs. McMullen also likes that, now with only two report card periods, teachers are required to have the same amount of test grades as they did within the trimesters, but they now the whole semester to do it.

LoCascio also believes that semesters give more time to go in depth into subjects.

“I never liked the trimesters because I feel like as soon as we got really into stuff, it was time for exams,” LoCascio said. “I was never happy leaving at Christmas and then coming back three weeks later and having to remember everything we had talked about prior to that.”

Margaritis agreed with LoCascio, appreciating the new changes as a whole.

“You get more out of those classes,” Margaritis said. “It is a much more efficient schedule.”

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Wednesday, Sept. 201 2016

The Gryphon Gazette

Sports

Straight Outta Compton (Aquatic Center) Thompson eyes 2020 Olympics PHOTO: MATTHEW BLUM ’17 SARAH THOMPSON IS DOING HER IMPRESSIVE BUTTERFLY STROKE IN THE ST. GEORGE’S COMPTON AQUATIC CENTER. THOMPSON IS PRACTICING HER SKILLS FOR THE OLYMPICS.

Bayard Anderson ’17 Sports Editor

L

ess than a second. That’s all that separates senior Sarah Thompson from Olympic stardom. Only .44 seconds that, to her and her coaches, must feel like an eternity.

Thompson’s best event, the 50-meter freestyle, is an unforgiving race in which every fraction of a second counts. But numbers are only a small piece of the puzzle in a journey that began years ago.

“Coach Rob [Snowberger] actually taught me to swim when

I was really little. [He] always wanted me to swim. He told me when I was really little that I had a natural stroke,” Thompson said, “but I was little. I didn’t know what that actually meant, but he always just kept pushing me to swim.”

“I was gonna do competitive, but it took up too much time with third-grade homework,” Thompson said, laughing.

However, Thompson chose to not take Coach Snowberger’s advice and decided instead to pursue a future in volleyball.

Thompson spent years honing her skills in volleyball, and

now, in her senior year, she has been named to the Under Armour All-American watch list for volleyball.

“I was originally going to play volleyball in college, but I decided to switch,” Thompson said.

“I love swimming. It’s fun. I like being in the water. It comes really easily to me.”

According to Thompson and her coaches, volleyball has made a world of difference on her swimming ability.

“Volleyball helped her an awful lot. She’s very explosive,” Coach Snowberger said.

Thompson agreed, saying vol-

.44 secs

Thompson has to shave

to make an Olympic time in the 50 meter freestyle.

PHOTO: MATTHEW BLUM ’17

leyball improved her speed and her jump.

Thompson needs all the advantage she can get because she’s starting the sport late by most standards.

“It can be hard to acclimate,” Coach Snowberger said. One of the biggest adjustments that occurs is the leap from school swimming to club swimming.

Competitive swimmers can swim 10,000 to 12,000 meters a day and practice as often as six days a week.

Thompson started swimming with Memphis Thunder Aquatic Club the summer of her sophomore year and has been with them ever since.

During the summer, Thompson practiced six days a week, two hours in morning and two hours in afternoon. In the morning, she had an hour of dry land workout and an hour of swimming, followed by two hours of swimming in the afternoon. On Wednesdays and Saturdays, the team had three-hour practices.

“This summer was really busy, being an Olympic year,” Thompson said. Thompson participated in two big meets, one at Georgia Tech and one at Junior Nationals.

“It was my first Junior Nationals, so I was really nervous,” Thompson said. Thompson ended up finalling in her 100-meter backstroke, finishing 23rd overall.

Thompson is now becoming a popular recruit among colleges.

She has taken or will take official visits at Purdue, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Missouri, Wisconsin and either Minnesota or Texas A&M. With all of her success, it would

The Gryphon Gazette

Sports

be easy for Thompson to focus on only herself in the pool, but she is known by her teammates as much more than a great swimmer.

“As a teammate, Sarah is really supportive, and she’s always pushing everyone to go harder,” junior Julia Fogel, Thompson’s teammate, said.

Being a volleyball and water polo player, Thompson greatly appreciates the team aspect of the sport.

“The team is one of the most important parts of swimming. It’s an individual sport, yes, but the people who you are around influence how you train and help get you motivated,” Thompson said.

“I think what really drives me is my teammates. They’re so positive and so supportive for everything I do.”

Individually, Thompson also has big dreams of one day racing in the Olympics. She will have to work hard to earn one of the 25 spots on the girls team.

Coach Snowberger agrees she has a shot but was quick to point out how few spots are available.

Thompson, however, seems unphased by the news.

“That’ll be the summer of my junior year in college so it lands perfectly. That’s going to be my goal training-wise, to make the team,” Thompson said with a smile.

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

5

insane. I can’t believe “ She’s how fast she’s gotten.”

PHOTO: MATTHEW BLUM ’17 SARAH THOMPSON IS GLIDING THROUGH THE WATER OF THE ST. GEORGE’S COMPTON AQUATIC CENTER. THOMPSON IS IMPROVING HER GLIDE FOR THE OLYMPICS.

When asked if she thought Thompson could swim in the Olympics, teammate Fogel did not hesitate.

“Honestly, yes. She’s insane,” Fogel said. “I can’t believe how fast she’s gotten.”

In the meantime, Thompson says she will continue to hone her skills and in four years, fans may see her gracing the cover of a Wheaties box with a Gold Medal draped around her neck.

“ Volleyball helped her

an awful lot. She’s very explosive.

”

PHOTOS: KATIE BOYLE ’17 PHOTOS FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: SENIOR SARAH THOMPSON SPIKES THE BALL IN THE SECOND SET OF THE TOO CLUTCH FOR CANCER GAME ON WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 14, 2016. THOMPSON CREDITS VOLLEYBALL WITH IMPROVING HER SPEED. / THOMPSON AND SENIOR JULIE ANNE JOYNER STUMBLE OVER EACH OTHER AS THEY MOVE TO THEIR DESIGNATED SPOTS ON THE COURT. THE VARISTY VOLLEYBALL TEAM BEAT TIPTON ROSEMARK 3-1.

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Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

The Gryphon Gazette

Sports

Photo: Bart Mueller ’18 TEAM FOUNDERS AND SENIORS KNEELAND GAMMILL AND J.D. HIBNER GAZE OVER BULLDOG LAKE AFTER A RIDE WITH JUNIOR SOREN JENSEN. THE NEW MOUNTAIN BIKE TEAM BEGAN RIDES AT THE END OF AUGUST.

Ain’t No Mountain High Enough

New mountain bike team looks for success in inaugural year Bart Mueller ’18 Reporter

I

t’s a hot Wednesday afternoon.

Speeding through the St. George’s trails are three adept mountain bikers, and then me, sprinting far behind. Although I am not on a bike, I can still feel the adrenaline and excitement in the air.

Whether you’re an experienced mountain biker, have never ridden a bike before in your life or don’t have a bike (like me), the new SGIS Mountain Bike Team is welcoming new members.

The Mountain Bike Team is a new student-led organization envisioned by seniors J.D. Hibner and Kneeland Gam-

mill for their Senior Independent Study.

According to team sponsor Mr. Jamie Roszel, the team’s main goal for this year is to get regular rides going at the school, although they have greater plans for the future.

“I’d love to do a trip,” Mr. Roszel said.

“We can go to Arkansas, we can go to Chattanooga, we can go to Western North Carolina and really try out some good trails.”

For these outings, the team welcomes first-time riders.

“This club is designed to be for people

SPORTS IN BRIEF Bart Mueller ’18 & Bayard Anderson ’17 Reporter, Sports Editor

Competitive Cheer The competitive cheer team is currently preparing for a mandatory VROC Camp, an intensive 2-day clinic where they will be coached by professionals. During camp, they will be taught their routines and stunts for Regionals, State and eventually, Nationals.

Football After a two-game losing streak, the Gryphons are winning again. Junior Met Proctor admits the team is off to a slow start, but he believes they still have a shot at state. Senior wide receiver Corey Jones is playing well, earning over 200 yards receiving on only nine catches against Lausanne and breaking the school receiving record against ECS. The team’s next big game will be Oct. 28 at the University School of Jackson.

visit thegryphongazette.org for more sports updates.

of all skill levels,” Gammill said in a plea to the student body. “We envisioned it with everyone in mind so even if you don’t have very much experience, you’re going to get better.”

Team member sophomore Soren Jensen is a firm believer that beginners have a spot on the team.

“I started a year ago, and I still feel like if you start today, you can learn a lot,” Jensen said.

Nevertheless, making this venture a success won’t be easy for its founders.

“I think our main problem will be

finding people to come out and do it,” Hibner said.

However, the team is not significantly worried about hindrances and is just excited to get out there and get biking on a regular basis.

At the end of the day, the true purpose of the team is to have fun.

“We’re just out here having a good time, enjoying the great outdoors, and that’s what we’re all about out here at St. George’s,” Gammill said.

Girls Soccer

Volleyball

The girls soccer team is 6-2-1. After a tough loss against Briarcrest, the team has regrouped and has not lost a game since.

The team will look to carry this momentum but has a tough road ahead, playing against Houston, Collierville and ECS.

The volleyball team is currently 6-4.

Senior Sarah Thompson leads the team with 196 kills, and junior Kate Seabrook is emerging as a strong leader with 111 digs. The team has a big game on Sept.

19 against their rival, Briarcrest Christian School.

Cross Country So far, the cross country team is off to a stellar start. Zach Williams, a top-five finisher at the state meet last year, will look to carry the team this year. The team has two big meets coming up. The first is the West Tennessee Varsity Cross Country Meet on Oct. 18. Then, the biggest meet of the year, the regional championship, will take place on Oct. 26.

Golf The golf team will head into regionals this week and try to maintain the proud tradition of St. George’s golfing success. Juniors Davis Irving and Winston Margaritis, who were top finishers at state last year, will look to repeat. “We are looking for a state championship this year,” junior Graham Smith said.

Sports

The Gryphon Gazette

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

7

Playing Up

Middle school athletes step up their game Annie Murff ’18 Opinion Editor

“I

think that it’s really cool that I feel like a part of a team,” eighth grader Livi Tanzer, one of the youngest players on the varsity girls soccer team, said.

This year is the first year in which middle school girls have played up in soccer.

Soccer joins football, volleyball and boys soccer as sports that allow middle school athletes to compete on the varsity level.

According to Director of Athletics Mr. Tom Densford, there are multiple deciding factors in the selection of middle schoolers to play up.

“One [factor] is the level of competition that they are playing at their grade and whether or not that’s beneficial for them to stay at that point and do that, or if it’s not gonna help their growth in moving them up to the high school,” Mr. Densford said.

Luckily, these rising athletes so far seem ready to take on that that new level of competition that Mr. Densford addressed.

“They have done a lot better than we had thought,” JV girls soccer coach, Coach Cate Foy, said. “Just even socially, athletically,

emotionally, they have done really, really well.”

Tanzer is just one of three middle school players already playing up this fall in their respective sports.

These eighth grade athletes encounter a more athletically-demanding environment in a varsity sport than the less challenging conditions of a middle school sport.

“In middle school, you don’t compete in state or region games,” Tanzer said. “[Varsity sports] are more fun and competitive.”

However, these players also get to experience the prestige and social aspects of being on a team with high school students, something that the average middle school student would not experience until high school.

“The seniors and the juniors make it really easy to be on the team,” eighth grader Katie Clement, another varsity soccer player, said.

D.J. Harden, varsity football player and eighth grader, gets to experience a different atmosphere and new traditions by playing on the football team. Harden especially enjoys the competition and challenges that

playing at a harder level entail.

“It’s good having fun and doing all the cool stuff that they do, like run out of the tunnel,” Harden said. “You come home with more bruises and more pains than you would if you played middle school.”

However, Mr. Densford makes it clear that the student’s health is the main priority, especially for younger athletes like Tanzer, Harden and Clement.

“We have a very highly qualified strengthening and conditioning coach who determines what workout they do and how they do that,” Mr. Densford said. “The trainers are always involved in monitoring the student’s health.”

According to coaches and Mr. Densford, the players’ transition into the upper school athletic environment has been smooth.

In particular, varsity girls soccer coach,

ILLUSTRATION: ELLE VAUGHN ‘17 Coach Tony Whicker, believes the change has been good for the athletes. “[Tanzer and Clement] have adapted really well, and I think that’s mainly attributed to the players that are in ninth and twelfth grade that have brought them in and made them feel welcome and like a part of the team,” Coach Whicker said. “The transition has gone really well.”

“They love it,” Coach Foy said. “They love being a part of the big program, they like playing at a higher level, [and] they like the competition.”

As for the players, they seem simply excited to be playing on the team and improving.

“It’s cool because I get to know a bunch of new people and make more friendships,” Tanzer said. “It’s helping me prepare for the future.”

PHOTOS: FAITH HUFF ’17 PHOTOS FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: EIGHTH GRADER LIVI TANZER POSES ON THE SOCCER FIELD. TANZER JOINED THE VARSITY GIRLS SOCCER TEAM THIS YEAR. / EIGHTH GRADER KATIE CLEMENT KICKS A SOCCER BALL ON THE FIELD. LIKE TANZER, CLEMENT JOINED THE VARSITY GIRLS SOCCER TEAM THIS YEAR AND IS ONE OF THE YOUNGEST PLAYERS ON THE TEAM.

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Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

The Gryphon Gazette

Arts & Entertainment

Life in the phone-fast lane The seven-day diary of a phone-free teen Carolyn Lane ’18 Web Editor The Challenge: urviving a week using my phone only when absolutely necessary.

S

The exceptions: Rule 1: I can receive calls from my parents and my math tutor.

Rule 2: I can read soccer GroupMe messages.

Rule 3: I can plan my mom’s birthday present.

Rule 4: I can use for an alarm clock while at mom’s house.

Rule 5: I can use my Spanish Twitter account for school.

The reason: I am 100 percent insane.

Tuneless Tuesday My first phone-free day started early, specifically 5:10 a.m.

When my alarm first started ringing, my half-asleep body acted on instinct, reaching for the phone sitting on my bedside table and trying to turn off my alarm. It wasn’t until that failed to work that I realized I had just started my own personal hell week, and I slammed the snooze button on my iHome instead.

School itself was surprisingly easier than the radio commercial-filled ride I encountered on the way there. With

back-to-back AP and honors classes plus advisory, I didn’t have time to miss my phone.

The first real issue arose at 4:17 p.m. when I boarded the bus for the varsity soccer game against Fayette Academy. For the past three years, my pre-game soccer ritual has centered around a 45-minute Spotify playlist featuring “Jungle” by X Ambassadors, “Temperature” by Sean Paul and 13 other songs. But that day, I spent the whole ride looking out the window and doing my religion homework. Learning about idol worship definitely wasn’t as fun as worshipping my phone.

(Egg)rolling through Wednesday After school, I drove to Arlington High School for the junior varsity girls’ soccer game, then all the way back home to go to my math tutor. Since I am my tutor’s last student on Wednesdays, I always pick up egg rolls from Green China before going to her house. Stopping for egg rolls this time, though, meant ordering in the restaurant and waiting 10 minutes for the food

to be ready. I spent this time awkwardly walking around the tiny café, looking at random business cards. At least I know (insert name) is available to help (insert job).

Thursday: Like a wrecking ball The “no social media” rule hit me like a wrecking ball on Thursday evening. Before my soccer game that evening, I spent all my time math tutoring or rushing to get ready, which left me with no time to take a break before nine o’clock. After arriving home, my brain was in desperate need of a break from schoolwork and sports. It felt like I had just finished a 12-hour school day. This time, though, I couldn’t check social media until I was ready to start homework, and I was far too afraid to enter the marathon-waiting-tohappen website known as Netflix. So, I tried to start homework instead and ended the night with assignments obviously completed but with no effort or solid analysis. Note to self: mental breaks definitely don’t equal homework.

Friday: Girl lost in Eads Being phone-free does not go well with driving in Eads. After dinner following the Briarcrest

PHOTOS: KATELYN GRISHAM ‘18 PICTURES CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: JUNIOR CAROLYN LANE PREPARES TO ENTER THE ST. GEORGE’S BUS IN HER SOCCER UNIFORM. / LANE HOLDS HER PHONE UP AFTER ENDING HER PHONE FAST. / LANE STRUGGLES TO STAY OFF SOCIAL MEDIA. LANE REFERRED TO HER PHONE-FREE WEEK AS HER HELL WEEK.

Arts & Entertainment

football game, my friend, Emily O’Connell, asked me to drive her home. Since I was one of the few people with a car, I said ‘yes’ without remembering where she lived: Eads. With its curvy, dark roads, driving there was out of my element, especially because I don’t have a GPS. After overshooting her street because even she couldn’t recognize it, I knew driving home was going to be a blast. So, I dropped her off and started to retrace my steps, but instead of taking a right when I was supposed to, I took a left. After driving for five minutes or so, I hit a dead-end, rather than Macon Road like I was expecting.

Attempting to backtrack only led me to a series of unknown road signs and more winding roads.

So, I conceded the first loss of my fast, pulled over and typed my home address into Google Maps. Carolyn: 0, Phone Fast: 1.

Saturday breaks the fast Saturday began with a trip to David’s Bridal in Southaven to find my cotillion dress. Since both my mom and I did not know what to look for, we attempted to base my dress off what other people had sent in the Cotillion group chat. However, to do so, I had to tell my mom the password to my phone so she could scroll through the photos. Technically my phone was used, but hey, it wasn’t me.

But, it was me later that day. My friend was having a birthday party at her house and, once everyone raided the immense shelves of onesie pajamas, I got my phone out and started snapchatting my finds, including a fabulous Mickey Mouse onesie. Twenty minutes of playing around and taking photos passed before I remembered I was on a phone fast, but it was already too late. Carolyn: 0, Phone Fast: 2.

Snooze-day Sunday While Saturday was a failure, Sunday was a genuine success.

It turns out when you’re busy doing homework all day, you don’t have time to miss your phone!

Carolyn: 1, Phone Fast: 2.

The Gryphon Gazette

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

9

Monday music mania Because my dad revealed during dinner on Sunday night that I had satellite radio in my car, Monday morning began terrifically. Once I started driving to school, I immediately turned on XM radio. In that moment, it was the most glorious sound I’d heard the whole week. There were no commercials, and the three most played songs on FM radio, “Cheap Thrills” by Sia, “Send My Love (To Your New Lover)” by Adele and “Treat You Better” by Shawn Mendes, didn’t play. After arriving at school, though, I saw my Discover Weekly playlist notification from Spotify, which killed me since I had to wait until the following day to listen to it. But, by this point, I was in the homestretch, and nothing could deter me. I didn’t use my phone the entire school day and even made it the whole ride home without opening my Discover Weekly playlist.

Re-entering the 21st century I woke up earlier than usual on Tuesday morning and immediately sent a text to the NewsGryphs group chat: “my phone fast has officially ended.”

After sending that text, I opened Spotify and jammed out to my Discover Weekly playlist while getting ready.

This week, it felt like I had been thrown back in time. While yes, I had my car and my laptop, I still wasn’t connected to the world around me in a way that I was used to. This killed me, especially on the first couple days when I would reach for my phone to call someone and realize I couldn’t. Not being able to communicate outside of school freely also forced me to tell people things all at once when I was with them in person, which was overwhelming at times.

But forgetting something was worse. I’d just have to hope they checked their email or deal with them not knowing.

All in all, the phone fast sucked, and I definitely won’t reenter the world of a 1980’s teen any time soon.

PHOTOS: KATELYN GRISHAM ‘18 PICTURES FROM TOP-TO-BOTTOM: JUNIOR CAROLYN LANE LOOKS AT HER MAP IN FRUSTRATION. WHILE THIS PHOTO IS POSED, LANE HAD TO RELY ON PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF ROADS IN ORDER TO NAVIGATE. / LANE TURNS ON THE RADIO, WHILE JUNIOR GRACE KENLEY USES SPOTIFY. LANE WAS UNABLE TO USE HER PHONE FOR MUSIC DURING HER WEEK-LONG EXPEDITION. / LANE ADJUSTS THE VOLUME OF HER CAR’S RADIO. LANE HAD TO LISTEN TO THE RADIO AND ITS COMMERCIALS EVERY DAY, MUCH TO HER DISMAY.

10

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

The Gryphon Gazette

Arts & Entertainment

Mischief Managed

I read all eight “Harry Potter” books in a week Laura McDowell ’17 Communications Editor

L

ike most millennials, Harry Potter played a significant role in my childhood — except that, prior to last Friday, I had never touched a Harry Potter book in my life. No, I didn’t read them on some early Internet website or check out the audiobooks from my local library. I never read them, because, believe it or not, I was a brat.

Elementary-school Laura made the conscious decision to not read Harry Potter books because she believed doing things that everyone else did was lame. I have since learned to enjoy things, and my heart has thawed a little.

This adventure was just as painful as Harry’s scar. I have never been more stressed in my entire life.

(The things I do for this paper, honestly.) However, to the dismay of my younger self, I actually enjoyed the books a lot. It seems that I am not immune to pop culture after all.

Prior to agreeing to, actually suggesting, this journey, my knowledge of Harry Potter was quite limited. Here is a list of things I knew, or at least thought I knew: 1. There were wizards.

2. Ron and Hermione got together, but I didn’t know why.

3. There was a big snake.

4. Dementors and Death-Eaters were the same thing (turns out they aren’t).

5. Butterbeer was real beer (nope. it’s not real beer).

“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”

My introduction to this book was rocky.

I started incredibly bitter, as I had no idea why I was reading what seemed like countless pages about the Dursleys. Since I didn’t live completely under a rock, I did know that Harry lived with his aunt and uncle, but it didn’t click with me until they were properly introduced as such. Apparently, I, like the intended audience of this book, have the foresight of an elementary-school-aged child.

Above everything, this book reminded me that I actually do enjoy reading. However, it also lulled me into a false sense of security. After finishing in about two and a half hours, though I did enjoy the book, I did not yet see why Harry Potter was such a phenomenon. The story was amusing and I enjoyed reading it, but this was still a children’s book.

was a little much for me, so I had to put the book away for a while.

The best part of this book is most definitely a quote by Mr. Dursley himself, in which he said, “WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT SAYING THE ‘M’ WORD IN OUR HOUSE?” the ‘M’ word referring to magic.

This

is the funniest thing I have ever read, including my own tweets.

You would think that with reading this book 18 years after

its initial publication, I would be well-exposed to spoilers.

You would be wrong. Learning that Tom Riddle and Voldemort were the same person was one of two shocking blindsides that I experienced while I read these books.

Like I said before, I seem to have the foresight of an elementary-school child.

“Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” By this point, I had completely caved. I, Laura McDowell, liked Harry Potter. Please don’t make me say it again though because my past self might die of shame.

This book introduced hoards of new characters, including Remus Lupin, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor (and a werewolf because apparently those exist,) Professor of

“Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” The title of this book appealed to me immediately, as I had prior knowledge of the Chamber of Secrets. Well, at least I knew it existed. I had no clue what the Sorcerer’s Stone was. This book weakened my cool and calm aesthetic as I found myself…. caring about the characters.

At one point while Harry was being yelled at by Snape, I was internally defending him. This

ILLUSTRATION: ELLE VAUGHN ‘17 PHOTO: RACHEL DUCKER ’17 SENIOR LAURA MCDOWELL READS “HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE.” MCDOWELL READ ALL EIGHT HARRY POTTER BOOKS IN A WEEK.

Arts & Entertainment

Divination Sybill Trelawney, who predicts Harry’s death nearly every class (I also predict my own death nearly every class), and Sirius Black, the prisoner of Azkaban himself.

I owe Sirius my deepest apologies, as I believed until the bitter end that he was evil. This was my second blindside. When I learned that he and James Potter were best friends, I was personally offended. But, like the Ministry of Magic, I judged him before I had all the details.

“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” Picture this: me in my bed.

It’s 2:00 a.m. I had just gotten ready for bed after finally putting down this book. After about 15 minutes of doing nothing but thinking about this book, I pick it up again. I loved this book.

Other than being bitter towards Ron and Harry for fighting at the beginning, I loved every minute.

This book is what made me finally and completely buy into the phenomenon. It made every late night over the course of the past week-and-a-half worth it.

If you’ve never read Harry Potter, a club of few that I have just exited, I would recommend it based solely on this book.

The Gryphon Gazette

KEY:

11

“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” This was another thing I knew!

I actually had quite a bit of knowledge of this book, even though I’ve never seen the movie. I knew Snape was the halfblood prince. I did not, however, know what the horcruxes were.

I have always wondered what they were, so I am kind of glad to finally understand what they are.

Honestly, why is Draco Malfoy such a garbage boy? Who hurt him? Throughout the entire series, I had trouble picturing Draco as a child because the PHOTO: MIRIAM BROWN ’17 amount of hate he possessed was SEVEN “HARRY POTTER” BY J.K. ROWLING SIT ON A SELF. SENIOR LAURA MCDOWELL READ THE ENTIRE SERIES AS WELL AS “THE CURSED CHILD” IN A WEEK.” astounding. Along with giving me more reasons to hate Draco, this book finally gave me an actual reason to dislike Snape. glad I visited, even if reading the the Cursed Child,” J.K. Rowling, I There’s nothing quite like dislikknow money is great and all, but series made me just as stressed ing fictional characters so much was this play really necessary? as Hermione is before exams. that your blood boils.

P.S. As for “Harry Potter and

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”

This book was a perfect end to the series. Do you hear that, J.K. Rowling?

“The Cursed Child” is not needed. The book was a little slow at first, and since I wanted nothing more after “Harry Potter a week of Harry Potter to and the finally be finished, that was quite unfortunate. And I Order of the missed Ron, a lot.

Phoenix” Once it started picking up the pace, it was just as good The high of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” was not long- as I had hoped. There was a war! Fighting! Death! I feel lasting. As soon as I finished, I it is important to note that I picked up this book, which is about 200 pages too long. I hon- still don’t like Snape, and I do not care that I am supposed to estly don’t even know if I liked this book because I was annoyed feel bad for him.

This book gave me what the entire time, since it took I look for in a final book: what felt like approximately the rest of eternity to read. In reality, There were no loose ends and no remaining questions. it was only three evenings.

I was satisfied. After over Not only was it too long, but it a million words, I finally hurt me to my very core. Please never speak to me about the fact closed the pages to the last that Harry didn’t open Sirius’ gift of the original seven Harry Potter books and left Hogof a two-way mirror until Sirius warts behind. And yes, I am was already dead.

Favorite book

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

Least favorite book

After a million words, I finally closed the pages to the last of the original seven Harry Potter books and left Hogwarts behind.

Source: Wikipedia and Flickr

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Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

The Gryphon Gazette

In-Depth

Money on their minds

SENIOR ANNIE VENTO RECEIVES A CUTCO DEMONSTRATION FROM SENIOR NOAH POPE IN THIS POSED PHOTO. POPE HAS BEEN WORKING AT CUTCO SINCE LAST SUMMER

PHOTO: KATELYN GRISHAM ‘18

Cutco promises big bucks for students. Do they deliver?

Annie Vento ’17 Co-Editor In Chief

W

hen listening to senior Noah Pope speak about Cutco, one could be forgiven if for thinking he was describing Stratton Oakmont from “The Wolf of Wall Street.”

“If you walk into a Cutco meeting and you’re sitting there, there’s tons of screaming, tons of cheering loud. It’s controlled chaos,” Pope said.

Like Stratton Oakmont, Cutco can sound like a nonstop fraternity party: men are screaming exclamations of joy and motivation, the atmosphere is loud and chaotic, and they all have money on their mind.

The young men who work at Cutco are motivated by the over-the-top shenanigans that encourage them to reach their monetary goals, from cash giveaways to literally breaking through boards that represent obstacles.

“You write your goal on the board and under it you write what’s going to stop you from getting that goal on the board, and you have to break the board basically,” Pope said. “There are people breaking it with their heads, breaking it with hammers, like you’re breaking through the things that are going to stop [you] from getting your goal.”

Pope, who plays varsity football and is Prefect of Connections this year, has been working at Cutco since 2015 when he

was called during the summer and found out the job started at $18 an hour.

He had never heard of Cutco before, but he went in for the interview looking to make some money. Two years later, Pope is at 40 percent commission, has become a well-known name around the St. George’s-Cutco sphere and even considered working as a district manager this summer.

A knife-selling giant Cutco now has over 200 offices across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico and over 60,000 employees working annually, most of whom are high school or college students. Within the St. George’s community, over 18 current students have worked for Cutco, 10 of whom worked there for less than a month.

Later on, many of those 10 students would go on to claim the business was a scam or a pyramid scheme.

Vector Marketing is the parent company that sells Cutco products and hires new employees, and those who are recruited are tasked with selling the product, which is primarily knives but also includes an assortment of other kitchen utensils.

When new employees are recruited, they practice the one-hour demo on their friends and family, and at the end of those appointments, they are given referrals of people who may be interested in buying Cutco.

“It gets you really comfortable and is a really great way to first start out because then you get into the rhythm of mak-

ing phone calls [and] making demos,” sophomore Austin Wall said. “Because it’s friends and family, you can ask for feedback, and you’re comfortable getting sometimes negative feedback, sometimes positive.”

The more students sell at Cutco, the higher their commission rate is. All new employees start at 10 percent commission, meaning they would make $100 off a $1,000 sale. Selling $1,000 brings you to 15 percent, $3,000 to 20 percent, $6,000 to 25 percent, $10,000 to 30 percent, and the commission can go as high as 50 percent if you become an assistant manager.

The Cash For almost all students who pursue jobs at Cutco, their motivation is simple: it pays well.

“My friends are talking about their summer jobs, and they’re like, ‘Yeah, every week I make 400 dollars.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, I made 400 dollars just going to one person,’” Pope said. The most Pope ever made in a week was about $2,800, and he worked so much his first summer that he started making more money than his mom.

Like Pope, senior Alex Middleton has been working at Cutco since the summer of 2015, needing the money to pay for gas, food and going out with his girlfriend.

However, Middleton said that the money isn’t immediate and only comes from working hard.

“It’s not a job where you go in and quickly make a ton of money. You have to work really hard to make money in it,” Middleton said. “How much you put into it is how much you get out of it.

When someone starts working at Cutco, they are asked to give numbers of their friends who they think would be interested in working at Cutco, and these are the people who Cutco reaches it out to via phone calls and text messages.

Sophomore Austin Wall took an interest in Cutco after Middleton referred him to the job. His motivations included wanting to save up for the spring break trip to Europe and to put the unique job experience on his resume. However, after starting work this July, he soon began to appreciate Cutco’s flexibility with his busy schedule.

“Because I am active in sports, I am active in the band at church, I am active with friends ... they allow you to kind of make your own work hours,” Wall said. “It really helps [active students] out because not only are they making a good amount of money, but it also gives them the freedom to schedule around things they have going on in their life.”

The Conflict On the other side of the spectrum are the St. George’s students and faculty who worked at Cutco for as little as one day, many of whom cited issues ranging from not feeling extroverted enough to feeling harassed by management.

In-Depth Eleventh-grade biology teacher Mr. Sam Abrams worked at Cutco for one day in college before he realized that it wasn’t for him.

“If I wanted a job, I wanted an actual job and not one that necessitates that I call all these people that I don’t know and make these appointments with people I don’t know and push something that I don’t really care about,” Mr. Abrams said.

“You definitely need to have those people skills and not really care about strangers shooting you down, which at the time that was a huge phobia of mine.”

For others who have worked at Cutco, they feel they had difficulty selling when Middleton and Pope, who began selling to a new group of the St. George’s community last summer, had already sold to many families.

“90 percent of the people I called who were friends with my parents or family already had Cutco, and about seven out of 10 of the people I would call would say, ‘I already have Cutco — I don’t really need any more. Thanks though,’” junior Steven Smith, who currently works at Cutco, said.

“It’s really hard and frustrating to be successful.”

Although some people can sell Cutco to a customer multiple times, like Pope, others cited discomfort at coming off pushy, meaning most Cutco sales are one-time sales.

“Everyone already has Cutco, and everyone who doesn’t has already been called by like 50 people,” senior Austin Skinner said. He stated that he received about four texts and eight calls from Cutco asking him if he wanted a job, all of which he denied.

Although being successful in the field was difficult for some, the workplace difficult can also pose as a challenge for those who don’t fit in. As many current Cutco employees described the job as “high school guys selling knives,” one can

The Gryphon Gazette see how high school girls may not find the community as inviting.

“Everyone above you is a man and then even people who are somewhat above you are men,” senior Faith Huff, who worked for Cutco for three weeks, said. “It was kind of sexist.”

After working at Cutco for three weeks this past summer, senior Devon Johnson quit his job, citing harassment issues from managers and calling Cutco “the biggest lie in the world.”

“They were harassing me. I didn’t like it,” Johnson said. “They kept forcing me to go to meetings, [and] I didn’t want to go to meetings. They called me every morning at 9 o’clock asking me how many appointments I had set up, and I did not like that.”

After he quit, Johnson began to build a lawsuit against Cutco, wanting to accuse them of harassment and not paying him his $18.

“Every time you have an appointment you get paid that $18 regardless, so I didn’t get paid that,” Johnson said. Johnson was also frustrated with the way that Cutco continued to send text messages to his friends, whose numbers Johnson gave to Cutco when he was first hired, and told them that they had just hired Johnson after he quit. He did not go through with the lawsuit and now works at Pyro’s Fire Fresh Pizza.

The Controversy Although Cutco has become wellknown within the St. George’s community, it is also infamously known among students for its incessant calls and texts for job recruitment.

According to an email survey sent to upper school students, out of 91 respondents, 72 students, or more than 75 percent, have received a call or text asking if they were interested in working for Cutco.

Among those students, about 45 percent

were called or texted four or more times.

Junior Anna Harbert said that she received 15 calls in one week from the same person after she was recommended by one of her friends.

“They kept on calling me and calling me, so I eventually had to tell them I [didn’t] want a job, but they still wouldn’t stop calling me,” Harbert said. “Sometimes I feel like it’s a scam, and the knives may not be as good as they seem to be. It’s just odd, and it seems kind of like telemarketers.”

Likewise, senior Grace Optican, whose boyfriend and brother both worked for Cutco, admits the calls gave her anxiety because she was afraid to tell them she didn’t want a job.

“One time I was so nervous about getting a call from them that, because I don’t like telling people ‘no,’ I was like, ‘Can you call me back?’ So then I gave them my number and then I hung up and blocked their number so, when they called back, it just wouldn’t go through,” Optican said.

“I really get uncomfortable telling people ‘no.’”

However, Pope doesn’t view the calls as negatively as others may because it was through a recruitment call that he learned about Cutco. “I guess the calls do get annoying, but what if they didn’t do those calls?” Pope said. “Then people like me wouldn’t get the job.”

These constant calls to recruit new employees have led many, both locally and nationally, to accuse Cutco of being a scam and a pyramid scheme.

“They’re really shady,” senior Robert Grissom said, who was called four times and texted twice about working for Cutco.

“Some things they do I would consider a scam, like how they pay their people.”

Similar to a pyramid scheme, Cutco benefits from recruiting more members because the newest employees only make 10 percent commission, meaning Cutco and

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

13

Vector Marketing profit the most off their newest members, many of whom quit before they can increase their commission rate to a significant amount.

Additionally, current Cutco workers can receive incentives if they recruit their friends and that friend sells $1,000 after getting the job. According to Middleton, you can win a Yeti cup for recruiting one person, custom Costa or Rayband sunglasses for recruiting three, and even winning a one-person ticket for a cruise if you recruit 10.

“That’s why people get calls constantly.

It’s high school guys, [and] they want free Yetis, free sunglasses, one of them is 100 bucks cash,” Middleton said. “They want that — why not bug your friends for it?”

While Cutco is generous to its employees with gifts when certain goals are reached, they are also known for paying employees well who work hard. In the case of Pope, the job was so lucrative that he began to buy things just because he could.

“I like buying pointless material things, like I’m really big into watches. I’ve probably spent $2,000 on watches,” Pope said.

“I was making so much money at Cutco that in between appointments, I would go to the mall just because I was bored, and I was like, ‘Well, I guess I’ll buy a new outfit for my next appointment.’”

Cutco can be unbelievably rewarding for students who work hard to sell, leaving those employees with higher commissions or those who serve as managers with so much money they don’t know what to do with it. But, with an average net sales of $200 million annually, it may be that the biggest winner of all in this equation is Cutco.

Hard Day’s Night continued

W Students Who

Moments like this in the workplace have caused Little to mature and taught her the value of independence.

“Everybody needs to find a kind of independence,” Little said.

Little does ensure that work never gets in the way of her school work. She has made sure that she and her managers have an understanding that school comes first, and everything else falls behind. Little believes that having a job is helping her learn how to “balance things when it comes to my many extracurriculars.” Overall, Little trusts that her experience in the workforce is helping her “find herself.”

Now that Robinson is in his senior year, cutting back hours at work was a necessity for him. He has been able to focus more on the college process and integrate new hobbies into his life. Robinson states that this new way of life has “gotten [him] into a more relaxed groove.”

“Last year, my mindset was make as much money as I can,” Robinson said.

“Now, I have shifted to enjoying my life more.”

Why do students work? Our survey found 71.2% need the extra money, while 17.6% have too much free time.

Out of the students who took our survey, 54.9% of them work for pay.

R K

Relatively high numbers of students work in child care (37.5%) and lifeguarding (19.2%), while only 1.7% of our students work in agriculture and 2.5% work in coaching.

The majority of kids who work began in the 9th and 10th grade.

22.4% began in the 9th and 23.2% began in 10th. Students who began working their senior year had the smallest percentage, 2.4%.

INFOGRAPHIC: KAITLYEN BOWMAN ’19 & WILL BROWN ’19

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Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016

The Gryphon Gazette

Opinion

T

he Commercial Appeal ran a story in May 2016 about St. George’s three-campus model and the first five graduates to begin their journey on the Memphis Campus, titled “Pioneering St. George’s Students Navigate Academic and Cultural Minefield.” The Gryphon Gazette reached out to a broad spectrum of people in the St. George’s community to ask if they would write a response to the Commercial Appeal article. These are the responses we received. We recognize that this may not represent every perspective in the school on this issue, so if you feel like your perspective was not represented here, we would love to hear from you. Respones that follow our guidelines will be published on our website, thegryphongazette.org.

Essence Davis ‘17 Student In response to the ‘First Class: St. George’s Experiment’ Commercial Appeal article documented by Jane Roberts, which focuses on the recently graduated class of 2016, I think it is amazing to have the experiences of being a black student at St. George’s verbalized and recorded. It can be difficult to get others to understand your

Dr. Russ Wigginton Former Board Member & parent Soon after joining the advisory committee I was asked to join the St. George’s Schools board as the middle and high school were founded. Early on in this role I was involved in countless strategic conversations with trustees, parents and citizens. Many of these conversations were intense and filled with questions about the unknown. Even today there are some who ask the same type questions: How will this work? Why would you engineer integration? What will be the school’s reputation? While I can appreciate the inferences behind these questions, my response has always been grounded in St. George’s having the foresight, courage and conviction to do what the school believes is the right thing to do. The school has never wavered from its decision. The school continues to grow and get better. While many other schools in the local area would never admit it, St. George’s has pushed them to re- examine themselves and their values. St. George’s has made them all better.

One of my most coveted recognitions was receiving the St. George’s Medal for Community Service. It matters to me because it comes from an institution that embodies so much of what I believe we’re all here for-- -stand up and be counted as individuals and a community, be willing to take risks and be accountable for the consequences and be the change you want to see.

Time will tell the story of the St. George’s ‘experiment.’ I am convinced that fifty years from now people will applaud the good work of the St. George’s community.

Mr. Jamie Roszel English Teacher Ask my students how much I profess to care what others think and I hope the answer will be a unanimous, “I don’t.” It is not that I don’t care about people, but rather the opposite. I love teaching because of the opportunity to connect with my students. Many other professions prevent these connections, but school environments encourage camaraderie and participation in a community. So, why don’t I care about opinions? Because everyone has one and we shouldn’t be able to hide behind them.

Simply put, the phrases, “I think,” “I feel,” and “I believe” just shouldn’t be enough to justify a person’s position on an issue.

When asked to respond to The Commercial Appeal’s profile on St. George’s, I thought carefully about my position before

struggles, especially when they themselves may not face similar challenges, so I truly appreciate this platform, which allowed the commonly silenced perspectives a chance to speak. The controversy that this article has created, however, is no surprise to me.

Whenever the uncomfortable topics come up, there will always be someone ready to sugarcoat the situation in the hopes of minimizing majority discomfort. “Damage control” is not what situations like these

need. What St. George’s as a community needs is empathy, empathy derived from the want to understand instead of prejudge, a want to diversify instead of divide.

Moreover, in response to those who said, “He [Will Courtney ‘16] could have said that better’” or “I agree, but the way he presented it would have come across better if he (insert new behavior here),” it seems as though their (Will Courtney’s, Zearius Jenkins’, Erica Stevenson’s, Autumn Jones’,

Paige Madison’s, Donovan Borum’s) points were overlooked, minimized and replaced with people’s needs to grammatically correct and eloquently restate their reality. It is important to remember that sometimes, it’s more important that you say something, anything, rather than sit back and watch injustices take place. As Zora Neale Hurston once said, “If you are silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it.” So let us speak!

Sometimes, it’s more important that you say something, anything, rather than sit back and watch injustices take place.” - Essence Davis ’17, student Mr. Mac McCarroll Parent

ILLUSTRATION: ELLE VAUGHN ‘17

“While many other schools in the local area would never admit it, St. George’s has pushed them to reexamine themselves and their values.”

- Dr. Russ Wigginton, former Board Member and parent writing it down. Here is what I know to be true regarding the content of the article: The St. George’s “experiment” is wellintended and we are fighting the good fight.

American schools are more segregated now than they were in the 1960’s. The odds that an African-American student attends an underperforming school are exponentially higher than the odds that a caucasian student will do so. The article highlighted challenges that our model encounters, but challenges are not a reason for not doing something. As a school, we have chosen to take on these challenges Diversity is better. Think it doesn’t matter whether you can get along with people who look different than you? According to Scientific American, “Citizens of other countries now receive more than half the Ph.D.s awarded by U.S. universities in engineering, computer science and physics, on top

I am proud of what St. George’s is trying to do, and I also appreciated the candor of all those quoted in the article. There will always be cultural differences between the races. That is a simple fact. But access to a St. George’s education, for those who qualify, tends to level the playing field of life regardless of culture. To try and paint this process as perfect is completely unrealistic, but accepting the imperfections, and trying to improve and move forward, is definitely the way to go. The races have to exist together, and the better we understand and appreciate our similarities and differences, the more groundwork there is to move forward.

“Access to a St. George’s education tends to level the playing field of life regardless of culture.” - Mr. Mac McCarroll, parent

“The St. George’s ‘experiment’ is well-intended and we are fighting the good fight.”

- Mr. Jamie Roszel, English Teacher of earning one third of all college degrees in science and engineering.” We are now a global society and what happens to some of us impacts all of us. We can’t have isolated pockets of people who only care about themselves.

Natural, “organic” diversity just doesn’t seem to happen in the real world. The American Civil Rights movement was forced, as was women’s suffrage and samesex civil unions. Gender equality and equal pay in the workforce needs to be addressed, and letting companies organically decide when to make it happen is turning a blind eye to the situation. As a school, we should confidently encourage integration: in the classroom, during social events, and on the athletic field. Double down on what works and refine it. Stop doing what doesn’t. Patting ourselves on the back for getting people in the same room isn’t enough. Studies

have shown that unequal exposure to other races and members of other socioeconomic classes can often reinforce stereotypes; this means it isn’t enough to get people in the same room. We need to be united by what defines us, not divided by our zip codes or the stickers on our cars. Focusing on a deliberately chosen, common purpose will help to achieve that unity.

St. George’s is the only school in the Memphis area to which I applied to work; its mission is bold, especially in a city as divided as Memphis. However, our founding principles do not remove from our shoulders the responsibility to continue to provide a diverse, engaging environment for our students, faculty and families. Awareness does not equal action. I hope to see St. George’s build on its vision of a diverse student body and faculty that serves all families.

OPINION POLICY: The Gryphon Gazette opinion section is a venue for the free expression of student views at St. George’s Independent School. The opinions represented in this section are those of the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect those of the Gryphon Gazette staff or of the St. George’s community at large. The Gryphon Gazette strives to be an open forum for the thoughtful and deliberate exchange of comment and criticism, and therefore welcomes letter to the editor. Letters to the editor will be printed in the opinion section of the newspaper, should not exceed 300 words, and must be signed and accompanied by a verifiable email address. These letters will not be printed if the content is judged obscene, violates the privacy of others or encourages physical disruption of school activites.

Opinion

The Gryphon Gazette

Wednesday, Sept. 21. 2016

15

Double the standards, double the controversy

Breaking down respectability politics in dress code Regine Miller ’17 Reporter

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any people believe that there is a sense of inequality in school dress codes, and ours here at St. George’s is no different. Our ideas of professionalism and appropriateness are not only affected by what our parents tell us is right, but also by cultural and social norms.

But what are our community values exactly, and how do they affect our dress code here at school? The St. George’s dress code may be lenient compared to others, but it still reflects the double standards present in our culture at large.

For example, in athletic practices, boys are allowed to remove their entire shirts, but girls cannot train in their sports bras.

As a varsity cheerleader, I am repeatedly reminded that it would be a social faux pas for me to allow the casual slip of a bra strap during games, or even practice.

I can already see the comments now, most of which I’ve heard in the hallways: “It’s different for girls!”

“That would be a distraction!”

Let’s all just admit it: There is nothing inherently sexual about girls working out in workout wear. I mean, I know it’s called Victoria’s Secret, but truthfully, everyone knows it’s there. Is it really so bad if people see it?

I understand that most of us feel that modesty is important, and that’s fine, but to instill in the minds of young girls that they are undeserving of respect unless they conform to traditional rules of respectability?

That’s another story altogether.

In a culture that teaches women to cover up their bodies and be ashamed of them, it is not surprising that our dress code would reflect such ideas. A study conducted by Washington Education states that by age 13, 53% of American girls are dissatisfied with their bodies, and by the time they reach age 17, this number spikes to 78%.

These numbers are undoubtedly affected by what girls are shown in the media. From a very young age, girls are taught to aspire to a very specific standard of attractiveness, and that if they do not fit this standard that

they should be ashamed of themselves and hide their bodies.

They are also taught to place their physical attractiveness very high on their list of priorities. They are conditioned to believe that their bodies are their most valuable assets.

When girls begin to take interest in “perfecting” themselves, however, they are labeled vapid and unintelligent. Furthermore, their sexuality is stolen from them and exploited. They are shamed for not being sexy enough, and then shamed for being too “sexy” or revealing, and are told to cover their bodies if they want to be respected.

We have to admit that these contradictory expectations are not only confusing, but terribly tiring.

Personally, I believe that girls should be granted the same privileges that boys are, and vice versa.

However, this double standard is not just for women, and the gender-based hypocrisy in the dress code applies to boys, too, primarily about the shaving requirement and the fact that boys are not allowed to wear earrings.

A clean-shaven face, one that is framed with trimmed hair and piercing-free ears, is viewed as the pinnacle of professionalism.

However, no one ever asks why this is. Not to make a stretch here, but not only does this policy ignore multiculturalism, the coexistence and representation of diverse cultures, but it also subscribes to respectability politics and Eurocentric standards of decency.

Some American black boys, for example, see ear piercings as a part of their culture, as do many other cultures across the globe.

Male earrings are, however, closely associated to American hip-hop culture, which often carries connotations of “thug” culture and the stereotypical aesthetic of black people who commit crimes. It is important to remember that all of the men who enjoy this style and fit this aesthetic do not fit the negative connotations associated with it.

ILLUSTRATION: ELLE VAUGHN ‘17 Earrings are beautiful on women, so why are we hesitant to believe that they are also beautiful on men? Not only are they beautiful, but in some cases may be ceremonial.

For example, boys in Nepal, Sri Lanka, and other Asian countries pierce their ears as a sign of their newfound adulthood.

Many successful men have or have had earrings at some point. There is nothing fundamentally unprofessional about them.

Will Smith, for example, is one of the most successful men in Hollywood, and he attends even his business meetings donning his diamond studs! Of course, this might have something to do with the fact that his industry is more forgiving when it comes to such things, but who is to say that other industries should not follow suit?

This is a harmful idea to reinforce, and it is more detrimental than people think.

The problem here isn’t the dress code

itself. In theory, the dress code is in place for the good of the student body. It is a mechanism that strives toward the goal of a school environment that is as distractionfree as possible.

But why do we consider these things distracting? What about our culture is so pervasive that it sexualizes the nonsexual body parts of women and holds men to a standard of professionalism that is not reflective of multiple cultures and beliefs?

Culture does shape people, but it does not make them. People make culture.

Therefore, if our culture is one that enforces and perpetuates hypersexualization and respectability politics, we have the power to change it.

Because, honestly…how stimulating can my shoulders really be?

Editorial

How we can protect the honor code from favortism, ambiguity Staff editorials are written by the editorsin-chief and agreed upon by the editorial board. The following count represents our editorial board’s stance on the editorial. As always, letters to the editor on the editorial are encouraged. Our policy for letters is located on page 14.

Agree: 9/11 Disagree: 1/11 Abstain: 1/11

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he St. George’s Honor Code is an essential part to our identity as a school. It’s everywhere: hung in every classroom, written on every assessment and recited in every chapel. All students are well aware of the importance the honor code holds, but nobody knows exactly what the consequences of honor code violations are.

When the honor code is broken, they go

to the student-led honor council, who then determines an appropriate punishment for said violation. But what next? The honor council is sworn to secrecy, so the average student only hears rumors of what goes on behind the closed doors. People who break the honor code receive their punishment, and then they and their punishments can promptly disappear into the shadows.

Although this confidentiality between those who break the honor code and the honor council themselves is understandable, other students are left in the dark about what will happen if they break rules.

Students need more visibility with these disciplinary issues. When the Class of 2017 visited Victory Ranch last year, many groups brought up a need for a more clear code of conduct that outlined punishments for specific offenses. While every situation is different, having set punishments for particular rules, such as dress code infractions, will

help ensure that students are treated fairly, and no one benefits from favoritism.

Sometimes, an infraction is embarrassingly public. Everyone is aware of exactly what happened, but because of the confidentiality of the honor code, it often appears that there was no consequence for their actions.

It is understandable if an offense is done privately and thus dealt with secretly, but public infractions call for public accountability. Public apologies, or other forms of public accountability, would give students insight into the infraction and would reconcile the relationship between the student and the administration. While this could be on the verge of public shaming, the honor council can make this optional for those who break the honor code and possibly lower the punishment or offer another sort of incentive if they would like to do so.

Additionally, how they deliver the public apology and how specific they want to be

can be on the student’s own terms.

While students need to know more about the consequences, we also need to create greater accountability for violations that teachers may not notice. In a sense, there needs to be a system where students can privately express possible honor code violations they witness without feeling like they are “snitching.” One possibility is creating an anonymous survey where students can report possible infractions they see or hear and the honor council can pursue serious or recurring reports from there. Although students may abuse this system with spam entries, the honor council can investigate reports that appear multiple times or things they believe to be serious.

In order to ensure students know what the honor code is, the punishments when it is broken, and that it is enforced fairly, there need to be new measures taken within the honor council itself and the administration.

Arts & Entertainment

INSIDE OUT

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The Gryphon Gazette

Wednesday, Sept. 21. 2016

16

RACHEL DUCKER ’17 PHOTOGRAPHER

n this piece, I used a technique called double exposure, which was historically done by redeveloping film that had already been used. In this series of photos, I wanted to capture my subjects inlayed in something that describes part of who they are. This photo essay features senior Noah Pope and a football field, junior Emma Pounders and the theater, sophomore Jensen Lewis and her mandolin and eighth grader Joy Huff and a dance studio.