Lodge Issue 6.2

Co-Editors-In-Chief

Anna Schmiedicke ‘23

Sienna Lightman ‘24

Arts Editors

Trinity Cannon ‘23

Erin Johnson ‘23

Photography Editor

Seth Taub ‘23

Design Editor

Natalie Howard ‘23

Web Editor

Hannah Morrison ‘23

Copy Editor

Mary Beth Skelton ‘23

Livi VanSteenberg ‘25

Social Media Editor

Emily Zhao ‘24

Staff

Mayyadah Alzaben ‘23

Libbie Davis ‘23

Reese Dlabach ‘23

Jordan Giles ‘23

Reagan Goodwin ‘23

Ella Straub ‘23

Lauren White ‘23

Darryl Williams Jr. ‘23

Kate Winstead ‘23

Olivia Vitale ‘24

Kirklyn Moore ‘25

Abbi Whitehead ‘25

Advisor

Mr. Zack Adcock

Cover Illustration by Mayyadah Alzaben ‘23

About Us:

The Lodge and gryphonlodge.com are dedicated to serving as an unbiased and authentic voice for the students of St. George’s Independent School. We at the Lodge 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 Lodge is affiliated with the Tennessee High School Press Association and the National Scholastic Press Association. The Lodge is funded by advertisers, donors and St. George’s Independent School and is published once every eight weeks during the school year by schoolprinting. com. The Lodge prints and distributes 300 copies of each issue to 700 students and faculty on the St. George’s Collierville campus. Bylines indicate the primary writer(s) of each article, and additional contributors are indicated in the shirttail. All of our content is written, edited, and designed by our staff unless otherwise clearly stated. The Lodge provides free advertising for student clubs, events and activities and paid advertisements for local businesses. The Lodge welcomes letters to the editor and article submissions. To submit a letter, article or request for advertising, email our staff at thelodge@sgis.org.

Four Houses One Gryphnation

Trials and Errors in the House System

By Darryl Williams Jr.

The House System is a fairly new concept to St. George’s Independent School, introduced in the 2018-19 school year under the leadership of Current Middle School Director Mrs. Emmy McClain and the student government. Mrs. McClain stated that her intentions behind it were to “create connectivity across grade levels to really pull the freshmen in quickly and give [the upper school] something other than sports to connect to other people.”

The houses allow for people to enjoy the company of other students throughout the upper school. The House System presents an array of activities for students: volleyball games, tug of war matches, trivia matches and trips to Shelby Farms. These examples represent just the tip of the iceberg of activities that come with the House System.

House Days only come every so often, so they may take students by surprise. Under the right circumstances, (i.e., not a global pandemic) there are typically two House Days per semester.

Although things are not completely back to normal, restrictions have eased up significantly compared to last year. With the mask mandate and social distancing rules being lifted, it has been easier to have these group activities. Even after the “recovery,” the reality is that there are still only one or two House Days per year.

Mr. Taylor Cao, Director of Student Life, believes that the students should always have input on what house days look like.

“From my student government,

we have a pretty diverse group of students and organizations on our campus, so I try to make sure I get their values and their input, but also from adults with what they want,” he said.

Many students believe that House Days have been successful and that the competitiveness of them is fun and exciting. These students push for incorporating them more in the schedule. Other students feel that their interests are not reflected in the offerings.

While there may be conflicting opinions regarding these activities, it is apparent that the upper school student body finds House Days enjoyable because of the exciting games and leisure time that they bring.

Mrs. McClain remarked on House Days as “the funnest days of school [she’s] ever been in.”

Students believe that the best way to improve the House System is to simply have more House Days.

Senior and Prefect of Religion Mary Alice Murphy commented on how “there weren’t as many activities as last House Day” and how she anticipated it to be “more than just like what there actually was.”

The contrasting emotions have been voiced by both students, which has led to a shared feeling of being left in the dark.

There are a number of factors that come into play regarding the apparent disorganization of the House System. For one, it is fairly new to the school and has only been active for five years. As a result, there has not been enough time for traditions and expectations to be put in place.

Also, the fact that there was a pandemic that put everything on hold for a couple of years cannot go unmentioned.

So, yes, there are holes in the House System, but the blame cannot be placed directly on one person, thing or event. The only thing that can be done from here is to keep pushing forward.

This year, there was a change in the House System with the addition of the House Groups. In essence, the House Groups were different subdivisions of people already in a specific house.

Mr. Cao explained that this idea came about after the general student general feedback was that “they don’t know kids in other grades.” So, the House Groups were born in an attempt to make the upper school closer, said Cao.

In these groups, there were smaller scale activities that were done during advisory every other Monday. In this time, the House Groups would compete with each other or other houses in spelling bees or other games to get to know each other.

This addition was met with both a lack of enthusiasm and appreciation from some people.

Junior Drake Gonzalez commented on how “there was no point,” saying, “We did the House Group stuff and it would just be a teacher in there and we [were] answering questions with a teacher. We [weren’t] really talking to each other. So why not just keep the big groups?”

On the other hand, Sophomore Kerrigan Jackson expressed how she had grown to like them. “I personally liked the House Groups because it allowed smaller groups

within the House to meet and do different activities and have a chance to get to know each other.”

After only existing for about half of the first semester, those reactions resulted in getting rid of the House Groups all together.

However, there is still hope for the House System. Mr. Cao and the student government are committed to keeping their promise in being able to do everything in their power to make high school as enjoyable as possible.

Action is being taken when it comes to voicing recommendations, as Mr. Cao recommended. Upper School Student Government President Jamez Jordan has already been in conversation with Mr. Cao as far as his goals going forward.

He said that he wants to “utilize the House System in a way that’s not everyday, but at least weekly status within the school system.”

With some years under its belt, the House System will be capable of reaching its potential.

Jordan has optimistic thoughts regarding the future of the House System.

“As far as [the House System] is right now, I think we’re making progress. And in a couple years it will be a full functioning program,” he said.

Tough as Nails

Swamp Strong

Untouchable

Griffin Jackson ‘23 and Chase Sutton ‘25 watch the House Day competition.

Mary Wilkes Dunavant ‘23 peforms the Honey Locust chant during the first 2022-2023 House Day.

Lorelai Michael ’25 and Caroline Wood ’25 have fun during a House Day event at Shelby Farms.

Kyle Curlee ‘26 and West Smith ‘26 pose before showing off their house chant.

Photography by Seth Taub

Are we ready to finally bring back field trips?

By Reese Dlabach and Libbie Davis

As field trips are making their slow comeback after COVID-19, Mrs. Pamela McCarthy, Upper School Director, described the process of planning and executing each year’s trips.

“[For] the class field trips, the content field trips, I get a note, a teacher’s request to do it,” she explained. Mrs. McCarthy added that the teachers “work with Mr. Cao to make sure that there’s nothing… on the calendar.”

Upper School English teacher, current junior team leader and former senior team leader Ms. Marilee Malott provided insight on her responsibility in planning and executing grade-wide field trips.

As the 2019-2020 senior team leader in charge of the trip to nowhere, Ms. Malott said she “had a lot of discretion [with] what the event would look like, what activities [they] would do [and] an overarching goal for the event.”

As the new junior team leader this year, Ms. Malott thinks the junior retreat is “incredibly significant. The retreat really focuses on

the idea of leadership and sort of stepping from junior year and … casting a vision for [the juniors’] role as leaders senior year.”

When comparing the junior retreat to her 21 years of teaching at multiple schools, Ms. Malott said she had “never seen a school, other than this one, that gives students so much voice, and at least an opportunity to ask for change.”

Although the pandemic caused much field trip disruption, field trip shifts and changes are also the result of other decisions within the school.

Prior to COVID-19, the Class of 2023 had already experienced setbacks in their field trips. It was a tradition at St. George’s that every eigth grade class takes a trip to Six Flags in St. Louis, Missouri. During the 2018-2019 school year, the then-8th graders were excited for their turn to have fun and grow closer with their peers at the amusement park and engage in fulfilling service opportunities.

However, many would end up disappointed as the school decided to cancel the trip and send the kids to YMCA Camp Widjiwagan, near Antioch, Tennessee, as an alternative. With their transition

into high school coming up, the Class of 2023 was looking forward to bigger and better field trip opportunities.

Once COVID hit during their freshman year, field trips became a thing of the past. The current senior class has gone over three years without any form of field trips. When asked about his experience with field trips, senior Deacon Larson shared disappointment for the lack of field trips.

“In middle school, we had a bunch of fun field trips,” said Larson. He spoke highly of the anticipation that came with them. Now, after almost four years of high school, he recalls how “[this year’s seniors] never really had fun field trips to look forward to.”

Middle school director and former Director of Student Life Mrs. Emmy McClain said, “that the biggest impact COVID had was … the transportation. [In the first year of COVID] we couldn’t do anything because people weren’t really hosting, and because we couldn’t get transportation and keep people however many feet apart on a bus.”

As restrictions change and lift, St. George’s has been working to

navigate the adjustments in the field trip process.

“Now as [field trips] return, … the transportation has become a real limiting factor because it’s at such high demand, and drivers are so hard to find that the cost for the transportation can be as much as, if not more than, the whole trip itself,” Mrs. McClain explained.

“[On the other hand] if you’re going on a trip that’s like … [an] SGGO trip, … a lot of [costs] are covered as extra fees from the kids,” said Mrs. McClain.

Following the announcement of the SGGO Colorado trip returning this year, upper school science teacher Mr. Michael Masters explained that the decrease in COVID restrictions “makes [trips] easier, which is why they’re kind of unfolding … again this semester.”

With field trip excitement bubbling, faculty has started to feel a bit of pressure to provide the perfect field trip.

“I think there is some expectation for students who haven’t had them in a while, and so for [trips] to live up to people’s expectations is sometimes kind of a challenge,” said Mr. Masters.

Although students might have

Two Trips Forward and One Trip Back STOPPED

high expectations, many are just happy that field trips are returning.

Freshman Sarah Kilmurray recalled that she’s “only been on one [field trip] because of COVID, but it was really fun … and overall it was a great experience.” Even though she has limited experience, Kilmurray is looking forward to more field trip opportunities in the future.

Having only been on the eighth grade trip, Kilmurray said “I think it’s very cool [that field trips are coming back], I’m happy about it! I’m excited!”

Kilmurray explained that she is looking forward to more trips because “[trips] create more of a sense of community because you all come together.”

Alongside students, many faculty members share the same sentiment. Mr. Masters added “I think it develops more of a sense of community … with the people who go on a trip together. Because of that shared experience, they form a deeper bond.”

Having shared experiences makes the St. George’s environment more connected. Mrs. McClain explained “the important part of trips and excursions off campus [is] all having this moment together that pulls you tighter.”

Mr. Masters shared that the impact of school trips continues on, even after leaving the St. George’s community. “They’ll … remember those trips. So it not only creates bonds, but it creates an experience that’s longer lasting, … they can then hang that on the school culture.”

Making Dreams Come True

By Sienna Lightman

Angelina David starts her own business, using her talents to make the Memphis community a better place

Princess, singer and actor? Senior Angelina David can truly do anything.

Ever since David was a kid, she has been singing and acting. She is a member of the American Music Ensemble, leader of the Gryphon Players and the winner of the Miss Milan Crown and Scepter’s “Outstanding Teen” award in June of 2022.

Part of the Miss America Organization, Miss Milan Crown and Scepter awarded David “Outstanding Teen” during her junior year when she sang and performed at the Cannon Center and won the pageant.

“It was a cool experience. I also got to meet a lot of cool people,” she remarked.

David has used her talents to found her own business: Dreams Come True Princess Parties.

Dreams Come True Princess Parties has David and other staff members dress as a wide array of characters, go to children’s birthday parties and help them create truly magical memories. David founded the business her junior year, and it continues to expand.

“I started it when I was 16 which is pretty crazy, and I had no idea how big it would get,” said David. “I put 110 percent into everything I do.”

Putting her full effort into everything, David tries to run her business as close to perfection as possible.

“I say, ‘this has to be [top] quality costumes, training and everything else.’ It’s done so well that we’re booked out like every month, we are working with the Grizzlies even,” she said.

David was inspired to start her business because of her love for theater, but could not find a job in the field, so she started a business herself.

Being a part of the AME and theater throughout her high school years also gave David the confidence to start her business and be comfortable with singing and acting in front of an unfamiliar audience.

“The only place that existed [for acting as a princess] was about to close, and you had to be 18,” said David. “I did a ton of research and still had no idea what I was getting into… I really loved the idea of doing this business, and I wanted to find a way to do it… I was like ‘I’ll just do it myself.’”

David hires actors through auditions, and they play available characters. She has much acting experience herself, using her voice and acting skills to participate in both outside-ofschool and school plays.

She recently finished acting in “The Sound of Music” for the Desoto Family Theatre, and it was her favorite play she’s ever performed in.

“‘The Sound of Music’... was so much fun, it was my favorite [play] ever. I got to meet awesome people and got to work with a great production team,” explained David.

David acted as Liesl Von Trapp, the eldest of the Von Trapp siblings in “The Sound of Music.” David is also acting in the St. George’s school play, “Beauty and the Beast,” and has been cast as Belle.

She also performs in her business as well, playing many different princesses.

“My main [princess] is Rapunzel, which is a lot of fun, but I’m also [a lookalike of] Elsa,… Mal from Descendants, Anna, Cinderella, Belle, like pretty much any princess,” said David.

Of course, starting a business has its challenges. David is the CEO of the business and has no co-partners.

David explained how running a business is a lot of time management and stress.

“I’m the only person, so I get all the complaints… it’s usually like oh, someone is running late, and I have to deal with that, or I have to tell the parents,” she said.

Also, due to tight Disney copyright restrictions, impersonating newer Disney characters is against their use laws, so with more recent characters like Elsa, for instance, David has to use the name “Ice Princess.”

Even though there are a lot of challenges, David likes to focus on the positives.

“I try to focus on the good we’ve done, and that’s why I love working with nonprofits, and we’ve gotten to do a lot of that and community events… so I try to focus on that for sure.”

In all that she does, there are many ways David has impacted the Memphis community. She is involved in the Miss Miracle organization, a charity pageant to help raise funds for Children’s Miracle Network, and is also working with Le Bonheur and St. Jude.

David’s most memorable experience from St. Jude was when one of her past clients was diagnosed with bone-marrow cancer.

“One of our past clients, she ended up having this bonemarrow cancer, and so she’s at St. Jude right now… but we made her this little video because she had her whole room decorated as Arendelle. So I made her an [Ice Queen] video, and she just loved it,” she said.

David explained why running this business is so important and memorable for her, and the children that get to experience the magic.

Angelina David ‘23 performs with the American Music Ensemble during the winter concert.

“It makes a big impact on their lives because we try to make their dreams come true,” said David. “It’s really cool [because] it’s their heroes, and it’s a cool way to bring their heroes to life; it would inspire them to… be brave.”

The near future provides the business a significant challenge, though: who is going to run the business when David goes to college?

“I really do not know what I want to do during college because I want to go to California,” said David. “I have a few people who I might see if they want to take it over because I can’t close it, it’s too big now, but I will have to see about that.”

After graduating from St. George’s, David hopes to continue her talents when she goes to college.

“My dream school is Chapman University in California,” said David. “[It] is ten minutes away from Disneyland, so I’m hoping to work as a character there … because I have so much experience.”

David also hopes to study theater and acting in college as well.

“I want to pursue a BFA in Camera Acting; they have a camera acting specific major there which is pretty cool, but that would be a really cool activity to make a lot of films there and a lot of acting stuff.”

Even though the thought of college is running in the back of David’s mind, she is still working hard at running her business. She believes that the true magic of her business is becoming the character, but still letting her and her actor’s talents live through the character.

“We actually sing at the parties too. You have to look like the character, but your talent is the most important thing for sure,” she said.

In Dreams Come True Princesses, David likes to implement the fact that the children should always show their pure talent too—so much so that, at every party, they say, “What does being a princess mean? It’s not wearing a pretty dress…it’s being brave, being fun and being true to yourself.”

Angelina David ‘23 greets children as Belle at the 45th annual Collierville Christmas Parade

Angelina David ‘23 poses for a picture at the 45th annual Collierville Christmas Parade.

Photography by Sienna Lightman

Connecting The Community

How Does St. George’s Connect with your Community?

Illustrations by Mayyadah Alzaben

on the topic of understanding different cultures. Sophomore Leinah Pathak, who identifies with certain aspects of Hinduism and Christianity, explained how the community strives for inclusivity.

“Nobody’s… against anything. And everybody’s just like, very friendly here towards… your ethnicity,” she said.

In addition, freshman Dev Dalsania, who identifies as Indian, feels included in the community when he talks about his culture’s different holidays and traditions.

“There [have been] no strong opinions against [my holidays] and everybody has always been supportive and curious about [them],” he said.

Sophomore Ayaan Aman, a follower of Islam, also reflected on how students not only respect but make an effort to learn about other cultures, and how the school tries to be inclusive.

agreed that the school is largely inclusive of Judaism.

“A lot of the time I feel like things [have been] thought about and taken into consideration… but other times I feel like not as much.”

McCollum is not alone in feeling like the school has room to grow, specifically concerning events from 2019.

2019 was an eventful year for St. George’s. According to an article from The Commercial Appeal, a former teacher endured racial slurs from students, and she was dissatisfied with the punishment, so she sued the school. Tensions were already high when a pastor came to chapel and gave a racially insensitive talk, which served as a catalyst for a conversation about inclusion in the school’s community.

Sophomore Makenna Harper agreed with Palmer and called for the community to have those hard conversations.

“We shouldn’t beat around the bush,” she explained. “I just feel like if we… actually have a hard conversation or we see that [racism] is happening still to this day, not like 200 years ago… and how it’s modernized and everything, I feel like it’ll be way better for the community as a whole.”

Additionally, Palmer remarked on how many students at this school express opinions without regard for others.

“We have people sharing opinions as if they’re facts, [and] those opinions can be very harmful to a specific community.”

By Natalie Howard, Emily Zhao and Olivia Vitale

St. George’s prides itself on having an inclusive community that welcomes all students and families regardless of “religious, racial, ethnic and socioeconomic” differences. At least, that’s what the St. George’s website says. But does St. George’s actually hold itself accountable to the level of inclusivity it advertises to the world?

Many students believe that St. George’s is making a valid effort

“There’s not a lot of Muslims here, but when I’m here, I feel appreciated. I feel like [my religion] is not a factor [that] has really affected how I’m treated here…I feel like there’s been a lot of representation done with… Hispanic Heritage Month… and I feel like if they keep doing that, I think it’ll show enough inclusiveness,” he said.

Sophomore Ari Taub, a follower of Reform Judaism, appreciates how the school acknowledged him and other Jewish students when they “brought in a rabbi… in chapel.”

Junior Lily Anne McCollum

To address these incidents, St. George’s held a “Day of Healing” in September of 2019. The school canceled classes for the day and had students participate in team-building activities, meditation and love-language identification.

Junior Elijah Palmer wished that the “Day of Healing” was more intentional with its efforts.

“With the chapel person… [a former teacher] had a whole day planned to learn about why [what he said] was wrong, why you should not think that way, and how you can improve,” he said.

But the school ended up taking a less direct route with the “Day of Healing” activities.

He continued, “a common way white people would try to associate or talk to me was through my race… They’re like…‘they’re Black, so they should know… about Black stuff.’”

He noted different stereotypes that other students would attempt to associate with him, such as loving Kool-Aid and watermelon as a Black man and knowing how to vogue as a gay man. Vogue is a dance move stereotypically associated with the LGBTQ+ community.

Mrs. Nikki Davis, the Upper School Director of Counseling and Guidance, said she has felt “singled out as someone that may have an agenda for the Black community just because [she’s] Black, so [she] think[s] there are a lot of assumptions sometimes.”

Mrs. Davis showed that she tries to keep up hope, though, adding, “I think it can be better. I will say, in general it is, and I’ve been here for eight years going on nine years so it’s definitely better to me than it has been.”

However, whether the school needs improvement or not, some think the school can only do so much in terms of diversity.

As a Latina, junior Sofia Delahoussaye believes that the efforts St. George’s has made to help connect with the Latino community are as good as they’re going to get.

She said, “It’s such a small percentage of the school that [I] don’t really feel like a larger need for representation is there.”

Regardless, when the school does more to represent her culture, she feels moved and compelled to share her perspective. She spoke about one instance from her AP English Language and Composition class.

“I almost cried in English class when we read this thing from Sonia Sotomayor,” she said, referring to a speech Sotomayor delivered to the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law titled “A Latina Judge’s Voice.”

This hit home for Delahoussaye. The lack of Puerto Rican representation she sees has become a norm. She said, “I guess it’s because Puerto Rico isn’t talked about more than a lot of other areas. But as a part of the United States, it’s very much ignored…. like the amount of times that I’ve heard things like, ‘Oh, that isn’t its own country?’”

McCollum and Delahoussaye think that inclusion in the St. George’s community is complicated. McCollum spoke on her Jewish identity, and specifically the complexity that comes with it.

“Within my minority group, it’s not like an outside appearance, like you don’t visibly see that I’m Jewish,” McCollum said. “ I look like everybody else but it’s something that is still a minority.”

She continued, “I feel like my minority is a little bit different than everybody else’s because it’s not something that you see or hear, it’s something you have to figure out.”

McCollum stated that people should be educated on different identities and not see differences as a negative thing.

“More education on minorities and different kinds of groups... [and] differences should mean that you want to be educated about people’s differences.”

When it came to religion, Delahoussaye, who identifies as Catholic, felt that St. George’s has hit the mark.

“I think they do a really good job of doing the sort of, ‘we’re Episcopal, but all people are welcome’ sort of thing.”

Pathak feels indifferent to the topic of religion. Still, she had a much stronger stance when asked about her hesitancy to share her beliefs.

“Sometimes, like when we’re talking about Christianity in classes, I’m tuning out because I’m not very familiar with that. But I’m not familiar with [Hinduism] either. So I like listening.”

The school has been put in a difficult position. On one hand, students struggle to connect with any kind of diversity training the school has tried to implement.

“They’re taking steps to try to feel, or to try to make minorities feel included, but it kind of feels performative, in a way,” said Harper. “I feel like it doesn’t necessarily work because kids already don’t want to go to those things… they’re just like, ‘Ugh, I have to sit here and listen to this.’”

On the other hand, students are also opposed to a more student-driven approach.

Freshman Gabrielle Booth said, “I think that [the school] wants things to be so student-driven that they [are] kind of just like… hands off.”

She added, “I think a lot of [students] would be very hesitant to do [anything] though because I think they’re very worried about what other kids would think about them.”

With the increasing polarization of the world and the ever growing division of our country, having difficult conversations becomes essential to the school’s sense of community, regardless of if they

are driven by students or led by the school.

Mr. Timothy Gibson, Head of School, emphasized both the importance and tricky nature of establishing these types of discourse.

“There has to be an opportunity for us to, in society, to move beyond polite conversation without stopping being polite so we can actually have honest conversations. But… [what] we tend to [see] in a lot of spaces is it’s now about the loudest voice wins, and that’s exhausting because no one’s listening if everybody’s screaming.”

Still, Mr. Gibson endorses the benefits of hard conversations.

“What I like about life is the spaces where you can find common ground. You can’t find common ground with everyone, but you can find kindness with most people if you try.”

SPACE OF OUR OWN

Student Voices in the Community

By Livi VanSteenberg

Schools are a microcosm of their larger community, reflecting aspects of their diversity and shortcomings. There are disagreements and issues that can arise, so how does each school address these? For St. George’s, students can turn to the MySpace Alliance Club.

MySpace Alliance is a club started by members of the student body focused on discussing world and community issues, both broadly and personally.

Senior Campbell Humphrey, who has been a member since 2021, explained what happens during MySpace.

“MySpace directly confronts the problems,” said Humphrey “[We discuss] anything.”

MySpace is a confidential, controlled space for its members.

Topics discussed can include anything from microaggressions in the school community to people eating in class — each is approached holistically; everyone is allowed to speak.

Having a dedicated, student-led place to talk through matters affecting their lives enables diverse viewpoints to be shared and fosters a healthy community relationship.

While Ms. Jessica Hardy, Director of College Guidance, sits in as a moderator, the student leaders, seniors DeJa Harris, Erin Johnson, Hannah Morrison and Mayyadah Alzaben are able to freely conduct discussions.

Sofia Delahoussaye, a junior and first-year member of MyS-

pace Alliance Club, spoke to the leadership.

“It’s pretty much completely student-led,” she said. “There will be teachers or counselors that sit in there, but the student leaders of the club basically decide what we do.”

Humphrey also agreed. The group offers a comfortable environment for students to express themselves.

“All the people in there are kind, and they’re good listeners and I just feel safe in there,” she said.

Delahoussaye agreed on how important safety is for communication.

“People will say their perspective as long as they’re comfortable [with] where they’re coming

from.” When students feel safer with their identities, they can express themselves more and feel much safer in the community.

One of the club leaders, Prefect of the Arts DeJa Harris, confirmed this.

“We’ve tried not to change it, keeping it an open space, a place to talk about things; talk about diversity, race, gender, all of that is welcome there,” she said.

Harris has been a member of MySpace since her freshman year and has watched how it has grown.

“It started a lot smaller, it was just a few people,” she added.

Now, MySpace has grown a significant amount.

MySpace started in 2016 as Meet in the Middle and changed

to its current moniker in 2018, the year before multiple issues of diversity came up within the community.

The impact of these matters reverberated — families left, feeling the continuous infractions were too far, especially considering personal discrimination their students had faced.

Students can frequently take a more relatable approach to explaining complex issues. A close friend addressing a problem seems more personable than an expert who may not understand the St. George’s culture—a guest speaker is rarely ever as impactful or knowledgable.

“MySpace addresses [topics] more personally [but] the school is more like ‘don’t say things like this, act like this,’” said Delahoussaye.

Students might feel like this impersonal approach leaves little

room for people who have faced discrimination to speak about their experiences — it can be difficult for students who have never faced discrimination to identify with the struggles of minorities.

Oftentimes, students feel that the school glosses over inclusion — there is a top-down approach to diversity that many feel fizzles out soon after its introduction.

In recent years, issues of racism and antisemitism have caused disruption within the St. George’s community — a swastika was drawn in a locker bay. Microaggressions against minority groups frequently go unreported.

It isn’t a secret.

“I’m a prefect…and then I’m a varsity cheerleader. And I do all of these things…but at the end of the day, I came from the Memphis Campus, and I’m still Black, and I’m still female,” said Harris. “There are some people

... that don’t respect people of the opposite color.”

The administration works damage control against rumors and accusations while the student body is left wondering how to move forward. People are confused, hurt, and spreading what little information they have into distortions that only make the recovery process more difficult.

MySpace works to alleviate these issues — the club creates an open forum for people to share their ideas and feelings without judgment.

“A lot of the time even people who don’t agree with the things that are happening [are] uncomfortable about talking about it. And that’s kind of what MySpace is trying to introduce or break through,” remarked Harris.

MySpace tries to offer a lasting place where people can be genuine about their concerns and

beliefs on all ends of the spectrum. The club has made big strides in recent years, mostly under the radar.

Harris explained, “We were making so many changes and no one knew. And that was just from us talking and being open about things that we were concerned about, or things that we loved.”

Members routinely practice student advocacy to have discussions about issues they think are important: the position of Prefect of Diversity was added in 2019 to elevate the voices of minorities and the club will raise its voice when it feels a matter needs to be addressed.

MySpaceAllianceClubmeetsbiweeklyonThurdaysduringlunch in H163.

Illustration by Abbi Whitehead

Shooting Their Shot

How is the varsity boys basketball team planning to improve this season?

Haddad, a new member of the team, made strong progress early in the season along with Sims who was proficient at every position. Together, alongside former Junior Varsity player Andrew Bell, they created a strong set just entering the scene.

“I have a good group of young men that come in and practice hard each and every day,” Coach Hall said.

They are all working for their common goal regardless of the adversities they may face.

far they have gone in the region.”

Jones elaborated, believing that Coach Hall pushes his players to do their best.

“Coach Hall is encouraging to the players and is always pushing us in the pre season and during practice to go hard and meet our full potential,” he said.

Coach Hall wants to motivate and grow each player and create an unforgettable season for the players.

By Mary Beth Skelton

The Gryphon boys’ basketball team remains a strong program that continues to prove themselves to be top competitors each year.

Last school year, they made it to the region final but fell short of the title. They were also able to qualify for the state championship and almost made it to the quarterfinals before losing to Notre Dame High School.

The Gryphons ended the season with an impressive 19-6 record. This year, Head Basketball Coach Anthony Hall wants to accomplish even more.

“We are hoping to get back to state. I am well aware that that is a lofty goal,” said Coach Hall. “That is what we are playing for.”

The connections the coaches and players make are not like any other, and they require effort on both sides in hopes that the end goal will be reached.

Clearly, Coach Hall has set high expectations and solid goals for this hungry Gryphon team.

Coach Hall said he “really enjoy[s] helping these young men.”

Working tirelessly with the boys, he has been able to see each of their stories and help them to

create “great memories for them to reflect on later.”

According to starting point guard sophomore Silas Jones, others are underestimating the varsity team.

“Some opponents this year are looking at our team as underdogs since we lost a lot of players,” he said. Jones believes that is only forcing them to be stronger and “create [their] own story.”

Many vital players have graduated or moved to a different school, but Coach Hall believes that “with one full year behind them, our seniors are better able to help us to not have a decline in the season.”

Harden Williams and Kyle Houston graduated. Josh Holloway is now attending Oak Hill Academy, one of the top Prep Schools in the country. Kor’mar Stewart is being homeschooled and Tate Wirth decided not to return to the sport.

Now there are five seniors: Fred Deere, Darryl Williams Jr., R.J. Sims, Logan Haddad and Andrew Bell. Deere and Williams both started last year.

“We [need] them to do more on both ends of the floor,” Coach Hall said.

Not only do the seniors play a significant role in the success of the team, the younger players on the team do as well.

Tristin Fleming is one example. He was the leading scorer on the team last season. Coach Hall “looks forward to his scoring this season” as well.

Jones is also an important player who starts at point guard and is a top performer for Coach Hall.

There are even some sharpshooters, freshman Zeke Cowell and Rollin Crose, who have a great presence on the court.

“[They] should add outside scoring to the varsity team,” said Coach Hall.

It is evident that each player, no matter what grade level, is proud to play for their school, especially Jones.

“It means a lot for me to be able to play for my school and represent St. George’s on and off the court,” he said.

That Gryphon pride is infectious and it starts with the coach.

Everyone sees the hard work Hall puts in for the benefit of his team, including the team’s parents.

Sims’s mom, Yolanda Tamayo, said, “I definitely like Coach Hall a lot. I think the program has definitely expanded a whole lot with everything they’ve won and how

“What they will remember from this team is exciting to me,” he said.

To be successful on the court and to be able to put into play all of Coach Hall’s teachings, the players must have a strong team culture.

“All of our teammates get along well and it allows for us to have friendships on and off the court,” Jones said. “Our team can accomplish great things this year and make a good playoff run if we all execute and play our roles.”

Because of Coach Hall’s aspirations and the determination of the athletes, an exciting season is on the way for this competitive St. George’s Gryphons basketball team.

R.J. Sims ‘23 prepares to shoot a free throw.

Coach Hall gives a pep talk to the boys varisty team.

The boys varsity team puts their hands in to get hyped up for the game.

Photography by Seth Taub

TIME’S UP

By Anna Schmiedicke

Does anyone else find it ridiculous that a single four-hour test can determine your entire future?

Because I certainly do.

Standardized tests like the SAT or ACT shouldn’t be a factor in determining who receives educational opportunities and who doesn’t.

There are so many things that can influence test scores that it’s downright impossible to use them as an accurate measure of someone’s academic potential.

Maybe a student didn’t sleep well the night before and can’t remember the formula for the area of a trapezoid off the top of their head, so they don’t score as well as they otherwise would have. Is that fair?

Sure, some students can afford to retake tests over and over until everything lines up perfectly, but that doesn’t show that they’ll have more academic success than someone who couldn’t do the same.

There is a “clear correlation... between test scores and property values” according to the National Education Association. Basically, more affluent students typically scored higher on standardized tests.

Whether that’s because of increased access to tutors or something similar isn’t for me to determine, but the relationship

between wealth and test scores is a concerning one.

I do not intend to discredit the work of students who were able to score well on standardized tests, but instead draw attention to the fact that these tests are not unbiased in their results.

Time is another factor, too. Some people simply don’t work quickly, and they are put at a massive disadvantage because of this. Should a student really be penalized for not being able to answer approximately one question per minute?

Not being able to work at a ridiculously high speed does not mean that a student isn’t capable, and yet the ACT and SAT are strictly timed and regulated. It’s just not fair to students.

Standardized tests don’t actually measure a student’s aptitude or intelligence, anyways. More often than not, they measure how well a student has prepared for the test and said student’s ability to perform in high-stress situations. Neither of those things accurately represent a student’s potential for success.

That’s not even getting into the troubled past of standardized tests, either. Carl Brigham, the man who essentially developed standardized tests and was commissioned by the College Board to help create the SAT, was a proponent of eugenics — the belief that intelligence

is hereditary and also connected to physical characteristics such as race.

Eugenics was used to justify the actions of Nazi Germany during World War II, among other equally horrifying practices like forced sterilization and segregation. So, it’s pretty awful. And the guy who invented standardized testing as we currently know it was a really big believer in it. See why that might cause some problems?

Don’t worry, it gets worse. Colleges were able to use Brigham’s biased testing methods to “limit the admissions of particularly undesirable ethnicities,” according to the National Education Association.

In May of 2019, the College Board announced that it would be giving SAT-takers an “adversity score” along with their test scores to help assess the circumstances surrounding a student — things like their neighborhood’s crime level and average level of educational attainment, according to NPR, The National Public Radio.

But this didn’t last. Backlash caused this score to be dropped within the calendar year. While there are new systems in place to provide colleges with information about a student’s background, the legacy of standardized testing as a tool of discrimination has

not changed.

Now, I’m all for assuming that we as a society have progressed past the heinous beliefs and practices of nearly 100 years ago, but if a test was quite literally designed to prove that a certain ethnicity is more intelligent, can we really rely on it for something as impactful as college admissions?

I don’t think so.

Illustration by Abbi Whitehead

Illustration by Mayyadah Alzaben

Illustration by Ella Straub

Environmental Responsibility

By Kate Winstead

It feels like every day the world is nearing an allconsuming apocalypse. Nuclear warheads, outbreaks of disease and war and the rapidly changing climate threaten human life everywhere.

This dour and gloomy prospect is not something many want to dwell on, myself included. But it also bears important questions: what do we plan to do about it? How can we as individuals even hope to change anything by just our own actions?

This is in no way me dismissing the efforts of those who are environmentally conscious or engage in recycling, but rather posing a question. Why are individuals responsible for fixing a problem they are not wholly at fault for?

It is not the public who should be held accountable but rather the real villains in this situation — non eco-friendly companies. These billion dollar companies refuse to dispose of their waste in an ethical manner simply to save a buck.

There are hundreds of companies who are releasing toxic waste into the ocean or hazardous chemicals into the air. Recent reports from the 2021 Political Economy Research Institute list company Northrop Grumman as the number one water polluter company in the world.

Northrop Grumman’s company statement is: “At Northrop Grumman, we pioneer technologies and break new boundaries to protect and advance humanity as we know it. From deep sea to outer space to cyber space, we are defining possible at the edge of every frontier.”

However, Grumman has not been entirely forthright in their efforts to create new technology especially where pollution is concerned.

A news article from Newsday

in 2020 reveals that Grumman has been releasing a toxic run off chemical that has spread into neighboring communities. This has caused a serious environmental consequence for the areas affected, especially Long Island, New York.

The nearby public wells have been determined undrinkable by the Environmental Protection Agency. Not to mention, this chemical sludge can continue to spread and infest new water wells in Bethpage, Long Island.

Despite this environmental nightmare, Grumman has been able to keep their actions relatively under wraps and respond to claims of heavy pollution by mentioning their ongoing environmental sustainability projects. Here’s a company statement from NG’s 2021 Sustainability Report:

“In 2021, the E&E (Environmental and Efficiency) allocation totaled $1 million and was distributed across six projects focused on driving water conservation in water-stressed

regions, like California, reducing 12 million gallons of water withdrawals annually. We will continue to grow this investment in 2022 to incentivize and encourage innovations.”

Yet when looking at this year’s report on the top 100 water polluters from the Political Economy Research Center, Northrop Grumman remains number one in toxic water pollution, and has been for several years now. Why do we allow these companies to continue to contaminate our communities and create living conditions that negatively impact humanity?

Government officials are often sponsors of companies such as Northrop Grumman and will dismiss or belittle claims of pollution. Instead of regulating these companies harshly or preventing such environmental damage, they work with these companies for profit.

It isn’t just technological companies like Northrop Gruuman that are making jet fuel and building rockets who are polluting our environment. It is our everyday companies as well.

Coca Cola is probably the one

of the most popular drinks in America, but it is also one of the world’s foremost producers in plastic waste. A 2019 USA Today article cites that the company was responsible for about three million tons of plastic from packaging alone.

It seems ironic that a polar bear is the mascot of a company who is responsible for mass pollution and climate change. In recent years, however, the company has made more of an effort to be environmentally conscious by trying to create recyclable packaging. But there is still more to be done.

These companies have the money and resources to further their efforts on environmental sustainability.

As individuals, we are often pressured to be totally environmentally responsible when the majority of waste doesn’t even come from us. Along with our recycling programs and little self grown gardens, we also need to advocate for companies and the government to own up and fix their own colossal mistakes.

Illustration by Kate Winstead

We have to act fast to try and save our environment... before it’s too late.

THE NEW!! NEW?! NEW?? NORMAL

The Rush to Return

The COVID-19 pandemic is slowing down, online school has been done for over a year, masks are not required anymore and things are supposedly finally returning to this “new normal.” But are they really?

It feels as if we are returning to a normal that no one knows. Even though we had complete in-person learning last year, there were still masks, contact tracing and social distancing, causing many traditions to become nonexistent.

Many students seem to have forgotten St. George’s traditions, missing out on them or just never wanting to take part in them, forgetting what it was like to truly be a part of the community.

Coming back this year where teachers are strengthening their curriculum back to pre-COVID times is hard for students.

Because of online learning, we lost valuable teaching skills, and homework was relaxed. The teachers of St. George’s were urged to do this because of the transition back from online learning to the first “normal” year back.

According to the Tennessee Department of Education, as quoted in a Daily Memphian article from August 3, 2021, “29% of students are on track or have mastered their grade level in English Language Arts. The figure for mathematics is even lower, with

26% of students on track.”

Still, there was very little St. George’s could do to strengthen learning. CDC regulations were so strict that students could not even gather for chapel together in the gym to worship together. Traditions, key aspects of our identity derived from an already young, developing campus, faded.

Traditions occur naturally, slowly over time, but due to a complete loss of activities during COVID, students were hastily trying to bring them back. Upperclassmen and faculty were desperate to bring back old traditions, and underclassmen were eager to participate in them.

As a result, life at St. George’s went from zero percent to 100 percent with absolutely no in-between. Houses, field trips and student-led clubs were simultane-

ously resurrected. It’s all happening at once — a flood of hustle and bustle instead of a slow stream of activity.

Schools are meant to develop organically, not suddenly devise events without time to consider whether or not the community is ready. The student body is ill-prepared for the sudden onslaught of new changes.

For example, the school held a Shelby Farms Retreat Day for the first time in school history. Instead of embracing the new opportunity with excitement, many students chose to leave early, checking out after lunch.

Over COVID, there was a loss of community. Learning was individual, and students felt alone. Coming back from this, it is hard to transition back into a full-school community. The load of new

events and activities is hard for some students to adjust to, especially in such a minimal amount of time.

All of this feels like a monsoon of rain and wind suddenly falling onto students after a long period of clouded, still air. Without rain jackets, umbrellas or ponchos, students are confused, vulnerable and unprepared. They need to find a way to adapt – and fast.

Even though the school has good intentions of bringing back previous traditions and creating new ones, the surge of activities and clubs suddenly coming back into the public sphere is too overwhelming when we are still trying to recover from the shock of COVID.

Rushing to bring back traditions for students who just need a break is not going to accomplish anything. The administration is trying to give us everything we could possibly need when all we really want is to take a step back.

Sometimes, in such a chaotic time, it is important to pause and take a deep breath. Building back our community may take time, but it’s crucial not to overcompensate. We may not be Rome, but it doesn’t mean everything can come back in a day.

From, Editorial Board

STAFF EDITORIALS represent the opinion of the editorial board. Letters to the editor in response to the editorial are encouraged. The Editorial Board: Anna Schmiedicke, Sienna Lightman, Erin Johnson, Trinity Cannon, Emily Zhao, Livi VanSteenberg, Natalie Howard, Seth

OPINION POLICY: The Lodge opinion section is a venue for the free expression of the student views at St. George’s Independent School. The opinions represented in this section are those of the authors alone and do not necesarily reflect those of the Lodge staff or of the St. George’s community at large. The Lodge strives to be an open forum for the thoughtful and deliberate exchange of comment and criticism and therefore welcomes letters 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 activities.

CORRECTIONS AND RETRACTIONS:

Issue 6.1, pg. 8: Percentages on graph titled “Where does our money come from?” are incorrect.

Issue 6.1, pg. 23: Final paragraph should read “with enough support, compassion and understanding, we can do it.”

Taub, Hannah Morrison and Mary Beth Skelton.

Illustration

by Erin Johnson and Emily Zhao