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Dane Tilghman Conestoga grad displays art at Easttown Library
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THE Conestoga High School, Berwyn PA
Volume 69 No. 2
Nov. 20, 2018
Spoke.news
THE MILLENNIAL MIDTERM
2018 midterm elections fueled by youth participation and manpower By Audrey Kim and Avery Maslowsky
Managing Web Editor & Co-Editor-in-Chief Senior Emme Rycyzyn zipped up her raincoat on the morning of Nov. 6 with a determination to knock on doors across the Tredyffrin and Easttown communities, despite the weather forecast. “It was pouring,” Rycyzyn said. “Even though my clipboard and shoes were soaked, I knew I had to be out there talking to people.” Rycyzyn, 17, said her own inability to vote propelled her decision to canvass on Election Day, hoping to encourage eligible voters to go out to the polls. “I’ve realized that just because I’m not 18 doesn’t mean I don’t have influence over an election,” Rycyzyn said. “If (teenagers) can get people out of their homes and at the polls, then we are doing just as much good as if we could vote ourselves." As a volunteer canvasser for the Pennsylvania Democratic Congressional Coordinated Campaign (DCCC), Rycyzyn was just one of the Conestoga students participating in the 2018 midterm elections, many of whom were under the voting age, yet still encouraged others to vote or worked on the campaigns themselves. And according to Rycyzyn, their efforts paid off. Through election results provided by the Chester County Voter Services, The Spoke found that 72 percent of eligible voters in the Easttown and Tredyffrin Townships voted in 2018, an increase of 18 percent compared to the 2014 midterm elections. But that’s not all that’s changed: youth involvement surged nationally, marking the highest levels of civic participation from
Photos by Avery Maslowsky, Design by Justin Huang
Campaign craze: Senior Georgia Steigerwald (left) and senior Ian Charles (right) work for political campaigns prior to the Nov. 6 midterm elections. Steigerwald worked as a member of the Pennsylvania Democratic Congressional Coordinated Campaign and Charles worked with state representative Warren Kampf. the 18 to 29 age demographic in the past 25 years. According to nationwide early estimates at Tufts University’s Center for Information & Research on Civic
Learning and Engagement and political data firm TargetSmart, 31 percent of voters aged 18 to 29 showed up to the polls and more than 3.3 million voters from that demographic cast their votes
early, an increase of 11 percent and 188 percent respectively from 2014. Of that age demographic, the Conestoga club 2018 New Voters registered 116 seniors for the 2018 midterm elections,
Graduation robe design changes to singular student print Melinda Xu Web Editor
The class of 2019 will all wear black gowns for graduation in hopes of making the graduation process more comfortable for all students, said senior adviser Karen Gately. Administration hosted dropin sessions on Oct. 25 to solicit student opinions on new robe designs along with graduation venue and graduation dates. The final decision for the robe color was made through a Schoology poll held on Wednesday, Nov. 14. Principal Amy Meisinger, Vice Principal Patrick Boyle and Gately were all present at the drop-ins. Meisinger began the sessions by introducing the possible venues: Villanova Pavilion, Temple University and Teamer Field. By popular opinion, graduation will be held on Teamer Field. She also informed attendees about the change in graduation date from June 4 to June 5 due to Eid al-Fitr, a Muslim holiday. In opening the discussion on the change to a new robe, administration explained the history of the graduation robe at Conestoga. According to the school archives, graduation gowns were first worn in 1933. Their color was black. The robes changed twenty years later in 1953 and each graduating class chose a color to wear. But that changed in 1956 when boys wore gowns of their class color and girls began wearing white gowns. Eventually, the boys color became a consistent maroon, while the girls continued to wear white. Administration explained the reasoning behind the move to a single color, citing students' discomfort with the old gowns and precedence in other schools.
which totals to 86 percent of eligible voters at Conestoga.
Tredyffrin Library honored by Pennsylvania Library Association Maddie Lamonica News Editor
Olivia Thompson/The SPOKE
Robes on display: Students try on the final two new robe designs for graduation. The chosen design was the black robe, which was decided by a poll to the senior class on Schoology on Nov. 14. “Two years ago we went from assigning gowns by gender to allowing students to choose gown colors but some students felt that it put them in a very uncomfortable place to choose and in discussing with local schools in the Central League, the majority of the schools had made the switch to one color,” Gately said. At the drop-in sessions, students were then shown four possible designs that administration had selected prior to the drop-ins: a maroon gown with gray stripes, a gray gown with maroon stripes, a black
gown with maroon and gray stripes and a black gown with maroon stripes. About 150 students attended the drop-ins, according to Meisinger. Senior Chase Dautrich was one of them. “I definitely feel like I personally was heard during the session that I spoke during, and I feel that the admin has been very open to hearing our opinions,” Dautrich said. “After the school had the drop-in, I felt like I really understood where they were coming from.”
In response to this decision, junior Avery Carty organized a petition advocating for a re-vote based on greater student input on possible robe designs from all grades, not just the senior class. “As an upperclassman I have noticed a wide display of unhappiness expressed with the graduation gown shift. I have started a petition to allow all of the students at Conestoga to be fairly and equally represented in our graduation gown attire,” the petition said. Carty said by noon on Nov. 19, the petition had around 120 signatures.
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On Sept. 21, the Tredyffrin Public Library became one of five Chester County libraries to earn the distinction of “Star Library” from the Pennsylvania Library Association (PaLA) “We follow the PA Forward directive to make sure our library is more than just a place to borrow books but also a place for community members to learn and grow through our different programs,” Tredyffrin Library Director Chris Kibler said. The PaLA Forward Star Library Program recognizes libraries that incorporate PaLA’s five key literacies: basic, information, civic and social, health and financial, into their programming activities, displays and events. This group celebrates the success of Pennsylvania libraries and their ability to create new partnerships and develop broader community support. To earn the Star Library designation, the Tredyffrin Public
Library demonstrated a continuous commitment to helping T/E residents. In addition to its collection of books, films and music, the library also hosts a variety of programs and events to help benefit the community ranging from teen book clubs and yoga to classes for job seekers and summer camps. “Everyone here really works together to help plan events that serve the larger community and really just go above and beyond your typical library,” Kibler said. “So to be recognized by the Pennsylvania Library Association is such an honor.” Kibler looks forward to seeing how the new designation can further extend the Tredyffrin Library’s positive impact on the T/E area. “With things like Amazon and digital readers many people think that libraries don’t really serve a purpose anymore,” Kibler said. “It’s my hope that being a Star Library brings more people into the library and shows our community that we offer a lot more than just books.”
Maddie Lamonica/The SPOKE
Study to success: Library Director Chris Kibler flips through a book at the Tredyffrin Public Library. The Library earned the "Star Library" designation from the Pennsylvania Library Association on Sept. 21.