Volume 111, Issue 10

Page 1

The Spectator

“The Pulse of the Student Body”

The Stuyvesant High School Newspaper

Volume 111  No. 10

February 11, 2021 ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

Troye Sivan: From Perth to Popstar Arts and Entertainment writer Kaeden Ruparel dissects the life career of Troye Sivan, a singer who built an unlikely pop brand from just being himself. see page 20

stuyspec.com SPORTS

President Biden’s Transgender Discrimination Order: What It Means for Women’s Sports Sportswriter Taee Chi contextualizes ongoing disputes over the place of transgender atheletes in sports and breaks down the factors that make it so divisive. see page 28

Teachers Receive COVID-19 Vaccines

ers have to make appointments though New York State or City or private locations, such as hospitals or clinics. Teachers were notified of this process by union representatives. “I got an eAfter first being admin- mail [...] and our union repreistered to frontline medical sentative told us that people workers and people at high were getting appointments risk of contracting CO- early. I immediately got onVID-19, teachers and other line and got an appointessential workers are now ment,” Latin teacher Susan receiving the COVID-19 Brockman said. Brockman received the vaccine. Several teachers at first dose of the Moderna Stuyvesant have already been vaccine in the second week vaccinated or plan to receive of January. “It was the least the vaccine. Currently, the two vac- painful shot I’ve ever gotcines available are the Pfizer ten,” she said. “Moderna is vaccine, authorized for those on a four week interval so 16 years and older, and the the second shot is the boostModerna vaccine, for those er shot and they say to expect 18 years and older. Both vac- a little worse side effects with cines have success rates of the second shot. My arm was approximately 95 percent sore and I had a couple days and require two doses, with of taking some ibuprofen 21 days between each dose and [had] little bits of aches of the Moderna vaccine and and stuff but I’m not afraid 28 days between each dose about the immune response you get from vaccines.” of the Pfizer vaccine. Math teacher Ashvin JaisTo get vaccinated, teachhankar received his vaccine By CHRISTINA WANG, ISABELLA JIA, JANNA WANG, MAGGIE SANSONE, NADA HAMEED, and SAKURA YAMANAKA

NEWSBEAT Report cards were distributed on February 3 via email and Talos.

The Stuyvesant Chess Team placed first in the Greater NY Scholastic Chess Championship. Senior and Team Captain Justin Chen placed first as an undefeated player.

Seniors Rae Seong Jeong, Jessica Jiang, Eric Kim, and Michael Nath were semifinalists for the Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship.

There is no school from Monday, February 15 through Friday, February 19 because of Midwinter Recess.

on the internet of sites and going back and forth checking at different times of day to find a location that had an available appointment,” Ingram said in an e-mail interview. She later received the vaccine on January 25 at a location that accommodated allergies. Upon getting vaccinated, some teachers felt that they could have received the vaccine at a later time. “I’m a little bit older but I’m able to work from home and I feel like I’m not in as much danger as some people. I have a sister who is only one year younger than me and she can’t get the vaccine yet because she’s not a teacher, so I feel a little guilty. But on the other hand, I’m very happy,” Brockman said. With more vaccinated teachers, many students hope that schools will reopen soon. “It’s great that teachers are able to get the COVID continued on page 4

College Board Discontinues SAT Subject Tests and Optional SAT Essay By MAHIR HOSSSAIN, KAI CAOTHIEN, FAHIMA MIAJEE, MADISON KIM, and JAMES KANG The College Board announced on January 19 that SAT subject tests and the optional SAT essay will no longer be administered to students. These removals f o l l o w the C O VID-19 pandemic, which made it difficult for the College Board to a d minister i n pers o n standardized exams. Many were unsurprised by the change as many colleges have started becoming test-

optional amid the pandemic. The SAT subject tests are college admissions exams that assess a student’s knowledge in one of the 20 subject areas offered while the optional SAT essay is a 50-minute-long timed

build their argument. Director of College Counseling Jeffrey Makris noted that since these exams have b e e n

essay requiring students to read a passage and analyze the techniques the author used to

optional and were becoming insignificant to the college application process as

Shirley Tan / The Spectator

There is no school on Friday, February 12 in observance of Lunar New Year.

at a local high school facility believer in science and public and found his experience to health,” he said. be safe and efficient. “I waitDirector of Family Ened in line for no more gagement Dina Ingram enthan five mincountered difficulutes and it ties in receiving o n l y the vaccine as took her initial loa few cation minr e utes fused t o to adve r i f y m i n i smy apter to pointpeople ment,” he with allersaid. gies that Jaisaffected hankar breathing. signed Due to up for a her tree vaccinanut altion bel e r g y, cause he along with believes that appointthe vaccine is ment canbeneficial to cellations public health and recaused by ducing the spread of a low supply of COVID-19. “I had doses, Ingram made the decision to Annie Lam / The Spectator was unable to reget the vaccine once it was ceive the vaccine at that locaavailable because I’m a big tion. “It took some juggling

more colleges stopped requiring them, they would eventually phase out. “The exams were canceled and no longer offered because they had already lost their place in the process. They weren’t worth [the] College Board keeping them alive, investing all their money in, marketing them, and administering them all that when colleges [...] didn’t really need them anymore,” Makris said. “The big thing to remember is that if these exams were still a significant factor, they would never have cancelled them, so the colleges aren’t looking for a replacement for these factors because they’ve already moved past them.” Many students supported the removal of the SAT essay. “I’ve taken the essay, but I think that it makes sense for the essay to just be scrapped altogether. Especially seeing as it’s already optional continued on page 4


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