The Blue & Gold: Volume XXIX, Issue 4

Seniors end year with normalcy

FEATURES

Film creates cage-free eggs documentary

OPINIONS

End legacy and donor admissions

VIGNETTES

ENGRAVING MOMENTS INTO MEMORIES

ILLUSTRATION BY: RICHIE H. & ARIEL L.

Indoor graduation and prom return after four years

As COVID-19 restrictions continue to lift, Taipei American School (TAS) events that have been previously altered or canceled due to governmental regulations are returning. Indoor on-campus graduation and prom, a formal dance usually held at the end of the school year, will make their comebacks this spring.

Class of 2023 to have an indoor on-campus graduation

the last three years celebrated differently, including a ceremony on TAS’s upper school field in 2020, a drive-in diploma pick-up in 2021 and a historic off-campus graduation at Taipei Municipal Stadium in 2022.

all the loved ones who they wanted to have come, so we feel that being able to bring a few hundred more people in is a really good idea as well,” Upper School Principal Mr. Andrew Lowman (he/him) said. “Also, there’s better lighting and better accessibility, particularly for those of our loved ones or students who need assistance moving around. It’s going to look a little different than it did four years ago, but we’re really excited to use the upper school space for [graduation].”

“At first I was disappointed that graduation wouldn’t be at the gym since we wouldn’t be able to get photos at school,” Sharon L. (‘22, she/her), who graduated at Taipei Municipal Stadium, said. “But I realized that graduating at the stadium was really nice as well since there was a lot of space and photo booths set up for us.”

By Amber Wu (‘23)

For the past few years, the thought of graduating indoors on the TAS campus has seemed exhilarating yet foreign to seniors due to the unforeseen circumstances that past classes have dealt with. The uncertainty of being able to celebrate entering the next

stage of students’ lives has loomed over the school for three years. However, this year’s graduation ceremony will be held at TAS’s Joie Gymnasium (USG) on June 3, the first indoor on-campus graduation since 2019. Due to COVID-19 restrictions that prevented large gatherings, seniors in

Despite similarities to pre-pandemic ones, there will still be changes to this year’s graduation. Historically, the event was held in the Derryl Franz Middle School Gymnasium (MSG), but will take place in the USG this year so 200 to 300 more guests can attend since the MSG can only fit 1,650 people.

“One of the issues we’ve run into in the past is that people haven’t been able to invite

Another change is that the ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. instead of in the afternoon to allow students to have time to celebrate on their own. “We’ve realized that people sat around all day waiting for graduation [in the past] and that we can do graduation in the morning then people can head off and have celebration lunches with their families as well,” Mr. Lowman said.

Seniors are looking forward to wrapping up their upper school journey with a traditional indoor graduation at TAS. “It’s nice to have an indoor graduation this year since it’ll be humid outdoors and there’s a possibility that it might rain outside,” Enya T. (‘23, she/her) said.

“It’s great that seniors get to end high school on a high note with everything returning to normalcy,” Richie H. (‘23, she/ her) said. “I’m really excited to celebrate with my friends and family — My friends and I might have a celebratory lunch after graduation, so I’m looking forward to that.”

Upper School students look forward to their first prom

Upper School Student Life, as they go through the prom planning process. “Prom is something that students look forward to starting their freshman year,” Jenesse said. “It is a key highlight of the upper school experience, and it is something that you will only experience once in your life.”

As such, many upperclassmen students are looking forward to their first prom; the event provides students with an opportunity to get together and enjoy a sense of normalcy after the pandemic. “I am looking forward to having an excuse to have fun and celebrate with my friends as we near the end of this school year,” Katrina F. (‘24, she/her) said.

Sabrina L. (‘23, she/her) said. This year’s prom theme is “Premiere Night,” which features decorations such as a red carpet, stanchions and a movie premiere sign. There will also be professional photographers and photo booths to ensure that students are able to capture the memories of their prom night. “We want to be more creative rather than sticking to old themes,” Sherry said. “We think premiere night is something that people have never done so it’s really new and exciting”.

In previous years, people celebrated prom on their own due to the pandemic. For example, seniors wore their dresses and suits to school after prom was abruptly canceled due to pandemic restrictions in 2021. As a result of not having an official TAS-hosted prom in so many years, people involved with the prom committee are unfamiliar with the prom planning process.

Nevertheless, the lack of experience also provides unique opportunity to start new traditions. “It all stands out because no one has any memory of going to a prom,” Dr. Maguire said. “So for every single person that goes it’s a first time experience.”

By Katherine Ma (‘24)

Last December’s Frolic was the largest Frolic in TAS history, reflecting the energy that the community has for school dances, which provide opportunities for students to dress up and celebrate with friends. Soon,

Prom heads Sherry L. (‘24, she/her) and Jenesse L. (‘24, she/her) are working closely with Dr. Brandon Maguire, the Dean of

Seniors are also especially anticipating having the opportunity to end their high school career with a traditional prom. “I am so excited that I finally get the opportunity to have a prom experience and spend time with my friends while being all dressed up,”

The prom committee continues to collaborate and work hard to ensure that prom will be a memorable experience for everyone attending. “We are really excited to see it all come together,” Sherry said. “Everyone can look forward to it.”

“It’s great that seniors get to end school on a high note with everything returning to normalcy.”

Students watched their classmates graduate in 2022. [PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS COMMUNICATIONS]

TAS will hold its first prom in four years, scheduled to take place at Regent Taipei on May 26.

“It is a key highlight of the upper school experience, and it is something that you will only experience once in your life.”

Class of 2021 students posed together in prom dresses. [PHOTO COURTESY OF ELAINE H. (‘21)]

TAS students attend journalism convention in San Francisco

Student journalists from different states and other countries listen to a lecture about the impacts of social media. [AMBER

By Amber Wu (‘23)

Taipei American School (TAS)’s Blue & Gold, yearbook and film students attended the Journalism Education Association (JEA) and National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) National High School Journalism Convention in San Francisco from April 20-22.

The semiannual convention, which takes place in different states every time, draws students from across the U.S. and other countries interested in newspaper, online, broadcast, yearbook and magazine. Over the course of three days, students are offered hundreds of workshop sessions led by professional and student journalists and advisers, as well as chances to receive media awards, including the Pacemaker Award, the most distinguished scholastic

journalism award. Students are also able to receive critique from experienced journalism advisers to improve their publications.

The TAS convention attendees enjoyed broadening their perspectives on media through interactions with other journalistic peers.

“One of the highlights of the trip was the media swap shop as I could share and look at other people’s yearbooks with other yearbook editors and members,” Yearbook Editor Ariel K. (‘24, she/her), said. “Not only was I able to share how my publication worked, but I was also able to gain different tips from the other yearbook editors and learn more about different layout formats.”

“The workshops in the convention were really interesting because the people

presenting allowed me to think about approaching film in different ways,” Sydney H. (‘24, she/her), a film student, said. “I enjoyed listening to people sharing their different experiences and interpretations of the media.”

since pre-COVID-19 years, it was also the first trip to the U.S. for several students, allowing them to notice the cultural differences between Taipei and San Francisco.

“The lifestyle in San Francisco is so different to the lifestyle in Taipei as people are more relaxed,” Richie H. (‘23, she/her), who had never been to the U.S. before, said. “Everything is so spaced out as well, so it’s less of a tight-knit community than the one people in Taipei are in.”

TAS students will have the opportunity to attend the workshops and interact with other student journalists in Kansas City next spring.

Not only was the trip the first one journalism and film students went on

“I have never been to the Midwest, so it would be really interesting to experience what it is like there,” Ariel said.

A blast from the past: seniors will return to Camp Taiwan

By Victoria Hsu (‘24)

Back in lower school, students would travel to the Camp Taiwan campsite in Wanli District, New Taipei City for a couple of days of activities and excursions around the area. Activities included games like tag, rock climbing and making smores.

Now, the 2023 class officers have planned a trip back to Camp Taiwan on May 29 for any seniors interested.

With the 2022-2023 school year coming to an end, Taipei American School (TAS) seniors are preparing to graduate without COVID-19 restrictions for the first time in two years.

With the pandemic dominating most of their high school lives, many students felt

that they were unable to experience some of the class events their older peers had gotten.

The idea of traveling back to the Camp Taiwan campsite first came up in a meeting between the class deans, Mr. Luke Walker and Ms. Meagan Frazier, and the administration.

“The Class of 2023 has missed out on important community traditions and experiences earlier on at TAS due to COVID changes,” Mr. Walker said. “From this thought, came the question: ‘is there anything we can do for them?’”

Seniors who have been attending TAS since lower school will get to reminisce about their lives prior to high school before graduating.

Students who transferred to TAS after lower school will get to experience Camp Taiwan for the first time.

“I think I’m most excited to go back on the Giant Swing,” Candice H. (‘23), a senior who is planning on attending the event, said. “I remember that was the most exciting part of camp back in lower school.”

This trip is the last whole-grade event that will happen for the seniors before graduation. The excursion is optional but the 2023 class officers hope that everyone will be interested in attending.

“We hope everyone can connect with each other before we all go our separate ways,” Tyler L. (‘23), one of the class officers, said.

WU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

“I enjoyed listening to people sharing their different experiences and interpretations of the media.”

TAS students pose with other student journalists after swapping candies. [PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS YEARBOOK]

Student shared print editions from their respective publications. [VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

Journalists gather in a ballroom before a workshop begins. [VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

Class of 2022 students jump in front of Camp Taiwan’s Giant Swing in 2015.

[PHOTO COURTESY OF LOWER SCHOOL OFFICE]

Season 3 IASAS sports

Season 3 IASAS sports

By Ariel Lee (‘23), Victoria Hsu (‘24) & Aina C. (‘26)

The Interscholastic Association of Southeast Asian Schools (IASAS) sports competitions returned for season 3 sports from March 29 to April 2. The badminton and golf teams traveled to the International School of Bangkok (ISB), track athletes to Jakarta Intercultural School (JIS) and the softball and baseball teams to Singapore American School (SAS).

TRACK & FIELD

GIRLS - SECOND PLACE

The girls track and field team placed second overall in the IASAS tournament, losing to ISB. The throwing captain for this year was Mylie G. (‘23), while the jumps captain was Adele P. (‘23).

“I think that we did so well. We honestly weren’t expecting that much,” Adele said. “We knew we were going to place, but we didn’t know what we would get.” Despite this being Adele’s first year competing in T&F, she is proud of all the hard work and effort her team has put in leading up to the tournament and is excited to see them compete next year. “Everyone just had a lot of fun throughout the whole season.”

GIRLS - SECOND PLACE

The softball team placed second, defending their position from the 2019 championships by scoring 10 runs. The team was led by co-captains Tia S. (‘23), Catrina Y. (‘23) and Candice H. (‘23).

“I loved the sportsmanship all the teams had and the chance to socialize with and meet the players of the other schools around us,” Tia said. “The team had a hard time adjusting to the massive change in the coaching staff, but it really brought the girls together as they supported and coached each other the entire season.” Although seven seniors are leaving, Tia is positive the team is ready for next year.

GIRLS - FIRST PLACE

BOYS - FIRST PLACE

The boys track & field team placed first, beating ISB. The team was led by distance and sprint captain Justin M. (‘23) and hurdles and sprint captain Brian L. (‘23).

“My favorite part was setting two school records in the 4x100m and 4x400m relays because every member of our team worked so hard,” Justin said. On top of that, the team also broke two of the longest standing IASAS records in the triple jump and 4x800m relay. “I think that although the team is losing a lot of really strong seniors, there are underclassmen that are ready to step up and defend our gold.”

SOFTBALL & BASEBALL BADMINTON

BOYS - SECOND PLACE

The baseball team placed second, losing their final match to SAS. This was the first IASAS medal for the boys varsity baseball team in TAS history. The team was led by co-captains Timothy S. (‘23) and Matthew C. (‘24).

“It’s definitely a tough way for the seniors to end their season and it was pretty emotional,” Matthew said. “However, considering this is the first medal for baseball in TAS, I’m pretty happy.” Despite many weather delays during the game, he is grateful to have been able to travel overseas and play with his teammates.

BOYS - FIRST PLACE

The girls badminton team placed first, continuing its winning streak since the 20032004 school year. The team, led by co-captains Amelie N. (‘23), Ashley K. (‘23) and Alicia W. (‘23), went undefeated and outscored the second-place winners by 5 to 0.

“I loved competing. I loved the atmosphere,” Amelie said. “It was very surreal because after we won, everyone ran up to us and started cheering. It was crazy and I loved it.” Event though four seniors will be graduating, Amelie believes the team is wellequipped for next year and is confident they will bring back the gold.

GIRLS - SECOND PLACE

The boys badminton team placed first, being undefeated throughout the tournament. The team was led by captains Justin W. (‘23) and Guan C. (‘23).

“It was exciting; it felt really nice to be able to travel again and compete given us seniors never had that opportunity,” Guan said. “The biggest challenge for a lot of us was probably dealing with the huge ISB home crowd in the finals. We were able to really put that in the back of our minds after a team huddle and a vehement cheer.” With the current team training hard, Guan is confident that the team will repeat gold next year.

BOYS - THIRD PLACE GOLF

The girls golf team, led by co-captains Daphne K. (‘24), Francesca T. (‘24) and Gene C. (‘24), placed second.

“The biggest challenge we faced was fighting against the urge to give up. Playing golf is a battle of mentality and attitude so it was really difficult down on the course, but everybody pulled through and cheered themselves on despite the challenges,” Daphne said. “The first day was the hardest in terms of physical exertion. We were literally baking under the 46 degree sun for [over six] hours.”

“We definitely need more practice, but as of now, we are still a solid team,” Daphne said.

The boys golf team led by captain Jack T. (‘23) placed third.

“Although we expected better outcomes in this tournament, it felt much more realistic and competitive than the virtual event from the previous year,” Jack said. “The heat and the unfamiliar greens in Bangkok were the most challenging. We had to walk and play golf for six hours in hot conditions, and our coaches encouraged us to stay hydrated to maintain our best performance.” Despite the departure of three seniors, Jack believes the team can win back gold next year.

[PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS ATHLETICS] [PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS ATHLETICS]

[PHOTO COURTESY OF MARTIN HSU]

[PHOTO COURTESY OF MARTIN HSU]

[PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS ATHLETICS] [PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS ATHLETICS]

[PHOTO COURTESY OF DR. BRANDON MAGUIRE] [PHOTO COURTESY OF DR. BRANDON MAGUIRE]

SPORTS RECRUITS

SPORTS RECRUITS

Catrina Y. (‘23)

Volleyball Co-Captain

4x IASAS Volleyball Selectee

2x IASAS Volleyball Champion

By Victoria Hsu (‘24)

Catrina Y. (‘23, she/her) has been playing volleyball for over 13 years and was captain of the varsity team her last season. Early on in her high school career, she decided she wanted to continue volleyball in college. “In freshman year, I saw my junior athletes start their recruiting process,” she said. “I think that really motivated me to start putting together highlight videos so that I can show myself to collegiate coaches.”

While being at TAS has many advantages, the college sports recruiting process is significantly harder for international students. With Taiwan

being so far away from the U.S., coaches have to rely on videos athletes send in to watch their gameplay. “We only have season one to play because there are no clubs or leagues for volleyball in Taiwan,” Catrina said “So we only get a couple of months to put together a highlight reel for recruiting each year.” Catrina submitted two highlight reels, one for her junior year, Being a collegiate athlete comes with many responsibilities. Catrina still wants to put her academics first and thus, only looked at Division III schools. “After talking to many collegiate coaches, I narrowed my choices down to [California

Institute of Technology] (Caltech),” she said. “Even though Division III schools are not able to give out offers, knowing the volleyball coach helped my application.” It is important to keep in mind one’s academic goals when researching collegiate sport teams to make sure you can continue growing as a student athlete.

Catrina advises other students looking to begin their recruiting process to start early and keep their options open. “It’s better if there are more opportunities in your hands because you get to pick and choose the school you play for,” she said. She believes that it is equally important to establish a good relationship with collegiate coaches as they can advocate for your admission.

Justice B. (‘23)

Swimming Co-Captain USA Swimming Winter Junior National Team Scholastic All-American National Interscholastic Swimming Association All-American 2023 6x IASAS Medalist

By Ariel Lee (‘23)

Justice B. (‘23, he/him) started swimming more competitively when he was 12 and was the captain of the varsity team, which won gold at IASAS. He has committed to swim Division III at Claremont McKenna College (CMC).

Early on, Justice decided to start the recruiting process since he realized that he could use this as an extra advantage in the already-competitive college admissions process, and he did not have as many opportunities to pursue other extracurriculars with swim training taking up most of his time. “After sophomore year, the NCAA eligibility portal opens up, and that’s when you can start registering and filling out college questionnaires for [colleges] to start contacting you and emailing back and forth,” Justice said. “Then it’s talking to the coaches over email for a year or a year and a half before we finally commit somewhere.”

Despite knowing he

faced a different college admissions process compared to most of his peers, Justice reflects that he has put in a lot of work to reach such a high level, having to sleep at 8 p.m. and wake up at 4 a.m. for morning practices before going to school. “I wanted the work I put in behind the scenes to be able to pay off eventually,” he said.

As someone who has previously lived in California, Justice is happy that Claremont Mckenna will be in a somewhat familiar setting. Additionally, the college ranks highly in what he plans to study, and he’s had family and friends that have graduated from there. “My parents have a good network to work with and already know a lot about that school,” Justice said. “We really like what we’ve heard Justice plans to balance swimming competitively with academics, hoping to make big regional meets. He also plans to take advantage of the flexible college life schedule to keep up his music skills with guitar and drums. “I feel like college is a lot more

freeing because you can wake up later and have more time to do what you need,” he said.

Being in Taiwan, Justice feels the swimming clubs here have similar weekly training schedules with college-level swimming, a refreshing change from his old club team in the U.S., which reflected the weekly schedule of a professional swimmer, as he trained with multiple-time Junior World Champion Luca Urlando. Here, he can work on dryland stretching and aspects of physical health outside of the pool that will be useful for college-level swimming.

Despite the elite level and time commitment that comes with college-level swimming, his family does not want it to be a big source of stress. As such, he plans to continue swimming for personal enjoyment and fitness while working on improvement, knowing he has his family’s support. “I know if I can keep improving to get to an elite level, that’s good, but if I feel like I can’t improve anymore, it’s okay,” he said.

Going forward, Justice hopes aspiring student-athletes know what they have to consider when starting the college recruiting process. “The world is really big, so the talent pool is going to be really big,” Justice said. “Just because you’re IASAS champion or something, that doesn’t necessarily guarantee that you’re going to get in. Just keep working hard, and then you can expect to see results.”

Justice intends to simultaneously pursue a Bachelor of Arts in economics and Master of Arts in finance, a program open to CMC students that gives them the opportunity to still graduate within a total of four years. [PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAS ATHLETICS & JUSTICE B.]

Collegiate athletes attending school in the U.S. participate in the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) in Divisions I, II or III. Schools in the NCAA are divided into divisions by their school size and budget. Division I and II schools have bigger campuses and larger budgets while Division III schools are slightly smaller.

Catrina was waitlisted at Caltech but intends to pursue Computer Engineering at the University of Washington. [PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAS ATHLETICS & CATRINA Y.]

“Better eggs, better lives:” TAS Film explores cage-free eggs

By Abby Chang (‘24)

Upper school students in Honors Film 3 and 4 classes at Taipei American School have finished their documentary project regarding the promotion of cage-free eggs after eight months of hard work. The film crew worked for the European Chamber of Commerce and the Environment & Animal Society of Taiwan (EAST), which connects to Carrefour, a company that pledged to switch to cage-free eggs by 2025.

This project was proposed by Nicole Y. (‘23, she/her), the director of this cage-free documentary. Last summer, she interned at the European Chamber of Commerce and was introduced to environmental issues in Taiwan. Hoping to help spread awareness for these issues, Nicole worked out a documentary idea to connect the TAS film community and Taiwanese sustainability organizations. Thus, the project for a cagefree eggs documentary was proposed.

Film teachers were excited about the many opportunities film students can experience and the lessons that go along with this professional experience.

“What ultimately inspired us is getting students involved in something outside of the school, where they’re using their skills to communicate and interact with adults,” Mr.

Brett Barrus (he/him), the film production coordinator said. “I think anytime you can provide an educational experience like that, we’re all for it.”

The process of the documentary was long and difficult, requiring months of hard work. The team first immersed themselves in the research for this project by speaking with researchers from EAST and interviewing the corporate sustainability director of Carrefour. “Just to paint the picture of what is cage-free movement. Why is it important and why should we care?” Mr. Barrus said.

After establishing the connections and learning about the issue, the team started practicing filming skills, such as perfecting professional video lighting for interviews. Additionally, they also practiced cinematography and created a vision for the film, particularly focusing on finding the right music, lining up the shots and finding inspiration for the film. Students also had to adapt to effectively communicating with their clients for feedback. “It was a lot of negotiating with the clients to try and meet their demands and incorporate their feedback into the video,” Nicole said.

To obtain authentic clips and videos, the team traveled to cage-free chicken farms

in Changhua on Nov. 3. At Changhua, the team captured videos and pictures for their documentary. Students also interviewed the head farmer for additional perspectives on this project.

The final stage of the project is the official screening of the documentary for the clients, Carrefour and EAST. On March 29, the team presented their finalized documentary to the clients in the 2023 Animal Welfare and Food Transition Forum.

The film team also held a screening event in the Guy Lott, Jr. Auditorium during flex on Apr. 17, where students, teachers, parents and clients were invited to enjoy the five-minute documentary. For an opening speech, Nicole briefly spoke about her journey with the documentary and her gratitude for this project. After watching the documentary, Nicole invited three guest clients from Carrefour, EAST, and the European Chamber of Commerce for a short speech on sustainability and the cage-free movement.

Not only did the team successfully finish the documentary dedicated to the cage-free movement for their clients, but the team is also moving towards activism in TAS’ food services. Nicole, along with

other film editors, met with the food services department and presented their findings by showcasing the documentary and communicating their experience seeing the chickens in battery cages in comparison with chickens that were not in battery cages. Food services were very receptive to this idea and are reaching out to EAST to explore the possibility of bringing cage-free eggs to TAS’ cafeterias.

“That’s a pretty meaningful process from start to finish,” Mr. Barrus said. “If you ask me as an educator, I don’t think you could draw it up any better than to get involved with an issue that’s in your community, and go out and execute your vision and then use that information to move into advocating. I think it adheres to our values very well.”

Ultimately, this documentary allowed students to experience the film industry in a more professional manner while learning and building skills in communication, teamwork and filming.

“I think this project just gets them thinking about the possibilities with film, that it’s not just about creating this end product, that’s a beautiful cinematic thing,” Mr. Adrian Town (he/him), the upper school film teacher, said. “There’s activism and advocacy for greater change as well.”

Emily W. creates Bluebird Bakery to sell baked goods

By Erin Wu (‘25)

Bluebird Bakery is a student-run and owned business, started by Emily W. (‘25, she/her). Through her business, Emily sells a variety of baked goods such as cupcakes, cookies and muffins. So far, she has been running her business through her Instagram account @_bluebirdbakery, where customers can send messages to the account to place an order. All her items are also displayed through posts for customers to choose from.

Emily started her business in the summer of 2021. Many students stayed in Taiwan over that year due to COVID-19’s lasting effects. During her time at home, Emily realized a passion she always had was baking, and thus decided to spend more time perfecting her hobby. Starting a business was not initially her plan, but after some encouragement from her parents, she decided to try launching the business.

Growing up in a family who loved sweets made starting the business an even more natural step for Emily, as they were

the ones who inspired her love for baking. “It all started during my childhood,” Emily said. “My mom taught me how to bake at a young age, and it started out with simple vanilla cupcakes but now we’re doing more advanced stuff.”

Though baking itself is a crucial part of running Bluebird Bakery, many logistical steps were taken alongside that in order for things to run smoothly. Before launching her business, Emily had to plan out delivery systems, determine prices and marketing methods. There were many challenges she had to overcome during the first couple of months.

Firstly, there was lots of difficulty in deciding how to price her items. “I tried not to make things so expensive, but the high quality ingredients cost a lot, and I also need some sort of profit to come out of it as well,” Emily said.

Delivery also proved to be unexpectedly inefficient, as Emily had to try out many methods of delivery before settling on having

customers pick up orders at her house. “I did hand-deliver all the items in the first round of orders, but then I realized how hard it would be to maintain this, because everyone lives in such different areas,” she said.

The business has been well-received from a large number of customers, many of which are Taipei American School (TAS) students as well. “[Emily’s baked goods] were really good, and I would definitely buy from her again when she restocks,” Chelsea D. (‘25, she/her) said.

Many customers rave about her bestselling cupcakes. “Her red velvet cupcakes are the best I’ve ever had in my life. My whole family loves them,” Sage R. (‘25, she/her) said.

Emily hopes to be able to expand her business in the future. “I would love to have an actual establishment one day and have a wider selection [of items] on my menu,” she said. “It’s pretty crazy this all started out as a hobby but now has evolved into something I really enjoy doing.”

Honors Film 3 and 4 students set up the camera and microphone to get ready for a shot. [PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS FILM]

Bluebird Bakery’s cupcakes are popular. [PHOTO COURTESY OF EMILY W.]

Emily W. designed Bluebird Bakery’s logo herself. [LOGO COURTESY OF EMILY W.]

Farewell to the leaving upper school faculty

By Amber Wu (‘23)

As the 2022-2023 school year comes to an end, the Taipei American School (TAS) community will bid farewell to several faculty members, including Upper School Principal Mr. Andrew Lowman (he/him), Political Science Teacher Ms. Beth Clarke (she/her) and History Teacher Mr. Luke Walker (he/him).

Mr. Lowman walking down the hallways, chatting with other faculty members, is a familiar scene to the upper school community. Now, after 14 years at TAS, he will be embarking on his next journey in the U.S. after this school year.

Upon arriving at TAS in 2009, Mr. Lowman initially worked as a personal academic counselor. He has since worked as a college counselor, the director of college counseling, the upper school associate principal and now the upper school principal.

It is difficult for Mr. Lowman to pinpoint one favorite memory during his time at TAS as all students have different passions. “One of the most incredible things about our school in our community is the sheer amount of incredible things happening that we consider

After four years of teaching political science courses and serving as the assistant coach for the Speech and Debate team, Ms. Clarke has decided to pursue her dream of becoming an Episcopal priest in the U.S.

After teaching in the U.S. for 16 years, Ms. Clarke wanted to gain the experience of teaching abroad, so she applied for a political science teacher position at TAS and began teaching here in 2019.

When Ms. Clarke initially moved to Taiwan, she encountered challenges involving adjusting to a new environment. “A lot of my big obstacles were just learning

After wrapping up an activity-filled Advanced Placement (AP) European History class, Mr. Walker realizes that his eight years in Taiwan, just like the contents taught in his classes, will soon become history after his move back to the U.S. this summer.

When Mr. Walker first arrived at TAS in 2015, he had to alter his teaching methods to support students’ academic achievements. “It’s no secret that TAS is a high academic performing environment, so coming in, I had to adjust to the culture for the first couple of years,” he said. “I needed to rethink some of the practices that I did for different lengths of class time.”

Throughout his years at TAS, Mr. Walker reminisces the most about the first few years where he created fun and engaging activities for his AP World History students.

to just be normal,” he said. “Everywhere you look, there’s life and there’s things happening. I think the incredible thing about our community is just how many wonderful opportunities there are for students and how students throw their whole heart into it.”

The biggest obstacle that Mr. Lowman faced throughout his years as the upper school principal was ensuring that students were able to learn effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The COVID-19 years would be kind of the subtitle of my time as principal, and I am so proud of our community over the past four years and the resilience of students,” he said. “I’ve seen some of the most incredible work done by teachers as they have had to rethink everything to be able to provide [lessons] online or to be able to still make things happen even though there were all

how to overcome the culture shock of moving to someplace so different from where I was from,” she said. “But then once I adjusted to those things, I actually found my life here very pleasant: The students here are really kind and easy to work with.”

Throughout her time at TAS, Ms. Clarke’s favorite memory was chaperoning Frolic last semester. “It was a moment of just such joy because it was like really one of the first dances that the school had been able to have [since the pandemic],” she said. “Just to be able to see kids having fun and not being worried about COVID restrictions and the faculty getting to spend time together has just been such a relief because everyone

“I remember laughing and having a really good time with my first classes in 2015 and 2016. We used to do some things that I no longer do in AP World Historyjust because the course has changed, which were a little more creative, a little more silly, and it was fun to see kids relaxed that way,” he said. “The Napoleon trials in AP European [History] and Ghengis Khan trials in AP World [History] were entertaining to watch kids be a little more creative, a little more expressive and engaged with the history they’ve learned.”

Something that Mr. Walker learned during his time at TAS is to be as authentic in the classroom as possible to establish and elevate the relationship between him and his students.

“Authenticity in the classroom is something that’s really important as it drives positive learning experiences and good teaching. Never once was I ever afraid to just

these government restrictions in place.”

Mr. Lowman will return to Raleigh, North Carolina after this school year to spend more time with his family and loved ones.

“I’m a firm believer in that when you leave someplace you should leave happy, and I’m very happy. I love TAS and I love Taiwan,” he said. “I am thrilled that I get to leave a school I love and when I’m happy. There are lots of things pulling [me] back to the U.S. at this time in terms of just being closer to family and makes it the right time for us to start our next adventure.”

Ultimately, Mr. Lowman has loved being a faculty member at TAS and believes that the main takeaway during his time at the school is that what makes TAS special is the people. “As a member of the faculty, I have always been just blown away by the people I get to work with and by the students:

learned how to have fun again.”

Ms. Clarke will be moving to Virginia in the fall, where she will be learning to become an Episcopal priest at Virginia Theological Seminary for the next three years. “This is something I’ve thought about for a really long time. This transition has been very planned out,” she said. “I’m sad to leave, but not for another teaching job: I’m leaving because I’ve totally changed careers.”

Overall, Ms. Clarke will miss how welcoming and friendly the people in Taiwan have been to her. “I have never been in a situation on campus or off campus where someone was unwilling to help me,” she said. “In the interpersonal interactions

be myself in the class to teach or speak to students and young minds in a manner that I felt was not only appropriate, but supportive,” he said. “It’s also really important to remember the growing pains that I went through as an adult and as an educator, that one thing you can hold true to is being yourself.”

Mr. Walker will be taking a sabbatical year in Michigan following the end of the school year and will search for a new job after living in Taiwan for 11 years.

Overall, Mr. Walker appreciates the good experiences and support in the community. “I’ve had a good teaching experience and I’ve been lucky to have significant support from the community over the past several years when I really needed it to be there for me,” he said. “Sometimes we forget that we’re a community because we work so hard and are always chasing that one thing, but just remembering where you are in line upon the

The people really make this place,” he said. “Obviously we also have incredible facilities and programs, but all of those come because of the people, who are just amazing and do incredible things.”

I’ve had with people here, they are just so helpful and kind, and I will always take that with me.”

Chris S. runs Tomorrow Taipei, a sustainable fashion brand

By Aina Chen (‘26)

Tomorrow Taipei is a student-run sustainable fashion brand founded by Chris S. (‘24, he/him). Chris sells items such as t-shirts, hoodies and sweatshirts through his website. By running his business online, Chris is able to reach an international audience and can easily promote the clothing line.

Chris started his business during the summer of 2021. He was prompted to start a clothing line because of his interest in business and his concern about the negative impact of fast fashion on the environment.

Through his sustainable fashion business, Chris wanted to make the biggest impact possible by prioritizing the environment before revenue. The fashion industry often produces clothes made of synthetic fibers that are not biodegradable and are destructive

to the environment. According to Chris, Tomorrow Taipei uses 100% cotton approved by the Global Organic Textile Standard which also reduces water consumption by 243 liters per garment. This reduction in water usage contributes to the conservation of resources, especially in the face of clothing manufacturers’ significant consumption of water. Chris added that the use of cotton also reduces carbon emissions and prevents around 1.7 grams of microplastic from entering the ocean.

The process of creating the business was not easy for Chris, as he had to undertake many steps and effectively execute his plans to ensure the success of his business. Before launching his business, Chris first had to build a website, hire the right designers and find the right manufacturing companies. “Since I was going to be an online business, my website is basically

[my] brand name,” Chris said. “It [also] took a long time to figure out which manufacturers are actually sustainable and supporting the social fashion message.”

Throughout the entire process, it was crucial for Chris to keep the message of sustainability in mind, ensuring that he found the right materials and selected the most environmentally friendly manufacturing company. In addition to that, Chris also had to coordinate with shipping companies and market his clothing line through platforms such as Facebook. Chris was able to break even, which is when the revenue an individual generates in their business is equal to the investments they have put in.

Customers also expressed their appreciation for Tomorrow Taipei’s commitment to sustainability. “I really like the values that he

Tomorrow Taipei sells clothing online. [LOGO COURTESY OF CHRIS S.]

is promoting and I think that the style and designs of the clothes are also really cool,” Will Hsu (‘24) said.“I think Tomorrow Taipei’s clothing is unique in its style and has great quality,” said Simon R (‘24), one of Chris’ first customers who has supported him along this journey.

Even though it would be difficult to shift the business to the U.S. after Chris graduates, he hopes to spread the message of sustainability in his social entrepreneurship ventures in the future.

[AMBER WU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

[AMBER WU/THE BLUE & GOLD] support that the amazing community can offer something is very important.”

[AMBER WU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

Mr. Andrew Lowman

Ms. Beth Clarke

Mr. Luke Walker

SUMMER BREAK TRAVEL DREAMS: SUMMER BREAK TRAVEL DREAMS:

where TAS students want to travel

“I want to travel to the south of France or any coastal city in Europe because I love the beach.”

“I would like to taste all the delicious food and visit all the beautiful places in Paris and Rome.”

“I want to go to Sydney, Australia to see the Sydney Opera House.”

“I want to go to Ontario, Cananda. I think it would be pretty cool to check out the Niagara Falls.”

“I want to travel to the Maldives because the pictures look absolutely breathtaking.”

“I haven’t been to Tokyo, Japan in years, so I would really love to go back for the amazing food.”

“Buen Camino! I’m excited to walk from Portugal to Spain.”

“I’d love to visit Phuket, Thailand because I want to experience the beautiful places and culture!”

“I would love to visit the volcanoes in Hawaii and to take photos of the view.”

Legacy and donor college admissions should be discontinued

Facts about Legacy Admissions

The discourse of legacy and donor college admissions is a prevalent issue in the Taipei American School (TAS) community. Universities preferentially admit descendants of alumni or students from families who make massive donations, increasing their chances of being admitted into schools.

However, the practice of these preferences disproportionately favors white and/or wealthy applicants, establishing an exclusive system that bars equally (or even more) qualified applicants from entering their desired colleges.

On an Instagram poll conducted by The Blue & Gold with over 100 responses, 78 percent of the students who voted believe that legacy and donor admissions should be abolished. Despite many TAS students agreeing that the practice where universities favor applicants with legacy or donations should cease to exist, this culture is still heavily widespread.

According to a 2022 Forbes article, 80 percent of 64 colleges and universities with acceptance rates lower than 25 percent offer preferential treatment to applicants with legacy, and 42 percent of those admitted students are potential top donors.

Legacy preferences should be removed as they contribute to systemic discrimination throughout history. The deeply cemented policy originated at the end of World War I, where universities in the 1920s began successfully limiting the number of people of color, Jewish immigrants and other students of minorities by favoring alumni’s descendants, who are mostly white.

Even though the percentage of legacy

admissions has drastically declined, with some schools completely disregarding legacies now, many universities, especially Ivy League schools like Yale University and Harvard University which practice legacy admissions, continue to contribute to this culture.

to cling to these outdated policies and are reluctant to eliminate legacy admission boosts, they reinforce existing modes of exclusion and cannot fully uphold diversity.

Likewise, from the perspectives of many private universities, students with legacy boosts also have wealthier families who are more inclined to make greater donations than non-legacy families, causing universities to admit more legacy students to ensure that the schools are well funded.

For example, according to The New York Times, Yale’s Class of 2025 includes 14 percent of students that are descended from alumni. Another 2022 Forbes article notes that Harvard’s Class of 2025 includes 15 percent of legacy admitted students, where 18.8 percent of those with legacy affiliation are white.

By continuing traditional legacy admissions, these colleges and universities that advocate for equality are ironically engaging in practices that are clearly rooted in racism and antisemitism.

Although many non-legacy students have higher academic statistics than those with legacy boosts, they often have higher chances of getting rejected by their dream schools despite working just as hard (or perhaps even more so) than those with alumni parents. As these schools continue

Yet, top universities are ignoring the fact that many non-donor applicants have better academic statistics, essays and extracurriculars than applicants whose family donate. Students are more susceptible to focus less on their own abilities to present themselves as qualified applicants, instead highlighting their familial connections and donations as the most prominent factors for their acceptances.

With the incorporation of legacy and donor admissions, students are unable to become attuned to how they are able to dream past goals that their families already have reached and achieve their own.

Ultimately, it is imperative for these institutions to abolish the longstanding system of donor and legacy admission as they are not only antiquated and antithetical to these schools’ own values, but prevent students from truly showcasing their capabilities and personalities during the college admissions process.

Students don’t need to rely on our families’ past successes or their wealth to earn a spot at a college or university. We are more than that: We have our own abilities and achievements.

TAS students on legacy and donor admissions:

Do TAS students think legacy/donor admissions should be abolished? Yes

No 28%

72%

Percentage of legacy admitted students for the Class of 2025

By Amber Wu (‘23)

“These colleges and universities that advocate for equality are ironically engaging in practices that are clearly rooted in racism and antisemitism.”

“The legacy system in colleges really solidifies the idea that college admission is a business rather than an evaluation of students’ actual talent.”

“The donor system perpetuates financial inequality because if only rich students are able to receive ‘prestigious’ education, then it is more difficult for lower income students to receive the same opportunities.”

“The point of donor and legacy admissions is that they keep the money income flowing: If we can move away from the norms that college is a business, we can improve our values when it comes to admissions.”

The 2019 Varsity Blues scandal involved bribery admissions at the University of Southern California. [ARIEL LEE/THE BLUE & GOLD] This Instagram poll conducted by The B&G on March 17 has recieved over 100 responses.

EDITORIAL

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

AMBER WU (‘23, she/her)

MANAGING EDITOR (PRINT)

ARIEL LEE (‘23, she/her)

MANAGING EDITOR (ONLINE)

VICTORIA HSU (‘24, she/her)

SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR

ABBY CHANG (‘24, she/her)

STAFF WRITERS

KATHERINE MA (‘24, she/her)

ERIN WU (‘25, she/her)

AINA CHEN (‘26, she/her)

ADVISER

MS. JEI-JEI TAN (she/her)

MISSION STATEMENT

The Blue & Gold is a student-run publication dedicated to sharing stories from the Taipei American School community. Regularly publishing content by student reporters during the academic year, The Blue & Gold strives to inform our school community by covering events and issues relevant to TAS and showcasing the diversity of our community.

CORRECTIONS

We take all measures possible to report accurately and seek to bring professional, thorough reporting to our readers. Please report any inaccuracies in our content to our email, blueandgold@students.tas.tw.

OP-EDS

AND EDITORIALS

Editorials collectively represent the opinions of The Blue & Gold’s editorial board, while op-eds represent the opinions of each writer. Opinions in The Blue & Gold do not necessarily reflect the views of the TAS student body, staff, faculty or administration.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

We welcome letter submissions from all readers. Email your signed letter of under 500 words to blueandgold@ students.tas.tw.

How can late start days be improved?

By Erin Wu (‘25)

Starting in the second semester of the 2022-2023 academic school year, 3 late start days have been scattered throughout the months. Introduced as a time for teachers to participate in professional development, classes on late start days start at 9:30 a.m. instead of the usual 7:45 a.m. for students. The schedule for the rest of the school day changes accordingly, with 65 minute class periods and no flex.

As late start days are appearing more throughout the rest of the year, students have started to wonder if the system will or should become the norm. However, the lack of efficiency and practicality of late start days in particular poses some problems.

Time management in and out of school tends to affect academics, focus and sleep. Late start days provide a solution to students’ lack of sleep, giving them over an hour of extra time in the morning. This is something that can be appreciated, given that the heavy workload at TAS often overly tires out students.

However, with a new schedule implemented on late start days, the rationality of the late start schedule should be called into question. Due to shorter class periods and a schedule that places period 2 at the start of the day and period 1 at the end, lunch periods are drastically earlier than usual. In fact, students with the A3 lunch period end up having their lunch period at 10:45 a.m., only one hour after they have arrived at school.

Having a lunch period placed in the middle of the day, as per the usual schedule, proves to be beneficial for many students, as it acts as a time to refresh themselves and take a break between classes. This becomes considerably harder with late start day schedules as some lunch periods start up to two hours earlier. Going forward, creating a more balanced schedule would help students adapt to late start days better.

Another change due to late start days is the removal of flex. Although some students prefer to have more time in the morning, others utilize flex to participate in school

activities, such as club meetings, community events and meetings with teachers. Flex also gives students the opportunity to take advantage of school facilities such as the Fitness Center, libraries and study spaces. Since flex is a crucial part to students’ days, late start days aren’t benefiting students as much as they seem to be.

Lastly, due to short class periods, students have much faster-paced classes on late start days. Because of the inability to change the curriculum this late in the year, many teachers attempt to cram a full 80-minute lesson into the 65-minute class periods, which ultimately hinders student learning. In the future, if late start days become the norm, teachers ought to start to consider their time differences when preparing for classes to make the system more effective. Ultimately, late start days have lots of potential and thankfully, seem to be a step in taking student needs into account, though certain changes to the current system should be implemented to improve the system further.

Across:

4. Which country did Walk for Refugees dedicate the walkaton to?

5. Where do the Flintstones live?

8. Which girl group visited Taiwan for a concert this year?

10. Who has scored the most points in NBA history?

11. Who got fourth place for Spirit Week this year?

Down:

1. Where did the B&G visit this spring?

2. How many late start days have there been?

3. Which teacher has worked at TAS for over 50 years?

6. How many gold medals did TAS receive in IASAS this year?

7. What is the TAS mascot’s name?

9. Where will graduation take place?

Students often use the extra time in the morning of late start days to catch up on sleep and study. [ERIN WU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

800 ZHONGSHAN N. RD. TAIPEI 11152 TAIWAN

BOARD

Are ChatGPT generated recipes worth it?

By Amber Wu (‘23)

As the popularity of utilizing the artificial intelligence (AI) ChatGPT surges, The Blue & Gold tried baking desserts using ChatGPT generated recipes to determine whether the chat bot provides high quality recipes. Due to the egg shortage that Taiwan is facing, we decided to ask ChatGPT to curate eggless recipes for us to use.

Eggless Strawberry Cake Roll

Recipe

2 hours 180°C

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup all-purpose flour

2. 1 tsp baking powder

3. 1/2 tsp baking soda

4. 1/2 tsp salt

5. 1/2 cup sugar

6. 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

7. 1/4 cup vegetable oil

8. 1/4 cup milk

9. 1 tsp vanilla extract

10. 1/4 cup strawberry jam

The first recipe we asked ChatGPT to generate was an eggless strawberry cake roll. Our goal was to make a flat sponge cake then roll it up with whipped cream encased in the cylindrical cake.

In the beginning stages of baking, everything went well and according to ChatGPT. However, soon we realized that the lack of liquid ingredients caused the mixture to become coarse and dry, creating a batter that ended up being harder than cookie dough instead of the fluffy, airy cake batter that would produce the best sponge cake.

We then decided to add hot water and milk in hopes of dissolving chunks of sugar that were trapped in the solid batter; however, the water did not help, which caused the sugary chunks to remain in the batter.

To create a velvety batter, we followed instructions to make strawberry puree, blending pieces of strawberries to create

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C

a smooth mixture that served as a wet ingredient for the batter. When we poured in the strawberry puree, the batter became smoother, but with occasional chunks in the mixture that were impossible to get rid of.

Because the cake batter’s butter, which is able to hold air, was not mixed well with the other ingredients, the cake did not expand during the baking time. Unfortunately, instead of creating a fluffy sponge sheet cake, we ended up with a denser cake that was not fully baked at the center.

In the end, when we attempted to roll the cake with pre-made whipped cream. The cake mostly fell apart since some parts of the cake were still too wet. Despite the difficult baking process, the cake had a nice strawberry taste, but due to the consistency of the cake, the presentation was not very appealing.

Overall, we concluded that the eggless strawberry cake roll recipe did not provide enough liquid ingredients to create the smooth, fluffy cake batter to create the airy spiral-shaped cake that we anticipated.

2. Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar

3. Mix together the applesauce, vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla extract

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients

5. Pour the batter onto a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes

6. While the cake is still warm, roll it up and let it cool completely

7. Unroll the cake and spread whipped cream over the surface

8. Roll the cake back up tightly and place in refrigerator

9. Slice and serve cold

Eggless Cinnamon Cookie Crumble Parfait-Cake

Another recipe that we asked ChatGPT to come up with was an eggless cinnamon cookie crumble parfait-cake. We would bake a circular cake with the ingredients similar to a snickerdoodle cookie, then crumble the cake and pour the crumbs into a cup where we would then alternatively fill with whipped cream.

To start off, there was a substantial amount of liquid ingredients in the recipe, so we knew that the batter wouldn’t turn out into the sugar-chunks filled batter that the strawberry roll cake recipe caused. The proportions of both of the dry and wet ingredients were relatively the same, so we predicted that the mixture would turn out smoother.

When we poured the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients, we noticed that the batter turned into a smooth and light mixture compared to the rock-hard, cookiedough-like batter that we had when we attempted to bake the eggless strawberry roll cake.

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C

This cake, unlike the strawberry cake roll, did not turn out dense at all: It had the right amount of moistness that is expected from a cake, while also featuring the crispy elements and taste of a snickerdoodle cookie. So when we broke the cake up into pieces, it fell apart nicely, creating the crumbly effect that we had initially desired. We then started layering the contents of the glass with the crumbled cake and homemade whipped cream, creating a parfait-cake.

When we tasted the parfait-cake, the cake crumbs and the whipped cream did not overpower each other in terms of taste; instead, they complemented each other, allowing us to enjoy the parfait. The only negative aspect of the dessert was that the cake was a bit too sweet for our liking, but other than that, the parfait-cake was highly enjoyable.

Fundamentally, the cinnamon cookie crumble parfait-cake was an excellent dessert to bake with ChatGPT generated recipe. Not only did the cake resemble a cinnamon cookie, the contents of the cake and the whipped cream emphasized the flavors.

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt

3. Cream the softened butter and sugar together

4. Mix in the vegetable oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract

5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the milk

6. Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 30 minutes

7. Allow the cake to cool in the pan before transferring it to a rack to cool further

8. Assemble parfait-cake and serve

Recipe

2 hours 180°C

Ingredients:

1. 2 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2. 2 tsp baking powder

3. 1 tsp baking soda

4. 1 tsp cinnamon

5. 1/2 tsp nutmeg

6. 1/2 tsp salt

7. 1 and 1/4 cup granulated sugar

8. 1/2 cup unsalted butter

9. 1/4 cup vegetable oil

10. 1 tbs apple cider vinegar

11. 2 tsp vanilla extract

[VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

[VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

[VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

[VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

[VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

[VICTORIA HSU/THE BLUE & GOLD]

The Blue & Gold visits animal cafes in Taipei

Recently, there has been a growing surge of animal cafes caused by their rising popularity on social media. The world’s first cat cafe, called Cat Flower Garden, opened in Taiwan in 1998. Since then, many other cafes featuring different animals have been established. Animal cafes enable customers to interact with animals ranging from housepets to exotic creatures. However, the ethics behind animal cafes have long been a topic of controversy. There have been many news reports of cafe owners neglecting or physically abusing their animals. Critics argue that such cafes exploit animals for profit, while supporters believe that such cafes offer animal lovers a one-of-a-kind opportunity to interact with animals.

The Blue & Gold visited three animal cafes to create a guide to some ethical animal cafes located in the Taipei area.

Lang Lang Don’t Cry

By Erin Wu (‘25)

Nestled into a small alleyway, Lang Lang Don’t Cry, a dog and cat adoption shelter/cafe, is surprisingly popular amongst people of all ages. Although the narrow storefront seems to be unassuming at first glance, it opens up to a lively space, bustling with sounds of laughter and delight.

The cafe, while being a space frequented by animal lovers who wish to play with dogs and cats, also operates as an adoption center, where customers are welcome to adopt the stray animals taken in. The dogs and cats are kept and taken care of in separate areas to not overstimulate them. There are approximately five dogs and double the amount of cats being sheltered at the moment.

waiters having to make their way around to ensure all was running smoothly, the dog area does get too crowded at times, even with a limited number of customers allowed in at a time. The cats seem to have calmer natures and rarely cause a fuss, most likely due to them being tucked into small boxes and spaces most of the time. Though the animals seldom come up to the customers, they are all very friendly and are unlikely to put anyone at risk of getting hurt.

Dogs can be found resting in their area of the cafe. [ERIN WU/THE

Wildmii Safari Showroom and Cafe

With energetic dogs free to run about, customers eager to follow them around and

By Aina Chen (‘26)

Tucked away in a small alleyway not far from Mingsheng Road is a quaint coffee shop called Wildmii Safari Showroom and Cafe. It showcases exotic reptiles such as chameleons, pythons, tortoises and tree frogs as well as mammals like hedgehogs, prairie mice, Eurasian red squirrels and sugar gliders.

Despite its somewhat hidden location, this cafe is a very popular weekend spot for parents bringing their children to interact with animals. The cafe can also sometimes be booked for private events, so it is always a good idea to check their website and social media pages before making plans to visit.

This cafe features different themes seven days of a week. For instance, Monday and Thursday are adult-only days, where the cafe is catered to suit people who need a quiet space to work, while Tuesdays, Wednesdays and the weekend cater to families with younger children and allows for a range of

Pythonism

By Katherine Ma (‘24)

With a small storefront by the road, Pythonism is not the typical animal cafe. As the name suggests, the cafe specializes in snakes and other reptilians. Customers are allowed to interact with the cafe’s reptilian residents and are also given the opportunity to purchase pythons that the cafe offers. Thus, not only is the cafe a great meeting place, but it also gives potential owners a chance to bond and pick out their new pets.

Despite its small size, there is usually no waiting time to be seated. Inside, there is a communal table and a couch seating area by the window. The rest of the cafe’s space is dedicated to shelves with containers holding ball pythons and a few lizards. Each animal gets its own container, which ranges in size depending on the animal. Most of the containers are padded with tissue and

As for the food, most of their desserts and drinks are on par with what you’d expect at a cafe. The price ranges are also reasonable, with each dessert and drink ranging from around NT$150-200. There are also light meals offered, however they are only available at certain times. Some of the most popular items are the pancakes, pudding and risotto. Though the food isn’t

animal interaction paired with educational activities.

The interior of the cafe is quite spacious, there are large wooden tables and the surroundings are filled with plant decorations and animal figurines, giving the cafe a very forest-like atmosphere. Animals are put in varying sizes of glass cases along the wooden shelves, allowing guests to observe the animals up close. The glass cases imitate the animals’ habitats, with lush greenery for tree frogs and a sandy landscape with dead logs for sugar gliders. Each case also has a labeled description of the animal’s name, habitat and characteristics. The lighting of the cafe is also dim and warm, creating a cozy ambiance. On certain days, animals could be taken out of their cases. However, on most days, animals remain in their cases for their safety. When it comes to food and beverages, this cafe offers items that you would normally see in a regular cafe, such as milk tea, waffles and light meals, with prices

have a small bowl of water. However, there were a few larger display boxes with decorations imitating the creatures’ natural habitats.

Besides the contained reptilians, the cafe also features two free-roaming turtles, one of which is about the size of a baby toddler. Customers are welcome to pet the turtles but have to mind their steps as the smaller turtle can sometimes be found under the tables and chairs.

When it comes to handling the snakes, the staff make sure to guide firsttime customers. After the staff gives brief instructions, the customer must ask for permission to hold their first snake. After handling their first snake, the customer can choose the next snake they would like to handle by themselves. In regards to the selection of snakes that customers are allowed to interact with, only several

anything special, the atmosphere is what most customers come for.

Because the ethics of animal cafes have become a controversial topic, it is important to evaluate the care animals receive at said cafes. Here, especially because the cats and dogs are strays, it feels even more necessary for them to receive the love and care they deserve. It’s safe to say that the animals are all well taken care of at this cafe, with multiple rules set in place to prevent them from getting hurt while playing with customers. The animals also regularly take naps, undisturbed from the public, and are allowed to roam freely as they wish.

Overall, Lang Lang Don’t Cry is a refreshing cafe to spend an afternoon, especially if you love cats and dogs. The atmosphere is upbeat and fun, albeit a little hectic at times.

ranging from NT$100 to around NT$300. Something really special the cafe offers is the unique names of each item on the menu. For example, items that translated to“jaguar blowing bubbles” and “groundhog latte.” All in all, the food is quite similar to other cafes in Taipei.

Overall, the cafe was quite clean. However, there were also occasionally overwhelming waves of stench coming from the animal cases. For individuals who are not going for the woodsy, forestry vibe, the cafe may not be the best option.

Simply put, Wildmii Safari Showroom and Cafe is the perfect animal cafe for anyone looking to hang out, study, or have a cup of coffee in a woodsy, forestry-themed cafe. It is hard to find a place where there are so many animals without having to take a visit to the zoo in Taipei. Moreover, the description of the animals labeled on each case and the knowledgeable staff members also make this a really great educational opportunity.

are open to being handled. Also, there is a limit of only one snake per person at a time to ensure the safety of both the customer and the snake.

For customers looking to purchase a snake, the prices of the pythons range from around NT$6,000 to around NT$30,000. The cafe also lists the available pythons for sale on their website (https://www. pythonismylife.com/).

All in all, given its quiet environment, Pythonism is an ideal place for studying, hanging out with friends or having a unique experience. The cafe is also great for reptile lovers who may not be able to own their own reptiles or are on the search to own one. Furthermore, the owner and staff are passionate and well-educated about the animals. They make sure that all customers are being respectful and have a fun time when interacting with the cafe’s reptiles.

A toffee colored python relaxes on top of a customer’s lap.

BLUE & GOLD]

A lizard, one of the cafe’s exotic animals, rests in its case. [AINA CHEN/THE BLUE & GOLD]

Class of 2022 Alumni Spotlight

This Alumni Spotlight was jointly written by Emma W. (’22) and Enoch T. (’22), who represent their class as Alumni Agents. Enoch is pursuing a degree in Computer Science and Molecular Biology at Johns Hopkins University and Emma plans to pursue a double major in Economics and Art History at Yale University. A longer version of this article was first published in the April 2023 Taipei American School (TAS) Alumni News.

It was a miracle the Class of 2022 started their college experience unscathed by COVID. Attending orientation, classes, and parties inperson, it finally felt like we were making a transition back to normality.

Still, leaving Taiwan came with its shocks; folks in the States seemed almost too eager to treat COVID like a thing of the past. Masks were optional everywhere, almost everyone was vaccinated on campus, and if someone caught COVID, it was treated like a common cold. Enoch remembers being taken aback when Hopkins, widely regarded as a leader in the pandemic response, announced an in-dorm quarantine policy, meaning unlucky students would have to incubate with a highly infectious COVID-19 positive roommate.

Emma’s biggest adjustment was to New England winters after leaving sunny Taiwan in August. Her biggest lesson outside the classroom was learning how to stay warm, but in the classroom, she learned a lot about her academic limits and interests. At first, she entered a program called Directed Studies that focused on the Western canon through philosophy, literature and history since she loved AP Literature at TAS with Dr. Lipsett and had come to Yale determined to study Humanities.

Still, after writing paper after paper and reading three books a week, she was tired of reading commentary on Plato’s forms, digesting Stoic texts, and memorizing battles in Herodotus’s The Histories. She chose to opt out and prioritize her mental health, which led her to take art history classes such as Dutch Art and Caravaggio, which fascinated her. She learned that passions aren’t fixed, found classes she truly enjoys and learned to thrive in them.

Enoch came to college with the goal of redefining himself and embracing personal growth. He credits Mr. Matlock, whose parting words have shaped his college mindset thus far:

“That is the perfect perspective, in my opinion—to have an idea of where your passion is and what you want to pursue while being open to other paths that may end up resonating with you more.”

Enoch’s first semester at Hopkins has been an interesting experiment with both the familiar and unfamiliar. On one hand, Enoch has continued to pursue his passion for applied biomedical research. He joined the Mao Lab at the Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBiotechnology, where he is working on projects related to immunoengineering and therapeutic drug delivery.

One of the highlights of Enoch’s first semester was spontaneously deciding to compete in MedHacks, a 36-hour health-care innovation challenge. Working in a team with four other freshmen, he conceived a software tool capable of converting dense and technical electronic health text into useful schematics for physicians and patients. Their project won the first place overall prize and US$4,250 in prize money, funding they have since put into building their project into a seed-stage startup. From this experience, Enoch formed close bonds with his teammates, who are now among his closest friends at Hopkins.

Yet, what has been most transformative for Enoch has been exploring aspects of his identity he had previously been less comfortable with, the so-called “other paths” Mr. Matlock described. One of these paths is his faith. Born and raised Christian, Enoch grew up going to Sunday school. However, he had always struggled with his connection to the church community back in Taiwan, and never really felt that his faith was his own. Early in the fall semester, Enoch came across an ice cream outreach event hosted by the Stepping Stone campus ministry. There, he met the ministry’s campus pastor who himself had graduated from Hopkins a few years ago. From Enoch’s

involvement with Stepping Stone, he met a group of people both serious and realistic about their faith, who have pushed him to explore what being Christian truly means to him.

As for Emma, she still keeps in touch with her closest TAS friends but has also found a tight circle of friends at Yale, especially through her orientation program. The program was designed for international students to bond and adjust to living in America, so most of her friends are international, ranging from Brazil to London to Indonesia. With so many international students, there are always opportunities to celebrate; this was the first year Emma didn’t celebrate Chinese New Year with her family, but she hosted a potluck and dumpling-wrapping party for all her friends to feel that sense of belonging again.

Outside of classes, Emma can be found working as a barista at the Bean, a cafe inside her residential college. To destress, she’s joined Danceworks where she attends a ballet workshop and a heels class. Emma is

also interested in film, so she regularly attends screenings from Yale’s collection at the Whitney Humanities Center. Enoch finds meaning in spending time with friends at Orient Express, a Chinese family restaurant near campus, playing late-night table tennis, and serving as a peer listener with A Place to Talk, which works with the Hopkins counseling center to provide a safe space for students to decompress.

Now, Enoch is on a premedical track hoping to pursue an MD-PhD, while Emma’s dream job is to be a New York Times food editor or an art auctioneer. Although their college experiences and future career aspirations are vastly different, this first semester of college has left a lasting impression of how wide the world truly is, while simultaneously reminding them of the importance of looking inwards, taking it step-by-step, and finding joy in personal relationships and small moments. Emma and Enoch look back on their first semester with gratitude, contentment, and a firm resolve to make the most of the next few years to come.

Class of 2023 Senior Highlights in Photos

Team Toefu celebrating their Medhacks win: From left to right - Sean K. (‘22), Claire C., Enoch, Benjamin C. and Ricky Y. [PHOTO COURTESY OF TAS ALUMNI OFFICE]

Upperclassmen from Ms. Jen-Ching Kao’s A5 AP Economics class pose for a group photo. [PHOTO COURTESY OF AMBER WU]

Seniors holding up their class banner to show off their spirit. [PHOTO COURTESY OF DYLAN L. (‘23)]

Class of 2023 officers celebrate their first-place win on the final day of spirit week. [PHOTO COURTESY OF CLASS OF 2023 OFFICERS]

Upperclassmen pose by the track field during Tiger Classics. [PHOTO COURTESY OF CLAIRE L. (‘26)]

Seniors dress in all black to honor their class color for field day. [PHOTO COURTESY OF CLASS OF 2023 OFFICERS]

SENDING OFF THE BLUE & GOLD SENIORS SENDING OFF THE BLUE & GOLD SENIORS

Amber Wu (‘23, she/her):

editor-in-chief

Amber’s passion for journalism started in Lower School. “Whenever my mom would be at school, she would pick up copies of The B&G that were lying around and would bring them back to me,” Amber said. “I would spend hours reading different reviews and articles, which initially sparked my interest in joining The B&G as I really looked up to the members of the publication.”

By Katherine Ma

Amber, the editor-in-chief of The Blue & Gold (The B&G), has been a part of journalism class since her freshman year. She is also involved in tutoring local Taiwanese students about financial aid, mentoring the Middle School (MS) Model United Nations (MUN) Press Team and leading the MS publication, Tiger Times. Amber will be studying political science and English at Wellesley College after graduation.

Reading The B&G articles inspired Amber to one day have her own work printed in the student-led publication, prompting her to sign up for the journalism course when she entered her freshman year. Her first year in The B&G enabled her to continue developing her passion for journalism. “When I first joined, my goal was to achieve the same high quality of writing that past editors-in-chief acquired,” she said.

“However, over time, I realized that everyone writes and reports differently. And that’s the beauty of journalism, where we get to step out of our comfort zones and explore different styles of writing.”

Her fondest memories include working on print editions with all of her peers. “My favorite memory was back in freshman year, where our class collectively worked on the last

print edition of the year,” she said. “When we finished with all the layout pages, we placed every single page on the floor in order and stood there, staring at our completed edition. Seeing the print edition collectively come together and merge into the best product of the year was probably the best feeling in the world.”

Through The B&G, Amber has been able to express herself in ways that other classes and clubs do not offer. Her experience with the publication has given her a common ground with other students and taught her valuable communication skills. “To me, writing actively shapes society and supplies fundamental knowledge to public beliefs, so I’m grateful that The B&G has given me the platform to voice my opinions and thoughts to foster meaningful conversations in our community,” Amber said. “I’ve not only learned through the hardships of media censorship, but I have also found modes to empower other people to draw their own interpretations on issues here at TAS through my writing.”

Not only has she been able to connect with her journalism peers, but she has also been able to reach out to many other members

of the TAS community. “I love how I get to create a culture here at TAS, whether that is communicating with the other journalists to produce the most high-quality works or teaching younger reporters the fundamentals of journalism to supplement their knowledge in the field so they can continue the culture,” she said.

Amber’s enthusiasm for journalism has been apparent to the community around her. Dr. Owen Lipsett (he/him), Amber’s AP English Literature and Composition teacher, is a strong advocate for her capabilities. “An area where she really excels is taking what people think and then making them think more deeply,” Dr. Lipsett said. “I think something that’s really shone through in her editorship is making [The B&G] both more socially conscious and more relevant to people’s lives.”

Amber’s parting advice to The B&G is to continue working on communication due to the publication’s small team. “The relationships that you cultivate, both in and outside The B&G, will shape your understanding of what it means to be reflective communicators who champion authenticity and find common ground,” she said.

Ariel Lee (‘23, she/her): print managing editor

Rise Up and ILA Fashion. She also enjoys reading and drawing in her free time.

Ariel’s decision to join The B&G was swift and interesting. “I’ll be honest, I first joined because I needed an elective,” Ariel said. “And the first one I saw was journalism.” Not knowing much about The B&G, Ariel decided to pick it because it sounded like a fun course. Little did she know, The B&G ended up being one of her favorite classes throughout her high school career.

By Abby Chang (‘24)

Ariel is the print managing editor of The B&G and is in her fourth year of journalism. Besides The B&G, Ariel is involved in extracurricular clubs such as

In The B&G, Ariel specializes in creative aspects such as print layouts and multimedia projects. She also focuses largely on marketing and providing the audience with high quality content through social media platforms. “Being friends with Ariel for over six years, I would say one of her best qualities is her creativity,” Annie Y. (‘23, she/her), a

close friend of Ariel, said. “She definitely showcases these creative skills and passion in her work at The B&G.”

Ariel feels that the relationships and connections the students build with each other is the best part of the journalism community. The reliance and trust in each other for help not only creates a close environment, but also enables the publication to be an important part of the school community.

Ariel feels especially keen about The B&G’s tradition of Saturday layout days, where the team spends a whole day working together to finalize a print issue. “A lot of my best memories come from layout days, since we’re editing together, eating together and doing more than just typical journalism things,” she said.

Having to leave both Taiwan and the TAS community for college, Ariel

feels nervous but excited. “I’m going to miss everything and everyone especially the food,” Ariel said. “I’m going to miss [bubble tea].”

However, new challenges and opportunities await Ariel as she embarks on a new journey. Some notable ones include learning how to cook, making new friends and joining journalism related student activities.

Ultimately, Ariel is thankful for everything The B&G community has taught her and the many relationships she has built along her way. Her parting message for The B&G team is to always be happy, no matter what situation you are in, and to think positively. “Don’t stress too much about anything. Be happy and do things that make you happy. At the end of the day, your happiness should come ahead of academic stress,” Ariel said.

Audrey Hwang (‘23, she/her): co-editor-in-chief

hosted a couple of podcast episodes for The China Post. Outside of journalism, Audrey is also the president of Amnesty International and a part time educator at Lululemon. In her free time, she enjoys running and Pilates. After graduation, Audrey will attend Northwestern University where she hopes to double major in legal studies and journalism.

aid with Dr. Dodge and Dr. Limmer,” focuses on the controversial yet important topic of financial aid at TAS. “It was an interesting experience learning about the legal framework the school is set under and how it prevents the endowment from considering traditional financial aid provided at other private institutions,” Audrey said.

By Victoria Hsu

Audrey is the former co-editor-in-chief of The B&G. She was an intern for the Taipei American School (TAS) Communications Office and has previously written and co-

Audrey’s interest in current affairs, school policy and culture has manifested in her work for The B&G. “I’ve always been interested in filtering my thoughts and ideas in a concise and professional manner, and journalism seemed like the appropriate medium for me to practice that,” Audrey said.

Throughout her journalism career, lots of Audrey’s work has centered around school policies and politics. Her last podcast episode, “Exploring financial

Audrey’s passion for policy and communications is further shown through the stories she chooses to cover at The B&G.

“I have been consistently impressed with Audrey’s courage,” Ms. Lindsey Kundel (she/her), the former journalism teacher and current Director of Communications and Marketing, said. “She doesn’t shy away from difficult or controversial topics.”

Audrey loves the openness The B&G offers her. “I loved how we were able to discuss so many topics openly every day in

class, everything from finding out insider school information before everyone else to debating stylistic choices in our layout,” she said. However, she felt that writing at The B&G also came with many hardships as discussion of sensitive topics was sometimes discouraged or limited. Despite covering many controversial topics during her time as a writer, she still felt that her stories lacked full transparency with her readers. Thus, she is excited to explore her independence in the bigger world outside of the school community.

“The Blue & Gold is entirely studentrun, meaning it is up to you what you want to make of it. It’s more than a newspaper; it is really a creative outlet,” Audrey said. She believes that the skills developed in journalism class can be utilized in many aspects of one’s academic and professional life as well as feed their creativity.

(‘24)

(‘24)

[THE BLUE & GOLD]

[THE BLUE & GOLD]

[THE BLUE & GOLD]

Dear Class of 2023,

Right now, what we can say you probably already know. You know we’re gonna talk about the pandemic, about missing each other, about spirit week, about no regrets, about the big future… that’ll sound nice but it won’t cut it. Just straight up, we want this letter to make you CRY. This letter is mostly for the 30 or 40-year-old TAS Class of ‘23 to look back and kind of get a sense of what we’re feeling right now. So here’s our best attempt.

WOW. That passed by fast. That’s it. That’s high school. Done. Over. At this point many of us are probably still trying to accept that it’s the end of an era, and we’re probably doing this in two main ways:

1. Trying to convince ourselves we did everything we wanted to do and everything we could do. No regrets. It was awesome and was the most fun it could ever be.

2. OMGGG whyyy I miss this SOOO

A letter for the Class of 2023

much NOOOO I shoulda done this, I shoulda done that OMGGGG AHHH (Jaden wrote this, not surprised) Or a combination?

JK we know everyone’s thinking the second way. But you know why? There is always going to be a “shoulda.” People tell you to live your life with no regrets, and we all kind of accept it as a fact. But if you really enjoyed what you did, why wouldn’t you have any regrets? Things were so fun, so memorable, so worth living for, that of course you’re going to want to do more and you’re going to think back and wish you did do more. If you don’t regret, did you really live life to the fullest? So it’s okay to regret. It means high school really was amazing, because it really was.

But in some ways, the “lasts” we were looking forward to finally came. Athletes and delegates in all three seasons traveled for the first time in four years. We won our final

spirit week dance, video and dress-up despite being the underdogs with an incredible losing streak of six. When you read this, prom will take place a few days after, and so will graduation. We’ll be the first class in four years to have the ceremony back in the gym, and for most of us, COVID-19 is slowly fading away.

As we move on to the next chapter of our lives, whatever it may be, know that we will always be connected by the memories, laughter and love here at TAS. Whether it’s late nights in the lab, spikeball in the courtyard, leg days in the gym, dumplings from the cafeteria or grind-city in the quiet room, we’ve come so far from our freshmen selves and we’ve learned so much about the world and beyond. Whether it’s SENIOR REPRESENT or 23 FLEX, we know that energy and spirit will stay with us forever.

We’re so lucky. We’re really so, so lucky.

- Angelina H.(‘23)

And so talented. And so hardworking. COVID-19 hit us, but we flourished. Stress, lack of sleep, we gave it a middle finger and jumped over it. Exams, college apps, easy. Kind of impressive, right? Kind of shows how much we can accomplish, how much we can change the world.

It’s sad to watch everyone go in their separate ways, but we know that you will all crush whatever obstacle that comes your way. No matter what happens, we’ll be rooting for you every step of the way. If you happen to flip to this letter in the future, hopefully it reminds you of the countless memories we’ve made together as the Class of 2023. We’ll forever be family. Just like this letter, we hope you will push the boundaries and challenge the norm. After all, it takes some crazy ideas to change the world.

Love,

Guan, Jaden, Dylan, Rex, Andre & Tyler

Who is someone you look up to at TAS? Who is someone you look up to at TAS?

“Coach Thornbury” - Sota S. (‘23)

“Myself” - Benjamin C. (‘23)

“All my peers!” - Daniel Y. (‘23)

“The lunch ladies!” - Anonymous

“Dr. Bayntun” - Patrick H. (‘23)

“Mr. Chase Williams” - Jonathan C. (‘23)

“Mr. Hillmann, because he keeps me humble & grounded.” - Richie H. (‘23)

The Class of 2023 takes a class photo at the beginning of freshman year. Fast forward four years, the class takes their final class photo as seniors. [PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAS YEARBOOK]

Babson College

Barnard College

Boston College

Boston University

Brigham Young University

Brown University

California Institute of Technology

California Polytechnic, San Luis Obispo

California Polytechnic, Pomona

California State University, Sacramento

California State University, Long Beach

Carnegie Mellon University

Chapman University

Claremont McKenna College

Cornell University

Davidson College

Drexel University

Duke University

Durham University

Eastman School of Music

Emory University

Fordham University

Franklin University Switzerland

George Mason University

George Washington University

Georgetown University

Georgia Institute of Technology

Gonzaga University

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Indiana University

Johns Hopkins University

King’s College London

Loyola Marymount University

Massachusetts College of Art and Design

McGill University

National Taiwan University

New York University

Northeastern University

Northwestern University

Pace University

Pepperdine University

Pitzer College

Princeton University

Purdue University

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rice University

Rutgers University - New Brunswick

Santa Clara University

Stanford University

Texas A&M University

The New School

Tufts University

University of British Columbia

United States Naval Academy

University of Amsterdam

University of Arizona

University of California, Berkeley

University of California, Los Angeles

University of California, Santa Barbara

University of California, Santa Cruz

University of California, Irvine

University of California, Riverside

University of California, San Diego

University of Chicago

University of Edinburgh

University of Guelph

University of Illinois, Urbana

Champaign

University of Maryland

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

University of Michigan Ann

Arbor

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

University of Notre Dame

University of Ottawa

University of Oxford

University of Pennsylvania

University of San Diego

University of San Francisco

University of Southern California

University of Texas, Austin

University of Toronto

University of Virginia

University of Warwick

University of Washington

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Utrecht University

Virginia Military Institute

Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam

Waseda University

Wellesley College

Western University

Yale University

Data provided by the College Counseling office

The Class of 2023 will be attending 91 institutions worldwide. (Institutions in South Korea and Australia are not listed below as applications have not begun.)

The Class of 2023 celebrates their last spirit week, which was also their first win in six years. [PHOTOS COURTESY OF 2023 CLASS OFFICERS]