Laguna Blanca School - 4125 Paloma Drive - Santa Barbara - California - 93110- thefourthestate@lagunablanca.org
Volume XVI
November 19, 2010
Issue 2
Catch Me If You Can: Pascal Karam splashes water on Lauren McAlister.
PHOTOS: ELLIOT SERBIN Thirteen Years Later: (From the left) Senior students Austin Danson, Natalie Nomura, Lillie Hodges, Jeff Nelson, Austin Rusack, Jake Bartlein, Amanda Schulenberg, Julian Kent, Carolina Beltran, and Julian Messina embrace before beginning their last Laguna Jogathon.
Jogathon Brings Families Together By ANDREW MCCAFFERY
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ctober is significant for the Laguna community in two ways. First off, waking up to go to school is no longer a shock: jam-packed days and sleepless nights become the norm. Secondly, October holds our annual fundraising event for Laguna athletics: the Jogathon. In the shadow of the newlyrenovated Merovick Gymnasium, on an uncharacteristically foggy fall afternoon, the entire Laguna community gathered together to kick off the new
school year. Kindergartners stood next to seniors during the performance of the national anthem by Middle School students Connor Curran and Hannah White. As the applause tapered off, Headmaster Mr. Paul Slocombe addressed the Laguna students, parents, and community members. After he said few words about the gym improvements and shared some goals for the 2011 school year, Mr. Slocombe of-
ficially started the Jogathon, sending students running, clad in Laguna-wear, towards the festively decorated football field. Students and faculty then jogged to their favorite songs, and listened to emcees Mr. Mike Biermann and Mr. Paul Chiment. This year’s Featured Runners were: Jake Bartlein, Carolina Beltran, Austin Danson, Lillie Hodges, Julia Kent, Julian Messina, Jeffrey Nelson, Natalie Nomura, Austin Rusack,
Making Memories: Seniors celebrate in Laguna spirit before the starting their run.
and Amanda Schulenberg: all lifers from the class of 2011. Soon enough, the joggers began to move from the track to the baseball field, where a delicious family barbecue was awaiting them. While they chomped on cornon-the-cob, the Laguna community was entertained by the Laguna Blanca Stage Band, and had a chance to explore
Fall Play Leaves Them Laughing By MONICA WATSON
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PHOTO: ELLIOT SERBIN Strategy & Design: Pascal Karam and Mr. Paul Chiment along with senior Jake Bartlein work out calculations on the board during a club meeting.
Engineering Club Improves Lives of the Physically Challenged By HELENA DAVILA This year, something new was added to the long line of clubs offered here at Laguna Blanca; Engineering Club. The Engineering Club, headed by Mr. Chiment, offers a new form of community service club, designed for students to use their strengths in math and science to help create devices to improve the lives of others. For their first project, the Engineering Club has been preparing to enter a national contest known as “The NEDC Experience.” The NEDC, or National Engineering Design Challenge, is a yearly contest challenging all interested students grades 9-12 to create an ‘assistive technology device’ to help improve the life of a person living with a disability. Students throughout the nation band together creating teams. They will then continue to compete amongst each other for a trip to Washington DC for the finals, $3,000 and a trip to NISH annual conference in Anaheim, CA. The contest consists of four rounds, each more difficult and involved than the previous. Each team is to select a disability, research it, and present detailed outlines for the final product. Each submission is judged on the design and construction, the extent of the research, the device’s marketability
and its construction. Throughout the following three rounds, the criteria for the submissions become more and more rigorous and the designs themselves more and more detailed. At the final round, each of the top five teams will be invited to give a twentyminute presentation to market their device to a panel of judges and live audience. This year’s Engineering Club members; Ryan Ortiz, Tabitha Bergerson, Alex Hawker, Dante Bozzini, Lauren McAlister, Jack Stegall, Jake Bartlein, Pascal, Kai Gamble, and Abby Reutzel eagerly await the coming competition. All have been brainstorming ideas, and have come up with innovative ideas such as a wheel-chair with the ability to go off of curbs without the use of a ramp. Engineering Club sets themselves apart by serving the community in a way many do not. In lieu of creating games and toys, the LBS engineering club has larger dreams of using their engineering strengths to serve the community in a new way. Mr. Chiment says of the club, “So much community service happens with our hands, and this really gives us the chance do something with our minds.”
s the fall season came closer, students began to anticipate seeing the first drama production of the year. The cast performed “All in the Timing.” The show was performed the weekend of November 5-7 at the Spaulding Auditorium. “All in the Timing” is “a collection of one-act plays that tackle the meaning of life, relationships, death, the absurd and overcoming obstacles, without taking anything too seriously,” says writer Carole Larson . Written by David Ives and published in 1995, “All in the Timing” is a collection of comedic short plays and is noted for its verbal ingenuity and unusual humor. The stories being acted by the cast are “Sure Thing” (romantic comedy), “Words, Words, Words” (imaginative fictional story), “The Universal Language” (love story) “The Philadelphia” (comedy), “Variations on the Death of Trotsky” (comedy), and “Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread” (a musical vignette). “I chose ‘All in the Timing’ over other plays mostly because it’s a selection of short stories, and it is flexible because it calls for more characters and roles. This gives more opportunities for the students to perform,” said drama teacher Mr. Joe Beck.
a number of exciting carnival booths, set-up and run by the Upper School clubs. All in all, this year’s Jogathon was a big success: it raised over $70,000 for the athletics department. It was clear from the grins of kindergartners holding goldfish, that everyone had a lot of fun. As far as next year goes, one could only hope for a sunnier day.
All in the Timing Dante laments the eminent “Death of Trotsky,” Austin Rusack, as Ramon Mercadaer.
The cast delivering the show was Cameron Platt, Austin Rusack, Parker Lily, Ari Rodriguez, Zoe Serbin, and Dante Bozzini. They all eagerly awaited the first showing on November 5. When asked what he was most looking forward to in the play, Dante stated, “I am looking forward to the audience’s reaction. It will be good to hear their laughs.” Auditions took place in early October. Since then, the cast prepared for a considerable amount of time, practices typically running from six p.m. to ten p.m. Monday through Friday every week since auditions began. The actors and actresses were also excited to have so many different stories to perform. “I think it is good for the actors and actresses to perform more separate stories because it is a good way for them to get out of their comfort zone and find out what else they can do with their talent,” said Zoe Serbin. All in all, both the non-participants and participants of the play looked forward to the showings and are excited for the ones to come.
PHOTOS: ELLIOT SERBIN Group Hug: During ‘Philip Glass Buys a Loaf Of Bread,’ cast members Zoe Serbin, Cameron Platt, Parker Lily, and Dante Bozzini gather for a group embrace.