NEWS 1-4
PROFILE 5
OP/ED 6-7
What happens in NYC... Ninth and tenth grade students travel to New York. Page 4
SPORTS FEATURE 10-11 12-13 INSIDE
Pictures speak louder than words. Ms. Hill’s Frankensteininspired art competition. Pages 14
A&E 14
Spring sports bloom at LBS. The results of the final sports’ season. Page 10-11
Spell the word: “_________.” Laguna presents “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” Page 14
Laguna Blanca School - 4125 Paloma Drive - Santa Barbara - California - 93110
Volume XX
Friday, May 30, 2014
LIFESTYLE BACK PAGE 15 16
www.thefourthestate.net
Issue 6
Field Day Brings Out the Competitive Spirit By PIERCE O’DONNELL Divided into pink, green, light blue and dark blue, the students flocked to the fields for a day of fun in the sun and friendly competition in the fourth annual Laguna Blanca Field Day. The teams voted on team captains and names before the festivities kicked off with a four-team basketball
tournament on the black top. The Killer Dolphins (Light Blue) stormed out to a commanding 2-0-0-0 lead over the other teams in what the spectators presumed to be a transient contest, “The Light Blue team was really strong, and they had three or four big-time players on their squad. I didn’t think they could be stopped,” said sophomore Mark Brown. The Dolphins’ dominance gradually
faded as the Flames (Pink) and the For Wyatt (Green) each put in a basket. Eventually, the defense stepped up and the Killer Dolphins and Team Caty (Dark Blue) stood atop the stagnant showdown with a pair of buckets apiece. The teams all gathered around one court for a sudden death match up between the two teams. After a plethora of missed put backs for the porpoises, Team Caty
Alumna Promoted to Morning News Anchor By KIMMY CRICKETTE Hearing news about successful Laguna Blanca alumni is commonplace on campus. The school’s mix of a rigorous academic curriculum, a tightlyknit social community, and thoughtful teachers creates students who leave school prepared to tackle the challenges which await them. Now working as a news anchor at KYMA in Arizona, Maddie Hunt, class of ’08 first discovered her passion for journalism and the places it could take her career while in high school as a member of the staff of The Fourth Estate. “Laguna was vital to my success because it taught me how to write and think critically.” She worked on the
The Daily Bruin, as an arts and entertainment reporter for the broadcast section of the paper. She later worked at E! News as an intern and founded the UCLA branch of “Her Campus”, which is an online lifestyle magazine for college women. After graduating from UCLA with a degree in Communications, Maddie attended Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism to get a masters degree in broadcasting. Three months after graduation, she landed her first on-air job. “I made a news reel with samples of my school work and projects. I sent my reel and my resume out to over 75 stations all over the US, from Tuscaloosa,
Alabama to Rapid City, South Dakota. I got callbacks from several news directors, including one in Yuma, Arizona. He ended up offering me the job, and now I’m an anchor and reporter at their NBC affiliate, KYMA.” KYMA is located in a small town, and Maddie has likened her new home to her experiences at Laguna. “Not only is it a badge of honor, but living and working in a small town is also a bonding experience with your colleagues—one that will be hard to find later when you move on to larger markets. It’s kind of analogous to my experience at Laguna, a small, tightknit community, that nurtured long-lasting friendships.”
gained possession of the basketball and made it count—Phoebe Madsen nailed a three from well behind the 3-point arc to win the first event. Continued on page 4 HAVING FUN: Junior girls jump through the slip & slide, Luisa Cameron reaches for a balloon in the balloon toss game, Darwin Miguel attempts to climb into a packed van, Parker Rusak clears a hurtle in the obstacle course.
PHOTOS: CARSON SHEVITZ
Litigator Barry Cappello Shares Santa Barbara’s Connection to Earth Day By CATY LAFITTE
E
arth Day is something many people in Santa Barbara annually celebrate, gathering in Alameda Park, enjoying homegrown food, listening to local artists, or checking out the Laguna booth at the Earth Day Festival. But, many people don’t know that Earth Day began in part because of the tragic Santa Barbara Channel oil spill in 1969. The oil spill which stemmed from a ruptured Union Oil Company platform six miles off of the coast of Summerland polluted 100 miles of coastline, killed nearly 4,000 seabirds, and took more than a year to fully clean up. The disaster along the Santa Barbara coast drew attention to the problems with off shore drilling for oil, and began a new environmentalist movement that later became Earth Day, which is celebrated on April 22 every year. Mr. Barry Cappello, father of Vincent Cappello ’21 and Dominic Cappello ‘19, and one of the nation’s leading trial lawyers, was the chief litigator in the trial against Union Oil, Mobil, Gulf and Texaco after the oil spill.
PHOTO: CARSON SHEVITZ
STREAMING LIVE: Sophomores view the Earth Day assembly and lister to speaker Barry Cappello while sitting comfortable in the Isham Library & Academic Research Center Mr. Cappello spoke to students and faculty during the Earth Day Assembly on April 17. He highlighted the major harmful effects of oil drilling on platforms in the ocean, and made suggestions for what students can do on their part to help the environment in Santa Barbara. “I was fascinated by the presentation because I never knew how strong of an impact the oil companies had on Santa Barbara. I learned a lot of Santa Barbara history that I did not know before,” senior Quentin Tedesco said. The assembly, attended by both
Middle and Upper School students, was a milestone of sorts—the sophomore class watched the presentation from the Isham Library & Academic Research Center, marking the first live stream to the flatscreen televisions in the library. Assembly coordinator Ms. Trish McHale worked with Network Administrator Mr. Ladislav Laza to make the live stream possible. “I think it was really cool that we were able to steam the video. The audio was really clear so we could easily hear the presentation,” sophomore Jacqueline Berci said.
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May 30, 2014
4125 Paloma Drive Santa Barbara, CA 93110 www.thefourthestate.net The Fourth Estate is a public forum for student expression. It is written and produced solely by the journalism students. It represents the voice of the students and covers topics, issues, and opinions of relevance to the Laguna Blanca School community. The Fourth Estate welcomes guest columns and letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and be no longer than 400 words. Editors reserve the right to edit for length, clarity, and/or taste. Anonymous letters will not be published. The Fourth Estate publishes six issues per year with a senior insert in the last issue. We mail issues to subscribers and advertisers, and exchange papers with high school journalism classes across the country. The Fourth Estate accepts both print and online advertising in either black and white or color. Contact Trish McHale at tmchale@ lagunablanca.org for advertising and subscriptions. “Follow” us on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook. Visit our online paper for daily updates: www.thefourthestate.net.
Roses to Mr. Marracino for being a really caring Head of School.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Caty Lafitte
OP/ED EDITOR
Roses to those who went to prom and to those who organized it.
Allison Lewis Towbes
NEWS EDITOR Kaylee Strachan
FEATURE EDITOR
Roses to the volleyball and tennis teams for making it to CIF.
MacKenna Connor
A&E EDITOR Margaret Lazarovits
LIFESTYLE EDITOR Grace Woolf
SPORTS EDITOR Stephen McCaffery
PHOTO EDITOR Carson Shevitz
GRAPHIC EDITORS Kela Johnson Luisa Cameron
BUSINESS & MARKETING Carson Shevitz
COPY EDITOR Kaylee Strachan
Roses
&
WEB EDITOR STAFF
Jacqueline Berci Luisa Cameron Kimmy Crickette Harrison Kerdman Bill Mortensen Pierce O’Donnell Emily Powers Spenser Wyatt
Patricia McHale, MJE
Thorns to teachers who let students out of class late. Thorns to the drought.
Thorns to teachers who don’t give breaks on block days. Thorns to those who didn’t show up to Field Day.
CONTRIBUTING WRITER FACULTY ADVISOR
Roses to those who went into the dunk tank at Field Day.
Thorns to the students who disturb others by packing up before the end of class.
Phillip Hicks
Scott Johnston
Roses to the senior class for a funny prank.
Thorns
ART: KELA JOHNSON
The News
Field Day
May 30, 2014
Continues From the bleachers to the blacktop, the students hustled to the soccer field as word of Coach Lopes in the dunk tank reverberated through the loud speakers. The seniors were first to throw, followed by the juniors and the football team. After several unsuccessful attempts, the students grew tired of seeing a dry Coach Lopes and pushed the target with their hands. The water events continued as the teams competed in a slip and slide relay right afterwards. Teacher Blake Dorfman (For Wyatt) and sophomore John Puzder (Team Caty) anchored the first race for their teams. Dorfman had a sizeable lead going into the last leg, but Puzder sprinted through the gauntlet of obstacles and hurdles in record time. Ultimately, Dorfman edged out the win. After the races ended, students took to the slip and slide for some races and relaxation before the water balloon toss and capture the flag. It was a one-sided affair on the football field as freshman Joan Curran and the Dolphins utilized trick plays to defeat the competition in both events. Despite a commanding lead over the competition, the games were far from over as the heavily weighted tug-ofwar still remained. Before the teams took it to the ropes, they enjoyed a smorgasbord of pasta, salad, hot dogs, and hamburgers prepared by the parents and faculty. “The food was absolutely delicious. The dogs were the bee’s knees,” said junior Jack Espy. After some downtime and a much-needed meal, the squads took it to the kiddie pool for the final event. With a plunge into the water on the line for the loser, the teams pulled hard to get a victory. In the preliminary rounds, For Wyatt beat the Flames and the Killer Dolphins made quick work of Team Caty. With the championship on the line, the Dolphins and For Wyatt put everything they had into the apex of the events. Just as the majority of the crowd expected, the Dolphins overpowered For Wyatt and solidified first place by a landslide. “Overall, Field Day was a blast,” said junior Parker Rusack. “It’s a great tradition we have, and I look forward to it annually. I can’t wait for next year.”
How My Passion Impacts the World By Allison Lewis Towbes Senior Erica Keane won first place in the first round of Optimist International Speech Competition. This year’s topic is: How My Passion Impacts the World. “I chose to write about stem cell research and regenerative medicine because of my work last summer establishing a new stem cell line that is being used to model a neurodevelopmental disorder in a dish. I will be entering the field next year as a biomedical engineer major at UC Davis,” Erica said. Erica went on to compete on March 26, where she placed second.
PHOTO: TARA BROUCQSAULT
Cum Laude Society members gather on the lawn in front of the Spaulding Auditorium after the induction ceremony. Left to right, Stephen McCaffery, Lucia Hartmann, Lindsay Ligon, Chloe Brown, Erica Keane, Ethan Katnic, Clara Madsen, Scott Johnston, Allison Lewis Towbes, Justin Bollag, Margaret Lazarovits, and Miles Crist.
A Gathering of Scholars Inducted into the Cum Laude Society By KAYLEE STRACHAN The Cum Laude Society honors scholastic achievement in secondary schools for the purpose of promoting areté (excellence), diké (justice) and timé (honor). The Society was founded with the intention of being modeled after Phi Beta Kappa in 1906. Since then, it has multiplied into 382
chapters all over the world, each of which honors the top 10 percent of junior and senior classes. On April 24, nine students were inducted into this prestigious society in a special assembly. Dr. Karl Revells, director of college counseling; Mr. Richard Marracino, interim head of school; along with Mr. Tyler Hodges, head
of Upper School led the introductions for this ceremony, including welcoming the guest speaker. Alumnus Sean Copeland ‘95 reflected on his time at Laguna and credited former teachers Mr. Angeloff, Ms. Nordgaarden, Dr. Miller and Dr. Lorber with preparing him for life and so much more. He is currently a software engineer at
Yardley Systems. Cum Laude Society members, Chloë Brown, Margaret Lazarovits, Lindsay Ligon and Clara Madsen, presented the honor to their peers, speaking about each individually. “I was really happy I got to induct one of my best friends and two juniors,” Margaret said. Instated this year were Lucia Hartmann, Erica Keane, Allison Lewis
Towbes and Tristan Prinz, who missed the ceremony due to a tennis tournament. “I hope I made [my mom] proud,” Tristan said. From the class of 2015, five students were inducted at the assembly: Justin Bollag, Miles Crist, Scott Johnson, Ethan Katnic and Stephen McCaffery. Honorees received pins and certificates.
Grandparents Visit Campus By CARSON SHEVITZ
S
PHOTO: CARSON SHEVITZ
INVESTIGATION UNDERWAY: Members of the eighth grade class search the crime scene set up in MS 1 for clues about the murder of Dorph Blakeman.
Eighth Graders Investigate the Murder of Dorph Blakeman By BILL MORTENSEN Laguna’s top detective agencies began the day with the investigation of the mysterious murder of affluent Montecito Shores resident Dorph Blakeman. At least, that was what the eighth grade class was told when the arrived at school on Monday, May 12. Over the previous weekend, English teacher Carol Nordgaarden placed 100 different pieces of evidence around her classroom for investigating students to discover in a hands-on “CSI Day”, where students analyzed evidence that would lead them to discover who murdered Dorph Blakeman. CSI Day was created as an interdisciplinary learning experience, bringing together
concepts from several departments including performing and visual arts, history, math, science, and English. “Our murder victim is a spoof on Mr. Dorfman,” Ms. Nordgaarden said “and all the suspects are all teachers. We’ve planned out what we know about each suspect and what their statements are.” The suspects were faculty members Ms. Staci Richard, Mr. Dug Uyesaka, Mr. Kevin Shertzer, Ms. Delphine Anaya, and network administrator Mr. Ladislav Laza. Students spent the morning looking for clues that they took to the Middle School computer lab to do forensic tests on, which was followed by discussions about their findings.
“In the afternoon, the sheriff’s detective who investigated last year’s laptop thefts is going to come an talk to us about how he solved the case and got the suspects to confess.” Detective Joe Schmidt spoke to the students about how it was important during the investigation to go through a process of gathering clues, instead of making rash assumptions. Schmidt shared with students how he worked with multiple agencies including the FBI, and Riverside and San Diego county sheriff’s departments to solve the case. “Hearing the story of something that happened on our campus will really make an impact on them.”
tudents had their day brightened by the 65 smiling grandparents who arrived and toured campus. The goal of Grandparents Day is to “offer grandparents a glimpse of student life at Laguna” said Marci Jacobs, a member of Laguna’s Development Team. She also said that “grandparents really love spending time in class with their grandchildren” and this is made obvious by the grandparents who come from out of town and who come every year for this event. Grandparents were greeted by Richard Marracino, Laguna’s interim head of school who thanked the grandparents for coming to campus in a welcome assembly.
Mr. Marracino introduced Laguna’s innovative collegeprep curriculum and discussed how it will better prepare our students for college life and after graduation. Next, Ms. Trish McHale introduced the journalism program and highlighted the recent awards of the paper. Ms. McHale also talked about the recent integration of technology into journalism. Mr. Marracino concluded the assembly by thanking the grandparents once again for being part of our 80 years as Santa Barbara’s only K-12 independent day-school. The event also included refreshments, classroom visits with the students, and campus tours of the technology centers and academic research center.
PHOTO: TARA BROUCQSAULT
FAMILY TIME: During a break on Grandparent’s Day, sixth grader Charlie Jacobs joins his grandmother, Holiday Whisennand, and his cousin sophomore Emily Powers.
Freshman’s Photo Places in Smithsonian Competition By KYLAN TYNG Digital Photography students entered the Smithsonian Teen Portrait Competition after encouragement from instructor Mr. Chris Johnson. This contest gives teenagers around the country an opportunity to submit a photographic portrait, either of themselves or of another person, to compete for cash prizes.
The competition results in two grand prize winners and a dozen honorable mentions. When the results came out in early 2014, freshman Travis Smillie had been selected - out of hundreds of applicants as one of the honorable mentions. Travis’ winning photo, entitled “Bones,” is displayed to the left. Out of all the applicants from Laguna, Travis was the only Laguna
student to place in the competition. Travis was awarded fifty dollars for his photo, which is currently displayed on the Smithsonian website for the contest. “I was really excited when I found out I placed,” said Travis when asked about the award, “there were a lot of submissions I had to compete with. I was really happy that I got recognized.”
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News
May 30, 2014
History Comes Alive in Eighth Grade East Coast Trip By MARGARET LAZAROVITS
attempted to raid an arsenal in order to aid a slave rebellion in 1859, the kids got to experience history first hand, as they were led in an interactive experience called “A Soldier’s Story.” “The kids were ‘enlisted’ into the infantry, issued a wooden gun, and taught drill. The ‘Sergeant’ shouted orders at them and kept them in line as if they were really soldiers, and they would spin their guns in unison to his shouted orders,” said Ms. Martin. After a guided tour, the kids explored what the town had to
Ms. Martin noticed that “the kids undoubtedly were affected by what they saw.” Undeterred by red-eye Before departing D.C. the flights and rain, sixteen next day, the group visited the Laguna eighth graders and Korean War and Vietnam War their chaperones, Ms. Dana Memorials. At both places, Martin and Mr. Kevin Shertzer, “the kids showed proper spent the first week of spring respect and were solemn and break seeing the pages of their attentive,” said Ms. Martin. history book come to life on Then they left for Virginia, the annual east coast trip. first stopping at Mount “Being able to actually see Vernon, the home of George everything in person was a lot Washington. cooler and more interesting Afterwards, the group went that seeing a picture of it in to the Arlington National a book. Going on the trip has Cemetery, just in time to see turned over a new leaf for me the changing of the and now history is my guards at the Tomb favorite class,” said “I thought it was really nice not of the Unknown Brooklyn Kinsler. As soon as they just to learn about something in a Soldier. The kids’ final stop got off the plane, the classroom, but to actually be able group enjoyed a hearty to experience and learn about was in Annapolis, Maryland at the breakfast then ventured it in real life, whether it was a U.S. Naval Academy out to view the Liberty museum or a monument.” to visit two current Bell. ~Clare Ogle. students there who Without skipping are Laguna alumni: a beat, it was on to Kai Gamble (’12) Independence Hall, and Austin Patrick (‘10) and before going to the National offer. Later, the group headed to to watch their Noon Meal Constitution Center. Lunch the first day at the Washington D.C., where they Formation. “Both [the Changing of the Reading Terminal Market saw the Lincoln Memorial particularly impressed the along with other monuments Guard and the Noon Meal late at night. Formation] were emotionally students. D.C. had much to offer the charged due to the significance “I liked the part when we got to go into the huge food students, and on fourth day of of the occasions and the mall and choose what we got the trip the kids had a packed dedication of the soldiers and midshipmen,” said Ms. to eat,” said Jason Barnick. schedule. From the National Archives, Martin. Afterwards, the kids took a Overall, this trip proved to walking tour of Philadelphia to the Smithsonian, and from and munched on Philly cheese the Holocaust Museum to the be a valuable learning and National Museum of Crime bonding experience to those steaks for dinner. The second day centered on and Punishment, the students students who went. “I thought it was really Gettysburg, a two and a half hardly had time to rest. At the National Archives, nice not just to learn about hour drive from Philadelphia. First in Gettysburg was a the kids got a close up look something in a classroom, visit to the museum, where at some of our nation’s but to actually be able to everyone viewed documentary keystone documents, like the experience and learn about it on the Battle of Gettysburg Constitution, the Declaration in real life, whether it was a of Independence and the Bill museum or a monument,” said and then a cyclorama. Clare Ogle. Then, before stepping onto of Rights. Out of the Smithsonian’s “It was also really nice being the battlefield, the students visited the Soldiers’ National 19 museums and galleries, able to do all of this with the the kids chose to visit the people you go to school with Cemetery. every day and I thought it During their visit to Harpers American History Museum. At the Holocaust Museum, brought us all closer as a class.” Ferry, where John Brown
PHOTO: KEVIN SHERTZER
LET FREEDOM RING: The East Coast trippers gather around the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia.
PHOTO: TRISH MCHALE
TEAM POSSIBLE: Senior members of the Fourth Estate staff Editor-in-Chief, Caty Lafitte, Allison Lewis Towbes, Margaret Lazarovits, Kaylee Strachan, and Kimmy Crickette sit together waiting for the awards ceremony to begin.
Journalists Make Waves in San Diego By KIMMY KRICKETTE Several Laguna journalism and yearbook students ventured down to San Diego on April 10 for the weekend to attend the yearly JEA/ NSPA National High School Journalism Convention. Laguna journalists regularly attend this conference in the spring in which they enter The Fourth Estate in the Best of Show Award. At this year’s conference, called Making Waves, attendees were encouraged by keynote speakers to broaden their goals and to search for stories which would make an impact on their communities. Students attended discussions and sessions on numerous topics–from sessions in layout and design to ideas on how to diversify and reinvent stories. On Friday, the journalism students took part in a critique of the paper with advisors of another paper, and later, five newspaper students participated in the Write-offs competition with hundreds of competitors. Kela Johnson won the highest award, a Superior
Award, for her entry in the Editorial Cartooning category; Margaret Lazarovits won an honorable mention in the Review Writing category for an article in which she reviewed a local band; Jacqueline Berci won an honorable mention in the Commentary Writing category for her entry. Senior Margaret Lazarovits attended the conference for the second time this year after last year’s San Francisco conference. “The atmosphere was just as fun with all the other journalists there from around the nation. I’m so happy I got to experience the conference with journalists from The Fourth Estate,” she said. On Saturday, students attended the awards ceremony. The Fourth Estate website was awarded Best of Show Award-Publication Website Small School Sixth Place by the National Scholastic Press Association. At last year’s convention, the website took a Best of Show Award in Eighth Place.
Underclassmen Travel to the Big Apple By KYLAN TYNG
A day before spring break, 32 freshmen and sophomore students embarked on journey to New York city that began with a six-hour overnight flight. The trip, which lasted five days, was made possible by the efforts of English teacher Ashley Tidey, and theater arts teacher Kate Bergstrom. They titled their trip, the New York City Urban Adventure/Theater/Arts Trip. Science teacher Katie Pointer, sixth grade teacher Nissa Hales chaperoned as well. The trip was coordinated by the LEAD USA tour company and was designed to create an extended classroom experience. When their plane landed in New York at 7 o’clock in the morning—the equivalent of 4 AM California time—the group hit the ground running. After they dropped their luggage off at The Novatel, a modern-style hotel—10 streets from Time Square, they immediately dove right into the iconic chaos that is New York City. Over the course of the five days, they frequented Time Square, explored Rockefeller Center, beheld multiple
museums, and attended Broadway and Off-Broadway performances. They looked down upon the city from top of the Empire State, sailed to Ellis Island to view the Statue of Liberty, and traveled to Harlem to see the prominent sites that had inspired the Harlem Renaissance. The trip, inspired by the literature that the students read in ninth grade, such as “Catcher in the Rye” and “Of Mice and Men”, also included a theatrical element, meaning that the group experienced some of the books they had read in the form of Broadway performances. They attended two Broadway plays: “Raisin in the Sun” whose cast included Denzel Washington, and “Of Mice and Men,” featuring James Franco. They also attended an OffBroadway performance: a lively and upbeat two-man show called “Murder for Two” in which one of the actors was a personal friend of Ms. Bergstrom. Students also had the opportunity to visit Central Park and follow the footsteps of Holden Caufield, the main character, in “Catcher in the
MAKING CONNECTIONS: Luke Smillie strides upon Will Bartholomew’s shoulders and waits at the stage door to take a photo. The group huddles on a sidewalk in Brooklyn. Rye”, to see the iconic Alice in Wonderland statue. The trip culminated with a heartfelt and hysterical award ceremony hosted by Ms. Bergstrom, in which the teachers retold memorable moments from the trip and gave individual awards for each student before they returned home the following day.
PHOTOS: NISSA HALES
Henry Farrell, a ninthgrader culminated his entire
New York experience with a simple phrase: “Good times.”
Profile
May 30, 2014
BY BILL MORTENSEN “If in June you could look back and say ‘I’m glad Richard Marracino was here,’ I’d be very happy.” This was the attitude Mr. Marracino brought to Laguna in his one year at the school as interim Head of School. During the turnover, while waiting for the new head of school, Mr. Rob Hereford, to arrive, Mr. Marracino has kept the ship steady at Laguna. “What I needed to do, and continue to do, is build the transition for the incoming head of school, so he can land running.” Mr. Marracino was only with the school for one year, but during his tenure he led the school in many different things including celebrations for Laguna’s 80th Anniversary, the construction of the new tennis courts, and with drastically increasing the enrollment at Laguna. “We’ve worked a lot on raising enrollment. There has been a lot of
ART: KELA JOHNSON
BY MACKENNA CONNOR With four published novels already under her belt, history teacher Ms. Martha Elliott is getting ready to write her fifth. Ms. Elliott is the 2014 recipient of the Vassar Alumni Time-Out Grant— an annual award funded by an anonymous Vassar alumna donor. Her novel, “The Gospel According to M,” will be about, “an approximately 35-year-old woman who is a reporter for a national magazine called Vantage who gets an assignment she doesn’t want to do. The novel is about her journey,” Ms. Elliott said. Before her coming to Laguna, Ms. Elliott held various jobs. She worked as a producer and editor PBS television programs, such as “The Constitution: That Delicate Balance,” and “Ethics in America.” She also held a teaching position at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. “I really enjoy working with high school kids and challenging them and teaching them to write well,” said Ms. Elliott in response to what she enjoys most about teaching. Ms. Elliott is also the coach of Laguna Blanca’s Mock Trial Team, “I’ve also really enjoyed doing mock trial even though sometimes it becomes challenging,” she said. “Ms. Elliott has always been extremely helpful to me, whether it was with college applications, essays, or even things outside of school. I’ve gotten to know her pretty well, and she’s one of my favorite teachers (and people) ever; I can’t wait to read her novel,” said senior Lindsay Ligon. It’s safe to say that Laguna will not be the same while she’s gone.
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outreach into the community, and a lot of meetings with different parents and groups…and as a result of that, our enrollment is up 40 percent from last year, which is amazing. “I think when you get out in the community and talk to people very positively about the school, they listen.” Mr. Marracino’s passion for education is evident when he speaks. He has actively tried to spend as much time with the students as possible and he has always placed an importance on learning and going through the process of understanding concepts. “So much of the school that we’ve worked on during the year is to help prepare students for the future and for life.” Despite only being here for short time, Mr. Marracino has found ways to improve Laguna and bring the school to new heights.
BY MARGARET LAZAROVITS She has graced Laguna with her art and talent for “13 lucky years,” as she recalls, and it has been “a pleasure and blessing” for her to do so. “Being the shortest teacher on campus never stopped me from reaching higher.” Upper and Middle School arts instructor and yearbook advisor Ms. Delphine Anaya will be leaving Laguna at the end of this year and moving to Los Angeles and joining her husband who just finished his MBA. Ms. Anaya has formed many memories during her time at Laguna. “There were so many fun, crazy, and overwhelming experiences that confirm that nothing stays the same.” “Ms. Anaya has enchanted the art department. She has created a love and vigor for art in her students and it is so sad to see her go. We will miss her so much,” said sophomore and aspiring artist Bea Tolan. Beyond the scope of Laguna, Ms. Anaya marvels at the “alumni who are
now artists,” among them interactive media major at University of Southern California, Zoe Serbin ‘13. “ “There are some people whose influence is so clear and distinct that you can tell how they changed you, and Ms. Anaya was one of those people for me and a lot of other students,” said Zoe. “She’s one of the most kind, selfless, intelligent, talented, and hilarious teachers I will ever have, and I am thankful for every interaction we’ve had both in and out of the classroom.” Ms. Anaya is thankful for being able to share her time at this school with her colleagues. “I have great respect for my fellow teachers who really know their stuff: Dug Uyesaka as my office buddy and mentor and Mr. Chris Johnson believing in this diamond in the rough,” Ms. Anaya said. Although she will be leaving Laguna to teach art at the Laurence School in Van Nuys, Ms. Anaya said that she “will miss this awesome vibrant community called Laguna.”
BY KELA JOHNSON The Latin phrase docendo discimus, to “learn by teaching,” adequately describes Ms. Allison Crevi’s experience at Laguna. Though she will be leaving next year after two years of instructing Middle and Upper School Latin, Magistra Crevi will continue to utilize her “resilience and organizational skills,” both abilities she refined at Laguna. Ms. Crevi plans to pursue a nursing career, something that requires many of the skills she used as a teacher. “I like working with people. I want something where I’m up walking around, and that’s why I’m thinking nursing”. Ms. Crevi was first inspired to become a nurse after talking to her sister, who works in public health. “Hearing her talk about working at the hospital got me into the idea of nursing.” Studying to be a nurse will not only enable Ms. Crevi to continue to work in an interactive setting, but it will
also call upon her Latin abilities. “I will definitely be using Latin knowledge for anatomy class, which I’m excited to take,” she said. For now, she is preparing to apply to nursing school, “hopefully at UCLA or NYU. I’m taking chemistry this summer at UCSB and I’ve been taking a statistics class at night.” Additionally, she will be volunteering at Cottage Hospital. During her time at Laguna, Ms. Crevi enjoyed performing in the Middle School talent show with her eighth grade advisees. “We did a synchronized swimming performance. I had not performed an act on stage since fourth grade when I lip-synched to ‘I Saw The Sign’.” Though Ms. Crevi is moving on, her bright personality and imaginative Latin lessons will leave a lasting impression. “Magistra Crevi is always upbeat and helpful,” said junior Morgan Gainey, who took Ms. Crevi’s Latin 1B class last year.
BY HARRISON KERDMAN
sey, “I am not entirely sure, but I want to practice in a field that combines the treatment of the body with the treatment of the mind,” he said. “I want to work with the underserved, helping break down barriers to access of care.” After helping so many students and creating strong bonds, he will be missed. “Mr. Tur has been a big help over the last few years. He has kept me alive in school and not failing all my classes. I am ever indebted to him. I’m going to miss him next year,” sophomore Christian Fowler said. Mr. Tur’s favorite memories are of
Mr. James Tur has been both a teacher and a friend to the students of Laguna Blanca for the last four years, which is why it is so hard to say goodbye to him as he leaves for medical school. Mr. Tur has worked in Academic Services, taught AP Calculus BC, AP Physics C, Math 6, and chemistry. When asked about leaving he said, “I am sad to be leaving such a wonderful community, but I am extremely excited to be starting the next chapter of my life.” The next chapter of his life takes him to a medical school in New Jer-
things that took place on Field Day. “Field Day is a great way to get to know the kids outside of the classroom.” “Going in the dunk tank on Field Day and racing Travis Mañach” were two of his favorite memories. After plenty of experience throughout his time at Laguna, Mr. Tur passes down advice to his successors. “There is no advice for Ms. Pointer because she is the chemistry master. As for Academic Services, listen to the kids, they know what they need; be flexible; and work with Ms. Steeber.” PHOTOS: CARSON SHEVITZ
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May 30, 2014
Opinion
Partying Culture in the US Hits Home Santa Barbara’s partying presence damages its reputation as a city and a university community. By JACQUELINE BERCI “Oh, you’re from Santa Barbara, so how are Halloween and Deltopia there?” Unfortunately, this is the reaction most young adults get when they share with people who aren’t locals that they are from Santa Barbara. For people under the age of 30, Santa Barbara has become synonymous with partying in Isla Vista. Our claim to fame with this generation is not our beautiful beaches, not our stunning mountains, not the impressive programs University of California Santa Barbara has to offer—but the intoxicated wasteland where some well-known partying among primarily college students occurs. This year, 15 to 18 thousand people, the majority being from outside Santa Barbara, attended a celebration known as Deltopia, where young people put on bathing suits, walk down Del Playa Drive
and go from one party to the next—and drink. Deltopia used to be held at the beach, however since 2009 Santa Barbara County officials have not allowed this due to the environmental hazards inflicted upon the beaches from this celebration which used to be called Floatopia as party-goers would bring along their flotation devices. However, this year Deltopia had some unfortunate incidents that were so chaotic they even caused our lovely Santa Barbara to make national news. An 18-year-old from Cal poly San Luis Obispo, Gisele Esme Ayala, was found dead; four people were taken to the hospital when a balcony overlooking Del Playa gave out; 23 arrests were made for offenses including thefts, public intoxication, fights, assaults and sexual battery; 71 citations were counted; Santa Barbara
Fire Department responded to over 70 calls; and 44 people were hospitalized because of excessive alcohol consumption or injuries. Law enforcement responded to 440 calls related to Deltopia. Binge drinking refers to excessive alcohol consumption in a short period of time. Overindulgent alcohol use is the third leading lifestylerelated cause of death for people in the United States. Why is it that people feel the need to drink until they can hardly stand up or until it becomes dangerous? According to The New York Times, one out of every six Americans goes on a drinking binge four times a month, which is drinking around eight alcoholic beverages on one occasion. The Center for Disease Control says 28 percent of Americans ages 18 to 24 binge drink an average of four
days a month, consuming on average 9.3 drinks in a few hours. The U.S. has one of the highest alcohol abuse rates in the world, and it is especially a problem for people under the age of 21. According to Dr. Thomas Friendan, director of the Center for Disease Control, “About 50 percent of all the alcohol consumed by adults, and about 90 percent of all the alcohol consumed by young people is consumed during a binge drinking session.” In Europe, people tend to consume more alcohol compared to other areas of the world, but they do not commonly drink with what fits the bounds of American “binge drinking.” Daily Mail stated that the rate of female binge drinking in the US in particular is higher than that of any other developed country. The US is notorious for its college parties.
American culture feeds into the idea that college students must be under the influence to have a good time. This idea is only enhanced by the media; television shows and movies constantly portray alcohol as a “fun” thing for people of all ages including underaged ones. Alum Daria Etezadi ‘13, who currently attends Georgetown University was on campus recently to speak to students about feminism. “Based on my experience freshman year, I haven’t come to identify alcohol as a necessity for a successful social life at Georgetown; however, depending on which social clique you’re apart of, there can be a lot of pressure to black out, in order to be accepted by your peers.” So when somebody asks you about living in Santa Barbara make sure they are aware of all that UCSB has to offer and not the ugly reputation that it drags along with it.
Fewer Acceptances: Less Hope By ALLISON LEWIS TOWBES April 1st couldn’t have come soon enough for the graduating class of 2014. The fateful date was marked in all of our calendars as the end of the college decision process, the last day that the school’s we’d applied to could inform us as to whether or not we had been accepted. We were relieved and (mostly) satisfied with the results.
So it came as a surprise when, in the days following April 1, universities nationwide announced that the class of 2018 had some of the lowest acceptance rates in history. One of the most notable examples of these rates is Stanford, who, for the first time since the school was founded, accepted a mere
5.06 percent of 42,000-plus applicants. Universities including Cornell, Duke, Northwestern, and University of Pennsylvania have all seen
yield, each school can only accept a certain number of kids. These colleges and universities only appear to be more selective; in reality,
dreams. That being said, we should feel proud of ourselves for making it through the most brutal application season yet. As many painful rejections
acceptance rates drop 50 percent since 2004, and the top liberal arts schools (whose acceptance rates are usually more reasonable due to lower numbers of applicants) took between 10 and 20 percent. These numbers lead us to believe that college has become significantly harder, even impossible to get into. Schools are becoming more selective. Or are they? Recent studies have shown that the low acceptance rates may have less to do with the standards set by the schools and more to do with us. An estimated 2.5 million people applied to college this year. One out of four applicants applied to seven or more schools. Every year, more and more high school seniors apply to more and more colleges. In order to maintain the same
the increase in applicants is lowering the acceptance rates. “The acceptance rate affected us because it created a lot of stress among students,” senior Nadia Belton said. “It discouraged me from applying to schools such as Duke because the acceptance rate was 10 percent and I got nervous,” senior Chloe Richman said. College is only going to become harder to get into as our country puts increasing value on education. This development marks cultural growth: the United States cares about learning and opening up a new job market to the next generation. But every benefit comes with a price. Not everyone can go to the school of their
we endured, as many waitlists we are still on, we made it through (relatively) unscathed. As graduation hurdles at us at an alarmingly fast rate, we are beginning to realize that each and every one of us has something to look forward to next year. And although we may not have ended up at our dream school, our futures are exciting in the most unpredictable ways.
Opinion
7 Staff Editorial: Sticking to Our Guns A
May 30, 2014
Students at Laguna Blanca are guided by core values: Scholarship, Character, Balance and Community
s the eightieth graduating class prepares to say their goodbyes, we should take a moment to appreciate Laguna Blanca’s history of integrity. For 80 years, we have stood by our core values: Scholarship, Character, Balance and Community. We live by these values; they are the inexhaustible, unyielding pillars that hold up our school. Indeed, there are many equally esteemed centers of academic growth and learning all over the country. But what sets Laguna apart from the other schools with their mottos and mission statements is our follow through: we don’t just talk the talk, we walk the walk.
We honor academic morality and respect. Of course, every school has its issues with cheating and academic dishonesty, but this is not a prevalent culture on our campus. Moreover, there is a general reverence for teachers and fellow students. This communal attitude creates a channel for conversation, learning, and most importantly, Scholarship. High school is supposed to be a time for emotional development. The difference between a 14-year-old freshman and an 18-year-old senior when it comes to maturity is incredible. But maturing isn’t always the same as becoming a good person.
In fact, the environment in which you mature dictates how much you mature. Laguna Blanca puts emphasis on fostering wisdom and developing Character. The size of the school as well as the administration’s commitment to connecting with pupils keeps students
from falling through the cracks. We achieve Balance as students when we look beyond the academic part of our day and take a few hours to focus on our passions: arts, music, athletics, and service work. Laguna Blanca gives students the opportunities to keep up with not only one, but with many of their chosen activities. The School gives us flexibility, a gift that is often undervalued and under appreciated – without this freedom, many of us would be unable to discover our future dream careers and life-long loves. The final pillar that holds up our school is Community.
Community is the value we forget, only because it is our constant. We live it, we breathe it; the Laguna Blanca community is a beautiful, inescapable part of our lives. Teachers, students, parents, alumni – we all benefit from being a part of this rich, vibrant, inspiring Community. So next time you’re dreading your homework load for the night, or feeling bad over a slightly below average quiz grade, take a moment to step outside. We are lucky enough to go to a great school in a beautiful place surrounded by people who want to see us succeed. Laguna Blanca is 80 years old. It’s about time we said thank you.
NORTHWESTERN UNIONIZATION: REVOLUTIONARY OR REGRETTABLE? By SCOTT JOHNSTON
Allowing collegiate athletes to unionize is a slippery slope. Many believe it will benefit student athletes throughout the country. In all actuality, it is likely that it will only harm sports programs at every college in the United States. On March 26, a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board ruled that the players of the Northwestern University football team are school employees and therefore are eligible to unionize. On April 25, the players of the team held a secret vote as to whether or not to unionize. The results of this vote are being kept secret for now, but when the decision is revealed, shock waves could be sent
through not only college football but also all college sports. Many Northwestern players say they want better representation of their wants and needs and that this is the best way to get it. Players say they want better medical coverage during and after college. While health coverage is a legitimate concern, present and future health plans are being worked on in every level of the sport without the influence of collegiate player unions. Even some players on the team, such as redshirt senior and co-captain of the Northwestern Wildcats Brandon
exploited so that the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the universities can make huge profits. But the state of college football players is privileged, not deprived as some are making it out to seem. Many of these players are already getting paid in the sense that they have received scholarBrandon Vitabile ships. Tuition at Northwestern is thing and didn’t get it… so I’m almost 47,000 dollars. Over four years that is not sure why we needed to almost 200,000 dollars, and change anything.” The end game of this union- this does not even include room and board, which is ization is turning the players into salaried employees. Play- typically provided as well. By exchanging scholarships ers claim that they are being Vitabile, don’t want to unionize. Vitabile said, “Before January, when this all started, we didn’t hear of anyone on our team who asked for some-
“We didn’t hear of anyone on our team who asked for something and didn’t get it…” ~
for salaries, colleges would have to increase spending on athletics by a significant amount to even equal the amount of money they are shelling out on scholarships. Scholarships are not taxed but salaries are. Having to pay college athletes would either hurt the athletic programs or spending would be taken from other aspects of universities. Because not all programs turn a profit, would athletes in these programs not get paid? This would create even more problems and lawsuits. Unionization does offer certain benefits, but ultimately would end in the deterioration of many college athletic programs.
The Debate: Should Juniors Be Allowed to Go Off Campus?
Yes!
No!
By EMILY POWERS Junior year is considered the most challenging yet most exciting years of high school: the SAT, prom, finally being an upperclassman, and getting to park in the parking lot. However, the issue of juniors being unable to leave campus is holding them back. Seniors are the only grade that get to leave campus, but if Juniors also got the privilege then there wouldn’t even be that much of a difference in terms of traffic and the number of students coming and going. “I think Juniors should be allowed to go off campus because Laguna is such a
By STEPHEN MCCAFFERY Written in the Mission Statement of Laguna Blanca School under the core value of Community reads the statement, “We believe the success of [the school] relies on a mutually supportive partnership between faculty, students, parents, and staff who actively promote healthful living, honorable citizenship, and human kindness.” Laguna Blanca strives to build a cohesive community to develop an ideal situation for the students to grow, learn and prosper. A strong, close-knit community of the entire school cannot be fully developed and
Another year with another restriction is brutal. “We, the juniors, have worked hard our entire academic carriers and we deserve a little reward that being to go off campus. Going off campus to get a bite to eat is the least Laguna could give us,” junior Connor Curran said. Santa Barbara High School allows off campus lunch beginning in the freshman year. “Every other school can do it, why can’t we,” sophomore Lexi Yabsley asked. Lexi does have a point, Laguna always strives to be the school that offers more
Laguna must continue to require juniors and underclassmen to stay on campus at all times during the school day.
“Every other school can do it, why can’t we?” ~Sophomore Lexi Yabsley small school that keeping track of one more class isn’t even that many more students,” sophomore Dani Abrams said. Many juniors are inclined to go off campus regardless of breaking the rules and the consequences that will follow. “I have six detentions because of going off campus and it’s just ridiculous that juniors are unable to go off. Also it’s a bummer when my senior friends that I sit with go off campus for lunch and I can’t. It would be great if the upperclassmen could actually go to lunch together,” junior Mia Chavez said. Juniors should be able to go off campus because many of them go off campus anyway, kid’s detentions do add up, leading to unhappy students. The juniors deserve to leave campus because the previous year, when they were sophomores, they were not even able to park at the gym.
or something better than the other schools. So if public schools are letting students have the privilege since the students are 14, then students at 16 and 17 are most definitely just as capable. We have waited a long time to be able to drive, and now, to only have parts of that driving right given to us, seems unfair. Our class is responsible, and consequence are already in place so it seems only fair that we be able to go off campus too. Juniors are just as responsible as the seniors. Some kids have gone off campus since they were sophomores. We are obviously capable and kids are just doing it anyway. Just let the juniors go off campus— it’ll make things better. The school year has been great, but with the addition of the ability of juniors being able to go off campus, next year would be even better.
attract prospects or provide a close-knit community for those who desire one. Additionally, Laguna is trying to educate its students on living economically and responsibly for when the students graduate and plunge themselves into the real world. Requiring juniors and underclassmen to stay on campus during lunch is one way of trying to encourage economical living habits, specifically about spending money on food. According to a study conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management,
ART: LUISA CAMERON
successful without full-effort from the entire student body, and that is why seniors should be the only members of the student body to be allowed to go off-campus during free periods and lunch. As we all know, Laguna Blanca is a particularly small school, which provides many advantages for the students but can also hinder the sense of an active community. Even with just the seniors being allowed to go off campus, during the lunch period and select free-periods, Laguna can feel somewhat empty. Furthermore, prospective parents and students could be turned away by a sense of emptiness on campus. If the administration were to allow juniors to leave campus during free periods and lunch, the Laguna Blanca community would weaken and the campus would potentially feel desolate at times, which certainly would not
published in 2013, the average starting salary for graduating college students was $45,327. The average annual cost of buying lunch and coffee everyday is $4,500, according to the KQED news article, “How much does it really cost to live in California?” That’s money down the drain. When one graduates college, he or she needs to save to build up his or her savings, and purchasing lunch everyday does not help at all. By requiring juniors and underclassmen to stay on campus, Laguna is trying to teach the students that packing a lunch can be an economical practice that will almost certainly need to be exercised at one point in their lives. To uphold the integrity of its Mission Statement and to continue to teach economical practices, Laguna must continue to require juniors and underclassmen to stay on campus at all times during the school day.
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Double
ALL AB
The Logistics o
Did you go to Prom with a date?
Libby Hasse & Ethan Katnic
Was there romance between you and your date?
Cooper
Annabelle Sorensen & Chris Benwitt
Elia Doussi Damien N
Do you think Prom is overrated? Upper School students responded to a poll that was administered in advisory. PHOTOS: CARSON SHEVITZ GRAPHICS: LUISA CAMERON
e Page
May 30, 2014
BOARD
of Prom 2014
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Should the guy ask the girl?
Maddy Nicolson & Cole Strachan
Do you think Prom costs too much?
r Farrell & Phoebe Madsen
Maddie Bonser & Jack Espy
ineau & Nunez
Average amount of money spent on Prom
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Sports
May 30, 2014
Sports Awards of 2013-2014 Football (6-4, 2-2 Condor League):
MVP: Quentin Tedesco MIP: Stephen McCaffery Iron Man Award: Conrad Perry All-City First Team and All-CIF First Team: Quentin Tedesco Captains: Andrew Vignolo, Quentin Tedesco and Stephen McCaffery
Boys Basketball (17-8, 9-1 Condor League Champions):
MVP: Stephen McCaffery MIP: Sage Pickering Coach’s Award: Chris Constantino All-City First Team: Spenser Wyatt Captains: Andrew Vignolo and Jack Kinsler
Girls Tennis (5-6, 4-4 Condor League):
MVPs and Captains: Lucy and Margaret Hartmann
Boys Junior Varsity Volleyball (4-3 Freelance):
Captains: Christopher Costantino and Ryan Chiment
Girls Volleyball (17-3, 7-1 Condor League Champions):
MVP: Clara Madsen MIP: Olivia Pickett Most Inspirational: Caty Lafitte All-CIF First Team: Clara Madsen, Phoebe Madsen Captains: Chloe Richman, Grace Woolf and Clara Madsen
Girls Junior Varsity Volleyball:
Blue: (8-1, 4-0 Condor League) Captains: Hannah Nagy and Sammi Schurmer White: (9-4, 5-1 Condor League) Captains: Chloe Brown and Kimberly Crickette
Cross Country 3rd Place Condor League:
MVPs and Team Captains: Cooper Farrell and Nadia Belton
Boys Soccer (5-5-2, 2-4 Condor League):
MVP: Cooper Farrell Rookie of the Year: Henry Farrell Coach’s Award: Conrad Perry All-City First Team: Damian Nunez Captains: Cooper Farrell, Ryan Bickett, Damian Nunez and Conrad Perry
Girls Soccer (2-8-3, 0-4-2 Condor League):
Offensive Player Award: Clara Madsen Defensive Player Award: Nadia Belton Coach’s Award: Alexis Yabsley Captains: Nadia Belton and Bryn Jewett
Boys Tennis (11-6, 6-2 Condor League):
MVP: Tristan Prinz Boys Varsity Volleyball MIP: Henry Farrell (18-3, 8-0 Condor League Coach’s Award: Ben Furukawa Captains: Ben Furukawa, Champions): Tristan Prinz and Phillip Hicks MIP: Ethan Katnic Coach’s Award: Colton Girls Beach Volleyball: Johnson Captain: Hannah White Captains: Andrew Vignolo, Colton Johnson and Cuyler Zimmerman
Boys Lacrosse (9-1):
MVP: Quentin Tedesco MIP: Cameron Morello Most Inspirational: Christian Fowler Defensive MVPs: John Puzder and Robert Estrada Captains: Quentin Tedesco and Cameron Morello
PHOTOS: TARA BROUCQSAULT, PAUL CHIMENT, STEPHEN MCCAFFERY, CARSON SHEVITZ & HANNAH WHITE
Sports
May 30, 2014
11
By STEPHEN MCCAFFERY, PIERCE O’DONNELL & SPENSER WYATT
Boys Varsity Tennis
Varsity Golf
2nd Place Condor League 11-6, 6-2 Condor League Highlight Wins: Carpinteria, Bishop Diego, and Thacher (2)
“We’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season. Having lost our senior No. 1 doubles team from last season, we had to keep testing new combinations to get it right. With the help of newcomers Henry Farrell, Kylan Tyng, and Dalton Smith, we were able to come second in our league, and now we are now going for gold in playoffs.” – Senior Tristan Prinz
Boys Varsity Volleyball Condor League Champions 18-3, 8-0 Condor League Highlight Wins: Salesian, Viewpoint, Arrowhead Christian and Cate (2)
“I feel like our in-season play has been pretty good up to this point. I feel like we did pretty well considering that we were 18-3. We only lost to a top-ranked team in Division 4 and the No. 1 team in our own division [and had the third loss in a tournament]. We have good potential to move on and do great things in the playoffs. [Kiyan Mashhoon] did a very great job adapting to the game and the high level of play on varsity as a new member of the team. Cuyler Zimmerman has been doing a very good job distributing the ball around, working from the middle out to the pins.” – Senior Colton Johnson
Boys Varsity Lacrosse 11-1 Overall (Freelance) Highlight Wins: Dunn (2) and Santa Barbara High School (2)
“We had a lot of new guys this year who helped us have an amazing season. Our defense was strong, and our offense scored early and often every game. I’m sad to see Hughes and Quentin go, but I can’t wait for next year and all of the underclassmen we are returning.” – Sophomore Darwin Miguel
5-3 Overall (Freelance) Highlight Wins: Carpinteria (2) and Villanova Preparatory School
“I thought we did a great job overcoming the challenge of having just four players at the beginning of the season. We had some additions to the team, which helped us greatly. At the end of the day we had some wins, we had some losses, and overall, I think we did pretty well.” – Junior Cole Strachan
Boys JV Volleyball
4-3 Overall Highlight Wins: Viewpoint, Bishop Diego and Providence (Burbank)
“This season was a learning experience for everyone on this team. We played with only six men and often times we only had five or fewer players at practice. However, Mr. Dorfman did a great job at developing a team out of the small amount of players available. There was a real sense of connection between all of us that developed as the season progressed. Overall, we met our goals for the season and walked away satisfied.” – Junior Ryan Chiment
Girls Beach Volleyball
2nd Season of the Program Highlight Wins: Santa Barbara High School (2)
“Beach volleyball was a great bonding experience each and every day. We played a lot better with the tournament style play of beach volleyball compared to last year. The addition of our coach Mike Moss was very beneficial to our team. The highlight of our season was definitely beating Santa Barbara High School!” – Junior Hannah White
PHOTOS: CARSON SHEVITZ, HANNAH WHITE & STEPHEN MCCAFFERY
In last year’s spring sports season, the Varsity Owls Teams posted an overall winning percentage of 82.6 percent, an undefeated Condor League record at 16-0, and two Condor League Championships. The 2013 spring season was one that was going to be tough to follow. Fortunately, this year’s spring sports season has once again proved quite successful for the Laguna Blanca Owls. Coming off an undefeated Condor League Championship season in 2013, the boys varsity volleyball team once again powered through the Condor League gauntlet, earning an 8-0 league record and another Condor League Championship, and after a being upset in the second round of CIF-
Playoffs as the No. 2 seed, the Owls are hungry for deep CIF run. With key wins over Salesian, the No. 5 team in Division 4, and Arrowhead Christian, the No. 4 team in Division 5, Laguna has climbed the top-ten rankings to No. 3 in Division 5, setting itself up for a CIF-championship run. Boys varsity lacrosse also enjoyed the winning trend, posting a nearperfect 11-1 record on the season, only coming up short in the last game against Cate School. Led by senior captain and attackman Quentin Tedesco, the Owls’ high-powered offense carried the team to one of the best seasons in years. Sophomore Christian Fowler had a break-out season for the Owls, com-
plementing Tedesco on the offensive side of the field and providing a solid face-off option. Varsity golf recorded an impressive winning percentage on the season, dropping just three matches to Villanova Prep and Ojai Valley School, twice, whom Laguna lost to by only one stroke in the first meeting. Travis Fristoe, Mark Brown and Cole Strachan stepped up their games to fill in for the loss of scratch golfer Kiyan Mashhoon, who started at opposite hitter for the varsity boys volleyball team this year. Although the tennis team lost two key seniors to graduation last year, senior captains Ben Furukawa and Tristan Prinz and underclassmen cap-
tain Phillip Hicks led the Owls to an 11-6 overall record and a 6-2 Condor League mark, earning second place in the Condor League. Phillip and freshman Henry Farrell will also enter the individual CIF-SS Playoffs. In the second year of the girls beach volleyball squad, the girls enjoyed more success on the court, grabbing some key wins at tournaments, including two victories over Santa Barbara High School. The boys varsity tennis team, the No. 7 seed in Division 4, and the boys varsity volleyball team, the No. 3 seed in Division 5 and Condor League Champions, will try to keep the positive momentum going into the CIFSouthern Section Playoffs.
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Feature
May 30, 2014
Online Privacy Compromised By MILES CRIST
T
Similar to the SOPA and PIPA bills, the recent oday, in the age of the Internet, privacy and security are increasingly crucial concerns for CISPA has proposed further solutions to the problem of online piracy. citizens, legislators, and corporations. Although it was defeated in the Senate in 2012, To understand the intertwined nature of it has recently been proposed again and is moving contemporary technology, politics, and business through Congress. and to see just how ubiquitous this relationship has The notorious hacking group Anonymous has become in society, it is useful to examine the issue of begun to protest the bill, but unlike the SOPA and copyright violation, specifically online piracy. PIPA protests of last year, this protest has not This problem, as well as the search for viable received any support from major corporations. solutions pertaining to it, is not only an intriguing This is because CISPA’s main goals are concept in and of itself, but also a synecdoche for the to protect companies from blame if the many obstacles we face entering the 21st century. government So far, several solutions forces them to have been proposed in the give up their United States Congress If the simple process of aimed at stopping online streaming pirated media online customers’ personal information, and piracy. were made illegal and people were to require the government, Among these are the discouraged from doing so, huge not the corporation, to controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), strides would be made in undoing anonymize said content, Preventing Real Online the negative effects of copyright lessening the load on these companies. Threats to Economic infringement. Although laws such as the Creativity and Theft of 1998 Digital Millennium Intellectual Property Copyright Act (DMCA) and Act (PIPA) and Cyber the Copyright Act of 1976 are already in place to Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA). protect against piracy, there is one simple change In January of 2012, SOPA and PIPA were shelved that would help immensely. indefinitely by the Senate due to concerns regarding Currently, it is not illegal to stream unofficially privacy. This postponement occurred following redistributed and copyrighted films or music online widespread protest from several major websites, if it is for personal or non-profit use. including Google, Reddit and Wikipedia. Personal viewing of films online is one of the Both major political parties were concerned that largest areas contributing to copyright infringement SOPA and PIPA did not find a “balance between as well as its eventual negative effects. protecting Americans’ intellectual property, and Firstly, it provides one of the largest areas maintaining openness and innovation on the of motivation for pirates to post movies on the Internet” (Williams). Internet; many of these services cost money, and If passed through the Senate, these bills would almost all of them have advertisements, providing allow the government to obtain any information revenue for the pirates. they desire if it relates to stopping a case of Often, pirated streaming websites provide copyright infringement. movies before DVD releases or even before their This would include unlimited access to personal theater release, and thus consumers turn to these data such as emails, passwords, credit card sites, causing billions of dollars in loss to the numbers, and much more (Williams). entertainment industry. While the government looking through personal If the simple process of streaming pirated content during a criminal case is not a new concept, media online were made illegal and people were it has always taken place with a search warrant. discouraged from doing so, huge strides would be One way to solve the issues presented with SOPA made in undoing the negative effects of copyright and PIPA when revising them would be to require infringement. the police or government to have a valid search To date, after countless proposals to solve warrant issued by a judge, as is the case in our copyright infringement, none have succeeded. present legal system, or to have probable cause, SOPA, PIPA, and CISPA have all been defeated in within the circumstances already defined by the Congress and minimal progress has been made, constitution. resulting in the continuing loss of money and jobs. If the bills were slightly amended to include While inappropriate use of copyrighted content a clause such as this, it is very likely that public may be harmful to large corporations’ financial opinion of SOPA and PIPA would change entirely and open up an opportunity for these acts to become interests, the flip-side is that many creative individuals actually benefit from having access laws.
ART: KELA JOHNSON to copyrighted material in films, songs, and other multimedia formats to create new and original content. Thus, when looking for solutions to fight copyright infringement, we must find a solution that not only combats piracy effectively while maintaining individual privacy, but also encourages new content creation, by expanding the definition of fair use without the imposition of too many unnecessary restrictions. While it is a difficult problem, there is hope that if we make the viewing of unofficially redistributed media illegal, and at the same time ease restrictions on copyrighted content for young, independent filmmakers, musicians, and artists, we can accomplish two major goals: ameliorating much of the financial losses of large corporations, and, even more importantly, giving the next generation of content creators the freedom they need to realize their dreams in various artistic mediums for years to come.
Your Information and Photos Can Be Shared By HARRISON KERDMAN
By BILL MORTENSEN
I
f you have a sibling, then chances are you know the struggle of giving them an old textbook for a class, only to realize that the class has a new teacher using a different textbook. You are now faced with a decision as to what to do with your textbook. Do you burn it, to symbolize your maturation from years past? Do you unceremoniously dump it in the trash? Or do you, like a good citizen, donate your book to the local library or Goodwill for someone else to use? There are numerous websites dedicated to buying back textbooks, such as americanbookdrive.com, which resells old textbooks for money to donate to breast cancer research. Other options for donation are Freecycle, whose purpose is to keep old items out of landfills by giving them to others, and africanlibraryproject.org, which donates books to poor African countries. However, it is important to keep in mind that many sites only accept books on certain topics like math and science, so it is important to do research before donating. If donating online isn’t really your thing though, libraries generally accept textbooks that are a few editions old, as long as they aren’t ancient. You could also donate them to your local Goodwill or another nearby thrift shop for people less fortunate than you to have a chance to buy textbooks for cheap.
D
o you ever search for something online that is private? Do you ever search for something that you would like to keep a secret? Well, the Internet is not a private place. Companies are actually paid to track your search history. Large companies, such as Facebook, will share your most private information and search history for a profit and you give it away for free. On average, for every 100 websites you visit there are 125 individual companies that track each of those visits. One of these companies is DoubleClick, a company owned by Google, which specializes in ad delivery, analytics, and building user profiles. Another company that tracks you is Facebook Connect. Facebook Connect allows you to log into websites through your Facebook profile so you don’t have to create an account for every new website. The main benefit of this is that it is simple and saves time. The trouble is when you log in with Facebook Connect, it doesn’t just give the website your account name, but all of your “basic info,” this includes: age, gender, current location, hometown, email address, interests, and all pages you’ve liked. “I think what these companies are doing is immoral and unjust,” said freshman Will Bartholomew. A new video game made by Ubisoft called “Watch Dogs” that is yet to hit the markets is linking up with Facebook.
A Peek at Summer Music Festivals By EMILY POWERS
LOLLAPALOOZA 300,000+
ART: KELA JOHNSON
This game will, with your permission, use your Facebook account to set up your “pawns” which are your closest friends that can be used against you, your “obsessions” which are the people you “stalk” the most, and even your “scapegoats” which are people that you rarely interact with and could willingly sacrifice if necessary. This game will even find the places you hang out at the most, where you post the most, and it will even take a few guesses at password established from the information it finds on Facebook. Even if you think this is a disturbance of privacy and disturbing in general, keep in mind that it is all derived from information you offered to Facebook of your own freewill. It isn’t only this game that uses your information from social networks, but ads do as well. Have you ever clicked on an ad fora phone you wanted, then were sent to an entirely different website and the same ad was there? Well, companies track not only your search history but every link you have clicked as well. With all of these companies that pry into your online life, there are those that are creating programs to defend you from this online threat. Even if this is something that you don’t want to think about, it’s real. Don’t be afraid to search the Internet, just be careful when you click that link for the headphones you always wanted, or post that picture of the amazing sushi dish you’re about to eat at your favorite restaurant to Facebook.
Vibe: The largest of the festivals in the heart of Chicago. It is very loud and upbeat.
STAGECOACH 45,000+ Vibe: Country Music only. Some call it the “country version of Coachella”
OUTSIDE LANDS 65,000+ Vibe: A relaxed, low-key, positive atmosphere.
COACHELLA 90,000+ Vibe: Easy-going, hippie-esque with a potpourri of genres. ART: KELA JOHNSON
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May 30, 2014
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Students Get Creative with Promposals By EMILY POWERS
Senior Colton Johnson asked sophomore Sienna Spiers to prom by putting all of her favorite things out on display and then asking her to prom. “It was really cute, he put out sand from the beach, a soccer ball because I play soccer, cut-out snowflakes because I like going to Mammoth, and chicken because it’s my favorite food, that part was funny. It was really cute and nice of him,” Sienna said. Sienna and Colton have been dating since the first week of spring break.
PHOTOS BY CARSON SHEVITZ
Senior Andrew Vignolo asked sophomore Luisa Cameron to prom with a sign that said, “The key to having a fun time at prom is to go with me” and then he handed her a big, yellow, cardboard key and a bouquet of flowers. “It was really nice of him to ask me!” Luisa said. Junior Ethan Katnic asked fellow junior Libby Hasse by setting up several signs along a path with each one with a set of words; “Will You,” “Go To,” “Prom?” Ethan stood with a bouquet of roses with the final sign which said, “With Me?”
Water Discovered on One of Saturn’s Moons By HARRISON KERDMAN Imagine there was another species of intelligent life somewhere out there in the universe. Scientists have speculated about it for years, average people have claimed to see “alien” spacecraft flying overhead. There are even rumors of places, such as Area 51, devoted to finding and storing aliens, keeping them away from the public. Even though there are more speculations and claims than one can count, now there is something a little bit more definite as proof of a possibility of their existence— liquid water has been found on the Enceladus moon orbiting Saturn. Well, it hasn’t precisely been “found” just yet, but its existence
has been proven through scientific the ocean is located on top of rock, the calculations. gravity data from Enceladus makes Scientists calculated that the north the base of its ocean very similar to the pole of this moon is estimated to be base of the ocean on the Earth. This about 30 miles is an incredible deep, and is discovery “Finding water on a planet because, as composed of ice with solid rock other than Earth is significant Laguna science underneath the Mr. because it indicates that there teacher, ice. Neustadt said, is a chance we might find life “finding water On the other hand, the on a planet forms,” south pole is than Earth ~Landon Neustadt other estimated to is significant only have 18 because it to 24 miles of indicates that ice covering there is a chance an underground liquid ocean that is we might find life forms.” estimated to be around 5 to 10 miles So, how can we find these life forms? deep. Scientists think that sending a probe Scientists speculate that because to Enceladus with a drill wouldn’t be
Summer days are long and you don’t have a license. Don’t fret. Here are some ways to get where you’re going while waiting for your driver’s license. By CATY LAFITTE
Start walking... Ride your bike...
Roller skate...
entirely practical because the liquid water is so far under the ice that it would be hard to access. Instead, a spacecraft with sophisticated instruments could fly through the plumes of material being ejected from fractures that are evident in the ice. Cassini, a spacecraft with a sophisticated telescope, has already detected the water vapor and organic molecules in these plumes, using a device called a mass spectrometer. However, a more advanced version of the same instrument could better test for the variety of molecules associated with an advanced biological system. Detecting these molecules could be an indicator of whether there is life out there or not.
Ask Emily By EMILY POWERS
Q: What is a good excuse to tell my teacher why I didn’t do my paper? A: Go with the classic “my dog ate my homework” or blame it on the wifi—works every time. Q: Is it OK to go to prom even if I don’t have a date? A: Of course! You shouldn’t have to feel like you can’t go to a school dance just because you don’t have a date. Get some friends who also don’t have dates and go with a group. I’m sure you’ll have a great time.
Ask for a ride...
Book a ride with Uber...
Take a surrey...
Q: So the guy that asked me to prom is around my height but I already bought these cute heels that I want to wear but the heels are going to make me taller than him! Would it be weird for a girl to be taller than the guy? A: Since you already bought the shoes then I recommend just sticking with the shoes you bought and maybe just crouch subtlety in pictures. If you really think a girl being taller than the guy is a big deal then just be a free-spirit and go barefoot if you’re feelin’ it.
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May 30, 2014
A&E
May 30, 2014
Frankenstein Born Again
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By KELA JOHNSON In the week before spring break, sophomores in Ms. Hill’s English 10 class were assigned to create a work of art in response to Mary Shelley’s novel “Frankenstein.” The projects were displayed in the library, where students voted anonymously for the pieces they felt best conveyed the novel’s themes.
In first place, Luisa Cameron’s stop motion film “Beauty in a Beast”; in second place, Phoebe Madsen’s assemblage “Taboo”; and in third place, Christian Fowler’s sculpture “The Outsider.” Students worked over break on their unique, and individualized projects.
A$AP FERG AND FLATBUSH ZOMBIES REVIEW By EMILY POWERS I was stuck in a sweaty, an oddly placed intermission violent, mess that brought the where a DJ in the back played word “mosh pit” to a whole rap music. The audience was new meaning. I was alone, very confused and frustrated by scared, yet oddly enjoying the this because the night was getforeign experience of not reting late and the main act, A$ap ally knowing of what was about Ferg hadn’t come on yet. to come next. I was at the A$ap Then the instrumental to A$ap’s Ferg concert. song “Shabba” started to play and The warm up act was a rapper the whole crowd started to shout who changed his alias several and chant knowing that A$ap Ferg times throughout his time on was about to come on. stage, so I am still unsure as to what A$ap popped out on stage and starthis name is even despite running ed to flawlessly rap while the crowed into him at a local noodle shop went absolutely crazy. yesterday. Sophomore Mark Brown was with Nobody even knew this guy was me at the concert and had an interset to perform so crowd started esting experience. cussing him out. He left the stage “The crowd was so violent and after only five songs. rowdy that I actually ended up leavThe true opening act, Flatbush ing early. A$ap Ferg was amazing Zombies, came out to a spontanethough. It was cool when A$ton ous and cheering crowd. Matthews came out too and started Everybody started to hop up and squirting everybody with a water down and sing along to all their gun. Also, wearing boat shoes was a songs. The crowd got manageably very bad idea. My feet got trampled. violent in the sense that there was a Glad I went to the concert though.” lot of moshing, but you could get Sophomore Mark Brown said. away from it if you wanted to. By the time the concert was over, The rappers of Flatbush ZomI was happy to go home knowing bies were very high energy and that I had made it out alive with only were bobbing along to the beat several bruises from the mosh pit, that complimented their seamand having gained the fun (and sort less rapping. of scary) experience of getting to see After Flatbush Zombies, there was A$ap Ferg and Flatbush Zombies.
PHOTO: CARSON SHEVITZ
HAPPY By HARRISON KERDMAN Have you heard of Pharrell Williams’ song, “Happy?” At Laguna we have heard it along with the other 188,176,765 people who have viewed the official music video. We liked it so much we decided to make our own version of this Internet sensation. Junior Miles Crist led the fun project and included staff and students to show each of their “happy dances.” The QR code will show you the full Happy Video!
ART: KELA JOHNSON
Can I Get A “Hoot Hoot” By GRACE WOOLF
PHOTO: CARSON SHEVITZ
Raising school spirit has been a hot topic on the Laguna campus, and Coach Shane Lopes may have found just the fix. The owl mural down in the weight room is the boost the students need. Coach Lopes said “I really enjoy thinking of ways to boost school spirit and after hundreds of hours of training in a room with a blank wall, it clicked, ‘We need a fierce image of our Owl on the wall!’” Coach Lopes also plans to add photos of the athletes working out that “resemble movements to their
sports”. This mural is also unique because it is a community effort, with students helping paint it. Coach Lopes says about the students painting the mural “I have always had a love for art. Having our students create the mural on their own time and with their own hands seemed like a ‘grassroots’ approach to boosting school spirit, instead of an expensive, computer designed poster.” The mural was a collaborative process between Coach Lopes and Ms. Anaya and the students who help paint the owl will get community service hours.
25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee By KIMMY CRICKETTE & MARGARET LAZAROVITS
F
resh, funny, and fetching: the Laguna Blanca spring musical, The 25th Annual Putnam Spelling Bee, was a winsome production. Premiering Wednesday evening the show ran from the April 23 through April 26. “Charles Donelan had originally planted the seed in my head that it would be a great fit for Laguna: intellectually savvy, heartfelt and hilarious,” director and head of the drama department Kate Bergstrom said. The play contained quite a bit of improvisation, something which seemed daunting to many of the actors at first, but which paid off greatly. Many of the students in the play are relatively new to the stage; in fact, a few were performing for the first time. “The Spelling bee was truly an experience all should have. I aimed to put the audience through catharsis, and that is what I did,” said sophomore Chandler Aubrey, who was the Vice Principal Panch understudy.
However, some experienced actors call the stage home and were happy to help out others and add to the supportive and silly atmosphere. “People say this was the best Laguna musical they had ever seen and I would have to agree. This cast was the most hilarious, tight-knit, dedicated group of friends,” said sophomore Bea Tolan, who portrayed Leaf Coneybear. “We have a superb amount of new talent coming up the ranks and, while Margaret and Allie have been pillars in the theater, their legacy will live on. They have been inspiring the next generation of theater artists. This show specifically proved that the program is thriving. This ever-growing and shifting ensemble of completely ingenious weirdoes (myself included), with their specific niches and talents, are really making something special,” Ms. Bergstrom said. GETTING GOOFY: The cast gets goofy on stage while belting out a silly song.
PHOTO: TARA BROUCQSAULT
SB Bowl Playlist By MARGARET LAZAROVITS
Mind Over Matter
By Young the Giant Playing May 15
Light Me Up (Encore)
By Hunter Hayes Playing June 15
Top of The World
By Slightly Stoopid Playing July 25
Flake
By Jack Johnson Playing August 31 September 1
Back Page
May 30, 2014
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A step-by-step guide to the best ingredients
Start with the veggies and meats! Both go great on the grill!
Fill your cooler with sodas. make a pitcher of Arnold Palmer, blend up some milkshakes, and try some flavored water!
Dessert time! If it’s hot, popsicles and fruit salad are the way to go. But don’t forget the cookies, pie, and ice cream!
ART: LUISA CAMERON