Issue 6

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018 Vol. 63 Issue #6

Annandale High School’s

THE A BLAST

“ATOMS SPECIAL OLYMPICS” Students participate in basketball tournament.

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4700 Medford Dr. Annandale, VA 22003 www.thea-blast.org

Students go see Hamlet

FCPS STRIVES TO DIVERSIFY

IB Literature classes take a field trip to the Shakespeare Theatre

ASEAL SAED

BY BINQI CHEN Co-Editor in Chief

Arabic teacher Ola Layaly connects with her students because of her ability to immerse her students in shared traditions, culture and background to the classroom.

AHS prides itself on being recognized for its richly diverse student body with students deriving from over 80 countries and speaking more than 40 languages.

As students go about their day, they are not the least bit alarmed at the dozens of languages heard in the hallway, the wide array of cultural/ ethnic clubs, or the variety of complexions they walk past. What surprises them is that their teachers are overwhelmingly the opposite: mostly caucasian.

During the 2016-2017 school year, approximately 82 percent of Fairfax County teachers were white while 7.3 percent were black, 4.9 percent were Asian, 4.2 percent were Hispanic or Latino and 2 percent were multiracial.

Yet, Fairfax’s student population in the same year reflects a stark difference. 39.3 percent of Fairfax students were white, 25.4 percent were Hispanic or Latino, 19.5 percent were Asian, 10.1 percent were black, 5.3 percent were multiracial and the county is still becoming increasingly diverse.

Many of the teachers are diverse in age, political views, languages and other factors. AHS’ faculty members

they share a cultural background.

Superintendent Scott Brabrand Educators like Arabic teacher Ola Layaly pride themselves on the fact emphasizes the importance of hiring they can further bond with students shared language, culture, and a teacher workforce that accurately through heritage.

“I try to give students a holisreflects the student population tic understanding of Arab culture are hired for various reasons beyond race that make them qualified for their jobs.

Teachers can be hired in multiple ways. They can either turn in their resume directly to FCPS, email their resume to a division chair or use personal connections within a school.

“We want someone who appreciates and embraces diversity,” Principal Tim Thomas said. “Has a positive, growth mindset, collaborative, understands the value of teamwork, understands the value of communicating with families, loves working in an educational setting opportunities where we have adults in the building that look like and talk like our students is among the top priorities when it comes to hiring practices.”

There is no denying the positive effects for having more racially diverse teachers. Teachers of color provide positive role models and dispel negative stereotypes. Putting minority teachers before students help to create a more positive perception for students

Scholarships available deadlines, are included in detail in each link. Students are also provided and encouraged to visit the scholarship source site.

The requirements of each application is also explained. This includes serBY BINQI CHEN vice, GPA, race, recommendation and Co-Editor in Chief transcript requirements.

All official transcript requests for As seniors complete their college scholarships need to be turned into stuapplications and begin to hear back dent services in order to be uploaded correctly. from institutions, deadlines The portal includes all for scholarships are the next available scholarships to target of interest.

AHS students. Therefore, the New scholarship opportudeadlines are also varied. nities are open to all seniors The first batch of scholaron their Family Connection ships will be due in early Febaccounts on Blackboard. ruary.

“Family connections is The Al Neuharth Free a source for scholarships,” Spirit Scholarship is due on Career Center Specialist February 1. The Jimmy Rane Robin Roth said. “It gives Foundation Scholarship them a list of scholarships ROBIN ROTH is due on February 8. The applicable to them.” career center VMDAEC Scholarship is due The scholarship applispecialist on February 9. cations can be found under Students should gather the “colleges” tab and in the “Family connections all their materials before sub“scholarship & money” sec- is a source for scholarships.

Whether it is mitting their application. tion of the web page.

“I think it [Family ConThe students will then a national scholarship nections] is great because be asked by the system to or a local scholarship there is such an easy way answer questions about their would depend on its applicant pool.” to find scholarships,” senior college preferences.

Benjamin Lee said. “College The portal will then give access to an entire page of matching is extremely expensive and I need all the financial help I can get.” and available scholarships.

All the information, including

Seniors able to apply for grants through Family Connections account

of color. They become an example for students to follow. Also, a more diverse teacher workforce can also supplement training in the culturally sensitive teaching practices most effective with today’s student populations.

Some students feel that as long as the teacher provides them with the correct information, it does not matter what race the teacher is.

“The race of our teachers should bear no consequence so long as they teach us what is needed to pass the tests as well as understand the material,” senior Zea Bonanno said.

However, the Department of Education in its 2016 report,“The State of Racial Diversity in the Educator Workforce,” suggests that teachers of color are more likely to have higher expectations of students of color (as measured by higher numbers of referrals to gifted programs). They can confront issues of racism, serve as advocates and cultural brokers, and develop more trusting relationships with students. This is particularly true with those whom

because I have many kids who do not speak Arabic at home,” Layaly said.

“This why I make sure the class is not just language class, but an immersion of Arab culture.”

Layaly’s classroom environment has been well-received among students who often give high praise about the unique classroom experience. “[She] makes the class feel like home by sharing stories about our shared experiences or just making us tea.” senior Ayah Rababeh said. “She gives us advice and knows each student and their parents personally which is why it’s like a safe space for us.”

Superintendent Scott Brabrand has promised to change recruitment tactics in the staff so that it would more accurately reflect the county’s student makeup. One plan that he has looked at is recruiting the younger teachers of color and connecting them to their diverse networks at their colleges and universities. Brabrand cited the strong Middle Eastern community CONT. Page 5

“Students can’t quite envision what is supposed to be going on [in Hamlet], they get confused in the plot a lot.”

--SASHA DURAN

IB English teacher

Preparations for the trip began last school year. Duran partnered with fellow English teacher Leslie Chekin to push the project off the ground. The company provided Duran with a contract during the fall and since December, she has started to collect money for the trip.

“She [Chekin] put me in contact with the Educational Coordinator at Shakespeare Theatre Company,” Duran said.

“I said we needed approximately this many tickets and that we would be interested in doing this.”

Duran has also been contacted by other members of the educational department with additional information such as workshops for teachers, classroom materials and invitations for previews.

“It has been interesting to see that there is an entire department devoted to education at the Shakespeare Theatre Company,” Duran said.

The field trip is scheduled to occur after the seniors complete their Individual Oral Commentaries requirement for IB as well as a final paper for the novel Beloved. The trip will transition the focus of the class from essays and poems to the works of the second semester.

Little Free Library started NEHS helps to promote reading with non-profit project

BY BINQI CHEN Co-Editor in Chief Members of the English National Honor Society met during Pride Time to prime and paint designs on the first Free Little Library at AHS. The Free Little Library is a non-profit organization that allows students to exchange books for free. The library’s books are free for anyone to take or to donate. Through this project, NEHS hopes to encourage and promote reading to more students. The club also hopes to expose students to a wider variety of literary genres.

“Having the mini library at AHS will hopefully give students a chance to dive into books they might have never considered before,” NEHS Publicist Khanh Nguyen said.

The library’s first books will be donated by members of NEHS. They will submit a book with a summary and letter inside the cover to the next reader.

This way, the readers will have a more personal and engaging experience with the book.

This has been a long-term project of the honor society, as the idea was started last school year. The library was purchased during the spring by NEHS sponsors and English teachers Julia

BINQI CHEN

BY ASEAL SAED Co-Editor in Chief

All of the second level IB Literature classes will be traveling to the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington D.C. on Feb. 8 to see the play Hamlet.

This trip will include both the standard and higher level classes, as both classes include Hamlet in their curriculum. The seniors will watch the play prior to studying “Hamlet” in class.

This is so that they will be able to have additional background to the plot and become familiar with Shakespeare’s writing as well.

“Shakespeare already is pretty dense,” IB Literature HL teacher Sasha Duran said. “So I find that in the past that Hamlet is the one that is hardest to get through because students can’t quite envision what is supposed to be going on.”

Another purpose of the trip is that over 100 students will have a chance to view live theatre and experience an event they otherwise might not attend.

MEGAN LEE president “People will have a more accessible and nonchalant place where they can either find a new love for a new book or pass a preexisting love on to the next reader.”

NEHS members meet during Pride Time to prime and coat the new Free Little Library.

Hanneman and Sasha Duran. The library arrived during the summer and the members of NEHS have personally designed and decorated the library.

“They [Hanneman and Duran] told me about the library earlier this year and what they thought it could be,” NEHS President Megan Lee said. “I

absolutely love the idea of having a place where people can share their love for literature right in our school without making a big deal about it.”

Lee hopes that through this, more people will have a new hobby where they can enjoy a break from the stresses of school.

2 EDITORIALS

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Why the MYP Project is pointless

The dangers of using social media

BY SUAD MOHAMED Editorials Editor

BY SUAD MOHAMED Editorials Editor You wake up in the morning and you send a good morning picture to your Snapchat streaks.

At lunch, you tweet about how tired you are and how you can’t wait for the school day to end.

Then when you get home and post a silly picture of you and your friend on your spam account on Instagram, otherwise known as a “finsta.”

This is the typical routine of the average teenager, and it seems harmless enough.

What’s the problem with posting your thoughts and pictures for your friends to see? Actually, there’s many problems with this.

Recently, it was discovered that many social media sites store data from users’ phones and their activities on the applications.

This means that whenever you open applications like Instagram and Snapchat to post pictures or send direct messages, the application is storing information like your precise location and details on the device you’re using.

This can be good at times, such as when it’s used to detect when an account is being hacked. But because this information can be easily accessed

by anyone, it’s actually doing more harm than good.

Many applications send you the data they have stored on your account when requested.

To see how much information was kept, I asked Twitter to send the data they had stored for the account I’ve had since 2014.

When I opened the email, I was appalled. The document was 46 pages long and had an unconscionable amount of information.

The first four pages had their IP addresses accessed each time I had logged in. It also had the city and state.

The next few pages included information about the devices I had logged in from, such as other applications that have been installed in them.

But what was more shocking was the information that spanned the remaining 40 pages.

Through activities such as voting in polls and retweeting certain tweets, Twitter had compiled a long list of subjects and activities that I could be interested in.

This list went into such detail, that it included which brand of tissues and cookies I prefer.

“I’ve heard that Twitter and other applications keep things on everything you do,” senior Deega Hilowle said.

SUAD MOHAMED

When you click post, you’re uploading more than you think

Teenagers use multiple social media sites daily and are unaware of the fact that these sites constantly collect personal information about their users.

“That’s why I prefer to use things like Snapchat. I can choose who sees what I’m sending.”

Even though most users try to combat data storing by keeping accounts and posts private, it doesn’t completely protect them from harm.

It just limits who sees what you post.

Complete strangers can still access hidden and embedded information like locations quite easily.

“That’s another reason why I don’t really use Twitter or Instagram. There’s too much information that goes in to everything you put on there,” Hilowle said. “And people you don’t know can get your username easily.”

Still, there are many benefits to using social media and it can be hard to give up.

Although not very effective, there are a few ways to block application’s data collecting strategies.

The first thing to do is make sure that these applications don’t have access to your location.

To do this, go to the settings application on your phone, click on general, then restrictions, and disable location services.

Many applications also delete data that has already been collected if requested.

To clear out your Twitter data, open the application, go to settings and privacy, then click on account. Once you click on your Twitter data, an option to clear it out will pop up.

Next week, after months of research and hard work, select sophomores will present their MYP Projects.

The MYP Project, sometimes called the Passion Project, is a long term research project that sophomores work on through their English class.

The project is made up of six journals that entail each step of the research process. Students can choose any topic to work on.

Topics range from writing music to baking goods.

While the vagueness of the instructions for the project makes it seem like the project is easy, it can actually become a burden and is quite arbitrary.

Teachers claim that the project is valuable because it helps students figure out what they want to study in college.

In reality, most people just pick random topics so that they can just get the assignment over with.

The structure of the assignment also puts a cramp on the creative process.

Some people don’t follow the steps of the journals naturally, and the MYP Project forces them to. Others do not communicate well with their supervisors.

This in turn makes the project difficult to complete.

Additionally, for most English classes, the project is just a completion grade.

There’s no incentive for students to do well and put effort into the project.

This has become more evident this year because now only certain people will get to show their products to the school, whereas in previous years everyone had to.

The MYP Project is a waste of students’ and teachers’ times.

There’s no point in making students’ complete an assignement if most people don’t put any effort into it.

A look at what the President has achieved during his first year

BY SUAD MOHAMED Editorials Editor Though it’s hard to believe, it’s been one year since Donald Trump began his presidency.

In this first year, his presidency has been plagued with accusations of election fraud, along with the fact that a majority of his original cabinet has left office.

Many were surprised when they found out that the controversial candidate won the presidency.

But it is often forgotten that during his campaign, Trump made a lot of promises that captured the attention of conservatives who were fed up after eight years of Obama.

However, many of those people are now upset. In fact, Trump has one of the lowest presidential rates in history. Even his own party members have

turned against him.

Why? Because Trump has failed at keeping nearly all of his campaign promises that he vowed would be fulfilled by now.

For example, Trump promised voters that he would “immediateky terminate DACA.” On Sept. 5, it was announced that the DACA program would be coming to an end. But on Jan. 10, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to continue accepting applications.

Another big part of Trump’s campaign was his oath to end Obamacare, which he had deemed to be a “disaster.”

Now? In September, Congress passed a bill that shaved off certain parts of Obamcare, such as the penalty placed on people who can afford health insurance, but choose not to.

While it limits Obamacare, it is not the complete repeal that Trump vowed to pass.

Perhaps the most controversial campaign pledge Trump made was his vow to not only build a wall along the border with Mexico, but to also make the Mexican government pay for it.

But on Jan. 17, Trump’s Chief of Staff John Kelly confirmed to Democrat

THE WHITE HOUSE

What one year of Donald Trump has been like

President Donald Trump has an approval rating of 32%, which is one of the lowest presidential ratings in history. lawmakers that there was no way that the wall was being built or that Mexico was going to pay for it. He then went on to say that a lot of Trump’s campaign promises regarding immigration were “uninformed.”

But broken promises aren’t the only reason why Trump has been so unpopular.

The investigation into the possibility of ties to Russia and voter hacking is another reason for Trump’s

unpopularity.

Many people close to Trump, including former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, have admitted to colluding and meeting with Russian officials.

Furthermore, with the creation of the #MeToo movement, people are now remembering that 19 people accused the President of sexual misconduct.

Matters were only inflamed with Trump’s public endorsement of Roy

Monthly Poll

THE A BLAST STAFF CO-EDITORS IN CHIEF Binqi Chen Aseal Saed MANAGING EDITOR Grace Hogye NEWS EDITOR Diego Feliciano EDITORIALS EDITORS Ruth Mekonnen Suad Mohamed COPY EDITOR Yvonne White IN-DEPTH EDITORS Casey Nguyen Kim Vaides SPORTS EDITORS Fares Ayoub Luke Elkins SPORTS XTRA EDITORS Jude Nanaw Ethan Zimmerman WEEKEND EDITORS Cameron Foti Halley Thadeus

ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS Lina Al Taii Nicolle Uria Christian Reyes LIFESTYLES EDITORS Yabi Bereket Ivanna Perez PEOPLE EDITOR Henry Hoang ARTS EDITORS Maryam Dereje Galilea Sejas HEALTH EDITORS Rachel Shogren PHOTOGRAPHY EDITORS Serene Ghul Katie Pope ACADEMICS EDITORS Jessica Salisbury Kavi Shamdin WEB EDITOR/MASTER Victor Nguyen AD MANAGER Yvonne White CIRCULATION MANAGER Yvonne White

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER Lennon Wuhrer STAFF WRITERS Khadija Ahmed Jamie Baker Alexander Burita Shyeim Campbell Jacqueline Claros Lopez Mya Clyburn Brenda Gamez Pablo Gammara Noe Gonzalez Jamileh Hamadeh Abraham Kebrom Mahdi Larhmari Elias Moura Arzoo Marzi Tiana Reams Erik Rivas-Martinez Jason Reyes Hasan Royer Victor Torrico Calderon Adeljada Zequiri

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Moore, the Republican candidate for the open Senate seat in Alabama. During his campaign, Moore had been accused of sexual misconduct by nine women, several of whom were minors.

“It’s really upsetting to think that the president, who is supposed to be a representative for all the people, would stand for and back up someone who has been accused of crimes like that,” sophomore Jasmine Tang said.

Another reason for Trump’s unpopularity is his volatilty.

Nicknaming North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un the “little rocket man” and branding Haiti and other countries “s***tholes” does nothing except worsen already tense foreign relations.

As a result, he’s hurt his chances for re-election In a survey conducted by The Washington Post, 72% of Generation Z, many of whom will be voting for the first time in 2020, had an unfavorable view of Trump.

A poll from Reuters showed that 1 in 8 people regretted voting for Trump.

For these reasons and many more, Trump’s first year as president was unsuccessful. He set too many high goals for himself and failed to a which has hurt his appeal to the public.

Look out for the next poll @theablast on Twitter to vote for the next issue!

Annandale High School Vol 63. Issue No. 6 4700 Medford Dr. Annandale, VA 22003 The A-Blast is an awardwinning newspaper that strives to inform, educate and entertain the student body and community.

Published monthly, The A-Blast will not print any material that is obscene or libelous; or that which substantially disrupts the school day, or invades an individual’s right to privacy. The A-Blast is an independent, open forum for discussion that is printed at the Springfield Plant of The Washington Post.

Signed letters to the editor of 250 words or less may be emailed to theablast2017@gmail.com or submitted to room 262 or mailed to the school. The A-Blast reserves the right to refuse advertisements.

All submissoins become property of The A-Blast, Copyright, 2018.

112

people voted

70% said that

they do not believe that the IB Diploma is worth it

19% said that

they do believe that the IB Diploma is worth it

10% said that they were indifferent

ANGELA KIM senior “I think that the IB Diploma is pointless and unnecessary unless you’re trying to go to college in Djibouti or something, which is definitely never going to happen for any diploma candidate ever.”

SAMMY WONDWOSSEN senior “I think that the IB Diploma is worth it because it prepares us for college so classes in college will be easier. And if you pass the IB exams, then you can get college credit for the IB classes.”

EDITORIALS 3

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Are we too desensitized?

Technology is going too far

Americans are becoming numb to violence and abuse

Children playing a violent video game experience about

We need to stop misusing science

BY RUTH MEKONNEN Editorials Editor

exchanges during the period of play

8-18 year olds watch an average of four hours of TV per day

138 aggressive

On New Years Eve, Logan Paul, a Youtuber with a predominately young audience, posted a video of him at Aokigahara, a Japanese Suicide Forest.

It wasn’t the filming of his adventure in the forest that caused the controversy, but the filming of the body he stumbled upon.

Not only did he film the body numerous times, but he laughed and even went as far as to even use it as click bait.

Even if in the moment he felt as though it wasn’t concerning that he was showing a dead body to children, it is alarming to think of him editing the video and spending time on it without ever thinking about the consequences of his action.

When hearing about mass deaths, like with the Rohingyas in Myanmar, we can’t help but focus on the numbers rather than the individual person.

“We think it (violence) is awful but we don’t react to it like how we used to,” senior Jennifer Nguyen said. “We don’t

60% of all shows include violence

8-18 year olds spend about an hour and half playing video games

1 in 4 teens often encoun-

8-18 year olds spend an average of 22 minutes on social media sites

ter some type of hate speech online

90% of movies shown on television had violent content

SOURCE: COMMON SENSE MEDIA

see the magnitude of it. We don’t realize it’s not normal for this to repeatedly happen in a developing country.”

It isn’t until we see a single picture of a person that is being affected or hear a story about an individual that we start to actually begin to feel for them.

When Paul was seeing the body in the forest, he wasn’t thinking about the fact that it was an actual person, that the man was a son, a friend, someone that was admired and that he committed that act in a moment of pain, and moment of loneliness.

He was clouded by the need to shock the public which could be the root of the issue.

With the media always attempting to shock us, we often forget to look in depth at the person and the story.

Of course in the moment we feel sympathy for those who are on the receiving end of the travesty and we do feel a sense of fear and think about if for a little, we immediately forget and move on when hearing or remembering something else.

“I think that we are too desensitized

to violence and other things in the media because there’s always new things that are showing up on Twitter and Facebook,” said senior Alichia House. “We’re so used to seeing similar things that we just become used to them.

As generations and technology continue to evolve and change, we are going to continue to be exposed to more violence .

It is important that we remain empathetic and remember that things like that are happening to people just like us.

Do you think Oprah should become the next Celebrities do not president? belong in office JULIA GHISELLI

Oprah is the wrong choice

freshman “I think Oprah should be president because she has experience with the public and I think that she would be a much better choice than Trump.”

GUINEVIEVE TRAN sophomore “Yes, because I saw her speech at the Golden Globes and it was just really inspirational and she just wants equality and to empower women.”

MARAIAMAWIT WOLDEAB junior “I don’t think that Oprah should become the next president because she is just not qualified enough for a position like that.”

BETEL EYOB senior “I think that Oprah shouldn’t become president. I like her as a person but the problem is that she doesn’t have any political experience.”

BY RUTH MEKONNEN Editorials Editor Oprah: actress, activist, host, role model, but not president.

Until Trump became president, many if her fans did not think that Oprah becoming president would ever become a reality.

Oprah is the perfect example of the American dream story.

Going from rags to riches at a time when race was at a divide and there weren’t many women on the screen, she definitely has the ability to inspire people.

She, in many people’s views, is the opposite of Trump.

Oprah has a shot at winning if she ever decides to run.

But would she really be the right choice?

We’ve seen what it’s like to have a celebrity in office.

Do we really need to be electing people with no knowledge, education, or enough experience to hold a position of that power?

Haven’t we learned enough from Trump?

“I think socially or even in comparison to Trump, Oprah would be the best choice for President, but realistically, she might not be the best pick considering that she has no political background,” senior Selam Negash said.

The only shot at making actual change in America is by electing someone who knows what they are doing.

It is important to elect someone with a great heart, someone you believe in, but it is equally important to elect

Oprah Winfery gives a speech at the Golden Globes after receiving the Cecil B. DeMile lifetime achievement award. Although many people were joking about the idea of Oprah becoming the next president after her speech about unity and coming together, many people are now urging her to run for office. someone that has the knowledge and the ability to make change.

If not a politician then someone with at least a law degree or some background in this field.

“Oprah shouldn’t become president because she has no political experience and when you have people who have no experience then things start to fall apart,” said senior Lydia Peters. “After she made her speech, people got hooked on what she said because it was inspirational and moving but it takes more than that to be a president.”

The best ability that Oprah has to

MAKIN’ THE GRADE No more slow iPhones

A B D F

Tim Cook, the executive of Apple Inc. told ABC that the company will be releasing a software update which will enable users to monitor their battery performance and that they will be able to turn off the functionality that is the root of iPhone lagging. This is amidst the announcement that Apple was purposefully slowing down phones.

High class marriage Two flight attendants were unfortunately unable to get married at the church they wanted when it was destroyed by an earthquake. Fortunately for them, since Pope Francis was on the flight, he officiated their wedding while they were on the plane.

This is the first time that the Pope has joined two souls on a plane.

Hawaii’s missile alert Imagine thinking that you are about to die and going through the motions of preparing yourself until realizing that it had been a mistake. That’s what happened to the citizens of Hawaii Jan. 13. After the state had received an alert that a missile was headed their way everyone reacted in sheer panic. The emergency management officials were met with a lot of backlash after taking 38 minutes to issue a correction.

Repeal of net neutrality The Federal Communication Commission voted on Jan. 18 to repeal net neutrality in a 3-2 vote. Net neutrality requires that Internet service providers treat the internet equally. By repealing it the FCC is limiting internet freedom. A lot of people are signing petitions and going as far as to sue to stop the FCC from completely killing it.

succeed, should she decide to run, is by starting off small and building up her political resume.

She should see if she likes being in politics or having a high leadership position before running for something of this measure.

Even if she decides not to run, it isn’t the end of the world.

Oprah has made lots of change in the past years and she doesn’t need to be president to continue to do so.

It is time that we start considering backgrounds before electing another celebrity.

BY RUTH MEKONNEN Editorials Editor It’s hard to believe that just 10 years ago, we never had iPhones.

In such a short amount of time, technology has definitely evolved.

We are able to do things that many generations of the past couldn’t even fathom.

But as boundaries are beginning to be pushed and lines are being crossed, we need to take a step back and see if there are instances where we may be going a little too far.

For example, a Wisconsin company is offering its employees the opportunity to have radio-frequency chips inserted in them. According to NPR, this new form of identification will make it easier for employees to make purchases, log in to computers and even open doors.

Although it may seem cool to have the power to do all that with just a finger, a lot of things remain in question.

How can the employees be sure that they aren’t going to be tracked or if it is truly safe to have something like that be in their body.

“I personally believe I wouldn’t want to be chipped because it would invade my privacy. It doesn’t seem like something that is necessary to do,” senior Katheryn Hout said.

Hacking is an issue that will always remain a problem and the notion that a stranger may know your whereabouts is truly frightening.

It feels like something that was pulled straight out of a dystopian novel.

“In certain cases, it becomes intrusive and people are no longer interacting. Kind of like a fake reality,” said senior Marina Chen.

“People begin to misuse it and hide behind it. Instead of helping it hurts.”

There are definitely ways that technology has impacted our lives for the better.

Medicine, education and the ability to interconnect with one another are something that wouldn’t be able to evolve without technology.

However, it is important to point out that technology has also been destructive.

It has armed us with weapons that have the ability to destroy greatly, it has made us lazy and it continues to harm our planet.

Technology is slowly taking over the world.

We are so accustomed to it that it almost becomes difficult to do anything without our phones or our laptop with us.

It is almost as if we are misusing technology.

Rather than speaking and communicating with each other, we are texting and looking things up.

Conversations are beginning to revolve around memes.

Technology has its advantages but we need to start to view it as a luxury rather than a necessity.

Cartoonist Corner

4 NOTICIAS DESTACADAS

Martes. Enero 23, 2018

EL centro de Padres dirigido por la senora Gisella Sanchez (izquierda) y la senora Maria Delgadillo (derecha) brindan ayuda a todos los estudiantes que requieran apoyo

La Ayuda de el CDP es inimaginable El Centro de Padres (PRC) es una organizacion para todos los estudiantes POR DIEGO FELICIANO Editor de Noticias El centro de Padres es una organización en la escuela que ofrece bastantes servicios a los estudiantes pero para muchos, e inclusive para este escritor, fue desconocido al inicio.

Muchas personas no saben de esta organización, ni de donde esta localizado, algunos posiblemente la vieron cuando iban a su clase en algun trailer pero la mayoria no sabia que habia adentro o la gran ayuda que ofrecen.

Esta organización está dirigida por la señora Gisella Sánchez y la señora Maria Delgadillo, la señora sánchez estuvo por cinco años y la señora delgadillo estuvo por 3 pero su tiempo aqui hicieron todo lo posible para ayudar no solamente a los estudiantes de la escuela pero a la comunidad de Annandale que está creciendo con el tiempo.

Esta organización se encarga de brindar un gran apoyo a los estudiantes al brindarles:ropa, comida, zapatos e inclusive conectarles con otros lugares para que puedan recibir servicios dentales y de visión por un gran descuento.

“Ningún estudiante sale de el centro de padres con las manos vacías” comentó la Señora

Delgadillo en relación a los servicios que proveen.

A pesar de no ser promovido de la manera que debería, el centro de Padres encontro distintos medios para poder recibir ayuda, ellos se contactaron con distintas iglesias, otras organizaciones no lucrativas como Edu Futuro, miembros de la escuela que les donan ropa, también escuelas del condado como Poe Middle School y padres de familia que les ayudan a ordenar el lugar y asegurarse que cada estudiante reciba la información necesaria.

Gracias a la ayuda de toda la comunidad de Annandale, ellas pudieron asegurarse que el centro de padres continúe por otro año proveyendo estos servicios a la comunidad.

El trabajo de Gisela y María no acaba ahí, ellas dia a dia tienen juntas con los consejeros, profesores, y cualquier trabajador de la escuela que requiera de su ayuda para poder contactarse con distintos padres o hablar con los estudiantes que necesiten ayuda.

Pero, además de los estudiantes, el Centro De Padres ofrece ayuda a los padres al tener los famosos “Café Para Padres” donde hablan de distintos temas y buscan una solución para poder implementar, ellas ofrecen clases de Ingles gratuitos y además ellas dan clases donde dan consejos a los padres acerca de que es lo que tienen que cuidar de sus hijos y cómo guiarlos para ser exitosos en la vida. “Nosotros somos un puente de

la escuela al hogar” comentó la señora Sanchez.

Es sorprendente el apoyo y los servicios que ellas brindan para todos los estudiantes de Annandale, por ejemplo: ellas fueron las encargadas de traer un camión de comida de DC cada mes para que los estudiantes se puedan llevar comida caliente, ellas se encargan de dar una bolsa de comida cada viernes a los estudiantes que necesiten, ellas se encargan de dar snacks a estudiantes que no pudieron agarrar lunch o desayuno, y la lista continua.

Para ellas fue un camino difícil lleno de obstáculos pero ellas pudieron seguir adelante y se dedicaron a ayudar a la comunidad. La señora Sánchez nos explicó en sus primeros años como casi pierden el servicio de donación de ropa, pero gracias a su dedicacion, ella decidió estar a cargo y seguir con el servicio y años después con la llegada de la señora Delgadillo ellas pudieron ampliar mas sus servicios y su ayuda a la comunidad.

Ellas desean continuar con la gran ayuda que proveen y uno de sus grandes sueños es poder ampliar sus servicios para brindar más comida y además dar clases a las familias de como preparar una comida balanceada debido a los problemas actuales que nuestra comunidad enfrenta con la obesidad.

Esta es una organización muy grande que provee ayuda a toda la gente pero ellas necesitan ayuda para poder continuar y mantener en orden,

es por eso que ellas dan horas para servicio comunitario durante W4 y lunch para los estudiantes que deseen ayudarles al limpiar y ordenar la ropa además de otros pequeños detalles. Ellas se aseguran para darte tus horas para tu clase o el club en la que requieras.

La ayuda que el Centro de Padres provee es inimaginable, la señora Sánchez y la señora Delgadillo se aseguran que puedas salir adelante y puedas solucionar cualquier problema que tengas tanto personal como escolar, ellas son las amigas de los estudiantes y todo lo que hacen es por la comunidad de Annandale, a pesar de que el centro de padres no se promovió de la manera debida ellas se dieron modos para que puedan seguir adelante con sus servicios y mas que todo servir a la comunidad.

Para la información del público, ellas se encuentran localizadas en los trailers y tu lo podrás reconocer por el cartel que te indicara donde estan, todos los estudiantes están bienvenidos y se recomienda ayudarles haciendo servicio comunitario para que puedan seguir brindando el buen servicio a nuestra comunidad.

Se le agradece a la señora Gisella Sánchez y a la senora Maria Delgadillo, nuestras amigas de centro y sud américa, por la ayuda que nos brindaron en estos años y más que todos por todo lo que estan haciendo por los estudiantes en Annandale

El rumor para la candidatura de Oprah Winfrey aumento La posibilidad de la senora Winfrey para presidente aumenta despues de su discurso en television POR DIEGO FELICIANO Editor de noticias Tras el discurso en los Globos de Oro, Oprah Winfrey volvió a hacer noticia debido al tono que realizó su discurso, para muchos ese fue un tono presidencial e inspirador para mucha gente que sufrio por maltrato y abuso sexual.

Su discurso fue potente y lleno de fuerza al punto que todos los medios, tanto nacionales como internacionales, llegaron a hablar de ella y de su mensaje en general.

Mas que todo ella puso un tono personal al comentar como ella vio el actor Sidney poitier ganar el premio de la academia y ser el primer afroamericano. Winfrey comenta estar en la cocina de su casa y su madre regresaba después de limpiar casas.

“Soy consciente de que habrá alguna niña viendo ahora cómo yo me convierto en la primera mujer negra en recibir este premio” dijo la señora Winfrey que dedico a todas las jovenes que estan inspiradas por ella.

Ella tambien comento en su discurso el caso de Recy taylor, una mujer morena que sufrió por abuso sexual en 1944 y los abusadores no tuvieron consecuencia alguna.

“Ella vivió---como todos vivimos-- en una cultura rota por hombres poderosos y corruptos” dijo la ganadora del premio. “Por un largo tiempo, las mujeres no fueron escuchadas o se les creyo si se atrevían

Ex-Presidente Obama dio la medalla presidencial de la libertad a Oprah Winfrey durante una ceremonia en la Casa Blanca a hablar la verdad, pero ese tiempo se acabo”.

Este discurso fue el mas aclamado por la gente debio a todos los problemas de abuso sexual que existe en Hollywood y alrededor del mundo.

Gracias a este discurso, mucha gente opino que ver a una presidenta Oprah seria una buena idea debido a los servicios sociales que ella realizo y también el ejemplo que ella representa de nunca rendirse y seguir luchando.

Oprah fue presentada al público en los 80’s cuando primero se unió a un programa mañanero de noticias para poder después tener su propio programa “El Show de Oprah” que llegaría a ser un tremendo éxito en Estados Unidos y en ciertas partes de centro y Sud America

Nuestra escuela es elegida la mejor en salubridad La cafeteria obtuvo el premio por mantener un buen puntaje en su reporte

Quien es culpable por la falsa alarma de Hawai: El sistema o el gobierno?

CREDITO: HAWAII.GOV

Hawai sufrio uno de los peores sustos por un descuido POR DIEGO FELICIANO Editor de Noticias

POR DIEGO FELICIANO Editor de Noticias Annandale High School llego a ganar un reconocimiento del condado al ganar el reconocimiento por la mejor salubridad y calidad de comida ofrecida por FCPS (14 Carrot Gold Food Safety Excellence Award). Y también cabe destacar que fue la única escuela en FCPS en recibirla.

Este premio solo se le asigna a establecimientos que le ponen bastante importancia en la calidad e higiene de la comida.

La gerente de la cafetería Zoila Contreras y su equipo fueron los responsables de mantener la cafeteria en buen orden y ellos recibieron el reconocimiento de 3,400 candidatos para el reconocimiento.

También, basado en el record de la escuela, la cafetería no tuvo ninguna violación en cinco años.

Para poder competir por este premio, el establecimiento no tiene que tener ninguna violación en dos años y no tienen que tener más de seis problemas leves en el ano.

Su show habló de distintos temas que le llaman la atención a la gente como religión, trato a la familia, salud e inclusive ella fue la que presentó al público a Dr. Phil y a Dr. Oz que se volvieron muy buenas referencias para el cuidado de la salud al punto que los doctores tuvieron sus propios shows y revistas tanto nacional como internaacionalmente..

Por un largo tiempo, Oprah fue la amiga de la nación y llegó a tener una coneccion con toda la gente ademas ella en su show llegó a dar bastantes regalos como autos, televisiones, computadoras y otros.

En 2011 Oprah sorprendió al público al anunciar que su show llegó a su fin debido a una decisión personal porque sentía que era tiempo para poder termina.

Ella nunca se involucró en la política a excepción de las primarias demócratas de 2008 en el que dio su apoyo a Barack Obama, segun un analisis el apoyo de Winfrey dio a Obama un millón de votos para las elecciones debido a su coneccion con la gente, la fama y el reconocimiento que ella tiene con la gente.

SI la presentadora Winfrey decidió correr para presidente, este será un momento histórico porque podría convertirse en la primera mujer presidenta y la mayoría de la gente piensa que ella tiene chance en derrotar al Presidente Trump en 2020.

Además de Winfrey hubo rumores que otros famosos correrian para presidente pero si ella decide lanzar su candidatura, los demas famosos no correrían y a lo contrario la apoyaron para que pueda ganar.

Todavía falta tiempo para las elecciones pero la gente ya está analizando a un posible candidato que realmente se fije en los problemas de la gente y se enfoque para el bienestar de la nación

la cafeteria de la escuela saco un buen puntaje por limpieza El director de la salud y salubridad, Pieter Sheehan comento que “nosotros otorgamos este reconocimiento para reconocer establecimientos de comida que ponen bastante importancia en salubridad y la manera que se encargan de mantener la comida” Además de la escuela Annandale, otros restaurantes del área ganaron como Ruby Tuesday en Alexandria y Wegman’s Food Markets en Fairfax.

Este es un gran orgullo que Annandale fue la única escuela y hay que reconocer el empeño que las personas en la cafetería ponen para brindar buena comida a los estudiantes. Se les agradece bastante y se espera que sigan con el buen empeño el los anos en adelante.

Hawaii recientemente recibió una de los peores sustos posibles al ser anunciado que recibiría un ataque por un misil balístico. Todo este problema se originó debido a un error por un empleado de la Agencia de Manejo de prueba que presiono el boton equivocado. Este mensaje erróneo se emitió en todos los medios de comunicación tanto como teléfonos celulares hasta en la radio informando de un ataque balístico y que la gente debía buscar un refugio inmediato.

Lo increible de esto fue que no se arregló al instante sino demoro 38 minutos para poder emitir la corrección, acción que empeoro las cosas en la isla. Este descuido nos dejó pensar que tan efectivo son las alertas y si se necesita un nuevo sistema moderno y de confianza que realmente evite un malestar como este.

Este fue un problema que hasta el director de la FCC pienza lo mismo de este sistema, en un comunicado el dijo que la alerta causó una “ola de pánico en todo el estado, empeorada por el retraso de 38 minutos antes de que se emitiera otra alerta de corrección”.también el dijo que estos sistemas socavan la confianza del público en el sistema de alerta y reducen su efectividad.Funcionarios estatales confirmaron que ya se están tomando medidas para arreglar estoserrores como la creación de una “plantilla de cancelación” para solucionar el descuido y también el “New York Times” confirmó que ahora se requiere que dos personas firmen la emisión de una alerta.

Pero analizando todo estos datos, es la culpa solamente de él que presiono el boton equivocado o también de el estado porque con este servicio de alarma no se creó una manera para poder enviar inmediatamente otro mensaje en caso de

La capital de hawai y los habitantes fueron los mas afectados por esta falsa alarma falsa alarma o en caso de que alguien se equivocó.

Con la respuesta del público, se demostró que el FCC necesita ganarse la confianza del público y reorganizar su Sistema para que sea efectivo y la gente pueda confiar en este. Errores como estos no deben pasar y especialmente con el tiempo que se tardo para arreglar el problema, ojala que en el futuro se cree un Sistema más efectivo y que este libre de errores, especialmente para este tiempo que tenemos problemas con Corea del Norte y nos están amenazando con lanzarse misiles a cualquier momento.

Why is this page translated to Spanish?

This section was created with the aim of broadening our reach as a publication towards the large population of Spanish-speaking students. AHS is the most diverse school in Virginia, with an extensive ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) program, and Spanish is the second most spoken language at our school.

As a newspaper, our goal is to inform and entertain the largest possible group of viewers. Las Noticias Destacadas is a selected translation of a variety of the most pertinent articles in The A-Blast.

We hope that through this new section, we can be a more inclusive and diverse publication.

NEWS 5

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Making crayons for Inova New Mission Impossible Club gives back to local children’s hospital

Why should someone join Mission Possible?

News briefs Quarter Ends The second quarter will end on Jan. 25. Students will be released two hours early and there will be no school on Friday, Jan. 26 and Monday, Jan. 29.

Senior Dues

BY BINQI CHEN Co-Editor in Chief

BINQI CHEN

Gathered around in English teacher Sean Hardy’s classroom, a dozen students planned out the first of many community service projects for the new Mission Possible Club.

The club, founded by junior Maisha Maliha, wants to help kids in the Inova Children’s Hospital Center feel more comfortable and at home during their stay.

“We work with Inova Children’s Hospital and strive towards providing the patients with comfort, security and happiness,” Maliha said. “Because they are away from their homes, schools, friends and families for an extended amount of time, it can be a very isolating experience.”

After gathering the talking two of her friends about taking initiative in their community and bettering other people’s lives, the three officially started the club.

“When Maisha told me she was creating this club, I instantly knew that I wanted to be a part of it,” club Vice President Hlina Wondwossen said. “I love to help others, but I have never really been a part of something like this.

Mission Possible’s first project will be making and donating crayons. Materials

Seniors dues need to be paid online on myschoolbucks.com by Feb. 1 The fees total up to $67.

Seniors must pay the full amount in order to walk at graduation on June 7.

MAISHA MALIHA president “Being involved in your local community is such a rewarding experience to have. Mission Possible gives students an opportunity to make a difference and impact the lives of others. “

Juniors Maisha Maliha and Tiya Ayele plan details to make crayons that will be donated to the Inova hospital. were gathered and fundraised through an art supply drive before winter break.

The club’s leadership board hopes that through this project, more awareness can be spread about the club, and the importance of service.

The members plan on melting down old crayons and forming new ones using silicone molds. The crayons are expected to be in a variety of shapes and colors. Maliha envisioned the idea as a fun alternative to regular crayons.

“Making the crayons as opposed to just buying regular crayons allows us to customize the crayons into different shapes and color combinations,” Maliha said.

Since the club is new, recruitment is still standing. Any AHS student is welcomed to join the club and contribute to the activities.

Meetings are held every time the club embarks on a new project and all of the members decide on the details

HLINA WONDWOSSEN vice president “I think people should join this club because it has a good cause.

If people want to feel good about themselves and to help people in their community out, this club is for them.”

EFRATA TECLE board member “People should join Mission Possible because it is a fun and new way to receive community service hours while helping other children and working with other AHS students to make the drives work. “

together.

The club is thinking about running a children’s book supply drive as their next project. However, the board remains open to all new input and suggestions.

“Hopefully the crayon drive will benefit the community by making children feel better,” board member Efrata Tecle said. “I hope by giving them more supplies and fun things they can be distracted from their circumstances.”

Pizza and Pizzicato The orchestra will be host its annual Pizza and Pizzicato event with middle schools in the pyramid.

The concert will be on Jan. 29 and held in the auditorium.

Club Pictures Yearbook will be taking club pictures right after school in the cafeteria. There will be two days available for sign up: Feb. 7 and 14.

President’s Day There will be no school for students on Monday, Feb. 19 to observe George Washington’s birthday/Presidents Day.

Band Pyramid Concert There will be a pre-assessment concert in the auditorium with middle schools on Wednesday, Feb. 21.

The concert will begin at 7 p.m. and admissions is free.

FCPS attempts to diversify employees

Food safety excellence

CONT. Teaching

BY BINQI CHEN Co Editor-in-Chief Fairfax County Health Department awarded AHS with a “14 Carrot Gold Food Safety Excellence Award.”

AHS was among only nine other places in the county to receive this honor.

Food records from the health department show that AHS has passed most of the regulations and inspections with no violations over the past five years.

The winners were selected among 3,400 permitted institutions. To win, the places must be free of any critical violations in inspections within the last two years and no more than six non-critical violations in a year.

Eateries are nominated for the award by the public, health inspectors or others in the food service industry.

in Michigan, the Hispanic population in Texas, and various other strong diverse networks across the country.

However, according to a study conducted by George Mason researchers published in the 2017 spring issue of the Harvard Education Review, black applicants for Fairfax County teaching positions were far less likely than their white counterparts to get job offers.

This is despite the fact that the black applicants in the 2016-2017 school year had, on average, more advanced degrees and classroom experience. Although black applicants, the study found, had slightly lower pass rates on screening tests than their white counterparts. The study further concluded that Asian applicants were proportionally hired to the rate at which they applied.

The study further implicates this

“The more the adults reflect the demographics of our school, the greater likelihood that you can establish and maintain authentic relationships.”.

--TIM THOMAS

Principal racial bias in hiring as a contributing factor to the low numbers of black educators in public education.

While the County screens teacher applicants for proper licensing and

degrees, the hiring is left much to the individual school. However, the study lacks how candidates fared in job interviews or in-person interactions.

Nationwide, Asian and Hispanic men are least likely to go for teaching jobs after college. Black men are not far behind according to the Department of Education’s study.

With the low number of minority men attending college for teaching, the prospective pool shrinks dramatically. This is not including the fact that fewer minorities go to college in the first place.

There are several factors as to why minorities tend to shy away from educator jobs including, but not limited to the low pay and poor attitudes toward teaching.

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) estimates that the

elementary and secondary student population will continue to become less white and more diverse.

“We want to have the best education for our students, and that is why Annandale looks for the best teachers provided from our pool,” Thomas said. “The more the adults reflect the demographics of our school, the greater likelihood that you can establish and maintain authentic relationships,” Thomas said.

“That doesn’t mean that authentic relationships can’t be established if kids and adults don’t look like each other, but it is a delicate balance because we cannot say we a a p p r e c i ate diversity and then make efforts to extinguish it.”

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6 ACADEMICS

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Electives worth looking into Astronomy Academy

Astronomy is a science course offered to rising juniors and seniors. This class discusses topics such as the universe, universal laws, galaxies, stellar evolution, the solar system and its motion, and the exploration of space.

Although this is a science course, it is not considered one of the science credits for your typical standard diploma. However, if students already have three science credits, a student is able to use this class as a fourth credit to be eligible for the advanced diploma.

Taking astronomy in high school could expand your knowledge on future careers such as engineering and business development.

While taking this course, you will also have the opportunity to go on field trips held outside of class.

Every quarter, the teacher will mention an event that’s being held at some university nearby. These events will allow students who are interested to go and observe the moon and

stars from advanced telescopes.

There is also an annual field trip astronomy and geosystems students take to the Air and Space Museum in D.C. If you happen to be interested in taking Astronomy, be sure to speak with your counselor and visit or contact the Astronomy teacher Russel Youmans.

There are various academy classes available to students including fashion at Fairfax, animal science at Edison, criminal justice at Falls Church, physical therapy at West Potomac, JROTC at Chantilly, nursing at college institute, and STEM robotics at Marshall.

These classes allow students to get a glimpse of what their future careers could be like as well as gives juniors and seniors career and academic preparation for post-secondary education or future career fields.

Students enrolled in Academy elective courses are provided with opportunities to participate in a variety of career experiences including shadowing, mentoring, and internships

Advanced Composition

Business

Students who are enrolled in Advanced Composition make up the Atoms Writing Center as well as learn about the many different types of writing.

The course can help students tremendously with writing essays and can also help students understand the writing process while they improve their critical thinking skills.

This course also allows students to work together. Giving helpful criticism along with bouncing ideas off of each other is another big factor that helps students become better writers when they take this class. In this class you can also be trained to become a tutor to help other

Business is an IB course that consists of two years. The course gives students the principles of management and teaches them the different strategies and terms that are used in the business world.

Many students find this class to be very beneficial for their futures because it teaches them skills that could be used in the real world. This class is really helpful for those who are planning on pursuing business in college or even for those who want to eventually start a business of their own.

With this class students learn how to manage money and finance their money which can ultimately help them stay financially stable and encourage

students throughout the school who are not in the class.

The center is open during and after school for any student who wants some extra help. This class would be good for anyone who enjoys writing, wants to improve on their skills, or just simply wants to

expand their knowledge in the writing world. If you are interested in taking this course talk to the Advanced Composition

teacher Stephanie Hanson for more information.

Culinary Arts

Publications

If you have an interest in cooking and would like to gain more experience in the kitchen, Culinary arts may be beneficial to you. In this class students are taught the basics about the arts of preparation, cooking, and presentation of food.

Throughout the year students become more knowledgeable on how and when to use the different cooking methods and techniques required to prepare food the proper way. Students also learn to acquire the proper skill set needed to be successful in the culinary world.

For students who plan on doing something related to food in the future, this course could be able to give them a head start. Others who simply just have a strong passion or talent

Yearbook, Journalism, and Creative Writing are all publication related courses. If you are someone who enjoys writing, designing, or photography, one of these classes might be appealing to you.

In Journalism, students are given the opportunity to use their voice and contribute their ideas to the school newspaper by filling the roles of either an editor, staff writer, photographer, or videographer. If you have an interest in joining this class or the A-Blast talk to the Journalism teacher Alan Weintraut.

In Yearbook students create and design the yearbook that is available for students to purchase at the end of the

for cooking might find this class to be something they look forward to throughout their school year.

This is also a “hands on” class so if you are someone who gets tired of sitting for an hour and 30 minutes straight and want to get up and move, this course could be something that

you may find enjoyable.

If this class seems interesting to you, talk to Culinary arts teacher Christine Gloninger for more information.

Musician and athlete Selam Negash takes her skills off the stage and field

BY JESSICA SALISBURY Academics Editor

How do you keep up with your academics and social life?

I make sure to prioritize school over any extracurricular activities. Most of my friends have a good mind set and usually prioritize school too, so we make arrangements around it or we will mesh both together and maybe go to the library or study at a cafe or bakery together.

IB Spotlight: Profiles of Diploma

What are your studying habits?

I’m more of a visual or hands on learner so I’ll take what I’m studying and write it down multiple times to help me remember it. I also review my notes which I take with different colors to help remind me or separate the more important material. Another common thing I do to study is using the app Quizlet.

What is your favorite IB subject?

My favorite IB class is IB Literature. I really enjoy analyzing literature; reading is something that I enjoyed a lot before school started to become so time consuming. I was able to be introduced to my now favorite classic: Jane Eyre. I also learned how to grow and improve my OEA essay writing skills, which honestly helped my writing all around in general. By also having a very organized and nice teacher, Mrs. Hanson, the class was a lot easier to enjoy.

What are your plans after high school?

I plan to go to nursing school to further my career in becoming a Nurse Anesthetist.

How do you prepare for IB exams?

I have yet to take my first IB exam. I guess I would study for it by using the review materials my teachers provide for me and asking for extra help when I need it.

Is your only focus academics?

No, I also played field hockey and lacrosse since the start of high school. Music has also been one of my passions as well. In addition to being in the choral program at school, for the past four years I have grown in my passion for

Senior Selam Negash performs on stage during rehearsal for the annual show. singing at church where I lead worship in the youth program and sing in the choir. I also play piano and am currently in the process of teaching myself how to play the guitar.

Who has helped you on your IB journey and how?

It’s a combined effort between my family, friends, and classmates, but God has been my rock and my support with seeing me through all of my high school struggles.

What skills do you think the IB program has taught you that can help you later in life?

The IB program has taught me how to advocate for myself. I’ve learned how to communicate and work with my teachers when due dates overlap.

with local businesses. Since students are required to travel to other schools in order to take these classes, they take up two periods instead of one.

If you are a student who is interested in a specific career and want to be involved with hands on field work this might

them to avoid things like debt when they reach adulthood.

Through real life examples and situation students learn what and what not to do in order to become successful in the business world.

This class consists mostly of

year. These students capture moments throughout the school year and turn them into long lasting memories. If this seems like something you would like to be a part of talk to yearbook teacher Julia Hanneman.

In creative writing students go beyond the writing that is expected in a normal English

be the class for you.

These classes become full quickly, so it is important that students talk to their counselors as soon as possible if they are interested in taking one of these courses.

juniors and seniors. Since this is an IB course there are exams students are required to take as well. If you are interested and would like to find out more about the class talk to Business teachers Jerome Dwyer or Howard Dwyer.

class. In this course, students are encouraged to go outside of the box and let their creative juices flow while they improve upon and learn new writing techniques. If you would like to know more about this class talk to creative writing teacher Soo Jin Lee.

Sudoku

HEALTH 7

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Survey says teenagers are being less risky and taking fewer chances

CDC releases new study a school because they took a dumb risk,” senior Melissa Wilson said.

The survey shows that overall in 2015, 41.2% of teenagers said that A CDC survey that was recentthey have had sexual intercourse. This ly released shows that a large amount percent has gone down since 2013, of high school teenagers are declining where the survey read that 46.8% of the amount of risky behavior they are teens have had sexual intercourse. In getting involved in after seeing some the 2015 survey, it shows that 48.5% harsh consequences. of African American teens, 42.5% of Some think that the decline in this Hispanic teens, and 39.9% of white behavior is because the fear teenagers teens have had sexual intercourse. are starting to have of sexually transAccording to the CDC, the same mitted diseases, infections or even rate was found in 2005. The survey pregnancies. also found that 30% of teenagers have The survey was taken from 125 had sexual schools, both pubintercourse in lic and private, the past three “I think and about 16,000 months which student participeople are is 5% less than pants. The survey what the prerecognizing was voluntary but vious 6 surveys it required a parthe bigger have found. ent’s signature in 11% of teens consequencorder to take it. say that they es of doing The governhave 3 or more ment survey risky things. sex partners shows that teenagwhich is about --LAILA LOPEZ ers today are havfreshman 4% less than ing way less sexuwhat the previal intercourse than ous years show. they used to, as The survey also shows that 27.3% well as using fewer drugs and drinkof 9th-grade boys who took the survey ing alcohol less often than before. The said they have had sexual intercourse bold decline in sexual activity realbefore. This is less than the 2013 surly stood out to researchers who were vey which claimed 32% of 9th-grade analyzing the recent survey. boys have had sexual intercourse.

Some AHS students were shocked The freshman girls who were a but understand the decrease in risky part of the survey showed that 20.7% behavior. have had sexual intercourse before “I think people have more to lose. which is a big percentage fall from Colleges look at that stuff and I think what the 2013 survey read which was students are scared of not getting into 28.1%.

What unhealthy behaviors do you try to avoid?

DYLAN WEAVER Freshman “I try to avoid skipping school because I know that I shouldn’t.”

NIA LEWIS Sophomore “My unhealthy habit is eating foods I’m allergic to. I am allergic to dairy so I try to stop eating foods like pizza and cake but they taste so good. “

CDC.GOV

BY JAMILEH HAMADEH Staff Writer

The CDC survey shows that only 11% of teenagers smoke cigarettes today, compared to 27% in previous years. The survey also showed that 22% of students have smoked marijuana in past months. Drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and LSD are used much less among teenagers.

About one-third of the students these surveys out, the average percent The survey shows that 4% of teens who participated in taking the survey of teens that smoked cigarettes was have had sex before the age of 13 said that they have had an alcoholmore than 27%. which has dropped from 7% in the preic beverage less than a month before Vaping was newly added to the vious survey. taking the CDC survey which is less survey and it shows that about 25% of Another topic that the survey than the previous percentage: 35%. the students said they have vaped in covers is smoking. The survey shows About 60% of the students who particthe past couple months. that less than 11% of teenagers who ipated said that they have never had a The percentage of student that took the survey have smoked cigadrink before. reported using marijuana in recent rettes within the past month. This Government officials say they’d months is 22%. is the lowest that rate has ever been like to see what the next survey Other drugs were also a part of since the CDC started giving out the results look like to make sure it is not the survey and the results were: hersurvey. a statistical mistake. oin 2%, cocaine about 5%, and LSD When the CDC first started giving was 6%.

TESABIH OMER sophomore “An unhealthy behavior I try to avoid is sleeping after school every day. “

NATNAL ENDALKACHEW senior “I try not to drink soda because I know it is all sugar. But sometimes I still do.”

ABEL SAMSON Junior “I try to avoid procrastinating because I can’t get any of my work done.”

ABAG ADAWI junior “One unhealthy habit I have and I try to avoid is sleeping late and procrastinating.”

BENJAMIN LEE senior “I try to keep my food clean and not eat junk food or candy or anything like that.”

AMANI MUNTU senior “I try to avoid drinking soda because I am very addicted but I know it’s really bad for you and gives you acne.”

Q&A with athletic trainer Kathy Ayers Athletic trainer, Kathy Ayers is in her 28th year at AHS. She teaches Sports Medicine as well as attends athletic events and stays after school to work with athletes that have suffered from injuries.

The injuries she sees most are sprained ankles, muscle sprains, bumps and bruises and sprains of other muscles, Ayers said.

People that have been injured or just need a “tune-up” go see Ayers before and after school to receive treatment. This involves ice and heat along with exercises and massage.

Q: Which sport do you see the most injuries with? Why do you think that is?

A: High collision sports run the risk of more significant injuries but an injury can occur anywhere and at any time.

It does not have to be sport related. As for which sport has more, that is a tough question because we all think football does but in reality given the large number of athletes involved it is not the sport with the highest injury rate typically. Injuries tend to go in waves, some years are better that others.

Q: What are some life experiences that helped you be a better athletic trainer?

A: My personal athletic background and the variety of injures that I had give me insight to what an athlete is going through. One of the reasons I enjoy knee rehab is because I have been there and done that. I think the fact that I teach health and physical education also gives me insight into different movements and how that can be applied to rehabilitation.

Working with U.S. Lacrosse as an athletic trainer for the U19 Women’s National Team in the past helps me to understand high level demands of sport.

Being a rower at Temple University gave me an understanding of D1 athletics. Spending an extra year at Temple University exposed me to a wide variety of sports and injuries at a high level.

Having been an athlete in high school and college, I suffered many injuries especially to my knees. I always thought I wanted to be a physical therapist but then I found athletic training. The difAthletic Trainer, Kathy Ayers helps out senior Ian Marburger with an exercise for a shoulder injury. Ayers treats students ference is that as an athletic trainbefore and after school in the trainers room located across from the boys athletic locker room. She also attends athletic er I get to provide initial assessments, events to help out athletes during their games. rehab a variety of injuries surgical and non-surgical and I am rewarded by seeQ: What is important for people to do trainer? How long at AHS? ing the athlete return to play.

A: I have been an athletic trainer for 29 years when recovering from injuries?

Q: What is the hardest part about treating athletes A: The hardest part about treating athletes is making sure that athletes and their parents understand the nature of the injury and the best treatment for that injury.

Q: Why did you become an athletic trainer?

A: I became an athletic trainer because I love to problem solve. I also enjoying helping athletes to become the best they can be which means having to over come injury sometimes.

Q: How long have you been an athletic

MELISSA WILSON

BY RACHEL SHOGREN Health Editor

and this is my 28th year at Annandale Q: What is the hardest injury to treat?

A: The hardest injury to treat is the injury that I am not made aware of. I can only help with an injury if I know the injury occurred or the problem is occurring, Q: What can people do before and after exercising that can help prevent certain injuries?

A: You should do proper warm-ups such as dynamic stretching and proper technique for jumping and cutting. Building strength and doing a wide variety of sports so that you don’t over train in one sport is also important.

A: When recovering from injuries, it is important to make sure you regain the strength necessary to protect the injury.

Q: What sports do you follow? What is your favorite team?

A: I enjoy watching many different sports when there is time. Having had the opportunity to be the athletic trainer with the Women’s U19 world Cup team for women’s Lacrosse 4 times I tend to watch college lacrosse, especially now that some of my former players are coaches.

Q: What do you do in your own time to stay active?

A: I do a variety of workouts that range from cardio to strength training.

Q: Can you describe the worst/ most gruesome injury you have ever experienced?

A: The most significant injury was many years ago when a football player suffered a subdural hematoma (brain bleed).

Q: What school did you go to?

A: Temple University for athletic training George Mason for my Masters in Exercise Science and Health.

8 PHOTO

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

H2GO: Senior Elizabeth Lauderdale with fellow girl scout junior Caroline Lemens at Thinking Day, a Girl Scouts convention where troops present environmental solutions. Lauderdale and Lemens propose their solution to cleaning our systems waterways by preventing contaminated water, demonstrated with Ziploc bags.

We All Shout for Girl Scouts

What is your favorite Girl Scout cookie?

ANNIE NGUYEN freshman

“My favorite Girl Scout cookie would have to be Samoa’s because I like the coconut in it and the chocolate too.”

BRYAN KOKILANANDA freshman

“My favorite are Savannah Smiles because I really like lemon with cookies and the sugary powder.”

KATHLEEN LEWIS sophomore

“Thin mints because I think mint and chocolate go very well together. Also I can eat more of them without feeling guilty.”

Blood, sweat, and tears: Junior Carolyn Lemens with fellow members of her troop work hard to raise money for the INOVA Blood Donor services by selling a variety of girl scout cookies. Donations and profit raised by these girls were sent to the hospital in order to help save lives. “The best part of Girl Scouts is the look on everyone’s faces when I show up in class and open my suitcase full of cookies,” Lemens said.

RYAN SHAREST

sophomore “Thin mints because I’ve always loved mint chocolate chip ice cream so I like mint chocolate cookies too. I just like the flavor of mint in general.”

K

ORA COKER:

Coker with fellow girl scout senior Alichia House at Thinking Day where girl scouts explore and present cultures from many different countries around the world. “Girl Scouts has made school easier like for my IOP and public speaking,” Coker said.

Coker sells and sells hundreds of boxes of cookies every winter. “Selling cookies really teaches you how to manage money and sell products. It has also personally helped me step outside of my comfort zones,” Coker said.

“Thin mints because chocolate and mint is really good. Dipping them in warm milk and watching the chocolate melt is so satisfying.”

Student by day, Girl Scout by night

Coker’s vest (right), covered in tons of badges and patches shows her many accomplishments, such as her silver award for recruiting young scouts into the troops. Coker has recently been working on her gold award project which includes 80 hours of hard work, planning, and service. She plans on writing her own children’s book to read to children at Columbia Elementary and George Mason library.

“People always say do something you’re good at, so that’s where the idea came together for me because I like writing as well as kids,” Coker said.

ZAIN GHUL junior

Coker and her troop enjoy the great outdoors. “My favorite part of Girl Scouts is the high adventure activities like rocking climbing and kayaking,” Coker said.

Coker has been a girl scout since the first grade. Her mother has continued to encourage her to keep pursuing the Scouts because it is something Coker is passionate about. “I joined because it’s really fun. When you’re little, you do more social-club things. But, when it started getting harder I felt like quitting because of all the work,” Coker said. My mom motivated me to stick it out and I’m really glad she did because it has helped me become a better person in general and I’m appreciative of all of the unique experiences,” Coker said.

KEVIN TRAN junior

“Samoa’s because they have the most flavor to them. It has a really good coconut taste”

ANNA VOGUS senior

“Savannah smiles are my favorite because I love the lemony taste and I also like the powder on top of them.”

Playing on the deck: Seniors Elizabeth Lauderdale, Eva Bejani and Alichia House play cards while staying overnight in a covered wagon. “We all bring our own food in with us and cook over the campfire and it really brings you closer to everyone.

Zea once brought spam and since then it’s become an inside joke. I met two of my best friends through Girl Scouts,” Lauderdale said.

Seniors Alichia House and Eva Bejani and junior Kora Coker go on a kayaking expedition down the Potomac River as a way to bond with each other. Outdoor activities such as this are a big part of Girl Scouts, teaching them new skills and giving them fun experiences. “My favorite is that we are able to do many activities such as camping and canoeing,” House said.

JAEDON HENRY senior

“I love samoas because the coconut and chocolate is really good.”

9 ARTS

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

How do you feel about the theme of the play?

Late, A Cowboy Song: Blackbox show

PHOTO COURTESY OF SAM BENTON

MAKAYLA COLLINS (RED) Sophomore “When I perform this play I have to think that this is a real problem, it’s important for me to be as accurate as possible. The theme is very important that it’s being shown at a high school. This is a real problem and it lets people know that there are ways to get help and that there are people that can help you get out of it.”

Sophomores Makayla Collins (left), playing the cowboy Red, and Savannah Gravitt, (right) playing Mary are sitting in a pasture outside the city limits.

RAFFI KRIKORIAN (CRICK) Sophomore “The theme of the play is abusive relationships. I, for one, haven’t known somebody or witnessed an abusive relationship in the family. It definitely opened my eyes a little bit more, and broadened my knowledge and what abusive relationships are.”

Annandale Theater Company produces a three person play

BY MARYAM DEREJE Arts Editor The show “Late, A Cowboy Song” is targeted to enlighten people, kids in particular, about abuse. The show was originally played to target 13 to 18 year olds, letting them know what to do in situations like these in the future.

It lets them know that it’s never too late to leave, it even teaches the audience that a person shouldn’t be in an abusive situation to start with.

Throughout the whole show we see three characters come in, Mary played by sophomore Savannah Gravitt, Crick, played by sophomore Raffi Krikorian and lastly Red, played by sophomore Makayla Collins.

Mary and Crick have loved each other since the second grade. They have the same birthday and they thought they used to want the same things in life. It was perfect for them when they were younger.

They thought it was faith that put them together; that they should spend their lives together. Well at least they used to have these thoughts, until Red came into their lives.

For some time now, Mary has continuously been emotionally scarred because of Crick and his behavior. Mary is in a never-ending cycle with Crick. He has never physically abused Mary even though he has thought about it many times.

Sometimes Mary has a hard time saying what she feels out loud. She has this diary where she writes everything

PHOTO COURTESY OF SAM BENTON

SAVANNAH GRAVITT (MARY) Sophomore “I feel like it’s very important that people are aware of abuse and can happen to anybody, so I think that the kids and parents, and everybody needs to see the signs. A person can be abused and sometimes they just want to find happiness wherever they see it, for Mary, that was being with Red.”

Sophomore Raffi Krikorian, playing Crick, is staring at a painting. that happens to her.

Since Crick wanted to know everything that’s going on in Mary’s life, one day when he found the diary he opened it and ended up reading the whole thing.

Mary caught him red-handed and was very mad and upset he would do this to her. She later ended up leaving to go to her mother’s house.

Mary was so stressed about life she felt as if she didn’t have anymore normal days, she felt as if everyday was a holiday.

Mary doesn’t want Crick to know what was going on in her life. However, he eventually reads and gets mad

at her for spending too much time with Red. Crick, Mary’s husband, was never consistent with his life. He never truly knew what he wanted. In the show we can see that he wants to hit Mary a couple of times, however, he always ends up backing away, because he sees how scared she is.

Crick is child-like, but despite this, Mary lends him $500, without knowing that he will end up buying a painting with the last of their savings.

Crick is a very spontaneous person: he even proposes to Mary without a moment’s worry after, when she told him she was late, period wise.

Once they got married, Crick and Mary have a hard time deciding the baby’s name. She wants to call her daughter Blue, inspired by the name Red, but he wants to call his daughter, Jill.

When Crick and Mary finally have their baby, she turns out to be half male and half female; she was intersex. After their daughter has surgery to officially be female. Mary has a hard time coping with this. She wants her daughter to choose her gender.

Crick, however, doesn’t agree with this. And yet again, they couldn’t make up their minds. The only thing that they could agree upon is the fact that Crick needs to get a job in order to support their baby.

Crick has a huge passion for paintings. He thinks that paintings are meant to be looked at for a long period of time, he didn’t like the fact that people only got to look at paintings for just

five minutes.

Which is exactly what Crick said during his interview, which lead him to get the job. Although, it didn’t last a long period of time, because he got fired shortly after for touching one of the paintings.

But he thinks it was worth it. He told Mary that he really wanted to touch the painting before they took it away. She couldn’t believe that he would risk it all just for a painting. Mary knows that, once again, it was up to her.

Fortunately enough, from all this frustration and stress that was put on Mary because of Crick. Red is able to show Mary that it’s okay to be late, it’s okay to be yourself and you should not care about what other people think.

To Mary, it just seemed as if she could talk to Red more than she could talk to Crick.

As the days went by, the more Mary wanted to be like Red. Even though they never really confessed their feelings for each other, it seems as if they had a strong passion towards each other.

Because Red was a cowboy, she acted more manly than lady-like.

Red shows Mary what it was like riding on a horse outside of the city limits.

Red is a free spirit that didn’t care about anything or anyone except her horses and Mary.

Mary’s and Red’s story never ended.

As the show ends the more you want to know what’s going to happen. There were many unanswered questions, however, that is the beauty of theater.

BY GALILEA SEJAS Arts Editor To be recognized is an honor: and fortunately enough Senior Angel Estrada was recognized for being an outstanding piccolo musician and marching band member, so much so, that he was invited to become a member at the US Army All-American Marching Band.

He was able to work alongside 125 other members of people who have a similar passion and love for marching band all around the country, from New York all the way to California.

Estrada was placed against other musicians, who have all submitted their audition tapes for the exclusive selection. “My audition tape was made up of 3 videos, one video was an introduction of myself and my other accomplishments on band. The second video was of my actual playing and that was about 7 minutes, because I thought

that I better bring something interesting about myself to grasp people’s attention, by playing a really technical piece. Then the third video was a video of me marching and playing,” said Estrada.

Thereafter, a panelist of judges, including one of the directors of the US Army All-American Marching Band, Dr. T. Andre Feagin, looked through everybody’s audition tapes and only chose a select few, and Estrada’s name was in the bunch.

When he was selected, the school held a ceremony for him before the entire department.

From there, Estrada was notified of his acceptance, and soon sent off to the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, to begin working with and getting to know his fellow marching band members in the week long stretch of rehearsals.

“The only thing that was different was the pacing of everything. Since everyone there already knows how to

march, we didn’t need to go through the basics. Since they’re all seniors who have already been involved in marching band previously, it was definitely a lot easier to get straight into the rehearsal,” said Estrada.

The week long rehearsals that they have been a part of, allowed Estrada to gain a new experience in working with the new people he met from around the nation. “I definitely feel like I became a better musician because I took a lot from my peers around me and I learned new things about my instrument that I may have known, but not put into use,” said Estrada.

Estrada was the first in Annandale High history to be accepted as a full fledge member into this elite band.

Hopefully we will see others follow in his pace and be as successful as he.

But for now, we all must congratulate this successful man, for he will forever be named as a legend in the marching band and Annandale High School books.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANGEL ESTRADA

Artist Spotlight: Senior plays with the US Army All-American Marching Band

Senior Angel Estrada is posing in his US Army All-American Marching Band uniform.

Would you like to be featured in the next ‘Artist Spotlight’? If so contact Maryam Dereje, Galilea Sejas at theablast17@gmail.com

10 IN-DEPTH

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

IN-DEPTH 11

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

A DREAM, A LIFE, AN IMMIGRANT From Guatemala to my new home Vitalina Fuentes, 11 Guatemala Arrived in 2002 The memory of the day when I first arrived to America is quite faint. I was merely a few years old.

However, I have an older brother who remembers the process and adversities that we faced like it happened just yesteday.

He recalls the constant struggle to communicate with others because it was extremely difficult to learn English. In addition to this, he also told me about the constant difficulties my family faced to even come to the United States in the first place.

We came to the United States because my father wanted a brighter future for my brother and me. He wanted us to have a better education

with vast opportunities to choose from, the ones that he could not attain for himself. He wanted our futures to be better than his and he knew the best option for us was to move to America.

It was an extremely long process for him to become a citizen, but once he was able to, he immediately put in the paperwork for us.

At first, leaving Guatemala was difficult for my mom because she was leaving all of her family and friends.

When I go back to the homeland over breaks, I leave with endless new memories.

There is so much beauty everywhere and I feel so connected and safe there. At times, I truly miss it and even try to imagine how my life would have been if I were to move there.

Honestly, immigrating changed the entire lifestyle of my family. They had to learn English in order to be able to communicate anywhere around the country, especially when they needed to get a job which was very tough for

2017 STUDENT POPULATION BY COUNTRY OF BIRTH/CITIZENSHIP

them at first.

On the other hand, it was definitely much easier for my brother and I to learn it because we were young. Being an immigrant means to strive no matter what in order to pursue your hopes and dreams.

I am very thankful that my parents were able to give me this opportunity and always support me no matter what.

El Salvador Arrived 2009 It was hard for my family and I because we had to leave my friends and family members. I came with my mom, brother, sister and soon to be born niece.

We first arrived at LAX in California where my grandma picked us up and we went to her apartment. I was amazed because I had never seen such a beautiful place in my life. It was a two-story building with a beautiful garden in the middle and two small gardens on the sides of the building.

After a week passed, my mom registered my brother and I in school. My

brother and I got tested on how well we knew English. After a couple of days, my mom was informed that said that my brother and I would be able to start school.

On my first day of school, I was nervous because I didn’t know anyone. I was also relieved because my cousin was going to the same school, so I had someone to talk to and wasn’t lonely.

After a couple of days, I began to make new friends, and they would help me practice English. Sometimes during naptime, our teacher would let us go to the library so that they could help me speak. By the time I was 6, I was able to speak and write English.

Then, my family moved to different places like Charlottesville, Virginia, Fort Worth, Texas, Pauls Valley, Oklahoma and then here in Annandale where I have lots of friends. My family and I are doing well. My brother still

10. China 17 students

Junior Vitalina Fuentes (bottom) poses with alumni Jhonny Fuentes and mother at Puerto San Jose, Guatemala.

Living in a country branded with humiliating terms like Nazi and Hitler isn’t as bad as you think. Life in Germany was simple, very leisure-like, and full of food.

We had playgrounds everywhere and ice cream trucks would come every hour as well. I never came of age to go to school. so every day was relaxing and fun. I would play on playgrounds, in the snow, and with my neighborhood friends.

We had this one neighborhood lady named Oma who would always bake delicious treats for us. Going to her house would always leave us with full bellies. Everyone there was friendly,

1387 students

4. Vietnam

Jay Hwang, 12

59 students

7. Guatemala

6. Ethiopia

41 students

50 students

5. Bolivia

2. El Salvador 3. Honduras 63 students

South Korea Arrived 2010

8. Pakistan

52 students

181 students

but also very strict at the same time; one had to follow the rules and customs to the book. Small things, like jaywalking, were even looked down on.

We came to America because my family won a green card lottery in which we were automatically accepted into the United States as legal residents. My parents applied just for fun and didn’t expect to win.

As a result, we left behind our grandparents from my mom’s side, as well as uncles, aunts and family friends. It was very emotional, my mom had to leave her whole family, basically.

She had to say goodbye to her parents, sisters, brothers, aunts, and uncles. As for me, I couldn’t care less, I was too young to comprehend what was actually happening.

After the election of Trump, my parents got into a big scare, my mom didn’t want an American citizenship because she wanted her Ethiopian one as well.

As a foreigner who is not used to the American government system, she was very frightened about what Trump

would do.

Would he deport her? Would he limit her rights? I knew d*** well he couldn’t do s***, but it took a lot of convincing to calm her down. That’s just what it feels like to be an immigrant nowadays always on the edge.

This all connected to what it means to be an immigrant. To be an immigrant is to be someone who is adjusting to a new way of life in a society they are now a part of. I am an immigrant.

Eyob Dagnachew (left), as a child, is held by his father, alongside his brother Nahom Nagnachew (right).

Seven-thousand miles away from home

1. United States

lives in California and is serving in the Marines. My sister lives here with her two kids. My mom and I live with my step-dad and two cats.

Being an immigrant to me means having a lot of hardships. You are in an unknown place and the language is very different. Some people might even make fun of you because of your accent.

Eyob Dagnachew, 10 Germany Arrived 2006

Learning a new language and lifestyle Melissa Miranda, 9

My relucant, yet worthwhile journey to America

I am originally from South Korea, a country that I considered home for the first 11 years of my life. My father had to leave my mother and me in South Korea due to his job. After a couple years, we couldn’t bear the thought of not seeing him anyone. So then, we decided to follow my father to America and start a new life.

At first, the idea of moving to America was not entirely pleasing to me.

However, I figured that moving to America would benefit my family in terms of restoring our relationship.

When I first arrived, everything was different. In America, I noticed

38 students

9. Peru

28 students

Editor’s Note: The information provided in the map is based on where students were born. This does not entirely reflect the heritage or background of other students.

Freshman Melissa Miranda (center, red hat) is with her mother, brother and sister during Christmas in El Salvador.

Source: AHS Student Services Office

that people are less judgemental and more optimistic. Whereas most Koreans I’ve encountered are judgemental and like to criticize others who they dislike. In addition to this, South Korea is much smaller compared to America. The architecture of all the buildings was very different. In addition to this, stores, where I can buy food and other supplies, were more readily available for my access.

I faced adversities everyday, struggling to acclimate to American culture and language. At times, I felt hopeless and alone. I could not make friends because I would not approach many people due my lack of confidence in my ability to speak English. However, others around me were kind enough to approach me.

Both countries have their own varying qualities to represent themselves. and although I have suffered many crises and hardships in America, I do not

regret coming. In fact. I think it is natural for some immigrants to have a hard time at first.

Based on what I have gone through as an immigrant, I now understand what needs to be done: be friendly. I will make sure to approach those who are having a difficult time adjusting to their new home. I want to be the person who approaches them first and makes them feel welcomed.

Senior Jay Hwang with mother at Busan Beach in South Korea.

EVOLUTION OF IMMIGRATION 1892

1910 - 40

1966

Ellis Island Immigration Station Opens

Angel Island Immigration Station Opens

The Cuban Refugee Act

Ellis Island, in New York Harbor, was home to The Ellis Island Immigration Station where over 12 million immigrants entered the United States through between the years of 1892 to 1954.

Located in San Francisco Bay, it operated from January 21, 1910 to November 5, 1940. The island processed thousands of immigrants, the majority from China.

During World War II, Japanese, and German prisoners of war were held on the island for interrogation and questioning.

2001 Salvadorans granted T.P.S.

The act, established by President John F. Kennedy, paved the way for about 600,000 Cuban refugees to find asylum in the United States.They granted Cuban natives or citizens and their spouses and children lawful permanent residency, or a green card.

Juniors rally to protect immigrants Juniors flood D.C. to protest in favor of the DREAM Act to protect DACA recipients

BY KHADIJA AHMED Staff Writers Hundreds of people flooding Washington D.C. shout, “What do we want?” “The DREAM Act!” Their hands pump into the air as they all crowd around the steps of the Cannon House Office Building.

This is what juniors Alvin Kim, Nahom Dagnachew, Richard Le, Victor Nguyen and Kaa-lok Yap have been doing for the past six months, since joining NAKASEC as of last summer.

The National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC), which is an organization based in Los Angeles, California.

Recently, they have opened a new branch in Virginia and have gained many youth volunteers.

“When we first joined NAKASEC, we never expected to do any of the actions that we were a part of up to this day. Within a matter of weeks, we were volunteering to help them gain petitions, protest, and go meet and talk to government leaders and other political figures,” Dagnachew said.

They have also taken part in several reform movements and met with various immigrants from around the country, advocating and discussing the DREAM Act in response to Trump’s rescinding DACA. The proposed immigration deal would have brought a solution for recipients of DACA. Last September, Trump rescinded Barack Obama’s executive order, Deferred Action for Childhood

Arrivals (DACA), which provided undocumented immigrants that arrived at the age of 16 or younger with legal residency.

Donald Trump prides himself on his commitment to remove undocumented immigrants from America and prevents more from entering. Nearly 800,000 people benefited under the program, but now their futures hang in the balance as Trump phases out the DACA program over the next few months. However, he says that Congress has the time to legalize a fixed version.

According to the Center for American Progress, 122 DACA recipients are losing their protection every day. Congress does not have until March, when Trump’s six-month delay will end, to pass the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, which would grant alien minors conditional residency and possibly permanent residency after meeting further qualifications.

During October and November, the five juniors asked their classmates to sign petitions that would voice their support for the DREAM Act. From school, 233 petitions were signed, and 1000 got signed altogether by the NAKASEC organization. The petitions were sent to representatives of the constituents to show community support.

By the end of 2017, NAKASEC has worked with immigrant organizations such as United We Dream, Hana Center, CASA and Korean Research Center to use the leverage they have in Congress to attach the Dream Act to the continuing

The Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program was first established by Congress in the Immigration Act of 1990. This humanitarian program allows temporary protection to eligible instable countries. Salvadorans are the largest group of TPS holders.

June 15, 2012

Sept. 5, 2017

Sept. 25, 2017

President Obama Signs DACA

Trump ends DACA

Travel Ban

President Barack Obama signs an executive order that allows for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants, who came to the United States as children are allowed to remain in the country without fear of deportation and eligible to work.

BY KIMBERLY VAIDES In-Depth Editor

resolution.

The different immigrant organizations separated into groups to go to the offices of many Democratic senators, demanding that they fulfill their promise of delivering a Dream Act. The protesters stood for hours within the office, drawing attention through social media and live streams.

“We spent seven hours in the office of Mark Warner and Tim Kaine chanting and sharing stories. It was my first sit-in but being surrounded by so many people who share the same ideals helped me gain the courage to stay and participate,” Dagnachew said.

After the sit-in, no word came from Senators Warner and Kaine. Soon after, a CR was voted on and passed without a DREAM Act included.

Despite NAKASEC youth members’ disappointment, they still wish to keep on fighting to help improve the lives of millions of immigrants.

Anyone can show their support for the Dream Act by attending a rally, writing a letter to Congress, or calling his or her members of Congress and urging them to promote the Dream Act.

The Trump administration placed new travel restrictions on certain foreigners from sixMuslim majority countries: Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, and Sudan, but it was stopped by federal Circuit Court.

Trump enforces the T in T.P.S. The end of temporary protection status for 200,000 Salvadorans affects students and families

(left to right) Juniors Victor Nguyen, Alvin Kim, Richard Le, Nahom Dagnachew, Kaalok Yap and alumni Minsu Kang along with two fellow volunteers, stand in the Cannon House Office Building infront of Republican Barbara Comstock’s office on December 5, 2017.

The Trump administration formally announced it will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA). This ends the legal protection granted to roughly 800,000 people known as ‘DREAMers.’

Sophomore Jennifer Sanchez had an immediate and fearful reaction to the Trump Administration’s decision to end temporary protected status (T.P.S.) for roughly 200,000 Salvadorans.

Sanchez’s mother has had a stable job for more than ten years in the U.S. Now, in the wake of the end of T.P.S., Sanchez strongly disagrees with Trump’s decision and advocates that Trump should open his mind to the lives he has impacted.

This comes 17 years after a devastating earthquake that killed more than 1,100 people and left 1.3 million displaced. Many homes, neighborhood and towns were destroyed.

According to the Washington Post, T.P.S. is a humanitarian program established by Congress in the Immigration Act of 1990. Its purpose is to grant protection for those whose countries have been drastically impacted by war or natural disasters.

T.P.S. can be extended if the situation of a country is ongoing and is too dangerous to return.

This was granted to Salvadoran immigrants, who have been in the United States since February 2001. T.P.S. protects Salvadoran immigrants from deportation and allows them to have work permits.

In these 17 years, Salvadorans with T.P.S. have been active in America’s economy by paying

many run businesses and have children that are U.S. citizens. They will be affected because their families will be separated. They’ll have to leave with their parents back to El Salvador. There aren’t big opportunities there as you’ll find here,” Martinez said.

Last year, Nicaraguans lost their protections taxes and creating homes and families in the U.S. and in December, the Trump administration Some of those that have done so include the famiannounced the end of T.P.S for more than 45,000 lies members of students.

Not only are they contributing to the U.S. econ- Haitians who have resided in the U.S. after the 2010 earthquake. omy, but also the economy in El Salavador. In “I hope that even though Trump’s adminis2016, $4.6 billion were sent to El Salvador from U.S. family members. This makes up 17 percent of tration ended T.P.S., they’ll put options out there for those who really deserve staying here, by givthe El Salvador’s economy. ing them a more secure way of staying or helping According to CNN, by the end of 2016, there them get residence,” Martinez said. were 263,282 Salvadoran registered to T.P.S. According to US Citizenship and Immigration In almost two decades, many have children Services, about 435,000 people from 10 countries born in America and will decide whether to leave have T.P.S. them in the U.S. or take them to El Salvador.

“Hispanics have started businesses and it’s According to The Washington Post, of the Salnot fair that they’ll have to throw it all away all vadorans with T.P.S., there are 190,000 U.S.-born because of Trump’s dumb ideas,” Sanchez said. children.

Since 2001, the George Junior Nathaly MarW. Bush and Obama tinez is not personally affect by T.P.S., but “I would tell Donald Trump administrations renewed several times. Reahas family members and to open his mind, he is hurt- T.P.S. soning for the renewal friends that are impactwas that El Salvador was ed by President Donald ing way more people than unstable and unsafe with Trump’s decision. just those who have T.P.S. rising gang violence and “I feel like this was a This includes their own kids poverty. bad decision because the “[Trump] says he has people that have been and the government itself.” a problem with illegal granted T.P.S. have been here for so long that they --JENNIFER SANCHEZ immigrants, but he obviously is against all Hisbasically have their lives sophomore panics. Also, I don’t think settled already,” Martithat enough people are nez said. aware about this situation “Not just that, but

and should tell others about it,” Sanchez said.

Days earlier, Trump rejected a bipartisan deal on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programs. His one condition to protecting immigrants is by building a wall. However, Democrats disapprove Trump’s desire to increase border security.

Democrats are unwilling to compromise unless the spending bill will protect nearly 800,000 young undocumented immigrants who were protected by DACA. This request came after Trump announced to discontinue DACA and gave recipients until March to leave, when the protection ends.

Alongside the end of T.P.S, Trump is looking to end the Diversity Lottery program, also known as green card lottery, that annually offers 50,000 visas to the countries where few people immigrate from. Trump has called this program the “Democrat Lottery System.”

“Just because he made it official that he’s going to cancel it, there’s a chance that if enough people get involved, he could change his mind and save over three hundred thousand people from leaving their home,” Sanchez said.

The Trump Administration has given Salvadorans with T.P.S. until September 2019, to situate themselves elsewhere outside of the United States.

Those who decided to remain in the U.S. illegally will not only live with the threat of deportation but lose their jobs.

12 INTERNATIONAL

Tue. Jan. 23, 2018

Japan culture comes to AHS New Japanese club introduces culture, ideas, and foods Students can learn new languages, taste new food, and experience a glimpse of life in another culture. A new culture has come to AHS: The Japanese Culture Club.

The club was created two months ago and run by president Mikayla Parsons.

“I founded the club in the beginning of the fall season, and since it is new I have only been a member for two months,” Parsons said.

As the founding member and president, Parsons has major responsibilities such as recruiting new members, coming up with activities and maintaining her knowledge of the Japanese culture.

It is also important that Parsons helps the sponsor and keeps the intact.

Parsons works with English teacher Sasha Duran, the club sponsor, to make sure everyone looks forward to coming back every other Tuesday.

The next meeting for the Japanese Culture club is today, Tues. January 23.

Kids from all grades are interested in the club; there are about 50 students in the club in all. The smallest meeting that they’ve ever had has been roughly 20 students, impressive for a new club.

“Seeing club members smile during an activity shows me that the members are having fun,” Parsons said.

When the club meets, they participate in multiple activities. On one Tuesday that they met, members made sushi rolls, which is where you put sushi inside of a bamboo mat and roll it.

Although, they do not just make foods and learn Japanese, they learn about the clothing and TV shows that they make.

“During the club, we learn about the Japanese language and writing, traditional dishes, the attire, sports, watch movies and shows, and leisurely activities such as playing games and just getting to know each other,” Parsons said.

Parsons works hard to get the word out about her newly founded club. She makes sure that new members will not regret joining the club.

Sometimes, Parsons will go around and talk to her friends about the club

Do you think foreign culture clubs are essential to the school?

GENESIS LARA PALACIOS

BY TIANA REAMS International Editor

Senior president Mikalah Parsons (left) discuss new matters needed to be added to the Japanese Club and new ideas to be introduced in the next meeting on Tuesday to club sponsor Sasha Duran (right). so that her friends can spread the word as well.

“I highly encourage people to join because it is a club that members look forward to every other Tuesday and is definitely the highlight of my day,” Parsons said. “It is a place where one can make new friends who have similar interest as you.”

Of course, the weight of the club is not only on Parson’s shoulders. Duran helps Parsons run the club and supports her decisions and ideas.

Duran was raised and born here in the United States, but has Japanese background.

“I grew up in this area but I was born in Japan and my mom is Japanese so I am half Japanese,” said Duran.

Parsons pitched the idea about the club to Duran herself and Duran supported her and the start of the club.

Parsons knew Duran’s background of Japanese culture, so having her as the sponsor would be good for the club.

“Mikalah came to me the first week of school saying she wanted to make a Japanese club and she had known I would be a good person to ask just from previous years,” said Duran.

THOMAS FIGLEY freshman “Some people like the clubs because it helps them with their regular classes for languages. Personally it doesn’t really matter to me because you can always go home and look it up on quizlet about it.”

IKUNDA MUSHI freshman “I think foreign clubs are good to be in Annandale, it gives people opportunities to learn new languages and open new opportunities for other people who are scared to take classes.”

“We have a lot of underclassmen In the past meetings, the club memparticipating and we also have a lot bers played traditional games, learned of upperclassmen leading in the club the unique Japanese alphabet and this year and trying to make sure the made food. underclassmen feel welcome so that “In the future, we plan on practictheir place can be replaced next year,” ing wearing kimonos and other things,” said Duran. said Duran.

Since the club meets on only TuesEven though the club is new, Pardays, it is harder for underclassmen to sons plans to pass the club on to anothcome since it is not a late bus day. er president and continue it throughout “We still have a lot of interests and the years at AHS. some of the kids will still even meet outThey hope the club will make stuside of the club and outside of school,” dents more aware of Japanese culture even for those who are not Japanese. said Duran.

Many stuIt is still possidents are very ble and encouraged interested in the “We learn for students to join club and they the Japanese Culabout the like to interact ture Club. with the other Japanese Duran and Parmembers and sons create activilanguage, participate in ties daily and work the activities. together all the writing, Students are time to make sure and tradiobviously excited club members look for the club with tonal dishes.” forward to coming dozens of stuback.

--MIKALAH PARSONS dents participatThey always senior ing in the first plan ahead and two meetings. make time to

TARISHO DARWIESH sophomore “I think foreign clubs are good for the school because they keep kids off the streets and they can learn about different cultures from their own school. I’m in MSA and we get to intereact with other schools.”

EMILY SHAWISH sophomore “I think cultural clubs offer different insights to different cultures especially to people that don’t have that type of exposure and it helps us learn more about each other and accept each other.”

RAYMOND RAMIREZ junior “I think [foreign culture clubs] are important to the school because they show how different everyone is in the school.”

EMILY CARCAMO junior “I think foreign culture clubs are a really good thing, you get to learn more about other places and languages and that is especially good at a school as diverse as Annandale.”

discuss things. They try to get people from outside of the school to come and volunteer for their club.

“Me and Mikalah are usually always on the same page, whatever idea Mikayla wants I will approve and make it happen,” said Duran.

Overall, the Japanese club is a place where you meet new people that are not just there for the anime, but also for the culture.

It is an active club that does a new Japanese activity every time they meet. It is a place where people can laugh, be competitive, and have a good time.

“I want it to be a fun and safe place for students to come and discuss their shared interests and somewhere for kids to meet other people they wouldn’t meet in their other classes,” said Duran.

Duran hopes to keep the club running long after Parsons graduates.

If you are interested in joining the club or have any questions concerning the club contact president Mikalah Parsons or club sponsor Sasha Duran.

IAN MARBURGER senior “I think foreign culture clubs are great because they allow people to remember where they are from and to get a good experience of their home country and what they’re all about.”

ESKARLETH WERINA senior “I think foreign clubs are good because everyone gets to learn something new from it and even if they’re not from there they get to learn the background and know where it’s from.”

Immigrant Stories: Coming to America

BY SESEN BEYENE Special to The A-Blast When I first moved into the United States, I was only six years old.

I came from a small country above Ethiopia, it is called Eritrea.

Life back home was much simpler in many aspects than it is here.

Time does not seem to move quite as fast, and everyone was considered family. Being pretty young there are many gaps in my memory of back home, but some things I remember extremely clear.

The thing I remember the most is my family that still lives there.

Mainly my grandparents from my mother’s side.

My mom worked as a nurse and my dad worked as an accountant.

So whenever both my parents were at work my brother and I spent the day with both our grandparents, and also my moms siblings.

The second thing I remember clearly is the school that I went to.

I went to a private catholic school started by the Italian colonizers and run by nuns.

The school felt a lot like home and I was super close to my teachers and classmates. When I moved here life was completely different.

The most drastic change in my life was not having any family here other than an aunt and an uncle. I was so used to being surrounded by family at every point of my life, that it was a little hard to not have that anymore.

Going to school was not a huge difference in my life though. I learned English at the school back home so I was able to communicate and make friends easily enough.

I grew up like anyone else does in the U.S. and lived a pretty typical life. My family still stresses keeping our culture so my siblings and I all speak Tigrinya, and we have a close group of friends with the same culture as us so we maintain it.

Growing up in an immigrant household is very similar to anyone else that is born here. But there is a certain level of appreciation for the hard work and dedication it takes to start all over from nothing in a new country.

But there is a certain level of appreciation for the hard work and dedication it takes to start all over

from nothing in a new country.

I love my life here because it is where I have grown up and grown as a person. It is also where all my friends are and where my new family is too.

But I will never forget Eritrea and what it was like. I made a ton of memories there within those six years that I lived there. But I also made unforgettable memories here in America for the other 10 years of my life.

I was able to experience a whole new culture, make so many friends, and experience so much stuff that I would not have been able to experience at Eritrea.

In some ways, I’m glad we’re living here now because there’s so much more opportunities for us and better living conditions. But I will never forget Ethiopia I will never forget my family there, my culture there, and the brief time I lived there. Although I enjoy living in the US, Ethiopia will always be a part of me.

I will always cherish the memories I have from both America and Junior Sesen Beyene (far right) poses with her friend junior Kassandra Peralta (middle).

Ethiopia and how they have shaped my life.

SESEN BEYENE

Junior Sesen Beyene comes from a small country above Ethipoia called Eritrea

Tues. Jan. 22, 2018

How I learned to care for me Junior Hemen Besufekad shares her story to promote self love Since I was young, my parents would always encourage me to do good and work hard in school and life. I’ve always tried.

When I entered high school, there were so many major differences from middle school, some of which I had to try my best to adapt to. For example, adapting to a whole new environment and a bigger quantity of work to accomplish. This is especially true if you’re taking honors or IB courses.

My parents still held the same idea of me of always pushing and trying.

However at one point it, became too much for me to handle.

Sophomore year, I had many more honors classes on my plate and I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do in the long run. Finding a career early and figuring out what you want to do is typically something people know when they’re a kid. I had no clue.

On top of all this, I had issues going on at home which made it much harder to put on my best performance in school and keep up with my grades.

I noticed myself starting to deteriorate. I was running on less than five hours of sleep. I began to divulge in stress eating and drank more than a cup of coffee daily for a month and my overall health dropped; I was on the brink of completely breaking.

I knew I had to do something about it otherwise I’d be on this consistent path of struggle for the rest of my life and I’d never move myself within the world.

A really good friend of mine saw me struggling and she helped me push through. We took many of the same classes so she thought of starting a

How do you incorporate self care into your daily routine?

QUINCY WILSON senior

"I make sure to drink a lot of water, get about eight hours of sleep, try to eat right- no junk food usually. I try to do this on a daily basis, or as often as I can. If I don't drink water, I tend to get headaches, or if I eat too much junk food, my skin breaks out."

EILEEN NGO-TRAN sophomore

"I incorporate self care into my daily routine by staying clean and washing my clothes as often as I can. I wash a lot of stuff like clothing because it makes me feel good. It helps me stay fresh and have my spirits raised high."

LYDIA PETERS senior

"I sleep a lot. I will try to go to bed between nine and ten every night, and then I wake up in the morning around six. In total I get about nine hours of sleep. I tend to feel more energetic with a good amount of rest."

study group between the two of us. A week later I saw a change in my attitude towards school.

Whether it was a small pep talk here and there, she guided me through the rocky periods in my life.

That was just the first step of me bettering myself and my work habits. After that, I downloaded an app called Pinterest and used it to find ways to destress and try and revive everything I lost.

On Pinterest, I learned how to incorporate exercise into my daily routine. For example, learning to walk rather than take other transportation to get from place to place. I also learned to start keeping a journal and recording events in my life. This helps me reflect on the day and take a breather.

When I begin to get one thing in line in my life the rest just comes easier. But, sadly it is very easy to get myself sucked into those bad habits again. At times, I did relapse into pulling all nighters to study and seeing the difference between those days and my good days has such a drastic effect.

I was trying to change myself so I could be a better person, someone who can juggle obstacles thrown at me. I wanted to be able to avoid those dark days again.

It is frightening to think about what could’ve happened to me if I continued on this self destructive path. It worries me to think about who I may have become and how this could have had my future taking a turn for the worse.

The same friend who helped me with school also helped me in regards to my health by making it a goal to go to bed at a good time and making time for me.

I did try to change my diet which I think altered the energy I had through the day to actually last, and I drank water like there was no tomorrow.

Y

Advice column

5 tips to a better you!

1. Take short breaks when trying to get homework done.

2. Make a to-do list at the start of your day and track what you've gotten accomplished.

3. Drink 3-4 bottles of water a day to stay hydrated and refreshed.

4. Learn to take time away from your screen and socialize.

5. Whenever you fall, just pick yourself back up from where you left off and keep going!

I was happy. My days started looking up and it felt like I was walking on a cloud.

Having a support system of good friends with me is a constant reminder

that I’m not alone and not the only one with struggles. I still have my bad days from time to time, but the more you practice something, the easier it should get; thankfully it did.

Dear Yabi, I've never been one to get crushes on people in school, but lately I have been seeing this girl around more often and I want to say something to her, but I also don't want to scare her away. I'm not very good at talking to girls so I need some advice, how should I approach her?

- a friend in need

Dear friend in need, Having a crush on a person is totally normal and is likely to happen at least once in high school. It's hard to have a crush on someone in all honesty because it puts you in a really vulnerable situation, No one wants to expose themselves when it comes to topics like this. Coming clean to your crush is scary. But, despite these implications, I think the best thing I can say is just do it.

If you have a class with this girl, just say something! There is no harm in simply asking a question or giving a compliment. For all you know, that one comment could lead to a good relationship between you two.

From personal experience, I had a crush on a guy for a while but I never said anything to him about it. My biggest regret is never fessing up to him about it because I always felt like I had this heavy weight on my chest reminding me about it on a daily basis.

Side note- because you don't really know who the girl is, it doesn't really count to say you have a crush if it's only based on appearance. You have to build a relationship with the person whom you have your eye on, and once you get to know each other, you can then develop a well rounded opinion on her, and know if you want to continue pursuing her or letting it go.

School stress takes a big toll on students

BY YABI BEREKET Lifestyles Editor For students, stressing out over school and trying to get assignments done on time is a common between all of us. But as the years go by, classes get harder and college comes creeping up on seniors. This leads to stress going through the roof.

Unfortunately, throughout the process of school stress, it tends to get in the way of keeping up with self care.

The society we live in can get very competitive, which could have a negative effect on people.

Something to look out for throughout is knowing when enough is enough.

This is important because overworking yourself could lead to serious issues such as becoming a workaholic and not putting your own health before school.

“School has impacted my self care pretty badly. Most of my friends know that I barely get sleep anymore and that I can barely focus in class a lot," junior Feven Lebamu said.

Although school and getting an education should be a priority in life, maintaining an overall healthy lifestyle should be the goal, and not only in regards to eating and exercise.

Something as small as taking short breaks between study periods could do the trick in trying to find a balance.

“It took time but what usually works for me is breaks and rewarding myself every now and then, but it still gets tricky," senior Betel Eyob said.

For juniors, seniors, and as of last year, sophomores, taking IB courses and pursuing the IB diploma can be quite a

handful.

What’s common for most IB students is on top of taking rigorous classes, they also participate in after school clubs and sports, which adds into the load they already have.

“IB has made it slightly worse which is expected. There are times where I literally don’t sleep and go to school running purely on caffeine. But to be fair, it’s also partly my fault as well," Lebamu said.

Taking IB classes was never intended to be easy; it requires students who are up for the challenge and can handle the workload. In the long run, there are positive effects of taking these courses, such as better preparing students for college courses.

“There are times where I literally don't sleep and go to school running purely on caffeine.”

--FEVEN LEBAMU

“Honestly my experiences when it comes to juggling those things really takes practice of getting it into a steady schedule. For example if I know I’m going to stay after the next day, I get my homework done early so I won’t stay up

YABI BEREKET

BY HEMEN BESUFEKAD Special to The A-Blast

LIFESTYLES 13 appin' with abi

Senior Selam Negash worries about school as the quarter comes to a close. late the next day," Eyob said.

Getting into habits like these can lead to positive outcomes later to arrive.

From personal experience, there have been too many days of attempting to study for multiple tests and getting homework done.

Because of that, it's hard to stay focused in class and pay attention. This is probably one of the worst things that can affect someone's ability to perform well in school and once it starts, it’s hard to quit.

A way to combat this and stay healthy in regards to rest is working on what needs to get done as soon as you get it and sleeping early.

Avoiding cell phone use before going to bed has been said to make falling asleep more easy so it’s worth giving it a shot.

Almost every high school student undergoes the same high school experience, but what makes a difference is how you handle the situation.

Fashion Spotlight: Haley Moss, 11 Q: How did you learn to dress?

A: I learned how to dress by seeing how people on Instagram and Twitter dress.

Q: What's your favorite season to dress for?

A: My favorite season to dress for is autumn because I love wearing jackets and sweaters.

Q: Where do you like to shop?

A: The stores that I like to shop at are usually Garage, Forever 21 and Pac Sun.

Q: How long does it take you to get ready?

A: It takes me about 40 minutes to get ready in the mornings including taking a shower.

Junior Haley Moss wears a slightly cropped long sleeve shirt, a faux fur vest, black leggings and black boots.

Q: What is your outfit for school?

A: I normally like to keep it simple with ripped jeans and a cute top; also a hoodie or t-shirt and Adidas shoes or my Uggs.

Q: What do you wear on bum days?

A: On bum days I keep it athletic with a Nike quarterzip, mesh sporty leggings and some running shoes.

Q: How much do you invest in clothing?

A: Normally for each season, I spend about $200 when I go shopping.

Q: What are your favorite pair of shoes?

A: My favorite pair of shoes are my favorite pink and gray Adidas or my caramel mens tie up Uggs.

Q: Do you dress to impress or for yourself?

A: I dress to feel good about myself so I normally dress for myself to feel confident.

Q: Who is your fashion inspiration?

A: My fashion inspiration is Zendaya.

PHOTO CREDIT: HALEY MOSS

PHOTO CREDIT: HALEY MOSS

Q: What is your favorite accessory?

A: I really like using velvet scrunchies as a cute accessory for my hair.

Moss wears a cropped halter top, high waisted ripped jeans and Adidas sneakers.

14 PEOPLE

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

School leaders Class representatives plans out AHS’s future Junior Class President Kyle Dalsimer

Senior Class President McKenzie Yi Q: Why did you decide to run for class president?

A: “At first, I didn’t really think about running for president I was just running to be apart of the SGA board. When I got to be president junior year, I realized that I really wanted to stay in my position. I tried to campaign on Twitter and I thought about how to write my speech.”

Q: Why did you decide to run for class president?

A: “I ran for president because I really feel like I can make a difference and benefit my class.”

Q: As class president, how much amount of responsibility do you put into your job?

A: “As president, I help to put together class fundraisers.

I also find fun ways to get the class of 2019 involved and have a good time during their high school experience.”

Q: What do you do as class president?

A: “Along with other board members, we raise money for Prom and try to increase the school spirit.”

Q: What do you do as class president?

A: “The end goal I am trying to achieve is to raise enough funds for my class so that we can pay for Prom and have a great experience. Like last year’s Prom, they had it on a yacht. But for my class, I wanted something better than that.”

Q: As class president, how much amount of responsibility do you put into your job?

A: “It’s a lot of responsibility that comes with being president of your class. If something goes wrong with class events, I feel that it is my fault. It’s hard because all the blame could be pointed at me, but when things go right, it feels good knowing that some of my classmates are happy.

Q: What tips do you have for others?

A: “Be responsible for your class, don’t make mistakes and always listen to others.”

Q: What tips do you have for others?

A: “You have to be friendly and interact with your class if you want to be president of your class.”

McKenzie Yi and senior class sponsor Whitney Hardy look over catalogs for ideas.

Kyle Dalsimer adressing an audience after an event at AHS.

Sophomore Class President Vy Luu

Freshmen Class President Jimmy Le Q: Why did you decide to run for class president?

A: “I ran for president because I felt a passion for it. It might sound silly to feel passionate about something I hadn’t yet experienced when running. But I wanted to be a leader for my grade. It felt right to commit myself to the school and step up when few other applicants signed up.

Q: Why did you decide to run for class president?

A: “I ran for president because I wanted to challenge myself with something that I would have never done before or though of doing, since I have more of a quiet personality.”

Q: What do you do as class president?

A: “As president, I would have to come up with ideas to help fundraise for our Prom later on. I also want to leave a class gift behind when we graduate.”

Q: What do you do as class president?

A: “I’m the freshmen class president. As president, I organize fundraisers and class meetings.”

Q: As class president, how much amount of responsibility do you put into your job?

A: “My main responsibility is to supervise and organize the fundraisers for Prom. Prom is incredibly expensive and along with my vice president and board, we have the challenging task to fundraise for it. In creating these fundraisers and class meetings, I have to make a lot of plans, spreadsheets, and help out at the fundraisers. This important role that I chose to be is priceless.”

Q: As class president, how much amount of responsibility do you put into your job?

A: “My responsibility is that I have to communicate to the class on what to plan and what events are worth planning in order for the majority to participate. I’m also representing the class at it’s best.”

Q: What tips do you have for others?

A: “You should be confident in yourself. Don’t worry about the competition or popularity, just do your best and be open minded to new ideas from others.”

Q: What tips do you have for others?

A: “Make decision that aren’t going to hurt anybody in the long run. Be yourself because who else is going to do it for Jimmy Le talking with sophomore Ryan you.”

Chrest about an upcoming fundraiser for the freshman class.

Vy Luu and sophomore class sponsor Jeff Smith plan out their presidential class meetings.

Leadership Club President Rebecca Kindling

Green Atoms Club President Jan-Lynn Nguyen

Q: Why did you decide to run for club president?

A: “I ran for president because I was on the board last year and I thought that running for a higher position would give me an opportunity to show my leadership and creativity skills.”

Q: Why did you decide to run for club president?

A: “I joined the club freshman year so I only did recycling.

Sophomore and junior year is when I really got involved.

Even though this club is for community service, I found a passion for gardening and recycling. Also, I wanted a position where I could take on more responsibility to better the club, make it more efficient and better the school.”

Q: What do you do as club president?

A: “As president, I am the person in charge. However ,the other board members and I collaborate on everything including class plans and other important committees.”

Q: What do you do as club president?

A: “I plan the agenda for each meeting and I communicate closely with Dr. Brosnan. After we make an agenda I send out an email to the officers and I’m basically the middleman of everything.”

Q: As club president, how much amount of responsibility do you put into your job?

A: “It is my job to make sure everything runs smoothly in class. I work closely with Ms. Arias to finalize all the work we do in class. It is also important for me to be an example for students and future leaders.

Q: As club president, how much amount of responsibility do you put into your job?

A: “As president, it’s not just me doing all the work in the club. All officers, secretaries, publicists, president, and vice president work together by emailing each other when something happens and work with Dr. Brosnan, our sponsor, very closely and as president, I mostly lead the group and meetings.”

Q: What tips do you have for others?

A: “Get involved because there are so many opportunities in AHS, you might just have to look for them. The school offers endless options for others.”

Rebecca Kindling poses next to Superintendent Scott Brabrand.

Jan-Lynn Nguyen building a trellis with other Green Atom members. aa

HUMANS OF ANNANDALE In the seventh grade, I decided to stop competing in a sport that had been a big part for over half of my life. I decided to stop speed skating competitively.

I started when I was six and I got really good. By the end of my career, I had won five championships. I competed separately for most of the competitions. I also skated in relays with my cousins I started speed skating because my cousin wanted to start. We were competitive against each other and I didn’t want her to be better than me.

We trained with each other and motivated one another to become better and faster at the sport. I was always excited for practice because I wanted to show off.

Just as I was getting really good at speed skating, I broke my leg after slipping because of a loose lace on my skate.

It took me six months to be able to step on the ice again.

I underwent physical therapy and the process was arduous. I was excited to come back from my injury, however things didn’t work out the way that I wanted it to.

By then, someone had already taken my position in my instructor’s lesson

WHO AM I? I attended...

I was home schooled for all my life accept freshman and sophomore year of high school when I went to Paul VI. Junior and senior year I was home schooled again and took classes at Northern Virginia Community College so that when I finished high school I had 28 college credits. I then went to Mason and graduated with a B.A. in History with a minor in American Government and minor in Art History.

The extracurricular activities I did were..

Running, basketball, paintball, museums.

I was born in...

Southern Virginia, 1989.

My favorite book is...

The Animorphs series from childhood.

RICHARD LE junior schedule. My only open time slot was filled by somebody else. I couldn’t find another time learn.

My cousins felt lonely without me and stopped a year after I did. When I go ice skating with my friends, they are always impressed with how good I am.

I love to surprise people that don’t know this about me. Even though giving up speed skating was regrettable, I might someday pick it back up again.

Before teaching at Annandale....

Before teaching at Annandale I taught math for two years at St. Anthony Academy. Then I taught one year of IB history at the Islamic Saudi Academy in Alexandria before they moved out to Herndon.

Why did you choose teaching...

I chose teaching because I liked being able to talk about something I am passionate about. I also like to help others see the fun interesting things that history has and how it has shaped the world.

Favorite movie is...

Lord of the Rings the Fellowship of the Ring.

I teach at Annandale because...

I like the kids and the administration. I thought I would want to move closer to home but the students and staff are worth the trip.

My greatest feat is...

Greatest feat would be surviving a crushed skull. I fell off a zipline at age 13 and broke my right jaw, eye socket, and skull and nose. I have metal plates on that side of my face now.

Use a QR Code scanner to reveal Who Am I?

SPORTS X-TRA 15

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Atoms Special Olympics Students participate in basketball tournament

KATIE POPE

Thomas Winant prepares to take a shoot during the Atoms’ Special Olympics team game against the Robert E. Lee Lancers Special Olympics team at Holmes Middle School on Jan. 14.

The audience at the tourna- Annandale should definitely partournament, Leadership students attended team practices to ments consisted of parents, stu- ticipate in this event every year,” help those participating in their dents, as well as many AHS staff Gill said. members including administrapreparation.

It is anticipated that because “I think the Special Olym- tion. of the successful participation in Also at the tournament were the basketball tournament this pics is a really great and positive for the school to participate in,” other school special olympics year, the school will continue junior Leadership student Devin teams that rotated onto the court to join special olympics tournaGill said. once the preceding games were ments in future school years.

Not only did leadership stu- completed.

“I appreciate the efforts of “It makes me happy to see the special education staff for dents attend practices, but many also attended the tournament all types of kids out their on the this event and all they do for our court participating together,” kids,” Thomas said. “I absolutely and helped out on the court.

“We had one to two practic- Thomas said. anticipate this event being a part With this being the Atoms’ of the future.” es with everyone playing in the tournament during W4 every first year participating in a speThe Atoms’ participation in week,” Gill said. “We also were cial olympics event, it will be the special olympics this year able to play in the tournament determined if AHS will continue was successful overall and the games with the students.” participation in these events in efforts of the special education Players frequently rotated in coming years. department are greatly appreciand out of the games throughout “I think that it went real- ated. all four quarters of each game. ly well this year and that

Six steps to prepare for spring sports

BY JUDE NANAW ETHAN ZIMMERMAN Sports X-tra Editors

the sport you intend on trying out for. Not only is this an opportunity to get into physical shape, but it is also an opportunity to meet coaches and teammates.

AND

With the winter sports season over half-way through, the time has come to begin to prepare for spring sports. Most tryouts for spring sports including outdoor track, softball, baseball, lacrosse, soccer and tennis will hold tryouts in the beginning of the next month. Below are tips and steps to take to ensure preparation for any spring sport.

2

COMPLETE CONCUSSION EDUCATION In addition to completing a yearly physical to participate in sports, it is imperative to complete concussion education online.

KATIE POPE

1

COMPLETE PHYSICAL EXAMINATION If you have already submitted a physical examination form for a different sport this school year, then you will not need to submit one again. However, if you have not yet done so, the physical form can be found online and must be filled out.

5

Jay Pendarvis (Left) and Tarik Darwiesh (Right) stretch in order to prepare for a run during a Green Day for track.

Doing so will allow student-athletes and parents to know which steps and protocol to take if a concussion does occur at practice or during a game.

some sports, not all equipment is. Things such as lacrosse sticks, baseball bats, tennis rackets and proper footwear all must be acquired prior to tryouts.

3

4

ACQUIRE EQUIPMENT REQUIRED FOR YOUR SPORT While some equipment such as uniforms and helmets are typically provided by the school for

ATTEND GREEN DAYS Before attending tryouts for a sport, it is essential to shake off rust beforehand in order to be prepared. One way to do this is to attend the Green Days for

Which team do you think will win the Super Bowl?

ISAAC NEBYU

freshman “I do not like the Patriots but I think they will win because they are consistent and always win.”

ALEX BELLEM junior “I would have to say that the Jaguars will win the Super Bowl because they have a strong defense and defense wins championships.”

RYLIE ZIMMERMAN freshman “Vikings because they are better than the Eagles and the Patriots need to lose.”

LEILA ALAJAMI

junior “The Eagles because they have shown they can still win even without their starting quarterback.”

SYED ALI sophomore “I think the Jaguars have the best chance of winning the Super Bowl because Blake Bortles is a clutch quarterback.”

EVERETT STENBERG senior “I think that the Vikings are going to win the Super Bowl because they have been taking steady dubs for so many weeks now.”

CECILIA JOSEPH sophomore “I think the Patriots will win because they are really good and Tom Brady is the GOAT.”

ASHER CAMPBELL senior “I think the Patriots will win because they are a good team and have the best quarterback in the league.”

START CONDITIONING Along with attending Green Days, it is recommended to also begin to condition and prepare your body physically. This can be accomplished through completing a series of workouts individually as well as completing workouts related to your sport. Along with conditioning it is essential to maintain a healthy diet leading up to try-outs and throughout the season. This includes remaining hydrated.

6

MARK TRY-OUT DATES ON YOUR CALENDER With the completion of forms and acquiring of necessary equipment, it is extremely important to take note of the try-out dates for your sport and also take note of the time and location.

Player Profile: Joseph McCoy

BY JUDE NANAW Sports X-tra Editor Senior Joseph McCoy has consistently been one of the top performers on the Atoms track team since he joined his freshman year. McCoy specializes in hurdle events such as the 300-m hurdles as well as the 55-m and 110-m dash. He has made conference, regional and state meets in past years due to his high-level performance.

Q. How long have you been running track?

A. I have been running track for four years now.

Q. Do you run track outside of school?

A. No, other than practicing outside of school on my own time, I do not run track for any other team.

Q. What made you start wanting to run track?

A. The main reason for me joining track in the first place was mostly just because I was looking to try something new.

Q. Are there any other sports you play or have played in the past?

A. Aside from track, I used to play soccer and I miss it sometimes.

Q. How do you prepare for track in the offseason?

A. I keep myself prepared for track during the offseason usually by lots of working out at the gym and conditioning.

Q. Is it difficult to balance school along with sports?

A. I personally do not find it hard to manage school and sports because I’m good at managing my time and not procrastinating.

Q. Which events do you most frequently run?

A. I run the 55-m and 110-m dash as well as the 300-m hurdles. I also run relays like the 4x100-m, 4x200-m and 4x300-m.

Q. How do you prepare before a track meet?

A. I make sure I have prepared myself before a track meet by doing a lot of reps and time trials at practice leading up to the meet and then thoroughly warming up on the day of the meet.

Q. What are your future goals in track?

A. One of my main goals right now is to be offered an athletic scholarship for running track. Another one of my goals is to maybe one day be in the Olympics.

Student-Athletes join FCA Club Recently renewed club offers activities and fellowship for AHS Students

BY JUDE NANAW Sports X-tra Editor As the scent of doughnuts filled the room and club members competed in intense games of rock, paper, scissors, the AHS Fellowship of Christian Athletes meeting began.

Despite being a Christian club, FCA meetings begin with enjoyable activities and games.

Following the activities, members gather in a circle for prayer and bible readings.

The club, until recent years, has not received much recognition. Recently there has been an increase in club members.

Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) is a worldwide organization. FCA holds sports camps for many sports every year as well such as lacrosse, baseball, wrestling and more.

The main focus of FCA on a broader level is for players and coaches to have an impact in athletics and beyond through the influence of religion.

At AHS, the main purpose of the club is for members to spend time with fellow athletes and participate in various activities.

“The main purpose of the club is to spend time with other Christians and peers and to have a fun time together,”

Fellowship of Christian Athletes members McKenzie Yi (Left) and Nate Peters (Right) play in a game of rock, paper, scissors during a meeting on Jan. 19.

The sports camps are meant for senior club leader McKenzie Yi said. “It both athletes and coaches who intend is a super fun and open environment.”

Unlike a number of other clubs in on developing their athletic skill. FCA school, FCA does not have any require- Sports Camps take place across the ments that need to be attained prior to country including locally. FCA holds being able to join. There are no restric- sports camps in Virginia at different tions on joining FCA and everyone is points each year in locations not too far from AHS. welcome.

Members of the Fellowship of Chris“There are absolutely no requirements to join the club,” Yi said. “We tian Athletes at AHS find aspects of are very open about accepting every- the club that they enjoy the most as it body into the club that would like to be relates to athletics and faith. a member.”

“The best part about FCA is that FCA has camps are designed everyone is there for the same reason,” through the shared passion of members Yi said. “To have fun and learn about for athletics and faith.

Christ.”

The organization holds multiple FCA in school has grown in memcamps including sports camps, coaches bership size as joining the club contincamps, leadership camps, etc. ues to be encouraged.

JUDE NANAW

As the screeching whistle sounded and freshman Tate Conroy’s shot went up into the air and through the basket, the audience roared at the close of the second quarter.

As the game went on, and the teams exchanged baskets, the Lee Lancers began to pull away with a lead.

For the first time on Jan. 14, AHS participated in the Special Olympics.

The Atoms Special Olympics basketball team competed in the Area 26 Basketball Invitational Tournament which was held on Jan. 14 at Holmes Middle School.

“This is the first year that Annandale has participated in the special olympics,” Principal Tim Thomas said.

The team played in two games that consisted of four quarters each and lasted about approximately an hour each as well.

In the first match-up, the Atoms played against the Robert E. Lee Lancers Special Olympics team and against the Lake Braddock Bruins Special Olympics team in the second half of the tournament.

The Atoms were defeated narrowly in both match-ups, losing 38-24 to the Lancers and losing by only two to the Bruins The AHS special education department was responsible for organizing the Atoms’ participation in the event.

“I think it is tremendous that we participated this year,” Thomas said. “It is a great opportunity not only for the kids participating in the special olympics, but it also shows how we value inclusion at Annandale High School.”

In the weeks leading up to the special olympics basketball

COURTESY OF JOSEPH MCCOY

BY JUDE NANAW Sports X-tra Editor

16 SPORTS

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

Atoms edged out by the Majors Mount Vernon defeats boys basketball

“During the game we shared the ball around well and did exceptionally well on defense, but our offense missed many oppurtunites.”

--ABBEY YARED

junior opportunities to score and extended their lead.

The Atoms could not close the game out and fell short of a win.

“Overall, we need to make more plays in the second half of the game in order to win,” Coach Deidrich Gilreath said.

To perform well and win against

T.C. Williams by a score of 60-56, the Atoms needed to work on their offense.

“Our strengths are our strong defense and our improving mentality which will help us in our success for the rest of the season,” Gilreath said.

“We watched a lot of film to prepare for TC Williams, and went over many offensive and defensive sets to try to throw them off of their game,” Yared said.

Though the Atoms lost a game they should have won, they went on to beat the struggling TC William Titans who have only one win.

“In practice, we need to learn how to start a game strong in order to set the tone and pace for the entire game,” Yared said.

Additionally, AHS has a rematch on Jan. 30 at Mount Vernon in which they can redeem themselves from their last loss.

“During the game against T.C. we did well with playing physical and executing on offense which is what are intended goals were,” Gilreath said.

AHS will play T.C. Williams again on Jan. 23 at 7 pm for a rivalry game.

PHOTO COURTSEY OF DEVIN GILL

What was a close game after the first quarter, became a blowout as the game continued.

AHS varsity basketball played against Mount Vernon at home on Jan. 12. Mount Vernon is ranked last in AHS conference while AHS is ranked third.

“We did not play to the best of our ability and lost a game we should have easily won,” junior guard Abbey Yared said.

The game started out slow for both teams during the first quarter, seeing that most of the points came from free throws.

No team had gotten the momentum to put them ahead. The final score after the first quarter was 7-6 in favor of Mount Vernon.

During the second quarter, though, Mount Vernon looked to be the dominant team as they pulled ahead and outscored the Atoms by seven. The score at halftime read 17-25 Mount Vernon in the lead.

“Our first quarters are usually slow, and we do not pick things up until the second half,” Yared said.

During the third quarter, AHS

started to accelerate and pick up their game. The third quarter was practically a draw as AHS was only out-scored 8-9, but they were still down by eleven points.

In the final quarter, the Mount Vernon Majors just kept getting more

Junior Devin Gill who plays forward dribbles toward the net during the home game against Mount Vernon which they lost 39-48 on Jan. 12.

Girls Track successful at Montgomery Invitational

Girls basketball moves on to a 2-11 season

BY ELIAS MOURA Staff Writer

The varsity basketball team may have gotten off to a rocky start, but they are only looking to improve.

They have put in a lot of effort and have practiced six days a week for two hours at a time.

On Jan. 19, the girls varsity basketball team played against West Potomac High School. They lost by a score of 53-65.

The girls have set their minds to win the district and state titles.

“It is all about getting hot at the right time,” Coach Jimmy Brown said.

“So far the team is doing pretty good and each time that the team gets together for our practices, we continue to see a lot of improvement,” senior Sara Elkebri said.

Elkebri is really happy and excited to see how far they have come as a whole team.

Elkebri thinks she is personally doing good but one thing she could really work on is having a lot more confidence in herself when she gets the ball during games.

Elkebri also added that the team could work on communicating a lot more with one another so they can continue to improve.

Although the team’s record may not be the best, the team has great strengths.

“First off, we are seventh in the area in three-point shooting, and another good thing is that Grace Hatch is fifth in the area in rebounding, and we also have two girls averaging 15 points,” Coach Brown said.

Some other things that the girls are really good at are shooting and coming to work hard each and every day.

“Those are things that have really improved and impressed me,” Coach Brown said. “They are a really good group of girls and I am really hoping they get some success because they really deserve it,” Coach Brown said.

The girls basketball team could improve on are rebounding and finishing off the plays, but the main thing the girls are really struggling with is their

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARIAM MOHAMMED

BY JAMILEH HAMADEH Staff Writer

The winter sports seasons are past their halfway point and are approaching districts time.

The girls winter track and field team have ran in four meets, with their most recent one being on the Jan 13.

The meet was against 112 schools at Prince George’s County Learning and Sports Complex. The 112 schools competed against Annandale for the day and the Atoms came out with some victories.

“Jay Pendarvis won the 300m tying the school record. Joseph McCoy placed 3rd in the 55H and the boys 4x4 won their race and placed 2nd overall,” Coach Julian Scarbourgh said. “Mikayas Sahlu placed 6th in the 1600m mile run. Overall a lot of great efforts.”

It was a successful day in the coach’s eyes, but girls junior varsity sprinter Makayla Lopez sees otherwise.

“The invitational on the 13th didn’t go very well for many people but the 4x4 team placed first, and Jay Pendarvis placed 1st in the 300,” Lopez said.

“Joseph Mccoy placed 3rd in 55m hurdles but it was a tough meet because there were so many schools and it was crowded,” Lopez said.

The team has been hard at work preparing for the meets. “The team is

developing well. We have a strong boys team and a young girls team that are both very competitive.

We’ve really been working Relays to prepare for conference,” Scarbrough said.

Makayla has experienced districts and conference before. The team and her are preparing well. “We’re trying to better our stamina and endurance so we are doing tough workouts,” Lopez said.

“The team has been bundling up for the snow and extreme weather conditions and also preparing for indoor practice when we’re not able to practice outdoors.”

With the final improvements and developments completed, the time for districts is beginning.

“With Districts coming up, we make our last couple of weeks of adjustments and try to nurse any injuries so everyone is healthy by districts,” said Scarbourgh.

The chances to win districts change now because of AHS moving districts, and Scarbrough believes they can keep up with the competition.

“On paper the district is very competitive but every year it’s a tough competition against TC Williams and West Potomac.

“Our goal this year is to give our best effort and enjoy the track championship.” said Scarbourgh. The girls next meet is Jan. 27 at Episcopal High School.

Junior point guard Sarah Shamdeen catches her breath in the game against Hayfield on Jan. 9. size as a whole team.

The team is not as big as other basketball teams, so that means that some girls who are not used rebounding now have to participate in that. The girls should also be a little more physical.

It takes a lot of time to learn how to win and it also takes working really hard every single day.

“I really believe that they can do it,” Coach Brown said.

Although the girls varsity basketball team might not be doing so great right now, they have really great positivity,

confidence, and goals to reach and are trying their very hardest to get there.

On Jan 16, the girls varsity basketball team played T.C. Williams High School.

Unfortunately, the girls lost, but they put their best effort in and that is all that matters.

The girls will be playing West Potomac High School on Jan 19. The game will be at 7:30 p.m. at AHS.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MAKALYA LOPEZ

BY ALEX BURITA Staff Writer

Junior Makalya Lopez leads her heat in the girls varsity 4 by 400 relay at Thomas Jefferson Middle school.

Coach’s Corner: Wrestling Coach Derek Sweet

BY KHADIJA AHMED Staff Writer His athletes think very highly of him. He has a great impact on them and inspires them to love the sport. “I think he is a great coach and even better person who wants the best for everyone on the team whether it’s on or off the mat.

How did you discover your interest in wrestling?

My father was the head coach for my alma mater, so I started wrestling at four years old; I began managing the Varsity team after that and never looked back.

What are your personal achievements in wrestling?

I had a five-year Varsity Wrestling career and was able to re-write the record books for most wrestling statistics at my high school. I was also the very first person to qualify for the state

wrestling tournament in the history of my high school, and was then recruited to wrestle at Ithaca College.

How long have you been coaching wrestling at this school?

I have been coaching wrestling for Three years.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in a farm-town in upstate New York where there are currently more cows than people!

What other schools have you previously coached at?

Washington-Lee High School in Arlington.

What are your strengths as a coach?

I feel I have the ability to adapt the year’s overall plan and goal to the strengths and weaknesses of that year’s current wrestlers – no two seasons are exactly alike. I also value my assistant

coaches and their opinions on how to approach certain situations – you can only be as good as your weakest link, so we value all opinions.

What are your best and worst memories in coaching?

My best memories always deal with taking kids from knowing very little about the sport to watching them grow into the program and eventually having tremendous successes later on in their career – it makes it all worth it.

My worst memories always come at the end of the season – you always wish you could have done more to help the success of that individual or team.

How do you handle the discipline of players?

We clearly outline our expectations at the beginning of the year, so if our wrestlers aren’t abiding by those team-made rules, we then take action.

What advice do you have for your

players regarding the balance of athletics and academics?

We readily encourage our kids to stay after with teachers, especially if they are struggling in a particular subject, and to bring us a pass once they return to practice. We also offer in-house tutoring from individual to individual – there’s always someone who knows a lot about something, you’d be surprised.

What other sports are you interested in?

Volleyball, baseball, hockey, cycling and bowling.

Tell me about yourself! Do you have a spouse, any children or pets?

Personally, I am currently working towards a Sports Administration role, and am an avid Buffalo sports fan – GO BILLS!

SPORTS 17 Which winter sport will do the best in the postseason?

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

THOMAS FIGLEY freshman “Basketball will do really well in the postseason because they have good players.”

NAZ NYADZAYO sophomore “Wrestling will do the best because they have that boy Allen Kokilinanda and Patrick Lee.”

Senior Allen Kokilinanda sets up to wrestle against an opponent at the Raider Classic tournament at Jeb Stuart High School on Sat. Jan. 13.

Wrestling end their season with fourth place finish at Raider Classic

BY ALEX BURITA Staff Writer The Atoms varsity wrestling team fought hard at the Raider Classic tournament to finish fourth at the event.

The tournament, which took place on Jan. 13, is used by many teams to measure improvements made over the season and what still needs to be accomplished before the district meet.

This is the Atoms’ first time participating in the meet.

“The meet went pretty well, I think Annandale should continue to participate in the raider classic because it was a good experience and run very well,” said senior Uriel Sejas.

They finished behind Colgan, South Lakes, and Osbourn with 137 points.

Most importantly though, they beat Jeb Stuart who placed sixth.

Each of the Atoms’ nine wrestlers

placed top four in each of their respective weight class tournaments.

Uriel Sejas won the 120 weight class bracket. In each of their respective weight classes, Hugo Amaya placed fourth, Jonathan Ruiz placed fourth, Dylan Weaver placed second, Justin Scott place fourth, Patrick Lee won the 182 weight class bracket, Cesar Lopez placed third and Kevin Reyes placed second.

Senior Allen Kokilananda placed second in the 145 weight class.

He had one specific overall highlight of the tournament.

“For me, it was when Uriel Sejas and Patrick Lee won their brackets in the tournament, that was a highlight, ” Kokilananda said.

It has taken a lot of work and training in practice every day for the Atoms wrestling team to get to this point.

“Our conditioning has improved greatly thanks to Coach Klein’s

practices,” Kokilananda said.

As the season comes to a close and district match ups inches closer and closer there are still many preparations and improvements that need to be made for a successful season.

“We still need to focus on improving on certain positions that we still remain to be weak in in order to get to our goal of winning our district match ups,” Kokilananda said.

The district tournament kicks off on Feb. 2 at Annandale against TC Williams, Mount Vernon, Hayfield, and West Potomac and continues until Feb. 3.

But, with the results of the Raider classic being finalized, the Atoms now have a decent idea of what their strengths are as a team, along with what they still need to improve upon and how they may do in the district tournament at home.

The confidence gained from AHS’s

success in the tournament can give them the stamina that they need to build momentum as the district meet nears.

However, no teams from the Atoms’ district consisting of Mount Vernon, West Potomac, Hayfield and T.C. Williams competed in the tournament, so it is hard to tell how AHS is currently doing in their conference.

With all of this in mind, wrestling is preparing to host their last duel against Hayfield which will be their last meet until the district tournament.

This final meet will be important because it will give Annandale an idea on how they matchup against Hayfield who will be participating in districts.

The end of the season is on the horizon, and the senior leaders of this team will be looking to end their high school wrestling career on a high note by advancing far in the postseason.

SAMIRA CALI sophomore “Track, because they have really strong runners and a lot of confidence.”

ISATU KARGBO junior “Track will do the best because they’ve been in good form so far this season.”

TYLER RUSH senior “I think wrestling will do really well because my friends are all dogs, they’ll go far.”

LENNON WUHRER senior “I think swim is going to do really good because our district is a little easier.”

Senior Ian Marburger swims the 100 yard butterfly at Lee District Rec Center in a tri-meet against Chantilly High School and Edison High School.

Girls swim wins two meets in a row

BY ELIAS MOURA Staff Writer As the end of the regular season approaches, all of the winter sports teams are preparing for districts. The swim and dive team has swam in five meets. The meets have been decent and the team has been adapting to give it their all for the districts meets.

The team is preparing and conditioning for districts, hoping to win and do their best.

“Our team has been adapting pretty well, and we are trying to improve

our sprinting,” junior Abby Reynolds said.

With the team practicing daily, they have improved significantly from the beginning of the season.

Their progress was evident. The girls have gotten two wins under their belts, and according to Reynolds, it’s because of all the practice.

“We work pretty hard at practice, and the two wins that the girls won over this past weekend really got us pumped up,” Reynolds said.

The extra momentum from the last two wins will carry over into the

post season to the three district meets at Lee District Park.

Coach Carmen Lucas believes all the practice they do made a difference in the long run.

“We are gearing toward wrapping up our season with our Senior Night on Fri. Jan. 19 against T.C. Williams followed

by Districts the next weekend. Our swimmers have been focusing on explosive swimming by beating our competitors in the flip-turns and racing to the finish, which has made a tremendous difference this season,” Lucas said.

The coaches implemented a drag system where the swimmer wears heavier layers of clothing to force them to put extra effort and it has paid off.

“When they swim in a meet, they exert the same energy, and with the drag removed, break out swimming much faster. Our team has been working exceptionally hard this season,” Lucas said.

With the changing of the districts, Reynolds and her teammates believe their chances are high for winning districts.

“Yes, [the team will succeed] because we have come really close to winning some of our meets, plus the girls team won twice, so I think we have a pretty good chance,” Reynolds said.

“The division change has absolutely given us an advantage this year. We are swimming teams with similar sizes to ours. Our girls have already begun to claim their place in our district with only one loss to West Potomac and two wins against Hayfield and Mt Vernon,” Lucas said.

The team will have their districts on Jan. 26 at Lee District Park.

Boys track almost to the finish line

BY MAHDI LARHMARI Staff Writer

AYMAN ELHAG

On Jan. 13, the Atoms boys indoor track had a invitational meet at Prince George’s County Learning and Sports Complex in Prince George’s County, MD. The indoor track team had just came off a meet against Robinson, James Madison and Wakefield at Thomas Jefferson Middle School.

With many happy runners and smiling faces leaving Prince George’s County Learning and Sports Complex, overall that atoms indoor track team felt successful in what they did.

Head Coach Phil Harris was impressed and satisfied with his team’s work.

“I thought the boys did an amazing job but the girls a little work in progress,” Harris said.

“The boys took second place in a Junior Ayman Elhag runs at the invitamajor meet consisting a large amount of tional meet at Prince George’s County 113 different schools in it. Also, Senior Learning and Sports Complex.

Joseph Mccoy finished second in hurdles and Sophomore Jay Pendarvis finished first and won the 300,” Harris said.

Junior Ayman Elhag is now completing his third year on indoor track.

Ayman does sprints and he is also on the 4x4 relay team who is competing to make regionals in New York.

Not to mention, he also plays football for the Atoms.

Despite his accomplishments, Ayman felt like he can make some improvements also.

“Some things I need to improve are like just technical things like my body lean, open up a nice stride length just so it can help when I’m getting tired, and also not favoring one side because I still am recovering from an ankle injury.”

The boys next meet will be on Jan. 20 at Osbourn Park High School and they will be competing against Osbourn Park. (results of this meet were not available by publication date)

Jay Pendarvis

JAY PENDARVIS

KATIE POPE

Swim and Dive back to success Player Profile:

Sophomore Jay Pendarvis runs at the FIT Invitational at the PG Complex on Dec. 23.

BY LUKE ELKINS Sports Editor 1. How long have you been running track?

I started running track in 4th grade at my school.

2. How did you discover your interest in track?

I always used to be the fastest person in my class and so I decided to run Track and see how I would be against other people who weren’t in my class.

3. Who is your favorite athlete and why?

My favorite athlete is Michael Johnson because when he used to run he set two world records in the same events that I’m running and watching old videos of him really inspire me.

4. What inspires you to run track?

I like challenging myself and pushing myself to do better and I think Track is a great sport if you’re trying to push yourself and also running is just a great way to get away from everything else going on in life.

5. How have your friends and family supported you?

My family always comes to all my track meets and supports me. I wanted to quit Track when I was younger and my dad wouldn’t let me and kept pushing me to be better which I’m grateful for because now I’m still running and doing well.

6. What’s the best advice you’ve received?

The best advice I’ve received is from

my Coach who tells me to just run my race and don’t pay attention to what other people are running and if they might be faster than me or not but to just focus on myself.

7. What is your daily training routine?

Usually I go to practice after school and then after I go in the weight room and lift. When I get home I do 200 crunches and 100 sit ups before I go to bed.

8. What do you like to do in your free time?

I like sleeping and fading the mall with my friends and get some good grub.

9. What’s your favorite song to listen to before a meet?

My favorite song to listen to before I run is “Dreams and Nightmares” my Meek Mill.

10. What other sports do you play?

I played football my freshman year but I’m mainly focused on track.

11. What’s your favorite part about running track?

My favorite part of running is just being in the race and zoning everything else out and focusing on the race.

12. What advice would you give to track beginners?

I would tell beginners to just stick with it and trust the process because most people don’t get faster because they don’t stick with it and aren’t dedicated. But if you stick with the sport you’ll see results.

18 ENTERTAINMENT

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

The End of The F***ing World The End of The F***ing World is one of the many single season shows Netflix has been releasing. Many of these shows have been gaining more attention, especially since the largely successful Stranger Things and Dear White People.

Netflix’s latest original single-season show is a must watch *spoiler alert*

BY TJ GONZALES Staff Writer With one of the oddest and wildest trailers for a TV show in 2018 so far, The End of the F**ing World sets itself up to be one of the weirdest releases this year. This Netflix Original follows two 17 year olds: James and Alyssa.

James is a self-proclaimed psychopath who acts like he does not feel any emotions and enjoys hunting rats, cats and dogs. However, his ultimate plan is to kill a human. Although a normal show would emphasize the horror of

this plan, The End of the F***ing World uses a strong sense of normality, which gives the show this eery and unusual mood.

Alyssa is a rebellious, annoying, loud mouthed girl who is seeking love, both emotionally and somewhat physically. She picks James to fall in love with because he’s different than everyone else within their community. He’s awkward, silent, doesn’t have a phone and is antisocial, like her. She can relate to him.

To Alyssa, they are in a relationship and she thinks he’s the perfect person for her. However, he only stays with her because he thinks she is the perfect

target to kill. The juxtaposition of her thoughts and his thoughts is something which the show highlights a lot in the beginning.

For example, James visualizes himself killing her with a knife while they are being intimate. On the other hand, she was only thinking of how he is the perfect guy for her.

They decide that they both do not like their lives with their parents, and they run away together. In order to do so, they steal James’ father’s car.

The show, as it progresses, takes turns that are generally expected at some point, but they happen at unusual times. The show is almost paradoxical in how what happens to James and Alyssa is foreseeable but very capricious.

In episode three, Alyssa and James break into a professor’s house by the name of Dr. Clive Koch (pronounced

Cock). James searches around the house and finds out Koch is a serial rapist and murderer.

The show foreshadows some conflict happening next, especially because Alyssa goes to sleep in the rapist’s bed in only her underwear. Even though James is sleeping a few feet away on the floor, the suspense of something happening takes over the scene.

When Koch comes home, Alyssa is sleeping in the rapist’s bed in her underwear and James is on the floor, holding her hand. Koch sees this as an opportunity and attempts to rape her, but James, who is under the bed, gets up and stabs the rapist in the throat.

This climactic event leads to Alyssa and James spending much of the show covering up this murder together, while also falling in love.

An important aspect of the show is its clear emphasis on modern day problems

which many teenagers can relate to like sexual abuse, suicide, depression and PTSD. For example, in episode five, which is a flashback, young James wants to go feed the ducks, and his mom insists that he doesn’t. His dad, however, says otherwise and convinces her to take James out to feed the ducks.

When they arrive at the waterbed, she stops him from getting out of the car and tells him she loves him. It’s clear that there is a deeper meaning to why she says it at that time.

Even the hug she gives him seems mournful. James gets out and his mom puts the car into drive and goes into the waterbed, drowning herself, committing suicide.

Young James just watches as it happens. He doesn’t do anything, yet what can he do? He just saw his mom commit suicide. It’s one of the most mind-boggling scenes in the entire season.

This gives the background of why James claims to have no emotional feeling. He is traumatized because of the scene of his mom dying in front of him.

He didn’t know what to feel, so he didn’t “feel” and he hasn’t “felt” since that incident.

As you continue to watch, you can see Alyssa drawing James out of the shell he’s kept himself in for the past 11 years. Alyssa becomes a little more logical throughout the season.

They bond like a genuine couple, even though they murdered someone and are on the run.

This show is important because it brings attention to the mental health of teenagers and how they get past certain problems. At the beginning, it’s easy to assume that they are just teenagers and being dramatic for attention.

In the end, the message behind their actions is very important. It stresses how important mental health awareness is for teenagers and uses a very unusual method to create a connection between the audience and the show.

USE THIS QR CODE TO WATCH THE TRAILER FOR THE END OF THE F’***ING WORLD

Review: Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

BY ERIC RIVAS Staff Writer

A sequel to the 1995 Jumanji, Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle, came out, starring multiple highlyknown actors like Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Kevin Hart, Nick Jonas and Jack Black.

The movie is about four teenagers that are sucked into a magical video game and the only way they can escape is by winning the game, or in this case, saving Jumanji. They each only get three lives and have to rely on each other to win the game.

The first Jumanji movie incorporated this theme as a board game, while the new Jumanji has it as a video game.

This is a reflection of the prominence of technology in modern time.

One aspect of Jumanji which is present in both films is that they had to try and free somebody that had been stuck in the game for multiple years.

Alex, the character they save in the second movie, is living in a tree house.

However, before Alex was even stuck in that tree house, it was occupied by Alan Parrish, the character they had to rescue from the game in the original movie.

“It was a really entertaining and creative movie about teenagers getting stuck in a video game.”

--ISABELLA RODAS

freshman

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle takes a classic film and adapts it to modern times while keeping the excitement and mystery.

In the video game, all four teenagers have to choose their own character.

These characters are Dr. Smolder Bravestone played by Dwayne Johnson, Ruby Roundhouse played by Karen Gillian, Moose Finbar played

by Kevin Hart and Professor Shelly Oberon played by Jack Black.

These four characters are each equipped with their own strengths and their own weaknesses.

Bravestone’s strengths are stamina, courage, reflexes, climbing, smoldering intensity and boomerang throwing. Bravestone also apparently has no weaknesses. Roundhouse is proficient in karate, tai chi, jujutsu and capoeira. Her only weakness is venom.

Finbar is Bravestone’s weapon valet and is skilled in cranial assault.

His weaknesses are cake, strength and speed. Professor Oberon’s strength

is his intelligence, but because of his obesity, endurance is his weakness.

Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle is still ruling the U.S. Box Office, almost a month after its release. Its production cost totaled $90 million and it’s lifetime gross rose over $291 million.

The gross isn’t surprising considering the previous reputation set for the film and the well known cast which also brings in viewers.

Overall, the movie was a good modern sequel to the original, which was a huge success. Each character brings something different to the table, and in the end the chemistry between the characters is very strong.

USE THIS QR CODE TO WATCH THE TRAILER FOR JUMANJI: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE

Camila Cabello drops her first solo album Former Fifth Harmony member begins her solo career with a huge hit

Cabello’s first album serves to introduce her individual identity as an artist to the world after beginning her career with Fifth Harmony.

BY LINA AL TAII Entertainment Editor A little over a year since beginning her solo career, on Jan. 12, Cabello released her first album.

Cabello’s highlights are her unique and soft voice with slow beats and clever lyrics. Cabello includes varying styles in the album, the soft and slow song all these years, her upbeat collaboration with Young Thug, “Havana,” and the dark, moody song “Something’s Gotta Give.”

The variety of the album is perfect for a first solo album because she is really showing the exploration period she is going through with her voice and what she can do with it. The different songs all fit together and create an album that is strong, the individual and separate styles highlight the different ways Cabello’s voice can work.

However, it is very clear that the album is experimental and many songs sound similar to regular pop hit songs from artists like Ellie Golding and Sia. Nevertheless, Cabello has shown great potential in this album and set herself up for a great solo career.

Cabello’s use of soft backup singers throughout “Never Be The Same” almost brings back similar tunes from when she sang with Fifth Harmony.

Camila Cabello began her rise to fame during the second season of the American TV show X Factor. She was placed into the group Fifth Harmony, which

Playlist of the Issue FINESSE Bruno Mars, Cardi B Single (2017) Bruno Mars remix of this 2016 song hit top charts due to his iconic collaboration with Cardi B.

CANDY PAINT Post Malone Single (2017) This song highlights Post Malone’s soft and smooth voice.

BARTIER CARDI Cardi B, 21 Savage Single (2017) Cardi B released this song along with a string of other collaborations.

ALL THE STARS Kendrick Lamar, SZA Single (2018) would later drop multiple hit songs and sell out arenas. Camila always stuck out. Even during the X Factor show, judge Demi Lovato brought attention to how Camila was holding the group together.

In December of 2016, Camila Cabello left the group and made the decision to become a solo artist. Throughout 2017, she released multiple hit singles like “Crying in the Club,” “Havana” and “Know No Better.” She gained more attention throughout 2017 by making collaborations like “I Know

What You Did Last Summer” with Shawn Mendes, and her “Bad Things” collaboration with Machine Gun Kelly.

She also made the album a whole reflection of herself, which is shown through her song Havana. Havana really shows how she is celebrating her Cuban heritage and her culture.

The attention to little details like this makes the album an ever more accurate reflection of her personality, and it’s perfect for her first solo album.

Lamar released this collaboration with the SZA, whose most recent album got high praise, on Jan 4.

RIC FLAIR DRIP Offset, Metro Boomin Without Warning (2017) This songs low-key beat and clever bars are good to listen to anytime of the day.

ENTERTAINMENT 19

Tues. Jan.23, 2018

What is your favorite show to binge watch?

ALI HASSAN freshman “My favorite show to binge watch is stranger things because its fun to watch and kinda scary.”

SADAF KHAN sophomore “I really like watching friends because I love how it takes place in the city of New York.”

Netflix originals take over students’ lives Streaming services like Netflix are making it easier to binge watch

BY CHRISTIAN REYES & NICOLLE URIA Entertainment Editor For students, binge watching is a very easy thing to do considering that procrastination plays a key role in our daily lives. Watching one episode before starting homework could lead to you finishing the season and going to sleep.

Recently, one of the most talked about and binge watched shows by students currently and exclusively on Netflix is Black Mirror. With the release

of six new episodes on the new season, there is no doubt that students will be binge watching. Black Mirror is also a Netflix original web series.

“I like to watch Law and Order Special Victims Unit because I like how each episode is a different plot.” Freshman Nia Collins. Among students, the most popular and talked about shows are Black Mirror, Stranger Things, and Riverdale.

Netflix advertises their own series frequently, making it easier for procrastinating students to give in.

Netflix also has many different series that are about Marvel characters. They have had success with their Marvel-Netflix shows like The Punisher, Daredevil, and Luke Cage. Appealing to a large group of fans, these shows are increasingly popular among students who grew

up watching other Marvel characters.

One of the most popular MarvelNetflix shows that students have binge watched is The Punisher. It is really easy to watch episodes considering that there are added skip intros buttons and watch next episode buttons. Tools like these make it a lot easier to just watch the show and forget about what else was going on.

Another show students seem to be interested in is Narcos. Narcos is a Netflix original series and is very popular among students at Annandale who speak spanish considering that the show is a mix of spanish and english. “I like the show Netflix because its fun and I learn a lot of history about the drug cartels on the show.” said Freshman Dre Rovalino, who is a fan of Narcos, New to Netlflix is a downloading

option for anyone who wants to watch a specific show or movie without wi-fi.

This was big news to students, because Netflix was temporarily blocked from school laptops and all devices over the public school wifi. This new feature allowed students to continue watching their favorite shows without the wifi block or without the school monitoring what they were watching.

Since 2014, top cable companies like Cox, Verizon, and Directv have lost a substantial amount of business due to streaming devices like Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime, and now HBO with new movies and shows up to date, and there is no question why: students, who make up the majority of cable watchers, are moving on to shows they can easily watch on their phones in class or on the go in between classes.

ALEJANDRO CASQUINO junior “Black mirror is super cool and scientific and a little weird but I’ve been watching it.”

KORA COKER junior “I really like Black Mirror because it’s really intruiging, I like how each episode is different.”

HAO QUACH senior “I like to watch Riverdale a lot because it is all about mystery.”

GRACE HATCH senior “ I always watch Grey’s Anatomy because medical things interest me.”

Dave Chapelle: Equanimity & The Bird Revelation

BY TJ GONZALEZ Staff Writer Dave Chappelle, famous for his edgy, somewhat society-defying dark comedy, is back for his second set of Netflix specials. Coming off a successful yet highly criticized first set of Comedy Collections in 2017, Chapelle looks to once again take the comedic world by storm with his second collection of dark humor.

“Equanimity” is filmed in his hometown of D.C at the Warner Theater.

Chappelle talks about Trump, his comedic skills, interracial couples, and from his view the problems the transgender community has with him.

“The Bird Revelation” takes place in LA at The Belly Room Comedy Store. Chappelle talks about Hollywood stars with sexual allegations, mainly Harvey Weinstein and Louis C.K., the current Oppression of African Americans, a little more of Trump with VP Mike Pence, and the hard battle women are fighting for sexual assault awareness.

The dark humor he enlist in his specials are about society and the problems it’s facing with the progression

Rapper name change alert

BY CHRISTIAN REYES Entertainment Editor

Dave Chapelle: Equanimity & The Bird Revelation was first announced to be released on New Year’s Eve. movement. Not insulting it, though explaining that everyone is very sensitive to “controversial” topics.

So, he cracks jokes at these social issues but still reminds the viewer that he believes in human equality just as much as the next democrat, he just lets them know everything is kind of funny to him because he is a comedian. He’s supposed to find a light in these situations.

Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho is the debut studio album of Huncho Jack.

Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho

BY NICOLLE URIA Entertainment Editor Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho has been teased at by Travis Scott and Quavo, of Migos, for months now. They have teased the album throughout all of 2017 on Twitter, tweeting cryptic messages about the album. In many interviews, both artists have mentioned the album but little was known. It was only until December of last year that Quavo said that the album would be called Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho.

The album which was released on the label of Capitol Records, features thirteeen tracks, with a four out of five star rating on the iTunes store.

Popular tracks include Modern Slavery, Motorcycle Patches, Saint Laurent Mask, and Eye 2 Eye. The only features on the album are noticeably Takeoff and Offset, which are the remaining members of Migos.

The sound of the songs is catchy but some of the songs sound repetitive and boring. On some of the songs you can notice a different twist with the beat and lyrics, but it did not work in favor of the two rappers. Overall, the album is a bit overhyped but not terrible. Junior Franco Kitila said he disliked the album due to Quavo’s lyrics.

With Offset releasing an album with producer Metro Boomin and rapper 21 Savage late last year, you could say that 2017 was a big year for Migos, and their future is looking bright.

“I don’t like it because the eloquence was lacking and I didn’t like the lyricism of Quavo.”

--FRANCO KITILA

junior

Critics have bashed him for saying such things and making these horrible jokes at the expense of those confused of who they are. Yet, Chappelle has been doing this for the past 20 years.

He’s been doing dark humor, he’s been finding humor at the expense of social issues.

Dave Chappelle has been around for a very long time, he’s always done this type of comedy. He’s always been

messy.

The special is very offensive if you’re very sensitive. If you are this very liberal person who dedicates themselves to defending those who are constantly discriminated in society, you will not like these specials. For those who enjoy dark comedy, understand the jokes, and feel guilty for laughing at such horrible jokes, you might like this collection.

the British Netflix show, Black Mirror, recently released its fourth season.

Black Mirror’s new season

BY CHRISTIAN REYES Entertainment Editor Black Mirror is back with an all new season. Unlike earlier seasons, season four comes with six all new episodes.

Season one had only three episodes, while season two had four episodes.

Personally, I found that the first episode, USS Callister, was a little too much like a Star Trek knockoff. This episode stars Breaking Bad/Friday Night Lights star Jesse Plemmons, and How I Met Your Mother’s Cristin Milioti.

Plemmons plays a CTO at a gaming company who is repeatedly ignored and taken for granted. To get back at his coworkers, he illegally makes digital copies of them and puts them in his own Star Trek like version of the game.

The show still revolves around greatly enhanced technology, and how it has corrupted people in the future. Junior

Makayla Lopez said she liked the use of technology in the show, but not the length of the episodes.

From around the first season to the most recent season, the use of technology has increased but the technology itself has stayed around the same.

A new kind of technology includes Z-Eyes, which have been around since the first season. New technology revealed in season four is Arkangel.

Overall, season four comes with the usual eerie, tech-like episodes.

“I like how its creepy and mysterious. I like the technology in the episodes. I don’t really like how the episodes are kinda long.”

--MAKAYLA LOPEZ

junior

Up -and-coming rapper Rich Brian has changed his name yet again.

Before the name change, he was simply known as Brian. Before that, his ost famous name was Rich Chigga.

Rich Brian became famous after one of his music videos went viral on Youtube. The song “Dat $tick” has 82 million views on Youtube and counting. Since that hit song, Rich Brian has released songs with some very popular artists like 21 Savage, Young Thug, and Tripie Redd.

Rich Brian first started off aking Youtube videos and Vines before pursuing his rapping career. He is also a good friend of rapper Post Malone.

Rich Brian has said that he plans to release his debut album, Amen, on Feb. 2, 2018. His newest song, “See Me’ has already 2 million views on Youtube.

Eminem Revival

BY JASON REYES Staff Writer Eminem released Revival, his new album, on December 15, 2017. “Revival” is the ninth album by American rapper Eminem. This album features Beyonce, Phresher, Ed Sheeran, Alicia Keys, X Ambassadors, Skylar Grey, Kehlani, and Pink.

“Revival” is a decent album. It does not contain any of his best songs, but does have some standout tracks. “River” feat. Ed Sheeran”, “Remind Me” which samples Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock N Roll”, “Bad Husband” feat. X Ambassadors, “Need Me” feat. Pink, “Walk on Water” feat. Beyonce and “In Your Head” which samples The Cranberries’s “Zombie”. Revival is worth a listen. It is not Eminem’s best material, but it also is not as bad as people are making it to be.

In conclusion. Revival was one of Eminem’s different albums that didn’t match his style of rap.

20 WEEKEND

Tues. Jan. 23, 2018

CNU PHOTO BY ETHAN ZIMMERMAN

8 WAYS TO PERFECT YOUR COLLEGE VISIT

5

1

CAMERON FOTI

START EARLY Make a list of all the colleges you want to visit. Plan to visit colleges near each other in the same day or weekend to minimize the amount of time you’re stuck travelling.

2

TALK TO STUDENTS ON CAMPUS If they have a problem or complaint, they will probably share it with you. If they love their school, they won’t be shy about it either. Come prepared with some questions to ask—specific ones will get you more interesting answers. Some schools sponsor overnight programs in which you can stay with a current student. This is a great opportunity to get a deeper sense of campus life and interact with your potential future friends and roommates.

Senior Rachel Shogren talks to a friend about her visit at JMU. questions arise (as they most definitely will), you can fire off an e-mail for an answer rather than visiting a second time.

4

3

KEEP A RECORD OF EVERY VISIT If you visit many schools, your memories of them are bound to overlap. Use a notetaking or voice-recording app on your phone, or plain old notebook and pen, to keep track of the details you like and the stuff that you don’t like. When more

DON’T RUSH TO A DECISION Try not to base your opinion of a school on bad weather or one boring class. There are bound to be sunny days and more interesting classes. Same goes for overnight visits—you might end up staying with a student who has very different interests than you do.

At the same time, trust your gut.

Sometimes it’s love at first sight.

Other times, something feels wrong.

TAKE THE CAMPUS TOUR While it’s the most obvious thing to do, the official campus tour is worth your while.

You should always find out if you need to register to get a spot. It gives the school a chance to show off its best features, like the newly-built theater or their rooftop planetarium. While you’re walking around, check out the flyers and bulletin boards and pick up a school newspaper to get a sense of what’s going on.

6

SAVE THE BEST FOR LAST You’ll get better at visiting colleges with practice. As you compare schools, you pick up on the aspects you like and the aspects you do not like. You also figure out the right questions to ask, as well as the best campus spots to gauge student life.

For that reason, visit your favorite schools last, so you’ll be in the best position to make comparisons to the others on your list.

Which colleges have you visited and what was your favorite parts?

to you, find them and have a look for yourself. Make sure your destinations include the library and the first-year dorms.

8

VISIT WHILE STUDENTS ARE ON CAMPUS The campus has a completely different feel when there are students on it. Schedule your visit while school is in session.

You won’t get a realistic idea of student life in August (or if you attend during a special event like Spring Fling).

7

VENTURE OUT ON YOUR OWN The official tour will probably steer you clear of the school’s less attractive features, like the shoddy dining hall or the tiny gymnasium. Take your own unofficial tour by wandering around campus. If there are any facilities that are important

BINQI CHEN

BY CAMERON FOTI Weekend Editor

Senior Binqi Chen tours UVA while talking to a current

JON FIGLEY senior “I visited James Madison University, my favorite part was seeing the campus and interacting with the professors.”

MANOA RAHARINAIVO senior “I visited Liberty University and I liked the campus, the food there, and the location of the school.”

YOSEPH AMENSISA senior I went to VCU and I enjoyed the diversity and how the campus is in the middle of Richmond”

MARIANA HAILU senior “I visited the University of Virginia and I liked visiting the classroms and dorms they have there.”

PATRICK BROWN junior “I visited Wake Forest in North Carolina. I enjoyed talking the current students there and going to their hockey game.”

EMAN JARADAT junior “I visited Geortown University in Washington D.C. and my favorite part was hanging out with the students who go there.”

Nowadays, it seems as though a new pandemic has spread throughout the United States: veganism. Sometimes it is easy to find yourself imagining vegans eating only kale or salad everyday; however, there is a huge selection of vegan restaurants in NOVA that offer diverse menus and a wide selection of dishes.

Loving Hut is just one example of the many vegan eateries NOVA has to offer. Loving Hut, a Vietnamese vegan cuisine located in Falls Church, provides a wide array of traditional Vietnamese dishes with vegan substitutes such as tofu or soy protein for meat.

Loving Hut may not capture your attention at first glance. It is located next to a 7-11 and does not particularly stand out; however, once you step foot inside, the nicely set up tables and the friendly waiters make you forget about the restaurant’s under whelming facade.

The ambiance of Loving Hut is very casual and welcoming. There is no need to get dressed up to eat at Loving Hut, it is the perfect place for a casual lunch or dinner out with your family and friends. The service at Loving Hut is what mainly adds to the welcoming ambiance. My waiter seated me right away and was always attentive to my

needs during my meal.

Although all of these aspects of the restaurant are great, one of the biggest drawing factors is the food. I am not a vegan and did not think that I would enjoy a completely vegan meal, but Loving Hut proved me wrong.

I was extremely satisfied with my meal. I ordered the lemongrass tofu and was surprised with how tasty and fulfilling it was. As I was eating I almost forgot that the meal was vegan. It was extremely flavorful and I enjoyed every bite.

Aside from the taste, the portions are great as well. The portions are very large considering how reasonable the prices are. Most of the entrees on the menu range from seven to twelve dollars which is a great price considering how much food they give you.

I was also very satisfied with how quickly they prepared my meal. It only took them around ten minutes to bring out my food which is great if you are like me and hate waiting a long time for your food.

There is definitely a dish for everyone at Loving Hut. Their menu has a wide range of foods to choose from. They offer traditional Vietnamese dishes like pho and vermicelli while also offering American dishes such as vegan hotdogs and hamburgers. Aside from the entrees, the restaurant also offers delicious vegan desserts like ice cream and

bubble tea. It was hard for me to believe that they could have such a diverse menu with dishes that all adhered to a vegan diet.

I highly recommend Loving Hut to everyone. It is a great place to go if you are looking to have a healthier diet, if you are vegan and looking for a new place to eat, or if you just want to explore what the vegan cuisine has to offer. It will be sure to make you and your wallet happy.

GRACE HOGYE

BY GRACE HOGYE Managing Editor

GRACE HOGYE

You’ll love the Loving Hut Vegan Restaurant

Senior Grace Hogye enjoys her Lemon Grass Tofu with brocolli, carrots and cucumbers, which was $8.95. Loving Hut is known for their vegan Vietnamese.

Concerts in the D.C. area

Activity of the month “Paint your pet” at the Muse Paintbar

Capital One Areana Lana De Ray : Jan 25 at 7 p.m.

Prices start at $113

Echostage Shy Glizzy: Jan 27 at 8 p.m.

Prices start at $30 DJ Snake: Feb 3 at 9 p.m.

Prices start at $40

The Kennedy Center

Shy Glizzy

The Washington Ballet: Feb 17 at 7 p.m.

Prices start at $69 The National Symphony Orchestra: Feb 16 at 8 p.m.

Muse Paintbar has paintings hung on the wall (above). The bar and food counter (top left) and the painting room (bottom right) are the best.

6:30-9:30 p.m.

Muse paintbar in Mosaic District is known for their great instruction and helping people paint. On Monday, Jan. 29 they will be having a “paint your pet” class, where they will be helping people make amazing artwork of their pet. The class costs $45. Upload your pet photo after you sign up and their custom backlit canvases will illuminate shapes and outlines for easy tracing! Any pet can be painted! They have food and drinks available for purchase during the session which just makes it a great time.

Muse paintbar has other art sessions where they will talk you through how to paint a piece of artwork.

CAMERON FOTI

Monday, January 29

Prices start at $50 Justin Timberlake: March 18 at 7:30 pm