Issue 7, 2013

Principal candidates answer questions in forum open to public

BY KATHY JANG & HENRY SHANGGUAN

An investigation into the rigging of the March 4 ASB elections

BY JACOB ANTONY & NIKITA DHESIKAN

A

revote of the general election was held via paper ballot on March 14, after the March 4 election and the subsequent runoff for ASB Secretary were compromised. The original election had been held through the online voting system eduBallot, which requires students to login using their ID number and birthdate, a feature that perpetrators exploited. On March 6, Assistant Principal David Erwin noticed unusual patterns in the votes for the ASB secretary runoff election—an exceptionally large proportion of the student body had voted between 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. and three Internet Protocol (IP) addresses had cast 118 out of the 845 votes.

When students logged onto eduBallot, some were unable to access the voting form. They were met with an error message that said they had already cast their votes. Junior Amy Fujiki said, “I was confused—it crossed my mind that someone may have taken my vote, but I �inally thought that it was just an error.”

Erwin could not do anything about his initial suspicions until he had concrete evidence that the elections were tampered with. That con�irmation came with an anonymous student, who came forward with the knowledge that more students had the same problem as Fujiki.

In collaboration with Computer Specialist Toan Phuong, the administration traced the suspect IP addresses. The addresses tracked back to an AT&T server in Concord, Calif., leading the administration to believe that they were spoofed.

On March 8, the administration randomly selected around 30 students from the list of ID numbers used under the IP addresses in question. Each student was asked if they had voted, and many said that they had not.

“After listening to those people say ‘No, I didn’t vote,’ and knowing from the data said that they did, it was just a shocking thing to hear,” said Erwin, “Democracy didnt’ happen that day.”

He then met with senior ASB members in order to discuss possible next steps. A decision was made to send out an email informing the student body of the security compromise and the revote.

“I was disappointed that someone would cheat in an election, and show such a lack of integrity,” ASB IDC Representative Arnav Mishra said.

To avoid further issues, the senior of�icers and administration decided to use SCANTRON paper ballots for the revote.

After the votes were cast, the ballots were collected and then counted in room 506 during �ifth period.

The ballots were checked and counted

by Erwin, school Psychologist Brittany Stevens, and Leadership Advisor Andrea Badger. The forms were then fed into two

SCANTRON machines that tracked the votes for each candidate. Four senior ASB members and two Epic staffers were also present to ensure the transparency of the three-hour long process. The results were announced on March 15.

The new ballot listed all the original candidates, with the exception of junior Andrew Huang, who was originally one of three candidates for ASB Secretary.

Huang declined to comment on how he was dropped from the ballot.

As of now, administrators do not how the perpetrators obtained the ID number and birthdays. Some possible sources that were named are the yearbook database of ID numbers, a list from the Job Shadow program and various clubs.

Currently, the administration has suspended at least one student. The investigation, however, is still ongoing. Erwin declined to comment on the state of the investigation, any leads being pursued, or any suspected students.

To combat the potential for future voter fraud, administrator and ASB members have discussed having students register to vote, using their own usernames or passwords. Another alternative would be linking the online voting service to the FUHSD network, or continuing with a paper ballot system. The administration has stated that the school will be using paper ballots for the upcoming class elections.

For the full version of this story, please visit lhsepic.com.

For more on this topic, see “Fear of falling into the pit of failure” on page 5.

A

fter reviewing feedback from the Principal Selection Candidates’ Forum on March 11, District Superintendent Polly Bove will conduct further interviews with the individual candidates if necessary and aims to select the �inal candidate to present to the district board by the board meeting on March 19.

Principal Gail Davidson announced on Jan. 9 her plans to retire following the 2012 to 2013 school year. After reviewing dozens of applications, screening candidate pro�iles and conducting interviews with a board comprising district of�icials, community members, administrators, teachers and students, Superintendent Bove narrowed down the choices to three �inalists: Maria Jackson, assistant principal of curriculum and instruction at Lynbrook; Di Yim, chief academic of�icer at Fremont High School and Jim Dwyer, principal of Foothill High School.

“Selecting the principals is the most important job I have,” said Bove, “The �ive principals we have are some of the most important people in this district.”

During the forum, held in the Lynbrook auditorium and moderated by district Director of Human Resources Tom Avvakumovits, each candidate answered �ive questions: an introductory question regarding the metaphor of high schools as “a collection of educational entrepreneurs held together by a common parking lot”; two randomly selected questions regarding their teaching experiences, role models, the school’s extracurricular activities and classi�ied employees; and two concluding questions about the candidates’ personal lives and plans for their �irst 100 days if selected as principal. Each candidate spent about 20 minutes answering these questions.

Following the forum, audience members received the opportunity to provide written feedback regarding each candidate’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as topics for further discussion.

District of�icials will revie all feedback before Bove presents her �inal recommendation to the district board.

“Whenever the superintendent makes a selection of the principal, it’s very important that we get broad based input,” said Avvakumovits. The district board will subsequently decide whether or not to accept Bove’s recommendation.

For more on this topic, see “Three candidates, one position” on page 2.

Girls’ Basketball •pg. 13 JOEY LI—EPIC

Three candidates, one position Lynbrook’s principal candidates answered the community’s questions during the forum held in the auditorium as part of the selection process; results will be announced at the end of March.

JOEY LI — EPIC

J

ackson has previously worked as an english teacher at Aptos High School, where she was a leader in staff development. Jackson became an innovator in educational technology and has experience as a technical writer and as a second language (ESL) teacher.

Jackson is now an assistant principal at Lynbrook, a position she has occupied for four years. Before that, Jackson managed the Lynbrook library for 10 years.

Q: What will your priorities be during your �irst 100 days as Principal of Lynbrook High School?

MJ: I believe it’ll be really important for me to listen and get to know students in a new way, the teachers, and alumni. As principal, it’s my job to be the story bearer and help set the course for the whole chapter.

Q: What experiences did you have as a classroom teacher that have had the greatest impact on the things you would like to accomplish as a principal?

MJ: I remember I was teaching at Del Monte High School and I taught remedial junior english. The curriculum was so boring. I thought, “I don’t want to sell these kids short,” so we read some Shakespeare. But I remember that students will always rise to the occasion. I want to inspire that in students but I also want to inspire that in teachers.

Y

im has worked at Fremont High School as an assistant principal and a Chief Academic Of�icer. She has served as liaison to several departments, including English, math and special education.

She has also served as Chief Academic Of�icer at East Boston High School in Massachusetts.

Q: What will your priorities be during your �irst 100 days as Principal of Lynbrook High School?

DY: One of the biggest priorities is to �ind ways to connect with kids. As a principal it’s a little more challenging. I think one of the things I’d like to do is �ind ways to have conversations with students, and I certainly want to �ind ways to be with students in small groups.

Q: Think about a leader, in school or in the world outside of school, that you admire. What characteristics do you admire in that person and why?

DY: I would have to say the headmaster that I �irst worked for as an administrator. He cared about our kids. He knew their stories, knew their struggles, knew kids who went to four-year colleges, kids who went to jail, those who had no homes. He wanted to �ind ways to help them. He treated every kid like his own kid. When I think of myself as an administrator, that’s how I want to operate.

D

wyer is currently the principal of Foothill High School, a high school in the nearby community of Pleasanton where he has worked for the past nine years. He has also served as a vice principal, an assistant principal and an english and history teacher.

John possesses experiences in the areas of staff development, curriculum development, instruction and assessment, as well as budget and �inance.

Q: What will your priorities be during your �irst 100 days as Principal of Lynbrook High School?

JD: There are certain things: listening, learning, understanding, building relationships, building trusts, trying to understand what it is about this special place that makes it Lynbrook.

Q: FUHSD prides itself on maintaining comprehensive high schools with strong academic programs and a rich variety of student activities, athletics, and elective courses. What rationale would you give for maintaining this wide range of programs even in these tough economic times?

JD: I’m a �irm believer in balance in students’ lives— the balance is absolutely critical. After a football game, I look at the sheer joy on the player’s faces, and I want that for everybody, from elective classes to clubs.

Record number of Synopsys participants

BY PRIYA RAVURU & JEFFREY YANG

Letter from the editors

A

s spring approaches, Lynbrook has been experiencing a plethora of new ideas and events. Whether it is the girls’ basketball team making it to Norcal �inals for the �irst time (page 13) or investigations into a rigged ASB election (page 1; staff editorial page 5), the “March Madness” spirit has been ubiquitous in campus.

We hope you will enjoy this issue, and feel free to email us at enc.epic@gmail.com if you have any questions, comments or concerns.

Happy reading,

Shannon Chai, Irene Hsu & Sabrina Shie

I

n preparation for the Synopsys Science Fair on March 13, Lynbrook students, including those from the STEM research class, displayed their science projects in the library during lunch and after school on March 7 in the LHS Science Expo.

At the expo, students presented projects with topics ranging from biochemistry to engineering. Lynbrook students, teachers and parents attended the expo to view and listen to the presentations.

The LHS Science Expo was intended to give an opportunity for students to practice presenting their projects and also to showcase the work that they had put into their projects over the past year.

Throughout the expo, various science teachers acted as judges. They evaluated the presentations and gave students feedback and suggestions to help them improve their presentations.

“The Science Expo gives an opportunity

to explain your project to different people and this is exactly how the actual science fair works,” said junior Maitreyee Joshi.

“Through the expo, you can learn what kind of questions the judges would ask and learn how to improve your presentation and make it more concise.”

Regardless of what the results may be, high school students have the opportunity to impress not only judges but also companies by gaining exposure through their own research science project. For instance, a company was so impressed by Joshi’s research that they offered her an internship.

Another goal of the expo was to generate interest in science-related topics among other students.

“It serves as an advertisement for students who want to participate in science fairs,” STEM Research Coordinator Amanda Alonzo said. “It gives them a chance to see what they’re about.”

Ninety-three students presented at the expo, the largest number of participants

compared to previous years, and all of them have submitted their projects to the Synopsys Science Fair. One of the most important science competitions of the year, the Synopsys Science Fair is for middle and high school students from across the Santa Clara County and offers various awards and honorable mentions.

According to Alonzo, one of the primary reasons for the increase in participation this year is the new STEM research class, which increased research project opportunities for students in the class.

“Our capacity for independent student research is about 60 students, but with the addition of the STEM research class we got up to over 90 students,” Alonzo said. “The class also gives students direct time with a teacher who knows what’s going on and what the rules are.”

She also hopes that with its success this year, the STEM research class can continue to generate interest and aid students in the science fair in future years.

News in Brief PTSA Re�lections Award Ceremony The awards ceremony will be held on March 19 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium. The PTSA will recognize students who won at the California PTA level for the PTA Re�lections Programs.

Financial Aid Night

The guidance department will be holding its Spring Financial Aid Night on April 11 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium. This event is directed towards juniors and will offer information about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FASFA) and scholarships.

Lynbrook IDC Exchange

Lynbrook will be hosting its annual IDC Exchange on March 22, when Lynbrook students will host students from other FUHSD schools. The registration form for the IDC Exchange was sent out on Feb. 26.

Junior class officers promote prom

BY ANAND CHUKKA

J

unior prom will held at the Los Gatos Opera House on March 22, catered

by Gunther’s Restaurant and Catering. While the prom is usually catered by the Los Gatos Opera House Banquets, its bankruptcy early February caused the junior class of�icers to re-plan the prom festivities and make a series of changes in the catering company, advertising and planning. The opera house itself has not gone out of business.

The junior class of�icer team received the news from the catering company on Feb. 14, the day that junior prom bids began to sell. The unexpected news threw a monkey wrench into the planning process for the junior leadership team, according to Mike Williams, one of the two junior class advisors.

Williams said, “Actually there’s a silver lining in this—we’re getting a better deal with the caterer than we were getting before and that may lead to more pro�its.”

The original deposit of $1000, which was made by the junior class to Los Gatos Opera House Banquets was lost after the company dissolved. Gunther’s Restaurant and Catering lowered their prices, from $41.50 to $31.50 make up for the losses to the junior class and has been working closely with the planning committee to make sure none of the previous planning goes to waste.

In addition to the change in the catering company, the of�icers have implemented new advertising methods in order to raise participation in this year’s junior prom, especially since the leadership team has signed an attendance contract with the catering company for 100 people. The class of�icers have put up elaborate posters, staged a junior prom spirit week and �ilmed a junior prom promotional video, which is usually reserved for senior prom. The junior class spirit week included of�icers carrying around pineapples and balloons so students would inquire about junior prom.

The main focus of the junior class’ advertising campaign is their “preparation in stag-

es” photo campaign. This campaign focuses speci�ically on the days leading up to the night of prom by having photo shoots of the different stages. The photo shoots include the asking phase, the preparation phase, the dancing phase and the different activities available at junior prom.

Junior Neil Thekdi, the photographer and videographer of the advertising campaign said, “Our class is not quite as spirited as the other classes, so we think of different strategies to approach them with. By creating a larger campaign and trying to showcase just how fun junior prom will be, we played to our class’ emotional side.”

Nearly 125 bids were sold, exceeding the class’s minimum requirement contract with Gunther’s Restaurant and Catering of 100 attendees. According to President of the Class of 2014 Tara Pichumani, the original company required 150 people.

“It was really lucky that we started working with Gunther’s after the original caterers closed down,” Pichumani said. “Otherwise we would’ve had to pay an additional $1,000.”

Food Club Day

This semester’s Food Club Day will be held on Friday, March 22. Tickets can be purchased for 50 cents at the top of the quad.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY RANI MAVRAM AND JEFFREY YANG

By Shouvik Mani and Dhiraj Nallapothula

JUNIOR CLASS SPIRIT WEEK| The various activities scheduled for each day by junior class officers to promote junior prom and encourage people to buy bids.

Return of the musical

BY HIMA RAJANA

I

JOEY LI—EPIC

nstead of the customary spring play, this March, the drama department, orchestra and choir came together to perform Oliver!, a musical inspired by Charles Dickens’ 1838 novel Oliver Twist.

In addition to being the �irst musical that Lynbrook’s drama department has put on in three years, Oliver! had an uncharacteristically large cast of 58 actors and actresses, 15 people in the technology crew backstage and 28 people in the orchestra.

“I have directed close to 100 productions, with varying size casts,” said director and drama teacher Laurel Cohen. “The bigger the cast, the more challenging it is because of outside obligations or illness.” Cast members also felt Oliver! was different for other reasons.

“Being in ‘Oliver!’ is differA JOINT EFFORT| From top to bottom: Oliver!’s ensemble ent than being in a play becast opens the musical with a bombastic sequence. Senior cause there are just so many Andrea Christensen performs as Fagin, the principal antagoaspects to it,” said freshman nist of the story. Senior Miranda Ashland and junior Nathan Jackie Chou, cast member. “EvKastle playing the characters of Oliver and Mr. Bumble. erything in a play applies to actBand director Michael Pakaluk leads the orchestra. ing in a musical, but you also have to translate the acting and your emotion into the musical numbers.”

Cohen and assistant director junior Kelly Masterson had to coordinate the actions of over 100 people.

The dance, orchestral and vocal elements had to come together to create a cohesive performance, which translated to a longer production schedule.

“We started auditions in late November and the play cast with �irst rehearsal starting Dec. 3.

It is an intense rehearsal period, with either, vocal, dance or acting rehearsals almost every day, including weekends,” said Cohen. Normally, rehearsals begin about two months before the play.

“Having the orchestra and choir involved with our production has been really new and different, and I’ve loved meeting all the new people,” said cast member junior Nathan Kastle, who played the Mr. Bumble, the owner PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY KATHY JANG & YONI ZEMYLAK

of the workhouse. “The orchestra has de�initely added to the play with really climactic music.”

In addition to the musical elements of the show, the set design, supervised by senior Sabrina Woolhiser, was more innovative than in past shows.

“The set is really different because part of it is pushed and pulled out, so it’s not visible at all times,” said sophomore Mackenzie Larsen, who is part of the choir ensemble. “Another really cool thing is the huge backdrop of London and the secret tunnel opening.”

Over the course of one weekend, parents, students and professional set designers built and painted the set.

With all of these added elements, musicals can be very costly to produce, which is one of the reasons it has been so long since Lynbrook has done a musical.

“Oliver was a positive experience due to talented musicians, dynamic cast members and professional colleagues,” said Michael Pakaluk, who directed the orchestra for the show. “It really encouraged me that our shows were sold out, and reinforced the sentiment that Lynbrook has a truly outstanding performing arts program.”

“We only played together for two or three hours before hell week, which is the week before the production,” said sophomore Allison Tam, who was a part of the orchestra. “That’s a pretty small amount, but integrating the orchestra with the actors and singers was not that hard because Mrs. Isola, Mrs. Cohen and Mr. Pakaluk worked together really well to make sure it was a seamless process.”

Masterson also �ilmed and directed a promotional trailer for the show in order to give everyone involved in the production a keepsake. The trailer was on the front page of the school website, in addition to several hundred photos from the �inal dress rehearsal.

“Over the years, we’ve all grown as actors, and we’ve learned to work as a team and that it takes collective effort to make a show really good,” said junior Barbara Jackson, who played Nancy, the female lead.

“Some of the freshmen were scared when Mrs. C was strict with them, but they knew that it was for the good of the play.” Staff, students and parents who attended the show appreciated the effort that has gone into it over the past four months.

“I thought that the actors and singers in Oliver! were talented, and the music was amazing!” said freshman Linda Yao. “I wasn’t surprised that it sold out on Friday and Saturday since it was so good.”

ERROR: NO MATCH FOUND

To respect student indivduality, know there is no “typical Lynbrook student”

BY PRACHI LAUD AND LAUREN TAI

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY JOEY LI AND MICHELLE SU

L

ynbrook culture has come to brand students with the stereotype of being a “typical Lynbrook student”—someone who is centered on APs, GPA and SAT scores. Many members of the school community, including students themselves, unconsciously perpetuate this label. Instead of being treated like individuals, students are treated like a group in which everyone has the same abilities and goals. The school community, however, must recognize that there is no typical Lynbrook student, respect student individuality and join guidance counselors in encouraging students to differentiate themselves.

“People have the notion that just because they are at a school where people are smart, then everyone is smart,” said senior Rohit Muralidharan.

Though the term “typical Lynbrook student” has the positive connotation that Lynbrook students are high achievers, it is the delivery and attitude that spirals out of this expression that needs to be changed.

One of the main sources of the pressure comes from an external source: parents. Many parents in the Bay Area were raised with the same circumstances and values. The similarities between their struggles and cultural backgrounds create a “stereotypical Lynbrook parent,” said Muralidharan.

Typical parents hold the same high expectations for their children as were held for them, which often makes them less willing to accept their children’s individuality.

This culture that is formed by the standards of parents and students creates a difficult position for teachers, whom students feel may perpetuate the stereotypes unintentionally.

“They expect things from you. If you a get a C or lower, you can retake the test. But a C is average,” said sophomore Samantha Khan. Offhand comments and the different treatment of students who have average grades create an environment within the classroom that implies that every student is the same—both academically and culturally.

“If you’re getting bad grades, sometimes [teachers] don’t believe you’re trying your best,” said junior Kelly Masterson. “I kept asking for help from this one teacher, and she came up to me and she goes, ‘You need to stop asking me for help because it’s putting too much work on me.’ Sometimes they just expect you to know and expect you to remember.” This standard prevents many students from being comfortable with their independent learning styles and paces.

Masterson feels that the typical student stereotype is a perception that all Lynbrook students have the same

abilities and ambitions. “We’re not being treated as if we’re individuals. We are treated as a group,” she said.

“Because the group has a high standard, the individuals that do not meet that standard, or who have a different standard, don’t fit in.”

But largely, students themselves perpetuate these stereotypes. This culture of pursuing academic excellence causes many students to look down upon their peers that achieve less. As students impose the burden of being a “typical Lynbrook student” upon themselves, they simultaneously impose this burden on their peers.

“They do it indirectly, and I think that’s what hurts the most sometimes,” said Masterson. “You hear them looking at their grade and saying ‘That’s too many B’s’ or something like that, or you see them stressed out over a test that you thought wasn’t a big deal.”

The term can hold both positive and negative connotations. “The positive is that the pressure to exceed academically may make people study harder. However, the negative is that it causes more stress as people struggle to maintain that expectation and may marginalize student choice,” said senior Haziq Siddiqi.

The assumption that all Lynbrook students should “follow the herd” and have the same goals as others causes students to take classes that are given more importance in Lynbrook culture but are not right for them.

This prevents them from fully exploring their potential and choosing a path that is best for their wants and needs. “It’s a mold that we need to be perfect and go into all these academic subjects even though we could do anything else with ourselves,” said Khan.

“Sometimes I feel personally offended by the term because I feel as if I’m a deviant since I find myself leaning more towards the humanities,” said Siddiqi. “The pressure influences students to be a certain way.”

The guidance department understands and strives to help students recognize their own individuality.

“We consistently send the message that students should strive to be an individual and choose classes and activities that meet your interests rather than what everyone else seems to be doing,” said guidance counselor Jenny Dumas.

The term “typical Lynbrook student” must be approached with caution in order to desegregate those who meet the standard at various levels. In order to encourage choosing different paths, the school community needs to be more considerate of student individuality and not be so quick to judge. People need to abandon the notion that all students must fit this stereotype and emulate the example of those who promote individual growth and choice.

To read the full version of this story, visit lhsepic.com

Course selection freedom should not be sacrificed for credit caps on athletics

BY RANI MAVRAM

W

ith course selection season right around the corner, many students are unclear as to whether they should take athletic classes or play a team sport.

Right now, students can only take seven classes; however, if students take a sport for PE credits, then they are limited to only taking six classes because PE Athletics utilizes one of the class periods. Two years of physical education is also a graduation requirement, which resticts many students who want to explore diverse course options available at Lynbrook.

Therefore, PE Athletics should provide PE credits but not be considered a student’s seventh class.

JV basketball player freshman Ajit Vijaykumar wishes to continue his passion for the sport. After learning about the 70 credit cap, he is leaning toward taking a regular PE class rather than PE Athletics.

“I don’t want to take too many classes junior year because I know how much work it is going to be, so I’m trying to get all the graduation requirements out of the way right now,” said Vijaykumar. “I don’t have that guarantee that I will receive credit for playing basketball, and that’s something I really need even though I really love basketball.”

After playing for the team this year, Vijaykumar has �irsthand experience with the large time commitment that sports

require. “I can see why we have a cap of 70 credits, and obviously you don’t want your students to have a course overload, which makes sense,”said Vijaykumar. “I just think the decision should be up to the students and not the counselors or whoever enforces such policies.”

Sophomore Patrick Shih is currently taking PE Racquet Sports and agrees that the choice should be left up to the students. Shih believes it is important to �ind “the balance between athletics and academics.”

He continued, “But honestly, I don’t think the decision is only up to the students. Some parents decide which courses take preference for the students, and athletic courses don’t sound as appealing as AP Biology.”

When asked about the seven classes limit, Shih agreed that the cap should be removed. “Although I may not be able to handle sports and seven classes, I’m sure many students at Lynbrook can,” said Shih. “They should at least be given the opportunity to try.”

Various districts in the Bay Area have been trying to enforce different policies to �ix this problem. Currently, the Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School district (LGSUHSD) has a policy where students can play one season of a sport for �ive credits and �inish the other �ive credits by taking a PE course for one semester to obtain the graduation requirement.

This policy is useful for rising sophomores like Vijayku-

mar who would like to �inish all their PE requirements before entering junior year and also appeals to upperclassmen.

Junior Ritu Parwal is taking a year of PE Weight Training to ensure she graduates on time. After being diagnosed with a medical condition during the �irst semester of freshman year, Parwal’s medication prevented her from participating in PE. When she tried to start PE again during second semester, she was told the class was full. Parwal said, “For students like me, that policy [LGSUHSD] would be extremely helpful considering how much time and how many credits it saves.”

Parwal also agrees that the credit cap restricted her from taking the electives she had wanted to earlier. “I wanted to continue with 3D Design this year and take 3D Design 3 but I wasn’t able to because I had to take PE. Then it came down to choosing between taking Spanish 4 or 3D Design so I had to choose one over the other,” said Parwal.

The removal of the credit cap for physical education would greatly bene�it students. On March 11, students were asked to attend an informational meeting for those interested in playing a sport and receiving PE credit. With over 150 students in attendance, students have proven their passion for sports and to continue in them as well. Even with the changes taking place at our districts, Lynbrook has a long way to go to with enforcing such policies that do not restrict students with the seven class limit.

Fear of falling into the pit of failure Why the pressure to succeed causes students to lie, cheat and most recently, rig the ASB election and how developing a growth mindset can help

T

he ASB elections were rigged, and the dismality of the consequences are clear: candidates having to rerun after celebratory dinners; students realizing that their identities had been exploited; and the reputation of Lynbrook tarnished as a school of excellence and integrity.

We can point �ingers and blame the problem on many different people--the administration, for example. The re-election process is not even outlined in the ASB Constitution, revealing that the administration has �laws in foreseeing and preventing disturbances. The list of ID numbers and birth dates should have been better guarded.

The school should have taken precautions when using an online voting system, which can easily be manipulated.

But aside from the logistical issues, this unfortunate occurrence is a symptom of a deeper problem at Lynbrook. Rigging a schoolwide ASB election, an event that determines how our school will be run for the next year, is a gutsy move. It is also a highly uncommon action; rigging a student government election is not something frequently heard about at other high schools.

So we have to ask ourselves, what has caused a student to so desperately want to win that he or she would risk suspension and defamation?

The real problem is that Lynbrook students seem to have a deeply entrenched fear of failure--a characteristic that can be attributed to a much bigger portion of the student body than just the students who decided to rig this election. With over 50 clubs, incredible testing statistics and our ranking as the 22nd best high school in California by U.S. News & Report, Lynbrook is a high-achieving environment that often puts students under immense pressure. The expectations to succeed are taxing, and students often resort to back-door methods such as cheating and, in this case, rigging a school-wide election.

FUHSD Program Administrator for New Teacher Induction and Educational Options Josh Maisel believes that this almost irrational fear of failure can be attributed to the possession of a “�ixed mindset,” or a pursuit of a single goal without room for mistakes. Those who maintain a �ixed mindset are likely to believe they are destined to be unsuccessful and therefore must resort to cheating and lying in order to get ahead of their peers. Students with a growth mindset, however, �ind joy in adversity and accept challenges with gratitude.

“People with a growth mindset see failure as a good thing— failure leads to growth and learning,” said Maisel. “Cheating, to a person with a growth mindset, doesn’t make any sense. You are literally cheating yourself out of the chance to learn.”

Lynbrook students seem to be too �ixed on succeeding in all their attempts, rather than looking at their high school years as a time for mistake, personal improvement and growth. Their obsession with ful�illing expectations of excellence is not only the driving factor for the rigging of the ASB elections, but it also fuels Lynbrook students seem to be obsessed to ful�ill a speci�ic criteria of excellence, which is ultimately proving to be detrimental.

“We’re so focused on things that ‘matter to everyone’ like grades, extracurricular achievements and test scores,” said senior Kimberly Vaz. “The person that rigged this election must have been extremely obsessed with winning, and I think the problem is that people aren’t necessarily trying to be the best at everything; they just want to be good at that “one” thing that’s really important to them to distinguish themselves from their peers and gain self-acceptance.”

There is no easy solution to this problem. Even if teachers and administrations invite speakers and present about the options available for students after graduating high school--it is not going to entirely abolish this pervading pressure to attain lofty academic achievements.

If anything, change must occur in the home, with parents demanding less from their children and putting less signi�icance in every test score and extracurricular achievement to students’ resumes. The rest of the power to change rests upon the students’ shoulders; students must change their attitudes by focusing on the long term effects of their actions and developing broader goals, such as becoming more well-rounded or improving their character.

“Changing your mindset is more than just saying, ‘Now I believe something different,’” said Maisel. “The �ixed mindset is saturated in our culture and you can see it everywhere around you, so the process of changing mindsets involves �irst noticing how pervasive it is, and then continually thinking about your own thoughts, feelings, and actions, and ‘catching yourself’ acting in a way that supports a �ixed mindset.”

The SAT may be inconvenient but it does its job

W

e all hate it. You, me and many students alike. Heck, even my mom hates it, and she doesn’t even have to take it. Yes, I’m talking about the dreaded SAT. Ever since it was �irst administered in 1926, the SAT has been the bane of every high school student’s existence. Many people spend months (and plenty of money) preparing for it—and most end up re-taking it— only to wake up early on a Saturday morning and spend four hours taking a test that both mentally and physically drains them.

Recently, due to speculation that it is not a useful means of evaluating students’ character and intelligence, more colleges have stopped requiring applicants to take the SAT. Schools ranging from the University of Texas to New York University list the test as an optional component of their applications.

Call me crazy, but despite our general hatred of standardized testing, speci�ically the SAT, this isn’t a very bright idea.

The SAT is actually a more or less accurate gauge of intelligence, as it evaluates reasoning ability and fundamentals, such as basic math and reading comprehension skills. Yes, you can probably �ind examples of people who have done poorly on the SAT and gone on to have major success in college (or vice versa), but that isn’t always the case, and it serves its purpose reasonably well. For example, researchers Nathan Kuncel and Sarah Hezlett from the University of Minnesota discovered that the SAT could closely predict one’s grade point average.

In their research, the duo states, “Standardized measures of intelligence, ability, or achievement are all measures of acquired knowledge and skill and have consistent relationships with multiple facets of success in life, including academic and job performance.”

Similarly, researchers from Vanderbilt University, David Lubinski and Camilla Benbow, found that the SAT is capable of predicting actual outcomes and successes in life.While these examples may be extreme in certain circumstances, they still con�irm the SAT’s ef�icacy.Yes, standardized testing is annoying, but there needs to be a common measure of intelligence, which is what the SAT provides: a bell curve.

For example, take a look at an ordinary student, Joe, who goes to Clown High School, which has relatively low standards of achievement, so people like Joe can get straight A’s. On the other hand, we have Jim, who goes to a competitive school with higher standards of achievement; he gets a couple B’s simply due to the more dif�icult grading system. This is where a test like the SAT comes in. Because it’s the same for every student who takes it on any day, the results will provide college admissions of�icers with a uniform standard of comparing applicants.

Ultimately, the SAT tests your reasoning ability, and if you’re unhappy with that, then unfortunately, that’s your problem.

Some believe that the secret to cracking the SAT is cramming practice tests and memorizing vocabulary words. While this may work for some people, the test is more about applying knowledge developed over a period of time. Those who read a lot are often naturally able to do better in the critical reading sections, since they have better reading comprehension skills and a broader vocabulary.

The same goes for the math section; students develop the simple arithmetic, algebra and geometry skills tested by the SAT over a number of years. The test is therefore easier for those who have retained that knowledge.

Simply put, the SAT gets the results colleges need to correctly evaluate students.

Choosing to reject it just isn’t smart.

REUNITING IN GERMANY|Junior Imani Behrens regularly visits Germany for her yearly family reunions where she celebrates her German culture.

IMANI BEHRENS (11)

Every summer, junior Imani Behrens awaits to travel to Bremen, Germany for a family reunion. Having an opportunity to experience German culture plays a big part in her love for reunions.

“My German culture plays a big role in our family reunion,” she said, “Since my family is from Northern Germany, our reunions are very traditional, especially with the music, food and dancing.”

The Behrens hire a Corjan musician to play traditional music for the reunion of 30 to 40 people.

Her favorite part about the reunion, however, is polka dancing for the whole night.

“Besides the culture, I also love seeing how everyone has grown throughout the year, and they get to see how I’ve changed throughout the past year too,” she said.

OTHER RESTRICTIONS APPLY|Senior Rachael Chambers has to go without technology during her family reunions.

RACHAEL CHAMBERS (12)

Every year, senior Rachael Chambers goes to Three Mile Island, a family camp on Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire, for an unof�icial family reunion with family and close friends. It has been a tradition for her family to visit the island and learn about their family history ever since her mother was young.

A bene�it of going to this island for a reunion is the restriction of technology. Chambers said, “They restrict you to living pre-computers and pre-technology.

They appreciate people reading books, spending time outdoors and being with their families.”

The camp hosts a square dance, which is their favorite part about the island. “Getting together at the square dance always helps us bond.

Just being there and re�lecting on our day

BY KHAYA BHATIA makes the reunion special,” said Chambers.

FAMILY REUNIONS

A feature on a variety of family gatherings

Sophomore Rachel Tu loves her annual famOn the other hand, sophomore Diana ily reunions that happen around Christmas Zhao has been to �ive family reunions and has Many Lynbrook students have famieither in Los Angeles, Idaho or the East Coast. grown to despise them. While most reunions lies around the world, and some reunite Last year, the reunion was held at her house in consist of multiple families, there are no more throughout the years for family reunions.

Cupertino. Inspired by the TV show The Amazthan two at her reunions. They usually take ing Race, her brother--class of 2012 alumnus While numerous students adore travelling place in China, but in 2012, her family reunionKevin Tu--created a replica of the show around was held at her house in San Jose. and meeting with their extended family, Cupertino for the reunion. The 30 family members “My cousins live in China, so they don’t speak others loathe the experience. were split into �ive teams racing to complete six difEnglish well and I barely speak Chinese,” she said. ferent clues. The clues were little poems that each team “This usually makes the reunion awkward because no followed; for example, in one of the clues, they had to play one says anything to each other.” on the Nook to �ind speci�ic pages in Pride and Prejudice.

Zhao explains her feelings of jealousy toward other famiWhen the race ended, Tu realized how important family lies that bond and become closer through family reunions. In her reunions are. “At �irst I was worried about having a family reunion at ideal family reunion she would want to feel “included with the family.” my house, but I realized being on vacation with your family is more valuable She wishes everyone could sit around a table, talk about their day and create than staying at home studying because it makes precious memories,” said Tu. inside jokes, so she could enjoy her family’s company.

DIANA ZHAO (10)

IT’S A SMALL WORLD|Instead of the usual multitude of families at grandiose reunions, sophomore Diana Zhao’s reunions are only held between two families.

GOING ALL OUT|Sophomore Rachel Tu’s family bonded over an extreme Amazing Race-inspired scavenger hunt, that included hiking up Priya’s Hill in Saratoga in the mud.

PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION OF INTERVIEWEES

Passive Aggressive 101

U

nderstanding the banality of being assertive is a step everyone has to eventually take. So be passiveagressive! Here are some ways to get you started: To get into the right state of mind, channel

RACHEL TU (10) GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY FEATURES SECTION

all that unresolved anger. Yes, your life has been dif�icult, and no one has ever really acknowledged what you’ve been through. It’s time to �ight back. (Passively.)

Trying to say, “I don’t like you and never will?” What you’re looking for is something along the lines of mispronouncing their name over and over again, regardless of how many times they may try to correct you. If it’s “Josephine,” always pronounce it “Johanna” or “Jay Phizzle.” Even better, use the wrong name entirely. “Oh hi, Howard!”

Equally as important is the art of giftgiving. Say you can’t stand the way a friend conducts themself in public. Buy them a book on manners and say, “I shouldn’t have spent so much on this but it was so hilarious I know it’ll be worth it. Every page made me think of

you! Some of these things come right out of your mouth.”

The overarching factor? Insincerity. If you’re jealous of someone for getting the recognition that you deserve, warmly congratulate the person while making a point to rantblog about it later. Get people to read said post by bringing it up in conversation with a casual, “Has your internet been down?” and upon seeing the confused look on their face, say, “Oh, I thought that was it because you didn’t mention my blog post.” When in doubt, be boldly inactive.

Should there be a situation in which people approach you—with hands wringing and brows furrowed—diffuse the situation by failing to communicate. Be shocked and appalled at their distress, listen to their

troubles and categorically assure them that you had no bad intentions. Ask if there’s anything you can do to help with such effusive excess that they’re left even more distressed than before.

Help expand the language of Passiveagressive-inese by coming up with your own expressions. Whether it be a new way of asking, “Does this [anything, really] make me look fat?” to creatively not returning calls or texts, the options are endless.

This is how you get what you want. In all honesty, you might not be liked because people know what you’re up to, so it’s not that helpful, but now you know how it works.

Thank me later (or don’t, I’m �ine either way), Yunqing Chen

BY LAUREN TAI

I

t has been seven years since Justin Timberlake released a new album.

However, this hiatus has not stopped us from hearing news of Timberlake every so often. In these past seven years, Timberlake has ventured out in many �ields including a clothing line, a southern restaurant, multiple movies, and a Myspace investment, among many other. Now that he’s back, his album hits listeners with its own precedented freshness.

Timberlake’s presence has been dominating the spotlight these past few months and he sure knows how to keep the audience entertained.

He released his “Suit & Tie” single the night after the Emmy awards, as well the break of his new album coming up. His single topped the charts immediately the following morning. He released the single “Mirrors” after his performance on the Grammys, keeping himself in the spotlight. He released the tour dates and ticket sales of his Legends of Summer summer concert tour with Jay-Z before anyone heard the album in full.

Riding the hype, Timberlake allowed the public to stream The 20/20 Experience for free on iTunes the week leading up to its of�icial release on Mar. 19.

He has been continually building up to this ambiguous big thing, setting high expectations for what he was about to deliv-

Carrying the family legacy forward: Senior Kyle Williams gets appointed to the US Military Academy at West Point and continues his family’s tradition of serving in the military

BY JOY SHEN

JOEY LI —EPIC

B

ig things come in small packages. In late February, senior Kyle Williams received the one package he had been dreaming about since the age of 12: an acceptance to the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. For Williams, the acceptance marked the achievement of a childhood dream that ignited back in 2006.

“There was never really a point when I didn’t want to [serve in the military],” said Williams. “It’s been something I’ve wanted for as long as I can remember.”

Though he comes from a family with roots in both the United States and Italian military, Williams said he never felt pressured to serve by his family’s military history.

“The dream to serve was always my own,” said Williams. “It wasn’t really in�luenced by anyone.”

Williams’s journey began in 2006 with a visit to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado—older brother, and Lynbrook alumnus, Reese Williams had entered the academy earlier that year.

The two-day visitation allowed Williams to catch a glimpse of life as a cadet.

“I got to sit in on a military history class and eat lunch in the cafeteria,” said Williams.

“Everything was carried out in a very military fashion—everyone was always in formation.”

Though Williams had always known he wanted to serve, it was older brother Reese who instilled the desire in Williams to attend a military academy; hearing his older brother’s experiences inspired Williams to pursue a similar path.

The process for applying to a military academy differs from that of traditional colleges that students typically apply to. In addition to completing standardized testing and essays, Williams had to pass both a physical test and medical examination.

“Each candidate is evaluated on a standard broken down into 60% academia, 30% leadership and 10% physical testing,” said Williams. “The toughest part about the physical test was that the entire thing took place

er. And indeed, his new album, produced with Timbaland, does impress.

His �irst song, “Pusher Lover Girl” kicks the album off with a brief violin and orchestra sequence, an appropriate introduction signaling the audience to sit back and enjoy the show. His notable melodic voice then takes over, as the classic Timberlake R&B-pop beats are brought back to life once again.

It is hard to categorize all his songs into one genre without doing him injustice. He includes falsetto in “That Girl” and latin beats in “Let the Groove in,” proving his diverse musical prowess.

This album is meant to be listened in completion. It differs from his previous Justi�ied and FutureSex/LoveSounds albums in which there were many standalone, catchy songs. The 20/20 Experience includes 10 songs, each averaging around seven minutes each. Though the rather long run time, each song includes distinctive instrumentals that never leave the listeners bored.

Timberlake has returned to music for good but he nevertheless still remains a familiar face in the acting world. He hosted and performed on Saturday Night Live as well as acted in various skits and sang one song each night on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon—all the week leading up to his album release The 20/20 Experience is truly its own separate experience.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JOEY LI

in half an hour.” Williams was able to demonstrate superior physical capability, for his results indicate he scored above average on all but two sections of the test. While academic success and physical ability are both important components of the process, Williams emphasized the weight that leadership holds on the application. “I knew I would need to demonstrate a lot of leadership [throughout high school],” said Williams. Aware of this, Williams maintained a high academic record throughout his four years in high school while holding leadership positions in areas such as sports and student government.

Beyond demonstrating physical ability and academic merit, the application required Williams to secure a nomination from a member of Congress. Anna Eshoo, Congresswoman of California’s 18th congressional district, provided Williams with the nomination. “I told them my extracurricular activities and wrote two essays,” explained Williams. The last portion of Williams’s application for a congressional nomination was an interview with two local West Point alumni.

Though the process for applying to West Point involved various components, Williams was never discouraged by the task. “They give you a lot of time to do [the application] since it opened up in early August,” said Williams. “It didn’t feel tedious because the application didn’t just focus on one area.”

Upon graduating from the military academy, Williams will start out as a second lieutenant; he will also hold �ive years of active service. In the army, Williams hopes to center his work around military intelligence—speci�ically on matters related to cyber terrorism. After the completion of his �ive-year service, Williams has the choice of either serving more time or returning to being a civilian.

Though he is aware of the hard work, Williams doesn’t have any fears about the future.

“There are going to be a lot of tough tasks, but I think it’s all necessary in the end,” said Williams. “It’s not going to be easy, but it’ll be worth it.”

INSIDE A BEAU

BY SH

Q: Why did the chicken cross the road?

Senior Frank Wang’s dad fed him logic puzzles when he was little. Some days, he’d get riddles, and other days he’d get Sudoku puzzles. It taught him to think outside the box, to be curious about why and how things worked.

It was something he prided himself on—being able to think outside the box. In high school, he saw that it set him apart from those who were only pro�icient in test-based learning.

He began to convince himself that his ability to conceptually understand formulas was better than rote memorization, no matter the results. He believed that instead of working within the standards of testing, of focusing on the grade and the end result, he was “part of a whole other standard.” And when his grade suffered, he convinced himself that his unorthodox methods were still more valid than the kind of thinking taught in school.

But one day, at the end of his sophomore year, he looked around—and was faced with the realization that his purely abstract thinking really had no legitimacy. Then he wondered—was he really that much better than his peers, the ones who crammed formulas down their throats?

Curiosity never killed the cat But standards did.

At Lynbrook, the “bare minimum” comes down to excelling in quizzes, tests and �inals, which can make up over 50 percent of the overall grade depending on the course. Statewide, national and even international standardized testing such as California’s STAR test, SAT I and AP tests are given even more weight in college applications. Around 94 percent of Lynbrook’s Class of 2012 continued on to higher education compared to the national 63 percent reported by the National Center for Education Statistics. This increase in focus on higher education means that standardized testing has taken a greater part in learning than ever before.

“The tests are designed to look for one right answer,” said Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education Professor Edward Haertel. “Students realize that getting a high score is better than learning because we’ve attached strong rewards to scoring high. The test becomes an end in itself.”

Bloom’s Taxonomy, developed by Educational Psychologist Benjamin Bloom in 1956, categorizes cognitive learning into six domains: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation.

The �irst four categories of Bloom’s Taxonomy are based on convergent, left-brain thinking which involves retaining factual and logical information.

This is essentially what test makers are pressured to implement, and what test takers are pressured to respond with, according to Haertel.

On the other hand, divergent, right-brain thinking controls intuition and imagination. Creativity does not occur solely in this hemisphere of the brain. In fact, the last two stages of the taxonomy combine both convergent and divergent thinking.

But an overemphasis on convergent thinking perpetuated by standardized testing reduces the ability for students to master both types of thinking. Upon seeing they can meet the standards easily, high-achieving students may stop there, thus relying on purely convergent thinking to complete tasks. And eventually, this leads to frustration.

“I was never challenged conceptually,” he said. “But when the problems

got more complex, I couldn’t manipul

A collision of hemispheres When asked which academic sub dents named literature (see survey and English Department chair, said t creative thinking.

“Literature deals with life, and it ra said. “What are our motives? Our rea we live our lives? We don’t provide th What is provided are how the ques ing from Fahrenheit 451 in the freshm curriculum. Students are given the op riences with those in great literature as intuitive thinking with left-brain th What seems like a mainly intuitive convergent thinking as well. For insta essays the same way he does competi “Math forces you to think in a very wave, and you can’t just assume ‘x.’ Yo Whereas he writes out expansion the annotations and observations fro classi�ies each idea by theme before � Senior Eric Xu also exhibited conv Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishmen position. Not only did he already enco such as The Idiot, but he was also fami and Dostoyevsky’s religious beliefs.

“There are a lot of details in the b carefully,” he said. “But even that isn’t the background of the book, the tim to have an appreciation of the details those trends and ideas.”

In this regard, fact-based learning, test these trends and ideas—but only of learning. In another instance, Scien dinator Amanda Alonzo’s STEM class weeks she teaches bibliographic resea she acts as a coach, supervising exper designing their own labs.

“It’s hard and frustrating, because dures and processes without expens learn,” she said.

Similarly, history is grounded in p subject based on the consensus amon appears to be convergent thinking. Bu than rote memorization—it is also to it’s not just a series of facts, but that t and AP U.S. History (APUSH) teacher “The beauty of that is, over time,

TIFUL MIND

ANNON CHAI, IRENE HSU & SABRINA SHIE

ate concepts to solve the problems.”

ect required the most creativity, stuabove). Nelda Clark, English teacher hat literature was only one aspect of

aises big philosophical questions,” she sons behind our actions? How should e answers in class.” tions are dealt with in literature rangan curriculum to Hamlet in the senior portunity to compare their own expecombining right-brain thinking such inking such as critical thinking. or right-brain guided course involves nce, senior Jonathan Uesato writes his tive math—using logic and reasoning. rigorous way,” he said. “You can’t hand u have to justify.” s for polynomials, he also writes out m class discussions of book. He then nally piecing together his argument. ergent thinking while reading Fyodor for AP English Literature and Comounter Dostoyevsky’s previous works, liar with 19th century Russian history

ook you won’t get unless you read it enough—the details may come from e period in which it was written, so , you need to have an appreciation of

such as through tests, is important to when they are used as the �irst level ce Teacher and STEM Research Cooris structured so that for the �irst few rch in science. For the rest of the year, ments as students become creative in

you have to do these complex proceive equipment, but that’s where they

re-existing events. Students study the g leading historians, engaging in what ut in fact, the course goal is far greater “make continuity so you understand here is cause and effect,” said Regular Kyle Howden. what was once deemed the right an-

Unleashing creativity in a two-dimensional system

swer can be revised and changed,” Howden said. “Yes, you have certain facts, but what that fact means and how it’s relevant can change over time.”

As a result, Howden establishes early on in the school year a focus on historiography through Socratic Seminars, which students prepare for through reading primary and secondary source materials—synthesizing both convergent and divergent thinking.

“People can arrive at different conclusions using the same questions, facts and information,” he said. “It forces you to think critically about the other side, to refute and address the topic.”

Socratic Seminars are also used in Alonzo’s classes. She once did a seminar on stem cell research, and it quickly snowballed into an ethical, political and religious discussion.

“The disciplines are so separate from each other,” Alonzo said about the way the sciences are taught in high school. “Really, biology, chemistry and physics are inseparable. They should go hand in hand. But the way the textbook is modeled does not re�lect that.”

Classes that had promoted more inter- and intradisciplinary thinking have been slowly stripped away over the years. The freshman integrated science class, focusing on the interaction of chemistry, physics and biology was taken away in 2001, due to complaints that the course wasn’t rigorous enough. The creative writing elective, Vertigo, promoted the application of writing techniques analyzed in literature classes but was dropped from the course catalogue due to departmental budget restraints.

Teachers such as Howden have also felt the pinch of standardized testing. His classes are paced according to the �inal test dates—STAR at the end of April, and APUSH at the beginning of May, respectively. This means over 300 years of history is crammed into less than nine months of school.

“There’s a saying that less is more in curriculum,” Haertel said. “Students would learn better if we explored less topics in more depth.”

Doing so in public schools would require a change in the entire education system—impossible, considering the scope. So students are left to their own devices.

Road blocks versus dead ends In his freshman year, Uesato failed �ive of six �lute auditions before he realized something was wrong. He has been playing the �lute since sixth grade, but up until a few years ago, his music was only a re�lection of his study habits—going through the motions without thinking. To apply Bloom’s Taxonomy to music, he only reached knowledge, comprehension and application through sight-reading and regurgitating the sheet music.

For three years, he had been able to slip by with the bare minimum—but this was a wake-up call.

One aspect of creative thinking is adaptive �lexibility, according to Becky J. Thurston and Mark A. Runco’s Encyclopedia of Creativity. The ability to treat failure as a challenge, rather than a threat, comes from an ability to harness creativity. And Uesato, as it turns out, was able to do just that.

In the course of three months, Uesato adjusted his mindset towards music to the one he had toward math. Competitive math had required Uesato to actively engage concepts and formulas he had used to solve a problem.

For every piece he played, he examined everything from the dynamics to

the phrasing, synthesizing and evaluating the way he combined prior musical knowledge with this understanding of the piece at hand. The result?

He made California Band Directors Association High School All-State Band.

“When you’re cruising by, there’s no incentive to rethink how you’re doing things,” he said. “Failing forces you to reanalyze and rethink, about �inetuning. It’s always about taking it to the next level.”

It didn’t stop there. The experience forced him to realize that his previous attitude toward music was part of a bigger �law in work ethic.

Wang’s epiphany toward the end of sophomore year was similar. Aside from the epiphany that Wang had experienced, he also purposely sets up challenges for himself. An example? His AP Physics coursework. Wang sometimes does problems in multiple ways, thus engaging in both convergent and divergent thinking. He draws from not just physics equations learned in the course, but concepts from calculus as well.

“When you take the roundabout way, you can see how the equations interact with each other,” he said. “It’s only when you have a strong understanding of different subjects that you can manipulate them to draw similarities that aren’t for granted, that are more than strange coincidences.”

He encountered this while working with design. As a graphic designer of four years and a photographer of �ive years, Wang initially took for granted the concepts he knew intuitively. But starting junior year, he began to question his intuition—why were certain thing in and out of focus? Why did certain colors look better together?

He encountered examples such as Standards Manual, containing original typefaces and signs of the New York Subway Transit Authority. The �irst edition reveal designs marked by angle measurements and lengths—an interaction of convergent logic and reasoning and divergent creativity.

It was then that he understood the importance of bilateral thinking—he said, “There was a greater legitimacy, a level I had not reached yet. When you’re exposed to these complexities, you see a greater amount of precision, you appreciate the details that go into them.”

Though he does not currently apply these concepts to his designs, he said, “As you get better, it’d be more important to do things reproducibly.

The way I go about it is more empirical, but the answer to it can be found through just looking and seeing.”

A: To get to the other side While compiling this centerspread, we noticed a pattern developing with those we interviewed, whether they be students or teachers. They would respond to our questions with more questions.

“What are our motives?” Clark asked.

“Why should you care about a speci�ic event?” Howden asked.

“What makes a solution elegant?” Uesato asked.

As Wang said, “If you ask, ‘Why?’ enough times, you’ll realize that everything is really interconnected.”

At the end of the day, creative thinking will always be a choice. No matter how elegant the formula of Euler’s Identity, no matter how powerful the message in The Great Gatsby, perhaps there is only one thing can provoke creativity: curiosity.

Pinpointing personalities with Myers-Briggs

BY JESSICA CAO

O

riginally developed in the 1920s for personnel selection in the armed forces, personality tests are meant to reveal aspects of an individual’s character.

At Lynbrook, students can take a learning style and personality test based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test (see middle graphic). They are shown pairs of theoretical descriptions and situations and then asked to choose which one they are more similar to, or how they would most likely react, in order to assess which of the 16 personalities in the inventory they �it.

“I think [mainstream personality tests] have been vetted enough that they’re generally valid assuming the respondent answers honestly and take the test seriously,” said Dr. Brittany Stevens, school psychologist. Personality tests like MyersBriggs created based on norm groups, which are large groups of people that psychologists use to represent the population for which the test is intended for, and use for scoring and percentile rankings. Popular ones have been tested on thousands of people nationally and internationally.

Currently, Lynbrook students take the Vark Learning Styles Survey as freshmen.

They also take the career clusters pro�iler as sophomores.

“We do a little each year because we think it helps students get to know who they are and what their interests are,” Guidance Counselor Jenny Dumas said. “We also feel that students grow and change each year. If the students take these various tests, we hope that they gain insight to what type of person they are.”

Stevens said that students could use their personality test results to �igure out which electives they would be good at or enjoy.

“Certain electives like drama rely on spontaneity and presenting in front of others,” she said. “In the culinary arts you have to enjoy structure and planning and being organized.

There’s some degree of overlap in things like creativity, but they’re still pretty different.”

On the other hand, the counseling staff at Valley Christian High School (VCHS) administers the Highlands Ability Battery, which uses timed tasks designed to put pressure on the test-taker to pinpoint their innate abilities.

“We liked the Highlands test because the results don’t change once you’re about fourteen,” explained VCHS Counselor Sonia Avilucea. “If you take it four years from now or 20

years from now, you’ll get the same results because it measures your natural ability.”

The Highlands is an online test, with 19 sections that takes three to four hours. Unlike personality tests, only one section requires self-reported answers. The other 18 instead consist of tasks that have to be completed. After �inishing, the test-taker has a conference with a Highlands af�iliate who interprets t h e

results in their 30page report.

Personal style, or the way somebody approaches their work; driving abilities, or the abilities that must be used in one’s chosen career; and specialized abilities, or the abilities that enhance one’s daily life, are explained. “Introvert,” “extrovert,” “generalist,” “specialist” and “time frame” fall under the personal style category as separate percentile rankings.

Specialists have unique points of view and like to work as in-

dividuals. Time frame is the span of time projected and considered when making future plans or working on projects.

“Classi�ication,” “concept organization,” “idea productivity,” “spatial relations theory” and “spatial relations visualization” are driving abilities. Specialized abilities aren’t as important; an example would be number memory, which is the ability to memorize lots of random numbers. Junior Rachel Song took the Highlands in the middle of her sophomore year and remembers it as a stressful experience.

Song said, “I was just a �irst semester sophomore and I knew little about myself, much less what I was going to do in the future, so having everything so explicitly laid out for me was shocking, almost disturbing. That my personality type could be categorized and grouped, that my future goals and careers could be tailored to my character—it was just unexpected.”

In Avilucea’s experience, the Highlands test has been fairly accurate. “We have given the test to over 200 students and adults. I would say 99 percent of them thought the results were right on target.”

Being aware of weaknesses can also help students �igure out what careers they should pursue ad adults: ones where they can avoid completely or get around their shortcomings.

When the school was �irst deciding whether to administer the Highlands, the entire of�ice staff at VCHS took the test. One coworker disagreed with the results, which everyone else thought were accurate.

“He �igured out he was not suited to be a counselor, left after two years and ended up doing what the Highlands indicated he would be suited for,” explained Avilucea.

Personality and ability tests can be useful for students who don’t know themselves very well or are unsure of what career path they should take.

Stevens said, “If you are more self-aware about what makes you function and potential roadblocks to your performance, being informed always helps your decisions.”

Stevens said that being a school psychologist rather than working alone in a private practice �its her own extroverted personality because she interacts with other people throughout the workday instead of sitting isolated in an of�ice.

Song was so overwhelmed by her results that she decided to never look at her report again. “I want to learn about myself and my abilities on my own,” said Song. “I know some people will �ind the Ability Battery as useful guidance for steering them in the “right” direction, but who is to say what is “right” for you but yourself?”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY THE INDEPTH SECTION

Personality Expertise

I

t all started when I told my parents last year with utter seriousness that I wanted to go to art school. To be more speci�ic, about a month into junior year, whilst load-

ed up with homework from four AP classes.

Lots of crying and yelling ensued. Questions like, “How will you even make a living” and “Do you even have the talent?” were brought up many, many times.

My mom then heard from a family friend about the Highlands Ability Battery, and how accurate/reliable/magical the assessment was. I, being con�ident in my suitability as a product designer, agreed to take the test and write the $350 check. All my parents had to do was sign it. They thought the cost was completely reasonable if it could save them from spending hundreds of thousands of dollars only for incompetent me to drop out of art school in the future.

Taking the test was actually pretty fun. I

mostly used it as an excuse to procrastinate on schoolwork, but it was gratifying to do well on the parts that I guessed had something to do with design and the arts.

During the conference, which I dragged my parents to, Sonia Avilucea, a counselor at Valley Christian High School, showed us a presentation summary of my results as we �lipped through the report. I thought it was really accurate, but as a Myers-Briggs INTP I didn’t learn much about myself since I spend most of my time in my head anyway. I liked reading about the explanations for my categories. For example, Classi�ication is a nonverbal, non logical ability. I had a really high score, which means I can easily and quickly see patterns and relationships among data

and objects. Basically, while you slowpokes are still going from A to B, I’m already at Z and sorry, I literally can’t explain to you how I got there.

After taking the test, which indicated that yes, because of my good design memory, high idea productivity, good spatial relations theory and high observation I am suited to be a product designer, my parents accepted the results. Personally, it was worth it because it got my parents off my back. I’d recommend it to anyone with enough self-esteem to take the facts and use the results accordingly. It reassured me about my future, and I think that anyone who feels deterred by their results shouldn’t give up, instead try to be �lexible about their opinions.

Tracing the trail of data mining

BY EESHA KHARE Each day, the funny YouTube videos watched about goats screaming like humans and the Wikipedia facts searched for a history project are tracked and compiled to create an online pro�ile of every Internet user. In a Technology, Entertainment and Design talk, Mozilla CEO Gary Kovacs said, “Just as the Internet has opened up the world to each and every one of us, it has also opened up each and everyone of us to the world.”

Data mining is the process of collecting and gathering big data that Internet users release online through online shopping websites, social media portals and Internet searches. Data mining allows information about personal

preferences to be derived from the common patterns in the data. Data companies create a database of information from market and consumer data technologies and sell information to companies.

For example, if the company buys a pixel tag from Macy’s store website, they can sell it to another similar company such as Nordstrom. Nordstrom can then target that same Macy’s customer by giving them discount advertisements. In fact, the reason many free online search engines and sites such as Google and Facebook offer free services is because they make a pro�it from the collection of user information. As a result of this data collection, ads can be customized to match speci�ic customer pro�iles. However, the negative aspect is that many feel that unknown companies collecting information about them unfairly violates their private lives.

While junior Rohit Sarathy is not a proponent of “dissemination of private data in internet tracking,” from the perspective of any business, he said, “It’s de�initely very helpful to draw the right customers, assuming businesses uphold their terms of service and privacy policies.”

According to Google’s privacy policy, it collects information given when registering for a Google Account and from use of its services including information from devices, Internet protocol addresses and locations. Google uses the information “to provide, maintain, protect and improve them, to develop new [services].” In addition, they only share information with other compa-

nies outside of Google with consent or for legal reasons. Facebook is similar in its policy but because it is a site meant for sharing, it stresses “risks inherent in sharing information,” including risks of being hacked or viewed by a third party.

Senior Quinn Winters has taken measures to prevent himself from being tracked.

Winters uses DuckDuckGo, a search engine which doesn’t track usage. Winter’s main concern is, “I do �ind it creepy that Google knows everything about my search history.

I don’t trust big companies with information about the websites I visit.”

He said, “I don’t think that it’s any of anyone else’s business to know what I do on the Internet as long as it’s not harmful. It’s analogous to a conversation; you don’t let people listen in on your conversations, so why should you let them track your Internet usage especially companies like Google that are only looking to make a pro�it?”

While Internet tracking may appear to be disadvantageous to customers, it facilitates the web browsing process by tailoring results to speci�ic types of people.

The browser screens through and customizes selections based on what the user prefers. Websites install cookies, which anonymously track and record how many times the user visits the page and which other sites the user visits to form a pro�ile of the searcher and his or her interests.

Sarathy said, “For example, if I was talking about what kind of track shoes I want to buy, Google sometimes puts a small Nike banner ad on top of the email.”

Pro�iles of people on the Internet can also

be useful when it comes to college interviews and researching information about the interviewer. Senior Myung-Geun Chi frequently uses Internet searches to prepare for his interview beforehand by �inding out his interviewer’s general résumé. Having information about his interviewers helps him know which of his activities to focus on so that the interviewer can understand better.

Additionally, the openness of the Internet is an advantage to many people who use social networking sites.

Senior Alice Lu is a frequent Tumblr user and has over 18,500 followers on the site. She said, “More people get to see what I post and I get a lot more exposure than most people on Tumblr. It also means that more people know who I am.”

Lu however is willing to make the tradeoff between security and convenience.

She said, “Tumblr wouldn’t be the same experience it is if everyone cared about their security.” Because many of her friends on Tumblr are willing to share their information, she said that it makes the experience more of a “friendly interaction.” Lu is aware that sharing too much personal information is dangerous, but feels that because everyone is sacri�icing his or her own information, it is an equal trade-off.

While there are many advantages and disadvantages in data mining on the Internet, it is ultimately up to the Internet user to be careful about using certain websites or use software that prevents data collection.

Growing up as a witness to autism GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY THE INDEPTH SECTION

Students share challenging and rewarding experiences of having autistic siblings

BY SABRINA JEN & RANI MAVRAM

W

hen sophomore Samantha Khan was eight years old, her younger sister, Sabrina Khan, smashed her hands into a china closet after being yelled at for spilling juice on the carpet. Khan and her family later found out that the piece of glass in her wrist was nearly one centimeter away from a major vein.

This instance was not out of everyday carelessness, but rather due to Sabrina Khan’s autism. According to the Autism Society of America, autism is a mental disability that inhibits a person’s ability to interact with others and currently in�luences several Lynbrook family dynamics and relationships.

Students with autistic siblings agree that in many ways, their relationships are typical sibling relationships; they just have different challenges. Sabrina Khan was diagnosed with autism at the age of three, and although Khan does not mind that other people know about her sister’s condition, she said that it is sometimes dif�icult for other people to understand what being autistic means. Khan said, “I can’t explain how much it hurts when I see her being left out.”

Freshman Raaghav Minocha, whose older brother Rishabh Minocha currently attends Coryell Autism Center, a school for young people with autism, says his family situation has raised untypical challenges.

“For instance, if we’re going out to a restaurant for dinner, we kind of have to play it safe and go to restaurants Rishabh is used to going to, because new places are somewhat of a challenge for him,” said Minocha. As a result, he has developed more empathy and understanding.

In addition, though Samantha Khan has a close relationship with her sister, Khan feels more pressure to impress her parents with her success because of Sabrina Khan’s condi-

tion. “I know that all that my mom has ever dreamt about is based on my accomplishments and my future, and she doesn’t really have a backup because of my sister.”

Because Rishabh Minocha is older, Minocha’s family hope that he will eventually be able to become as independent as possible. “Our goals for him may seem simple for most people, like washing the dishes or doing typical chores,” said Minocha regarding his brother, “but for my family, it is great improvement whenever we see my brother learn something new.”

Despite these challenges, students say that their relationships with autistic siblings have taught them valuable lessons. Taking care of her sister has taught her responsibility, patience and tolerance. Khan admits that at times, she is bothered by the glances that her sister and family receive when they are together in public. “It’s really embarrassing,” she said, when her sister ran after some children at the park who were running away from her because of her differences. “I know that it’s not right, and it isn’t her fault, but sometimes, I just can’t help it.”

Minocha said, “I know what it’s like to have people looking at me in public, and I wouldn’t want to make someone else uncomfortable as well. I’m not going to go around judging everyone so I try to include everyone, because I know what it feels like to not be able to be a part of something.”

Students say that despite the differences, some aspects of their siblinghood has stayed the same. Minocha respects the fact that his brother is older, just as if he was any older brother. “My

brother knows that he’s older than me, and I think that it is really important,” said Minocha.

Current Special Education teacher, Jennifer TaylorSmith, was in�luenced to work in the �ield after a similar experience with a cousin with special needs. She admits that if it hadn’t been for her previous experience with her cousin, she would not have had the job she has today.

“I really enjoy working with the students with autism,” said Taylor-Smith. “I know how hard it can be to get them to smile, but when they smile about the simplest things, it’s just the best thing in the world.”

For most students, a sibling is someone who they can express their anger at or joke around with. While some assume that living with an autistic sibling is dif�icult at times, both Khan and Minocha value their relationships and view their circumstances as character-building experiences.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY THE INDEPTH SECTION

Disparity erodes family relations

BY DHIRAJ NALLAPOTH ULA & YONATAN ZEMLYAK For senior Kimberly Vaz and younger brother, sophomore Kenneth Vaz, favoritism has been a con�licting issue ever since they were young.

As a young child, Kenneth Vaz felt that he had a connection with his father. They seemed to have a lot in common and would spend time bonding through various activities. As the years went by, however, it was evident to him that the connection that existed long ago was slowly deteriorating.

“I felt that he used to favor me, but after a while he slowly turned over and started to favor my sister more,” said Kenneth Vaz. “She’s a lot like my dad in the sense that she has the same passions as him, like reading.”

According to Psychologist Sandy Chin, there is no single reason why parents favor one child over another.

For instance, it could arise because of similar temperaments between the parent and the child, personality traits of the child or birth order.

In contrast, Kimberly Vaz feels that there has been consistency within her family but feels her parents favored her brother when they were younger.

“Over time I realized that it was just a responsibility I had to accept, and that parents would end up taking sides in most arguments,” said Kimberly Vaz. Chin said that the long term effects

of favoritism can cause detrimental psychological effects to children such as depression, anxiety and poor self esteem.

Kimberly Vaz believes that her parents are simply trying to show their concern for her brother. “They pay more attention to him and put more restrictions on him because they want him to succeed,” said Kimberly Vaz. Sophomore twins Josh and Dolly Yuan have also experienced favoritism with their parents.

“When favoritism is a con�lict, it is usually well deserved by one of us. Every time else, it washes over soon,” said Josh Yuan.

Chin explains that the detrimental effects of sibling favoritism are that, “Parents may inadvertently contribute to sibling rivalry or competition by comparing one child versus the other.”

The Yuan twins feel that if it really does exist, it is temporary, and is not a consistent issue at home.

Dolly Yuan cites the twins’ mutual agreement to always support one another as an example.

“I think yes, as twins, we are closer and I always feel like I should protect him or stick with him instead of trying to be better than him. Once, Joshua was getting

Summer Program Starts

6/24/2013

scolded about his grades. I was minding my own business upstairs, but soon I couldn’t take it anymore. I rushed downstairs and told my parents that he wouldn’t let his own grades slip, and that he was responsible. We often do things like that for each other.”

For the full version of the story, visit www.lhs.epic.com

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY SARAH TARTER

ALL IN FOR THE LADY VIKES

The success of the Lady Vikes has generated a type of March “madness” fueled by riveting games and dazzling comebacks

BY IZZY KIPNIS

A

s the stressful last �ive minutes of the NorCal semi�inals played out on March 11, the entire home side of the gym stood up in anticipation and support.

That day, the varsity girls’ basketball team made Lynbrook history when they defeated Presentation High School ensuring their place in the NorCal �inals in a rematch with competitors from St. Francis High School.

Prior to NorCals, the Lady Vikes placed third in Central Coast Section (CCS) Championships after losing a close game against St. Francis. At CCS, they played Sacred Heart Cathedral on Feb 22, St. Francis on Feb 27, and Wilcox on Feb 28. Varsity coach Cynthia Ting said, “We faced a tough St. Francis team in the second game, and sometimes it just doesn’t go our way. We learned from that game, and it gave us new things to work on in practice.”

After a successful CCS experience, the team was ready to dominate in NorCals. Senior Jacqueline Hudepohl (pic-

tured far left) said, “Winning a couple of CCS games de�initely gave us a lot of con�idence. CCS helped us come together as a team. We also realized that we were extremely capable of coming back from a de�icit.” The girls have learned throughout the season to not give up in a game if they fall behind.

When playing Sacred Heart Cathedral in CCS on Feb 22, the Lady Vikes were behind by seven points, but came through and won 46-44.

On March 9, in the NorCal quarter�inals against Alameda High School, the team won 47-39 with a full crowd of support. Students of all varieties had come to support the Lady Vikes in their NorCal games. Sophomore Sarah Kim said, “I’ve never seen so many people at a school basketball game. It felt like a rally.” This competition has helped classes come together for a common cause rather than compete against one another as is typically witnessed at school functions.

The administration is in full support of the Lady Vikes and has seen many positive results from their success. Assistant Principal of Activities David Erwin said, “I see so many stu-

dents coming together. They �illed our gym, they are interested in riding a spirit bus, there is a lot of positive buzz on campus and students are feeling proud of their school.

Our school has a lot to be proud of and this athletic accomplishment is one more great moment in school history.”

Across campus, Lynbrook spirit can be witnessed through signs for players, school announcements and a spirit rally. Online, people showed their pride by changing their pro�ile pictures and by creating event pages for games. Starter senior Emily Fong said, “It was awesome to have their support and it made us feel like what we’re doing is important and special. I’m happy to see that our school is able to unify in events like these.”

Having school-wide support has helped the girls push through in times like NorCal quarter�inals. Hudepohl said, “The crowd really helped keep our energy up and aided our second half run.” In addition, Fong said, “Regardless of the score, we always felt like we were in the game. The fans motivated us to play harder.”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY SPORTS SECTION

March Madness used to create excitement around girls’ basketball

BY NIKITA DHESIKAN The annual March Madness tournament was from March 4 to March 8. It consisted of four rounds of single-elimination 3 versus 3 games played over the course of one week. The last team standing took on the teachers, who won for the �irst time in �ive years.

In addition to encouraging school unity and spirit, this year’s tournament had a goal of building excitement and rallying support for girls’ varsity basketball team making it to the �inal round of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Division II Championships.

“We’re trying to get people excited about basketball, and as a result, we hope to increase the attendance and support for our girls’ varsity basketball team,” said ASB Athletics Commissioner senior Alex Tsai.

This year’s tournament was between the �irst and second round games of the CIF Championships, making it a kind of a countdown leading up to the game on March 9.

Since the two tournaments took place during the same week, none of the girls’ varsity players were able to take part

in March Madness due to fatigue and injury concerns.ness, I wish I could’ve played. Unfortunately, it’s a trade-off coming down to playing in March Madness or playing in Norcals. I gladly would take the latter,” said senior Emily Fong.

By the third day of play, teams Shay Mitchell and Cu$co Deluxe moved on to the �inals, in which Cu$co Deluxe won.

“Winning is fantastic. I wasn’t planning on participating in the tournament, but I’m glad I did. It was fun to see all the talent,” said freshman Nikkia Hamidi of Cu$co Deluxe.

“Winning was a nice change since the students usually dominate. I just enjoy playing,” said Jeremy Dybdahl, who played on the teachers’ team.

In addition to building school unity, the March Madness tournament achieved the goal of rallying support for the girls’ varsity basketball team, as a record number of Lynbrook students were present at the second-round CIF Championships game on March 9 and the third-round game on March 12.

“March Madness and the girls’ basketball success have really united us as a school. As an Athletics Commissioner, it’s fantastic to see the school supporting the girls’ basketball team,” said ASB Athletics Commissioner junior Annette Ma.

JOEY LI—EPIC

DRIBBLING TO THE HOOP| Senior Danny Ngyuen crosses over on his defender, sophomore Andy Shen, as he drives from the top of the key.

The art of equestrianism

BY KHAYA BHATIA

Give martial arts better recognition

B

efore discovering martial arts, I feared the apocalyptic rise of my body fat. I was never into sports, since balls had an af�inity for eating my face. It’s not that sports are terrible, they’re actually really fun if you’re good at them; I wasn’t.

Starting martial arts at a young age and growing up with it, I proved somewhat able in that aspect and happily so, since all I needed was my body and enough room, and it appealed to me in a particular manner that separated it from other sports.

When I came to Lynbrook however, it turned out that the only martial arts-centered program was the Aikido club. I believe Lynbrook hasn’t had any other martial arts programs due to a lack of teachers to administer to the club, and equipment such as protection gear and weapons. Martial arts also teaches how to attack.

Still, regardless of the weaknesses of having a martial arts club or program in school, I hold true to my belief that, if treated correctly, martial arts could be a great addition to Lynbrook. Martial arts is centered around the body and the mind, and I think that this is the roots of learning, something that should be learned and shared. The advantages could help each Lynbrook individual.

From the years I spent at Lynbrook, I realized that the students here have engaging personalities that would be interesting to see expressed in the form of martial arts. It can be considered an art form as well as a sport since it requires creativity and skill to create styles speci�ic to the person. The difference between sports like basketball and martial arts is that instead of working in a unit, your body is the team, so you have to make a martial art form that takes advantage of your skill set and expresses yourself as a person.

Remember those old kung fu action movies and you’ll remember that martial arts practices discipline, respect, honor, obedience and self-control. The thing about martial arts is that it builds character since it is taught based on martial arts’ roots; whether it originates from Korea or Japan, learning includes the ultimate respect. Lynbrook is based on achieving fantastic goals like getting an A in an AP course, but eventually we have to crawl out of our crib while knowing how to control ourselves and to treat others.

Martial arts can also be considered a stress-reliever. Not in the sense that I break bricks whenever I do badly on a test, but that I am forced to focus when practicing martial arts, which can actually become quite relaxing. In a school like Lynbrook, relieving oneself of stress is a priority that could help improve not only grades but inner peace.

I was and still am disappointed that besides the Aikido club there hasn’t been much noise for martial arts at Lynbrook. I know you Bruce Lees, Jet Lis and Jackie Chans are out there. I have seen someone spinningback kicking into the air. For what reason, I had no idea, but I could tell he was skilled and capable of sharing his martial arts knowledge. If a club or an organization was created in which several types of martial arts could meet up, new styles and new types of martial arts could be introduced to others.

I barely hear of the martial artists that wander on Lynbrook’s grounds. Once martial arts are rightfully recognized, the next Bill Gates that emerges from our school will be able to chop down any obstacle, literally.

S

he climbed down from the horse, shaking from her �irst ride but loving the thrill of the experience. At that moment, a lifelong love for riding horses grew within senior Molly Cummins.

Though equestrianism, commonly known as horseback riding, is a sport less prevalent at Lynbrook, the students who have a passion for this sport believe that their experiences as an equestrian have shaped who they are today.

Cummins started taking lessons at the age of seven and now works at Woodside Ranch training ponies. She was inspired to do equestrianism by her sister, but it was her love for horses that pushed her to take lessons. In April 2011, she discovered that equestrianism runs in her birth family. “I honestly believe a big part of my passion for horseback riding runs in my blood,” Cummins said. “I was separated from my parents at birth, but I found out my dad is a cowboy and participates in rodeos and so did his dad.”

Cummins rides at a private barn in

Woodside but travels around California for competitions. She has competed �ive times in Sacramento, Garrod Hills and Woodside for English riding and speed jumping. At competitions, the judges grade based on equitation—which is the rider’s skill—and pleasure, which is the horse’s natural ability. At every competition, she has won �irst place for equitation and last place for pleasure. Cummins feels that participating in competitions has shaped her personality today.

“Competitions have made my personality more relaxed,” said Cummins. “I’ve noticed that the people who do best at the competitions are the people who don’t stress out their horses or themselves.”

Though Cummins has a competitive streak, she believes that horseback riding should be fun and laid-back; she wants people to love horseback riding and feel a new energy after coming off a horse.

“Horseback riding can be really relaxing or it can be the biggest adrenaline rush in the world. It’s so much fun. It’s important to have fun and not take it too seriously,” she said. “Constantly trying

to improve yourself within your sport is great but if you’re no longer having fun, it’s not worth it.”

In the future, Cummins hopes to pursue her love for equestrianism while going to school. Although being an equestrian is time consuming, she feels that it has a positive effect on her academics and wants to continue her balance of academics and equestrianism at college.

“I’m going to Arizona State University (ASU) next year, and I plan on trying out for their competitive equestrian team,” said Cummins. “If I make it, I’ll have the opportunity to compete against students from colleges across the U.S., which is really exciting.”

When asked why she feels so passionately about the sport, Cummins replied, “When I do jumping with my horse it is scary but it is so much fun at the same time. While people think being an equestrian means being an individual, it is also a team sport. There’s you and your horse.”

To �ind more information about sophomores Susie Mallison and Michaela Ranieri, please visit lhsepic.com

RIDING OFF INTO THE SUNSET| Senior and equestrian Molly Cummins maintains proper form as she enjoys a ride on Peter, her Dutch Warmblood.

JOEY LI—EPIC

New hurdles coach lifts track team

BY PRASANN RANADE

W

ith the addition of new co-coach Eric Surprenant to help out current coaches Ray Wright and Jake White, the track and �ield team hopes to improve its performance at meets.

Surprenant, a Lynbrook Class of 2008 graduate and a CCS 300 meter hurdles champion, wants to shift the focus of track and �ield from individual events to the unity of the team. He plans to achieve this goal by increasing his interactions with the athletes to create a more encouraging and constructive environment. In addition, he seeks to emphasize the team aspect of track and �ield through his focus on team spirit.

“I want everyone to come together, de�initely as a team.” said Surprenant. “At the end of the day, it’s the team’s score which brings the team to the place and not necessarily the individual that gets us there.”

Likewise, senior Ethan Chiou also be-

lieves in calling attention to how track and �ield is not simply a sport that highlights certains individuals but a sport that requires camaraderie among the team.

“You can de�initely see that we’re doing things more as a team,” said senior Ethan Chiou. “A lot of people see track as an individual sport because ‘Oh, I’m here and I’m running.’

People don’t understand that track is a team sport, so to speak.”

Surprenant attributes his success as an athlete in track and �ield to his coaches through high school and college, and to his great amount of practice. Even though he originally did not like running, his coaches in track and �ield encouraged him to try it out and motivated him to keep going.

“I’m lucky I had the opportunity to experience track and �ield in a lot of postseason, so that was really great to compete with some of the best in the area and meet some of the best runners,” said Surprenant. “What really kept me in were the coaches because they kept it positive and encouraged me.”

Likewise, Surprenant’s achievements inspire the athletes to continue.

“Because he ran track in college and he’s very good at it, he’s an expert at more things than our coaches do because some of the other coaches are not necessarily track coaches,” said Chiou.

Surprenant plans to improve practices by implementing practice strategies he has gained from experience with various coaches through high school and college.

“A lot of times coaches have to teach by auditory but I’m also able to teach them with a visual,” said Surprenant. “If they need it visually, I’m not afraid to show them.”

In addition, his new style for practices has helped improve the speed of the entire team because his workouts focus around speed and sprint training.

“Since he joined our team, the whole structure of practice has shifted,” said senior Shaelyn Silverman. “Now, even the distance runners are doing a whole different regime of workouts than we’ve ever done before, and I really think it’s helped. His training and his coaching style have helped make the team overall faster.”

The team has only had two meets so far, the Andy Anderson Relays scrimmage meet at Santa Clara High School and a dual meet against Los Altos High School. They hope to demonstrate the improved performance of their hurdlers at the next meet against Gunn High School on March 21.

Boys’ volleyball spikes to victory

BY MICHELLE SU

A

fter the graduation of six seniors from the varsity boys’ volleyball team last year, the team has worked to develop their younger players.

Despite having fewer seniors than last year, the team has played well so far.

“Last year, we had big hitters who could hit the ball hard and fast any time we set it to them. It’s not necessarily bad that we’ve lost some of these players, though now we can’t just rely on big hitters,” said senior Victor Xu. Coach Peter Kim sees this as an opportunity to create more of a team effort, sensing that “[the players] have a renewed sense of excitement this year because there are more new people, and [they] don’t have those seniors to rely on heavily.” Sophomore Ali Khan, who moved up to varsity this year, believes that the team needs to focus on playing together.

He said, “It’s been tough so far, though we just need time to get used to everyone, and we’ll get better as time progresses.”

Kim is working to make less experienced players more developed by giving younger members more playing time.

“Right now, I kind of want to see where people are at, and if they’re going to succeed in a position or not,” said Kim. Co-captains juniors Don Kim and Connor Wen agree that despite having three sophomores and six juniors, the team has much potential if they work hard. “Our team is relatively short compared to others, so we need to play smarter. Some of our younger players also have a tendency to become more timid when we go on a slump, and we need to be able to stay aggressive throughout the game,” said Wen. Other aspects that the players are work-

Return of key players helps out boys’ tennis

BY JAMES WILHELMI

JOEY LI—EPIC

GOING UP TOP| Sophomores Ali Khan, right, and Numair Baseer reject an opposing player’s spike.

ing on are quickness on their feet for defense and playing more collectively.

Wen, a setter for the team, now has to put more thought into who he gives the ball to. “I’m forced to make smarter decisions as the setter because I can’t just hit it to one player and let him bounce the ball. I have to choose between four equal players, and there’s a lot more strategy involved,” said Wen.

PRASANN RANADE—EPIC

Having won all �ive of their pre-season games so far, the team believes that as long as they stay focused and passionate, they can go far regardless of how many seniors they have. Kim said, “They’re going to get better. Being in this league is going to be a test for them, but this is why we’re in the tough league, and this is why we do all these things to play well off-season—so we can get better.”

PRASANN RANADE—EPIC

Bolstered by a few talented newcomers, a more experienced veteran group and a key player’s return from injury, the boys’ tennis team believes that it is prepared for a run at the league championship.

The team is hoping that an in�lux of talent will be the boost it needs to launch itself into contention with new arrivals coming from both within the program and outside it. Many of the team’s new members have been developed internally, having played for the JV team last year. The team’s lone addition from outside the program is sophomore Maxim Baban, who attended Archbishop Mitty High School in the 2011-12 school year and played tennis there.

He transferred over the summer and now plays a vital role as varsity’s third-ranked singles player.

“Our team has as much talent as the team at Mitty,” Baban said. “I was unsure of how good the team would be at Lynbrook, but I’m surprised by the effort that many of our top players put in. There is a lot of talent here.”

This year’s team will also be aided by having an experienced group of top players back. Last year, varsity’s �irst and second-ranked singles players were both underclassmen, which is quite a rarity in high school tennis. Junior David Hsu and sophomore Satyajit Simhadri return as the top two singles players this year. According to Simhadri, playing on varsity as a freshman was quite a learning experience. It was his �irst time playing competitive team tennis, in which multiple matches combine to determine the outcome, rather than the individual tournaments that he was accustomed to. “I learned that we have to work as a unit to win,” Simhadri said. “Although tennis is an individual sport, at the high school level the game is a team sport. How the team does is what matters.”

Another factor that will help the team improve is the return of junior team captain Eric Chuu.

Last March, Chuu felt pain in his shoulder during a match. Rather than withdraw, Chuu kept playing and aggravated the injury. He continued to play through the pain, but the hurt shoulder did not allow Chuu to play with his aggressive style. In the following months Chuu struggled to control his passion for the game, as he wished to play so much that he rushed his rehabilitation and prolonged the recovery time for his injury. His shoulder �inally healed in January, however, allowing him to put aside his frustrations and return to the game.

“The experience was pretty humbling, and I grew to appreciate the sport more,” Chuu said.

“Now that I’m back, I try to make the most of the time that I spend on the court. Being able to play healthy is truly a privilege.”

The returning players on varsity, disappointed with a losing season last year, spent the offseason improving technique and learning more subtle skills. For example, Simhadri focused on smoothing out his backhand stroke. Many players, such as Chuu, prioritized conditioning as well as on-court skills by coming to the track on weekends and running. Also, players like Hsu, Baban and Simhadri �illed their summer vacations with tournaments.

The tennis team currently is 3-2, with a 2-1 league record. They play next at Los Altos today.

BY JOEY LI

H

ip hop today has as many forms as there are �lavors of ice cream, ranging from the well-known to the underground and encompassing everything from a billion dollar music industry to fashion to movies. Reduced to its purest form, however, hip hop can be divided into �ive main pillars: MCing or rapping, breaking, DJing, beatboxing and tagging or graf�iti.

The genre has roots in African culture but did not truly gain momentum until the 1970s, with artists like DJ Afrika Bimbaataa and Sugarhill Gang’s popular song “Rap-

per’s Delight.” By the 1990s, the scene shifted to the new offshoot gangsta rap popularized on the West Coast mainly by the group NWA and its respective members, notably Ice Cube and Eazy-E. Today, the presence of hip hop’s �ive pillars is undeniable, even among Lynbrook students.

Top: Sophomore Numair Baseer unleashes his creativity through the nozzle of a spray can as he tags for fun. Baseer enjoys partaking in the art recreationally, but only in his own privacy and not in public areas.

Middle left: Freshman Geraldine Chok holds a freeze in front of the Viking boat. Chok has been breaking for over three years, though she recently started again after recover-

ing from an injury.

Middle right: Junior Eshaan Gandhi spins tracks on his laptop and mixer. Although he just gained interest through A.M.P. Club this year, he has learned quickly, DJing at parties and other events.

Bottom left: Senior Kevin Wu spits �ire on the mic as he practices rapping original verses. Wu has been rapping for four years and was featured in the seniors’ Homecoming theme promo video.

Bottom right: Freshman Raven Dayrit drops a quick beat in a school hallway. A multitalented performer, Dayrit both raps and beatboxes.