the Epic, Volume 58, Issue 6, April 10, 2023

Sections News: pg. 2-4

Opinion: pg. 5-7

Features: pg. 8-10

In-Depth: pg. 11-13

Sports: pg. 14-16

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World Language classes to be reduced in coming years

Japanese and Honors language classes to be eliminated

Lack of district communication sparks controversy in community

BY JASMINE RIHAL STAFF EDITORIAL: THE VOICE OF THE EPIC

On March 20, FUHSD announced that all level four Honors language courses will be eliminated by the 2024-25 school year due to declining enrollment. Each school’s World Language department will also be downsized to offer only three languages. As the smallest language program on campus, Lynbrook’s Japanese program will be phased out by 2028, leaving only the French, Spanish and Chinese programs.

The announcement raised concerns in the community that this proposal was made due to budget issues, but the district has stated that declining enrollment was the core reasoning for their decision. For the past few years, FUHSD has experienced high rates of declining enrollment, mainly due to the Bay Area housing crisis and COVID-19 pandemic, causing families to move to more affordable areas.

“The issue is not just a ‘lack of signups’ for World Languages — we see growth in requests for Japanese next year, and our other languages do a fantastic job with student retention,” French teacher Elizabeth Louie said. “Overall declining enrollment means that all departments are going to see fewer students, but because World Languages is smaller, these declines had bigger impact on us.”

story continues on pg. 4 || news

District leaders failed to include teachers and students in the decision making process regarding their preliminary plans to remove all level four World Language classes and the smallest language program at each school over the course of the five years. Though this decision is not yet finalized and will not affect any students graduating prior to 2027, it has upset World Language teachers and students as FUHSD made this decision behind closed doors, with little to no input from teachers, students or parents. Accounting for the widespread impacts of the policy on those who have been excluded from the decision making process, FUHSD should consistently incorporate more community involvement when finalizing future decisions and reevaluate this controversial and harmful action plan.

The removal of classes will eventually lead to fewer choices for students to fulfill their language requirements for graduation and college. As language classes currently have one of the highest ratios of students per class, the removal of all honors classes is likely to increase the number of students in remaining classes, adding pressure on teachers to accommodate the needs of all their students.

story continues on pg. 5 || opinion

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY AMY LIU AND CATHERINE ZHOU

Letter from the Editors

Dear Vikings, Welcome to Issue 6!

We would like to congratulate our new leadership and staff for the 2023-24 year! We appreciate the initiative and hard work of all applicants and are confident in our selected candidates’ abilities to advance our publication to new heights next year.

In News, travel to the sustainable markets in Half-Moon Bay with FUHSD culinary classes and members of the Lynbrook Conservation Action Association; in Opinion, delve into the psychology behind fanatic parasocial relationships; in Features, meet Samir as he blends art and technology; in In-Depth, learn about San Francisco’s reparation initiatives and uncover the effects of childhood favorite shows such as “SpongeBob SquarePants”; in Sports, look beyond catchy slogans to discover the role of pre and post-workout supplements. Make sure to visit our website for exclusive content, including an article uncovering the controversial cancellation of a boat venue for the class of 2023’s senior prom and videos exploring Virtual Enterprise students’ businesses, senioritis and Holi traditions.

For Issue 7, get excited for our second centerspread of the year! Our staff will be diving into the roots and applications of language, from understanding the generational loss of native tongues to the meanings that can be lost in translation of international literature.

As always, we encourage you to submit Letters to the Editors, opinions on any published stories this year, and Guest Columns, articles focusing on your individual perspective, at lhsepic.com/submissions. Selected submissions will be published on our paper and/or website.

Stay tuned,

Elizabeth Cheng & Amy Liu Editors-in-Chief

Emerging clubs cultivate new passions

BY DAEUN CHUNG AND INAAYA YOUSUF

Bringing forth new opportunities to Lynbrook students, five new clubs have been welcomed on campus: Athletes4others, Viking Table Tennis, Korean Club, Go Club and Rubik’s Cube Club. Recently passed by the Legislative Council from January through March, these new clubs focus on unique student passions.

“We’re very excited to see how each of these clubs serves our campus, and we wish them all the best as well as any clubs that may be passed or proposed in the future,” senior and ASB Vice President Allison Hsu said.

Athletes4Others

At their first club meeting on March 14, the Athletes4Others service club introduced their members to their mission of providing athletic opportunities to underrepresented and underprivileged communities. Together, they hope to lead athletic camps and clinics for sports including basketball, soccer, tennis, volleyball and swimming.

Viking Table Tennis

he Viking Table Tennis club is an interest club that aspires to foster a sense of community through shared passion for table tennis. The creation of this club stemmed from the freshman team of officers’ shared common goal of creating a space for all Lynbrook students to hangout together and bond over games of table tennis.

Korean Club

Expanding cultural representation on campus, Korean club is an interest club that aims to help students gain a greater appreciation for Korean culture.

After the original

officer team came together to revive the club and cultivate a community of students with a shared passion for Korean culture.

Go Club

Go Club is an interest club made for all students to learn and practice their skills in the game of Go, a Chinese strategy game where players create their own territories by surrounding empty areas of the board.

Rubik’s Cube Club

Rubik’s Cube Club’s goal is to foster students’ quick and critical thinking in a non-academic way. The club aims to provide an encouraging atmosphere for all cubers to improve their problem solving skills.

Students explore sustainable food on Green Careers feld trip

BY KATIE CHIN

Among the crash of waves against piers and the hum of local communities working, students from culinary classes across FUHSD visited Half Moon Bay and Pescadero beach on March 27 to explore the market of sustainable food that dominates California’s coast. In a field trip organized by the Sustainable Future Outdoor Academy, participants learned from business owners and workers about various agricultural careers and sustainable practices.

“As students explore each site and speak with employees and owners, they review the sustainable systems and practices that make each business more efficient and less wasteful,” SFOA’s Marketing Director Lucas Cohen said. “Seeing these things in action is one of the best ways to understand the power of sustainablity.”

Students were selected to attend based on an application process open to all FUHSD culinary classes and members of the Lynbrook Conservation Action Association, where they filled out a form from SFOA detailing why they wanted to explore sustainability.

Megan Miller, Lynbrook’s Culinary Arts teacher helped secure funding for the trip.

“Field trips are designed for being able to present opportunities to students where they didn’t think these things were possible,” Miller said. “It’s so much more impactful when

students can learn in-person than in class.”

The first stop of the trip was at Pillar Point Harbor, where students learned about how sustainable fishing ties into the seafood industry from the manager of the Old Princeton Landing restaurant. Students then walked to the pier where they learned from a fishery owner about the process of catching and selling fish, commercial fishing regulations and the environmental factors that impact aquatic ecosystems.

“The Silicon Valley area is known for tech — not necessarily food science or sustainability, so I find it inspiring that these kinds of businesses are

achievable,” senior and CAA club officer Paulina Chin-Wong said.

The next site was Ouroboros Farm, an aquaponics farm that grows plants in water rather than in soil. Guided by the owner and manager of the farm, students toured the greenhouse, learning the basics of aquaponic farming. As they entered the farm, students viewed koi fish tanks. Students learned about the business behind aquaponics — how it repurposes fish waste, saves water and supports the culture of sustainability in farming.

“I became more aware of the environmental impacts of my actions, especially with food and

ways I can reduce that impact,” junior Nicholas Kong said.

The locally cherished San Gregorio Department Store hosted the students for lunch. They participated in a blind taste-test, in which students tasted a beef burger patty and a plantbased one, then voted on which they thought was real meat. By comparing the patties, the students learned how beef production emits an excessive amount of carbon.

The last destination of the trip was Harley Farms, which raises Alpine goats to produce feta and ricotta cheese. The students toured the farm, learning how cheese is made and to reuse water during the milking process. Students had the opportunity to pet and carry baby goats or buy products from the farm’s shop. The farm’s owner, Dee Harley, talked to students about her business endevors before ending the trip with a cheese tasting.

“I like to show my students non-traditional paths in the culinary world,” Miller said. “I hope this trip helped students open their eyes to the variety of careers out there.”

Students visited a wide array of institutions that consistently incorporate sustainable practices into their work. Through learning about food-related careers and sustainable industries, the field trip helped students learn how to implement eco-friendly practices into their daily lives.

Rubik’s Cube Club officers provide both cubers and noncubers the opportunity to engage with Rubik’s Cubes.

TGo Club officers provide students with a forum to challenge themselves in the Chinese strategy game of Go.

Viking Table Tennis officers invite students to participate in table tennis and while engaging in a community.

Igendunto cuptiberum ellabores ipsamus et latempos eumetur, est, vendem et lam, te pe experrum et

Korean Club officers hope to inspire greater cultural diversity and enthusiasm for Korean culture.

Athletes4Others officers founded the club to bring athletic volunteering opportunities to students.

Plan proposed for afordable educator housing

BY QIANZI LOO

The difficult search for teachers’ affordable housing in the Bay Area has yet to become easier. In response, California school districts are considering subsidized homes with rents below the local market price for educators, helping Lynbrook teachers afford living closer to the schools they work at and reduce commute times.

In March, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors voted to allocate about five acres of land in Cupertino for educator homes, of

AVERAGE CUPERTINO

which 1.5 acres are currently owned by Apple. The county hopes to negotiate a land swap with Apple to obtain space for a subsidized housing program.

Educators in Silicon Valley have long commute times as rising living costs and lower salaries have forced them to live farther from their workplaces. At Lynbrook, some teachers live as far as Santa Cruz or Pacifica. For years, the district has been trying to obtain subsidized housing for teachers, but the lack of unused land in FUHSD is a significant obstacle.

“In this area, the biggest cost is the price of the land, which has thwarted our efforts to build our own staff housing,” FUHSD Associate Superintendent Tom Avvakumovits

Assembly Bill 2295, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in Sept. 2022, would make it easier for school districts to use real property they own to build affordable housing for educators, but the bill primarily only benefits districts that already have pre-existing unused land.

Rent affordability has also worsened the educator shortage crisis as most salaries are inadequate to support local living, causing teachers to relocate. The median FUHSD teacher earns $79,700, a higher salary compared to other Bay Area cities. Despite this, housing prices near FUHSD schools are still unaffordable for most teachers.

As demand for housing and prices rose during the pandemic, the government increased interest rates to flatten the rise. This makes it more difficult for teachers to compete against higher-income buyers who don’t need loans.

“It's much more expensive to borrow money now than it used to be,” said Lance Shoemaker, Department Chair of Business Administration and Real Estate at West Valley College. “Before, teachers were squeezed by rising prices. Now, they’re being squeezed by the rising interest rates. In general, the people who are planning to buy real estate right now are the ones who don't have to borrow money — they're paying cash.”

For the past six years, FUHSD has partnered with the company Landed, which provides educators with homes 50 to 70% below the market rate and aims to finance part of the down payment. The median down payment was around 13% in 2022, which many educators can’t afford.

However, these partnerships come with limitations, as most government or similar programs that help reduce costs for educators require extra paperwork and time. In the South Bay, real estate agents may choose to go with the quickest and easiest option.

“The problem for educators is that even though they qualify for the loan and would pay the same amount anybody else would, it's going to take longer for them, and most sellers don't want to deal with that,” Shoemaker said.

For teachers, who are more comfortable with where they lived before working at FUHSD or prefer larger homes because of their family size, subsidized housing may not be the best opinion. For others, they may want the district to reallocate the money toward something else. Nonetheless, the subsidized housing program is promising for future teachers and existing staff members.

Upcoming Viking Events

ASB spirit week, April 10-14

This year's final spirit week is seniorthemed, concluding with the Farewell Rally to celebrate the graduating seniors.

Valkyries Spring Show, April 15

The annual Valkyries dance team and guest talents will perform in the gym at 7 p.m.

No school, Spring break, April 17-21

CMEA State Band and Orchestra Festival, April 28

Lynbrook's symphony orchestra will perform pieces in Sonoma by Morton Gould, Edward Edlgar and Aram Khachaturyan.

ArtReach fundraiser open until April 29 $10-15 boutonnieres and corsages are for sale on lhsartreach.github.io.

AP testing, May 1-12

By Chelsea Lee

Sunnyvale equity concerns spark district action

BY MYLES KIM

In northern Sunnyvale lies Moffett Park, a 1,156 acre development site. Here, the City of Sunnyvale seeks to create a diverse and sustainable mixed-use district to ensure climate sustainability and decrease the number of car-dependent sprawls in the Bay Area. A mixed-use district is an urban planning approach that integrates different land uses, such as residential, commercial and recreational all within the same area. These new developments may induce a population boom, prompting local advocacy groups to push for a new FUHSD school to be built in the area.

Outlined in the Moffett Park Specific plan, the city aims to construct 20,000 new housing units in the area, the first of which are projected to be available by 2027. However, existing equity concerns for Northern Sunnyvale students have made the Sunnyvale for Equity in Education advocacy group renew calls for the district to implement policies that address student inequities.

“If you look at the district boundaries, there is a disparity between the lower socioeconomic status in the northern parts of the district and higher socioeconomic status in the southern end,” founder of SEE Peggy Shen Brewster said.

One of SEE’s short-term objectives is to create reliable and affordable transportation options for students in Northern Sunnyvale to attend Fremont or Homestead High School. Currently, the district provides bus passes for eligible students, but according to SEE, there is a lack of clarity surrounding eligibility.

“According to Superintendent Graham Clark, there are three qualifiers for getting a district subsidized (free or discounted) bus pass: residing in the attendance area of the now closed Sunnyvale High school, qualifying for free or reduced lunch and/or if it takes more than 30 minutes for a student to walk to school,” Brewster said. “But these qualifiers are not clear, and many families have reported they do not accurately reflect their experiences in trying to get a pass.”

In February, SEE successfully lobbied for the prioritization of DPW 23-06 in the Sunnyvale City Council, which ensures that a study issue aimed at improving

the transportation options for Northern Sunnyvale students who attend Fremont or Homestead will have funding priority.

“With transportation, it's not only about getting students to and from school, but also how we can facilitate transportation to support Northern Sunnyvale students’ participation in afterschool programs,” FUHSD board trustee Jeff Moe said.

SEE aims to further enhance the representation of Sunnyvale residents in the district's bureaucratic functions by establishing channels for open dialogue and electing trustees who reside in and reflect the Sunnyvale community. Currently, all four serving trustees live in the southern regions of the district’s attendance areas.

SEE was integral to the FUHSD Board of Trustee’s decision to move forward with the transition from at-large to by-district area trustee elections during their March 7 board meeting. An “at-large” board election system elects trustees from anywhere within the district's boundaries, while a "by-district" system elects one from each of the district’s five sections. SEE believes this change will help facilitate better Sunnyvale representation on the board.

Long-term advocacy efforts are focused on creating more educational options in the northern region so students will not have to make lengthy commutes to attend Fremont or Homestead. Encouraged by SEE’s advocacy efforts, the FUHSD board held a study session on Jan. 31, analyzing

the feasibility of two proposals for new local educational options for Northern Sunnyvale students — reopening the short-lived Sunnyvale High School or building a new FUHSD School in the area.

“We appreciate everyone who advocates for our students and the work that SEE is doing,” Moe said. “That was a lot of the motivation for us to go into this study to look at the feasibility.”

Sunnyvale High School was an FUHSD school open from 1980 to 1989, but was shut down due to low enrollment. The district is currently leasing the property to The King's Academy, a private school for grades six through twelve. Both reclaiming the property and expansion of the current King’s Academy campus would be necessary to accommodate a larger student population but the campus size would also be constrained by the original site area of 22 to 24 acres — about half the size of a typical modern FUHSD school. For construction of a new school, the district would have to select and purchase 40 acres of land from the City of Sunnyvale— a multi-year process that could cost millions on its own. The board concluded that both proposals would be too expensive to consider in the short

term with total estimated costs ranging between $405 million and $545 million.

“The lengthy travel for Sunnyvale residents to Homestead and Fremont is a real issue and raises equity concerns,” Physics teacher Thanh Nguyen said. “There's no magic solution to the current situation. The district stands to lose thousands of students in enrollment over the next half-decade, and opening a new school in that environment is silly.”

That does not mean that constructing a high school is entirely out of the question, however, and SEE hopes to continue to work with the board to address students’ needs both in the short and long term.

“Building a new comprehensive FUHSD school is super expensive, but I don't think that's the only option either,” Brewster said. “There've been discussions about how we can be more creative with bringing school to the kids instead of making the kids travel super far to get to school.”

12,000 residences will be zoned in Sunnyvale in the next eight years, according to the City of Sunnyvale.

For example, the board is actively engaging with Foothill College to potentionally offer high school courses at Foothill’s Sunnyvale site, similar to the successful FUHSD Middle College program at De Anza and Foothill Colleges. While SEE has made strides in advocating for equity for Northern Sunnyvale students in the short term, they will continue to push for greater educational options, despite the challenges of high cost and voter approval.

The board will also continue to be receptive with Northern Sunnyvale residents’ concerns and research ways to improve the quality of education for those residents.

“This doesn't mean that the school board should just stop thinking about this issue,” Nguyen said. “Opening and staffing a school takes a lot of bureaucratic time, so while the board should be concerned with current issues, like declining enrollment and the proposed changes to world language options, they must also keep a watchful eye on solutions for the future.”

Photo by the news section.

PHOTO BY DANIELL PENFIELD, WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

Since 1991, FUHSD has leased out the Sunnyvale High School property to The King's Academy. The board discussed the possibility of reclaiming the property and reopening Sunnyvale High School.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY CHELSEA LEE AND VALERIE SHU

Language classes reduced due to declining enrollment

BY JASMINE RIHAL

Story continued from front page.

Students and parents were not notified of the proposal until the week of March 27 or given the opportunity to express their opinions before the decision was finalized. After the 2026-27 school year, Japanese will only be offered at Homestead and Fremont High Schools. Students from other FUHSD schools, who want to pursue Japanese will have to either cross-enroll between their home school and Homestead or Fremont or seek outside sources to continue their World Language studies.

“I imagine more students would look for separate, outside learning opportunities to learn Japanese rather than cross-enroll,” Japanese student and sophomore Deniz Genc said. “It would provide a lot more inconvenience if students were to commute to attend their Japanese class in the middle of the day throughout the week.”

will have to phase out the department by reducing their course offerings by one level each year throughout the next five years.

The primary role of level four Honors language classes is to prepare students for the following AP level five course. Many teachers argue that level four is extremely crucial in students’ path for progressing in World Languages. Eliminating the Honors classes will mean that teachers have to compensate by changing their level three and AP curriculums.

“These decisions will make it much harder on students who intend on taking the AP exam for their language,” Spanish teacher Kim Revilla said. “Without the preparation of level four classes, students may be discouraged from advancing in their studies.”

This large change in the World Language department has sparked criticism and disappointment from both students and teachers. On March 23, freshmen Vikrant Vadathavoor, Ishana Subrahmanyan, Ivy Hoo and Isaiah Sit created a petition urging

programs in full. As of April 4, it has gained more than 1,800 signatures.

“The petition was meant to show the school that there is support for these language programs and that we are against their elimination without our input,” Vadathavoor said.

Declining enrollment

On March 31, the district held a board meeting at Lynbrook regarding this issue, which Superintendent Graham Clark attended to extend communication on the decision. It provided an opportunity for students to ask questions directly to the board regarding this proposal and learn more about what it means.

Elizabeth Louie, French teacher

“I understand it, my program is small, but it’s also withstood really well in a time of declining enrollment, so it seems kind of short-sighted,” Japanese teacher Jeremy Kitchen said. “We have continued to create great opportunities for students, and the smallness of the program has created a tight knit community which has benefited students, as well as given students who took Japanese in middle school an opportunity to continue learning.”

Read what the Epic thinks about these policies on page 5.

GRAPHICILLUSTRATIONBYVALERIESHU

means that all departments will see fewer students, but because World Language programs are smaller, these declines have a bigger impact on us.

District neglects community input

District leaders failed to include teachers and students in the decision making process regarding their preliminary plans to remove all level four World Language classes and the smallest language program at each school over the course of the five years. Though this decision is not yet finalized and will not affect any students graduating prior to 2027, it has upset World Language teachers and students as FUHSD made this decision behind closed doors, with little to no input from teachers, students or parents. Accounting for the widespread impacts of the policy on those who have been excluded from the decision making process, FUHSD should consistently incorporate more community involvement when finalizing future decisions and reevaluate this controversial and harmful action plan.

The removal of classes will eventually lead to fewer choices for students to fulfill their language requirements for graduation and college. As language classes currently have one of the highest ratios of students per class, the removal of all honors classes is likely to increase the number of students in remaining classes, adding pressure on teachers to accommodate the needs of all their students.

“It’s much harder to teach a class of 40 than 30 students,” Spanish teacher Kim Revilla said. “There’s just more bodies in the room, so you’re navigating around everyone. Grading takes longer, and it’s hard to get to know that many students.”

In the tentative plan, Japanese, Lynbrook’s smallest language program, is posed to be the first course to be phased out within the next five years. All levels of Japanese will be eventually removed, starting with the removal of Japanese 1 from Lynbrook’s course offerings.

“When I first heard about the plan, I was very disappointed and saddened by the fact that it could potentially mean the end to this program I have been working on for the past 17 to 18 years of my life,” Japanese teacher Jeremy Kitchen said. “It has always been out there that this could happen, as we have had meetings hinting that the school might no longer be at a size that can sustain four languages anymore. It’s not a complete surprise, but the reality of it actually coming through is very different from knowing it might happen at some point later on.”

Students who wish to take a Japanese

Staf Editorial

The Voice of the Epic

course would then have to commute to either Homestead or Fremont High School, which is unreasonable as it would be inconvenient and force students to sacrifice other classes in their schedule. Aside from the commuting time between two schools being much longer than a passing period, most Lynbrook students also do not have their driver’s license and have few means of transportation with parents’ busy schedules.

“If I had the choice between going to a different school to take the class and dropping Japanese entirely, I would choose to stop taking the class since my language requirements are done after this year,” junior Shaumik Kalwit said. “But the main thing that makes Japanese so fun is our teacher and the fun environment Kitchen Sensei has created for us to learn in.”

Miller Middle School, the feeder school for Lynbrook, has the only Japanese program in the Cupertino Union School District. With the removal of Japanese classes, Miller students who are currently taking Japanese must either start a new language at Lynbrook or commit to lengthy commutes to another FUHSD school to continue learning the language.

“I took Japanese with Saeki Sensei at Miller, but if there were no Japanese classes at Lynbrook, I wouldn’t have taken Japanese in the first place,” junior and Japanese National Honor Society officer Rickey Chiu said. “So essentially, no Japanese at Lynbrook means no Miller Japanese either.”

The second most impacted language program by this preliminary plan at Lynbrook is the Chinese program, which currently only offers three levels: level three, level four honors and level five AP. Once Chinese honors is removed from elective options, students will be forced to choose between the two remaining classes. With a smaller number of available classes, it may be harder for counselors to grant many students’ first choice for a language class.

“In total, Lynbrook’s Chinese program has three classes, adding up to more than 100 students,” Chinese teacher Zoey Liu said. “If this decision carries through, many of these students will not have an appropriate level to go to.”

The removal of all language honors

classes would also mean cramming more content into fewer classes in an attempt to properly prepare students for AP language classes and mastery of the language for use in the real world. With a faster-paced curriculum in all classes, students may not be able to grasp the information as well and learn as effectively as they would before. Some language teachers fear that this would increase students’ stress levels. For students taking Chinese, those who would like to continue after taking Chinese 3 would have to directly take the AP class the following year, regardless of their proficiency.

“In Chinese 4, I learned a lot of new vocabulary that was used in AP Chinese,” sophomore Brigitte Au said. “Taking the honors class definitely made AP a lot easier.”

Before the plan was announced, world language teachers were not notified of this decision nor consulted in the decision making process. Many world language teachers are upset by this decision, citing a lack of transparency and exclusion from the creation of the proposal.

“I felt devastated,” French teacher Elizabeth Louie said. “I see how hard my colleagues work and how much they care. We all want our students to be happy and to feel supported as they’re learning a new language. It’s hard to think about losing the communities of language learners we’ve worked hard to build.”

Instead of coming to conclusions behind closed doors, the district should be more transparent with decision making and ensure the involvement of the community in such decisions. As this proposal is not yet finalized and is subject to change, there is still hope for World language teachers and students to preserve this unique program.

“I think the district should definitely reconsider the consequences of this decision,” Kalwit said. “There’s so many students that feel passionate about Japanese which has created a community, and removing the class would mean either restarting or commuting to a different school.”

The district’s decision significantly impacts the students taking language courses without considering their input and concerns. Not only would the removal of these classes increase student stress levels, but also discards the hard work teachers have put into their programs. Seeing how significantly this decision would impact the paths of students and jeopardize the careers of language teachers, in the future, district staff members should prioritize transparency and clear involvement from students and teachers when proposing and coming to conclusions as they are the ones ultimately being affected.

the Epic voted 40-0 in favor of this stance. Learn more about the policies on pg. 4.

BY DAEUN CHUNG// IN MY OPINION

Landing at San Francisco International Airport in the summer of 2021 after a long flight from Incheon, South Korea, I was greeted by an unfamiliar country and customs. People spoke a language that I barely understood, and the sight of English words, books and newspapers gave me a headache. Despite these challenges, I never expected my love for English to blossom during my junior year of high school.

Back in South Korea, I used to take walks around campus with friends during lunch. However, my friends who used to fill my lunch time with laughter and fun were now thousands of miles away. By contrast, lunch break in the U.S. was the most uncomfortable time of the day, as I had a hard time connecting with other students’ interests and passions. All I could do was nod politely in agreement, pretending that I understood their conversations while fearing that someone would confront me for my awkwardness. Sometimes, I wished I was invisible so that I would no longer be ashamed of my struggle to communicate fluently in English.

Because of limited school events in South Korea, foreign traditions such as homecoming, rallies and spirit weeks made me feel more isolated in the sea of school spirit. I rarely participated in events and felt alienated from most students. However, after receiving my first copy of the Epic, I gained a new lens into Lynbrook students’ diverse range of interests. With first-hand information about students’ lives behind the scenes, I became friends with classmates and gradually began to engage with various components of our school. Ultimately, I realized that I wanted to be involved in the Epic so I could help other incoming or transferring students the same way it guided my tough transition to California.

Although being accepted into the Epic was a significant milestone, I found another major roadblock before me: my lack of confidence in English. This prevented me from actively participating in discussion with other staff members and made me feel like I was taking the spot of other more qualified applicants. For the first few months, I doubted my ability to provide anything meaningful input to the class.

To combat this, I began practicing photography, one of the few things in journalism that didn’t require English writing or speaking. I went to as many sports games and school events as possible to practice taking action shots and portrait photos. My photography skills eventually improved enough that the volleyball team wanted to use my photos for their graphics. This accomplishment gave me confidence that I now have at least something I could contribute to our publication.

Despite initial struggles with writing and interviewing, meeting new people has always been my favorite part of being on staff. I feel like the opportunities to gain insight into others’ personal stories is a great privilege that I can only access as a journalist. Additionally, our production days, where we finalize page designs and print versions of our stories, allowed me to learn the value of teamwork. Working closely with 39 other staff, with diverse backgrounds and stories, to accomplish a common goal together became an activity I partook with pride.

Reminiscing on how I was a year ago, I realize my tremendous growth not only as a journalist but also as an individual. So, for those who read this column, if you see an opportunity to take a journalism class, seize it with both hands and hold tightly, just like I did, and see where it takes you — it will be a life-changing experience.

When I frst heard about the plan, I was very disappointed and saddened by the fact that it could potentially mean the end to this program I have been working on for the past 18 years of my life.

Jeremy Kitchen Japanese teacher

How journalism has changed me this year

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JASMINE RIHAL

Policy over identity: misrepresentation in politics

BY APURVA KRISHNAMURTHY

Politicians should be the voice of the people: pledging to remedy citizens’ struggles and working toward a better future. Diversity in politics is crucial for any democratic system to truly be representative of the people. Yet, many politicians market themselves as advocates for their own communities while pushing for policies that actively harm these groups.

In October 2022, the U.K.’s first South Asian prime minister, Rishi Sunak, was appointed to office after Liz Truss’ abrupt resignation. However, despite Sunak’s many attempts to embrace his Indian heritage, many South Asians believe he is not the representation they were hoping for.

As prime minister, Sunak is currently pushing for a law that refuses entrance to asylum seekers upon arrival to the U.K. They may also be shipped to a third-party country and banned from re-entering. During his time as chancellor, Sunak funneled millions of British pounds towards anti-immigration efforts. His push for such regulations is ironic given that his parents and many South Asians were only able to succeed due to previous lax immigrant regulations.

“You have to look at the merit of the candidate,” senior and AISA president Akul Murthy said. “If they are from the same country as you, that doesn’t mean they’re the

right candidate for you.”

Current Vice President Kamala Harris spent a large portion of her career working as California’s attorney general and described herself as a “progressive prosecutor.” However, her actions in this position beg to differ. In 2015, Harris refused to endorse Assembly Bill 86, which called for a dedicated prosecutor to investigate fatal police shootings. She also declined to enact a policy mandating body cameras on all police officers and refused pleas to investigate fatal shootings in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Moreover, Harris has been criticized for criminalizing truancy, which disproportionately affects lowincome families of color. Despite claiming to represent Black Americans and their struggles, Harris has a history of hindering progressive legislation meant to absolve law enforcement misconduct, an issue that heavily targets the Black community.

In contrast, politicians like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have heavily reflected the importance of representation. A representative of New York’s 14th district, AOC’s working class background and shared local and ethnic roots directly speak to its citizens, who largely come from similar circumstances.

“As a woman, Latina and native New Yorker, I think AOC has a very positive impact on young girls who are interested in

politics,” junior and JSA’s public relations officer Kaawon Kim said.

The strong immigrant presence in the 14th district is reflected through the bills AOC has endorsed. For instance, she co-sponsored the American Dream and Promise Act which works to expedite the process of gaining citizenship for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as minors.

AOC has also been vocal on women’s issues. Following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, she detailed her plans to “codify” the legislation, or protect abortion rights by federal law .

With burgeoning minority communities across the U.S. and U.K., representation can be influential in improving civic engagement for marginalized groups. However, many politicians fail to do so by endorsing policies that actively harm their community. Voters should look past the external identity of a public servant and study their policies rather than aligning with them strictly on the basis of a shared identity.

Building bridges for better conservation

BY ALYSSA WANG

The Bay Area is home to many unique and beautiful ecosystems that are essential to the well-being of the environment and its inhabitants. However, human threats such as pollution and deforestation have destroyed natural habitats and the homes of animals. In hopes of preservation, various conservation efforts, like Golden Gate National Park Conservancy and Sierra Club San Francisco Bay Chapter, safeguard endangered species and protect their natural habitats. Local citizens should financially support these organizations by volunteering to protect the Bay Area’s natural wonders for future recreational purposes.

“It is much harder to make real change when working by yourself, but with a big conservation group, you can focus on larger projects and develop a sense of community while protecting something that many people take for granted,” junior Nicholas Kong said.

Many of California’s rich ecosystems are under threat by climate change, pollution and deforestation. In recent years, California has experienced severe droughts, resulting in wildfires and dry wetlands and other aquatic habitats. The frequency and severity of heat waves has also increased, significantly impacting plant and animal species.

California’s forested areas play a critical role in regulating climate patterns. However,

deforestation has caused changes in precipitation patterns and desertification. Simultaneously, continuous pollution damages the ecosystem’s inhabitants, reducing biodiversity.

“Natural habitats in California have been heavily degraded, but there are still many remaining ecosystems across the state, albeit in patches,” sophomore Daphne Zhu said. “We are so lucky to be able to experience these beautiful, untouched parts of nature, so we should strive to restore and protect them.”

To save the Bay’s struggling ecosystems, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, for example, works to protect the San Francisco garter snake, a reptile on the brink of extinction, and its habitat. Similarly, the Marine Mammal Center rescues, rehabilitates and releases injured or endangered marine animals. Essential for maintaining biodiversity, conservation efforts promote sustainable practices such as reducing waste, using renewable energy and conserving natural resources. Save the Bay and Sierra Club San Francisco Bay Chapter focus on similar initiatives, such as restoring the San Francisco Bay, its surrounding wetlands and wildlife habitats while advocating for environmental protection and conservation.

“Many conservation groups primarily concentrate on animals and preventing the extinction of different species or the preservation of an ecosystem, so they are focused on making real change whether that be through policy or fundraising,” senior Cindy Chou said.

Conservation efforts in the Bay

Area are also important to ensure that future generations can enjoy the environment’s beauty and various benefits. Preserving wildlife habitats and its inhabitants guarantees that they continue to provide necessary resources for future human use.

Furthermore, conservation groups preserve open space, trails and parks, which can create jobs, enhance property value, support local businesses and decrease local government expenditures and the cost of recreational activities. The conservation of natural lands, working farms and forests can generate financial returns for governments and individuals, as well as significantly save costs. According to the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority, the county’s open space contributes at least $1.6 to $3.9 billion in benefits to the people and local economy each year.

nature, the importance of our ecosystems, and environmental health,” said Shani Kleinhaus, a member of Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society. “These are of great value to our community, and most of these events do not cost anything which will hopefully encourage more people to come and listen.”

We are so lucky to be able to experience these beautiful, untouched parts of nature, so we should strive to restore and protect them.

More students and local citizens should get involved in conservation efforts to support these organizations, which rely heavily on community support. For instance, many conservation groups rely on volunteers to help with their projects, whether cleaning up local parks or aiding in rehabilitating injured animals. Likewise, donating can help workers carry out these important responsibilities and make a real impact.

In addition, conservation efforts help these areas remain accessible for future recreational activities. The restoration of wetlands can provide new areas for kayaking and birdwatching, while the preservation of natural forest habitats creates opportunities for camping and other outdoor activities. The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, for instance, offers beautiful hiking and biking trails along the Golden Gate seaside, giving its members opportunities to listen to stories about the history of the land from conservatory experts and educating the members about environmental health.

“Many environmental groups offer activities and programs for members ranging from young children to the elderly to educate them about

“Local citizens can even sign up to get alerts from environmental groups and begin to engage by educating themselves about the information and speaking up,” Kleinhaus said. “Engaging and preserving the environment is better for the residents and nature, so people should get involved; they have an opportunity to make a difference that makes them feel better about themselves and the world.”

However, one of the most important and effective ways to aid conservation efforts is to encourage others to get involved and adopt sustainable practices in their own lives. This includes simple actions in your daily life, such as reducing waste and conserving water. Some local organizations give specific ways that people can help: for example, Sierra Club’s San Francisco Bay Chapter encourages individuals to promote renewable energy and reduce their dependence on fossil fuels to mitigate climate change and maintain the ecological balance of the planet.

“As students, we can expand our impact by joining environmental organizations,” Zhu said. “Volunteering or just being outdoors — whether that be joining a native plant garden or taking a short hike — really helps build appreciation for nature and for conservation. We need to come together and protect the environment that gives so much to us; it is something we cannot live without.”

Daphne Zhu, Sophomore

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY RIKI MURASE According to the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIE AU

The implicit barriers behind social media

BY TANIKA ANBU

Social media apps like Instagram and Tiktok are defined by their Generation Z users, while media outlets like TV and newspaper are characterized by their Baby Boomer counterparts. With the rise of global communication platforms, the lack of intergenerational connectivity online has intensified, leading to a more politically polarized society. Diversifying online experiences through the use of multiple platforms and perspectives can prevent further societal fragmentation and polarization.

Generation Z almost exclusively uses modern social media apps like Tik Tok and Instagram as their primary source of information.

chambers, which confines users to a certain viewpoint. Users are often spoon-fed content on the same subject, as social media echo chambers cater to what the user interacts with and serves them recycled content. For example, if a student views content on global warming, their recommended pages will have content relating to the subject. This content will continue to breach into a user‘s recommended pages and will reinforce their stance on the subject.

I like to cross-check my information with many sites to make sure I get the full picture on anything.

Ranganathan Srinivasan, Freshman

According to the PEW Research Center, about a quarter of U.S. adults under the age of 30 regularly get their news from Tik Tok. Overall, news consumption has shifted from more traditional sources to social media. While it is convenient to get information on current events and fashion trends from these apps, it can also lead to the creation of media echo

“I get a lot of related content on my TikTok feed,” junior Carlynda Gao said. “It is scary how the platforms I use know what I do and don’t like.”

Rather than relying on these given sources, media users should consider using other platforms, including credible sources such as research databases, Google Scholar, or news outlets, to get accurate information and prevent getting stuck in

their personalized echo chambers. Using different forms of media can also bridge intergenerational differences, as users will be given the chance to explore unbiased and different perspectives and understand the topic from another person’s point of view. However, it is hard to change platforms when comfortability and normality is at stake. Inevitably, people stick to what they are most used to. Branching out requires effort which can be difficult to muster when there is no apparent need to explore different platforms.

“It’s inherent that we stick to what we are used to,” librarian Amy Ashworth said. “People always say ‘why fix it if it’s not broken,’ because if that media is good for you so far then there‘s reluctance to change.”

Understanding all sides to a story can create more well-rounded and educated media users and can also lead to more constructive conversations with others.

“I like to cross-check my information with many sites to make sure I get the full picture on anything,” freshman Ranganathan Srinivasan said. “It is better to use

many sites because you never know what app has data on your preferences.”

Sticking to one source of media can create more narrow-minded perspectives, which can create more harm. People might be receiving information that may be untrue and half the story, which creates clouded judgment.

“You are often blinded from reality. You are probably going to get your information wrong at some point in time,” Ashworth said.

To promote unity online, it is important to bridge the gap between different age groups and the apps that are used. While each person may possess a different perspective, consuming media from a variety of sources can ensure fluidity between generations and promote connectivity. Parents and students alike should rely on sources that are beyond current and familiar trends to ensure that information is accurate.

Destined or deranged? The reality of parasocial relationships

BY VIDUSHI UPADHYAY

With the rise of social media, relationships between fans and celebrities have grown more intimate. Fans are prone to developing unhealthy relationships with their favorite stars, desperately trying to stay up to date with and gain recognition from them. Although fans often claim to only gain happiness from such activities, being emotionally dependent on someone completely unaware of the other’s existence can cause anxiety, loneliness and social isolation. Such parasocial relationships must be prevented by limiting social media usage, setting boundaries and focusing on maintaining genuine relationships with people in real life.

Parasocial relationships are defined as one-sided relationships in which consumers idolize media personas and act like lifelong friends despite having little to no interaction with them. Accessing information about celebrities’ families and childhoods often gives obsessive fans the illusion that they have a genuine relationship with their idol. Parasocial relationships are most commonly associated with fans of actors and singers but also include fans of fictional characters and even online content creators.

“When you feel a connection to a celebrity and think they truly care about you when you don’t even

know them, it’s a very complicated situation to be in,” senior Maia Bline said. “There’s a distinct difference between looking up to a person and feeling connected to them. Stars do try to connect with their fans, but there’s nothing beyond appreciation.”

With one party completely unaware of the other’s existence, it is difficult to set safe boundaries in parasocial relationships. According to a 2022 study by Thriveworks, a counseling and psychiatric service, approximately 51% of Americans reported symptoms of being in a parasocial relationship. The sudden spread of obsessive fan culture has also normalized stalking of public figures by fans desperate for every minute detail of their lives.

Idolizing mass media figures often results in fans losing themselves to unhealthy worship of public figures. Some celebrities

exploit fans by creating products marketed to audiences that follow them religiously, easily convincing fans to waste their money.

Partakers in parasocial relationships are often adolescents who struggle with low selfesteem or loneliness. Turning to a parasocial relationship to cope with struggles will lead to the deterioration of one’s real life relationships due to lack of time and effort invested into the people in their lives.

Similarly, spending time in isolation, while maintaining a “relationship” with a star unaware of their individual fans’ existences can lead to a greater addiction to social media. If a parasocial connection is made with a figure, who displays negative behavior or traits, these actions can reflect in the fan’s behavior as well.

“The limit is prioritizing them over yourself, your family, your academics, career

and health,” sophomore Meghana Babu said. “Obsessing over someone who doesn’t know you exist and not applying yourself or pursuing interests outside of being a fan is ultimately to your own detriment.”

Limiting time on social media, engaging in hobbies and activities with others and prioritizing physical and mental health will prevent parasocial relationships.

“If it gets to the point where you’re following their updates obsessively, following them in real life, and hurting other fans, you’ve already crossed the line,” Bline said.

If done in moderation, partaking in a fan base can be beneficial to both the star and their followers. Following celebrities gives people the chance to build communities and meet new friends who share common passions and interests. Many fans look up to these figures for inspiration for their work, from creating fan art to singing covers to expressing their love and appreciation through different mediums.

“Being a fan has allowed me to find music I enjoy and build friendships that I will cherish for years to come, but I refrain from getting involved in my favorite celebrities’ personal affairs as I don’t actually know them in real life,” Babu said.

“At the same time, I was inspired to explore art and I feel like I’ve improved in the last two years because of how supportive and considerate most of the NCT fan base is.”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JASMINE RIHAL AND MYLES KIM

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY QIANZI LOO

Samir Mehra blends art and technology

BY MAPLE LEUNG

Colors swirl across the screen as junior Samir Mehra finishes his sixth hour on Blender forming intricate animations, whether they be pieces of work that detail the impacts behind social media use or even explore how light interacts with various objects and textures. This software allows users to employ a variety of 3D modeling: simulations, rendering, modeling and rigging. The interface itself prints several computer algorithms — projections — that change the 3D virtual interface. Mehra has been exploring Blender’s complex simulations for several years.

“I like the idea of being able to express myself,” Mehra said. “Blender is a way for me to do that.”

Mehra first stepped into the world of Blender animations when he was creating his own PC. Discovering various tutorials on Youtube, the variety and creativity behind Blender simulations sparked his interest. Along with the rest of the Blender community, Mehra found his first Blender tutorial from the Youtuber- Blender Guru, where he learned how to create the iconic blender donut. Mehra continues to consult and revisit tutorials in order to turn his visions into reality.

“I’m not the most artistic person so I don’t like drawing a lot,” Mehra said. “But from various tutorials I can put the knowledge I gain together and virtually create my own art.”

For Mehra, each animation takes approximately a couple of weeks, with up to several hours spent on the process each day. Most animations take an average of 12 hours to complete. As someone who is deeply passionate about soccer, having played for a long time, his recent soccer ball Blender animation allowed Mehra to combine two of his unique interests.

“Over time, I’ve picked up a lot of skills,” Mehra said. “I now know the limits of what I can do on the software and what I can’t, which allows me to really push to create new animations.”

Mehra primarily focuses on light simulations, something that is exclusive to Blender and not in typical art. In these light simulations, Mehra illustrates how light interacts with different objects and different materials.

“It’s just so fascinating the amount of stuff you can do on Blender,” Mehra said. “There are so many tools and add-ons, people have really developed the software so you can do almost anything.”

For his last piece, Mehra created a piece about social media, illustrating the darker impacts of social media usage and how it detrimentally sucks users onto their platforms. A single user stands stranded in the dark in front of a glowing doorway, as

social media icons swarm around the top. In the future, Mehra hopes to continue creating animations on blender as a hobby and an outlet to express himself.

“It’s relaxing in a way that although the work might be tedious,” Mehra said. “The repetition in what you do is kind of soothing.”

I read Prince Harry’s memoir so you don’t have to

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, is crabby — he was never the heir to the British throne, always in the shadow of his older brother Prince William, always the “spare” to William’s “heir.” In his debut memoir “Spare,” a 400-page whinge filled with pitiful attempts at fancy figurative language and literary references, Harry details his life as a prince in the British royal family, until abdicating his position for good.

The memoir begins with Harry reminiscing about his childhood and the loss of his mother, Princess Diana of Wales, in a car accident while pursued by paparazzi. After a raw account of PTSD and desensitization to war, told through Harry’s service in the British Air Force in Afghanistan, he concludes the memoir ardently recounting his relationship with his wife, Meghan Markle, and their departure from the royal family.

While Harry complains about being the “spare” and depicts himself as brave and resilient as he traverses a public life, he leaves out the obvious concessions of his privilege. The memoir’s jumping from one luxurious trip to the next (Safaris in Africa, summers in Balmoral and Eton, royal tours), self-pitying and petulant yet still attempting to remain relatable, shows Harry’s refusal to acknowledge himself as advantaged in any way. In effect, the novel comes off as slightly whiny, a back and forth of Harry’s misfortunes as the “spare” and his altruism as a man of good faith. Not to mention, the bizarre anatomical descriptions of his privates only make the read less enjoyable. Though privileged and out of touch, the memoir provides some emotional insight into loss and living under the public eye.

Death, a major theme, follows Harry through adulthood. The memory of Diana, known tenderly as “mummy,” leaves him shattered as a grown man. Harry is still unable to reconcile his

emotions, seeking an unrequited closure that Diana is truly gone. His life in the limelight only makes his mother’s death more traumatic, its causes open to speculation and crude opinions by journalists. Harry speaks to the public when he says that trauma is real, and one should be allowed to cope with it in peace.

Harry also calls attention to the wickedness of the press, and their desire to bring about his doom by milking the nitty-gritty, vulgar details of his life — after all, it was the distracting, bright clicks of their cameras that killed Diana. He perceptively describes his role as a “glove puppet,” a pawn to the media, who capitalize on his every life detail — from cheating on a test at school to struggling with drug use to a mere bad haircut — for entertainment. Children deserve to be children, he writes, and not pestered by the press for living their lives, a sincere reminder of the importance of a childhood.

The ounce of relatability in the memoir comes from the fact that Harry is very honest, raw and unafraid to reveal his flaws. He is open about his anxiety, panic attacks and PTSD from his military service and details his therapy journey to relieve the trauma caused by his mother’s death — emotions that, no matter the background of the reader, are touching.

“Spare” is no doubt an interesting read, a sensitive account of what it means to be royal, but comes off as pretentious and out of touch. The question arises: To what extent should royals, with privileges left and right, servants at their beck and call and a permanent position in high society, still be treated as credible preachers of lifelong burden? Everyone has their own story, but it must be told with humility and selfawareness, which “Spare” only partly achieves.

BY SURYA SARAF PHOTO AND GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY LILLY WU

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ANUSHKA ANAND USED WITH PERMISSION FROM SAMIR MEHRA

Behind big bites: Lynbrook’s kitchen staf serve love

As students filter into campus to start their mornings, figures in the kitchen move under bright lights, curating brunch displays and cleaning counters. Supplying Lynbrook’s students with fuel and warmth from food, Lynbrook’s kitchen staff work to keep our campus lively.

Food Service Manager: Lit by the glow of his computer, Tom Fernandez scours over data, arms brushing paperwork. He acts as a bridge between the district and kitchen staff, and oversees fresh produce delivery, data from food sales and more.

Fernandez’s day starts before the sun rises at 6:30 a.m., when he sets up Point of Sale systems, which are used to track orders and collect student data. While staff members filter in, he focuses on everyday paperwork, like meal count reports.

“I have a great crew to work with,” Fernandez said. “I am just here to answer questions and help them out in any way

He has been a chef for 40 years, starting with washing dishes at his brother's bar, his first indtroduction to food service. From there, he went to the Culinary Academy in San Francisco. After cooking at a variety of restaurants and hotels, he was assigned to Lynbrook.

“The most rewarding part of working here is nourishing the students,” Fernandez said. “The biggest challenge is that we do not know how many students are coming, so we have to guess the amount of food to

Baker and Cook: Every day Santa Gurrola arrives at work, dusting metal counters with flour and kneading dough. Gurrola originally got into the food service around 2011.

“At the beginning, it was because I needed to work, but when I started working, I really enjoyed it,” Gurrola said. “I love serving and being around the kids.”

She came to Lynbrook four years after working in the Santa Clara District, moving through the districts.

“There’s not a day where I get up and say, ‘I gotta go to work,’” Gurrola said. “There’s nothing I dislike about the job; we have a great manager and team.”

She handles every lunch item, preparing fresh lunch items like salads and pizza. Despite FUHSD guidelines for menu items, the staff members find new ways to experiment, like adding garlic to breadsticks and re-opening salad bars.

“We prepare these dishes with so much love, so it’s disappointing when the kids don’t want to try them,” Gurrola said. “Just keep coming to the cafeteria.”

Food Service Assistants: Deborah

Yeung, Cindy Brown, Helene Quinonez, Roana Leung and April Shen play a crucial role in daily operations. They balance behindthe-scenes tasks like filling the dispensers with kitchen tasks.

Inspired by her love of cooking food for her children and by her father and brother, who both were Hong Kong military chefs, Yeung applied for the Food Service Assistant role at Lynbrook.

“I come to work for the students, they’re like my kids. We’re trying hard to feed them good, healthy food,” Yeung said. Before working at Lynbrook, Quinonez worked as a caregiver, cooking in hospital settings and for events at Levi’s Stadium. Leung now works part-time after her official retirement in 2019, and volunteers in big kitchens for events like Chinese New Year celebration meals.

“It’s cool to see more students coming to the cafeteria because of our expanded menus — we now have Indian, Chinese, Mexican and Italian cuisines,” Leung said. “I love seeing students grow over the years in high school."

Student Workers: Juniors Lily Fang, Casey Fung, Cherie Zhou, and freshman Deanna Marie Quinonez and Caitlin Zhou dedicate their time before school, brunch and lunch to help food service run smoothly. They can often be seen crafting parfaits, manning registers and distributing food across hot plates.

“This was my first food industry-based job,” Fang said. “It's been nice because all the staff are really friendly and you're not alone.”

With flexible schedules, most choose when they want to show up, a common time being 7 a.m. before school starts.

Working for $17.95 per hour, most students chose the job because of its low transportation time, as they can just work before and during school. Some find the lunch shift refreshing after a mentally rigorous day.

“It's gratifying,” Fung said. “When I go there, it's usually really manual, repetitive tasks, so I can put on music and relax.”

Zhou originally joined the kitchen staff to see if she wanted to pursue the culinary industry. With more work experience, she hopes to better understand if food services is something she wants to pursue in the future.

“I just really like exploring different foods and love cooking for others,” Zhou said. “But I also know how hard the job is for lunch ladies, so be nice to them.”

PHOTOS BY EMILY PEDROZA, ALYSSA WANG AND KATIE CHIN

Students build custom digital experiences with self-built PCs

BY CHELSEA LEE

The gaming community has popularized self-building PCs in recent years, and senior William Xu and junior Krish Agarwal are two of many Lynbrook students who have joined the trend as a way to enhance their gaming experiences. Many say that their initial motivation to build their own PC was due to their laptops lacking the optimization to adequately support computing-intensive programs like video games, where the visuals often lag. When selecting parts for their own PC, they can decide how to optimize their computer for personal needs, whether it be homework, gaming, streaming or photo and video editing.

“You get to have a lot of freedom when it comes to selecting parts and how you want to customize your computer,” senior William Xu said. “Those are all things that you might not be able to get with someone else custom building it for you.”

Junior Krish Agarwal was drawn to the idea of PC building in 2020 when he noticed the lag on his original computer while gaming. He built his first PC this year. Xu built his first personal computer, or PC, in middle school, and has since built six more — some for his parents for office tasks, others in collaboration with his friends. While constructing a PC may seem intimidating, many students who have taught themselves to build a PC emphasize that with proper research and patience, anyone can learn the same skills.

“Assembling a PC can be a little complicated, but online resources will help sort things out,” Agarwal said. “It’s not the most straightforward, but anyone would be able to do it.”

To build a PC, students typically begin by setting a budget, which can range from $300 to $4,000, and creating a list of parts to purchase that would be compatible with each other and support the user’s needs. The price range Lynbrook students recommend for a “decent” PC is between $600 and $1,000, as investing in higher-quality parts can result in a computer that maintains higher performance

The two most important parts of a PC are the central processing unit, which can be considered the “brains”

of the computer, and the graphics card or graphics processing unit, which renders any of the computer screen’s visuals. These parts can be purchased affordably from second-hand sellers on Craigslist or eBay, or new from tech retailers like Amazon or Newegg.

“I’ve learned that if you’re getting something expensive, it’s a good idea to invest in something that is good quality and will last a long time,” Agarwal said. “Slightly more expensive components will maintain performance for a long time and be cheaper in the long run.”

After conducting online research and obtaining all the necessary parts, students jump into the assembly step, which can take anywhere between three and 10 hours, as challenges that require troubleshooting and additional research often arise. While piecing together multiple expensive parts may seem intimidating, there are plentiful accessible sources such as Youtube videos or online Reddit forums, which students have relied on to successfully build multiple PCs.

“When you finally complete a computer, it can be a very rewarding process — especially when it’s been difficult to troubleshoot and you’ve been presented with many challenges,” Xu said.

To students with a passion for computer science or making things by hand, constructing their own computer can feel like an upgraded Lego set and help them learn hands-on about computer hardware. Despite being an expensive hobby, learning to build daily tools is an impactful and unique experience.

“For anyone who is on the fence about building their own computer, I would say it’s totally worth it to dive in, because at the end of the day you get a new experience and education,” Xu said. “You’ll have a computer that you can use to do whatever you want and that’s ultimately, truly yours. I think that’s totally worth it.”

PHOTOS BY KATIE CHIN

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ALYSSA WANG

Addressing racial injustice with reparations

BY JASON SHAN AND EILEEN ZHU

On March 14, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a draft plan for reparations for the African American community, as proposed by the San Francisco African American Reparations Advisory Committee. Reparations refer to compensation given to individuals or communities that have suffered from injustices as a way to acknowledge and recompense past wrongdoings. Although the approval does not enact any of the recommendations and merely indicates the board’s willingness to take the next step toward redress, debates have sparked over the best manner in which to address the city’s historical racial discrimination and implementation of reparations as a whole.

Disenfranchisement and school segregation lasted well into the 1870s. San Francisco was also the home to California’s first chapter of the domestic terrorist group, the Ku Klux Klan.

Gloria Berry, AARAC chair member

The remnants of Jim Crow laws, gentrification, redlining and housing discrimination led to an increasing racial wealth gap and decreasing Black population, marking San Francisco as currently having one of the lowest Black populations among the largest 14 cities in the nation. California’s 1945 Community Redevelopment Act allowed for the destruction of the Fillmore neighborhood, once the cultural heart of San Francisco’s African American community, and landowners have been known to engage in restrictive covenants to prevent certain ethnicities from purchasing homes.

descendants in specific time periods in order to identify families who have been affected by discrimination. Under each objective, the bill is divided into sub-categories of proposed actions. Along with issuing a formal apology and promise to make investments in Black communities, an Office of Reparations will also be established to ensure the progress of the programs. A committee of community stakeholders will be created and funded to help implement policy initiatives.

With financial reparations available to people who qualify, it is likely each person will receive some monetary compensation in addition to other supplements such as debt forgiveness, tax credits and an enhanced bank framework that ensures access to credit and loans. Home ownership would also be made more attainable with new funding loan programs, covering monthly living expenses, subsidizing mortgage loans and offering grants for home maintenance. Furthermore, public housing units would be converted into condominiums with a $1 buy-in. These reparations would help temporarily mend the financial and living issues which stem from racism.

accommodated. Pew Research Center showed that 68% of US respondents opposed the reparations. Among the people surveyed, 80% of Black people surveyed supported the reparations while 90% of Republicans opposed.

“We definitely need to have more discussion on ways monetary compensation could be done,” Berry said. “But that’s where creativity comes in. It could be through installments, or prioritizing those with unstable living situations; we need the mayor and other officials to work with us to find ways it can happen.”

Many activists also argue that the bill raises unrealistic hope for the Black community. Although progressive plans are being approved, it is uncertain how SF plans on funding the reparations.

AARAC, the committee behind the proposal, was formed in 2020 under the backdrop of the Black Lives Matter movement and in light of acts of racial violence such as the death of George Floyd. The objectives of AARAC’s 111 recommendations encompass four categories: health, economic empowerment, education and policy.

The committee first examined the city’s roots in racial inequality to determine proper reparations. Although San Francisco was never involved in chattel slavery, it has contributed to systemic discrimination in other ways. Its 1852 Fugitive Slave Act clashed with the California constitution’s anti-slavery clause by allowing the deportation of formerly enslaved African Americans brought into the free state. During the gold rush of the 1850s, Southern slave owners brought slaves to San Francisco in search of riches, and many slaves were employed to build California’s railroads.

“I have experienced evictions due to capitalist purposes,” AARAC member Gloria Berry said. “My whole apartment building of six Black families were all evicted to convert those units to condominiums. We were not lazy, not a blight — my father drove the cable car for 25 years and my mother was a secretary for the federal government.”

The legacy of these racial barriers is still felt today. A recent report from the National Bureau of Economic Research has shown that San Francisco is particularly prone to discrimination against African American renters. Black infants in San Francisco have a mortality rate four times that of white infants, and Black mothers also face increased mortality rates from childbirth complications.

Examples of reparations to address these and similar problems across the nation have been mostly executed in the past few years, such as California being the first state with an official reparations commission in 2020 and Evanston, IL being the first city to implement reparations in 2021. San Francisco’s new draft plan falls in line with the motive behind recent efforts, but aims to create greater change through bold measures.

Eligibility for the reparations included in the bill requires the individual to have identified as an African American for at least 10 years and be over the age of 18, as well as meet specific requirements regarding

However, some are also concerned about the reparations not addressing the problem at its root.

“I’m more interested in solving a longterm problem,” history teacher Jeffrey Bale said. “If nothing is structurally changed, then what’s the point? Paying off millions of dollars does not wipe our hands clean of the whole incident.”

While promising bright prospects for those who qualify for reparations, critics have argued otherwise. One argument is that because California was never part of chattel slavery in the U.S. nor endorsed it, it would be unfair to the taxpayers who would have to handle the cost of systemic racism in government policies. Stanford University’s Hoover Institution estimated that each non-Black family — which includes immigrants in San Francisco — would pay $600,000 in taxes until the reparations are

The AARAC is continuing its monthly meetings at San Francisco City Hall until June 1, when it will submit its final report. Meanwhile, the city is also in the process of potentially establishing an Office of Reparations. After June 1, city officials have until Sept. 19 to accept the final report, which will then open the pathway for supervisors on the board to develop plans toward funding chosen recommendations.

“I would define the success of the plan as meaning that our little boys and girls will feel loved,” Berry said. “That they will feel like they’re human.”

Dec. 8, 2020

We need to have more discussions on ways monetary compensation can be done.

San Francisco establishes an African American Reparations Advisory Committee.

Feb. 25, 2021

San Francisco announces the Dream Keeper Initiative to support the African American community in the city.

June 1, 2023 AARAC will submit its fnal report after receiving input from community.

Watching the impact of children’s shows

BY MEERA NAMBIAR AND ANUSHKA ANAND

Gathering in front of a screen, ready to watch cartoons has been a staple of American childhood throughout the last few decades; yet despite the seemingly innocuous nature of these shows, studies have shown the large impact they have on children’s personalities and development, exposing them to new ideas and stereotypes while impacting aggression levels.

Though doctors recommend that children should limit TV time to one to two hours of television per day, most kids spend around three to four hours with the screen. Medical experts believe that babies under two years old should not watch TV at all.

“The length of screen time is correlated with some negative outcomes like increased obesity, higher BMI, and can slow down a child’s development of language,” school psychologist Brittany Stevens said. “This is because so much of the early life brain is wired to get language from watching human faces and their facial expressions and having the interaction in real time and in real life.”

Especially for children under 5 years old, long exposure to TV has been associated with lower cognitive development and limited face-to-face social skills. Those who see violent characters are more likely to imitate that behavior, leading to higher levels of aggression in children.

A study conducted at the University of Michigan found that early exposure to TV violence could predict aggression in adulthood, following gender stereotypes seen on TV. Men were more likely to engage in physical aggression, while women were more likely to engage in verbal aggression.

Another study on the relationship between violence on TV and children

from the University of Montreal concluded that toddlers exposed to violence on screen are less engaged and motivated in the classroom, getting worse grades even at the age of 12, a decade later. In the experiment, four-year-olds who watched 9 minutes of SpongeBob, which is faster-paced and a comedy show, performed worse on executive function tests taken immediately after, than peers who watched 9 minutes of Caillou, which is slower-paced and focuses more on particular learning objectives.

“There’s a significant correlation of increased aggression and violence in children who view violent cartoons and in general, violent content,” said Stevens.

A lifetime of viewing stereotypical media becomes ingrained in a child’s brain, ultimately affecting their future relationships, career choices, and self-worth. For example, media that reinforces the idea that masculine traits and behaviors are more valued than feminine traits and behaviors leads boys who consume these media messages to become more likely to exhibit stereotyped masculine behaviors and beliefs.

But not all children’s TV shows are harmful, with educational content allowing kids to learn about

new academic topics and cultures. Shows such as “Sesame Street” that focus on everything from the alphabet to how to follow one’s moral compass provide ways for children to learn while being entertained.

These shows are kids’ version of pop culture because it gives them something to talk about,” senior Serena Kher said. “TV shows can also be really educational and expose children to what they’re interested in.”

Since children often do not get a very vivid learning experience from the 2D screen, interactive shows like “Dora the Explorer’’ add audience engagement portions, which encourage conversational skills within young viewers. TV can also introduce children to a diverse array of cultures and show them places they can’t see in person. Furthermore, younger children tend to model the behaviors they see around them; positive role models on TV shows can help children form good character traits, while the opposite is true if they see negative role models on TV.

“TV can help a child learn a lot of new things, especially TV shows from

different parts of the world,” Kher said. “I see a lot more TV shows doing their best to include people from different backgrounds. It opens children’s minds up to a lot more topics that they might not be exposed to in their household.”

A study at Texas Tech University found that many children displayed positive traits when watching TV with their parents. By pointing out connections or asking children to make their own while watching, parents can help their development by showing them how TV content is relevant to real life.

“It’s important to have variety, moderation, and thoughtful consumption,” Stevens said. “Watch something that is enjoyable or gives you a positive feeling instead of something that leaves you frightened or angry.”

Silicon Valley Bank failure leads to unrest

BY AMISHI CHANDRA AND VALERIE SHU

The power of banks in the U.S. economy has grown abundantly clear as recent collapses have sent shockwaves through the banking sector, leaving devastating impacts on depositors and the economy as a whole. Most banks in the U.S. act as intermediaries, receiving money from deposits or by issuing stock to provide loans and other financial services. By employing fractional reserve banking, a system that requires certain percentages of deposits to be physically available for withdrawal, banks

“Banks essentially take the money which people deposit in their accounts and lend them to those who need the money,” UC Berkeley finance professor Terrance Hendershott said. “They then give interest on the depositors’ money by investing in places.” Issues in this cycle arise in cases where the value of loans and stocks fall, causing a decline in asset value and insufficient funds to pay depositors. In turn, extreme and unpredicted influxes in withdrawals, or bank runs happen, where depositors rush to withdraw money and the amount of money being requested exceeds the amount

largest bank collapse in U.S. history on March 10, 2023.

“It was frightening to see how everyone was blindsided by it,” senior Angela Chung said. “I have an account in SVB and woke up to see that all my money I had earned was gone — it was an eye-opening experience.”

The collapse was due in part to a lack of diversity in investments, particularly in the technology sector. As a bank catering specifically to the California Bay Area’s tech industry, Silicon Valley Bank’s clientbase was composed mainly of venture-backed tech startups and experienced rapid growth due to the success of tech companies during the pandemic. Handling a huge amount of uninsured deposits, as well as investing in long-term treasury and mortgage assets that lost market value as interest rates went up also contributed to the risks that ultimately amplified the impacts of its collapse. These economic factors, among others, intensified public doubt in the bank’s long-term financial solvency, or ability to meet financial responsibilities. These doubts came to a head in a bank run and the proceeding collapse and seizure by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.

“We add layers of regulators to try to stop the banks from taking too much risk, but you see the wreckage of that idea all around you,” Stanford university economics professor John Cochrane said. “In 2008, and again this year, regulators didn’t see even pretty simple risks building up.”

One of the most immediate effects of this bank collapse was the disruption of the financial services that the bank

provides to its clients. Many of the world’s leading technology companies relied on Silicon Valley Bank for essential financial services such as lending, cash management and investment banking. Collapses not only weaken the economy by eroding trust in the financial system and disrupting financial services, but can also cause a ripple effect known as contagion wherein other banks collapse under customer doubt triggered by initial failures of the first bank. In the wake of Silicon Valley Bank’s crisis, others like Signature Bank, Silvergate Bank and First Republic have collapsed or are at risk of bankruptcy after suffering massive losses.

“Silicon Valley Bank overinvested and lost all the money of the depositors,” Hendershott said. “But luckily, the government was there to back them up, making sure that essentially all the money lost would be circulated.”

On March 12, the federal government issued a statement announcing that they would step in to protect all of Silicon Valley Bank’s depositors. SVB was bought out by the other bank, and eventually all the money which was considered gone was restored. The money was transferred to other banks so that people could access their money and on March 17 the SVB officially filed for bankruptcy.

SVB was among the top 20 American commercial banks, with $209 billion in total assets at the end of last year. The FDIC took aggressive action, and tech which had benefited SVB lost momentum as a result of higher borrowing costs.

“It is good to know that the government will be there to help when the bank fails and people are in trouble,” senior Enze Zheng said. “But this incident has shown us that people should be more careful about the type of banks they trust.”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY INAAYA YOUSUF

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY SARAH ZHANG

Beneath the surface of Calif.’s water infrastructure crisis

BY SARAH ZHANG AND CALVIN ZHOU

Trillions of gallons of precipitation have poured down on California this winter, breaking the state’s driest recorded three years. However, most of the water has returned to the ocean, rather than replenishing California’s under-supplied water system. The problem lies within ill-prepared water infrastructure that fails to capture and store stormwater in aquifers and reservoirs. California’s existing water infrastructure stores water in large reservoirs and underground aquifers — an overlooked source that contributes to the majority of the state’s drinking water. According to Stanford’s Woods Institute for the Environment, 50 million acre-feet of storage are available in reservoirs compared to between 850 million and 1.3 billion acre-feet of storage in aquifers and other groundwater sources. However, for the past 20 years, the available water stored in the aquifers is on a decline. The need from major consumers of water, such as the Central Valley’s agriculture economy, has been growing faster than aquifers can be replenished. Due to tight regulations on who can take water from rivers, aquifers are without a stable supply to

replenish reserves. While this achieves its goal of equal access during dry spells when water is highly contested, the regulation is unable to adjust during a large influx of water in rivers during storms.

“To do more for all sectors in the state, it is all abvout if we can store water more effectively,” said Bruce Cain, Professor of Political Science at Stanford University and Director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West. “The floods indicate the problem that we get a ton of water sometimes and no water most of the time, so we have to make sure that we save water to use when we do not have water.”

Due to the lack of supply from aquifers, reservoirs now account for 60% of the state’s water supply and have become the focus for legislators and residents alike. In Northern California, reservoirs were replenished due to the recent storms but the water was drained into the ocean to prevent flooding, leading to public outrage. In contrast, reservoirs in Southern California had trouble reaching desired levels, but all major reservoirs in the state are at least at 80% capacity, a major sign of progress in a drought-ridden state.

“To protect areas downstream from the dams and reservoirs, the state will be drawing water out a little bit so there’s room there to store that water,” said David Freyberg, Associate Professor of Civil and

Environmental Engineering at Stanford University and Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment. “The goal is when the snow melts, the reservoir will be just filled up to the tip-top so there’s lots of water there for the dry summer that’s coming.”

Yet, slow progress hampers the increase of reservoirs that many believe are needed to adapt to future storms. The Sites Reservoir to be built on the Sacramento River, for instance, has been planned for nearly four decades but construction kickoff is planned for 2024 and is likely to be delayed due to weak public support. Difficulty acquiring permits in consideration of environmental concerns such as fishing health has also stood in the way. Legislators have balked at the slow pace of reservoir construction, believing it to be the key to maintaining a stable water supply.

“The bottom line is that our old system of dams and reservoirs are getting old and their capacity to hold water is decreasing because many of them have silt or other damage to them,” Cain said. “It is hard to build new dams and reservoirs, partly because there aren’t as many good places to build them, but also we are more conscious than we were in the early 20th century of the ecological effects of building more.”

counties impacted by flooding and storms. The flooding has revived long-dormant lakes such as the Tulare Lake in the San Joaquin Valley; nevertheless, other counties worry if flood levees can withstand the intense flooding. In the San Bernardino mountains, death tolls are rising from blizzards that dumped snow on residents, trapping them in their homes.

“Levee failures are examples of the hazards of flooding conditions,” Freyberg said, “It’s just part of the ecosystem processes but we put a lot of infrastructure, homes, businesses, roads and power lines adjacent to these rivers.”

78 trillion gallons of precipitation this fall and winter

In August 2022, Newsom issued a new California water supply strategy: “Adapting to a Hotter, Drier Future,” which targets water supply by expanding reservoirs, replenishing groundwater and increasing stormwater capture. This plan continues a three-year legacy of legislation for improving water infrastructure and management.

Aside from physical infrastructure, climate patterns and climate change over the years have contributed to inconsistent snow and rainfall, from the Sierras to the Central Valley. Rising summer temperatures have resulted in dry soil and arid basins, while the warmth carries into the winter and results in even more intense storms.

Since the fall of 2022, cities have received anywhere from 10-30 inches of rain. The last time the state saw precipitation at these record levels was the El Nino winter of 1997 to 1998. These erratic patterns will have long-term consequences on California’s water supply as it becomes increasingly difficult to predict and plan for droughts and other natural disasters, which in turn can have a ripple effect on the state’s economy, public health, and overall quality of life.

“The storms also indicate another problem of resilience,” Cain said. “If we are going to essentially have a system that stores water successfully, we have to protect it from increasingly harsh weather.”

While more precipitation replenishes water supplies, the storms have been particularly threatening. On Jan. 4,

Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency to keep the state on high alert for dangerous storms. A week later, President Joe Biden granted federal disaster relief for many California

California’s 2022-23 allocation of $2.8 billion toward drought relief, environmental protection and water conservation is on top of a $5.2 billion investment into water infrastructure made in 2019. Newsom is proposing an additional $202 million and $125 million for flood and drought protection, respectively, for the 2023-24 state budget as well. Furthermore, in response to this season’s flooding, Newsom issued an executive order on March 10, relaxing the regulations for capturing floodwater without permits.

“One thing we haven’t been able to do very effectively is to have a statewide water plan that systematically takes all the various trade-offs and the different ways that we could handle water and says what’s best for the state as a whole,” Cain said.

In response to the recent water crisis, new technologies to conserve and recycle water are gaining popularity. For example, research surrounding how to treat wastewater and stormwater by the biofiltration of contaminants has been at the forefront. The use of desalination plants has also become increasingly popular in California, where salt and other minerals are removed from seawater to supply drinkable water. Other examples of technologies include using satellites to track agricultural water usage, cloud-seeding drones that zap clouds with currents to induce rain and micro or drip irrigation to deliver water to the roots of plants.

“Most people are not yet very comfortable with recycled water but it’s gaining traction,” sophomore Daphne Zhu said. “As the technology becomes more advanced, it could potentially become a bigger part of our water supply in the future.”

Today, the water crisis in California is a complex and multifaceted issue that requires immediate action from policymakers, businesses and individuals alike. With declining aquifer supplies, aging reservoirs, inconsistent rainfall patterns and the impacts of climate change, the state’s water supplies are constantly under immense pressure. While the problem is difficult to condense to a few solutions, the implementation of innovative technologies, policy reforms and sustainable practices gives California a chance toward a more resilient water future.

234% more water in the Sierra Nevadas than average.

The scoop on workout supplements

Intense physical exertion during a weightlifting session is incredibly taxing on not just one’s muscles, but their sinews, joints and cardiovascular structure too. Various workout supplements, taken before and after workout sessions, seek to improve physical prowess by boosting energy and athletic performance and aid in muscle growth and recovery. Yet these substances aren’t only used by professional athletes — they’ve been adopted by the general public, and now appear on the shelves of most local supermarkets, prompting curiosity about what they actually do.

Prepare with pre-workout Repair with post-workout

BY SAMIYA ANWAR

�re-workout supplements are popular among both recreational and professional athletes. These powders are meant to be taken prior to exercise and generally contain a mix of ingredients such as caffeine, creatine and amino acids. Although a mix of various preworkout supplements are typically popular among athletes, those who wish to focus on a particular muscle group take individual supplements.

Caffeine is a primary ingredient in a varying number of pre-workout supplements, as it is quickly absorbed and peaks in the bloodstream within 60 minutes of ingestion. Caffeine boosts mental alertness and sharpens cognition, ultimately improving one’s performance during endurance, power and resistance exercises.

“I use

caffeine in the form of energy drinks,” junior Manasa Gudapati said. “Celsius energy drinks give me extra energy boosts that help me power through my workouts.”

When taken in doses between 100 and 400 milligrams, caffeine has thermogenic properties, meaning it boosts metabolism and allows one’s body to burn maximum calories during a workout or throughout the day. The FDA recommends less than 400 milligrams of caffeine a day for adults; excessively high dosages may lead to side effects which can affect day-to-day living and lead to health problems.

There are 20 different amino acids which aid the growth and repairing of muscles, decrease muscle soreness and help in energy production. Beta-alanine, a popular supplement, is an amino acid which one can obtain through consumption of foods such as poultry or meat. This amino acid is used to synthesize carnosine, a molecule that is stored in muscles and helps improve athletic performance.

“Performance improvement is seen with these supplements, but not as much as you would see with caffeine or creatine monohydrate,” said Sebastian Zorn, Director of Sports Nutrition with football at Stanford University. “Even those have at best 5-8% performance improvement when dosed correctly.”

Athletes, especially weightlifters, use creatine monohydrate, a supplement that reduces recovery time and increases energy. It is formed of three amino acids: L-arginine, L-methionine and glycine.

BY LARRY WANG

Upon the completion of strenuous strength training or an explosive high-intensity workout session, targeted muscles are peppered with microscopic rips and tears in their fibers. These damaged muscle cells stimulate the body to repair and strengthen the existing muscle through a process known as muscle protein synthesis. The body requires nutrients to recuperate from physical exhaustion — here’s where postworkout supplements come into assistance.

The vast majority of postworkout supplements on the market today have one commonality: protein. When digested by the body, protein is broken down into its component amino acids, which are transported to muscle cells and synthesized into muscle protein, or proteinconstituting muscle cells, in a complicated process known as MPS which makes muscles bigger and stronger. For this reason, powdered protein supplements are often consumed in smoothies or shakes and provide users with a convenient source of protein for the body to repair and build muscle tissue. In fact, a landmark 2018 study published under the National Library of Medicine

conducted by Robert Morton et al. found that supplement users were associated with a 3.24-pound increase in muscle strength compared with placebo groups.

“The average individual loses around 400 grams of nitrogen daily from normal everyday activity,” said Sebastian Zorn, Director of Sports Nutrition with football at Stanford University. “This needs to be replaced and an additional surplus ingested to build muscle mass, so the daily Recommended Dietary Allowance for protein is anywhere from 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight for the average person to 2.2 grams for the elite athlete looking to gain lean body mass.”

This makes it especially important for athletes undergoing a rigorous training routine to meet their demanding daily RDA for protein.

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Virtual victories: Should esports be considered a sport?

BY JASON SHAN

In recent years, esports has proven itself as the fastest growing “sports” industry in the world. An increasingly digital-centric era begs the question of whether esports should truly be considered a sport.

“I believe that esports should be considered a sport, since like many other sports, it is team oriented. There’s a really big market for esports, and it’s only going to grow bigger and bigger as more and more people get access to technology.”

— Nathan Ye, Sophomore

“No. In my opinion, sports are an intersection between physical and mental fitness, and esports are mostly mental, not physical.”

— Sophiya Mehra, Senior

“I do believe that esports should be considered an actual sport because it allows a lot of athletically challenged people to have a chance through esports to participate in sports, and it’s just overall a fun thing to do.”

— Regis He, Sophomore

“Definitely not. It’s the same reason I think that chess, or essaywriting isn’t a sport. A sport is defined by physical activity. If you’re just sitting down all the time, then it’s not a sport.”

— Dhruv Ghosh, Junior

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GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ASHLEY HUANG AND

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY AMISHI CHANDRA AND SUISANNA TANG

Junior Hongyu Guo perfects her craft in taekwondo

BY NICOLE GE

Junior Hongyu Guo stands at the edge of the mat, wearing a taekwondo uniform adorned with a black belt, eyes focused and ready to perform. After bowing, she begins her poomsae routine, throwing accurate punches and powerful kicks in a show of athleticism, and cheers erupt as her routine comes to a close.

Guo discovered taekwondo in the summer of 2020, hoping to try something new during the COVID-19 pandemic. She committed to the sport because she enjoyed the challenge from its difficulty and complexity. Since then, she has joined the competition team and has become an instructor for children at her dojang, the name for a formal Korean martial arts training hall.

“I remember I struggled with learning very basic movements when I was first starting out and it frustrated me to no end,” Guo said. “I spent hours at home practicing movements to get them right because of how precise everything had to be. It was from that moment on that I started to take taekwondo more seriously.”

Taekwondo is a Korean form of martial arts that is known for involving powerful and precise high kicks. The two main branches of taekwondo are World Taekwondo and International Taekwondo Federation; Guo trains in WT, which is a more common style used for competitions while ITF is a more traditional style with a focus on sparring.

Guo trains at Dreamkick Taekwondo, where her training regimen changes according to upcoming competition schedules. She generally spends around 10 hours a week at her dojang — three hours for instructing children and the rest for her team training. However, her training schedule becomes more intensive during the competition season, spending twice as many hours a week at the dojang.

WT consists of a variety of forms, including sparring, demo and poomsae. Poomsae is the form that Guo competes in — it is a performance of pre-established

patterns or forms that places emphasis on accuracy and precision. There are dozens of instructions required for each move to ensure that the moves are correct and as accurate as possible.

“Poomsae is something that looks really simple to someone who isn’t well-versed in the aspects of it,” Guo said. “Although achieving mastery is practically impossible with scores above 8.3 out of 10 rarely given at international competitions, the beauty and intricacy of the art form makes the frustration from the difficulty worth it.”

Guo competes at least three times a year; she won two silver medals and one bronze team medal at the 2022 Amateur Athletic Union Nationals in Las Vegas, Nev. She found her experience at this competition especially memorable because she was able to bond with new people while waiting for her turn.

“I enjoy meeting new people while waiting to compete,” Guo said. “In Las Vegas, our team was signed up for three separate events, so we were stuck in the

arena for around thirteen hours— four hours later than the expected release time — with little food and water. It’s safe to say that most of the people in my division became friends after that.”

While poomsae is a non-combative sport, injuries are a common occurrence. Guo has suffered a hamstring injury in the past that continues to affect her ability to perform at full capacity both in training and in competition. Although she knows it may cost her from earning the awards she wants, she understands that it is important to give her leg rest and be patient on her road to recovery.

“I’ve learned to let my leg rest as much as I can, even if it will cost me an award,” Guo said. “It’s difficult to balance injuries and competition, and it is definitely an uphill battle, but I’m giving it my all.”

Through experience, Guo has learned to accept her losses and grow from them. She believes that trying one’s best is enough and that success and validation should not depend on the medal one receives in the end.

“Bad things can happen, and that’s okay,” Guo said. “I learned that as long as I genuinely try my best and believe that the time I put in is reflected in my performance, awards don’t really matter.”

Taekwondo has helped Guo build confidence in herself, since her performance in poomsae is graded more on presentation than technique. In fact, the presentation category makes up 6 of the 10 points available, and there are many instances where the confidence from a player is the deciding factor between silver or gold. This has encouraged her to become more confident in the sport and in real life.

She hopes to continue to do taekwondo in college, although not at the same intensity and pace as she does now.

“People should learn taekwondo because there is such a wide variety of divisions of WT that everyone is bound to find something that interests them,” Guo said. “It’s a great form of exercise and can be enjoyed by people of all ages. And, let’s be honest, it looks really cool — especially demo.” PHOTOS BY

NICOLE GE GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY VIDUSHI UPADHYAY

Valkyries become champions at the Contest of Champions

BY APURVA KRISHNAMURTHY AND TANIKA ANBU

The Valkyries, Lynbrook’s dance team, won two titles at the Contest of Champions, a national competition hosted in Orlando, Florida from Mar. 3 to Mar. 8. The team spent their season perfecting the choreography and cleaning their movements, equipping them with the energy and precision needed to win second place in the Kick and third place in the Hip-Hop category.

Cin “Hip-hop” category. The dancers danced to “Move” by Béyonce, setting the powerful tone of the performance with its strong lyrics and energetic instrumentals. The Valkyries displayed animated facial expressions to amplify the intensity of the dance.

to explore because we generally don’t do hip hop for competitions,” junior and Valkyries officer Abigail Fong said. to their comradery which significantly contributed to the overall growth of the team.

apart,” junior and Valkyries officer Lauren Yoon said. “I liked being able to dance with my friends and achieve goals with them.”

he Valkyries’ signature dance formation is the kick line, a staminaintensive move, as dancers kick their legs straight in the air repeatedly. This speciality dance was performed with joyful music and exaggerated facial expressions. The dancers were donned in vibrant, 90’s-style dresses that highlighted the height of their kicks alongside the song “Born To Hand Jive” from the musical “Grease.” The dancers’ movements were similar to that of a country-style dance; for example, they moved their arms in circular motions to symbolize lassos. Placing in this category was expected, as “Kick” is the team’s distinguishing feature.

Prior to their competition, the team huddled together to listen to their dance music to internalize their movements. This ritual boosts the team’s spirit, helping

Female athletes versus menstruation

BY SUSANNA TANG

About half of the Lynbrook student body experiences “that time of the month”: that time of the month when you may feel more moody; that time of the month when your joints may ache; that time of the month when your menstruation cycle begins. And if you’re also an athlete, you’ve likely endured countless practices and games through the darting pain of cramps and discomfort of menstrual products.

Periods are inescapable. They are natural monthly discharges of blood from a female’s uterus that typically last for two to seven days, and often bring on abdominal cramps, mood swings and muscle aches — the severities of which vary from person to person. Years of experience have taught female athletes how to cope with their periods, but this natural biological process inevitably poses hindrances on the playing field.

“Cramps can hold me back from performing my best as a cheerleader,” junior Ayanna Beberg said. “When we’re stunting, we must be really focused. Any period symptoms in general can be distracting, and thus mess up the entire stunt.”

The most common and painful among symptoms are abdominal cramps; many female athletes often take medications such as ibuprofen to mitigate its discomfort. Symptoms vary; stronger cramps may hinder athletes from exhibiting their best performance or even participating in practices and important competitions at all.

“Sometimes men underestimate how bad period pains can be,” said senior Kate Lee, who has been a competitive swimmer for 10 years. “I get really bad cramps, and most of the time my coaches have been pretty understanding, but there have been times when I’ve asked for breaks because of the pain and they tell me that I can power through it.’”

menstruation lead to changes in energy levels and mood,

general and sometimes even disgusting,” freshman Suzanne Das said. “When I play tennis on my period, I try to eat a lot more to boost my energy.”

One particular hormone that decreases during the menstrual cycle is estrogen, a sex hormone that is important for maintaining bone health; lower estrogen levels can increase the risk of bone injury.

“It’s different for every student — we all have different bodies,” freshman PE teacher Lauren Blazek said. “I wouldn’t say exerting yourself to extreme limits when you’re on your period is a good idea, but I always suggest staying as active as you can by modifying exercises or taking it easier.”

uncomfortable using tampons must put their sport on hold throughout the entire duration of their period.

The discomfort of menstrual products is also something female athletes have learned to accept and disregard.

Blazek, PE teacher

As athletes get older, they learn about their bodies’ unique responses to periods. Lee, like many other female athletes, has learned to accept and play through the unavoidable pain and inconvenience that come with periods.

“When I’m on my period during an important competition, I tell myself that there’s nothing I can do to stop it and that I just need to accept it, and try my best to move on,” Lee said.

Most athletes have an array of menstrual products to choose from — everyone has different preferences. However, watersport athletes must learn to use tampons, which is a product many avoid since it gives rise to the possibility of contracting toxic shock syndrome, a fatal bacterial infection from leaving in a tampon for more than eight hours. Pads are not an option for these pool water, are

“Using pads during my matches is definitely uncomfortable, especially when they become weirdly oriented,” Das said. “It’s really annoying, but I just cope and move on. Sometimes when I’m rallying I even forget about the fact that I’m on my period.”

To mitigate the taboo against period talks, all Lynbrook PE teachers discuss periods at the beginning of each school year, hoping to establish a more comfortable environment for female students. Students on their period are given permission to take breaks from classes and walk laps around the track as an alternative.

“We tell them that we understand,” Blazek said. “I’m a woman as well, and I know that periods come once a month for all girls. I hope this taboo gets eliminated soon because periods are nothing to be embarrassed or ashamed of.”

Many athletes have fortunately found fitting environments to comfortably grow as female athletes.

“I’ve always felt comfortable talking about periods with my teammates because we’ve all been open about it ever since we first got them, so it’s somewhat normalized for us,” Lee said. “I think it’s important to have an environment where you can feel comfortable and not embarrassed talking about periods.”

Period discomfort doesn’t stop female athletes from doing what they love — it is among the many other aspects that make female athletes strong.

“My periods never hold me back from trying my best,” Das said. “Although I’m not

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samiya anwar

sarah zhang

surya saraf

tanika anbu

valerie shu

vidushi upadhyay

small print: the Epic is the official newspaper of Lynbrook High School and is a student-run open forum not subject to prior review, as protected under the California Education Code. Views expressed in the Epic do not necessarily reflect or represent those of the administration or faculty of this school or district. Letters to the Editor, guest columns and other materials to be considered for publication are welcome. Visit lhvsepic.com/submissions for the guidelines and submission form.

valued contributors: Yunhee Hong and Sanghoon Kim.

I hope this taboo gets eliminated soon because periods are nothing to be embarrassed of.

Lauren

GRAPHIC

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM ANGELINA ZHOU GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY APURVA KRISHNAMURTHY