Volume 46, Final Issue

Cape and Swor d Spr ing Show Page 12

K eep the Casual!

Page 22

End of Year Polls!

Pages 14 - 17

Will The Sixer s Win The Easter n Conference?

Page 23

Follow us on I nstagram and Twitter @SJPHawkeye or read our issues online at issuu.com/thehawkeye6

The Student Newspaper of St. Joseph's Prep

Vol. 46, I ssue VI

1733 West Gir ar d Ave. Philadelphia, PA, 19130

BREAK (-I NG) POI NT

M ay 24, 2021

Full House On April 12, the Prep shifted away from its hybrid-learning model and welcomed more students back to campus.

Prep Tennis claims first Catholic League title since 2006

On a hot and sunny Tuesday, May 4, St. Joe?s Prep Tennis defeated Devon Prep 4- 1 to win the PCL Championship for the first time in thirteen years.

It was an incredible moment for the team to hold up their first PCL championship trophy for the first time since 2006.

St. Joe?s Prep won all Varsity

(Photo: James Williamson | Philadelphia Sports Digest)

After going undefeated in the Philadelphia Catholic League regular season, St. Joe?s Prep was in a great position to qualify for the PCL championships.

With eight wins under their belt, St. Joe?s Prep faced Archbishop Carroll in the semi finals and won by a score of 5-0.

Matt Bae '21 holds the PCL trophy alongside his fellow captains Krish chawla '21 (left) and Luke Gallagher '23 (right) after the team's victory over Devon Prep.

matches in the PCL championship against Devon Prep with the exception of the 1st

see CHAMPS on pg. 26

April 12, 2021, marked a monumental milestone in the Prep's return to normality. 13 months, to the day, after the Prep announced the suspension of in-person instruction due to COVID-19, the school welcomed back students to campus for in-person instruction five days per week. Since March 12, 2020. the Prep had utilized asynchronous-, virtual-, and hybrid-learning models. Students still have the option of taking classes virtually. For a timeline of COVID-19's impact at the Prep, see page 5. For the full story on the Prep's return to five days per week in-person instruction, see page 7.

Prep Responds to Allegations of Neo-Nazi Alumnus

Ten years after the Prep's $2 million project that revitalized the science labs, double-lab periods are falling by the wayside due to changes brought by the administration, against faculty pleas.

By L iam Holden ?23 According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job opportunities in the STEM field are projected to grow by 8.0% in the next eight years, compared to less than 4.0% for the job market at large. With such expeditious growth expected, schools at all levels across the country have begun bold initiatives to expand their STEM programs and prepare their students for the world of tomorrow.

A schedule change planned at the Prep will leave science courses with nearly a third less class time than they had under the academic schedule prior to 2017.

The Prep lost a science teacher last summer, leaving a potential gap in the science schedule. Meanwhile, no new teacher was hired and the Prep is looking into eliminating science classes?double periods. see LABS pg. 6

(Photo: The 2020 Chronicle Yearbook)

(Photo: James J. Clearkin I ncorporated Building Construction )

Science L abs to be Shor tened, Dept. Chair M ar tin " Sur pr ised"

Singles match, played by Senior Captain Matthew Bae ?21.

(Photo: St. Joseph's (Photo: St. Joseph's Prep) Prep)

By L uke Gallagher ?23

Through anonymous sources and data leaks, internet researchers from the Canadian Anti-Hate Network accused alumnus Steven van Zelst '20 of being a "Neo-Nazi, violent misogynist, and sexual sadist" who "called for, praised, and participated in acts of violence and hate." Van Zelst graduated from the Prep in 2020. In his senior yearbook section, van Zelst quoted the famous and widely influential 19th century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer? interesting in context as Adolf Hitler once said of Schopenhauer, "I carried Schopenhauer ?s works with me throughout the First World War. From him I learned a great deal."

By L uke Gallagher '23 On Friday, March 5, St. Joseph's Prep released a statement in response to the alleged actions, behaviors, and beliefs of an alumnus of the Prep Class of 2020. The Prep?s official statement said, ?Our mission and our actions are in direct opposition to any type of hatred, misogyny, racism, anti-semitism, or violence

toward any members of our society. If these actions are true, this alumnus has acted in contradiction to these values and has completely lost his way.?

St. Joseph?s Prep did not name the student nor specify any further details about the matter. The details of these actions were vague.

Steven Mark van Zelst Jr. ?20, a former student at the Prep, was accused by the Canadian Anti Hate Network on antihate.ca of being a "Neo-Nazi, violent misogynist, sexual sadist, homophobe, and anti-Semitist."

Van Zelst enrolled at Boston University last fall, but is no longer see VAN ZELST pg. 8

2 | Farewell Letters | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye Table of Contents

News: 5- 7

Features: 8- 10

Enter tainment: 11 - 19

Op/Deb: 20 - 22

Spor ts: 23 - 25

Farewells from the Editor s-in-Chief Picture this: A bright-eyed, eager-to-please Benicio crosses paths with Dave McCabe ?19 in a J-Hall stairwell. What?s so compelling about McCabe?s request is that it?s not a request at all. Rather, it?s a challenge, a commission: ?write for The Hawkeye!? I have to not only write, but actually formulate opinions of the world around me. The pressure to be eloquent and concise is on. Freshman Benicio puts hands to keyboard and wants to do his Prep brothers proud. He writes a review of J.Cole?s new single, and sends it in a week later. The piece is decent but the journalism spark is what lasts, ignited and still flickering throughout my four years here.

Many times, I would process events here at the Prep through the lens of The Hawkeye: What would make a headline? What was the rumor going around? Would Garrett deem this newsworthy? What I loved was that I was understanding our community through the writing of our editors.

This was particularly helpful during this challenging COVID year. Would putting stories and articles together even matter? Is anyone reading this? The answer is that the articles did matter. Students did read The Hawkeye.

It makes me so proud to look back on the work we?ve done in this unprecedented year of firsts. Much of Issues 1 and 2 were organized and formatted remotely; long Zoom Calls and even longer checklists were made to keep The Hawkeye afloat in a time when postponement and deferral were easy options. Putting out the paper this year was a task that required everyone along the chain of command to step up, and everyone did without hesitation. We had met the expectations, but I knew better than to think that the Hawkeye writers would stop there. We revived the Hawkeye Instagram account, launched a very successful Hawkeye website, and had a blast with the April Fools Issue rollout.

I owe so many people my gratitude, but I?d first and foremost like to thank my parents for being in my corner my whole life, especially in high school.

To the editors before me. The example set by Matt Phillips ?18, David McCabe ?19, Liam Grugan ?19, Joe Scott ?19, Reza Ali ?20, and Chris Zack ?21 have all been one of hard work.

To the Hawkeye staff that is to come. At the beginning of this tumultuous year, I told Matt Bae that The Hawkeye will be in hands greater than our own by the spring. Each editor-in-chief, section editor, and staff writer that we?re entrusting this publication to is a dependable all-star. I can?t wait to have Bobby Woltjen ?22 mail a copy of the paper up to Brown every month for me to read!

Special thanks to our moderators: Mr. Vaccaro for always having the door open during Community Hour for me and Garrett to come staggering in out of breath from the J-Hall Climb. Doing double duty with the Newspaper and the Yearbook is an incredible feat, but you make it look effortless! Mr. Kearney, thank you for being a boundless source of journalistic knowledge, a frequent proofreader of my papers, and the teacher of my two favorite classes at the Prep. You taught me the value of improving my writing through revising the work of others.

Lastly, thank you to Garrett and Matt. We really did something special with the paper this year, and I don?t think I?ll ever work with a more trusting and hardworking trio. Both of you chased the stories of unsung heroes and led with inspiring enthusiasm.

And to all my Prep teachers and friends. Thank you for making this place home.

With gratitude, Benicio Beatty ?21 KCLXIX / KCLXXII

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Farewell Letters | 3

I was relatively blind to The Hawkeye during my freshman year. But when a classmate of mine told me that the student newspaper club was working on its April Fools issue, I saw an opportunity? an opportunity to poke fun at my dad in the school?s most public forum. I pitched my article idea to the editors. I told them that I wanted to write about my dad, Mr. McCloskey in Admissions, the goofball of the Prep staff, announcing a position shift to the Classics Department. The editors gave me some journalism pointers, and I was off. In a few days, I strung together a couple hundred words about my dad?s less-than-ideal Latin expertise and took some cheap shots at his dismal, short-lived career as the Prep?s quarterback. I was even supplied with a clever quote from the master of comedy himself: Mr. Dougherty ?93. Satisfied with my work, I proudly sent in my first article for The Hawkeye.

But the article was cut for space. A cutthroat introduction to student journalism at the Prep. So like any other freshman writer, I chose to stick to what I was familiar with. In my first articles, I wrote about the rugby team, the Prep pulse on Gritty the mascot, and the leaky library ceiling. I gathered quotes from my friends, my favorite teachers, and Mr. McCloskey. In those articles, I failed to disclose the fact that Mr. McCloskey was my dad: a journalistic no-no.

Then along the way, I started to dive into topics that required more than a simple entry-level understanding. I found joy in asking questions for both the front-page shakers and the articles tucked away, photoless, on the bottom of page 4. In writing for The Hawkeye, I interviewed a few notable Prep alumni, dropped references to the Girard Avenue Bridge pie guy, and learned that Brother Kania was once robbed at knife-point as a cab driver in New York City.

The Hawkeye gifted me with a sense of purpose as I started to think about what I wanted to do later in life. I took great pride in fulfilling the Hawkeye mission to ?entertain and inform the Prep community as well as cultivate an environment that generates meaningful and productive discussion.?

I would like to thank former Editors-in-Chief David McCabe, Joe Scott, and Liam Grugan for seeing something in me that I was yet to unearth.

As a sophomore with a blurred understanding of my own pursuits and interests, I was surprised that you entrusted the keys to St. Joseph?s Prep?s student journalism to the ragtag team of Chris Zack, Reza Ali, and myself.

And what an interesting dynamic that was. Digesting the intricacies of journalism, we were building the plane as we were flying. Chris, your knack for reaching untapped audiences with humor and pop culture references brought a much-needed levity to our work. Reza, I was amazed by your ability to extract the talent in the paper?s editors and writers.

To Mr. Vaccaro and Mr. Kearney, thank you for never taking your eyes off of the big-picture and the Hawkeye mission, even if it was in the aim of eliminating ?the stuff that could get us fired.? It sure was fun navigating the dilemmas of student journalism.

Benicio, Matt, Murphy, and Bobby, it was a blast working with you guys this year. In a year that somehow simultaneously had so much and so little news to work with, I commend you all for working through the challenges that were presented to us. And hey Matt and Benicio, if Penn and Brown are not providing the high-quality academic rigor that you were looking for, then you can always transfer to Boston College ¯ \_(? )_/¯ .

To Mother Prep, thank you for being my playground for the past 18 years. This is where I learned how to swim, where I formed some great relationships, and frankly, where I grew up.

And thank you, Dad, for the rides into school and your willingness to be on the receiving end of some Hawkeye April Fools jokes. Dad, I?ve come a long way since pedaling my tricycle through Villiger Hall at four years old. Thank you for giving me the space to learn on my own, but also staying close for incredible guidance and encouragement.

To the readers of The Hawkeye, thank you for keeping us in business and putting up with our strained puns. You?re in good hands next year.

Murph, Bobby, and Stephen, keep up the Hawkeye legacy, and don?t forget to have some fun along the way. I insist that every 2 A.M. Lucidpress formatting session is a character-building experience.

Hawkeye, it?s been real. Thanks for everything. Peace.

With love, Garrett McCloskey '21 KCLXVIII AMDG

4 | Farewell Letters | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye For me, writing has always been like taking a cold shower.

It is something I do every day. It is something I always dread for the first few minutes (heck, even starting to write this letter was like forcing myself to wake up early for Sunday morning church with Fr. O?Connell). I think we can all relate to the fact that cold showers never get old.

As someone whose mother used to practically write my essays in 6th grade, I would say that I have come a long way. A scrawny kid from Cleveland, who would have thought that I would make it to the big leagues someday (hi mom!). Over the years, as a staff writer, an editor, and now one of three editors-in-chief of the Hawkeye, I have come to enjoy the entire process, editing, formatting, interviewing, and most importantly, writing.

Now, I would like to take the time to thank those who have assisted me along this journey.

Thank you, Reza Ali ?20 and Chris Zack ?20. You guys paved the way for Garrett, Benicio, and me. Not only did I enjoy getting to know you as leaders, but I also enjoyed getting to know you as friends. Your work last year was truly exemplary. Reza and Chris, thank you for believing in me.

Thank you, Garrett McCloskey and Benicio Beatty. You guys are incredible. Without you two, I do not know what I would have done. Garrett and Benicio, you guys have been the catalysts that have propelled the newspaper to greater lengths this year. This year has been incredibly chaotic, stressful, and honestly (downright) depressing. But, despite a global pandemic, you managed to stay at the helm year-round, steering the ship in the right direction. I cannot help but think about what we might have accomplished given a normal year.

Thank you, Mr. Kearney and Mr. Vaccaro. It has been a pleasure to work alongside you. I am forever grateful for the patience and guidance that you gave us this year. With Murph and Bobby, the paper is in good hands next year (you guys are going to kill it).

Thank you, to all my teachers who have been pivotal in my development as a student. Thank you, Coach Boyle and Ms. Pinto. Your guidance (on the court and in the college counseling office) over the years has played a critical role in my development as a person. And finally, thank you to St. Joseph?s Prep. The Hawkeye exists because of the Prep community, one full of devoted students, faculty and staff, and parents.

This academic school year (2020-2021) was challenging to say the least, but I am beyond grateful to have been a part of such a historical period at the Prep.

Sincerely, Matt Bae ?21 KCLXVIII

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

COVI D-19 Timeline Compiled By Gar rett M cCloskey '21 and Will Guckin '21

Decem ber 31, 2019 Un k n own pn eu m on ia cases r epor ted to W H O in W u h an , Ch in a

M ar ch 23, 2020

M ar ch 13, 2020

Ap r i l 6, 2020

Fir st day after Spr in g Br eak .

Asyn ch r on ou s sch edu l e: Distan ce l ear n in g begin with assign m en ts posted to Googl e Cl assr oom

Fir st sch ool day with ou t M ar ch 21, stu den ts in Febr u ar y 6, 2020 th e bu il din g 2020 Pr ep Com m u n ity M ar ch 11, Fir st U.S. in for m ed Dr. Nu n es 2020 death is pr esu m abl y attr ibu ted to U.S. cr osses positive for cor on avir u s 1,000 cases COVID-19

Jan u ar y 22, 2020

News | 5

Gr adin g scal e ch an ges an n ou n ced.

Tr adition al in -sch ool fin al exam s can cel l ed Ap r i l 9, 2020 M ar ch 30, In com pl ian ce with 2020 Gov. W ol f?s or der s, th e Pr ep exten ds Syn ch r on ou s sch edu l e distan ce l ear n in g im pl em en ted. Cl asses th r ou gh th e r est of star t to u se Zoom an d th e sem ester Googl e H an gou ts.

M ar ch 27, Ap r i l 1, Ap r i l 10, 2020 2020 M ar ch 14, 2020 Ap r i l 7, 2020 2020 M ar ch 22, 2020 U.S. cr osses In com pl ian ce Fr. Swope US cr osses Fir st case in Novel Pr ep an n ou n ces Spr in g Br eak 100,000 with state or der s, an n ou n ces 500,000 th e Un ited cor on avir u s face-to-face cases th e Pr ep exten ds Pr ep Car es cases States official l y in str u ction wil l distan ce Ch al l en ge n am ed h al t th r ou gh at l ear n in g th r ou gh "COVID-19" l east M ar ch 27 th e en d of Apr il

M ay 20, 2020

Febr u ar y 11, 2020

Ju n e 4, 2020

Last day of PA vir tu al stay-at-h om e cl asses or der l ifted

M ay 31, 2020 Vir tu al com m en cem en t cel ebr ation

M ar ch 12, 2020

Au gu st 5, 2020

Sep t em ber 15, 2020 Sep t em ber 24, 2020

Th e Pr ep an n ou n ces Retu r n to Sch ool pl an for 2020-21 sch ool year

Th e Pr ep pivots to vir tu al -in str u ction after two stu den ts test postive for COVID-19.

Ju l y 31, 2020

Sep t em ber 8, 2020

In -per son Con fer r al of Dipl om as at th e Pr ep

Fir st day of h ybr id-l ear n in g m odel

In tr odu cin g th e 2021-22 H awkeye Editor s Edit or s-in -Ch ief Murphy Bonner '22, Stephen Cain '22, Bobby Woltjen '22 Ju n ior M an agin g Edit or s Luke Gallagher '23, Liam Holden '23

New s Edit or Aiden Anderson '22

Opin ion / Debat e Edit or Danny Deeney '22

Feat u r es Edit or Caleb Datto '22

Spor t s Edit or Brendan Dougherty '23

En t er t ain m en t Edit or Dan Law '23

Oct ober 22, 2020 N ov em ber 2, 2020 Th e Pr ep pivots to vir tu al -in str u ction after at l east fou r stu den ts test postive for COVID-19.

Decem ber 14, 2020 NY n u r se San dr a Lin dsay r eceives fir st COVID-19 vaccin e in U.S.

Oct ober 18, 2020

N ov em ber 20, 2020

Jan u ar y 4, 2021

Fir st m ajor Ph il adel ph ia spor ts gam e with fan s in stan ds as Eagl es wel com e Raven s

Last day of in -per son h ybr id in str u ction befor e vir tu al -l ear n in g th r ou gh Decem ber

Stu den ts r etu r n fr om Ch r istm as br eak

Febr u ar y 22, 2021

Ap r i l 12, 2020

M ay 13, 2021

U.S. su r passes 500,000 COVID-19 death s

Retu r n to 5 days per week on cam pu s

PA begin s vaccin atin g ch il dr en aged 12-15

Feb-M ar ch , 2021 Pr ep staff begin s r eceivin g COVID-19 vaccin e

Ap r i l 13, 2021

M ay 13, 2021

CDC issu es r evised Al l aged m ask gu idan ce: fu l l y 16+ el igibl e vaccin ated m ay go for vaccin e m ask l ess, with som e in PA exception s

6 | News | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

Ranalli: Science L ab Change " Best for Students"

(Photo: St. Joseph;s Prep)

(Photo: James J. Clearkin I ncorporated Building Construction )

Proposed schedule changes may result in science labs losing 600 to 1,400 minutes, depending on the class.

Double-lab periods provide some of the most hands-on learning experiences for students. Under these changes, that time would be significantly reduced.

LABS from pg. 1 ?It saddens me that the curriculum of the science department is being seriously changed without undergoing a curriculum review,? said longtime Prep science teacher Ms. Brown.

This situation feels like déjà vu for the Science Department,

who stood opposed to class time reductions just four years ago.

When the Prep schedule was overhauled in 2017, the Science Department was concerned that they would only have 5,200 minutes per year, down from 6,300 minutes per year, as too slim for their AP

classes. Pushing back against it, they successfully attained a second double period for AP classes, giving them nearly 6,000 minutes per year.

Under the plan for next year, science classes will be cut down to 5,200 minutes per year - the same time as the other academic subjects. The lost time will be opened as a free period for some students and a class for others.

This may affect AP classes as well, with labs designed to take three hours being compressed into just seventy minutes. Moreover, the College Board?s requirement that lab time make up 25% of the class may signal that lecture time will have to be cut.

Mr. Ranalli ?00, Assistant Principal of Academics and Faculty, said that it was a decision being considered during the change to the schedule four years ago. Mr. Ranalli said that the change did not have anything to do with the pandemic.

Ranalli said that it will ensure equity across different departments, and make class scheduling easier for students.

Ranalli is confident it was a decision made with ?what?s best for students first,? dismissing the notion that budgetary concerns were relevant and instead focusing on the fact that science teachers previously had one less class than those in other departments.

Mr. Ranalli is confident labs can be conducted in seventy minutes. Mr. Ranalli also said that Mr. Cavacos, the Principal, communicated the changes to Mr. Martin '95, the Science Chair, in advance of the July announcement to the rest of the department.

Mr. Martin '95, said, ?I was surprised last summer when they told me of the decision to change the time allocated for science labs.? He said that he believes that the change would not be happening had the Science Department not lost a staff member over the summer.

Mr. Fortin, the faculty chair, said that he disagreed with the idea that faculty were particularly concerned about any departmental inequities. There was little grumbling about the science teachers having fewer classes, he said. He himself

was unconcerned when students had to miss one of his class periods for their double science lab.

He framed the challenge as representative of the school?s academic rigor and said, ?I don?t recall hearing too many complain about it from a faculty perspective. Because it?s the Prep that?s what we do.?

In comparison, a La Salle College High School student receives more science class time than a student at the Prep.

La Salle also has a longer school day than the Prep.

"One way to resolve this is to have a longer school day," said Ranalli. "Science is but one letter in the STEM acronym. The other components of the acronym are also important, as is the fact that the Prep and our Ignatian tradition put a heavy emphasis on further opening our students' minds through exploration of the liberal arts. The change regarding double- lab periods actually permits students to 'double up' on science more easily without sacrificing other 'singleton courses.'"

Shots! Shots! Shots! Ever ybody!

With vaccine eligibility expanding, the Prep hosted its own vaccine clinic in partnership with Rite Aid. Also, questions loom over whether the school will require COVI D-19 vaccinations for the 2021-22 school year.

By Aiden Vallecillo ?22 Nearly a year after the Prep first went into quarantine, the school is beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Five- day in- person instruction has returned, daily cases in Pennsylvania are dropping, and vaccines have become available to all Americans aged 16 and older.

Despite the best efforts of President Biden, the CDC, and others, many remain skeptical of the vaccine. In light of the increasing opportunities for immunization, many US colleges are requiring students to get COVID- 19 vaccinations before next fall. Among the colleges and universities listed as requiring students to be vaccinated are Georgetown, Cornell, Syracuse, and Notre Dame. With all of this happening, the question arises as to whether the Prep is considering requiring students to be vaccinated.

In short, the answer is no; however, that is not to say vac-

cines will not ever be required.

When asked for a comment about the possibility of the Prep requiring students to be vaccinated, Director of Student Activities and Transportation Mr. Bryan Ghee stated, ?Immunizations are a PA health issue. Requirements for immunizations are deemed necessary or not by them.? Additionally, the school?s Principal, Mr. Andrew Cavacos, said that he could neither confirm nor deny if the Prep would require vaccinations; however, he did say, ?...vaccination serves to provide more freedom and normalcy for the time being. But mandating a vaccine that has only emergency use authorization...a bit tricky.?

question as to whether the Prep should require vaccinations is a somewhat controversial topic.

Students seem to be divided as to whether vaccines should be required, with many saying yes so that members of the Prep community no longer need to wear masks during school.

Therefore, it seems safe to assume that the Prep will not be requiring students to be vaccinated unless the state of Pennsylvania deems it necessary to return to school.

Will Sims ?22 made the argument that requirements for COVID vaccines are no different from requirements for other vaccines, saying, ?Schools already require people to have certain vaccines, why are people so hesitant about this??

According to Nurse Michelle Holmes, all students attending school in Pennsylvania are required to be vaccinated against tetanus, polio, hepatitis B, chickenpox, and more. Additionally, all Seniors are required to have their second meningococcal vaccine by the first day of school of Senior year.

Despite the concrete answer given by the school?s administration, Prep students are an opinionated bunch, and the

When asked, some students pointed out the fact that the Prep offered vaccines in partnership with Rite Aid, so re-

quiring students to be vaccinated should be a no- brainer, because of the ease of access to the vaccine. Others stated that students will get vaccinated on their own and that there is no reason for the school to force students to get vaccinated.

tunity to get vaccinated at the Prep. The second doses will be administered at the Prep on May 21 and 22. The Prep has made it abundantly clear that they are willing to provide vaccines to the students who want them.

In The Hawkeye?s end- ofyear poll (pages 14-15), 32.2% of student respondents said that the Prep should not require a COVID- 19 vaccine for the 2021-2022 school year for students, while 59.1% of respondents support a vaccination requirement.

For now, it is safe to say that vaccines will be dealt with on a personal level at the Prep, with the administration having no plans in place to require students to be vaccinated. If the state of Pennsylvania decides that students must be vaccinated, then the Prep will comply with that order. With the Prep administration removed from this decision- making process, all eyes and ears turn to Harrisburg as the Prep awaits the final decision on vaccine requirements.

On April 30 and May 1, the Prep offered all students ages 16 and up the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine during a clinic where the vaccines were administered by Rite Aid. ?It was easy,? said Anthony Hays ?22, who received his first dose at the Prep on April 30. ?The form was simple and I got all the resources I needed emailed to me.?

According to Ghee, over 100 students have taken the oppor-

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

News | 7

Despite Setbacks, K airos Per sists

By Caleb Datto ?22

incomplete Kairos experience.

Over a year into the pandemic, the Mission and Ministry Office announced the return of Kairos in the March 24 Principal?s Newsletter.

?We knew that we only wanted to offer Kairos when we were confident that they would have the same experience as the last 170 retreats,? said Dushel.

Kairos 171 occurred in midApril, 172 in early May, and Kairos 173 is scheduled for June 15- 17. Kairos is a retreat that is typically reserved for the junior class, with Senior Mission and Ministry Leadership Board members serving as retreat leaders. Seniors who were unable to attend Kairos in 2020 were given first priority this year.

Mr. Dushel, Campus Minister and Director of Retreats and Liturgies, remembers the decision to cancel Kairos last spring to be very difficult. ?Like everyone, we had no idea that quarantining would last months, not weeks,? said Dushel. ?By the time Kairos came around in April, everything was shut down, and a retreat like Kairos was obviously impossible. I had several Zoom calls with other campus ministers, and I had heard of other schools having virtual Kairos and all kinds of other things that didn't quite feel authentic to what the retreat experience could be for students.?

The Mission and Ministry Team did not want to offer an

According to leader Bryce Jones ?21, that full retreat experience was given in Kairos 171. He said, ?Kairos 171 was so incredibly special because nothing about this year has been normal. Leading Kairos almost one year removed from going on Kairos at the start of the pandemic was so ironic but in both instances it helped me to escape reality for a little and relax. I encourage anyone who can go on this retreat to go. I promise you will not regret it.?

The Prep has been offering Kairos, which is Greek for ?God?s time?, since 1988.

Kairos is held in most Jesuit high schools, and many other Catholic high schools, globally. According to the Mission and Ministry page on the Prep?s website, students are invited to ?open themselves up to God's love as well as the love of their family and friends.? Since 1988, there have been 172 Kairos retreats at the Prep, hence ?Kairos 172.?

This averages to about five Kairos retreats annually at the Prep.

you to do so. We are really grateful that we are in a place where we can offer the full retreat,? said Dushel. ?Based on what I?ve heard, it just seems like an essential part of the Prep experience,? said Thomas Davies ?22, who anticipates his Kairos retreat. ?I?ve heard so many people come back and say that it was amazing, so I am really excited to go.?

A small group, led by adult leader Fr. Frederico SJ(far left) and student leader Thomas Logan '21 (far right), poses for a picture on the last day of Kairos 172. The retreat is one of three planned Kairos retreats during the months of April, May, and June.

In the Fall of 1997, Kairos 37 was joined by students of La Salle College High School.

Thereafter, La Salle adapted the Prep?s version of Kairos for years to come. Thus, La Salle has numbered their retreats as Kairos 37-1, 37-2, and so on.

Only minor changes were made to Kairos this year. In years past, Kairos has been at the Jesuit Center for Spiritual Growth in Wernersville, PA. However, on May 29, 2020, Fr. Robert M. Hussey, S.J., Provincial of the former Maryland Providence of the Society of Jesus, announced in a letter that the retreat center is scheduled to close in August 2021.

With that considered, the Mission and Ministry Team decided to move this year?s re-

treat to the St. Raphaela Center in Haverford, run by the Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Other than the location change, ?There are really only two differences to most other Kairos retreats,? said Dushel. ?There are less students on the retreat so we can stay socially distant as best we can. We also shortened the retreat from 3.5 days to just 3 to better fit the new academic schedule and to make it more feasible for seniors who have not been on Kairos to attend the retreat.?

The logistics for next year?s Kairos are currently being planned. ?What I can promise, is that for any junior or senior that wants to attend the retreat, there will be an opportunity for

When asked about leading Kairos 171, Dan Teti ?21 said, ?Leading Kairos was an incredible experience. Seeing other people have the great experience that I loved so much was really impactful for me.

It?s just as, if not more powerful, to view it through the lens of leadership and shape the retreat experience for the retreatants.?

In closing, I asked Mr. Dushel why he wants students to consider attending Kairos. ?Kairos is more important now than it ever has been. The pandemic has shown that building deep, meaningful friendships is the most important thing we can do. Our friendships help us stay mentally well, spiritually connected, and to stand in solidarity with the marginalized and the oppressed. I haven't seen anything build friendships at the Prep better than Kairos.?

" L ike a Fir st Day of School, But it's Not"

By Gar rett M cCloskey ?21 The first day of school has distinct, unique qualities? upperclassmen reconnecting with classmates who they have not seen in months, freshmen meeting new classmates for the first time, the shuffle of a new schedule adjustment, and a promise of ?a few quick? morning announcements that are anything but quick.

April 12 was marked with those first day of school qualities, despite being seven months after the first day of the 2020-21 academic year.

It was the first day in which all students were welcome to learn on campus five days per week. Since March 12, 2020, the Prep had utilized virtual- , asynchronous- , and hybridlearning models due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ?It?s like the first day of school, but it?s not,? Mr. Hendrzak told his senior Environmental Science first period class.

For Principal Cavacos and the St. Joseph?s Prep administration, this day had been circled on their calendars for a long time. ?[W]e know that to be inperson, to be present to one another as a community physically, is important,? Cavacos said. ?It is the way that we

On April 12, students were welcomed back to the Prep classrooms for five days per week in-person instruction. A number of freshmen had never met their classmates from the opposite cohort before that day.

Above: A group of freshmen friends enjoys lunch outside.

were meant to do education here at the Prep, so this is a great and grand day.?

He also stressed the necessity and importance of offering an all-virtual option for the safety of vulnerable students and their families. ?The [students?] focus was better, for sure, being in-person versus on Zoom,? said Computer Science teacher Mrs. Hoffman. ?I could tell the students were just generally more excited about being here than normal.?

Classrooms were filled, lunch lines were long, and hallways were bustling. ?There?s a lot more kids than I thought there?d be,? remarked freshman Jack McKenna. ?[A]lthough we haven?t seen [our classmates], we know them from classes and kinda

know their personalities, so getting to actually have conversation with them was fun and interesting,? said freshman Abel Rupertus. ?There was [...] excitement in the air.?

The buzz on the Prep?s campus was not restricted to the physical building. With an abundance of outdoor offerings, students eating lunch outside were situated between games of Spikeball, Wiffleball, frisbee tosses, and even a baseball catch. ?It?s great. We?re outside, the air is fresh and beautiful, and it?s nice that these guys can have some normalcy,? said History teacher Mr. Conners ?80, interrupted by roars from a Plaza Lot Wiffleball game.

Eating lunch from the steps of the Church of the Gesu, Conners radiated joy talking about the first day with students from both cohorts. ?It was so great

to have eighteen faces in front of me! But it really felt weird.

It was the first time in over a year that I look up to what felt like a full room.?

providing an environment which we know is healthy for students. We?re trying to balance that with not being reckless in any way.?

One group of freshmen enjoyed their lunch from the bleachers along the front lawn, riffing off jokes and taking in the Philadelphia sunshine.

?I believe that any opportunity we get to be fully present, we should take. And I believe that the level of risk and the change in our overall society that?s been brought about by vaccination really makes this the time to go forward.?

?Going back into school, I felt like Frank and Charlie from Always Sunny whenever they find denim under the bridge, y?know,? said Paddy May ?24, met with confused laughter from five freshmen friends.

But the reminders of COVID- 19?s dangers are still omnipresent. ?There?s too many people over there on that first bench,? a lunch moderator boomed through a megaphone. ?You gotta split up.?

Hallway direction stickers, contact tracing, social distancing, temperature checks, and face masks are everywhere.

It is because of these mitigation factors that Principal Cavacos feels comfortable with welcoming more students back to the Prep?s campus.

According to Cavacos, those mitigation factors reveal the fact that ?we?re trying to keep the best balance we can, [...]

With social distancing reduced to a three- foot minimum, the Prep quarantines students in a ?tic-tac-toe? fashion, rather than sending home entire classrooms, in the event of a student testing positive for COVID- 19. Students who sit directly adjacent to the COVID-positive individual are asked to quarantine.

At the end of the ?first? week, Principal Cavacos addressed the school community and announced that four students tested positive for COVID- 19, but the cases ?did not emanate? from the Prep.

Contact tracing efforts resulted in the quarantining of multiple students. Since then, Principal Cavacos has been providing daily COVID updates via the morning announcements, detailing the number of active cases in the student body.

As of Friday, May 20, that number is one.

8 | Features | Monday, May 24 ,2021 | The Hawkeye

Features Prep Renews Focus on I nclusivity in After math of van Zelst Allegations existence of the Holocaust.

Assuming that this information provided by ?Garfield? is true, the posts have translated into real-world action.

In a recent interview with Reza Ali ?20, a classmate of Steven Mark van Zelst, Ali shared that he knew Steven to be a quiet kid, keeping most things to himself.

Days after the Canadian Anti-Hate Network published its article on van Zelst's alleged actions, the Prep released a statement of its own. The statement read, in part, "Our mission and our actions are in direct opposition to any type of hatred, misogyny, racism, anti-semitism, or violence toward any members of our society. If these actions are true, this alumnus has acted in contradiction to these values and has completely lost his way."

VAN ZELST from pg. 1 enrolled, according to The Daily Free Press of Boston University.

Van Zelst, allegedly known online under his pseudonyms ?Vlood? and ?Felix,? joined the Nationalist Social Club (NSC) in September 2020, according the article, which was published in March 2021 by an anonymous online researcher who goes by ?Garfield.?

Through anonymous sources and data, the researcher argues van Zelst?s extreme ideology had been evident for roughly three years. If true, this means that van Zelst carried his personal beliefs and ideologies

?He did a good job hiding his beliefs from parents and teachers, but it was harder with students when he would make controversial statements around them,? he said.

?We need to definitely be more careful because, looking back on it, Steven did show warning signs. The biggest with him since potentially his In images posted in the thing about this issue for me is sophomore year at St. Joe?s article, "Vlood" discussed his that I would receive texts from Prep. beliefs in a need for ?racial current students saying that cleansing,? similar to his they did not feel safe in school, According to the article, van ?hero? Adolf Hitler?s ?Final and it worries me that these Zelst communicated online via current students did not Discord with others of "We need to ensure that anyone who is have enough trust in the similar ideologies. school?s response to go of the mindset of extreme violence, Archived data from his various Discord injustice, or prejudice has no place in to the Prep first.? channels present insight our community. I t is important for all of With the possibility into the disturbing that van Zelst could us to lean into our diversity training to ideologies of which Van have left some sort of Zelst believed. In these recognize both extreme as well as subtle effect on current beliefs."

Discord channels dating students at the Prep, the back to at least school is looking to mid-2018, van Zelst ? Mr. Anthony Bush tackle this issue allegedly revealed his Director of Diversity and Inclusion head-on. racist, misogynistic, Solution,? and shared his own ?We need to ensure that anti-Semitic, and homophobic photos from Auschwitz anyone who is of the mindset beliefs and outward support for Concentration Camp, of extreme violence, injustice, white supremacist mass attempting to disprove the or prejudice has no place in our shootings.

community," said Mr. Anthony Bush, Director of Diversity and Inclusion. "It is important for all of us to lean into our diversity training to recognize both extreme as well as subtle beliefs.?

What Bush suggested the Prep focus on very much corresponds with the account that Ali gave. Van Zelst, although quiet and introverted, apparently showed warning signs that were simply not noticed within the Prep community. Therefore, with this situation originating on campus at the Prep, it is not an issue that the Prep must leave in the dark. ?We obviously lean in to our Grad at Grad and Jesuit values,? said Bush, ?but also, through a Christian lens, a line must be drawn once certain opinions infringe upon the rights of those in our community.?

Steven van Zelst, who has erased his social media presence, could not be reached for comment. A phone number that was once van Zelst's is no longer active.

The Hawkeye Staff of 2020-2021 St. Joseph's Prepar ator y School 1733 West Gir ar d Avenue Philadelphia, PA 19130 Editor s-in-Chief

Opinion-Debate Editor

Nicholas Bedrossian '22

Ian Gomez '23

Matthew Bae '21

Connor Siemien '21

Seamus Blaney '22

Kieran Hicks '23

Matthew Corr '22

Liam Holden '23

Spor ts Editor

Caleb Datto '22

Daniel Law '23

Stephen Cain '22

Danny Deeney '22

Patrick Logan '23

Brennan Fitzgerald '22

Max Nast '23

I f you are interested in contr ibuting mater ials to The Hawkeye, contact an editor or our email (below) to submit an ar ticle, photogr aph, or to wr ite a letter to the editor. L etter s should not exceed 600 wor ds. hawkeye@sj prep.or g

Benicio Beatty '21 Garrett McCloskey '21

Junior M anaging Editor s Murphy Bonner '22

Staff Wr iter s

Andrew Flanagan '22

Jake Wisniewski '23

Robert Woltjen '22

Kieran Dougherty '21

Liam Gunderson '22

Matteo DeJesse '24

Thomas Hillman '21

Joseph Kriz '22

Isaiah Littlejohn '24

News Editor

Matt Hopkins '21

Joe Murphy '22

Paddy May '24

Daniel Sponseller '21

Andrew Kallmeyer '21

Andrew Sergovic '22

Antoine Robinson '24

Jimmy King '21

Ethan Spillane '22

Mason Sullivan '24

Features Editor

Joe Massaua '21

Corbin Taylor '22

Alex Currie '21

Alfonso Procaccino '21

Wesley Lucas '22

M oder ator s

Liam Stephens '21

Colin Birkmire '23

Mr. Leo Vaccaro '05

Enter tainment Editor

Joseph Tagliferro '21

Brendan Dougherty '23

Mr. Kevin Kearney '06

Nile Andah '21

Aiden Anderson '22

Luke Gallagher '23

All mater ials pr inted by The Hawkeye are intended to both enter tain and infor m the Prep community as well as cultivate an environment that gener ates meaningful and productive discussion.

The opinions and beliefs expressed in the adver tisements and ar ticles in this publication do not necessar ily reflect the values or mission of The Hawkeye Student Newspaper or St. Joe's Prep.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Features | 9

Our Social Dilemma: I nter net Radicalization

By M ur phy Bonner ?22 Despite the complexities of this topic and the myriad of ways in which one can find themselves radicalized on the internet, it behooves us to understand it and to ask ourselves: Why, potentially, was four years of a Prep education not enough to keep someone from the violent and hateful depths of the internet?

What is in the control of the individual? Where do we fall prey to social media algorithms or simply social algorithms?

How can we stop ourselves from having our views gradually changed to the point of radicalization?

These questions are much too big for any one clear answer, but to first understand the online world we are dealing with, we must look to those who have studied it.

Dr. Luke Munn, a Research Consultant at Western Sydney University who has a background in media and communications and focused his PhD on algorithmic powers, first began writing about the altright after the Christ Church shooting in 2019. Munn said ?I?m actually based in New Zealand, so when the Christ Church shooting happened a friend of mine in the Netherlands asked me to write something about it, and I felt like it's something I could contribute both from kind of media and studies and being based here.?

From there he continued to write about ?hate havens? on the internet and the alt- right pipeline, eventually writing a research paper called ?Alt- right pipeline: Individual journeys to extremism online? in June of 2019.

Dr. Luke Munn

a lot of time online and on social media, the pendulum of a persons? beliefs can be gradually pushed farther from the mainstream until they are at radical beliefs. This incremental nature of the change in beliefs or ideologies is what makes this pipeline? towards radical right or left beliefs? so pervasive: there is no one big jump-off point but rather small shifts that move an individual's Overton window into increasingly hateful and dehumanizing rhetoric.

Trip O'Dell, the former design manager for Amazon?s Alexa and now director of product design at Pearson, agrees that while ?algorithms make hate more efficient?, a person is still responsible for their own choices, which can be something as seemingly small as watching a video, commenting and liking posts, or sharing content online. To many, these simple interactions on social media do not feel like choices, but O?Dell sees them as not only individual decisions, but ones that compound over time.

O?Dell said, ?Every time it gets a little easier, and it's really easy to think about ?it's just one more little choice.?

The thing is that little choices aren't linear, they're logarithmic. It compounds and compounds and compounds over time and accelerates. [I]t can seem [like] ?Yeah, but it's just a little thing?, [but] a little thing and the frequency of it will accelerate and grow until you make a choice otherwise and the choice only gets harder the further along you go. That?s the pipeline.?

While some may have heard about the alt- right pipeline with regards to YouTube or its personally- catered algorithms, it covers a wider scope and is more than just showing millions of people videos on why the earth is flat. YouTube and other social media like it can be the start of this pipeline, which spans all across the internet and across different platforms ranging from mainstream apps to niche anonymous forums.

Why do these choices become so easy to make? O?Dell points out that much of what we see on our social media feeds is curated by algorithms and is meant to elicit an instinctual reaction from us to make us like or click, comment, and engage. But to Trip O'Dell understand how and why that content comes into our feed, a basic understanding of social media algorithms is necessary.

"Essentially, the alt- right pipeline is this general idea that through online medium[s] you can gradually radicalize someone over time with different pathways,? said Munn.

?It's not a single algorithm,? said O?Dell. ?It's many many dozens? if not hundreds? of algorithms that are all running and competing for the optimal outcome.?

This means that by spending

The optimal outcome for these algorithms is keeping

users on their site for as long as possible because more screen time equals more impressions, which equals more ads, which equals more revenue for the site. In the tech industry, this is its own discipline called growth hacking which seeks to maximize engagement, clicks, and shares. ?The algorithm gets smarter at making something more tempting and rewarding,? said O?Dell. ?The things that algorithms do [is that] they?re good at optimizing. [The algorithm has] had years to watch what you've watched and watched what you bought and [...] they know what websites you?ve visited, and they have a very accurate profile of ?Yeah, he's white probably about 16, probably into cars and trucks and lacrosse and whatever.??

With this knowledge and abundance of data, social media sites can compare one user to other similar users and recommend content that will keep them on the platform longer.

While this seems benign in nature, its effects can be inimical.

This grouping of users assimilates their content intake and can very easily lend itself to the formation of an echo chamber where the likeminded individuals only interact with beliefs and opinions that are similar to their own which continually reinforces and confirms those beliefs.

This isn?t inherently a bad thing because this process is, in a nutshell, how Facebook works. By showing people who are deemed similar by the algorithm much of the same content, they interact with each other and can then form online groups more easily. While groups are made for people who have the same hobby or go to the same school, that also opens the opportunity for the creation of groups for people who have a similar hatred or abhorrent belief.

Not only is this a possibility, but it is a reality. O?Dell said, ?Imagine somebody that has infinite memory and can remember every action you?ve taken and every action every other person on the site has taken, and then create meaningful connections between them because all it has time to do is make connections and that's all that algorithms do.?

The group itself does not have to be extreme for it to be an access point to radicalization though. Rather, it can be

an initial introduction to a group where certain ideas and beliefs that were otherwise not socially accepted or thought to be wrong become normalized through memes, jokes, or just constant inundation. In this way, a person can join a seemingly moderate group but could slowly edge closer to radical beliefs. This shift happens as they correspond with others in these groups, are introduced to new ideas, and become desensitized to the content they are taking in. Some can be led to looking for online affiliations because they haven?t found a group offline and are aided in that search by tailored social media apps.

This is especially true for teenagers.

Dr. John Berna, Director of Counseling Services and Social Sciences at the Prep, said, ?[Teenagers] have a need for affiliation, to be part of something. I think it's most important for teenagers...I think the key is, frankly, this idea of needing to belong. If I talk to students who come in, they?ll identify themselves in terms of some of their affiliations.

[They?ll say,] ?Oh I?m on the crew team? and that becomes extremely important to them as an identity.?

Those who have not discovered the sense of belonging that they are looking for outside of the internet can be even more motivated to join groups and conform their beliefs to fit that of the group that they?ve joined? however radical that group may be. ?The most engaging content is always the content that sits on that line between acceptable and not acceptable,? Munn said. ?It's the kind of content that wants to provoke outrage or shock or disgust and so by optimizing for engagement, [social media apps are] creating that kind of space that's more conducive to hate? [an] antagonistic space rather than a very calm and civil space.?

Algorithms use the impulsivity of the human brain to deliver content that will prompt a response from the users. O?Dell points to TikTok, one of the fastest- growing social media apps in the world, as an example of this.

?[TikTok is] an engagement machine. It's designed by cognitive scientists [and] behavioral scientists, people that know how to manipulate human behavior,? said O?Dell. ?It's the humans that are doom scrolling and it's the people that are using algorithms to reward doom scrolling.? ?[I]ts a neural and hormonal system,? said Berna. ?[The sympathetic nervous system is] supposed to kick in when there's some kind of danger, but it can also kick in when there's something very exciting.?

That increase in heart rate and hormones primes the body for action, which, in online form, is liking, commenting, or sharing: the building blocks of growth hacking. This type of knee- jerk engagement is exactly what algorithms are optimized for so the content that produces that response (the fear and stress) is what is consistently pushed in front of users.

This, however, does not mean that algorithms are entirely to blame. O?Dell is clear that ?You can?t scapegoat the algorithm.?

Rather, the algorithms that dominate all of the major so-

cial media apps that billions of people use around the world use are optimized to make homogenous groups display inflammatory content that purposefully increases stress levels and hormones, creates echo chambers, and can lead many down a path of radicalization even possibly someone who attended the Prep.

Instead of choosing to blame either solely the individual or the technology, O?Dell says that people should be looking at the influence of technology on humans to understand how they can adapt to stop polarization and radicalization on the internet. ?We're either blaming the human or blaming the technology but we're not actually looking at the weakness of the human in the face of the technology and putting technology in its proper place.?

10 | Features | Monday, May 24 ,2021 | The Hawkeye

ASC Spotlight: Colin Coder '16 As wide- eyed 7th graders enter into the Prep for the first time, they are greeted by one of the friendliest faces in the school, Mr. Colin Coder ?16.

As of this past summer, Coder has been a member of the Prep?s Alumni Service Corps (ASC) program, joining the admissions team for the 20202021 school year.

Since his grade school days at Mr. Colin St. Margaret?s Coder '16 in Narberth, Coder has had his eyes set on being a part of the Prep community.

His grandmother served as the head admissions counselor for Merion Mercy, so attending Prep as so many members of his family had done was a natural next step.

Coder began immersing himself in a wide variety of extracurriculars from the getgo, being involved in both the athletic and acting realms.

Athletically, he participated in both rugby and football in his underclass years, and immersed himself in the Cape and Sword productions.

Through Cape and Sword, he found a passion for acting and improv, participating in the fall and spring shows and the Night of Scenes.

Since Coder once went through the admission process himself, he offers a unique perspective to the Prep Admissions Team, of which he has been a part of this year. He described this year as being a unique challenge, but, despite the changes, things ran just as smoothly as they have in the years prior. In some ways, he saw positives in the circumstances. He explained that having virtual events like Virtual PrepU and Virtual Open Houses that could be recorded allowed prospective students and their families to experience parts of the Prep at their own leisure and not have to miss an event because of a conflict.

Another positive he spoke about was the ability to take advantage of the in- person opportunities. ?Seeking opportunities for in- person [events] made them so much more special when they were able to occur,? said Coder. ?Through both the inperson and virtual events, these

(Photos: Jared Brey | The Philadelphia I nquirer)

By Patr ick L ogan '23

While at the Prep Coder was in Cape and Sword and is seen above rehearsing lines with Mayor Kennney '76 for his cameo in "Curtains"

prospective Prep students were given great insight into what the Prep has to offer.?

Applying this positive attitude made the admission of the class of 2025 smoother than ever before.

Although this year has brought new challenges and a different look to the school, he still believes that the Prep still holds the same spirit and energy that it did during his time at 17th and Girard. That same loyalty and pride in the Prep was what eventually led him back this year as a member of the ASC.

He attributes his desire to be a part of this select group back to his freshman year at the Prep, in which he had then ASC member Mr. Kevin Ryan ?08 (now a part of the Development team) as a history teacher. He looked up to Ryan, so it was almost a no- brainer that he would pursue the same path when Ryan reached out to him last winter.

Coder recalls, ?I admired the program as a student. Mr. Ryan was an ASC member my freshman year and was my history teacher. I admired him as a 14- year- old year old be-

cause of how he was able to relate to his students, and as high school went on I started to understand ASC roles and the unique opportunity to be with a group of guys from your graduating Prep class.?

He continued, ?Being back at the Prep, while living with some of your old Prep classmates made the program something thought was worth doing. In the winter of my senior year of college, I got a text from Mr. Ryan to apply for an Alumni Service Corps position, and I decided that it was the path that I wanted to take.?

His desire to be a part of the Prep community made him a perfect fit to be a part of this program.

After this year, Coder looks to work for a Video-Production company, which was his major at his alma mater, DeSales University. He credits what he learned this year as a member of the admissions team to all members of the admissions office, and for the second time he is looking forward to taking what he learned from Prep and applying it to both his professional career and his personal life as he moves on from the Prep.

Prep's L GBTQ+ Solidar ity Week

By Daniel Sponseller ?21

The planning of these events was carried out by the Department of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, under the leadership of Mr. Anthony Bush, and the Breaking Barriers club, which is the school?s LGBTQ+ outreach club, under the leadership of Ms. Gina Gulli and Mr. James McGlynn.

Going into this week, Bush, the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Prep, noted, ?I didn't have clear expectations for the week. Our main priority was providing queer members of our community a space to share their experiences and find community amongst our school.?

The events of the week did just that.

(Photo: St. Joseph's Prep)

A few weeks ago, there was a historic first that was made in the Prep?s history: LGBTQ+ Solidarity Week. This was a week that was focused on creating a sense of pride, community, and love for both all of members of the LGBTQ+ community that are part of the Prep family, as well as all of the allies at the Prep for the queer community. It is one of the many steps that the Prep has taken this year that is working towards creating a greater sense of unity among the Prep community, very much in line with this year?s theme: the Year of Solidarity.

On April 21, the Prep hosted a panel discussion about queer issues during LGBTQ+ Solidarity Week.

On the Monday of the week, there was a panel discussion of queer issues at the Prep. The members of the panel were Dr. Geoffrey Nunes, Mr. Joseph Dougherty, Andrew Kallmeyer ?21, Mr. Teddy Lawlor ?15, Daniel Sponseller ?21, Liam Gunderson ?22, Ms. Kate Ambrose, Mr. Anthony Bush, and Ms. Gina Gulli.

Questions asked included, ?What are instances of homophobia that you have witnessed at the Prep??, ?What does it mean to be an ally??, and ?How have you felt included as a member of the queer community at the Prep??, among others. Everyone who participated in this event, whether on

the panel or in the audience, was given a rainbow wristband, which can still be seen being worn around the school today.

On Tuesday, the Junior Statesmen of America (JSA), which is also under Ms. Gulli?s leadership, held their annual Fight Apathy Day, in which all members of the Prep community were invited to wear stickers with a message about what political or social issue they were passionate about.

That day during community period, the JSA hosted a meeting that was focused on queer issues, as well as other topics about which people were passionate.

On Thursday, Father James Martin, SJ, Zoomed into the Prep, detailing how the Catholic Church should become more inclusive of queer people. His overall message was that the Catholic Church is made up of humans, so it should be expected that certain aspects of the Church would be flawed, such as its historic exclusion of queer people. He also said that the only influence that Catholics should have on framing their beliefs should be Jesus himself, and Jesus was known for accepting all people, whether tax collectors or adulterers, so obviously he would accept queer people for who they are as well.

On Friday, there was a queer trivia that was hosted by Breaking Barriers. Questions were asked about certain elements of queer identity vocabulary, LGTBQ+ history, as well as some queer cultural questions, many of which being focused on music. After prizes were handed out to the top three winners of the Kahoot, LGBTQ+ Solidarity Week t-shirts were handed out to all of the week?s participants, the hawk being filled in with the colors of the pride flag.

For the entirety of the week, there was a massive banner hanging about the front doors facing 18th St, proclaiming that it was LGBTQ+ Solidarity Week. This communicated that

the Prep was not going to discreetly carry out this week, but rather let everyone walking into the building know what they were celebrating, proving that celebrating LGBTQ+ Solidarity Week is something of which they should be proud.

Looking back on everything that occured that week, Bush responded by saying, ?Most of our school community responded positively to the week's programming, which was encouraging considering this was the first time we attempted to host a program like this at the Prep.? He continues by expressing, ?For those who were not supportive of the programming, I encourage them to consider how Jesus reached out to people on the margins. Fr. Martin's talk reminded me that the church's mission is about inclusion, not exclusion.?

Coming out of this week, the feeling among queer people and allies at the Prep is that this school is working to become a safe space for all those who identify as members of the LGBTQ+ community. It is becoming clear that the Prep is becoming a place where queer people can feel loved for being who they are, and that is another step in making the Prep truly a place for and with others.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Entertainment | 11

Entertainment

Q: I nto the Storm Capitol-izes on QAnon, Capitol Stor ming Hyster ia

By Nicholas Bedrossian ?22 Lies, intrigue, and conspiracy all lie at the center of new HBO docuseries, Q: Into the Storm.

In this lie- ridden journey, documentarian Cullen Hoback goes deep into the inner workings of online chatboard 8chan, a website that allows users to anonymously create and post media without regulation, to figure out the root of the fringe conspiracy that plagued the nation during the Trump presidency. The show contains interviews with website administrators, government officials, media experts, and many people who believed and followed the theory.

For those who don?t know, QAnon is a conspiracy theory that was started near the beginning of the Trump presidency. The actual information of what the theory states can vary among its followers. To some, the theory works to expose and dismantle a pedophilia ring run by govern-

ment insiders, or the ?Deep State? according to QAnon. To others, the theory warns of a heavenly battles between the God- fearing patriots of the world and the Satanworshipping global elites.

Despite the different interpretations, at the root of the theory is one man: Former President Donald Trump. The QAnon theory believes that Trump will act as a great liberator of the American people from their political overlords.

Trump is said to be passing this information down to the people through the informant Q, a government whistleblower believed to have Q-level clearance to secret information, in the form of ?Q drops? on the website 8chan.

In my opinion, this docuseries? interviews with the many followers of the QAnon conspiracy were the most interesting parts of the entire series. Hoback travels across the country and even to other nations to learn about the psychology of Q?s audience. He

Nick's Number :

3.7/10 ing to capitalize on the hysteria.

HBO's 6-episode documentary series takes a deep-dive into QAnon? one of America's most dangerous and captivating conspiracy theories.

interviews a wide variety of people, each with a different level of involvement in the theory. Those with the most involvement in the theory are the Qtubers - Youtubers who decode each ?Q drop? to the most minute detail.

In addition to explaining the QAnon conspiracy theory, Hoback explains the tools used

by Q and other conspiracies to draw in an audience. He interviews creators of other conspiracy theories, such as Pizzagate and Cicada 3301, to learn how a theory can become

so gravitating and popular despite seeming so far-fetched.

The show, however, is not without criticism. I feel like the show feeds too far into the dangerous ideas of the theory in order to get a larger audience. There is no denying that after the January 6 insurgency at the Capitol, many Americans wanted as much information as they could get on the QAnon theory. The show was put out no more than two months after the events at the Capitol, and it?s difficult to think that HBO was not look-

All things considered, I would only recommend watching the series if you are truly interested in the subject.

The six- hour runtime can feel like much longer if you are not invested in understanding the QAnon theory and its repercussions. I also cannot overstress the dangers this series causes. Many other critics have panned the show as no more than a recruitment tool for Q and other right- wing fringe groups. I can definitely see how the series can have this effect, but I have faith in my Prep brothers.

Mugen Train M aking Histor y

By Dan L aw ?23 Anime. It?s a word that inspires different things in different people. To some, it?s a niche art form from Japan; to others, they?re just bizarre cartoons. Yet no matter how you feel about anime, the exponential popularity of one anime is currently shaping the future of the medium forever. History never expected the recent explosive success of Demon Slayer and its new movie.

Demon Slayer - Kimetsu no Yaiba is a Japanese anime that has taken the world by storm recently.

With countless awards and immense commercial acclaim, Demon Slayer has become the most successful anime and manga series in over a decade.

It?s been so successful that the Demon Slayer anime has led into Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train, which is destroying box office records.

The story of Demon Slayer centers around a conflict between demons and humans. In this world, which takes place in a very early 20th Century Japan, demons have emerged and hunt humans at night.

The only ones that can fight them are the demon slayers, humans who use specialized swords forged from rare ore.

The strongest demon slayers utilize breathing techniques, where their mastery over

Train, where they search for the Demon Slayer Corps higher- up, Kyojuro Rengoku.

They?re put in sudden danger when a demon sent by Muzan appears on the train to kill Tanjiro and Rengoku, pitting the demon slayers in a psychological battle against their enemy while trapped in an enclosed space.

Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train took the worldwide box office by storm, becoming the highest-grossing anime film.

breathing imbues the power of a certain element, like water or fire.

The plot centers around Tanjiro Kamado, a kind boy who returns to his mountain home to find his family slaughtered by demons. The only survivor, his sister Nezuko, was transformed into a demon herself.

The story revolves around Tanjiro?s efforts to find a cure to make Nezuko human again, while training to avenge the deaths of his family, killing the demon who turned Nezuko into one of them, Muzan Kibutsuji.

Demon Slayer has since become immensely popular. It is currently one of the bestselling manga of all time, and the anime, currently available on several streaming platforms, has won multiple awards for its stellar animation.

The phenomena was more than enough to lead to a movie

around the Mugen Train portion of the original manga.

Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train differs from anime and film standards by being a direct sequel to the main anime series, as it picks up directly where Season 1 of Demon Slayer left off. Canon epilogue movies have existed before in stories (look at El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie, a direct sequel epilogue to the main series).

Yet, very few feature- length movies take place in the middle of an ongoing TV series.

Season 2 of Demon Slayer will pick up directly where the movie ends, so Mugen Train is effectively acting as a climactic, canon bridge right in the middle of two seasons.

The story of Mugen Train, continuing from the last episode of Season 1, sees Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke board the mysterious Mugen

Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train was met with high critical acclaim. While the Demon Slayer TV series was praised for amazing animation yet criticized for its weaker story, Mugen Train brings the insane fights from the series to an even further level, while differing from the main series with a more emotional story and monstrous stakes.

The film is currently showing in both Japanese with subtitles and in an English dub.

The only way to understand what?s going on in Mugen Train is to have watched the Demon Slayer anime or to have read the manga beforehand. The Demon Slayer anime as of now contains 26 episodes each lasting 20 minutes, and is available on services like Netflix and Crunchyroll in both Japanese with subtitles and English dub.

That all being said, the series is absolutely worth the time, especially when you look at its popularity. As of writing, the Demon Slayer movie is even

beating out films like Mortal Kombat and Nobody, and is currently number 1 in the U.S. box office, the first time an anime movie has topped in the U.S. since Pokemon: The First Movie in 1999.

Already the movie has broken countless box office records. It was the highestgrossing movie in all of 2020, despite not even releasing in Western theaters until very recently, being the first nonAmerican film to be the highest grossing production of the year.

It?s also the highest-grossing R- rated animated film, the highest- grossing anime film, the highest- grossing foreign language film, and the highestgrossing Japanese film.

Behind all of this, the movie is still an anime production.

What was once a niche medium has become a worldwide sensation. Again, it cannot be exaggerated enough how much of a phenomenon Demon Slayer is.

Demon Slayer is history in the making.

The incredible popularity of anime that started last decade with shows like Attack on Titan, One Punch Man, and now Demon Slayer has led the medium to become significantly more mainstream than it ever was. Mugen Train is just the beginning of anime?s journey into the mainstream, and it will only strengthen from here.

12 | Entertainment | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

The Cape and Swor d Dr ama Society Proudly Presents

Playlists at the Prep: Often lost in the sauce is the fact that teachers are real people, too? people who listen to music. In this recurring segment, The Hawkeye features songs from a faculty or staff member's playlist. Consider adding these jams to your own playlist!

Compiled By Benicio Beatty '21

By Andrew K ampf ?23 The Prep?s Cape and Sword drama program is putting on a show like no other before it- a virtual musical! The musical will be a review of both classic and contemporary shows including numbers from South Pacific, My Fair Lady, Book of Mormon, Come From Away, and more. Fast paced and multi-faceted, this musical is perfectly tailored to entertain a virtual audience.

Director Tony Braithwaite ?89 described the show as, ?Vastly different than a usual spring show for two huge reasons: one: it's virtual. And two: it's a series of scenes (as opposed to a plot driven show).? He elaborated on the major difference between this show and other Cape and Sword shows before it: ?We've never had that in the spring slot before. It actually comes closest to our annual Night of Scenes, but with 30 people doing all the scenes, and not 150 people each in 1 scene.?

* Printed with Permission

M r. K r avetz

Auditions were on March 2nd, and despite personal conflicts and events out of the cast?s control, they've been working hard to put the show together. When asked how he felt about the show, cast member Joe Murphy ?22 said, ?It has been a bit tough for me to balance my schedule of extracurricular activities and personal responsibilities with the rigorous schedule of rehearsals needed to prepare for the show, but I have no doubt that these rehearsals will lead to a great finished product.? The cast made great strides during rehearsals to have the show together for its May 26th release.

1.

Despite the limitations COVID- 19 has imposed on live theater, Cape and Sword has found a way to persevere, adopting film as a new way to get theater to an eager audience. The medium of film greatly changes the way the show is produced and enjoyed. ?This being ?theatre on film,? changes everything,? said Braithwaite. ?How we rehearse, how we schedule, how we plan. It's a whole different planning process.? The cast also weighed in on the change from a live audience to film this year. Jake Dimarino ?21 said, ?COVID is making things difficult, but thanks to Mr. Braithwaite hiring a professional film crew, a spring show is possible.? Co- Director Teddy Lawlor ?15 was also asked about the transfer from live performance to film, and responded with some thoughts of his own: ?This year is different because the cast expects continuity when performing a live show,so even though we rehearse similarly, the notion in the back of our minds that the show is being filmed changes how we see the process?

4. Can You Please Cr awl Out Your Window?

The show, titled ? A Very Cape And Sword Virtual Musical Bonanza,? was filmed by a professional camera crew between May 11th to May 14th, and is being released on May 26th. Tickets for the video performance can be purchased through a link on the Cape and Sword club page, which is located under the ?Student Life? section of the Prep website.

9. Bull in the Heather

I'm Fr ee

2. I am a Scientist

3.

My Life

5.

Er ykah Badu 3.

4. Bor n of a Br oken Man Rage Against the Machine 5.

Ramones 7.

6. Thir d Rock fr om the Sun/If You Love Me Like You Say Gar y Clark Jr.

Me & Magdalena (Ver sion 2) The Monkees

8. Mur der in the Cathedr al Kiwi Jr.

Sonic Youth 10. Mannequin Wire

12. Making Time The Creation

Sebadoh 14. Dear Madam Bar num XTC 15. Angel Gone Beat Happening

Bout to Get Ugly Mark Ronson feat. Rhymefest & Anthony Hamilton

White Reaper 6. Time Has Come Today

Ribs Lorde

Tell Me

13. Br and New Love

Questions? Email hbrown@sj prep.or g

2. On & On

Best Coast

Bob Dylan

Zebr a The John Butler Tr io

Guided by Voices

Mazzy Star

Or der Your Tickets Today on the Cape and Swor d Homepage or on Facebook!

1.

The Rolling Stones

11. Blue Flower

Show Premieres Wednesday 5/26 at 7pm ET

M r s. Nelson

7.

Wake Up Ar cade Fire

8. Come Down Ander son .Paak 9. Sabotage The Beastie Boys 10. Them Shoes Patr ick Sweany 11. Super stition Stevie Wonder 12. Swamp Thing Pegboard Nerds 13. Tennessee Whiskey Chr is Stapleton 14. Sleep To Dr eam Fiona Apple 15. Help on the Way Bela Fleck

12 | Entertainment | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye The Hawkeye | Wednesday, February 17, 2021 | Entertainment | 13

Godzilla vs. K ong Review Who won the battle between Godzilla and Kong? Spoiler: I t was Warner Bros. Pictures. The film, which was released in late March 2021, has already grossed over $400 million worldwide. I t is also a smashing success for HBO Max.

By Dan L aw ?23 What would happen if there were monsters that existed in our world that would have the capacity to topple skyscrapers with ease and decimate cities in minutes? Ones that could shoot- off nuclear blasts by simply breathing and ones that could make New York City see like nothing more than a playground.

Sounds scary, right? The attack of these titans would leave massive devastation in their wakes. What if two of these monsters were to duke it out in an all- out- brawl to determine who was superior?

This is the plot of Godzilla vs. Kong, the newest and biggest blockbuster of the year which chronicles the battle between two giant monsters? in surprisingly entertaining fights.

Godzilla vs. Kong is the fourth film in Legendary Pictures? MonsterVerse, a series which crosses over several legendary movie monsters from cinematic history. The two monsters on display in Godzilla vs. Kong are, naturally, Godzilla and King Kong.

Godzilla dates back to the 1950s, where he appears as the titular character of 1954?s Godzilla, a Japanese- made movie where Godzilla, a skyscraper- sized dinosaur- like monster, attacks and destroys Tokyo. Godzilla is often recognized by his dark, reptilian scales and dorsal fins, recognizable roar, and iconic atomic breath, which he uses to charge up a destructive laser from his mouth.

1954?s Godzilla was the pioneer of Japan?s genre of ?tokusatsu? (special filming) movies. These films use heavy practical special effects in an age before CGI to bring superheroes, mechs, and most no-

Godzilla vs. Kong, the latest from the MonsterVerse series, has no shortage of action in its 113-minute runtime.

tably kaijus, which translates to ?strange beasts?, and features characters like Godzilla, Mothra, and Mechagodzilla.

Tokusatsu and kaiju movies have been immensely popular and influential in Japanese cinema, and have had a large following among Western audiences as well, especially after the success of the Pacific Rim franchise, a direct homage to kaiju films.

In the other corner is King Kong, an enormous gorilla now owned by Universal Studios. The 1933 Hollywood classic, King Kong, was a hit in theaters, even despite the problems the Great Depression posed for cinema. In the film, the gorilla god of a tribal society on Skull Island is taken from his habitat and brought to be displayed in New York City.

The monster escapes captivity and is put down by the U.S. Air Force after infamously

climbing the Empire State Building.

King Kong has had a massive impact on pop culture and cinema, being the primary inspiration for characters like Nintendo?s Donkey Kong and even Godzilla, leading Toho to create the legendary monster after King Kong was rereleased in Japan after the war.

The two?s long cinematic history have come full circle again in Godzilla vs. Kong, where two icons of the monster movie genre came face-to-face.

And audiences are going crazy for it.

Godzilla vs. Kong became, by far, the high-grossing movie throughout the entire duration of the pandemic. This is in part due to it being the first bigbudget blockbuster in what feels like a year; not to mention that it opened on HBO Max as well as recently reopened theaters.

But I don?t think that?s the whole reason why Godzilla vs.

Kong has been so successful.

People just like dumb, fun movies.

It?s a simple action blockbuster where two titanic monsters fight - a lot. There isn?t really much of a compelling plot here; the human characters in this movie are really only there to get these monsters to the next fight.

While this is a large downside, given how the human characters and their bland drama take up a large chunk of the movie, it doesn?t really detract from the experience all that much. If you choose to sit down to watch a movie called Godzilla vs. Kong and expect a work of narrative genius, you?re going to set yourself up

for disappointment.

No, it?s a big, dumb action movie, and it EXCELS in this field. If you want to see big monsters fight, you will get exactly that and even more.

General audiences have been flocking to huge blockbusters even more this decade than in the past, and the success of big, kind of silly action movies have been responsible for this.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has grossed billions, and its exponential success is inspiring more and more boxoffice hits.

Another reason for Godzilla vs. Kong?s success is the incredible marketing the movie received. ?Versus? blockbusters have historically been pretty great commercial successes. Films such as Captain America: Civil War and Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice create debate among the community over who will win and who?s stronger and who?s cooler, and that discussion leads people to the theaters to see it for themselves.

This film was no different. #TeamGodzilla and #TeamKong routinely trended on social media, and debates were high over who would eventually win in their showdown. Legendary Pictures and HBO Max cashed in on the marketing genius of this movie, crafting the hottest item in HBO Max history.

Besides the amazing marketing campaign, the visual effects alone are also bringing audiences to theaters. The incredible spectacle of kaijus clashing in extreme detail and exuberant personality is enough to carry the movie.

Godzilla and King Kong

look better than they?ve ever had before. The CG effects used to give these titanic monsters motion is astounding, and genuinely some of the best effects I?ve ever seen in a blockbuster like this. Exceptional CG animation brings the visceral, savage movement of Kong to life, and displays Godzilla, radiating with nuclear energy, as a terrifying, looming threat.

Typical for monster movies, the clash of these titans leaves immense destruction behind in human settlements, from Kong?s agile smashes to Godzilla?s nuclear breath. The fast and creative fight scenes use all of these monsters?wide array of techniques and abilities, displayed with great and unique editing and lighting, under a score that plays iconic themes from monster movie history.

It's as much a gloriously faithful love letter to two cinematic legends as it is a gloriously cheesy action flick. The titanic success of Godzilla vs.

Kong after sensational marketing will potentially lead to more tribute pieces to iconic legends as well as more additions to Legendary?s MonsterVerse.

There?s a reason why Godzilla vs. Kong is the highest grossing film in over a year.

If you can get over the holes in the human plotlines and focus on the insanity of these monsters, you?ll have nothing but fun when you watch it.

Until then, just be glad the greatest danger in our world today is a virus, and not a 400foot tall nuclear- powered Godzilla.

14 | Farewell | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

CL ASS OF 2021, GO THE WORL

Exit Poll for the Class of 2021

(68 Responses)

Freshman Sophomore Junior Senior

42.6%

Yes No Other

63.2%

4.4% 29.4%

63.2%

1.5% 2.9% |

23.5% 35.3%

1.5% |

8.8% |

23.5%

Absolutely Not

32.4% 23.5%

Never Once 2 or 3 times More than 3 times

Absolutely

Freshman Sophomore Junior Senior

45.6%

44.1%

27.9%

8.8% 11.8%

10.3% Absolutely Not

11.8% 5.9% Absolutely

(Photo: St. Joseph's Prep)

27.9%

(Photo: Benicio Beatty '21)

16.2%

33.8%

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Class of 2021 | 15

O FORTH AND SET L D ON FI RE

Closing Thoughts and Advice What is your favor ite Prep memor y?

What is the weir dest thing that you?ve seen at the Prep?

"Kairos" - many people

"Pineapples" - 35 people

What is one piece of advice that you would give to underclassmen?

"Lil Uzi outside of Prep" - Bryce Jones

"everything at fairmount park athletic fields" - Titus Henkels

"Seize the day." - Kieran Donaher and Krish Chawla

"sage fries 2020-2021" - Sean Cloran

"The four years at The Prep are over before you know it" - Kevin Donnelly

"Bus rides to baseball games" - Kieran Dougherty "Eating soggy fries every day." - George Voegele "Jamming in the Band Room" - Max Scales "Being stuck on the bus for hours when school let out early for a snow day." Joseph Tagliaferro "Puerto Rico [service trip]" - Jack Wagner "Junior year Prep Rugby 7's D-2 state championship in a monsoon" - Shane Baffa "Standing on the Prep stage for the first time in front of an audience" - Matt McCarney

"dead turtle in the prep basement" - Shane Baffa "I once saw someone go into the theater to tap dance because they 'just felt like tapping.'" - Dan Teti "I was sitting in the cafeteria after school by myself, and I heard someone getting frustrated with their chromebook. He proceeded to rip his chromebook in half and threw it across the cafeteria only for it to hit my chair. I had no idea what to do so I just held up the keyboard in disbelief" - Will Guckin

What is one thing that you wish you could change at the Prep?

Something about the food - 14 people

"Celebrating after finishing the filming of my final cape and sword show.

Something about knowing 'this is the end' of an activity you have done for all of high school just hits different." - Jake DiMarino

"Going outside while you're free should be a permanent thing." - Thomas Hillman

"Hanging in the CFL and working through problems on the big white board while also having a lot of fun and getting into a little bit of trouble." - Max Coyne

"I think community period was never really utilized to the extent that it could have been." Jimmy Janco

"On our last day in-person last year, I had the chance to talk with a group of my friends about what was happening, our expectations for the future, and general life at the Prep. There wasn't anything particularly profound about the conversation, but I'll always be grateful for that one moment of normalcy I had with my friends before things went haywire." - Jimmy Janco

"Add an Esports team. Allow for scholarships and new roads for college in the growing realm of collegiate gaming." - Sean Ey

"I wish I could change the negligence that the Prep tends to have towards people making horrendous comments and committing terrible actions, especially when it comes to alumni." - Matt McCarney "There is still so much work to be done in areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion! In addition, the school needs to permit our strong and organized Student Council to conduct student mental health surveys and make the necessary adjustments to homework levels." - Benicio Beatty

"Do your work and take notes" - Dawson Sakowski "dont buy the food and take latin 3" Tommy Schrieber "Don't go to the Mezzanine past 9 at night. Iggy will be waiting for you." George Voegele "Don't be afraid to ask for help, whether that be in school or in life." - Joseph Tagliaferro "Keep going. Stuff happens and it can be bad, sometimes good. But tomorrow is a new day." - Sean Ey "Be open to new experiences; the Prep will change you and how you see the world, be along for the ride" - Joe Massaua

What is the funniest reason that you or someone you know received JUG? "Someone said 'Latin baby'" "I got my shoe stolen by friends at lunch and [a staff member] was giving someone JUG for it. I tried telling him it was fine cause it?s my shoe and it was funny so he gave me JUG" "Talking in the quiet car on the SEPTA train" "He smashed ketchup into someone?s chromebook" "Skipped class and then walked past his teacher to get a milkshake" "Student was in the bathroom too long" "building a fort in the senior lounge" "When I was playing in the Turkey Bowl tournament, someone on the mezzanine emptied a water bottle onto the gym floor"

"Make the most of your time and enjoy every second of it because it truly does go by fast." - Michael McCormick

"One time i tried to put deodorant on in church, and [a teacher] caught me, made me give it to her, and gave me jug, that was pretty funny"

"don't take any of this time for granted because you realize it is priceless when it's going away" - Joey Sigmund

"4 people including myself got JUG for blowing our noses"

"If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that no school week, sports game, or drama club show is promised... so give every week your all! Throw yourself into the activities that you know will make you grow as a well-rounded human being. Stay in touch with yourself, your mental and physical health, and your relationship with God." - Benicio Beatty "Don't trust Sage" - Rob McKenna

"Having their video on a loop in online class" "I received JUG for accidentally (I swear!) breaking my chromebook in half."

"Walking too slow" "Playing subway surfers during Mass" "When i helped my friend break his chrome book in half"

16 | Entertainment | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

End-of-Year Poll Results Wh o r espon ded?

(Poll conducted 5/14 - 5/19)

On a scale f r om 1-5, h ow m u ch do you agr ee w it h t h e f ollow in g st at em en t ?

Freshmen - 62

Sh ou ld t h e Pr ep r equ ir e COVID-19 vaccin at ion f or st u den t s in t h e 2021-22 sch ool year ?

Sophomores - 60

Yes - 59.1%

1 = No, n ot at all.

Juniors - 65

No - 32.2%

5 = Yes, of cou r se!

Seniors - 56

Other - 8.7%

How do you t r avel t o/ f r om t h e Pr ep (m ost of t h e t im e)?

Do you an t icipat e n ext f all t o be "n or m al" ?

Most common answer: 3

Carpool (driver or rider) - 40.9%

Yes - 63.4%

Average answer: 2.6

I drive by myself - 25.6%

No - 14.8%

School Bus - 20.7%

Unsure - 21.4%

Sage prices are fair.

Public Transportation - 11.2%

Other - 0.4%

Most common answer: 1

243 responses

Prom is overrated

Walk/Bike - 1.7%

Average answer: 1.67 To w h at degr ee do you con sider COVID-19 vaccin at ion saf e?

Have you ever t aken pu blic t r an spor t at ion t o/ f r om t h e Pr ep?

This year has been more stressful than others.

1 (Not safe at all) - 2.5%

Yes - 74.5%

2 - 2.5%

No - 25.5%

3 - 15.2%

Most common answer: 5 Average Answer: 3.86

4 - 30.9% 5 (Very Safe) - 49%

If t h e Pr ep r eceived a sign if ican t don at ion , w h er e sh ou ld t h e m on ey go?

Ch eck all t h at apply.*

Financial Aid/Lowering Tuition - 61.4% Facilities/Renovations - 57.3% Clubs/Sports - 34.0% Student Activities - 33.2% Teacher Salaries - 24.5% Operating Costs/Programming - 16.2%

(Photo: St. Joseph's Prep)

(Photo: Benicio Beatty '21)

* Percentage reflects % of respondents who picked the choice

Have you been vaccin at ed f or COVID-19?

Sh ou ld t h e Pr ep u se a w eigh t ed GPA syst em ?

Yes (Including partial vaccination) - 57.6%

Yes - 64.6%

No, I am unsure if I will be vaccinated - 8.2%

No - 35.4%

No, I do not plan to - 5.3%

No, but I plan to - 22.2% Prep teachers genuinely care for their students.

(Photo: St. Joseph's Prep)

No, I am too young - 4.5%

Did you play a spor t at t h e Pr ep t h is year ?

Other - 1.2%

Most common answer: 4

I prefer not to answer - 0.8%

Average answer: 3.87

For t h ose w h o an sw er ed " Yes. In clu din g par t ial vaccin at ion )" t o t h e pr eviou s qu est ion .

I found my niche at the Prep.

301 responses

Average Answer: 4.00

Wh at is you r vaccin at ion st at u s?

I like the Prep.

I am fully vaccinated (Two weeks removed from my final dose) - 52.9%

Most common answer: 5

I am partially vaccinated - 47.1%

Yes - 76.9% No - 23.1%

Wh ich COVID-19 vaccin e did you r eceive?

Moderna - 7.1%

0 - 18.5%

Johnson & Johnson - 0.0%

3 - 16.5% 4 - 8.6% 5+ - 13.2% Wh at lear n in g m odel do you en joy t h e m ost ?

National Publication(s) (Online or Print) 14.1% Word-of-Mouth - 7.9%

Wh er e did you r eceive you r COVID-19 vaccin e?

Local Publication(s) (Online or Print) - 1.7%

Mass Vaccination Site - 43.9%

Podcasts - 1.2% Radio - 0.0%

Pharmacy - 33.8% School - 14.4%

Other - 4.1%

Doctor 's Office - 5.0% Other 2.9%

Th e biggest n ew s even t of 2020-21 w as _____________.

The Prep returns to in-person instruction after COVID-19 shutdown - 47.7% Howley Foundation gifts $5 million to school - 18.4% Tennis takes first PCL title since 2006 - 14.6%

Virtual - 3.3%

(Photo: Matthew Horwood | Getty I mages)

In-person - 64.9% Hybrid - 16.5% Asynchronous - 15.3%

Wh at is you r pr im ar y n ew s sou r ce?

Television - 18.7%

1 - 21.8% 2 - 21.4%

Average Answer: 4.29

Social Media - 52.3%

Pfizer - 92.9% How m an y clu bs ar e you in volved in ?

Most common answer: 5

Football wins state championship - 13.0% Marinacci announced as the Prep's first lay President - 6.3%

Entertainment | 17

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 | Wh ich of t h e f ollow in g social m edia plat f or m s do you u se? Ch eck all t h at apply.*

Wh ich depar t m en t cou ld sell ou t a com edy clu b?

Ch oose you f avor it e Pixar m ovie.

Cars - 16.4%

English - 30.2%

* Percentage reflects % of respondents who picked the choice.

Science - 21.3%

Instagram - 86.7%

Math - 14.9%

Snapchat - 85.9%

Classics - 13.2%

TikTok - 62.7%

Modern Language - 9.4%

WALL-E - 12.2% The Incredibles - 9.7% Monsters Inc. - 9.7% Ratatouille - 9.2% Toy Story - 8.8%

Twitter - 52.7%

Up - 8.0%

Reddit - 24.9%

Finding Nemo - 5.9%

Facebook - 15.4%

Others - 20.1%

LinkedIn - 2.1% None - 2.1% Do you appr ove of How ie Rosem an's h an dlin g of t h e NFL Dr af t ?

Yes - 38.9% No - 18.4% Unsure - 42.7% Wh o is t h e bet t er qu ar t er back ?

Jalen Hurts - 52.9% Carson Wentz - 47.1%

Wh at is h idden u n der n eat h t h e Ch u r ch of t h e Gesu ?

Latin's sixth declension -31.6% Laundered money - 22.4% The ghost of Kieran Donaher '21 - 16.9%

Wh ich qu ar t er back is t h e bet t er f it f or t h e Eagles?

Crypt - 11.0%

Jalen Hurts - 69.0%

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II - 8.9%

Carson Wentz - 31.0%

Outstanding negative Sage balances - 6.8% Self-contained fire - 2.5%

Eagles Head Coach Nick Sir r ian i ch allen ges you t o a gam e of r ock -paper -scissor s. You ch oose _____________.

Rock - 24.3% Paper - 15.9%

Wh ich ban d w ill h ave t h e m ost last in g legacy?

The Beatles - 53.9% The Wiggles - 46.1%

Scissors - 13.0% How m an y is t oo m an y?

Distinguished men play Monopoly - 46.9%

At least 4 - 19.2% Maybe 7 - 33.8% The horse's name was Friday - 47.0%

Over r ated Over hated

For m er Ph illies m an ager Gabe Kapler _____________. deserved to be fired - 47.4% did not deserve to be fired - 7.3% I'd rather get mauled by a bear than watch baseball - 45.3% Wh o is t h e bet t er m an ager ?

Joe Girardi - 51.5% Gabe Kapler - 3.1% I'd rather eat 30 to 40 olives than watch baseball - 45.4%

Did you pu t t h e pin eapples ~t h er e~?

Yes - 15.3% No - 30.2% There is an imposter among us - 54.5% Pick on e.

Drake & Josh - 45.1% iCarly - 24.8%

Wh at is you f avor it e gen r e of m u sic?

Victorious - 11.5%

Hip Hop/Rap - 33.3%

Big Time Rush - 12.4%

Classic Rock - 10.8% Rock - 9.1%

Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide - 6.2%

Golf

34.9%

65.1%

TikTok

70.8%

29.2%

Sage

82.0%

18.0%

DaBaby

49.8%

50.2%

Outdoor L unches

27.3%

72.7%

The Office (TV Show)

51.7%

48.3%

L iter ar y Present Tense

72.6%

27.4%

Wh y do you r ead The Hawkeye?

An unwavering quest to support local, unbiased, (semi-)independent journalism! 55.1%

Country - 9.1% Pop - 9.1%

Hawkeye is sus... - 44.9%

Alternative - 8.2% R&B/Soul - 3.5%

* If "Check all that apply," respondents could choose more than one answer, so percentage number reflects the percentage of individual answers that featured the choice.

Other Genres - 16.9%

* * Figures might not add up to 100% for rounding and/or spacing purposes.

To view the poll, in its entirety, contact a Hawkeye editor.

Follow @SJPHawkeye on Twitter for Exclusive Content & Online I ssues!

18 | Entertainment | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

The Hawkword

Cr uciver balist: Rober t Woltj en '22 Note: Spaces not included

Across 3. Title for a Roman leader 6. Pizza shop around the corner 8. Center of the Earth 12. Top cop 16. Engine company at 16th and Parrish 17. Fur shop across the street 18. Saint?s father; early Prep donor 19. Fever that struck Philly in 1793 20. Fire company founded by Franklin 21. Former Philly train works 22. Site of a Philly rail junction

Down 1. Avenue cutting across North Philly

7. Railroad based on Market Street

13. Old Street of the Prep

2. Site of Penn Treaty

9. Oldest Catholic college

14. Founder of the Gesu

3. First president of the Prep

10. ____ State Penitentiary

4. Philly paper

11. _______ Exposition in 1876

15. Former name of a fire dept. ladder company__

Faculty Gr id

By M aximus Nast '23

What's your favor ite movie and why?

Will things go back to nor mal next year ?

M r. DeSimone

M s. M or gan

Labyrinth, because of David Bowie and Jim Henson.

Gladiator, because we are able to see a very well done depiction of gladiators. They did a very good replication of gladiatorial shows and it's very historically accurate.

While I don't have a favorite, Reservoir Dogs is the movie that got me fascinated with movie production.

Rocky III. Inspiration.

Most definitely yes!

In terms of COVID stuff, I think it will go back to normal but I don?t think the world can ever go back to the way it was at this point.

I think normal is relative to the situation.

Each year brings a chance for new opportunities.

M r. L ederer '13

M r. Hendr zak

I f you could teach any other subj ect what would it be?

And why?

Ancient Magic because it was my favorite college course and taught me how to read astrological charts.

English. Because I love English grammar.

Philosophy: it shapes our history.

I would love to teach a course on the mitochondrion because it's the powerhouse of the cell.

What is your dream profession?

Writer/Author

Pilot, because I love to travel.

Astronaut!

Rockstar. I was meant to be a rockstar and I missed my calling.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Entertainment | 19

Bir kmire's Beats: Roadrunner: New Light, New Machine and M ORE

By Colin Bir kmire ?23 This spring many artists released anticipated albums or singles, with many more slated for release at some point this year. While fans didn?t get to hear new songs from Drake or Kendrick Lamar, they were treated to the newest Brockhampton album since 2019, a new album from Young Thug?s YSL, a Baby Keem single featuring Travis Scott, a longawaited Trippie Redd and Playboi Carti single, and the announcement of a new J. Cole album, with a song titled ?Interlude? subsequently released.

The highly anticipated Brockhampton project, Roadrunner: New Light, New Machine sees the group more solidified after the firing of member Ameer Vann a few years ago, whose absence and firing was a major theme of their past two projects.

However, that does not mean tragedy hasn?t struck the band, member Joba?s father committed suicide a few months ago, and he speaks on his death and what it means to him on standout tracks ?The Light and The Light Pt. II.? The album also features some high profile features from Danny Brown, Jpegmafia, A$AP Rocky, A$AP Ferg, and Charlie Wilson to name a few.

While there is plenty to love,

with group leader Kevin Abstract stating that Brockhampton only has one album left to release before calling it quits, it raises the question as to whether or not the band ever really recovered from the departure of Ameer Vann and if his creative absence permanently affected Brockhampton? especially considering their best and most renowned albums, the Saturation Trilogy, were heavily influenced by the creative input of Vann. And while Roadrunner is the best Brockhampton album since the Saturation albums, it doesn?t feel like anything groundbreaking like those albums, besides the much welcomed features. It almost feels as though one last album is appropriate for the beloved group.

Young Thug also released the much awaited sequel to his YSL label?s Slime Language, Slime Language 2. The album sees Young Thug and his YSL proteges from the likes of Gunna and Lil Baby, as well as YSL affiliates Drake, Lil Uzi Vert, and Travis Scott to name a few, on feel good trap songs showcasing what everyone loves about them.

However, the album feels very top-heavy as the first half is far better than the second.

The first four songs on the album, ?Slatty?, ?Ski?, ?Dia-

rounds on TikTok and a fan edit became an inescapable TikTok sound, so the hype for the official release was felt by many, and when it finally released, it was solid. Trippie Redd delivers a decent verse and Carti delivers a verse with a somewhat ?Die Lit?- style flow, leaving everyone satisfied.

Brockhampton's latest project, Roadrunner: New Light, New Machine, brings familiar group sounds to a new level. It is rumored to be their penultimate release as a hip-hop collective.

monds Dancing?, and ?Solid? are among the best on the album and placing them all together in a row as the first four tracks ruins the momentum and pacing of the rest of the album.

Still, there are great tracks and features littered throughout the album, such as ?Proud of U? and the odd, but not necessarily bad Future feature on ?Superstar?.

Regardless, this album shows the undeniable influence of Young Thug and further solidifies him as one of the best

artists working right now.

While Travis Scott fans will have to wait a little longer for Utopia, Baby Keem?s recently released single ?Durag Activity? has a welcome Travis feature. It is a solid single from an artist who?s only growing bigger and a feature from one of the most popular artists in the world.

Another long-awaited release was the official version of ?Miss the Rage? by Trippie Redd and Playboi Carti. The beat to the song made the

The biggest announcement in the past few months was definitely the announcement of a new J. Cole album, The OffSeason, and the release of a song off of the upcoming album, simply titled, ?Interlude.?

Regardless of the varying opinions one may have about J. Cole, this is a good song. It?s not the greatest song ever released, or the greatest song he himself has ever released, but the short, yet sweet, rapping and the catchy sample is enough to make any music fan a little bit excited for the new album.

There was a lot to love this spring and there will be a lot more to love this summer, if the artists who are slated to release an album drop their albums. While it may not have been a busy spring in terms of music, what was released was enough to satisfy anyone.

Clash of Subgenres in Cathar tic Demise's I n Absence

By L iam Gundersen ?22 What makes Canadian thrash metal band Cathartic Demise so great? Some say it?s the maple syrup that runs through their veins. Others believe it?s the long, frostbitten winters spent battling polar bears and building igloos. Still others think it?s Tim Horton?s coffee that they all drink like water.

They?re all partly right, but it is more so their genre-blending style and fresh musical passages.

These genres are not popular like others such as rap or classic rock because many people don?t understand the style?s appeal. That?s because it is extreme, has fast and complex instrumentation, and often features unintelligible vocals.

However, those are also the very traits that make the genre so great, and they contribute to the main reason for listening to it: catharsis.

Music is basically just listenable emotion, and, because of

A revival of the metal genre fandom is rapidly occurring at the Prep with the newly released In Absence being the hottest new project.

metal?s extremity, it has the ability to convey some pretty intense ones. Cathartic Demise is great at this and their genreblending style allows for a

wide range of feelings to come out in their playing.

Although their core genre is thrash, a subgenre character-

ized by breakneck drumming, blistering guitars, and shouted vocals, Cathartic Demise combines several other subgenres of metal to create their unique sound. Their main subgenre includes bands such as Slayer or Metallica and can be heard on songs such as In Absence?s popular track ?Silence Within,? which contains moshpit- ready riffs throughout its duration.

Cathartic Demise also borrows from Metallica on the intro to ?Disparity.? Its haunting, clean guitars are taken directly from the band?s famous song ?Welcome Home (Sanitarium).?

Many other tracks on In Absence contain lengthy instrumental passages such as this, which is a welcome surprise for the modern iteration of the genre. Numerous early thrash albums, such as Megadeth?s Peace Sells? but Who?s Buying? contain these progressive elements. However, modern bands, such as Toxic Holocaust or Municipal Waste, are rooted in hardcore punk, which means less technicality and more ag-

gressive energy.

The other subgenre Cathartic Demise takes influence from is traditional heavy metal, which includes bands such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. That can be heard in the beginning of the title track. Those snappy, bright guitar lines are a hallmark of the subgenre, and their melodic lines contrast nicely with the harsh vocals. Vocals can make or break an album, and in this case it definitely makes it. Vocalist Bennet Smith?s singing style is raspy, not chunky like many other modern metal vocalists. Unfortunately, it will still be some time before Cathartic Demise is able to go on tour, but when they do the turnout will surely be high. Perhaps they will put out more music while the world is still in partial lockdown. The whole band?s performance on In Absence is spectacular, and thrash metal fans will be eagerly awaiting their next musical endeavor.

20 | Opinion/Debate | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

This Week on Twitter

Opinion/Debate The Bathrooms M ust Change these events might seem benign in nature, they do disrupt our classes.

By Nicholas Bedrossian '22

May 11, to put it simply, was very strange in terms of our bathrooms. Two weeks ago, I proposed writing this story to my friends as a lighthearted joke. However, the recents events have called me to actually write a real article about, in my opinion, the most dire situation at this school: our bathrooms. I have studied our bathrooms and taken note of many problems that have been caused by both us students and the administration. I am doing this in the hope that things will change. I hope that one day people will be able to use the bathrooms and think, ?man, that is a nice bathroom.? And if this article doesn?t yield some kind of change, I hope that it at least begins a conversation.

I know for a fact that I am not the only one in this school

(Photos: Nicholas Bedrossian '22)

I would like to preface this by saying that I am confident in my assertion that the hardest working and most important people in this building are our janitorial staff. They do the most in exchange for the least.

While students here rarely offer words of thanks to them, I know that all of my Prep brothers are eternally grateful for their work.

Faulty sinks, unusable toilets, leaking urinals, and exposed wires are all part of a larger issue with the Prep's bathrooms. The issue can only be resolved with student-staff cooperation.

that sees the problems in our bathrooms. By simply asking around, many students from multiple grades voiced their concerns. As Jack Morrow ?22 puts it, ?it feels like there is something perpetually wrong with the bathroom.? Every week, new problems arise in the bathrooms, caused by both the students and the administration. All of these problems stack up to cause genuine issues for students and teachers alike.

For example, the recent pineapple ?prank? closed down the second floor bathroom.

While this wouldn't normally be a problem, with the gym

bathroom being closed, Villiger Hall was left without a bathroom.

This most recent event was not the first time that Prep students have caused the bathrooms to be closed however.

During my time at Prep alone, I can think of many more.

While most times the closing is disguised as a cleaning, we all know that the bathroom is closed because of what we did.

Last year, a bathroom door was torn from its hinges which closed the bathroom for a week. During my freshman year, bathrooms would be closed daily to clean defacements off of the stalls. While

While the actions of us students have caused many problems at Prep, we are not the only ones to blame for our bathroom problems. Many appliances in our bathrooms don?t work and the students have no impact on fixing them.

Across all of the student bathrooms at Prep, only half of the sinks work. In addition, many of the sinks that do work output water with extremely high temperatures. The Hawkeye confirmed that multiple sinks put out water exceeding or reaching 120? (50 ? ). This does nothing but make students skip washing their hands, allowing for the easy spread of germs.

It is true that all of the bathrooms have their faults, no bathroom is in greater disrepair than the 2nd Floor Villiger bathroom. This bathroom takes the biggest beating from the students and seems to get the least attention from our administration. As previously stated, a plurality of the sinks in the bathroom simply don?t turn on.

In addition, a majority of the soap dispensers fail to give soap despite being filled with soap. Finally, the toilets in this bathroom are nearly unusable.

None of the doors have working locks, so privacy is unattainable. Those who chose to go without privacy risk many other things. I have found multiple toilets with exposed wires, clogged pipes, or plastic bags covering them. These problems are common and last for months without being addressed.

In conclusion, our bathrooms really stink and no one, with the exception of the hardworking janitors, is putting in the work to address the problems they have. It is the mission of the Prep to make us men for and with others? . It is our job as students to work to improve our bathrooms both for ourselves and the janitorial staff that needs to clean them.

It is not right for us to ruin our bathroom, making their lives worse. I am issuing a call to action for all of my Prep brothers to do better. I am calling for the school as a whole to do better. Finally, I call for the newly elected Student Council to work for change in our school and improve our bathrooms.

If you share in my concerns, think I missed something, or think I am dead wrong; feel free to contact me via email.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Opinion/Debate | 21

Howie Roseman Finally Shined in 2021 Dr aft

By Alfonso Procaccino ?21 Howie Roseman proved me wrong in this year's draft. But Howie saved his job for now because of how well the draft played out for the Eagles, but his future is still uncertain with this team. I did not expect the draft's first ten picks to pan out as they did. In particular, I found the Panthers and Broncos respective picks of CB Jaycee Brown and CB Patrick Surtain II as quite surprising.

With these two teams both selecting cornerbacks right before the Eagles, the team was in a prime position to trade up to ten and swap picks with the Cowboys, using a draft pick arsenal stockpiled by Roseman before the draft.

With the tenth overall pick, the Eagles drafted Alabama wide receiver and Heisman Trophy winner Devonta Smith.

The Eagles now have a wide receiver weapon and a reliable pass-catcher to pair with young quarterback and former Alabama teammate Jalen Hurts.

My one problem with this draft was that the Eagles drafted center, Landon Dickerson to take over Jason Kelce?s job after he retires, which is likely after this season. I didn?t

like this pick because his career at Alabama was filled with injuries, even though he was one of the best linemen in college football when healthy.

I saw this move as something that should?ve been addressed in next year's draft, and they should have used their secondround pick on a cornerback to pair alongside Darius Slay on the outside. My eyes were set on the Eagles taking Asante Samuel Jr. because he is incredible at man coverage and excelled on the outside. This fit the needs of the Eagles at the corner position.

The rest of the offseason was solid. The Eagles drafted safety JaCoby Stevens from LSU, who excels at making plays downhill. In the fourth round, the team drafted Zach McPherson, a cornerback that is raw, but has the right assets to become the starter opposite of Slay.

The Eagles also signed recently cut running back Kerryon Johnson from the Detroit Lions, who was an excellent starting running back, but had trouble staying healthy. They also boosted their running back rotation by drafting Kenneth Gainwell in this year's draft.

After the Philadelphia Eagles posted a 4-11-1 record and finished last in the NFL's least competitive division, the NFC East, many Eagles fans called for the firing of General Manager Howie Roseman. But in light of Roseman's recent draft strategy, a strategy that netted Heisman Trophy winner Devonta Smith (WR) of Alabama, fans have changed their minds, including Alfonso Procaccino '21.

Gainwell is a great passcatching running back out of the backfield.

strong Eagles dline, which is always a bright- spot on this team.

The Eagles finally strengthened their defensive line by signing former four- time Pro Bowl outside linebacker, Ryan Kerrigan. Although he is on the older side, he will definitely be a great addition to the

Howie has fought through a very toxic environment in Philadelphia through his reported belittling of Doug Pederson and Carson Wentz, which contributed to their departure. The issues he brings to

this team go beyond his decision-making at the General Manager position, but his job after having a notable offseason is secured for now.

2020-21 Calls for Finals Exemption

By Aiden Ander son ?22 Over the past year, the ultimate cliché has become ?these are unprecedented times.?

While I hate to say it, it is so very true. These ?unprecedented times? have infiltrated every aspect of our lives, including the way we learn. If we, the students of the Prep, have not had the normal learning experience, why should we be tested in the same way as we would have been any other year?

The learning experience throughout this school year has not been the best? to say the least. While I appreciate the effort from the administration and especially the teachers to try to make the most of the situation, there isn't much they could've done to improve the circumstances.

Under the hybrid learning schedule, it was difficult for many teachers to fulfill the learning needs of both the online and in- person students. It was clearly a challenge for teachers to ask questions and grab the attention of both students at the same time. Online learning was grueling and banal for almost every student. ?I?ve struggled to pay atten-

tion since mid- October,? said Nate Murawski ?22, a student who has been through the hybrid learning model all year. ?Staring at a computer screen for six hours is the equivalent of pouring hot sauce into my eyes. [...] It?s extremely difficult to be attentive.?

Furthermore, the administration deemed it best to not hold finals after the brouhaha that was the end of the 2020 school year. Even this year, the school did not hold midterms after the first semester. In the email about not holding midterms, the Prep stated, ?Given the unusual circumstances of this school year, midterm exams will be eliminated for this year."

If that was the best decision then, what separates this semester as worthy of holding finals? We struggled through the same learning schedule as the first semester and not much has changed.

Ashton Dial ?22 said, ?Virtual learning has caused me to retain a third of what I would if we were fully in person all year. Why should we do finals, a typical end of year ritual, if this year has been anything but typical??

Under normal circumstances, finals allow students to possibly raise their grade and prove their knowledge. But under the circumstances of this school year, some worry that finals would only hurt the majority of student?s grades.

Nolan McCormick ?22 said, ?There is no chance that students were able to retain as much information as previous years, so a final exam would negatively skew a lot of people's grades. If there were to be finals it would have to be heavily modified, or possibly have a project as the second semester final grade.?

Over the course of the school year, most students have had their tests online and not on paper with pencil. This begs the question: if students have not taken a proper sit- down test all year, why now? ?The purpose of conducting exams is not meant to be punitive in what has proven to be a most unconventional school year,? Principal Cavacos wrote in a May 5 Principal?s Newsletter. ?Rather, the administration of exams provides an experience of assessment which is at its core ?college preparatory.? Our teachers understand the challenges

wrought by pandemic adjustments, and, as always, will seek to apply just and accurate student assessment related to grading.?

McBride ?22 said, ?We?ve already had so much to deal with this year. We don't need finals in addition to everything we?ve dealt with.?

Caleb Datto ?22 said, ?A final exam should reflect the way that students have been evaluated over the course of the year. Going from only taking tests online to sitting for a two hour written exam is not a good reflection of the work that has been put in by students this year. ?

Moreover, the AP exams were pushed back and now occur around the same time of the school?s scheduled exams.

However, the Prep states that they understand the importance of AP exams and have made the best effort possible to minimize any conflict. If students miss a school final for an AP exam, they will make up the exam on the make-up day.

Another concern for students is their safety. In the first week of having all students back five days a week, a number of students were pulled from class, identified as close contacts of COVID- positive individuals, and required to quarantine. As of April 20, there were nine confirmed positive cases among students. Although that number has since gone down, many students still opt to learn virtually, Not only will exams be possibly dangerous for students, it will also greatly affect the mental health of the student body. Finals are a huge source of stress in any school year, and this stress will be amplified due to the learning conditions and the pandemic. Denis

?The Prep claims that ?College Starts Here?, but they are making this process more difficult for the students with finals and AP exams occurring around the same time,? said Eamon Coffey ?22.

Finally, if the school is going to go forward with holding finals, then students should be able to be exempt. Some classes have changed their exemption policies from previous years to force all students to take the exams due to the fact that there wasn't a midterm.

This prevents students who?ve consistently worked hard to achieve high grades to feel the satisfaction of exemption.

22 | Opinion/Debate | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

Navigating Catholics' J& J Dilemma Fetal cell lines from a 1985 abortion were used in the research development and production process for Johnson & Johnson's vaccine against COVI D-19, causing concern among Catholics. Paddy May '24 contends that taking this jab is still morally sound.

(Photo: Sarah Webb | CatholicPhilly.com)

Catholic Church, but the Catholic Church does not overlook the moral good of taking the vaccine.

Archbishop Nelson Perez of Philadelphia visits a COVID-19 vaccination site for teachers hosted by Archbishop Ryan High School in partnership with the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) in March 2021.

By Paddy M ay ?24 Should Catholics take the Johnson & Johnson Vaccine?

What is the Church?s stance?

What are the sources of contention? Some members of the Catholic Church are against taking the Johnson & Johnson COVID- 19 vaccine because this vaccine utilized fetal cell lines isolated from a fetus in 1985 in its development and manufacture.

"While the vaccine used labreplicated fetal cells (known as

fetal cell lines) during its production process, the vaccine itself does not contain any fetal cells," writes a Reuters Fact Check.

To clarify, there are no aborted fetal cells in your vaccine.

Johnson & Johnson used these cell lines to aid in the development and production of the vaccine, and the J& J vaccine is not the only vaccine created in this way. The Hepatitis A, Rabies, Rubella,

Shingles, and Chickenpox vaccines were also created in this manner. Pfizer and Moderna also used cell lines in the development of their COVID- 19 vaccines, but not in their production. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that immunizations help save two to three million lives each year, and that number grows with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The use of cell lines from aborted fetal cells is not viewed positively by many members of the pro- life

to work in Jesus? name for the betterment of others, and that includes helping protect the health and safety of other members of our society. The The U.S. Conference of Catholic Church?s views on the Catholic Bishops states that sanctity of human life extend members of the Catholic faith from conception to death, and can be vaccinated with the J& J not only conception to birth. vaccine in The Catholic good con- "The main job of Catholics, as Church realscience. izes the imfollowers of the teachings of The Vatiportance of can has Christ, is to care for and love our protecting issued a neighbor. By doing our part in those memstatement stopping the coronavirus, we are bers of our that living the mission Jesus has sent society who Catholics are the most forth for us." should vulnerable to avoid the this disease, J& J Vaccine if possible, but the and see vaccinations as an immain priority is to be vacciportant part of doing that. nated against the coronavirus for the common good.

The main job of Catholics, as followers of the teachings of The main priority of the Christ, is to care for and love Catholic Church is to promote our neighbor. By doing our the safety and well being of all part in stopping the coronpeople, and they see vaccinaavirus, we are living the mistion as a very integral part of sion Jesus has sent forth for us. that priority. The Catholic Church has also promoted folVaccinations are an integral lowing COVID- 19 guidelines part of the preservation and and restrictions, because they perpetuation of our society, are also seen as very important and we must take them as a parts of respecting the sanctity necessary tool for the protecof human life during a global tion of others and ourselves. pandemic. The Church has Although the this fetus were made its position clear, and has aborted, the millions of lives made sure Catholics know the saved are also a very important main priority is to be vaccipart of the respect for the sancnated against the coronavirus. tity of human life.

As Catholics, we are taught

Hicks on the Dress Code: K eep I t Casual

By K ier an Hicks '23

with a blazer and tie in hot weather and would make the students more comfortable and more attentive. I also shouldn?t gloss over the fact that the polo is much cheaper than its alternative by a noticeable margin.

When the Prep was planning to start the 2020- 2021 school year nearly nine months ago, a slew of changes were made to the way the Prep usually runs.

When the update was first sent out that the dress code would change back in August, we were told it would change until further notice. ?Due to health and safety guidelines, we will be modifying our on- campus dress code until further notice. The dress code is corporate casual: this means a polo or button- down (collared) shirt with khaki pants, a belt and a casual shoe.

Sneakers/sandals/flip flops are not permitted. The shirt must

(Photo: St. Joseph's Prep)

They ranged from generally disliked changes (Flexisched, 70 minute periods) to overwhelmingly popular changes, such as the ?corporate casual? dress code. Moving from the usual sport jacket and tie, the updated dress code meant students could wear a polo shirt or a button down shirt, removing the requirement for a tie or jacket.

Above, Ms. Cook's English class dons the corporate casual attire, a dress code change that Kieran Hicks '23 argues should stay.

be tucked in,? the Prep?s announcement outlined.

It wouldn?t be surprising if the Prep was to revert back to the blazer, tie, and button down shirt next school year, but we should keep the corporate casual dress code.

The Prep states that the purpose of its usual dress code is

to maintain the neat and proper appearance of a Prep student that is deemed appropriate for the serious academic environment of the school. However, I believe that a polo shirt, rather than a tie and blazer, would not compromise the appearance of a Prep student and would not cross the ?distinct difference between dress worn for learn-

ing and for recreation?.

A polo shirt does not attract too much attention, and is more comfortable especially in the early fall and late spring, where a tight collar becomes suffocating. Thus, a polo would be much less distracting and bothersome for most of the year than a button down shirt

I?m not going to deny that a sports coat and tie looks more professional than a polo, but there is no need for students to wear it every day throughout the year. The polo allows students to stay comfortable, without compromising the professional look. ?It?s much more comfortable and less of a hassle to wear a polo,? says Zach Bieli ?23.

Zach is just one of the many Prep students that would prefer the corporate casual over the old dress code.

All in all, the polo is more comfortable, simple, and cheaper than the blazer and tie, while still retaining the neat and professional look that the previous dress code was meant to give.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Opinion/Debate | 23

DEBATE: Who Will Win the NBA Easter n Conference?

Sixers

By L iam Stephens '21 The time is finally approaching: the NBA playoffs.

The Sixers, first in the Eastern Conference, are looking to capture their fourth NBA championship and hopefully end a 38 year championship drought. This is not a hopeless wish either; the Sixers have been playing their best basketball since ?83.

This year, I believe that the Sixers will win the East due to a multitude of reasons.

Now, even though the Sixers have secured the No. 1 seed and have dominated the conference, there are many that believe that the other top teams will win, such as the Bucks or the Nets.

To be honest, the Nets are the top threat to the Sixers.

On paper, the Big 3 combination of James Harden, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant is terrifying. Two of the arguably top five scorers of all time paired with a top three point guard is intimidating.

Nets

By Alfonso Procaccino '21 In the James Harden trade that could possibly revolutionize the Nets franchise, they shipped center Jarrett Allen, forward Taurean Prince to Cleveland, guard Caris LeVert (an incoming Most Improved Player candidate), and forward Rodions Kurucs, as well as three first- round draft picks (2022, 2024 and 2026) and four first- round pick swaps (2021, 2023, 2025 and 2027), to Houston.

This trade for James Harden, as well as the signing of former six-time all-star and distraught Pistons forward, Blake Griffin, made the Nets officially the team to beat in the East. The Sixers? spotlight was removed from them because the Nets now have quite possibly the greatest Big 3 ever assembled, which includes Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and now James Harden. The whole Nets roster combined has a whopping thirty- four NBA all- star game appearances.

Since the James Harden trade on January 14th of this year, the Nets have jumped up four spots in the Eastern Conference standings from sixth to second. The Nets on January 14th were 7-6, but are 48-24 as of May 19th. On the contrary, the number one seeded Sixers in the East are 49-23 and have a winning record of 41- 19

Now, the Sixer?s past record in the playoffs may suggest that they are not a good playoff team. But that has changed.

The new coaching staff, led by an NBA champion head coach Doc Rivers, will heavily increase playoff performance.

However, actually playing with all of that starpower is not easy. There is only one basketball. All three of those players are very ball dominant, and it will prove challenging to manage each of their egos in order to win games in the postseason.

Also, all three of those players have a reputation of being problematic on their past teams. Kevin Durant notoriously left his loyalty early on in his career to join an already overpowered Warriors, and Kyrie Irving and James Harden had their own individual toxic fallouts with their previous teams. The mental aspect of keeping their team united through a taxing task, such as winning the East, will be testing. That is not even mentioning the injuries. The Big 3 combo for the Nets have only played about ten games together. All of these factors combined may very likely cause problems for this Nets team.

since the James Harden trade.

The Nets and Sixers have faced each other three times this year, so far. The Sixers have had the upper hand in these matchups, winning the series 2- 1. However, the Nets were without Durant for all three of these games and were without Irving and Harden for two.

When it comes time for the playoffs, I am undoubtedly giving the upper hand to the Nets because the Sixers will be unsure on how to defend them because they have not faced this team at full potential yet.

The Nets just have too much firepower on offense. Durant is averaging 28.3 points a game this year, while Kyrie is averaging 27 points and Harden is averaging 25.4 points. ?If the Nets are healthy, they are virtually unguardable,? said Kieran Dougherty ?21.

Assuming this team is fully healthy during the playoffs, I do not see how it is possible for the Sixers or any team in this league, as a matter of fact, to stop the Brooklyn Nets.

Plus, when comparing the Nets and Sixers, I can point out many factors that can cause the Sixers to crumble. First of all, the Sixers have no closers that they can count on for the last two minutes of games, whereas the Nets have three (name those closers). The Sixers bench has also been very weak as of late. Their newly acquired point guard, George

With a blistering regular season, Joel Embiid (above second from left) looks to launch himself into Sixers stardom by delivering the city?s first NBA Championship in nearly four decades.

But it's not like the Sixers need internal problems to occur. The Sixers have everything: defense in Defensive Player of the Year candidate Ben Simmons and Matisse Thybulle, shooting in Danny Green, Seth Curry, and Furkan Korkmaz, a bench unit lead by Shake Milton, Dwight Howard, and Matisse Thybulle, and, more importantly, the rightful MVP in Joel Embiid. Tom Warner ?21 agrees, stating that, ?When the Sixers

starting lineup are all playing, they are 26-4, which shows me they can compete with any team.?

A complete team like this has an incredible chance of winning the championship. Joel Embiid has been incredibly dominant, averaging 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists. Nobody in the league has been able to guard him. His ability to penetrate the defense and put up 30 a game will only increase in the playoffs.

Furthermore, the Sixers will likely have a very easy road to the Eastern Conference Finals.

They will play either the Celtics, Hornets, Wizards or Pacers in the first round, which could be a 4 game sweep.

Then, in the second round, they will play the Knicks or Hawks, which could be another 4 or 5 game series. The Sixers will be well- rested going into the conference finals, which probably cannot be said for the team coming out of the bottom half of the bracket.

This is our year. The Sixers have all the components for an Eastern Conference title, and an NBA Finals. Get ready. The Process will be completed.

Hill, has been very unproductive since the trade deadline.

Sixers guard Shake Milton is inconsistent at times, and one of the better scorers on this team, Tyrese Maxey, will probably see no minutes in the playoff rotation.

Finally, I know that Ben Simmons is at the forefront of the NBA Defensive Player of the Year rankings, but there are mismatches all over the floor for the Nets. I suppose Ben will be guarding the Nets primary ball- handler, which will be Harden, but who will be guarding KD and Kyrie? Matisse Thybulle off the bench is an amazing defender, but his inability to score on offense makes him a liability.

But the biggest knock I have on the Nets is their ability to stay healthy and their chemistry with one another. The Big 3 of KD, Kyrie, and Harden have only played seven games together. That?s it! This trade happened back in January and they have only managed to play seven games, where they won five and lost two. Their notable wins when playing together were against the titlecontending Clippers and the Heat, who lost in the finals to the Lakers last year. On the other hand, they had pathetic losses to the Raptors and Cavaliers, even though KD only played twenty minutes of the Raptors game.

Nevertheless, the Sixers, specifically Ben Simmons, will still need to step it up on the

Boasting a 48-24 record, Kevin Durant (center) and the Brooklyn Nets finished one game back from the Philadelphia 76ers. The Nets, the second seed in the Eastern Conference began its playoff series with the Boston Celtics on Saturday.

offensive end if they want to make this a competitive series.

Joel Embiid dominating should not be a problem. I am more concerned about which version of Ben Simmons the Sixers will get in the playoffs, as well as the play of Shake Milton, Furkan Korkmaz, and Seth Curry.

This is why although the Sixers are first in the Eastern Conference, I still do not have the utmost confidence that they will be able to make it out of the East. They beat the Knicks twice in March, but the Knicks were without star point guard Derrick Rose. They lost all three times they faced the Bucks this year.

Therefore, in my personal opinion, I believe that the Sixers will have a harder time matching up against the Bucks rather than the Nets. The Sixers, on the year, are 0-3 against the Bucks, but to be fair, Joel

and Ben both missed two games apiece against the gritty Bucks squad.

Why? Well, the Bucks are one of the best teams in the league when guarding along the perimeter. If they are able to limit shooters like Seth Curry and Danny Green from getting hot, a big portion of Ben Simmons's game is limited because his ability to kick the ball out to the shooters for three will be diminished.

Regardless of who the Sixers face, the Nets and Bucks both provide unfavorable matchups for Philly. We all know Joel Embiid will fill up the stat sheet versus either team, but the power of the Nets offense and the stifling Bucks defense built around two- time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday will cause immense trouble for the Sixers in a four game series.

24 | Opinion/Debate | Monday, May 24 ,2021 | The Hawkeye

DEBATE: Should NCAA Allow Student-Athletes to Ear n M oney?

Yes

While Gonzaga would go on to lose to the Baylor Bears in the national championship, this incredible shot could net Jalen Suggs large sums of money over the span of his life, according to Yahoo Sports? that is, if he was allowed to enter endorsement deals. This is a phenomenon in both women?s and men?s basketball. According to the same article, University of Connecticut star Paige

Former St. Joe's Prep QB Kyle McCord '21 officially entered Ohio State University as a Division I athlete. While the NCAA, a non-profit organization, has long maintained that student-athletes like McCord cannot profit off of their status as an athlete, more and more have called for this to be reconsidered.

Bueckers, with over 800,000 followers on Instagram, could be the largest earner with endorsements in all of college basketball, regardless of gender.

All of this is predicated on whether or not the NCAA goes forward with allowing studentathletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness. The vote was ?table[d]? in January 2021 due to, among other factors, ?recent correspondence with the U.S. Department of Justice,? the NCAA said in a press release.

Assuming this motion is eventually agreed to, athletes, differing in ability and sport played, could profit respectable sums. In one ESPN interactive tool, the athletes who reside in the upper echelon of collegiate sports, with large followings in the most popular sports, could earn up to a million dollars a year.

That said, according to the same tool, student- athletes in less popular sports with smaller social media followings could net up to three thousand dollars a year? cer-

tainly not an inconsequential sum. In between these two extremes are a wide range of possibilities, but, no matter which way the sport or amount of followers is broken down, money is being left on the table.

(Photos: Variety)

In a nail-biter overtime Final Four game, UCLA and Gonzaga University engaged in ping- pong basketball; there were nineteen lead changes throughout the game. With eleven- seeded UCLA refusing to quit against the undefeated juggernaut, breakout UCLA guard Johnny Juzang grabbed his own rebound, and laid in a short range basket. The score was tied, 90- 90, with under five seconds remaining. The Bulldogs inbounded the ball to their starting point guard, Jalen Suggs, who banked in a shot from just over half court.

Suggs stood up on a table in celebration and was mobbed by his teammates. Social media went ablaze. Suggs gained nearly 150,000 followers on Instagram.

(Photo: The Associated Press) (Photo: Buckeyes Wire)

By Connor Siemien '21

Taking a step back, this is just one medium for compensation. Another possibility, though admittedly disproportionately feasible in ?popular? sports, is giving a slice of the revenue derived from athletic programs of colleges and universities directly to the athletes.

Given the popularity of college football and basketball, it makes sense that, according to the 2019 fiscal report by the NCAA, ?At the more than 1,100 NCAA schools across all three divisions, more than $18.8 billion was spent on athletics.? This figure, though staggering, is spent in different ways? in ways, I?d argue, are inefficient and take away from athletes.

In fact, according to USA Today, the average salary of an FBS (highest tier Division I college football) coach is $2.7 million dollars, with several coaches earning over $8 million dollars. I?m not saying that

these coaches ought to be paid $100,000, as I recognize the difficulty of the job, but these outrageous salaries as the players are paid nothing is outrageous.

This all said, the counterargument that focusing on just a few men?s sports is the wrong way to go about this is fair in some respects. In an ideal situation, the enormous revenues enjoyed by many colleges and universities would be distributed to all student- athletes in varying amounts, if not equally.

But, again, this is just the easiest example that makes clear that college athletes must be paid. And, after this first step, the payment system can more easily expand into both women?s and men?s sports in all varsity sports that earn money for the school.

All in all, these ideas outlined, despite their imperfections and ostensible radical nature, should not serve as impediments to the larger, and I believe generally agreeable idea: college athletes must be paid in some form, whether it be directly from the school they attend or from brand deals on the basis of their athletic status.

No

By Daniel Sponseller '21 The last time I checked, universities were called ?universities,? not ?sports clubs,? but if we start paying student athletes, we might as well rename them as such.

It is true that there is a significant amount of money that is generated through sports programs for universities.

Business Insider cites, on average, colleges gain about $63 million a year from their athletic programs. This money is earned from a combination of sponsorships, TV contracts, ticket sales, and other forms of revenue.

Given how much money is generated from sports for colleges, it should be money that is used appropriately for the best benefit of all of the students, because although the money is being gained by the actions of the athletes, at the end of the day, the money goes to the university, so it is meant to benefit all of the students of the university, not just the athletes.

There is a portion of athlete

who will go on to play in professional sports, where they will earn tens of millions of dollars, more money than what is needed for over 10 lifetimes.

For superstar athletes who do not play in sports that have lucrative professional leagues, they could land a sponsorship, which would earn them more than a comfortable living. And even for those who do not land careers in sports after graduation, chances are that they came to play at a certain school in the first place because of a substantial scholarship that they received, many times covering full tuition.

A study done by Affordablecollegesonline.org states that people who have college degrees usually earn an average of $1,198 a week, while those without a college degree tend to earn an average of $730 a week.

Meanwhile, non- athlete students tend to face a wall of finances when it comes to college. Investopedia claims that 54% of college students will take on student loans, with the average college debt being

$37,584. The reason that students have to take out student loans is because they received an insufficient amount of financial aid, making student loans a necessity for most students to even go to college.

With all of the net revenue that is generated through college sports, think about all of the people who could be positively affected if that money were to be allocated to financial aid instead of going back into athletics to pay student athletes, who already tend to have a leg up on their non- athlete classmates.

Not only would the burdens of financing college have been lessened for those who are currently struggling with paying off student loan debt, but there are countless other individuals who would be able to afford college with an increased pool for financial aid.

Look at it this way. The top

10% of income earners pay about 70% of the nation?s income taxes. Just because they pay most of the nation?s share of the federal income tax, does not justify having most of the federal government?s welfare payments go out to them. Welfare payments are intended to go to the poor.

Why? Because they need it the most.

This same logic must be applied to universities.

Just because athletes are the top earners of revenue for the university, does not change the fact that most nonathletes struggle with college finances more so than their athletic classmates, and because of that, financial aid should be prioritized over paying student athletes.

The other argument for not paying student athletes is an argument about fairness. Besides sports, there are countless

other extracurriculars that exist in the arts, STEM, and other realms. If someone were to say that we should pay musicians, actors and actresses, and robotics competitors for their contributions for the university, their notion would be dismissed as ridiculous, but if universities were to start paying athletes, it would only be fair if those people are paid as well. Regardless of how much they are earning for the university in comparison to those who play sports, arts and other non- athletic extracurriculars still generate significant revenue for universities, from concerts, to newspaper advertisements, and countless more ways. Universities do not want to look as if they are favoring sports over other activities, do they?

It is the 21st Century, and colleges need to recognize their obligation to support their students of all walks of life.

For the financial security of non- athletic students, as well as for the recognition of nonathletic extracurriculars, paying student athletes would abandon this obligation.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Sports | 25

Sports Brendan Dougher ty's NBA Playoffs Preview

By Brendan Dougher ty '23 Starting off with our own Philadelphia 76ers, currently sitting at the top of the Eastern Conference, they truly look like a contender that can go up against anyone in the league. Joel Embiid is averaging 29 PPG and 10.9 RPG while shooting 51% from the field and 85% from the free throw line, or literal MVP numbers. Ben Simmons earned his 3rd straight All Star Game appearance and looks like the front-runner for Defensive Player of the Year. He will be able to lock down whatever star player we have to play in the playoffs, whether it be Kevin Durant, Giannis, James Harden, Jayson Tatum, etc. Tobias Harris is playing his best basketball since being a member of the LA Clippers. Despite all of this success, there are plenty of questions entering the playoffs. What is the bench rotation going to look like? Can Ben Simmons limit his turnovers and efficiently run the offense?

Will Doc Rivers?s ?leadership issues? from LA translate to this team? Most importantly, will Mike Scott play at all? I for one, hope not. I am confident in this team adjusting to any challenges on the playoff road and emerging as the true team to beat.

Prediction: Philadelphia wins NBA Finals, defeating Phoenix Suns in 6 games.

Brooklyn is putting together one of the greatest offensive seasons in league history. James Harden is playing his best basketball since being MVP, Kevin Durant has been an offensive menace (when he plays), and Kyrie is having a career year when it comes to his efficiency (when he plays). Other additions like Blake Griffin, Jeff Green, and Landry Shamet have been huge aids in boosting their chance at winning an NBA Championship.

Unfortunately for Brooklyn, they have two real issues going against them. For one, injuries could seriously deter this season. 65 games into the season, and not a single member of their Big 3 has played more than 50 games, which could easily translate into the playoffs. Another issue is defense. The Nets play absolutely zero defense. Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and any other top contender who has to play Brooklyn will have a field day with lots of wide open looks against this team. This to me is their achilles heel, and they won?t go as far as most people anticipate.

Prediction: Brooklyn loses in Conference Semifinals to the M ilwaukee Bucks in 7 games.

Milwaukee?s season has been great, but I?m sure plenty of people would have expected more. Giannis continues to put up great numbers, and his complementary players have been fantastic, led by two time All Star Khris Middleton and new acquisition Jrue Holiday from New Orleans. Mike Budenholzer is a great coach excelling in perimeter defense and floor spacing. Milwaukee?s season ended rather anticlimactically, losing to Miami in the second round (although they advanced to the Finals as a 5 seed). I think Milwaukee will have more playoff success, but not too much more. I think they can prevail against Brooklyn in a 7 game series hands down, along with any other team below them on the standings. But, I think Philadelphia is gonna have an answer for them. We haven?t had a true matchup of this battle at all this year, due to Joel Embiid and/or Ben Simmons being out for each game. This to me, is Philadelphia?s most difficult opponent, and the same thing goes for Milwaukee. The matchups go together so well, and it will come down to defense, where I believe Philadelphia has the edge.

Prediction: M ilwaukee loses in Conference Finals to Philadelphia 76er s in 7 games.

It is safe to say that the Knicks?incredible success is very surprising and improbable. If you were to ask me what I thought of this team entering the season, I bet I would?ve said they were a 12 seed in the East at best, meaning yet another missed playoff berth for this lowly franchise. Thanks for proving me wrong, Knicks. Not only are these guys actually good, but just so fun to watch as well. Julius Randle should win Most Improved Player in a landslide. RJ Barrett has proved that he was worth that 3rd overall pick in 2019. Alec Burks is still a walking bucket, Reggie Bullock just doesn?t miss threes, Derrick Rose continues to prove that he?s still a valuable contributor (and worth more than Dennis Smith Jr. and a 2nd, Pistons), and rookie Immanuel Quickley looks like a future stud. As fun as these guys are, they certainly lack interior defense, playoff experience, and floor spacing. I hate to say it, but these guys won?t make it past the second round. Heck, maybe not even past the first round.

Prediction: New Yor k loses in the fir st round to Atlanta Hawks in 6 games.

The Hawks are right there in the middle of the pack, like most expected, after an atrocious 2020. Trae Young?s efficiency and defense has improved, Clint Capela has been a tremendous addition when it comes to rebounding and interior defense, and Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Tony Snell, and newly acquired Lou Williams all give Atlanta veteran presence added to young stars like DeAndre Hunter, Kevin Huerter, and Cam Reddish. I think this team has a shot of surprising some teams, if they can have an injury-free postseason and find a way to truly mesh. Coach Nate McMillan has been a great replacement for Lloyd Pierce, doing even better than Pierce himself as the interim. I definitely see them handling the Knicks, but the 76ers would be a whole different monster to them. Still a great sleeper team in the playoffs.

Prediction: Atlanta loses in Conference Semifinals to Philadelphia 76er s in 5 games.

This Heat season has been somewhat of a let-down following their tremendous run to the Finals and near upset of the Lakers in 2020. This team has purely been injury-riddled in 2021, along with extended sit-outs with COVID-19 protocols. When this team is healthy, I believe they can compete with the best. I might sound like I?m already counting them out, but we all must have learned by now that you just can?t do that with this team.

Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Goran Dragic, and Tyler Herro have all shown significant jumps in production during last season's playoffs. Add Oladipo, Iguodala, Ariza, and others to the mix and this team may still contend. I predict a first round exit, but we?ll see.

Prediction: M iami loses in the fir st round to M ilwaukee Bucks in 6 games.

To read about Brendan's thoughts on the East Play-I n Tour nament and the entire Wester n Conference, what are you waiting for ? Go check it out on our website at www.sj phawkeye.com ASAP!

26 | Sports | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

(Photo: Mr. Raffa | St. Joseph's Prep)

Tennis Ser ved Fir st PCL Title Since 2006

1st Doubles partners Krish Chawla '21 and Peter Bae '24 won their match 6-2, 6-1 en route to a team victory over Devon Prep in the Philadelphia Catholic League tennis championship.

CHAMPS from pg. 1 Bae lost 1- 6, 2- 6 to a tough opponent but battled hard throughout the entire match, representing the Prep even in defeat.

I, Sophomore Captain Luke Gallagher ?23, played 2nd Singles and won 6- 1, 6- 0. "My main focus was to shake off any nerves within the first game and, from there on out, stay in control by playing smart. " Freshman Connor Kryst ?24 played 3rd Singles and won 63, 6- 1. His game plan was to play within himself and to reduce the amount of errors throughout the match.

Senior Captain Krish Chawla ?21 and Freshman Peter Bae ?24 played 1st Doubles and won 6- 2, 6- 1. Krish and Peter played a ?2- back? strategy, meaning neither of them played at the net. That way, they could control the point from the base line with a

faster-paced ball.

Junior Dwyer Barrett ?22 and Sophomore Jordan Sztejman ?23 played 2nd Doubles and won 6-1, 6-3. Their focus was to heavily control the point at the net and take full control of the match as a result.

Going into this season, it was clear that the Prep wanted to win the championship badly.

Going 8- 0 in the regular season, including a win over La Salle for the first time since the Championship of 2006, Prep Tennis trained hard and battled all season long with optional weekend or post-match hits.

And their hard work paid off.

Assistant Coach Joe Boyle ?09 commented on the success of Prep Tennis during the regular season, saying, ?We cultivated a group of young men who have completely bought into embracing a strong tennis culture, being committed to the team, and building up their

own and each others? talent.

Going forward into districts, our mindset is one of enjoyment and embracing the moment, while also understanding that we are the best team in the PCL and really stand a chance in district playoffs to be able to move on.?

On May 7, Matthew Bae ?21 and I competed in the 2021 PIAA District XII AAA Singles Tournament. Matt and I placed 3rd and 4th in the tournament. Krish Chawla ?21 also played as an exhibitionist in the tournament.

Matt played a solid first round, focusing on maintaining consistency with pace, winning 10-1. Matt played a tough second round against one of the best junior players in the state and a top 300 junior player in the nation. He played hard within many of the games but was not able to win the key points.

I played a solid first round, focusing on essentially the same thing? consistency with pace. I also won 10- 1. I lost my second round match 2-6, 46 against the 1st Singles player at La Salle but played competitively throughout the whole match.

On Thursday, May 13, the entire team went on to compete in team districts at Legacy Youth Tennis and Education Center and was named 2021 PIAA District XII AAA Champions after their 5- 0 win

over Central. This was a huge victory, demonstrating the grit and commitment that the team has put in all season long. This win was the farthest Prep Tennis had ever made it in school history. The team looks forward to shattering more school records moving forward into states.

Assistant Coach Joe Boyle ?09 commented on the success of the team saying, ?This win has not just been evident at practice but also throughout the school. It wasn?t just a win for Prep Tennis, but a win for the entire school and we couldn?t have done it without the support of our coaches, teammates, and the school?s administration.?

Before the Prep?s appearance at the first round of states, select doubles teams also participated in the 2021 PIAA District XII AAA Doubles Tournament. Matthew Bae ?21 and Krish Chawla ?21 played first doubles and Peter Bae ?24 and Connor Kryst ?24 played second doubles. Our teams came in 3rd and 4th after victories up until the semifinals.

Prep Tennis went on to compete in the first round of states on Tuesday, May 18 against Conestoga. Unfortunately, after a long season, the Prep lost their match against Conestoga but is looking forward to going even further with this team next year.

Prep Tennis has ever made it to States. That being said, even though the Prep lost to Conestoga, it was a great season and much more can be expected from the team in the future.

Assistant Coach Boyle went on to say, ?Thank you to the team for such a great season. I know we didn?t get a chance to play last year so I?m really happy for the success we had this season. Thank you to the parents for their support throughout this tough season in whatever needs we had. Thank you to the administration and the athletic department, as well. I know they undoubtedly went through a lot to make this season happen, especially our new Athletic Director, Mr. DiBernadinis. We all are beyond appreciative of their work.?

Things are looking good for Prep Tennis going forward.

With the amount of depth present on the team this year and the next, Prep Tennis will definitely remain an imposing threat in the PCL and beyond for the coming years. What is for sure is that this won?t be the last time Prep Tennis will be making their name known in states.

2021 marks the first year that

Spikeball + I ntr amur als ?Spike? in Popular ity grass, or roof.

At long last, the Prep has made it back to five day inperson learning. With this transition, there are more opportunities to participate in activities during and after school. That includes intramural competitions, which the Prep announced that they would be reinstating after a 13-month hiatus.

?We are looking to embrace the warm weather,? said Ghee who announced during an advisory in early April that intramurals would be starting up again.

The annual March Madness basketball tournament was held in the Fieldhouse in late February and early March of 2020. A week after the senior championship game, there was supposed to be a student- faculty all- star game. Unfortunately, that, along with in- person school, was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Since that time, the Prep has hosted no intramurals due to the school being all- virtual or in a hybrid- learning environment.

But now, the Prep has brought back the fun with a

(Photo: Garrett McCloskey '21)

By Joseph K r iz '22

Sophomores soak up the spring sun on the lawn near the Gesu with a fun game of spikeball.

Spikeball tournament which started the week of April 16.

Teams are made up of three students, all of whom must be in the same grade. Two players are allowed to play on one team at a time while the other student acts as a substitute, especially if a teammate is out because of COVID reasons.

Spikeball isn?t the only intramural that was scheduled for the remainder of the year.

There will also likely be a Wiffle Ball tournament and there is a possibility for a badminton tournament, according to Director of Activities and Transportation Mr. Ghee.

Even though it is great to hear that tournaments are happening, there are still regulations that need to be followed.

The intramurals will have to take place in a spaced environment, such as the courtyard, the

Thus, there is no possibility of intramurals being hosted in their usual setting, the Fieldhouse or the multi- purpose room.

When the Google Form was emailed to the students regarding the Spikeball tournament, there was a big buzz among students regarding the return to intramurals. ?It is awesome that we finally get to do something together schoolwide,? said Brennan Fitzgerald ?22. ?Even though it would be cool to have them back in the gym, the weather is good enough now to hold them outside where we can be spaced out.?

Spikeball at the Prep has gained popularity among the student body over the last few

years. Now, people are found playing Spikeball during lunch outside on the grass, or inside in the multi-purpose room.

Wiffle Ball seems to be the most likely tournament to happen after Spikeball because it too, has gained popularity among the student body. Ever since the school closed the courtyard parking lot, Wiffle Ball has taken it over. As a result, students have been rushing to get in line to bat during lunch.

While it was a little noisy having classes in the west-side Villiger Hall, it is awesome seeing students enjoying themselves outdoors. It will be refreshing to see some real competition when intramurals are in progress. It has been a long time coming, but at long last the Prep has brought back intramurals to the school.

With some tournaments set, there is still room for ideas.

Any student with a logical suggestion for an intramural should contact Ghee directly.

The Hawkeye | Monday, May 24, 2021 |

Sports | 27

Peter son '21 and Robotics Club Ter minate the Competition

By Stephen Cain ?22 On the one year anniversary of the final school day before the seemingly endless COVID19 shutdown of St. Joe?s Prep, a different type of emotion was felt across campus. While on March 12, 2020, there was this sudden goodbye to the Prep?s on- campus experience, 2021?s March 12 was instead an unofficial ?welcome back? to the Prep?s sense of community and camaraderie, as the Robotics Club took center stage during that Friday?s community period by hosting a robotics tournament that attracted nearly the entirety of the gray cohort. ?I wanted to make sure that it was fun and high energy especially after the year we had. It was not only important to me for the students to show off their robotics skills, and to also have fun,? said Ms. Teresa Hoffman, the primary organizer of the event.

It was easy to see why the event garnered so much attention.

Students that decided to attend were greeted with blasting music and the always energized senior Kieran Donaher ?21 MCing the event. Plus, the competition itself was intriguing, as practically the entire school, including faculty and staff as well, piqued in curiosity, interested to see who would come out on top of a sport that many didn?t know the rules about prior to the

Left: Students take in the tournament festivities. Right: Team Subway members (left to right) Michael Foster '21, Tyler Peterson '21, and Braden Kravitz '21 celebrate their victory in the Vex Robotics Tournament held back in early March.

event. Rows and rows of students and faculty packed themselves right up against the little metal barriers that separated the playing area from the spectators, cheering on both of the teams. ?Mc'ing the robotics tournament was an exhilarating experience, and I was honored that I was chosen to do so. I had no experience with robotic events or Mcing events in general, but the presence of countless students, along with teachers, motivated me to step up and make it the best event that I possibly could,? said Donaher.

While this tourney may seem like a completely isolated incident that took over the public?s interest for just over half an hour, this exact phenomenon

has actually been occurring for the past few years or so.

Robotics competitions typically fall under the category of a rising genre of sport known as ?Esports?, or sports that involve video games or some other form of technology in order to play them. While this may seem like a niche concept at first glance, packed stadiums of professional gamers playing popular titles, such as League of Legends or Rocket League, would prove otherwise. Sometimes, the viewership numbers of these events, which are typically live streamed on the video game streaming service Twitch, at times have rivaled more traditional sporting events, like the NBA Finals or Stanley Cup, and their own viewership numbers.

?I think that the rise of esports has definitely brought in students. Once they realized how competitive it is, they realized that over time, they learned the importance of being technologically capable,? said Hoffman.

Many of these prominent Esports events also typically try to mimic the format of other prominent sports? tournaments.

Lots of these events also use the famous ?single elimination? bracket structure of around 8 to 16 teams as a way to keep everything exciting, rather than trying to create their own, distinct tourney structure. This explains why the entire Prep community was so captivated by the robotics tournament, despite most not knowing the rules of the sport, as they all saw something familiar to them: a single elimination bracket with 8 teams that would eventually yield just one winner. ?The single elimination format made spectating the robotics tournament really exciting.

Whichever team won got to move on and the losing team got sent home with no second chances, making each match very intense. There was also such great energy with the crowd,? said Patrick Casey ?22, a student who went to the event.

In fact, this type of single elimination bracket format style is currently being planned for the potential sequel of this robotics tourney. ?At the end of the year, we are trying to plan another robotics tournament with the Freshmen vs. Sophomores and then the Juniors vs. Seniors and then have a championship,? said Hoffman.

Teams make finishing touches on robots before battle.

After six intense matches, the field in the robotics tourney was narrowed down to just 2 teams: ?Team Baby Goo Goo Gaga Wawa? and ?Team Subway?. What was especially remarkable about Team Sub-

way?s journey to the final was that one of its members had to begin quarantining themselves the day before the tourney.

Confusion erupted about what Team Subway should do, but eventually Tyler Peterson ?21 decided to step in. Keep in mind: Peterson never had any experience with how to control the robot or even any requisite knowledge of the game itself or any of its rules, so he spent all of his free time in school that day learning the controls and antiquating himself with the sport and all of its intricacies. ?I was initially very nervous as I had no experience at all, but with a free period following lunch I was able to run a 3 cone drill in Mrs. Hoffman's room to prepare. Michael Foster helped me come up with a strategy, we stuck to it, and had a very exciting competition,? said Peterson.

After 5 intense minutes of battle between Team Baby Goo Goo Gaga Wawa and Team Subway, the score was locked at 1 apiece, as the end of regulation had set upon them. This meant that sudden death would be required to break the tie, meaning that the next cone placed on either team?s larger cone would emerge victorious.

After lots of drama and deliberation, Team Subway ended up winning roughly a minute or so into the sudden death period. The crowd around the arena, which, at this point, was gargantuan in size, let out a raucous cheer as Team Subway raised the trophy.

The entire student body of the Prep then scattered to their final classes of the day on that Friday afternoon, but while both mandatory social distancing and mask measures were and still remain in place, this event did something that hadn?t been seen in nearly an entire year at the Prep: bringing people together.

28 | Sports | Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Hawkeye

Biking into School Year Sunset forfeit all of that time.?

(Photo: St. Joseph's Prep)

Even though the club has only delved into the athletic world for the better part of three years now, its members are gaining lots of racing experience. In their first two races of the season, the Prep did exceptionally well in both the individual and team racing categories for being a newly inducted member of the NICA, an association known for having teams that have been members for multiple decades.

The St. Joe?s Prep Mountain Biking Club prepares for their second race of the season in Chatham, New Jersey

By Stephen Cain ?22 On a warm spring day, about three times a week, a legion of fifteen St. Joe?s Prep students descend upon local scenic hotspots such as the Belmont Plateau, Boxer Trail, and the Schuylkill River. With riding gear decorated on each of their bodies and mountain bikes straddled beneath them, one may think that this group regards athletic achievement to be their primary goal. However, that in fact, is quite the opposite. ?The sport can be whatever you want it to be,? says Mr. Dino Pinto, the group?s main organizer. ?You don?t have to come to practice if you have too much homework, as we want it to be fun, since that?s our first priority around here.?

What started as a mere idea just a few years ago then grad-

ually became an upstart club here at the Prep, as the St. Joe?s Prep Mountain Biking Club started off as a small community period offering to students that liked to talk about mountain biking and bike riding in general. The nascent stages of the club would go on to last for two years until 2019, when the club made its first foray into actual competitive mountain biking by joining the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) and became an official mountain biking team.

But despite the fact that the Mountain Biking Club now could potentially garner the attention of student- athletes at the Prep, only three riders signed up to participate in the 2020 season before the COVID- 19 pandemic derailed all forms of athletics, including competitive mountain biking.

With the shadow of the pandemic looming over it, the club was in the dark ages.

However, in the seemingly inconspicuous blink of an eye, the Mountain Biking Club managed not just to double or triple their membership totals, but quintuple them, as now twelve new SJP mountain bikers partake in the weekly practices and occasional NICA competitions. ?I think the club grew because COVID gave people motivation to do some sort of structured physical activity,? said Pinto. ?However, our club?s aim is to also be an alternative to the more highpressure sports programs that require students to devote fivesix days a week, and I think we really attracted those students who want to push themselves athletically but don?t want to

What has led to the team?s newly found success and their surge in membership has been the way their training sessions are conducted. Held three times a week from right after school until around 5:00 p.m. on Mondays, Thursdays, and Sundays, these practices involve a wide range of engaging drills for mountain bike riders, such as riding along new trails, weaving through cones, and even playing soccer using their bikes! ?I joined the team because I was looking for an activity that would not be as intense as some of the other cocurriculars,? said rider Joseph Frattone ?22. ?I have also always enjoyed biking, so joining a school team that allowed me to race sounded fun, as my favorite part of the club is racing. Being able to see the progress everyone has made and getting out onto new trails is really fun and I enjoy it a lot.

The races have taken me to a lot of really nice trails across New Jersey that I would never have seen otherwise.? ?I joined the Mountain Biking Club two years ago at the beginning of my junior year,? said Colin Biddle ?21, the cur-

rent captain of the club. ?Mr. Pinto, my Church History teacher, told me about the club that he coached and encouraged me to join. I had always loved biking, but to tell the truth, I had never heard about the club until then. I really enjoy the Mountain Biking Club and our practices introduced me to new and exciting trails around the city and suburbs.

The races are my favorite part of biking though. They are always a fun environment and everyone is friendly.?

The word ?friendly? when describing the environment of the club is certainly an understatement. While other clubs and activities require various levels of athletic experience, the Mountain Biking Club doesn?t require any previous mountain biking experience. ?Our motto here at the Mountain Biking Club is that ?Nobody sits the bench,?? said Pinto. ?This means that everybody gets to practice and partake in actual races if they choose to.? ?Everybody? currently consists of fifteen riders, but that number could continue to increase, as three incoming freshmen are already currently racing in the NICA and have also expressed interest in joining the club. What could also help that number grow even more would be if more current Prep students took a chance and hopped on the Mountain Biking Club bandwagon while they can, as a couple more NICA races, practices, and other fun mountain biking opportunities still remain.

Path to Nor malcy Rides Through Spor ts With the pandemic seemingly coming to a long awaited end, there have been many signs that life is slowly coming back to normal. For some, it is seeing a grandparent for the first time in a year. Maybe for others, it is finally getting the COVID-19 vaccine.

For me, it was returning to something that everyone had taken for granted all of our preCOVID lives that made me feel normal again.

It had been 594 days since I last set foot in Citizens Bank Park, or in any other professional sports arena for that matter. I never would have imagined that after the Phillies beat the Padres on August 16 of 2019, it would be the last time I would be inside Citizens Bank Park for a year and a half.

When I found out on the

morning of Opening Day this year that there were still tickets available, I knew I had to go. I called three of my Prep classmates and we made the lastminute decision to head down to the ballpark and finally watch the Phillies again. I drove separately from my friends, so I told them that I would meet them at our seats up in the nosebleeds.

When I was making my way to my seat though, I got stuck behind the color guard right as the national anthem began to play. I unintentionally stood directly behind the color guard as Kane Kalas belted out the anthem right in front of his legendary father?s statue, and I could see the majority of the 8,000+ fans in the stands singing the anthem along with him.

I continued to walk to my seat, and I thought about the cool scene that I accidentally

the 8th inning and get a hoodie because of how cold it was), and I didn?t even get Chickie?s and Pete?s crab fries, which is a hard thing to avoid at any Philly sports event.

(Photos: PhillyVoice.com)

By K ier an Dougher ty ?21

While it may not look like this at Citizens Bank Park yet (hopefully very soon though!), Kieran Dougherty '21 and his band of Prep friends at least got to experience the camaraderie of a Phillies game for the first time in seemingly forever.

got put right in the middle of.

As I came close to arriving at my section, the thought of ?Hey, we?re really back? came into my head.

After finally reaching my

seat in Section 412, I sat and watched a baseball game.

That?s all I wanted to do. I didn?t walk around the concourse between innings (until I had to run to the pro shop in

For 10 innings, I sat in my seat and just watched, and it was the most fun I had in months.

It was a great game. The Phillies walked off the Braves in the 10th inning to win the game 3-2 thanks to a Jean Segura single. But I really didn?t care about the outcome. Would the old fan in me come out and be yelling and screaming if the Phillies lost? Of course. To be completely honest, when Pablo Sandoval hit a game tying home run I was not very pleased to say the least. But those emotions were all about the experience of being back. I was just ecstatic to be back at the Bank and watch the boys play some ball.