Teacher fashion

Emily Sun Staff Writer

Halfway through class, English teacher Dr. Adam Casdin’s student took a pair of scissors and cut several holes in the blue v-neck sweater he was wearing that day. The student had said it would look better distressed, he said. “I was like, ‘could you actually show me?’” He liked the look, partly. “I have not worn it again — yet!”

Fashion is a way to define oneself, Administrative Assistant to the Grade Deans Ennis Smith said. Working in an institution that is by nature conformist, he finds room for individuality through his color selection, accessories like his ball chain necklace or a wrist cuff, and — always — patterned socks, he said. On Wednesday, his socks were a stacked layer of blue, cream, and speckled brown. “I have to dress myself to wake myself up,” he said. “I’m always looking for just one element

that shocks [the outfit] into existence.”

Even when the school went remote due to COVID, history teacher Dr. Ellen Bales still dressed up to teach over Zoom, she said. “It sends a certain message about being serious and respecting my students,” she said. “It’s important to present yourself, especially when you’re in the middle of a global catastrophe.”

English teacher Jennifer Huang started to teach at the school after graduate school, where her go-to outfit was sweaters and leggings, she said. “When I got this job, I had a little bit of a panic because I was like, ‘they’re not going to take me seriously.’” She bought a haul of “serious” clothing — button-downs, black slacks, close-toed shoes — then realized once she got to the school that she could dress how she wanted and settled into her personal style.

At Huang’s previous university teaching job, when she was fresh out of college and only a few years older than her students, she stuck with a formal uniform. “I really felt like I had to establish through my dress sense that I was older, wiser, and I should be looked up to as a figure of authority,” she said. “At HM, that’s less of an issue just because I’m a lot older.”

Like Huang, Casdin also underwent a style switch when he started teaching. For a decade until he became a teacher, Casdin only wore a button-down shirt, blue jeans, and Doc Martens. When he got a teaching job out of graduate school, he swapped the casual look for a jacket and tie and stuck to it, he said. “I was afraid of not being taken seriously.” He avoids the cliche “Brooks Brothers” playbook; anyone can match a jacket, shirt, and pants, so he throws a tie in the mix to up the challenge. “When I find a combination that I consider to be perfect, I never do it again,” he said. “It’s more of an exercise for me.”

When World Languages Department Chair Maria del Pilar Valencia started to teach, she dressed a bit more formally so students could tell she was the teacher, she said. “Then I grew up, so they know I am the teacher and there is no need to do that.” She loves a good dress — one that has pockets, is put together without being stuffy, does not break the bank, and “knows how to teach,” so she can move comfortably in it without getting tangled up, she said. “Dresses make me happy.”

Coats are a style staple for Smith because of the drama in how they move when worn, which he is attuned to from his background as an actor, he said. “I love dusters, I love Chesterfields, I love coats that have a Raglan Sleeve.” He especially loves to thrift for vintage, timeless pieces made with genuine fabric, an appreciation he learned from his seamstress mother and tailor brother. “My mother’s bedroom was piled high with fabric, buttons, and thread, and she made all of my sister’s clothes,” he said. “I was constantly aware of the talk about clothing.”

Bales knows a good outfit when she sees one, she said. She still remembers the coat she begged her mother to buy when she was five years old — fluffy, red faux fur with animalengraved gold buttons. “It looked fantastic,” she said. When she was a child, fashion was a way for Bales to connect with her grandmother, who had a strong sense of style, she said. As she grew up, her interest continued as she learned to sew and knit, thrifted throughout high school, and absorbed knowledge from fashion magazines. “I’ve always found it fun,” she said. “And I still find it fun.”

Coming out of high school, Casdin dressed, as he called it, like a “preppy Jew” — an outsider who learned how to dress from “native prepsters,” he said. His family has a history with fashion: his great-grandfather sold clothing to mill workers in Worcester, MA; his grandfather was a child of Russian immigrants who used clothes to assimilate; his father was a hippie, complete with flannel shirts, an Abe Lincoln beard, and a pair of Italian Gabardine, low waisted, rust-colored pants from 1965. “I remember wearing them at age 15 and being like, ‘these are crazy.’”

Comfort is key for Huang, who describes her wardrobe as “pajamas I can wear in public,” she said. She switches between a muted palette of black, white, cream, and tan because it is easier to get ready if everything matches. “I don’t have to stress about it in the morning because I really just want to get out the door as soon as possible, so that I can sleep as late as I can.” It takes her less than 10 minutes to get her outfits ready, and though she has tried to prepare clothes the night before, it has not happened yet, she said. “I can never get my life together enough to plan out my outfits in advance,” she said. “I’ve thought so many times to myself [that I would], but I have never once in my life done that. Never once.”

Outfits come together around a “hero piece” for Bales, like the dark green dress with pink parrots she wore on Wednesday. “I haven’t actually worn it for two years, so I got it out and I was like, ‘it’s time to reinstate the parrot.’” She matches her clothes, accessories, and shoes based on their color and mood then lays them out the night before, and even when she does not have the energy to plan out a full outfit, she still has one item to carry her through the day — like a good pair of cowboy boots, she said.

Outfit ideas come to Valencia as she showers in the morning, she said. “I’ll say, ‘I’m feeling like blue today.’” She gravitates towards bright colors and patterns, especially florals. “I’m from Bogota, which is high up in the mountains and rather cool — but I have a tropical soul,” she said. That stylistic sensibility reflects her personality, as her colleagues call her “annoyingly optimistic,” she said.

Bales also picked up on how her fashion reflects who she is — and what she teaches. Ever since she started Global Environmental

History, she noticed that many of her clothes feature animals, like the parrot dress and a sweater with a pit bull on the front. “It wouldn’t work for me if it was a cutesy dog, it has to be tougher,” she said. “Because whatever other qualities I might have, I’m definitely not cutesy.”

Fashion is often dismissed as trivial, inconsequential, and superficial, Huang said. Part of the reason is ingrained misogyny. “It’s like a thing only women care about and serious people, especially men, have weightier things on their mind.” That view obscures how clothing is one of the first things that people notice about others, she said. “As soon as people look at you, they start to form an idea of who you might be right even before they say a word to you.”

When people look at Huang, she hopes her clothing conveys that she is comfortable with herself, though she does not want it to be the first thing people notice about her, she said.

“If I want to draw attention to myself, and I want to do it myself, I don’t want my clothes to do it for me.” Her understated wardrobe reflects her life philosophy, she said. “In most areas of my life, I try not to do the most, but just have one little thing that I can feel good about.” Likewise, she picks simple clothes that have one dimension of interest, like their color, volume, fabric, or story — the black linen dress she wore on Wednesday brings back fond memories of when she bought it in Japan.

Once, Casdin was at a conference and participated in a group activity where people said the first thing that came to mind about the person next to them. Someone said, “you must be a frustrated artist because you spend so much time on your clothes,” Casdin said. “I was like, ‘bingo.’” He is interested in the art side of fashion, like pattern-mixing and the way that colors “vibrate” against each other, and he wears what feels right, even when it clashes with conventional wisdom. “A student said to me, ‘after a year of class with you, I no longer know what looks good. I’ve lost all sense of what the normative is.’”

Fashion allows Valencia to celebrate every moment and share that joy with others, she said. Students inspire her when she can tell they put “a thought in every thread” of their outfit, and her husband sometimes helps her pick out accessories. “What you wear is like a sign to tell other people that you care,” she said.

If her outfit does not look deliberate, it bugs Bales because it seems sloppy, she said. “You’re only going to be on the planet for so many days, so why would you want to have a bad accessory? It’s a missed opportunity.”

Courtesy of Nicole Au

BRILLIANT BASICS Huang’s essentials

Courtesy of Nicole Au

CHIC OUTFIT Fippinger’s casual take

PERFECTLY PATTERNED Smith experiments with prints

““I really felt like I had to establish through my dress sense that I was older, wiser, and I should be looked up to as a figure of authority.” -Jennifer Huang

Courtesy of Nicole Au

CALIFORNIA POLYTECHNIC STATE UNIVERSITY

Elias Romero

SCRIPPS COLLEGE Stella Shah

STANFORD UNIVERSITY Theodore Ganea

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Julia Grant Julian Kepnes Patrick Stinebaugh

TRINITY COLLEGE Helen Fajemirokun Rachel Fearon

WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY Jaden Piccirillo Alex Rosenblatt James (JT) Thomas

YALE UNIVERSITY Miles Kuhn Vincent Li Jacob Shaw AJ Walker

EMORY UNIVERSITY Samantha Blackman Laila Farmer Oliver Lewis Miles Schamroth

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY Alejandro Espejel Emmi Zeitler Jake Zukerman

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO Connor Bernard Rohan Buluswar Vedant Dangayach Santiago Espejel Tuhin Ghosh Leonardo Giorgini Lucas Glickman James Grant Thomas Grant Justin Gurvitch Alexei Le Dalia Pustilnik Leah Sepiashvili Myra Singh Ethan Waggoner Torres Zheng

INDIANA UNIVERSITY Theo King Ryan Lax Giacamo Maroni

PURDUE UNIVERSITY

Ailill Walsh

TULANE UNIVERSITY

Lauren Conner Peyton Rosenberg

XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA Jaiden Wilson

BATES COLLEGE Brett Karpf Matthew Peeler

Vivian Coraci/Art Director

COLBY COLLEGE Chloe Choi Johanna Scher Sen Subramanian

LOYOLA UNIVERSITY MARYLAND Malaya Gaboury

AMHERST COLLEGE Eliza Becker

BABSON COLLEGE Bulyn Panjamapirom

BOSTON COLLEGE Lucas Alexander JP Eliopoulos

BOSTON UNIVERSITY Pavan Kumar

BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY Dylan Acharjee

CLARK UNIVERSITY Uddipto Nandi

EMERSON COLLEGE

Riva Vig

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Sareena Parikh Esha Patel Sunshine Quinones

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WILLIAMS COLLEGE Mia Calzolaio Maddy Wu

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY George Harris Ricky Lipsey

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

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CARLETON COLLEGE

Leonardo Hess

WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS

Matthew Baumann Rhea Patel Luca Pryor

DARTMOUTH COLLEGE Avery Lin

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY

Claire Goldberg Hanna Hornfeld Lauren Kim Nathan Zelizer

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

Corey Brooks Gabby Chong Emma Colacino Yin Fei Madison Four-Garcia David Maydan Alex Nagin ‘26 Brandon Pae Gabriela Peralta Ben Rothman Juliette Shang

CORNELL UNIVERSITY Ben Becker Tommy Botts Stephen Chien Lucca Correia Chloe Mei Coward Adam Dickstein Kri Galvan-Dubois Tae Kyu Lee Ryan Reiss Chandler Reyes Spencer Rosenberg Lauren Song ‘26 Damian Stellings Ajani Green-Watson Grace Wilson Val Zeitlin

HAMILTON COLLEGE Sophie Gordon

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY Irene Argenti Darson Chen Morgan Francis Cohen Dylan O’Reilly Joaquin Ramirez Villarreal Asher Swersky

PARSONS SCHOOL OF DESIGN Evan Rowe

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT PLATTSBURGH

Annelise Jones ‘27

PURCHASE COLLEGE Matthew Aponte

RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE Ernesto Marks Marcella Risa

SARAH LAWRENCE COLLEGE Joelle Haynes-Maddan

STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY Lauren Song ‘23

SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY Jhanae Ottey

UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER Felix Brener Jennifer Feng

DUKE UNIVERSITY

Nick Butera Logan Dracos Destiney Green

CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY

Brandon Kuo

LAFAYETTE COLLEGE Liv Dwyer

LEHIGH UNIVERSITY Justin Burrell

GETTYSBURG COLLEGE Saniya Lamoni

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Charity Chu Ashley Chung Kaia Fisher Amanda Mark Simon Schackner Sam Weidman

VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY

Mazyar Azmi Bella Colacino

RICE UNIVERSITY Ben May

SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY Morgan Smith

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY Erik Hamel Amanda Wein

GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY Ellery Lapin ‘26

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

Connor Dwin Ellie Henes Purvi Jonnalagadda Diane Kim Walker McCarthy Bennett Neuwirth Sarah Taub Katya Tolunsky

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON

Maya Nornberg

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO Daniel Schlumberger Yunshu Wang

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PARIS Ellery Lapin ‘23

TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN Alex Nagin ‘24

BROWN UNIVERSITY Devin Allard-Neptune Liliana Greyf Michael Shaari Piper Wallace Jordan Wasserberger

Ava Lipsky and Jorge Orvanaños Staff Writers

“I have always been fascinated exploring women’s voices in history,” Sareena Parikh (12) said. Parikh chose to attend Barnard, a women’s college, because she felt that in an environment with many people of diverse interests and identity she would be able to better understand the importance of women.

Similarly, Sunshine Quinones (12) chose to apply to Barnard because she felt that a women’s college was the right environment for her. “Reading about the experience at Barnard made me realize that going to a women’s college would be a place I could really thrive at,” she said.

Quinones prefers STEM-related subjects and has noticed that women’s voices are not always heard in maledominated STEM fields, she said. Even though many colleges ensure that women feel represented within the classroom and create spaces where women can comfortably share their experiences with each other, she believes that this will occur more naturally at Barnard. “It won’t be something that’s encouraged, it’ll just be the norm,” she said.

Quinones felt confident during the application process that she wanted to apply to a women’s college, she said. “I realized during the college process that going to a school where women lead the conversations and empower each other is something that I value and would want to experience before I go down a likely male-dominated career path.”

However, unlike Quinones, Parikh was hesitant about applying to a women’s college, as it was not an option she considered initially, she said. “I felt conflicted because I had never previously thought of applying to an allgirls school before my college counselor suggested it.”

After Parikh researched women’s colleges, she was convinced that they would be a good fit for her as she felt that a women’s college would help her grow academically and emotionally, she said.

Along with Parikh and Quinones, Stella Shah (12) will be attending a women’s college. Shah chose to attend Scripps College because she was interested in applying to a college where she would be pushed to be a better person and could surround herself with people who wanted to become better people as well, she said. “I realized pretty early in my college process that quite a few historically women’s colleges have cultures of self improvement and earnestness that resonated with me.”

Scripps College is a part of the Claremont Colleges — a group of seven schools where students can take classes in any of the colleges, Shah said. These shared classes will include men, but she is also able to take all-female classes if she chooses to. “I have the ability to, for example, take a math class with all women, but simultaneously, I get to use that confidence and skill set to practice in a co-ed environment,” she said.

Shah was attracted to the idea of attending a women’s college prior to the application process, she said. Specifically, she was interested in the population at women’s colleges, as these schools often have strong LGBTQ+ communities and women from more religious backgrounds, she said. This population will be similar to her current friend group at the school. “I could see all of my closest friends fitting into the schools I applied to,” she said. “Only a few of my close friends did wind up applying to women’s colleges, but I think it was important to me that there would be people not dissimilar to them at my potential [colleges].”

Apart from the women’s colleges, other seniors chose to apply to Historically Black Colleges or Universities (HBCUs). Jaiden Wilson (12) chose to apply to Xavier University, a historically Black university, because she thought she would feel more comfortable in that environment, she said. “I applied to an HBCU because I wanted to be around people that looked like me, especially after being at a predominantly white institution [like the school] for the last 13 years.”

Wilson also felt that an HBCU would focus more on her needs as a Black student and would prepare her best for her future after college, she said. She was confident that she wanted to apply to a HBCU from the beginning of the application process, she said. “I was not conflicted about applying to [HBCUs] because I knew where I wanted to go.”

Wilson is most excited to be able to attend college away from home, she said, as it will give her the experience of not being close to her friends and family. She is also enthusiastic about meeting new people, especially at an HBCU, she said.

HBCUs have been shown to support and produce graduates who are far better equipped for their post-college experience — precisely what Wilson hopes to find, she said.

Earlier this year, Shah and her friend Jhanae Ottey made a presentation on HBCUs and found that 50 percent of Black lawyers, 50 percent of Black public school teachers, 12.3 percent of Black CEOs, 80 percent of Black judges, and 40 percent of Black engineers are trained at HBCUs, Shah said.

Shah strongly supports HBCUs and women’s colleges because of the remarkable assistance they offer Black and female students, respectively, she said. “I’m a big believer in any

college that offers that kind of support.”

Specifically, Shah believes that HBCUs and women’s colleges are beneficial to giving their students, who typically feel like they are part of the minority, representation within their colleges, she said. “One of the reasons that I think HBCUs and [women’s colleges] are so effective is because [they are] one of the only times that traditionally underrepresented groups in academia can be part of the majority,” she said, “It’s a powerful experience, and a productive one.”

Similarly, Parikh believes that women’s colleges play an important and unique role in assisting women. “Throughout history, women have been subordinated in various cultures and religions,” she said, “I believe that women’s colleges fight this historical notion.”

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ROAMING LIONS: SENIORS PLAN TO STUDY ABROAD

Sophie Rukin and Josh Shuster Staff Writers

“I’m excited to be in a totally different country and see how they function,” Ellery Lapin (12) said. “We have this idea of the American college experience, and I kind of get to have a little bit of a French one as well.” After graduating from the school, Lapin and three of her other classmates have decided to study abroad — choosing to attend college in a foreign country for anywhere between one semester and a full four years. Next school year, Lapin will spend her first year of college at the American University of Paris (AUP) in Paris, France, before returning to George Washington University (GW), in the United States, for the following three years. She decided to study abroad when, upon receiving her acceptance into GW, the university sent over information about their study abroad program. “It wasn’t really as much of a decision to apply there,” she said. “It was more of ‘do I actually want to consider this’ and ‘do I actually want to do it.’” On the other hand, Alex Nagin (12), who will be attending the Dual BA Program between Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, and Columbia University in the US, applied specifically with the intent of studying abroad, he said. He decided to attend Columbia University because, unlike other American universities where a student can only study abroad for one semester, Columbia offered a wide array of longer-term study abroad programs, he said. “The idea behind the Columbia programs is that the programs are made for students that want something that’s a little bit more than just a typical study abroad experience.” He has always loved traveling and experiencing different cultures, so going to a school with a vast study abroad program was important to him, Nagin said. Studying abroad is something that Yunshu Wang (12) has considered doing since she was a child, she said. “I was in China for elementary school, and I went to Singapore for sixth and seventh grades, and I was like ‘wow this is great, I want this experience for college,’” she said. She wants to learn in a different type of environment and hopes to do so as she attends the University of Toronto next year, Wang said. To learn about study abroad programs, Nagin talked to recent alumni, he said. He found out about the Columbia Dual BA program after speaking to Vivien Sweet ‘21, who is currently in college at the program. The program Nagin is participating in is relatively small and unknown, he said. “In my year, there are [roughly] 100 dual BA students, meaning there’s only [about] 100 people that are doing the two years at Trinity and two years at Columbia,” he said. Wang also heard about abroad programs through word of mouth, she said. “Many of my friends in both Singapore and China, who are currently studying at the schools I applied to, have good comments, so I chose [to apply to the same schools].” The application process for applying internationally was similar to applying domestically, Lapin said. Since GW has a partnership with AUP, the international application process was slightly easier than it would have been if she applied independently, she said. All she had to do was submit her test scores, and take a placement test, while GW handled the rest. Contrary to Lapin, Daniel Schlumberger (12), who will be attending the University of Toronto, found applying internationally to be very different from applying domestically, he said. “You do the application in one sitting and it consists of a video interview where you record yourself with no prep time and you’re given questions on the spot and then you have to write a 20 minute 200 word essay on the spot.” He prefers the international application process because it is a quick one and done thing, rather than something students can stress over, he said.

The international schools and programs Nagin applied to had very different application processes than schools in the US. International schools have their own application systems that are not as straightforward and easy to understand in comparison to application systems in the US, he said. “You’re kind of on your own a little bit, but it’s not that hard to figure out if you try.” He also found that the school’s college counselors were very helpful and knowledgeable when applying to international schools, which made the process easier, he said. International colleges are looking for different things from applicants, than American schools, Nagin said. “I applied to a Canadian university as well, and the only things that they required to be submitted are your grades and your teacher recommendations, and they don’t have you write a single essay, so they are basically just looking at your stats,” he said. “Their criteria is a lot more rooted in numbers than the United States where a lot of schools are emphasizing test-optional policies, and looking at individuals as a whole, and not just through the lens of test scores.” Part of the reason international universities center around these criteria is because they are much larger and therefore more interested in statistics than a student’s writing capabilities, Nagin said. Even though international colleges are large, Lapin does not know of many students at the school attending international colleges or programs, she said. Regardless, she is ready to spend time in a foreign country and learn new things about France’s culture, she said. “Especially in Paris everything’s really social, so lunch is a really big deal, and I know especially coming from Horace Mann, that is not the case, since people sometimes don’t even eat lunch, so I think that’s going to be really interesting,” Lapin said. Being one of the only ones from the school attending college internationally does not worry Schlumberger, he said.

“I don’t want to take the same route as anyone else,” he said. “I feel like I’ll grow more as a person since I’m forced to meet new people and not rely on people I already know.” Nagin is also excited to immerse himself in a new culture, and participate in the traditions that are unique to international colleges, he said. “There [are] a lot of constant social events, and [they’re] all run by students, which is really cool, and there [are] also a lot of especially bizarre and obscure traditions at European universities,” he said. At many social events in Europe it is customary to wear suits and tuxedos than in the United States, Nagin said. “I kind of just like the unique social energy that European universities bring.” The interactive style of classes is also interesting to Lapin, she said. “If you’re taking architecture, you’ll go around the city, so it’s not really lectures or slideshows, so I like that,” she said. “It’s just kind of reflective of the culture itself, since they have a much more hands-on culture than we have here.” However, while Lapin is excited, she is somewhat worried about the adjustments she will have to make while in a foreign country, she said. The hardest adjustment will be the time difference, she said. “They are six hours ahead, so a lot of normal things that I would do back here, or even talking to my friends back at home, it will be six hours ahead so that will probably be difficult.” Similarly, to Lapin, Wang is worried about being able to stay in touch with her family and friends. “If you stay in the US, since most of your family members are going to stay in the US, they can help you out when needed, but when you’re going to another country, sometimes they can’t really help, and you are on your own,” she said. Adjusting to the new academic system will also be a challenge, Nagin said. At Trinity, they do not take attendance, so students are not marked absent if they do not show up, he said. Another big difference is the grading structure. “At Trinity, anywhere from a 70 to 100 is an A, but if you get a 70, that’s considered really good, so the actual scale is different,” Nagin said. Colleges are also much larger than schools, and students do not have the same close teacher relationships as they do at the school.

Although Lapin is going to an Englishspeaking school, she expects there to be a slight language barrier, she said. “I don’t think it’s that big of an issue, though, especially talking to other kids that are going, since a bunch of them are from all over the world and all over the country,” she said.

“So whether they speak only English, only

Spanish, or whatever it is, I think the language gap is an experience a lot of kids are having.” While taking a language class at AUP is not required, Lapin hopes to improve her French skills and learn to communicate better, she said. The social life of Ireland is also very different from the US, Nagin said. A lot of the social scene in Irish universities centers around going to bars — especially since the legal drinking age is 18 and almost every college student is 18 or older, he said. “Everyone I’m going to school with can legally hang out at a bar, which is obviously something I would not do as a teenager living in the US, so I’m definitely going to have to get used to that being a normal social experience,” he said. The entire experience of traveling to a foreign country brings up a mix of emotions, Lapin said. “The whole process itself, just going to a totally new place, especially a new country for me, is a little terrifying, but I’m also excited, so I think it all balances out.”

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Chloe Trentalancia

What does it mean to be a Jew? What should a Jew look like? What should a Jew believe in? There are no concrete answers to any of these questions — nor should there ever be. Born in Guangzhou, China, I am an Asian adoptee in a white Italian American, Jewish/Catholic family, attending a predominantly white institution in the United States of America. With such a multifaceted background, you can imagine how questions of identity and belonging are bound to arise.

Let’s put it this way: it was never clear who I was or where I fit in. Whether I spent Chinese New Year at a synagogue or a Chinese restaurant, I always felt conflicted about dedicating my time unfairly. There was this sense of disrespect if I leaned towards one part of my identity, and there was almost always guilt.

Before I joined my synagogue, I had little affiliation with my Jewish identity. We had friends from Horace Mann who had invited us to attend, but it took me a very long time to muster up the courage and go. Frequent interactions with other white Jewish students spurred charged emotions, and I was afraid there would just be a continuation of familiar feelings of isolation and exclusion if there were no people of color present. However, I still had hope that I could change the perception of what a Jew “looks like” and decided to go despite my trepidation.

A few years ago, I was introduced to a Rabbi at Central Synagogue who changed what Judaism meant to me. As a Korean American woman, Rabbi Angela Buchdahl — the head Rabbi at Central Synagogue in New York — is not what you would imagine for a Rabbi. When my family and I had our first Shabbat at our current synagogue six years ago, I remember Rabbi Buchdahl gave me a hug and greeted me with open arms even though we had had little prior interaction. It felt cathartic.

At that moment, I knew I wanted to further explore my Jewish identity.

After our first meeting, I Googled everything I could about Rabbi Buchdahl. From reading about her in newspapers to watching her speak at the White House and lead sermons at Rosh Hashanah inYoutube videos, I felt an instant connection with this woman despite only having met her once. She gave me a sense of confidence. If a Rabbi could look like Angela and be Jewish, then I could too. Feeling such liberation was a groundbreaking experience.

In the fall of seventh grade, I went to Hebrew school for the first time. I was absolutely terrified I would completely embarrass myself. Not only did I not look like other Jewish kids in my class, but I did not have much knowledge of my Jewish background. Quite frankly, I felt completely disassociated from the religion as I had this belief that being Jewish was synonymous with being white. Trying to “act white” or having to act as if I had been prepared for Hebrew school like my fellow white peers was a huge pressure cooker for me, even though it was never explicitly stated by any of my fellow peers.

However, my experience at Central Synagogue proved me wrong. As I had interacted more with my Rabbi and started to slowly see more Jews of color in the pews, I began to stray from this narrative in my head that all Jews need to look the same to feel validated and be considered a part of the community. I finally discovered my passion for my religion and felt a shift in how I perceived myself.

Still, when it came time for my Bat Mitzvah, I felt extremely self conscious, being the only Asian American Jewish adoptee in my synagogue’s history to have a Bat Mitzvah. As the day of my Bat Mitzvah approached, I became consumed with the need to prove that there are Jews of color in this world. I knew deep down that people would have their biases, and even if they did not say anything outright, I was sure I had something to prove.

At my Bat Mitzvah, I had never felt more confident in my life. I still remember seeing strangers at the Saturday morning service who were not my guests, in complete awe of two Asian women on the bimah reciting Torah. I had a newfound reassurance in myself and the milestone confirmed something I was beginning to discover: there is no template for being a Jew. After all, if a Chinese-American young woman who was adopted by a European family could have a Bat Mitzvah, then anyone could too.

To this day, I am a part of almost everything the synagogue offers for children in their community — Bar/ Bat/B’nai Mitzvahs, confirmation, teen choir, social justice committees, etc. But out of all these exceptional memories, a moment I will hold dearest in my heart was when I spoke at an event and reflected on a documentary titled “FOUND.” It was a powerful experience to talk about three Chinese adoptees and their stories of navigating the world after their adoption. It was also one of the first times I talked so openly about my adoption. Having bottled up so many emotions and unresolved feelings from when I was younger, I was relieved to see them spill out as I saw the film and spoke on the podium. My growing security in my Jewish community encouraged me to branch out even further and explore aspects of my adoption.

In light of my experience, I encourage others to realize that you are who you make yourself to be, no matter what you look like. At the end of the day, one’s own interpretation of their identity should always matter more than external perceptions. Nobody’s opinions or comments should ever alter their sense of self and their sense of belonging.

Moreover, HM students should recognize that while we live in a PWI with many white students who identify as Jewish, there are also POC like me, and we should not have to be subjected to any kind of pressure to prove that we are Jewish. Given that Jewish POC probably go to Temple and services just as often as people who “look Jewish on the outside,” this awareness is imperative for respecting their dedication to their religion and identity. There is no template, so people should stop trying to enforce one.

Confronting the microaggressions surrounding the students of color’s hair

Amaris Christian

In my family, hair has always been an attribute that we cherish and celebrate as though it were our crown. Historically, curly and kinky hair has been demonized or deemed inferior. In the beginning of this year, my first at Horace Mann, I felt refreshed by many students’ ability to practice empathy for the students of color at our school, especially since, in my previous experiences at Predominantly White Institutions, Black hair was looked upon with ridicule. I was so excited to become a part of a community that embraced and accepted my hair; but when I later consistently experienced and heard of microaggressions relating to many non-white students’ hair, I was disappointed and discouraged.

Over the last school year, many non-Black students have asked: “Can I touch your hair?” In almost every instance, I’m left with a feeling of emptiness — a result of a nation that is still divided by miseducation but also filled with internalized racism that many people do not recognize.

In almost all of these instances, I have replied to the question with a polite “no,” and somehow, each time, their reaction is pure shock. People a r e flabbergasted that someone would deny them the ability to touch their hair to satisfy their own ignorant curiosity. I find it comical that someone would ask for this consent and feel annoyed because I made a reasonable choice and response.

These microaggressions take an emotional toll on me and other students of color at the school. They lead students to feel “othered” and objectified for their hair. I have heard from many of my friends who viewed their hair in a more negative light after other students asked to touch their hair. Some might see these questions as healthy curiosity, but what people do not understand is that Black and POC students do not have to teach white students about their hair and should not have to explain or

justify denying anyone access to their hair.

I am more than my hair, but it’s unfortunate that Black and other POC students have to endure these feelings when hair is a symbol of their identity and should be regarded with positivity. This ignorance towards approaching curly hair can leave POC students feeling tired and isolated from their white peers. One of my friends experienced an instance where a white student grabbed her hair randomly, without asking her for permission. This incident reflects the mindlessness and utter ignorance of the student who grabbed her hair. In addition, to touch a peer’s hair without their permission illustrates entitlement and audacity. Disrespectful actions like these create a divided community where

POC students are not able to feel secure or comfortable in their own school. This should never be the experience of any student at Horace Mann, as we certainly have the resources and ability to properly educate students on topics such as these. There is a difference between asking out of curiosity and asking out of ignorance. When people ask me questions about my hair it implies that they genuinely care about my answer, because they want to learn and are coming from a place of humility. It allows me to open up and answer their questions without fear of an unwanted conversation. However, as a Black student, when a white peer asks to touch my hair I feel the question comes from a place of disrespect as they do not want to learn about my culture — they want to see my hair put on display for them like an animal.

What I and many of my POC friends have observed is that when someone asks to touch our hair, their hand is already extended. This hand reveals that they were not asking for our genuine answer. In actuality, they expected to be able to touch our hair. As a result, it is difficult for me to accept the idea that someone could honestly ask a question about my hair in hopes to talk about my culture.

Many white students are not exposed to students of color outside of school. Countless POC students are thus forced to withstand daily ignorance from their white peers. Although ignoring microaggressions and quickly evading uncomfortable conversations and questions about our hair can appear as an easier route short term, it unfortunately results in students never realizing that their questions, actions, and discussions are ignorant.

I do not believe that all students of color should have to give a presentation to their white classmates and explain the danger of these queries, nor do I think that every POC student with curly hair has to say no when someone asks to touch their hair. My experience is that when white students touch my hair or ask to touch my hair it makes me feel like an animal in a zoo. It is an uncomfortable, tormenting, and vexing event because the white people who ask these questions and touch my hair will never be able to understand the pain that their actions cause. They will never be able to experience my struggle as a Black woman and that is what hurts the most. This close-minded, selfish ideology of asking to touch and feel someone’s curly hair renders the goal of a real Horace Mann community nearly impossible: it forces POC students with curly hair in a box as the “other” of the community and leaves white students as invading inquirers of POC hair.

White students need to be educated on how to address POC students and curly hair appropriately so that the students of color can feel both safe and respected at school.

Ryan Finlay

The Horace Mann School appears on the surface to be a remarkably homogeneous community — politically. Our curricula are infused with the latest theories from the progressive academic community. An entire philosophy on American society and its future is packaged and distributed to the student body, and too often, as designed, students accept it at face value. There’s something rather important missing from this picture: a vast swath of the political spectrum. One could easily conclude that there are very few non–progressive students at HM, but this is an illusion; the community contains silent multitudes.

Here is the problem: HM, like so many other academic institutions today, fosters a learning environment that I believe is hostile to those who do not subscribe to progressive politics. This includes not just conservatives but also centrists and moderates on the left. As a result, our school has developed a political bubble in which the majority of the views expressed in classrooms are far to the left of the mainstream views of both the American public and the actual political average of the student community. A fantasy is built for progressive members of the student body, making them believe that their most radical opinions are far closer to the mainstream than is actually the case.

Over the course of this composition, I will attempt to illustrate exactly how this bubble is facilitated and maintained. I also intend to offer an explanation for why so many members of the student body who are not progressive are unwilling to express their political views in class. I will use personal examples, as well as reference the experiences of others. To protect everyone’s privacy, I will not identify by name any of the courses, faculty members, or students involved in any of these true events.

I recently spoke with a faculty member about the school’s political bias. This faculty member made the case to me that many teachers feel obligated to open students’ eyes to the inequality that surrounds them, as though taking off the horse blinders that supposedly plague children of economic privilege. Something is clearly being lost in translation. The result is a continuous pressure in the classroom to embrace visions of wholesale societal reform. Time and time again, when students attempt to contradict these ideas, they are criticized for failing to recognize the lived experiences of others, as if the lived experiences of their own families are irrelevant. At the end of my conversation with this faculty member, they estimated that perhaps ten percent of the student body is at odds with the politics of the school. I disagree; after four years and hundreds of conversations out of earshot from teachers, I propose a figure closer to thirty or forty percent, a sizeable portion of the student body, one composed not simply of white males of privilege as some might claim, but rather a diverse collection of students from different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds.

We are constantly encouraged to think in terms of morality, which is weaponized to reinforce the political bubble. When issues of politics or social reform are raised in classroom discussions, there is a certain approach HM students are accustomed to expect from the faculty. While the specific strategies depend on the context and the individual issue, there is a common reliance, in the majority of cases, on preaching right versus wrong.

A perfect example would be the equality versus equity comparison. Every junior and senior is well acquainted with this cartoon graphic; the school makes sure of it in Seminar on Identity. For those who are not familiar with it, spectators of different heights watch a baseball game from behind a fence. On one side, labeled “Equality,” each spectator stands on a box of similar size. As a result, only the tallest can see the game. On the other side, labeled “Equity,” the shorter spectators are supplied with appropriately sized boxes so that everyone can watch the game from an equal vantage point. As the tallest spectator can see over the fence without a box, they receive none. Everyone is exposed to the graphic at some point during their HM education and told to recognize the inherent superiority of the equity model. In other words, equity is taught as a moral imperative.

The gravity of the graphic’s message is easy to miss. When it’s displayed to students, the struggle between the two choices is made cartoonishly simple, literally. The choice of equity seems so plainly obvious that if you argue for equality, it appears as if you are an elitist who doesn’t want people without certain resources to enjoy their lives. There is never any dynamic discussion on the real effects of either choice. Equality and equity are philosophies on access, but the real pros and cons of choosing one over the other, details which are decidedly complex and unable to be reduced to childish cartoons, are practically ignored. When the principle of the sports game is applied to the real

world, it proposes either a rejection of meritocracy, or a denial that it exists in the first place. This approach gets students bogged down in a false impression of simplicity, leading to such conclusions on meritocracy that frequently include: the system is broken, unable to be reformed, rotten to the core, and deserving of demolition.

To those students who do not share the political leanings of the institution, the graphic is inflammatory and the associated classroom dialogues steamroll any real consideration of the benefits of equality. What is so disturbing for non–progressive students about many class discussions on politics is not just that the goal is to discredit non–progressive strategies, but rather that the merits of progressive

preferences are so often steeped in moral arguments.

Students who agree with these arguments have the school’s unspoken authorization to attack opposing ideas on the grounds of righteousness. This training in moral protectionism begins early, as I recently heard one student explain: “I remember being introduced to the equity versus equality diagram back in the Middle Division. Teachers made clear that there was a right system and a wrong system.”

The school offers a range of incentives for adopting a specific outlook on society. We are at a highly impressionable point in our lives, and the school’s willingness to glue some of our ideas on progress into place while discarding others should frighten everyone. It is not a problem that some students may naturally espouse politics that are considered radical by others. It is not even a problem that they might choose to reaffirm their sentiments with a set of morals they have chosen to adopt. It is a problem when a generic set of progressive morals is pushed upon everyone else by an institution we rely upon to facilitate education.

Treating one set of political views as moral automatically labels all others as deficient. Morals are not deductive; they are a sense of right and wrong. When students are encouraged to believe in specific political ideas according to moral justifications, it becomes all too easy to decide that alternate ideas are rotten, and those who defend them are immoral. This is damaging to the community and damaging to education. It narrows the scope of perspectives deemed fit for students to engage with honestly and without unfair preconceptions. How is anyone to competently argue their position on a current political issue when the conversation assumes that one side has staked out an inherently immoral view?

Casual and sanctioned attacks on non–progressive views are frequently integrated into classes, especially the first few minutes of the period when current events are brought up for roundtable discussions. I have always enjoyed these moments: I think it is important to hear what others have to say about the latest developments around the world, regardless of whether or not we agree. What I do not enjoy is the common

devolution of these conversations into vilifying conservatism, which both progressive students and even some teachers are happy to do. In one instance, a student was decried by their classmates after voicing support for deportations. Our community member was labeled immoral for speaking honestly about their political beliefs — beliefs which are accepted as perfectly normal across the country. In the Horace Mann classroom, however, this person became a punching bag for their progressive classmates.

Some teachers openly fail to set a better example, choosing to fan the flames. One year, I had a history teacher

who, the day after an event that they felt merited the press’ attention, brought copies of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal to class. They would place the newspapers side by side and argue that because The New York Times’ front page included more stories about social justice issues and people of color, the more right-leaning Journal was maliciously indifferent and trying to minimize the importance of those stories. No mention was made of the fact that the Journal is openly focused on issues surrounding economics and finance. The teacher held such discussions multiple times throughout the year.

In an equally blatant display, a student shared with me their experience dissenting in SOI. While voicing concerns about the political bias of the curriculum and the overall condition of free speech at school, their instructor cut them off mid–sentence, saying,

“that’s enough.” It was reinforced to this student that the purpose of social justice-related curricula is not for the material to be challenged but rather to be absorbed without question.

Signs of indoctrination manifest across campus. More concerning, though, is that some of the students seem comforted by it and rely on their teachers to feed them opinions. I once heard a classmate ask their history teacher — word for word — to “tell us what to believe,” concerning a recent civil rights issue, as if it were teachers’ responsibility to shape students’ politics. It is not. We ought to think for ourselves, and the school ought to encourage independent inquiry.

The structure of the bubble leaves students with other views in a delicate position. So many of us want to resist and be open with the HM community about who we are and what we believe. At the same time, we must grapple with the vulnerability that comes with many faculty openly opposing our politics. At the end of the day, the impulse to self-censor is fueled by risk assessment: it is not worth jeopardizing academic success at HM in exchange for political expression. Unfortunately, by protecting ourselves, we reinforce the illusion that we are a small minority of limited conviction.

Every classmate I know who is not progressive self-censors in class during discussions of current events and politics. The degrees of self-moderation vary widely, depending on a range of personal factors. Most choose to keep their comments vague to leave little room for accusations of being “too conservative” about an issue. Then, there are the most saddening cases, including the few who have resigned to stay silent because the perceived risks of speaking their mind are too great.

Looming over HM’s conservative students, there is the fear of unknowable and arbitrary reprisal by those in power. Even if some of those fears are blown wildly out of proportion, as I must admit, most non-progressives have determined that the safest path in the classroom is always the silent one.

It is the mystery of unknown consequences that constrains students’ desire to speak their mind on the most important problems facing our country. Just recently, I overheard a junior advising some underclassmen on how to get through discussions in humanities classes without “getting on the bad side of your teacher.” The advice consisted of: “just agree with what everyone else is saying, that’s what I do.” When I objected to this hapless approach, I received this defense: “it doesn’t matter if you disagree with it, just lie about what you believe. It’s not worth it.”

There are multitudes of HM students, with whom I identify, who privately speak of their opposition to progressive race-focused policies but would never volunteer to say this in a class discussion.

None of us want to be labeled as a racist or be reviled by our peers. Those of us who have this opinion are not racist. HM’s environment would have one think otherwise. I do not claim to identify as a Republican, identifying instead as an Independent. I consider myself moderate in most of my views. That said, I leave the impression in nearly every classroom political discussion that I am a right–wing conservative, as I frequently hear through the grapevine. I have no doubt that this is because the students’ conception of the political spectrum has been so grotesquely warped from years in the bubble.

One of the fundamental reasons why so many students feel unable to share their beliefs is the endless newsfeed telling of academic scholars and regular citizens who have had their lives turned upside down by the ravages of cancel culture. It is not so much that anyone at HM fears being sent to the Honor Council for citing their support for a conservative policy. It is that many nonprogressive students at HM are terrified by the ambiguity of an administration that preaches independent thought but permits and encourages attacks on it. As far as many students are concerned, the administration has practically endorsed cancel culture through its silence on the phenomenon. Currently, students’ conclusion is: watch yourself and censor yourself; you are not protected.

Even students who believe in the messages defended by the school should feel concerned over these examples. It should make you question where exactly education ends and indoctrination begins. It is easy to claim that HM is just a progressive institution and that students and families knew exactly what they were signing up for. I disagree. When my family enrolled, we were confident that HM would prioritize “teaching students how to think, not what to think.” We saw among the schools core values, “life of the mind” and “mutual respect.” The school is not living up to its own values.

I call upon the administration to clarify its policies on political expression; I call upon the administration to actively protect and sanctify diversity of thought; and I call upon the administration to disentangle itself from the progressive political agenda that has turned the school into an incubator of bias and intellectual intolerance.

Show us we are free to develop our own moral compasses. Only action can reassure us that it is okay to disagree at HM. Prove that we should be — and can be — confident, and the school will truly have safe spaces.

“I overheard a junior advising some underclassmen on how to get through discussions in humanities classes: [...] ‘Just lie about what you believe. It’s not worth it.’”

Vivian Coraci/Staff Artist

“I once heard a classmate ask their history teacher – word for word – to “tell us what to believe,” concerning a recent civil–rights issue, as if it were teachers’ responsibility to shape students’ politics. It is not.”

Harper Rosenberg

The media reinforces the sexualization and romanticization of lesbianism and people are not cognizant of it.

Throughout the past 50 years, there has been a notable increase in media like television, movies, and music. Although the LGBTQ+ community, specifically gay men, have seen more representation and acceptance, lesbians, despite their increase in positive representation, have faced more problems in achieving media visibility due to how their intersectionality makes them a threat to both heteronormativity and patriarchy.

Such limited representation could prove problematic for young lesbians looking to model their actions after lesbian characters on television, due to the pervasiveness of media in the development of sexual identity. The media’s widespread reach into the psychological development of young women allows it to inform what a lesbian “looks like,” how to act, and what to expect from romantic relationships. Young lesbians may therefore lack positive role models to exemplify the lesbian experience truthfully and adequately.

When looking at queer representation in television, there is a common trope known as “bury your gays” in which lesbians, who already make up a small fraction of television characters, are killed off in the series. One of the earliest cases was in 1976, when Julie from “Executive Suite” is hit by a car while chasing her love interest after coming to terms with her lesbianism. Helena Cain from “Battlestar Galactica” is shot by her female ex partner in 2006; Sophia from “Skins” dies by jumping off of a building after buying MDMA from the girl she was obsessed with; Veronica Cortes in “La Reina del Sur” dies, which results in her partner Patty O’Farrell taking her own life; Bizzy Forbes from “Private Practice” also takes her life after her secret lover died.

CNN lesbian writer AJ Willingham said Villanelle’s death in “Killing Eve,” “felt like a shot to the back. Another queer romance, snuffed out the moment it properly began,” she said. “We deserve better.” Although “Killing Eve” nearly steered clear of most lesbian tropes, it fell short of showing a lesbian relationship that does not meet a tragic end. These trends prevent the lesbian community from seeing long-lasting, healthy portrayals of their sexual orientation in the media.

“I am not the first open lesbian to endure a man presuming I can be coaxed into sex, and I will not be the last,” writer Mal Hartigan, who has studied how media sexualizes lesbianism, said. The lack of healthy representation in mainstream media results in a lack of acceptance of lesbianism. As a result, there is a belief among some men that it is an exciting challenge to “turn lesbians straight.” For instance, popular musician

Lil Uzi Vert, with over 23 million monthly listeners on Spotify, exclaimed in his 2020 song “Venetia,” “I can make a gay girl turn to a straight.” In Eminem’s song “Bagpipes from Baghdad,” he says “in the bed with two brain-dead lesbian vegetables, I bet you they become heterosexual,” undermining and delegitimizing lesbian sexuality.

Songwriters fetishize lesbians in other ways as well. In Drake and Lil Baby’s song “Girls Want Girls”, he says, “she like eating pussy, I’m like, ‘me too,’ I can’t wait to get off work to go and see you, please bring your girlfriend along with you.” Another example is in PnB Rock and Lil Skies’ song “I Like Girls,” which was popularized through trends on social media platforms, such as TikTok, by creators with millions of followers. The chorus revolves around the line, “I like girls who like girls,” which serves as a blatant fetishization of the female queer community.

For women who like women, it is harmful to see grown men posting “thirst traps” while singing the words to this song. They feel extremely uncomfortable because it is as though they made those videos in order to convert them to be straight, and because they refer to lesbianism like they do not take their sexuality seriously.

There is also a gap in the literature regarding the depiction of lesbian relationships in media, specifically through the eyes of the lesbian population. Lesbians portrayed are

often sexualized and stereotyped, falling into one of the five following categories: the hot lesbian, the out lesbian, the closeted lesbian, the butch lesbian, and the feminine lesbian. In researcher Adrienne Annati’s 2020 study “The Frequency of Stereotypical Media Portrayals and Their Effects on the Lesbian Community,” she examines a sample of 178 self-identified lesbians and gauges their reactions to certain clips of lesbian stereotypes in popular media, while also keeping track of how often each stereotype appeared. Results indicated that the “hot lesbian” was the most frequently presented and that the idea of lesbians moving too quickly in relationships was the most frequently portrayed lesbian relationships.

In 2018, GLAAD, an American nongovernmental media monitoring organization founded in protest against defamatory coverage of the LGBTQ+ community in media, studied queer representation in film. Of the over 100 in the most popular movies from major studios in 2017, only .05 percent featured lesbian characters, and that number has not improved signinifcantly since.

At MTV’s Video Music Awards in 2003, global sex icons Britney Spears and Madonna kissed, adding on to the already rampant fetishization of non-men engaging in sexual activity with other non-men. 20 years later, many men still think lesbians are “hot,” which can encourage straight girls to make out in pursuit of male attention, while college-aged women who are frustrated with men often pull the “I’m-goinglesbian” card. Increased media attention is a double-edged sword, as popular culture suggests lesbianism is a temporary and a conscious choice if a bored wife can decide to rendezvous with another woman. Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” provoked girl-on-girl kissing action nationwide, as long as boyfriends “don’t mind it.” Regardless of Perry’s intention, the popular tune legitimized female experimentation, but only when heterosexuality is the ultimate outcome. These earlier instances of sexualized lesbianism are still relevant as celebrities like Britney Spears, Madonna, and Katy Perry remain significant to this day. June, international LGBTQ+ Pride Month, is a good time to learn about the lesbian experience and understand how you can help. It is important that we make the school a safe space for lesbians, where they can be open about their sexuality. We must constantly work to avoid lesbophobic slurs, validate lesbianism, and deconstruct the stereotypes and biases that we have been fed over the years. Additionally, it’s helpful to understand how certain song lyrics and phrases are harmful to lesbians, and always be aware of how social media trends fetishize their experiences.

Aashana Hari/Staff Artist

Legitimize Health class discussions surrounding consent and sexual health

Tomoko Hida

In health class, the sex education unit tends to feel silly. Whether we watched a particularly touchy couple get intimate on the screen to demonstrate safe sex, or passed around silicone testicles to emulate finding cancerous lumps, the classroom was always riddled with awkward smiles and laughter.

While I too found myself cringing with friends at certain demonstration videos, I otherwise committed myself to active engagement in discussions about consent and identifying healthy relationships. Unfortunately, it was routine for my classmates to browse on their devices or even fall asleep during class. Sure, it’s normal to feel discomfort discussing a topic that feels personal and private among your peers, but it’s of the utmost importance to take sex education seriously. Sex education isn’t innately explicit — it is less about sex itself and is more concerned with our safety and health as young adults. Learning about sexual health (particularly surrounding STDs and STIs), consent, and seeking help in an instance of sexual violence are all topics that make sex education so critical.

Instances of sexual violence are severely underreported. In the United States, it is estimated that only 310 cases out of 1000 cases are reported according to sexual violence statistics by Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). More specifically, individuals of the female sex ages 16-19 are four times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault. Among college-aged victims of sexual violence that did not report to law enforcement, 49 percent did so because they believed it was a personal matter, 40 percent had a fear of reprisal, 31 percent thought that it was not important enough to report, and 24 percent did not want to get the perpetrator in trouble. As for children under the age of 18, 1 in 9 girls and 1 in 53 boys have experienced sexual misconduct at the hands of an adult, according to RAINN statistics. Sex education can not only inform students of what is classified as sexual assault and violence, but it also can aid in alleviating the stigma around reporting these instances.

Sex education encourages students with ethnographically or religiously conservative backgrounds to feel uplifted and capable of coming forward despite their community’s preconceived feelings of shame and disgust associated with recognizing and reporting assault. And as past trends in sexual assault and violence reporting have demonstrated, reporting begets reporting, and more reporting begets stronger and more effective legislation. Sex education is instrumental in both destigmatizing victims’ decisions to report and propelling the antirape movement forward.

It is essential for our age group to be able to identify an instance of sexual misconduct and take the necessary steps to seek help. Furthermore, as students graduate and begin life on college campuses where both sexual health and violence continue to be everpresent issues, it would be ignorant of private high schools to deny their students a thorough sex education. And at private institutions that do provide sex education (like Horace Mann), the responsibility falls on the students to be attentive and really welcome the content discussed in class.

I emphasize the importance of private institutions teaching sex education because New York State legislature does not mandate the curriculum for public schools. In fact, New York is far from leading the way in a progressive approach to sex education on a national level. According to the Sexual Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), as of May 2020, of the thirty-eight states that provide healthy relationships instruction, only nine states mandated consent education. New York was not among those nine.

Fortunately, the fight for consent education in New York is active, albeit slow. In 2021, legislators introduced four bills that would require the New York state commissioner to create and establish a consent education curriculum in public schools. And as of May 2022, one bill has passed the introductory phase and is in committee awaiting approval.

In short, we’re incredibly fortunate to have access to a comprehensive sex education curriculum as students attending a private high school in New York. I’m well aware that these conversations can be uncomfortable. But that discomfort is inconsequential compared toa world where sexual assault and violence are far too prevalent.

THE RECORD FEATURES JUNE 6TH, 2022

21 All or nothing:Sports betting in the study body Ayesha Sen Staff Writer

When Ryle* (12) — who requested anonymity toWhen Ryle* (12) — who requested anonymity to avoid seeming like he is flaunting his wealth — entered quarantine in March of 2020, he began to search for ways to entertain himself, he said. He found himself drawn to the thrill of online gambling games such as Blackjack and poker on roobet.com. However, he ended up losing more money than he was winning. In the summer of 2020, he transitioned to a form of gambling that he had a better shot at profiting from: sports betting.

Ryle began to bet on sports more regularly when he moved away from general online gambling, he said. “I found that sports betting was a lot more profitable than online gambling, especially because I had a lot more knowledge about sports,” he said. “Ever since I moved away from the online gambling where I lost a lot of money, I have made money in the thousands because of sports betting.”

Sports betting, one of the most common forms of gambling according to Statista.com, involves placing a wager or a monetary bet on the outcome of a sports game. The practice was legalized in various states after Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association in 2018, in which the Supreme Court struck down a federal law that prohibited gambling on football, basketball, baseball, and other sports. In January, New York became the 18th state to legalize mobile sports betting for New Yorkers aged 18 and older.

According to The New York Times, New York became the top market for sports betting in the United States just a month after its legalization. As of February 2022, sports betting platforms like Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, FanDuel, Rush Street Interactive, Bally Bet, BetMGM, Wynn Interactive, PointsBet, and Resort World Bet had 1.2 million accounts based in New York, according to GeoComply Solutions.

All forms of betting and gambling are prohibited on school property, as stated on page 62 of the Family Handbook. “There is not much to say, the rules are very simple — there is no betting or gambling allowed on campus, period,” Upper Division Dean of Students Michael Dalo said. “Out of school, it is out of our purview to be monitoring what our students are doing off of our campus, but in general, we would never advise students to be betting or gambling.”

Tristan* (11), who requested anonymity to avoid judgment from the school, is not a frequent sports bettor, but has recently engaged in the activity online, he said. “I did [sports betting] mostly because I have spent a lot of time following the NFL in life, so I thought that this season, I had sufficient knowledge to not lose all of my money,” he said. “I basically went four straight weeks betting the money I won the previous week, I started with $50 and ended up with $900.”

Tristan used an online betting platform called DraftKings to place his bets. Because betting was not legal in New York when he engaged in the activity, Tristan used a virtual private network (VPN), which ensures internet privacy, to connect to Montana and bet, he said. Since he was underage, he lied about his age when he signed up on the website.

After Tristan won his bets, he transferred them to his debit card for everyday spending since he did not plan to splurge with his earnings, he said. The thrill of winning a bet is less about the money and more about the competitive aspect, he said. “Honestly, most of the fun from sports betting comes from lording my winnings over everyone else,” Tristan said. “When I went on my roll of betting correctly for four straight weeks, it was very fun to talk about it with friends and exhilarating to follow.” Because Tristan does not participate in sports betting regularly, losing money has not presented a problem for him yet, he said. “When I first got into betting I told myself that if I won a lot of money I was going to stop at some point because I knew over the long run that I was not going to be able to break even with the sharks,” he said. “When I did luck into a substantial amount of money, I stopped betting outright and haven’t bet since.” Although Ryle has been profitable overall, he does occasionally lose bets, resulting in significant monetary losses, he said. “I would 100 percent say it’s scarier for me when I have $500 on the line than when I have $5 on the line, just because there is that risk,” he said. “You definitely don’t feel good after losing a $500 bet — I’ve been there many times — but for me, with every loss, I know that there are multiple wins coming, so it doesn’t feel too bad.” Ryle exclusively bets his own money, he said. “Many people use their parents’ card when they bet, but I have never used my parents’ money,” Ryle said. “I have always used my own money from either working as a hockey ref or investments in Bitcoin cryptocurrency from several years ago.” Grace Wilson (12) decided to sports bet for the first time when she attended the Kentucky Derby in May, she said. She bet on one of the horses at the show, Epicenter, “showing” at the race, which meant that she would win money if he finished first, second, or third. Because Epicenter came in second, Wilson profited — she placed a bet of $21 and won $45 at the end of the show, amounting to a $24 profit. “I wouldn’t say I’m super into sports betting,” Wilson said. “I bet for the first because I thought it would just be a fun thing to do and literally everyone there was betting.” Although Wilson enjoyed her experience of sports betting, she does not plan to regularly engage in the activity, she said. “I think I’ll only continue to bet at major sporting events that really promote betting like horse racing,” she said. “I really have no interest in betting on random stats like I know some others are. For me, it was definitely more a social thing than an attempt to make money.” Overall she enjoyed her experience betting at the Kentucky Derby, even though she does not plan to become an active bettor, she said. “I definitely had the ideal experience — I was there with my mom’s coworkers and their significant others, and two of the men offered to take me to place bets because they had been doing so for years,” she said. “They both used their own money so I knew no matter what, I wasn’t losing anything.” Although Wilson tried to pay the men back when she won the bet, both of them declined. In contrast, JP Eliopoulos (12) does not engage in sports betting because he is not yet 18, so even if he wanted to bet online, he would have to create an account under the name of one of his parents, who would not approve of him gambling, he said. “Lots of parents don’t care, but mine would.” Instead, Eliopoulos enjoys fantasy sports, which are different from sports betting, he said. “Instead of winning money, the winner of our fantasy football league gets to pick the day when the loser has to do their punishment,” he said. “This year, the loser of our league’s punishment was that they had to wear a funny outfit to school for a day.” While Ryle enjoys sports betting, he also recognizes that the activity has its disadvantages which makes it controversial, he said. According to SIT news, only about three to five percent of sports bettors are profitable in the long run. “Even though I have found a lot of success, for the people who may not know how to go about it or may be a little worried, that’s definitely the biggest thing because no one wants to lose a bunch of money,” Ryle said. “I think the biggest thing is being strategic because if you go about sports betting randomly, then the chances you lose are even higher, but if you are strategic and really know your stuff, then there’s a decent chance you can succeed.” According to the New York Times, about o n e percent of American adults have a gambling disorder, causing them to continue to gamble despite knowledge of potential consequences. Moreover, due to the recent opening of virtual gambling, individuals are more at risk of developing an addiction since accessibility to the activity has increased. The addictive nature of sports betting is one of Tristan’s biggest worries about engaging in the activity, he said. “People can get addicted to sports betting, which can be a huge problem and cause people to go deep into debt, so there’s definitely that dangerous aspect to it,” he said. “I have not put in insane amounts of money yet, so I haven’t been too worried, but it’s definitely something if I continue sports betting in the future and is definitely something I know many people who do it think about.” Gambling, like many activities, is not in itself benign or harmful, Director of Counseling & Guidance Dr. Daniel Rothstein said. “Gambling becomes a problem when a person starts to crave the excitement that can come from making a bet in a way that either is taking up a lot of their time or a lot of their money,” he said. “It all depends on the person and how it impacts their life whether it is a problem or not.” According to an article on Web MD, gambling, like other activities that allow an individual to experience a ‘rush,’ floods their brain with the neurotransmitter dopamine, which plays a significant role in addictions. Gambling provides an individual with a far greater rush than other activities, and as a result, encourages a person to continue gambling to continue feeling upbeat and high. However, once a person becomes addicted, their brain stops producing dopamine, which furthers an addiction since people keep gambling in an attempt to recreate the initial high. Ryle has experienced greatly fluctuating emotions as a result of sports betting, he said. “The emotions range from happiness to a lot of sadness to a lot of happiness again,” Ryle said. “Obviously it depends on whether you win or lose, but even when watching a game with a bet on the line is stressful, I generally end up being in a good mood which makes watching a game pretty nice.” Like Ryle, Tristan enjoys sports betting because it heightens the experience of watching sports, he said. “You just have more invested in a game that

“You definitely don’t feel good after losing a $500 bet you might otherwise not care that much about,” he said. “It’s honestly just a lot of fun to sports bet and — I’ve been there many times — but for me, with every a lot of the time that offsets the money that you are likely to lose. It’s really just exhilarating.” loss, I know that there are multiple wins coming, so it Although Eliopoulos does not engage in sports doesn’t feel too bad.” betting himself, he also enjoys games more when someone he knows has a bet on the line, he said. - Ryle* (12) “It makes me feel more invested in the outcome of a game I might have not cared about otherwise,” Eliopoulos said. Gambling is not legal in most states for those under 18, but many teenagers are exposed to fantasy sports which can lead to betting and sports gambling, Rothstein said. As a result, teenagers are at risk of addiction. “If a person were to say, I will wager five dollars and that is all I can spend, then loses the money, and, rather than stopping there, tries to borrow more money from a friend, or asks for an I.O.U., or takes money from parents, then they have a problem,” he said. “Just like with social media apps, which are designed with each ping to give a little dopamine rush, the gambling industry puts a lot of effort into hooking people in.” Ryle enjoys sports betting because he enjoys the overall experience, not just profiting, he said. He places bets on most of the games that he watches, using online platforms like FanDuel and DraftKings. “I know some people are worried about wasting time by betting and then losing, but if you genuinely enjoy sports, then watching games is a lot of fun when you can win money,” he said. “It really just gives you something to look forward to, and even if you lose at the end, if you actually enjoy sports like I do, it’s not a waste of time. It’s more like I’m doing something that I enjoy and there’s the added bonus of profiting.”

Sophia Liu/Staff Artist Sophia Liu/Staff Artist * Any name with an asterisk represents a student granted anonymity.

Do you place bets on sports? What is the average amount of the bets you place?