The Horace Mann Record, Issue 4

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HORACE MANN’S WEEKLY NEWSPAPER SINCE 1903

SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018 || VOLUME 116, ISSUE 4

Jody Lewen ‘82 advocates prison education madison Li Staff Writer

This past Wednesday, the Center for Community Values and Actions (CCVA) held a Service Learning reflection panel led by Executive Director of Prison University Project Jody Lewen ’82, who spoke extensively about the project’s impacts.

According to its website, the Prison University Project’s mission is to provide high quality liberal arts education to people incarcerated at San Quentin Prison access to higher education and stimulate public awareness about higher education access in prisons and criminal justice nationwide.

Lewen led three service reflection sessions, held during periods D, E, and F, and spoke to students and faculty members. She wanted to hear students’ thinking about criminal justice and be able to answer any questions regarding the project’s work at the prison, as well as the overall field of higher education in prison, Lewen said.

In the reflections, Lewen not only covered specific details of the program but also put into perspective how the program’s structure is similar to that of the school’s, as she incorporates the value of having no limit to opportunities into the Prison University Project.

One of the main goals of the program is to expose the people incarcerated to new possibilities and to broaden their

horizons, she said.

“When we started the CCVA [in 2006], [Lewen] was one of the first speakers that we had because the work that she’s done in her life so clearly fit the objective of the Center, which is to combine education, ethics, and action,” Director of CCVA Dr. Jeremy Leeds said.

On her last visit, the CCVA organized several meetings where Lewen spoke.

“Now that we have a service-learning requirement, including Reflection sessions, we are able to offer reflection credit to students who attend meetings like Jody Lewen’s,” Leeds said. “One potential benefit of the reflection sessions with Jody Lewen is that they allow the attending students to think about how they might use their own education for a public purpose.” “[The CCVA] decided that [having Lewen speak at the school] would be a great way to open the year in terms of reflection activities,” he said.

Leeds hopes that this week’s reflections taught students about the issues involved in prison education, the prison system as a whole, as well as Lewen’s work, and have allowed students to find ways to become involved in the discussed issues, he said.

Prison has always been a topic of interest of Ragan Henderson’s (12), and the conditions of the incarcerated have always bothered her, she said. Henderson has taken interest in Lewen’s work as

a possible field for the future, and she wanted to learn about [Lewen’s] process, what she does, and how the project started, she said.

“The biggest goal for me is encouraging people to think critically about prison, as well as to reflect on the purpose of incarceration and its impact on the incarcerated people and society,” she said.

“I think that liberal arts education is a gateway to power in our society, so the [Prison University Project] helps to create pathways for people coming from disadvantaged positions,” she said.

For this reason, Lewen is interested in the way that liberal arts and higher education can disseminate social capital, in addition to employment and access to positions of power, she said.

Students in the program can receive an Associate of Arts degree, which is equivalent to a community college degree, that may take up to three or four years to achieve in prison, whereas the degree typically requires two years to receive.

The program’s students talk about discovering their own intellect and different disciplines that were unknown to them, Lewen said.

“I definitely want them to be prepared to have jobs that pay enough for them, and I hope that when they get out of prison, [the students] continue their education,” she said.

Ava Merker/Staff Photographer

PRISON UNIVERSITY PROJECT Jody Lewen ‘82 informs students and faculty of her education initiative for incarcerated men.

Jake Shapiro/Photo Editor

SAFETY FIRST Director of Security Mike McCaw talks safety.

Assembly explains new safety protocols Eliza Poster Staff Writer

The school’s annual Safety Assembly this past Wednesday centered on reiterating lockdown protocol, explaining changes in fire drill procedure, and introducing the Department of Public Safety staff to the student body.

“It’s a grand time to share information with all the students, faculty, and staff and our opportunity to let everyone know what’s happening around the campus, what our procedures are, and refresh everyone’s memory in that regard,” Director of Public Safety Mike McCaw said.

The assembly’s most important subject was evacuation and lockdown drill protocol, McCaw said.

The school implemented lockdown drills three years ago in response to the frequency of school shootings around the country, which required installing a wireless PA system around the campus and training students and faculty in lockdown procedures.

In addition, there will be no more unscheduled fire drills as assailants have been known to pull the fire alarm during attacks on schools.

Another major change to the school’s public safety is the addition of Lutnick Hall to campus. The same security systems and apparatuses, which

are installed in all other buildings, are also installed in the new facility, including cameras, AEDs, and emergency phones, McCaw said.

The Department of Public Safety also spent part of the assembly introducing themselves to the students and faculty. “It made me have more faith in the [Department of Public] safety just because when you introduce people it humanizes them and makes you have more trust in them,” Ben Hu (12) said.

This year, the Department of Public Safety changed its name from the Security Department due to the vast responsibilities that the branch bears, McCaw said.

“We changed so many different things since I came to the school and we’ve become more than a Security Department, we’re a Public Safety Department, which would be more of a response type of unit rather than just being guard positions and checking people coming in,” McCaw said.

McCaw’s goal for the assembly was to show students that they are safe at the school. “We want everyone to come to school, in light of all the violence in schools, to know that this is a safe zone and they’re all safe and protected, and leave in that frame of mind so they can go about getting educated and having fun,” he said.

Blackout Days to reduce stress, relieve maintenance schedules Eddie Jin Staff Writer

INSIDE

Administrators have decided to reimplement an initiative called Blackout Days, two to three nights per month where the school will designate certain calendar days to be free of non-essential events after 6 p.m.

“Over the past several years we’ve fallen into a practice of keeping students after school and well past the late bus on more than just a handful of occasions. In addition, Saturday and Saturday evenings have become popular program venues and practice times for all sorts of events beyond athletics, theatre and music,” Head of School Dr. Tom Kelly said.

Blackout Days were first implemented to help students’ well-being and work in conjunction with other shifts to reduce student stress, including the shift to semesters and removal of AP classes and final exams, Head of Upper Division Dr. Jessica Levenstein said.

“Students will rise to any occasion,” Dean of Student Life Dr. Susan Delanty said. For this reason, Delanty believes students need “unscheduled time” away from school activities, she said.

“In all their enthusiasm, students sometimes overload on activities,” Levenstein said. “We were hearing from families that they never see their kids.”

Another factor prompting the introduction of Blackout Days was to

Eco education

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Margot Rosenblatt (12) discusses the need for environmental education.

ease the schedule of the Maintenance and Public Safety Departments, Delanty said.

“Our calendar was bursting at the seams,” Levenstein said.

Director of Public Safety Mike McCaw believes the vacant nights will ease the stress on security staff, he said. With fewer events, less staff are needed to control vehicular traffic and maintain operations, McCaw said.

Nonetheless, security staff will still man the campus at all hours, McCaw said.

While preventing some extracurricular activity, Blackout Days are not projected to obstruct regular events.

“A Blackout Day does not mean that at 6 p.m. everybody has to vacate the school;

Clubs and pubs

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Updates about the school’s newest additions to the Clubs Fair.

it just means we can’t put additional things on the calendar,” Levenstein said.

“Often a club or an adult at the school is interested in finding a day to put an event in. The Blackout Day just means don’t touch that day; it’s full enough or comes at a time when we all need a break.”

Richard He (12) often finds that concerts and other additional events can add more pressure during already stressful times, he said. “Knowing that certain days will be open to just study is a relief,” He said.

“As we consider how health and wellness play into a successful journey at HM, so too does rest and time with family and even friends,” Kelly said.

Humans of HM

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Everything you never knew about your friends and teachers.

Jackson Roberts/Arts Editor

@hm.record @thehoracemannrecord Horace Mann School 231 W 246th St, Bronx, NY 10471

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THE RECORD OPINIONS SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

Eco versus ego

Margot Rosenblatt Almost every day in my F period class last year, one of my classmates attempted to throw his plastic bottle like a basketball across the room into the trash can. I’m sure everyone has seen this. Naturally, my classmate’s actions annoyed me; each bottle not recycled contributes to the death of plants and wildlife when it breaks down and seeps into the soil. Every time he attempted (mostly unsuccessfully) to be LeBron, I would walk up to the trash can, take the bottle out, and walk it the ten or so feet outside of the classroom to the recycling bin. My classmate’s behavior didn’t upset me because he wouldn’t recycle. It upset me because it signified something much bigger: that we as an institution, students and teachers alike, have an extremely blasé and frankly harmful attitude towards environmental issues.

The first sign that Horace Mann students don’t give the environment its due is our attitude towards learning about it. I’m sure we’ve all had many scintillating conversations about honors and AP classes. To us, the competitive and highly accomplished few, these classes are not just a measure of intelligence, but a measure of ambition and potential. So when the talk last year inevitably turned to my classes, I declared to my peers with the utmost pride and self-respect that I was currently enrolled in AP Environmental Science. I received a range of similar responses: my peers declared “that’s not a real AP” or “that’s not a real science.” The fact that Horace Mann students don’t consider environmental science a legitimate class shows how much our education regarding our current earth has failed us.

Let me take a step back for a moment to defend AP Environmental Science. First of all, it was the third hardest AP last year according to College Board data. Secondly, while my fellow “enviro” classmates and I may not have drowned miles off shore like those in AP Chemistry, I believe the material we learned is of much more value in our day-to-day lives. When I’m an adult buying groceries, it’s far more important for me to think to check if the food I’m buying is sustainably sourced than reflect on electron orbitals or event horizons.

Besides its many useful applications, enviro seems like the next natural step in scientific education. So you’ve learned biology, chemistry, and physics, now apply it to the real world in ways that matter. Yes, “physics is everywhere,” but environmental science is equally pervasive in our everyday lives. It’s more that just the culmination of everything we’ve been taught: enviro teaches us why we study science. We study it to see the beauty in the world around us and to help the earth and its inhabitants.

The “Environment” is defined as our surroundings, especially our immediate ones. Therefore, the study of our environment is practical - so we are not limited to the theoretical.

As for why we should take environmental science much more seriously as a class, the answer is obvious: climate change is the defining issue of our time. In a few hundred years, we will either be remembered as the generation who took action, or as the generation who quite literally

destroyed the world. The earth itself is the endgame, so what we do in the next couple years can tip the balance between life and death for the entire world. This is important. We have to keep constantly moving towards a greener future. Environmental change is our future, and since we as Horace Mann students are the future of leaders and innovators, we need to think about this issue because it defines who we are as a generation. So, why don’t we talk about this more? Why don’t we learn about it in every class? How can we be well educated, informed adults without being taught vital information for that end?

Frankly, it’s incredible.

Even more appalling than the tiny number of students who took environmental science last year (there were five, myself included) is the fact that the class exists at all. What the five of us learned should already be integrated into our core classes, especially science and history.

Since this information isn’t in our regular curriculum, environmental science should at least be a mandatory class. Because we are not taught about it or educated on this issue, many kids walk around our school thinking it’s okay to throw plastic water bottles into trash cans as if they were basketballs. Even worse, the majority of us know not to do so but do it anyway. To those people, it seems like nobody around them even really cares. This notion is only encouraged by the lack of environmental education in our school. It’s time we started learning about important issues and putting change into practice.

Another problem with eco-culture at Horace Mann is how it’s branded. Environmental issues are portrayed as unsolvable problems for hippies and communists to tackle. I think ecological problems need a reboot. Horace Mann students, who often tend to lean Machiavellian in nature, should focus on the environment for selfish reasons. Making the world more green will raise incomes and standards of living everywhere. Even if students don’t want to serve humanity or do what is ethically right, environmental science is still extremely relevant as an area of study because green technology is the future, and will be lucrative. Also important to Horace Mann culture is rigor; when done right, environmental science is “important” and “difficult.” All the class needs is a new name and reputation, and it will be Horace Mann-ready.

Another great thing about Horace Mann as a school is our competitive attitude, especially towards other schools; let me make my final plea to that side of our nature. We are simply miles behind other schools. Fieldston, for example, has stickers on their paper towel dispensers that say “these come from trees.” That is simple and proven to work.

Many New York high schools have banned water bottles in favor of free water dispenser with recyclable cups. There is precedent, and there are feasible steps we can take - all it takes is a small shift in our worldview. If we go green, not only will we have the edge on other schools, we will also have something over everyone else in the rest of our lives who doesn’t see the the potential of the solutions to this very real problem. An added bonus is that we will make the world a better place. So please take environmental science or at least learn about it on your own. Take these issues to heart. Join Green HM, write for Eco, sign a petition, donate to environmental causes. Recycle, carry a water bottle, and be a forward-thinking modern individual who embraces the future instead of fearing change.

A writer for “Parent Association kicks off the new year” and “Sixth graders to explore identity and social justice in new seminar” was Nishtha Sharma.

Her name was spelled wrong in the article.

The Record regrets these errors. Please report any corrections to record@horacemann.org.

Volume 116 Editorial Board Managing Editor Betsey Bennett

Editor in Chief Lynne Sipprelle

Features Abby Kanter Megha Nelivigi

News Katie Goldenberg Surya Gowda

Lions’ Den Natasha Stange Brody McGuinn William Han

Photography Abigail Kraus Ahaan Palla Jake Shapiro

Art Directors Juli Moreira Jackson Robers

Faculty Adviser David Berenson

Juli Moreira/Art Director

Issues Editor Sadie Schwartz A&E Opinions Peri Brooks Rebecca Siegel Jeren Wei Abigail Goldberg-Zelizer Middle Division Sandhya Shyam Columnists Tenzin Sherpa Solomon Katz

Design Editors Allison DeRose Caroline Kaplan Online Editor Henry Wildermuth

Flash Flood Alert

After torrential downpours hit the New York area on Tuesday, Horace Mann students weren’t just drowning just in work or emails about clubs, but actual water. In addition to creating larger than normal puddles across campus, the excessive rain caused those stairs whose location nobody can actually describe (“you know, how you get into that area between Fisher and Pforzheimer”) to flood. The Middle School Science Department was ecstatic because they were able to relocate the seventh grade stream wading lab from Dorr to the staircase, and in the 70th mass email everyone received this week, the sponsors of the water bottle embargo encouraged students to head outside to fill up their reusable water bottles. For the rest of the school, the incident was viewed as a serious hazard. The flooding came up in a heated D period question and answers session after the safety assembly. When asked how students ought to best prepare for future rainy days, the Public Safety department gave the following tips:

1. Stay inside.

2. Ditch your umbrellas in favor of holding your bag over your head as you

book it across the field.

3. Sneakers or normal rain boots won’t cut it – you’re probably going to need a full body wetsuit or Glenn Sheratt’s personal collection of wading pants.

4. If it’s really raining you should be prepared for the possibility of needing to swim. If this is an issue for you, contact: thatcher_woodley@horacemann. org.

EDITORIAL

This week, our community had the privilege of hosting Jody Lewen ‘82, founder of the Prison University Project. The organization’s goal is to provide an education to incarcerated people in San Quentin Prison and set a standard for educational equality and criminal justice in California and around the world. The editorial board was inspired by Lewen’s mission to reflect on the necessity of equality in education access, and acknowledge just how lucky we are as Horace Mann students.

We are very fortunate to have access to the kind of education we receive at Horace Mann—many people simply do not have the opportunities. Lewen and others have seen the potential in incarcerated men and women, and understand the necessity of providing everyone with an equal opportunity at receiving an education. We’re reminded that just because someone doesn’t have access to something doesn’t mean they do not deserve it. During one of her talks, Lewen asked a thought-provoking question: since when did we begin to accept that education is a scarce commodity?

An education is a basic human right, we believe, and thus should be universal—no one should be deprived of that.

At Horace Mann, our taxing school days, long lists of extracurriculars, and sleepless nights may sometimes allow us to lose sight of why we push ourselves so hard. When we often find ourselves complaining and competing about the amount of work we have, we’re neglecting the privileges we’re afforded at HM. Ultimately, however, we complain because we value our education.

We may not always realize it, but what we’re taught in school shapes our morals, beliefs, and ideas for the rest of our lives; without an education, we are lost.

It’s worth noting that Lewen was once in our shoes, and she was able to use her privilege for the good of the greater community; we too have this ability-- to use our privilege to impact the world for the better. As members of the community, let’s remind ourselves to reflect on what we have as much as we can, and join the movement for educational equality and access for all.

Staff Writers Malhaar Agrawal, Laura Bae, Andrew Cassino, Mayanka Dhingra, Victor Dimitrov, Amelia Feiner, Mark Fernandez, Nelson Gaillard, Leonora Gogos, Jude Herwitz, Edwin Jin, Spencer Kahn, Samuel Keimweiss, Gabrielle Kepnes, Madison Li, Noah Phillips, Eliza Poster, Julia Robbins, Kiara Royer, Abigail Salzhauer, Nishtha Sharma, Griffin Smith, Benjamin Wang, Robbie Werdiger, Simon Yang, Isabella Zhang, Bradley Bennett, Sogona Cisse, Jackson Feigin, Adam Frommer, Andie Goldmacher, Marina Kazarian, John Mauro, Henry Owens, Emily Shi, Samuel Singer, Sasha Snyder, Vivien Sweet, Joshua Underberg Staff Photographers Eva Fortunato, Iliana Dezelic, Griffin Smith, Harrison Haft, Andrew Cassino, Julia Isko, Julia Robbins, Daniel Lee, Ava Merker Staff Artists Elizabeth Fortunato, Alexandra Crotty

Editorial Policy ABOUT The Record is published weekly by the students of Horace Mann School to provide the community with information and entertainment, as well as various viewpoints in the forms of editorials and opinion columns. All editorial decisions regarding content, grammar and layout are made by the editorial board. The Record maintains membership in the Columbia Scholastic Press Association and National Scholastic Press Association.

EDITORIALS & OPINIONS Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of the majority of the senior editorial board. Opinion columns are the sole opinion of the author and not of The Record or the editorial board.

NOTE As a student publication, the contents of The Record are the views and work of the students and do not necessarily represent those of the faculty or administration of the Horace Mann School. The Horace Mann School is not responsible for the accuracy and content of The Record, and is not liable for any claims based on the contents or views expressed therein.

LETTERS To be considered for publication in the next issue, letters to the editor should be submitted by mail (The Record, 231 West 246th Street, Bronx, NY 10471) or e-mail (record@horacemann.org) before 6 p.m. on Wednesday evening. All submissions must be signed and should refer to a Record article. Letters may be edited for grammar, style, length and clarity.

CONTACT For all comments, queries, story suggestions, complaints or corrections, or for information about subscribing, please contact us by email at record@horacemann.org.

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HORACE MANN NEWS SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

New construction faces hurdles Kiara Royer Staff Writer

Although the HM in Motion project was slated to be completed by September of 2018, the ongoing construction not only requires additional work after the school day but affects some aspects of student learning.

The construction crew is currently working daily from four p.m. to midnight in order not to interfere with the school day, Director of Facilities Management Gordon Jensen said. Jensen has assigned construction personnel to work during the day for the sake of efficiency but only if their work is not near a classroom that could be disturbed, he said.

Since some new developments will be installed indefinitely, it is really important that they completed the construction correctly, he said.

“Prettyman Hall was built in 1923, and whenever you are working with an existing structure, there will be unknowns you will have to deal with on the spot,” Jensen said.

Not only did the construction crew discover that most of the electrical units in Prettyman were not up to modern code and had to be replaced, but they also had to install a completely new air conditioning system, he said.

The fire and building inspectors’ inability to respond to the invitation to inspect the site also delayed the start of construction, Jensen said.

“These delays take weeks, and we only got our Certificate of Occupancy one to two weeks before school. Since the summer is only 11 weeks long, it doesn’t surprise me that the work extended into the school year,” he said.

Although the project has faced delays in some areas, the cafe in Lutnick Hall is almost ready to operate as soon as the cabinets are installed, Jensen said.

“The cafe and new student lounge seem really nice and I’m excited for when the cafe opens, but I haven’t really seen a lot of people hanging out in the new building, which will hopefully change,” Leyli Granmayeh (10) said.

Other aspects that still need to be installed include the permanent windows in the Simon Family Fitness Center and the doors for the hallways of Prettyman Hall, Jensen said.

Safety materials such as cameras, emergency call boxes, and shelter-in-place buckets are also still currently being placed in classrooms, Director of Public Safety Mike McCaw said.

One of the last pieces of construction to be finished will be the basement of Lutnick, as construction can be completed without interfering current classes or student life, Jensen said.

The basement will include a research lab as well as physics labs, he said.

The tennis courts are one of the bigger challenges because it is a time consuming process for the construction crew to tear down the old asphalt, Jensen said. In addition, as the weather turns colder, the construction crew will be unable to continue their work, he said.

“It’s unfortunate, but the tennis courts may not be complete until I can resume construction in the spring,” Jensen said.

Besides the tennis courts, the construction for the rest of the project should be completed by winter break, he said.

Kelly Troop/Contributing Photographer

Faculty of Color Dinner offers reflection, connection for staff On Monday night, faculty and staff who identify as people of color (POC) gathered off campus for a dinner held by the Office for Identity, Culture and Institutional Equity (ICIE).

The dinner, which has been taking place since 2013, happens twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring. The dinner serves as a confidential affinity space for faculty and staff that self identify as people of color to connect with each other and discuss shared experiences at the school, ICIE Associate Sharina Gordon said.

“We started doing this dinner because the number of people of color in the faculty and staff was growing and we felt it was a good opportunity to bring people together,” Director the ICIE Patricia Zuroski said.

The event gave faculty and staff who may work on different parts of the campus and don’t get to interact the opportunity to share experiences, Zuroski said.

“The event was a wonderful opportunity to connect, have conversations and meet new people,” Candice Powell-Caldwell ICIE Associate said.

The event has grown and the number of faculty and staff of color on campus have

UD Faculty Poetry reading showcases staff work Laura Bae Staff Writer

WORK IN PROGRESS Construction crews work after hours to complete renovations.

Abigail Salzhauer Staff Writer

Julia Roth/Staff Artist

Today, faculty will gather in Fisher Rotunda to share their poetic creations at the first Upper Division Faculty Poetry Reading. The event will also promote English teacher Harry Bauld’s newly published book of poems, The Uncorrected Eye. The event is the first of its kind to feature the creative writingg of faculty members. “We have a lot of opportunities and events where we highlight students’ writing at this school, but I think it is interesting for students to see their teachers in a different role than just teaching—to see that their teachers are also artists and are also producing their own art,” English teacher Kimberly Traube said.

The event will further celebrate faculty accomplishments by promoting Bauld’s new book of poetry, “an art and passion that Bauld is entirely devoted to,” Head of the English department Vernon Wilson said.

While the majority of participants reading pieces will be from the English department, mathematics teacher Richard Somma and former Middle Division English teacher Molly Johnson will also share their work.

“Mr. Somma is going to read his work, and that to me is the highlight: people in other departments are willing to share their poems,” English teacher Harry Bauld said.

“I’m hoping that it will encourage other secret poets among the adults, because anybody who undertakes the ridicule and penury that poetry writing brings to you deserves support, encouragement, and a brief round of applause,” he said.

Somma believes the reading will be beneficial to the community of faculty.

“I think there’s something in other faculty learning something about me so that they can see me in a different light,” he said.

Traube hopes that the event inspires not only the adults, but also students with their own writing, and encourages students nervous about reading to take the plunge and share their own work at the next student reading, she said.

“We’re going to learn something about everyone who reads and what they love,” Somma said. “That alone that they love it is good to share. Poetry is an expression of people.”

increased, Co-Director of the ICIE John Gentile said. In addition, the event has changed from strictly a gathering to a place to reflect and think about what faculty and staff of color need in the community, Gentile said.

The event has never had a keynote speaker, rather, the attendees have the opportunity to break up into small groups and discuss aspects of curriculum or better ways to support faculty of color from an institutional standpoint, in addition to a general checkin as to how things are going, Gordon said.

“My biggest motivation for attending the dinner is, as a new faculty member, I wanted an opportunity to, first of all, meet other faculty and staff who identify as people of color, and also to get a different perspective on Horace Mann as an institution and see the opportunities available to us and places where there is work to be done,” Upper Division history teacher Ricardo Alvarez-Pimentel said.

Gordon looked forward to getting to meet the new faculty and staff of color and being able to have a more intimate moment with them.

“As a faculty member this helped me feel support in many ways and there is an aspect of mentorship that was there informally which in turn allows me to be a more prepared educator Courtesy of Patricia Zuroski when I go into the classroom,” AlvarezEVERYBODY EATS Faculty of color gather for annual dinner to celebrate and reflect.

Pimentel said.

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THE RECORD FEATURES SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

All the Latest in Clubs and Pubs

Experimenting with STEM Clubs Julia Goldberg and Talia Winiarsky Contributing Writers

Many students are bringing their passion for science outside of the classroom this year by experimenting with new science clubs: AstroParPhy, Women in Science and Engineering, STEAM on the Hill, and Women in Biology and Medicine.

Karen Jang (12) is the founder of the Astro ParPhy club, which will give students the opportunity to learn about subtopics of physics such as astronomy and particle physics. The club is open to all high schoolers, including freshmen and sophomores who have not yet had the opportunity to take physics.

Abi Kraus/Photo Editor

WISE BEYOND THEIR YEARS Students sign-up for WISE at clubs’ fair.

“I hope to emphasize lab experiments, such as the building of cloud chambers and cosmic ray tubes,” Jang said. “Learning in the classroom is one experience, but actually performing the experiments and seeing the particles yourself is a completely different one,” she said.

She also mentioned a possibility of video chats with physicists such as Dr. Michio Kaku from the City College of New York.

Janvi Kukreja (12) established the Women in Science and Engineering club (WISE). The club has two branches. The first will host Saturday morning workshops at the school for Middle Division girls, where they will have the opportunity to work on experiments and engineering challenges. The second will be a course offered to participants of HM 246, an after-school Service Learning program.

Kukreja believes it was important for her to establish a club specifically for girls interested in science and engineering, she said.

“I saw a pattern of girls not pursuing their own passions and living up to their potential, simply because they would be the only girl in their situation,” Kukreja said. “It’s important for younger girls to know that they are capable. I want this club to make them feel comfortable when exploring science.”

STEAM on the Hill, founded by Jeffrey Chen (11), Rohan Bhatia (11), Ahaan Palla (11), and Julia Roth (12), connects the school’s Upper Division (UD) students with Summer on the Hill.

Originally, Chen, Bhatia, and Palla applied for and won the Capelluto Gant offered by the Alexander Capelluto Foundation.

They also approached Summer on the Hill Director Markell Parker with their idea for a new club which would allow UD students who are knowledgeable about computer science, engineering, and business to teach Summer on the Hill students.

At the same time, Roth came to Parker to speak about a program where Summer on the Hill students could learn about video production, primarily sports broadcasting, from Annabelle Chan/ Contributing Artist UD students, she said.

Parker informed the four students of their similar ideas, and they “automatically knew they should join forces,” Roth said.

Publication Nation

WOMEN IN BIO AND MEDICINE Tatiana Pavletich (12) poses at clubs’ fair.

“It’s going to serve as an opportunity for Upper Division students to direct their genuine passions about science straight back into the community,” Bhatia said.

“Video production has been a huge part of my life, and having the ability to share it with younger kids is incredible,” Roth said.

Tatiana Pavletich (12) is the founder of Women in Biology and Medicine, which is going to “provide a safe space for women at our school interested in biology to further explore their interests,” she said.

Pavletich loves biology and has always wanted to incorporate more of it into the school. Although there are many science-based clubs at the school, none focus primarily on biology and medicine, she said.

Pavletich expects to have study sessions for the school’s science classes, especially for biology. Furthermore, she wants to invite female doctors and researchers as speakers in her club.

“I’ve worked in labs before, and I’ve seen how underrepresented women are in the field. It only made me want to market the club towards women more,” she said. “I’m excited to have female speakers share their own personal experiences in the field with our community.”

Daniel Lee and Steven Borodkin Contributing Writers

FOOD ‘N’ FRIENDS Juniors promote their publication.

Ahaan Palla/Photo Editor

Other New Clubs Alison Isko and Izzy Abbott Contributing Writers

This year, there are a number of new clubs for students to join, including the New York City Interfaith Network, the Hospital Outreach Program, and the Puppy Club.

The New York City Interfaith Network, led by Diana Shaari (11), Nader Granmayeh (12), and Richard Hausman (12), was created in order to bring awareness to a previously overlooked group, to help stop islamophobia, and to bridge the gap between two divided communities.

“We believe that while islamophobia and racial division might seem entrenched and too arduous to tackle in this current climate, each conversation, each school exchange, and each budding friendship creates a ripple of hope and a promise of change,” Granmayeh said. His goal is for the program to continue monthly conversations held with the Muslim students from the Al-Noor School in Brooklyn, and he hopes the club will work with the mayor’s office to spread awareness of the organization throughout the city.

The Hospital Outreach Program, led by Sam Keimweiss (11) was started as a way to give students an opportunity to volunteer at hospitals, but it will also provide a way to fulfill the service learning requirement, he said.

Inspired by an idea from Jack Weber ‘17, who had wanted to bring students to visit children in the hospital with cancer, the goal is to teach students not only how to volunteer at hospitals, but to

Abi Kraus/Photo Editor

This year, there are a number of new publications to look out for, ranging from ones that focus on environmental issues to history to business.

Framework is a new publication that aims to use American history to analyze current events, co-founder Jacob Rosenzweig (11) said.

While the school already has many different publications that focus on current events, Framework will be different.

The club wants writers to consider lesser known issues in American history and use them to predict what may happen in the not-so-distant future, Rosenzweig said.

Devil’s Advocate is a new bi-monthly publication that will challenge their writers to construct articles that argue against the point of view they normally align themselves with, and be their own ‘Devil’s Advocate.”

“Sometimes we feel that Horace Mann kids don’t want to broaden their perspectives to see that someone who is arguing against them isn’t simply insane,” said Shrey Sahgal (11), co-founder of the Devil’s Advocate.

“We want people to enhance their arguments and understanding of the world by analyzing their opposition.

Everyone believes something for a reason,” co-founder Oliver Keimweiss (11) said.

The Devil’s Advocate advocates for change within the school and hopes to provide a platform for students to explore new ideas, Sahgal said.

ECO2 is a new publication that focuses on bringing about a sense of urgency within the school community about environmental issues and climate change.

“There’s very little action being taken against [climate change],” said Silvia Wang (12), founder of the new publication. “I wanted to explore the issue through a different lens.”

Wang believes that the issue of climate change is underrepresented within the government and the media, and she hopes that the publication will allow its readers to understand the issue through political, social, and scientific lenses, she said.

Venture, co-founded by Benjamin Rosenzweig (11) and Leanne Shabtai (11), is a new publication focused on analyzing businesses.

“The purpose of Venture is for students to learn more about how start-up companies work and whether a company has the tools and management to be successful,” Shabtai said.

Venture hopes to educate students about investments, the business world, and how real venture capitalists analyze businesses.

connect them with different volunteer programs as well. A hospital employee may come to talk to the club, and a reflection session for the volunteers and those interested in the club will be hosted later in the year, said Keimweiss.

Founded by Ryan Hoang (12), the Puppy Club will aim to bring more joy and help relieve stress throughout the school year.

“I don’t have a lot of time left at the school, and wanted to find a way to bring my friends and the community together,” Hoang said.

Hoang aims to send weekly mass emails with puppy pictures and videos as well as host therapy dogs during testing weeks to give people a little relief during busy school days, he said.

“Sometimes when I’m stressed out I just need to watch cute puppy videos to calm me down,” Hoang said. “I just wanted to create a low-commitment Abi Kraus/Photo Editor club that would allow HOSPITAL OUTREACH Sam Keimweiss (11) reaches out to writers. myself and my peers to catch a break during all the school chaos.”

Jackson Roberts/Art Director

5

HORACE MANN FEATURES SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

Humans of Mr. Lionel Garrison Simon Yang Staff Writer

Some may be surprised to learn that Director of the Upper Division Tutoring Office Lionel Garrison Jr. started his teaching career on Saint Croix, one of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Garrison moved to Saint Croix immediately after graduating from college, following his father, who also worked on the island, he said.

During his stay, Garrison taught at St. Dunstan’s

High School, a parochial school. The school was very small, so Garrison taught multiple subjects, including math, physics, chemistry, and even archery, he said.

Initially, only U.S. citizens could utilize public services, such as schools and hospitals, on the island, he said. The situation was awful, with hundreds of kids having nowhere to go all day.

“Several times, kids would break into my parents’ house to steal food,” Garrison said.

“They would take food out of the fridge, cook it, eat it on the spot, and leave. It was a pathetic situation, but we couldn’t blame the children.”

Garrison also witnessed the horrifying effects of Hurricane Hugo in 1989, he said. Although he was not on the island at the time of the hurricane, his family suffered from the disaster, and what he saw when he returned was indescribable.

“One of my sisters put her two young children in the bathtub, and she lay on top of her kids while her house was completely blown away,” Garrison said. “It took nearly a week for me to get a call that my family was still alive.”

None of the schools on the island were able to re-open for a year after the hurricane, Garrison said.

Regardless of the natural disasters, Garrison cherished the strong sense of community in Saint Croix. “If my car broke down in the middle of the road, someone would always stop by to come ask me if I needed help,” he said.

Garrison still returns to St. Croix with his family during his vacations, and his sister continues to live and teach on the island, he said.

Courtesy of Lionel Garrison

Dr. Jillian Davidson Ben Wang Staff Writer

Most students know Middle School Latin Teacher Dr. Jillian Davidson for her entertaining classes, but few know she is also a renowned World War I scholar.

Over the past summer, she attended two conferences in Australia to provide new details of the Jewish experience during World War I. During her undergraduate years, Davidson realized that there was no established connection between World War I and Jewish history, she said.

She wondered “whether there was a Jewish Literature equivalent to the great British World War I poets and authors.”

Since the 100th year anniversary of the War, Davidson has participated in countless events. “I have been attending and presenting at conferences in England, Austria, Israel, here in the United States and, this summer, in Australia,” Davidson said.

Davidson also writes about centennial events for Centenary News, an online international coverage of the centenary of World War I, she said.

The two conferences she attended this past summer were held in Australia, one in Melbourne, and the other in Newcastle. “At both conferences, I tried to present aspects of the Jewish story,” Davidson said.

“There was an incredible intermingling of languages, cultures and ideas even amidst such tragedy,” she said.

Specifically, she focused on “how Jews recorded and archived the war experience” and how Jews fighting in

armies worldwide “responded to conflicting issues of patriotic, religious, and political” loyalties.

“It was striking how so many of the values discussed at the conference were aligned with the values of Horace Mann: global collaboration, identities, diversity, equality and emotional learning,” Davidson said.

Jacob Shapiro/Photo Editor

David Orloff (10) Ben Wang Staff Writer

For many musicians, playing at Carnegie Hall is a goal to strive toward, but for David Orloff (10), it’s a feat he has already accomplished.

Orloff has played the piano since he was eight years old, he said. Like many musicians, his career began with his parents forcing piano on him, but he eventually grew to like it.

“I wanted to do it more and more. I started to enjoy it, and I think [playing an instrument] is an important skill to have,” Orloff said.

He loves that he can now learn to play any piece within a month, he said. One of his favorite pieces is Paganini’s Variations.

Currently, Orloff practices every day for 30 minutes to an hour and a-half, he said.

Beyond just musicality, Orloff has learned valuable life skills through piano as well, he said.

“I learned how to focus and concentrate on one specific thing and perfect that one thing.”

All that work was exemplified in his earning first place at the American Fine Arts Festival in 2015. As part of the first-place prize, Orloff had the chance to play in the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.

Despite performing in that famous venue, however, Orloff does not enjoy performing for

large crowds, so he has not performed during any assemblies, he said.

And although Orloff is an accomplished pianist, he does not plan to pursue a professional career in music, he said. “This is definitely going to be a hobby in the future. I think I can put this to good use, maybe help somebody learn how to play.”

Irati Egorho Diez (11) Simon Yang Staff Writer

Irati Egorho Diez (11) moved to Lebanon with her mother last September, learning Arabic and volunteering for nine months before returning to the school.

Egorho Diez was fascinated by the idea of learning Arabic after following her mother to a conference in Canada, she said. There, she witnessed Saharawi activists and Moroccans debate in Arabic. Egorho Diez felt the urge to understand what they were saying, although she did have preliminary knowledge of Arabic, she said.

During her stay, Egorho Diez went to school at College des Soeurs du Rosaire, a school run by Lebanese nuns in a town called Bourj Hammoud near Beirut. Half of the classes were in French and half were in Arabic, which allowed her to study both languages intensely, she said.

Egorho Diez also participated in a small organization called Beitouna during the weekends.

The organization aimed to bring together people of different nationalities and religions, she said.

“There is a lot of tension between Christians and Muslims, as well as between Lebanese and Syrians in the area, so Beitouna’s goal is to promote peaceful coexistence,” Egorho Diez said.

Egorho Diez helped run activities for kids on Saturdays, such as arts and crafts and book reading, she said.

“Beitouna was an escape and a beacon for the children of Bourj Hammoud,” Egorho Diez said.

“It was where they could create and have their

work valued and appreciated.”

Egorho Diez found it especially difficult to adjust to the rhythm of the country. “Aspects of life that were very different for me, such as electricity cuts and water cuts, were definitely something I had to get used to, but they helped me better understand life in Lebanon,” Egorho Diez said.

Courtesy of Irati Egorho Diez

Courtesy of Jillian Davidson

Brian Wu (11) Andie Goldmacher Staff Writer When Earth is no longer habitable and the entire human race is saved by relocation to a habitable planet, it will be Brian Wu (11) you’ll be thanking.

Wu first became interested in astronomy and astrophysics at the age of two, and in 2011, he saw his first rocket launch of the Curiosity Rover being sent to Mars, he said.

Wu believes that Earth is slowly becoming uninhabitable for several reasons, including the extreme fluctuations in weather caused by global warming, he said.

This summer, he worked with a professor at the University of Florida and discovered nine giant planets, one brown dwarf, and three binary stars, as well as a unique circumbinary planet using the radial velocity method, he said.

According to Las Combres Observatory, the radial velocity method uses the center of gravity of a massive star to see if it is moving towards or away

Jacob Shapiro/Photo Editor

from us using blue and red light.

A circumbinary planet orbits two stars rather than one, and there are only about 20 of them that have been discovered, he said. The planet Wu discovered was the first of its kind to be discovered using this method.

These discoveries could change our view of how the solar system was formed and also hint that there may be many more undiscovered worlds in the universe with potential to support human life, he said.

In the future, Wu plans to work on publishing his findings in a leading astronomical journal, he said. The process of publication could take one or two more years.

Wu will give a TEDx talk on October 20th in Jacksonville, Florida. He competed with 300 other candidates to earn one of thirteen slots for a speech.

He continues to explore his interests in astronomy and astrophysics at the school by participating in Spectrum and Apsis Arrow, the aerospace and engineering club, he said.

6

THE RECORD ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

Spotlight: Spectrum

School band looks forward to their final year, remains hopeful for future Julia Robbins Staff Writer Look back five years and you can find the beginnings of the student band ‘Spectrum’ in the school’s official Middle Division band.

Now, five band members united by a love of music continue to perform.

Bassist, pianist, and singer James Gluck (12) came up with the name Spectrum, but before the band hit the main stages of the Upper Division (UD), you might have heard of them as “Middle School Band,” “Concrete Jungle,” and “Atlantic Crescent.”

The inspiration for the current name of the band comes from its diversity, as it is comprised of individuals of a variety of genders, races, and religions, guitarist and bassist Olivia Kester (12) said.

With Gluck and lead singer Eunice Bae (12) as the original members, Spectrum continued to expand until high school. Kester and guitarist Allen Park (12) joined later in middle school and drummer Nyle Hutchinson (12) joining in ninth grade.

“In seventh grade, a trial for the band started, because [Former MD Dean Lynne] Hirschhorn always wanted there to be a middle school band,” Gluck said. Hirschhorn wanted to add energy to Middle Mania with a performance by a student band, she said, and felt that the students “performed beautifully” at the event.

While the initial purpose of the band was to perform for Middle Mania, a division wide year-end competition, the band expanded their venue, performing at assemblies and other division wide events.

As a result, the band rehearsed frequently throughout the year. “We’d practice once or twice a month during a free period in the recording studio,” Gluck said.

Former Math Teacher Ben Childs was

FIVE SENIORS, FIVE YEARS Band performs at school talent show. instrumental in supervising the band during their practice sessions and helping the band work through the creative process, Hirschhorn said. “Mr. Childs asked a lot of them because they saw how talented they were.”

After middle school, the band continued performing. “Once it came to high school it was our own decision to keep the band going,” Park said. “We have to schedule [events] ourselves and practice on our own instead of having an adult say “you should practice at this time.”

One of the biggest strengths of the band is the strong friendships of its members.

Bae and her bandmates feel lucky to be part of such a “tight-knit group,” she said. All the members were friends before Spectrum and are even closer now because of the time spent

Courtesy of James Gluck

together as a band, Bae said.

“We have a really good chemistry,” Hutchinson said. Hutchinson’s favorite parts of being on the band are the “rehearsals and the moments leading up to performances.”

Not only has the band brought the group closer together, their musical ability has developed over the years as well.“I think that my skills in electric guitar and using a pick really advanced because of the band,” Park said.

Of the band members, Hutchinson, Kester, Park, and Gluck have played their respective instruments from a young age. Hutchinson has been drumming since fifth grade and sees the drums as the first instrument he was “called to.” “My mom always tells me that when I was really little,” he said. “In the middle of [Church

services], I would stand near the drum set,” Hutchinson said.

Unlike her bandmates’ early callings, Bae never foresaw her singing career. She doesn’t take vocal lessons and her only prior singing experience was as part of a choral group elective in a piano focused program, she said.

Band members are helpful before performances in calming each other down, Bae said. Spectrum has performed in a variety of school wide assemblies, a talent show, and the school’s American Cancer Society fundraiser, Relay for Life, over the past two years.

One of the events that the band members are most looking forward to this year is the first ever “Battle of the Bands,” a city wide competition in which the winners donate a sum of the competition’s profits to a charity of their choosing. “We’re trying to put this together because it’s our last year here and we want to do something really meaningful as a band,” she added.

Throughout the many years of Spectrum’s existence, one of its greatest challenges has been overcoming time constraints. It’s difficult to find times to meet, Kester said, especially given that she leaves before H period every day for crew practice.

Hoping to end senior year on a high note, Hutchinson, along with the other members of the band, are eager for a group of underclassmen to form a band for next year.

“We want to encourage younger students to make a group, because we still want there to be a group after we graduate,” Park said.

“I’m talking to a lot of different underclassmen, working out ways to help them build their own band,” Hutchinson said.

So for any underclassmen thinking about starting a band, perhaps the best thing to think about are Gluck’s following words: “It’s just fun to play music with people who you like.”

Drawing and painting classes explore galleries in Downtown Manhattan Oliver Steinman Contributing Writer

On September 28, Visual Arts Teacher Kim Do’s AP Studio and Honors Drawing and Painting 4 and 5 classes will visit several art galleries in downtown Manhattan. The trip will focus on what Do calls “perceptual” and “scientific” art, which connects to the work his students are creating in class, he said.

The students will attend Jim Weidle’s exhibit, Paint Happens at the Blue Mountain Gallery in Chelsea, Red Grooms’ Ruckus Manhattan at the

Marlborough Gallery in Chelsea, Kyle Staver’s exhibit at the Zurcher gallery in Greenwich Village, and Rackstraw Downes’ painting and drawing exhibit at the Betty Cuningham Gallery on the Lower East Side, Do said.

Ruckus Manhattan is a papier maché model of New York City from the 1970s. Do describes Grooms’ Ruckus Manhattan as “cartoony,” while he explains Staver’s art revisions as myths from a woman’s point of view, Do said.

The Betty Cuningham Gallery website features a Rackstraw Downes painting called “Below the Hospital Complex at 168th

Street,” painted on the West Side Highway near Columbia. This painting is important to show his classes because it takes place in an area many of his students frequent, and it feels “local and New Yorky,” Do said. “It also connects to scientific art because it doesn’t assume anything from reality,” he said.

The galleries’ websites also offer sneak peaks of the artwork that Do’s classes will view on Friday. The Blue Mountain Gallery’s website, for instance, features Weidle’s “Bike, With Yamaha,” an oil on canvas painting. This painting is perceptual artwork, which is a key concept he and his classes will explore, Do said.

“I’m super excited for the art trip,” Jaden

Record Recs:

Katz (12) said. “I have been pushing Mr. Do to take us to the downtown galleries because he knows a ton about the art and is friends with some of the artists. I respect his opinion a lot so I’m excited to see what he has to say about the contemporary New York art scene,” she said.

Simon Sankey (12) is also enthusiastic about receiving Do’s “critical feedback on published works of art,” he said. “I hope to find inspiration that I can incorporate into my current pieces.”

The students will also visit a gallery that Katz works at, and she looks forward to showing Do around, she said. Do hopes that the field trip will help his students further understand perceptual and scientific artwork, he said.

The volume 116 editorial board’s top picks of the month

MOVIE: “CRAZY RICH ASIANS” SONG: “2009” BY MAC MILLER ALBUM: “SWEETENER” BY ARIANA GRANDE TV SHOW: “STRANGER THINGS” Juli Moriera/Art Director Alex Crotty/Staff Artist

7

HORACE MANN MIDDLE DIVISION SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

An inside look into HM Lead Samuel Singer Staff Writer

This year’s Middle Division (MD) student government program, HM Lead, seeks to build confident and efficient student leaders by encouraging the success of new initiatives under the leadership of new faculty members, MD history teacher and Student Activities Coordinator Catilin Hickerson said.

“The mission of HM Lead is to provide students in the Middle Division the opportunity to play a leadership role in their community,” Hickerson said. “They work collaboratively on various projects throughout the year that will serve the interests of their peers and create opportunities for the Middle Division to work together,” Hickerson said.

The program is divided into four committees: Student Representation, Social and Events, Service Learning, and Horace Mann Broadcasting. Student Representation addresses students’ concerns, while the Social Committee deals with organizing events, and the Service Learning committee aims to provide meaningful service to others.

HM Broadcasting broadcasts and shares the current events of the MD, Hickerson said. It was founded by Avi Kumar (8) as an idea for broadcasting the happenings of the division, and is shown to the MD at grade-wide atrium meetings, Ross Petras (8) said.

Hickerson has already crafted detailed plans for HM Lead for the 2018-19 school year. She has decided to hold a fall movie night on October 29, host Unity Week workshops, respond to student concerns, organize other social events, and represent HM Lead successfully at the MD Clubs Fair for the seventh and eighth grades in October, she said.

Hickerson recruited new faculty advisors to the program: Spanish teacher Arni Alvarez, Spanish teacher Gabriela Espinosa, and Special Assistant to the Middle Division Class Deans Norma Rodriguez. “I’m both nervous and excited to see what my time on HM Lead will bring,” Rodriguez said.

Nate Stephenson (7) has served on the Social and Events Committee and has organized events such as movie nights, Unity Week activities, and holiday festivities. He looks forward to once again serving on the committee to “make the MD a less stressful and happier place,” he said.

“Although the students had little to no autonomy in choosing what was to be implemented, the process of their implementation was intensive and a valuable lesson to me moving forward,” Chair of the Community Council Jeren Wei (12) said of his time on the now defunct Diversity Committee.

“None of the students [on the Diversity Committee]” went on to participate in its initiatives, and the committee was thus disestablished, Hickerson said.

The advisors “provide a template of successful leadership and event planning so that by the end of the year the students have the skills to execute their ideas and the opportunity to decide what the committees will be, based on the needs of the community,” Hickerson said.

However, Petras did not feel as though the advisors were that helpful, he said. “I don’t really know what we’ll do this year,” Petras said. “Teachers have all of the power over what we do, and I think it hurts how much we get done,” he said.

Petras thought many other students agreed with his viewpoint, he said.

Wei also shared criticism of HM Lead, namely that it was “mostly discussion oriented, teacher driven, and created limited power to change the realities that existed,” he said. In comparing his time on the Community Council to his time on HM Lead, he said that “very little influence could be created in HM Lead, while all of the initiatives in the Community Council are student driven.”

“All of what we accomplished in a whole year was to start a conversation; we didn’t actually get anything done,” he said.

“The same topics were discussed in committee every year created exclusively by the faculty advisors,” William Golub (12)

said.

“Advisors take their role seriously – they advise students with regard to what, in their experience, will work and what may not,” Hickerson said. “The school and the administration always has a role to play in decisions about events that take place on campus,” she said.

“I look forward to seeing how HM Lead will move forward into new initiatives in the future,” Petras said with respect to its agenda for this year.

During his time on HM Lead’s Peer Mentoring Committee, Golub created a series of iPad help videos and technology office hours, unofficially known as the “Geek Squad.” He further “worked on a Middle Division survival guide given out at Middle Division orientations to this day,” he said. Golub enjoyed the process of HM Lead and found it helpful in achieving his leadership goals, he said.

“Being on HM Lead taught me how to properly execute initiatives, which has been helpful in my high school career and time on the Community Council,” Golub said.

“The opening of conversations and sparking of discourse in HM Lead provided more unity within the school’s communities,” Wei said.

Alex Crotty/Staff Artist

Taking STEPS for MD POC students Natalie Sweet Staff Writer This Friday marks the kick-off of the second year of Deveraux Mackey’s (12) project called Students Together Empowering People of Color Successfully, otherwise known as STEPS. STEPS is a minority mentor program that pairs Middle Division (MD) students with an Upper Division (UD) mentor, as well as pairing POC families together. Mackey started the program two years ago with the funds she received from winning the Alexander Capelluto grant, but the process of planning started before she won the grant, Mackey said.

During the kick-off, all students in the program and their families will meet with their mentors

for the first time, Mackey said.

According to Identity, Culture & Institutional Equity Office Associate Sharina Gordon, who is a faculty advisor of STEPS, there will be some activities and then breakout rooms for each constituent group will occur.

“I’m looking forward to meeting the parents and getting to know their families and learning more about the mentees to connect with them and foster positive relationships,” STEPS mentor Jessica Thomas (11) said.

“At a school orientation event, a parent stopped me and asked if her daughter, who is a person of color, would be okay at Horace Mann socially and academically,” Mackey said.

According to Mackey, after that encounter, she realized that it was important to her that middle schoolers who identify as people of color have an Gabby Fischberg/Contributing Artist

older student in the school that they can talk to.

She felt that this was especially important to her, since she used to be a middle school student at the school herself, she said.

Gordon shares Mackey’s vision, she said.

“It’s been an absolute pleasure and joy to be one of the program advisors for STEPS,” Gordon said. “The student leaders have been phenomenal to work with and it’s just a pleasure to help guide the growth of this important program.”

MD history teacher Ronald Taylor, also a faculty advisor for STEPS, shares great enthusiasm for the program, he said. “Many of these programs were absent for me as a black boy in majority white schools, so I am enthralled to have Deveraux’s trust to help build this initiative,” he said.

STEPS mentor Yasmin McLamb (12) describes STEPS as a “judgement-free zone where students can talk about the multidimensional students of color that we are and grow together as a family,” she said.

At the beginning of the school year, a sign-up form is sent to the MD, to see which students and families would like to be involved with STEPS. No one is turned away, but there is a waitlist because the program has doubled in size since last year, Mackey said.

For UD students who are interested in becoming mentors, an application is sent out around the end of the school year for the following year.

According to Mackey, the application is mostly to get to know the applicants, including questions regarding interests, extracurriculars, and when the student came to the school. Approval from the applicant’s dean is required as well.

STEPS mentors and middle schoolers meet once or twice a month in a large group setting,to discuss the school events going on at the time.

“Whether it’s trimester testing or bar and bat mitzvah parties, there’s a balance between time spent academically and time spent socializing, which is something you have to be equipped to handle as a middle schooler,” Mackey said.

However, there are other aspects of STEPS aside from the monthly group meetings. For example, UD parents who identify as people of color are paired up with new families who also identify as people of color. These families meet about three times per year to give advice to families new to the school and answer questions, Mackey said.

Another aspect of the STEPS program is the individual meetings between a high school mentor and their middle school mentee.

According to Mackey, the goal of these meetings is to foster one on one relationships where an MD student can share a question or concern that they might not feel comfortable sharing in a large group. Mentors meet with their mentees approximately once a month, Mackey said.

Thomas has learned so much from the students by hearing about middle school through their perspectives, she said.

“It’s nice to step back from our stressful lives into this environment where both you and them feel safe and are free to be yourself,” Thomas said.

STEPS is now included in resources that the school has to offer for students and their families, Mackey said. The STEPS logo features two people building a bridge, which symbolizes the relationship between the families and their mentor.

“This is my passion project,” Mackey said. “It is a very personal program that means a lot to me.”

Lions’ Den Record Sports

8

SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

Runners to the rescue Andrew Cassino Staff Writer

This weekend, members of the Girls Varsity and Junir Varsity Cross Country teams jumped into action to aid an elderly man and another runner at the meet.

Natalie Sweet (10) was running and saw a girl on the opposing team fall down. Her leg seemed contorted and Sweet was surprised by the amount of people that ran past the girl without stopping, she said. She could tell there was something wrong with the girl and stopped to help her up. Sweet knew that by stopping, she would finish later in the race, but that was not her priority.

The girl was still committed to finishing the race, and Sweet made sure that happened. She and the girl crossed the finish line together even though they came in dead last, she said.

Shortly after the race, Sweet heard somebody ask an older man if he was okay. He responded that he was, but Sweet heard a thump. She then turned around to find the man on the ground seizing. Since nobody else seemed to hear him, Sweet yelled out for help, she said.

Cross Country Coach Meredith Cullen turned the man over, so he was on his back. His face was bleeding after hitting the ground, Sweet said.

Sweet’s teammate, Catherine Mignone (9) also saw the man collapse and quickly grabbed her phone to call 911. Sweet sprinted to find the EMTs in the park and Talia Winiarski (9) searched for her mother, a doctor. After tracking them down, they performed CPR on the man and gave him oxygen.

“We all worked as a team and we all tried to help people who weren’t well, and this shows that we work really well together.

We responded really fast and didn’t talk in the moment it just happened. We really came together as a team,” Winiarski said.

Cullen was very proud of her team’s quick thinking during the incident. “They jumped right in, no issues. Nobody hesitated. They did exactly what they were supposed to do,” Cullen said.

“I felt everybody was very prepared for it,” Mignone said.

“If something were to happen to me, I’d feel confident that my team would know what to do to help me.”

Sweet said she learned the real importance of looking past

the race itself on Saturday. Although stopping to help the girl caused Sweet to finish, she was happy she was able to help and hopes that someone would do the same for her, she said.

ector Juli Moreira/Art Dir

Andrew Cassino/Staff Photographer

Andrew Cassino/Photo Editor

Gym Ratz: students on the grind in the new fitness center Isabella Zhang Staff Writer

The new fitness center attracts many students from different athletic backgrounds, some of whom love the facility and others who advocate for further changes.

“The fitness center is set up in a way that everyone can come in and have fun. It is filled with functional machines that you can incorporate into your workout,” Fitness Center Director Kevin Valluzzi said.

Many students, including athletes, bodybuilders, and dancers work out at the new fitness center on a daily basis, Jack Blackman (11) said. He has met so many new people that he would not normally interact with, he said.

Mikayla Benson (10), who is a dancer, uses the spin studio everyday for her workout. Since her workout does not require heavy lifting, she loves the huge space upstairs that allows her to stretch, work out, and spin, she said.

“I do the Tracy Anderson Method, which targets small muscle groups so that my body does not bulk up,” said Benson. “Because of the unique nature of this workout I really appreciate the privacy upstairs,” he said.

She also spins twice a week, and the spin bikes allow her to watch Netflix, and send voice text messages while working out, she said.

Similarly, Joshua Benson (12) works out at the center five days a week. He started out the summer of sophomore year just because his friends were working out, but as time went on he grew to love working out, and is planning on competing by the winter, Benson said.

“I do this because it makes me a lot happier, a lot more comfortable with my body and myself,” Benson said.

Many students athletes also work out everyday to get in shape for the upcoming seasons.

“The girls track country team uses the treadmills in the fitness center while it is raining outside,” Euwan Kim (11) said. Last

year, Kim trained in the old gym for her half marathons and now that the treadmills are new and improved, she hopes to further increase her distance.

“With these amazing equipments I think I can definitely do it,” Kim said.

As a wrestler, Rhys Shepherd (10) is lifting weights often and trying to gain weight before the season, Shepherd said.

Kyle Gaillard (12) is also training for basketball this winter, he said. “My favorite exercise is the box jump, because it is really fun and at the same time helps me in basketball. I can get the rebound more often if I keep practicing,” Gaillard said.

However, not all comments about the gym were positive.

“Although the gym now has more room, more natural light, and air conditioning, it lacks the the necessary equipment it had before,” Philip Shen (12) said.

David Shen (12) said that he and his brother are unable to perform two important lifts, back squatting and barbell bench

FRESH START The fitness center is filled with brand new equipment.

press, and were forced to sign up at a local gym near their house.

“Most of the essential free weight equipment that many lifters like me used on a daily basis such as the bench, squat racks, decline bench, incline bench, cable machine, and lat pulldown are either not here yet or not going to arrive at all, and we now have a jungle gym instead,” Shen said.

In addition, there is no stereo system or water in the gym, Shen said.

“The gym obviously can be improved on more but the school is taking a step in the right direction,” Natalia Mason (10) said.

Valluzzi encourages everyone to come into the fitness center and just sample everything. He loves when students are not intimidated and ask questions. “Everyone is focused on their own work, and no one will judge you,” he said.

“A balance between mind and body can be very important,” said Mikayla Benson, “and this new gym is a great way to relax your mind and train your body.”

Andrew Cassino/Staff Photographer