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Vol. XXX · Issue IV

Newton South High School’s Student Newspaper · Newton, MA · Established 1984 · November 8, 2013

Teachers see decrease in independence Nathaniel Bolter Sr. News Editor

MOVING FORWARD photo by Sofia Osorio

Mayor Setti Warren, left, speaks as community members look on at a meeting on Oct. 21 to process Newton’s two teen suicides. Warren, Larry Berkowitz and Joanna Bridger of the Riverside Trauma Center, Superintendent David Fleishman, South Principal Joel Stembridge and other school leaders attended the forum to share information about how to respond to the sudden deaths.

In the wake of two student suicides at Newton North and South last month, the district promotes awareness of and education on mental health issues Sasha Kuznetsov & Kylie Walters

were welcome to freely discuss mental health. According to Tom Denton, the Director of Guidance at Needham Public Schools, Sr. News Editor, Editor-in-Chief open communication between students ollowing the suicides of Newton regarding sensitive topics is integral to a North senior Karen Douglas and community’s recuperation after tragedies. South sophomore Katherine Stack “Often adults think ... they have to just last month, Newton Public Schools (NPS) work on helping the students, but students and South officials are working to implehelping each other is really huge,” Denton ment mental health education and spread said. “[Needham] students have really awareness in Newton’s community. learned a lot about mental health ... and all Douglas went missing Oct. 3 and was the different things that are part of someone found dead Oct. 5 in Natick. struggling, and they’re not ashamed of that.” On Oct. 16, Stack also took her own Junior Max Cooper agreed that student life. The next day, students and faculty communication is necessary in preventing observed a moment mental health issues of silence in A block If you have something to say, you should definitely be from escalating. “Right classes. now, what the commusaying it and don’t just think that because it has not nity needs to do is [to Looking forward, NPS Superintenhave] students ... really been heard before, it won’t be heard now. dent David Fleishman make sure that they’re - Max Cooper, Class of 2015 said one of the major focal points for the heard,” Cooper said, “If you have something district will be mental health. “In both cases, From 2004 to 2006, over the course of to say, you should definitely be saying it and both families have acknowledged that these 18 months, Needham, a neighboring district, don’t just think that because it has not been girls suffered from depression, so that seems experienced four suicides — two high school heard before, it won’t be heard now.” like the issue to focus on,” he said. “How do students, one 8th grader and one graduate. Senior Rosalie Goldberg said students we identify kids with depression even though In response to these tragedies, the com- should look out for each other. “It’s hard to we knew both of these kids had depression munity formed the Needham Coalition for fathom that in a community someone at and both of them were getting a lot of support Suicide Prevention, which trained citizens your school can be gone … The big message out of our school and in school?” across the town to recognize and aid those here to all students is be nice and listen. Of South principal Joel Stembridge struggling with mental health issues. course you should always be nice, but just agreed that increased awareness and educaSchools in Needham incorporated open your ears up and listen for people who tion surrounding topics relating to depres- training into the health curricula for all are saying things that might mean something sion and suicide would benefit the commu- high school students and eighth graders else deep down,” she said. “Just stop for a nity. “We definitely ... want everyone to have and a week every March was dedicated to second and listen to someone; that’s the the same information about depression and assemblies and discussions where students message that I got.”

its connection to suicide and mental health awareness,” he said. In order to help the community process the tragedies, select students from North and South will work with counselors from the district to form a curriculum to present to students at both high schools during specified English periods in December. Throughout the year, students will be able to attend and register for presentations coordinated by Cutler Housemaster Donna Gordon regarding mental health. Additionally, the administration also plans to refine the wellness curriculum to better address mental health and emotional instability.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

PARCC Test

Administrators consider replacing the MCAS with the PARCC test.

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Money Matters

The Roar explores the role of wealth in the college admissions process.

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English teacher Robert Jampol said the restrictions began with the inception of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). “The changes fall in with the same general pattern of state frameworks and MCAS and other attempts to define more narrowly just what we do,” he said. “In reality, not everything an English teacher does is measurable.” According to Jampol and other teachers, growing administrative oversight from federal, state and local mandates has restricted South teachers’ autonomy. One of these restrictions, Jampol said, is a trend toward uniformity in subject material that he has seen develop over his 33 years at South. “[Uniformity] means more restriction in what we teach and more impetus for all of us to use the same approaches: the same rubrics and the same lesson plans for the same courses,” Jampol said. Several teachers have identified this uniformity, along with the emphasis placed on results of standardized tests, as primary factors in their loss of independence to adapt their curricula. According to those teachers, classes are forced to conform to common standards and lessons instead. According to Jampol, this trend toward uniformity is detrimental because it obscures unique teaching styles. “During the rogue elephant era, my era, we valued our independence. Each course always had some common titles, common grammatical lessons, stylistic lessons, but that constituted only a third to a half of the course. We were all supposed to teach writing style, but I would do it in way that stresses my values, which I think are valid for most kinds of writing,” he said. “Nobody told me how to do my business.” History department head Jennifer Morrill, however, said uniformity improves teaching. “What we’re trying to do is identify best practices and spread them so that we all get better,” she said. History teacher Jamie Rinaldi agreed that uniformity among similar courses may not necessarily be a problem and that that he still enjoys relative freedom in teaching. “I still think we have more freedom to work here than any other district I’ve heard of,” he said. “I mean the [sophomore] honors TEACHER AUTONOMY, 2

Soccer Soars

The girls soccer team overcomes a slew of injuries in a successful season.

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NEWS 2 GLOBAL 5 EDITORIALS 6 OPINIONS 9 CENTERFOLD 12 FEATURES 15 SPORTS 20

news volume 30

issue 4

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november 8, 2013

South Spots compiled by Roar editors

CONFINED [curricula]

“Children of the Candy Corn” South’s improv group, “Children of the Candy Corn,” will perform for the first time this year today at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium. The group creates the entire show based on members’ improvisation and suggestions from the audience. Admission is $5 and can be paid for at the door. Frosh Play

The freshman play, “PG13” will be performed Nov. 14-16 in the auditorium. The comedy consists of 10 smaller plays that take place simultaneously in the play’s storyline. “Cradles to Crayons” Drive

Newton City Hall is holding a drive for the non-profit organization “Cradles for Crayons” to provide essential winter cothing to local children in need. Contributors are encouraged to bring in clothing, shoes, hats, gloves and coats, which can be dropped off anytime until Nov. 18 in the City Hall parking lot.

dG Davi c by i h p gra

TEACHER AUTONOMY, from 1 [history] curriculum here was built entirely by teachers here. This focus on comparing revolutions had no precedent.” The real inhibition of autonomy, Rinaldi said, stems from the institution of MCAS in 1993 and the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 that required all states to have a standardized test. “What is threatening is not coming from the principal; it is not coming from the department head, but it is coming from federal and state mandates,” he said. Phy s ics teacher Alexander Kraus, who teaches freshmen and prepares them for the physics MCAS exam, said that these mandates limit what he can teach. “The frameworks are incredibly broad, meaning we have to cover a large amount of material, and, as a result, there is very little freedom to really cover anything other than the frameworks,” he said. This “teaching to the test” becomes a necessity because of the high stakes nature of MCAS exams, according to Monty Neill, the Executive Director of FairTest, an organization that lobbies against standardized testing. “[Standardized testing] basically constrains the teachers because they know that the reputation of their school, sometimes whether or not their students will graduate and also perhaps their own careers depend on having good test scores,” he said. “The

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higher the stakes, the more teaching to the test there is.” According to Neill, the malpractice of determining a teacher’s worth based on test scores is included in the Obama administration’s Race to the Top reforms, which Neill said are just as harmful as those of No Child Left Behind and MCAS. “Race to the Top brought with it using test scores to judge teachers, and that is simply a terrible idea, both because of the teaching to the test that occurs but also because it is an unfair way to judge teachers,” he said.

short tasks and short responses for the Common Core [standardized tests], which you have to focus on because of the high stakes, [means] you might not have time to teach the research stuff,” he said. But Neill said the constraints that standardized tests impose are not as prevalent in a suburb like Newton. “If you are not worried about how the students will do — which is common in the suburbs — you can focus on the research paper, but in inner cities, you [cannot] do that,” he said. “So kids end up going to college, but t h e y are already behind because there are things that they don’t learn [in high - Jamie Rinaldi, history teacher school], that they Race to the Top also comprises a set should have learned.” of standards, called the Common Core, and Rinaldi agreed that Newton teachers teachers will have to prove that their curricula have more independence as a result of the meet those standards. district’s success. “Here in Newton you sort Morrill, however, said this require- of have the hope that in some way, we will ment is not a constraint. “Common Core is survive [the restrictions] because we are something that we already are meeting in a exceptional,” Rinaldi said. sense,” Morrill said. “The Common Core is Yet Jampol said that Newton is not about making sure that we’re teaching literacy headed in the right direction. skills in all the subjects, analytical writing and “I’ve loved teaching in a school that reading, and we do that in history.” encouraged me to be myself, as long as I didn’t Yet Neill said that using conventional take that encouragement to excess,” Jampol standardized testing to verify that the Com- said. “I regret all the testing these days. I was mon Core is met undermines the Common here before Newton South and education in Core’s ideal standards. “What matters is on general shifted towards all assessments all the test. If you want to succeed in college it the time.” is a good idea to know how to do a research paper before you get there. Focusing on the Additional reporting by Sasha Kuznetsov

What is threatening is not coming from the principal; it is not coming from the department head, but it is coming from federal and state mandates.

news

november 8, 2013

Breaking Off been shut dow elp Center has home The Science H y to find a new it n u m m co a forcing

By Anisha Dam and David Li

n order to rebrand the Science Help Center as an area for helping students struggling with science classes, the science department has implemented rules and restrictions that include periods of time when the center is closed entirely. According to some students, these measures displace the community built around the space. The Science Help Center, previously open every period and after school, is now only open only 13 periods a week and is always staffed by a faculty member while open. Students are required to sign in and

photo by Sofia Osorio

list the science subject they are working on and their teacher. Science teacher Alan Crosby, who established the Science Help Center — originally the Science Learning and Instructional Center (SLIC) — in the fall of 2007, said SLIC had strayed from its original intent. “SLIC was created … to support students that are struggling, to have a place for students to collaborate on projects, to work on science,” he said. “The change that had occurred was an evolving away from its roots into a meeting place for science kids to have

a social interaction.” In the spring of 2013, science teacher Amy Richards took the initiative to reform SLIC. “I felt that in our department, SLIC was being underutilized, so I came in and had a conversation ... about how best serve students,” she said. According to Richards, SLIC had begun to take on an intimidating environment for underclassmen. “I feel like [SLIC] was becoming an exclusive place … used by upperclassmen,” she said. “If you were to walk by there and you see a place where only seniors are hanging out, it might not be a place you want to go into.” According to senior Jackson Fried, however, the freedom of the center fostered a unique atmosphere centered on science. “If you ever did want to have conversation which was about science, it would get answered naturally. I thought that was really cool,” he said. Junior Gabryela Sinclair said that since the rebranding of SLIC, the atmosphere has collapsed. “Before, SLIC was a great meeting place. It was a great place to get help, it was a great place to do notes, it was a great place to study and it was a great place to finish work. Now it’s not there,” she said. According to senior Jarrett Gorin, the new restrictions have complicated his school friendships. “[The Science Help Center] used to be where I’d always meet my friends,” he said. “It doesn’t work anymore. It doesn’t really exist. It’s always closed.”

House Cup draws mixed reviews Josh Goldenberg & Amelia Stern

News Contributor, News Editor The administration recently implemented a new school-wide tradition designed to create house unity, the House Cup. The cup is a competition between the four houses, Cutler, Goldrick, Goodwin and Wheeler.“It sounds very Harry Potter-esque,” Goldrick Housemaster Marcs Banks said. Banks, who introduced the idea, put the House Cup in action with the help of English teacher Shauna Pellauer. Advisories of the four houses will compete in different activities once a month on Tuesdays, but according to Banks, the intent of the activities will remain constant. “The goal of the House Cup is this idea of advisories working together for the good of the house and for the good of the advisory,” Banks said. In the first round of the competition, advisories were given a riddle created by Albert Einstein, and in the second round students particpated in a series of team-based activities such as Pictionary and charades. After the first round, Cutler house was in the lead. Wheeler Housemaster Josepha Blocker said she hopes that the change of pace will promote positive behaviors. “I hope it encourages and engages different students with different strengths in different ways to bring everyone together,” she said. Principal Joel Stembridge said that the House Cup has been implemented in order to change students’ attitude toward advisories. “We wanted to inject a little bit of competition into advisory and change it up a bit,” he said. Some students, however, like freshman Noah Shelton, said that the House Cup is not just intened to improve advisories. “I see the House Cup as an

excuse for [the cancellation of] Powderpuff,” he said. Sophomore class president Noa Leiter said that the House Cup is a poor substitute for the Powderpuff girls football game. “Powderpuff brought a lot of friendly competition between the grades and was something to really look forward to, [and from] what I have seen, the House Cup is educational and hardly something people will get competitive or excited over,” she said. Stembridge, however, said that there is no correlation between the House Cup and the cancellation of Powderpuff. “We have been talking about [the House Cup] since last spring and the decision to cancel Powderpuff was made over the summer,” he said. In his email to students and parents announcing Powderpuff ’s cancellation on Sept. 11, however, Stembridge said that he hopes to create new traditions to supersede Powderpuff. “We’ve also been developing an idea to promote school spirit by creating a housebased, Olympic-style competition that celebrates the full diversity of our wonderful, talented student body,” he said. Regardless of the House Cup’s relation to Powderpuff, Blocker said the first round was successful. “Sometimes when students aren’t looking forward to advisory the halls are usually busy, but that day the halls were really quiet,” she said. Only 60 percent of advisories, however, participated in the first challenge. “They didn’t put the House Cup into action very successfully. Some kids still don’t know it exists,” Leiter said. According to Banks, flaws are expected in the competition’s first year. “This is the inaugural year so I’m going to see how the first year goes and then we’ll take it from there,” he said. Stembridge said he hopes the House Cup will become a tradition. “We have a number of traditions that I really enjoy, from the Sophomore Speech to the spelling bee to Tertulia and all of these involved the school wide community,” he said. “The Hous e Cup is another way to add to that community.”

graphic by Alex Cohen

Class officers plan off-campus Powderpuff Nathaniel Bolter & Bella Ehrlich

Sr. News Editor, News Contributor Junior and senior class officers are working to uphold the Powderpuff tradition after the administration’s cancellation of the annual Thanksgiving girls football game. Junior class vice president Ahaana Singh said the class offices are planning an off-campus game that will resemble previous Powderpuff games. “It would have all the same precautions and all, with the cops and a personal referee and all that. It would just be off-campus and unaffiliated with Mr. Stembridge,” she said. Class officers expect the game to be held at Skyline Park on Wednesday, Nov. 27, the day before Thanksgiving. Holding the event off-campus, however, poses added difficulties, according to senior class president Tom Howe. “Students [won’t] have the ability to get out of school, after the pep rally and ... just walk out onto the field,” he said. “They are going to have to find a ride to Skyline.” In case the off-campus game does not take place, class officers have been looking into other options, one of which is an obstacle course that would take place following the pep rally, which, according to Singh, would be organized to include all four grades. Senior Sky Striar, who helped organize protests when Powderpuff was canceled, said she approves of the class officers’ efforts. “I ... wanted the game to still be at school, but I think that, as of now, that’s the best thing [class officers] can do,” she said.

Global plans a trip to Ecuador

Nathaniel Bolter & James Rao Sr. News Editor, News Contributor

The Modern Global Communities classes are planning a trip to Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands in March, allowing students to experience an unfamiliar culture and study in an environment of biodiversity. Ten seniors and two teachers will travel to Ecuador, where they will hike and camp, stopping in Quito and Otavalo. Students will then go to the Galápagos Islands to visit the Charles Darwin Research Center and to snorkel. Senior Ben Robinson said he chose to go on the trip because it presents a rare travel opportunity. “I decided it would be a very cool experience,” he said. “[I] couldn’t think of another time in my life that I would be able to go to the Galápagos.” Senior Tristan Pesaresi agreed, and said the trip will allow for hands-on learning that is unavailable in a classroom setting. “I’ll get to basically see with my own eyes the ideas I’m trying to express,” he said. According to the trip’s adviser, science teacher Sally Rosen, the trip includes work on the participants’ senior projects, for which the students create a plan consisting of marine or sustainability reforms relevant to the current environment. “They have to experience a culture they are unfamiliar with and come up with some action plan,” she said. “The goal is to bring something back to community.” Additional reporting by Amelia Stern

news

november 8, 2013

Online assessments could replace MCAS after trial Carter Howe & Julia Mount News Reporters

Designted classes across Massachusetts will administer an online standardized test, Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), this spring. This “field test” is part of a two-year trial to determine whether PARCC should replace the mandatory Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). Among students and administrators, questions persist about the online test’s implementation in Newton. The trial consists of the “field test” that would occur in 1,250 schools this spring and a more comprehensive trial in the 2014-15 school year, in which schools would choose to administer either the MCAS or PARCC exams. After the trial, the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education would examine the results and vote on which test to use. A full PARCC test comprises two components: the Performance-Based Assessment Component and the End-of-Year Assessment Component. According to a memo sent to superintendents, no student will take the entire test. At South, 10 math classes will take the online PARCC exams. This year, students

will only participate ative thinking skills, in the PerformancePARCC exams ask Based Assessment students to explain Component. the reasoning beProponents of hind their answers. PARCC hope that S ophomore the test will stand out Brad Weissel, howbecause it measures ever, said that neia student’s readiness ther standardized for college, rather test would effectivethan measuring his ly gauge students’ or her growth, as academic ability. MCAS does. “I am I against the Newton PubMCAS as it is, but lic Schools SuperI don’t think that intendent David a new test is much Fleishman said that better,” he said. if the PARCC exams Junior Daniel photo illustration by Dylan Block and Nathaniel Bolter achieve this goal, it Nissenbaum agreed would mark progress in standardized testing. that replacing MCAS does not solve the “I hope [PARCC] are high quality assessments problem. “I don’t think they need to replace that lead students to really think critically [MCAS]. I think they should improve upon it and crefor whata t i v e l y, This will be much less of a change than it ever they not just are trywas when MCAS was first introduced. spit back ing to get content,” out of it,” - David Fleishman, Newton Public Schools Superintendent Fleishhe said. man said. “If these assessments are going to According to Fleishman, the switch to be career and college readying ... that’s good the PARCC exams would not be drastic. “This because it’s what we aspire to.” will be much less of a change than it was when In order to test those critical and cre- MCAS was first introduced,” Fleishman said.

“Now we already have testing [in place], so this is more just a shift and an adjustment.” This shift from MCAS to PARCC could help students who struggle with MCAS and test-taking in general, according to junior Claire McElduff. “Some people aren’t good at taking tests, and that’s been a major issue with MCAS in the past, so an online test might work better for those kinds of people,” McElduff said. “I think it would be a lot more casual ... half the reason people do bad on the MCAS is because they get hyped up over it and nervous, so maybe if it was on a computer it would be less stressful for people.” English teacher Corinne Popp said that she does not expect PARCC to be more academically rigorous than MCAS. “Traditionally our students have done so well on MCAS that ... I’m sure [PARCC] will be fine also,” Popp said. According to Fleishman, judgments cannot be made about the PARCC exams this far in advance, especially considering that the tests will be administered online. “It’s too early to know ... right now the performance-based assessments [like PARCC] in theory are good,[but] there are always challenges in administrating a new test [and] ... in technology,” Fleishman said.“It’s good they’re piloting it because it is very ambitious.”

Politics and Points of View: Government Shutdown Though a government shutdown over Obamacare is ridiculous, the concerns raised are legitimate

By Oliver Xie

t’s absurd, right? Who has the sheer stupidity to shut down the government over a law that is firmly in place? Mitch McConnell, the turtle man; Ted Cruz, the Hispanic man; John Boehner, the helpless man; collectively, these three figures, propelled by the Tea Party Movement, have decided that it is A-okay to furlough hundreds of thousands of workers and shut down the PANDA CAM. I’m quite mad, but who isn’t? Instead of just getting riled up, I think it’s necessary to understand why we should be angry. My emotions should not impact your judgement of the government shutdown, which lasted from Oct. 2 to 17. First of all, what does a government shutdown mean? Sadly, it shares nothing in common with Hollywood film depictions — government buildings are not abandoned with flickering fluorescent light bulbs that spark in tepid-green rooms of cubicles. Second of all, why a shutdown? Obamacare. Obamacare is a lot more complicated than what it is sold as; in fact, aside from the individual mandate for each person to buy health care, the law also signs in a complex Medicare trading system that allows for individuals to “shop” for health care plans. Another misconception is that the individual mandate is a mandate. Instead, it is just a small fine on individuals that don’t pay for health care. But my problem with the health care debate is that people don’t understand why they are supporting Obamacare. Obamacare is unrealistic; it toys around with the mechanisms of economics and creates burdens for the average American. The first assumption that should be challenged is “More health care is good for our health.” Current hospital systems are already overloaded with individuals, as a Brigham and Women’s report suggests, and more health care has been shown to increase unnecessary visits. Therefore, the individual mandate decreases the attention on ill patients by flooding hospitals with healthy visitors. But there’s more. The biggest problem with the individual mandate is that it creates a “death spiral.” This phenomenon has occurred in New York, Kentucky, Washington and Maine. The effects were disastrous — in Kentucky, all but one health-care provider left because of the individual mandate’s effect on the market. Some people shouldn’t have cheap insurance. Morally, perhaps all should be guaranteed the right to life; but this is an ideal. In fact, I would argue that no, not all deserve insurance, especially when it is at the expense of all other individuals. Nevertheless, basic economics dictates that once these previously uninsured individuals get health care, premiums will skyrocket to compensate for the rising costs. As healthier individuals see their premiums skyrocket, though, they will drop out and pay the small fine. Obamacare may prove to be disastrous, and I pray that Congress may change, because seeing my pandas again is not enough.

American cultural divides must be bridged before resolving spending issues that caused government shutdown

By Daniel Ehrlich

hen the government shut down, I expected posts to splash across my Facebook newsfeed. They didn’t. No one seemed to care and neither did I for that matter. After the supposed Armageddon of the fiscal cliff, America’s senses have seemed to dull. Politics have become jaded. But these aren’t trivialities — the economy hangs in the balance. The political world has become radically polarized. When did Congress care more about arguing for the sake of arguing rather than arguing for the sake of reaching some conclusion? Arguably, pun intended, this polarization began in the Reagan era. The Editor-in-Chief of the Globalist, Stephan Ritcher, however, has another theory: that the Civil War never ended. I know it sounds preposterous — but let me explain. At the heart of the problem isn’t an argument about health care, but a division across cultural lines. Take a look at the states not expanding Medicaid: 10 out of the 11 former Confederate states refuse to participate. Just as slavery was a proxy for the larger question of how to run the American economy, so is Obamacare. To claim that Obamacare is responsible for the government shutdown ignores the larger picture; the battle is over the fundamental structure of the economy and the role of government. The issue narrows down to two positions: tax increases and spending cuts, with Democrats supporting the former and Republicans the latter. Note the platform that Mitt Romney ran on in the 2012 election: he portrayed himself as a businessman capable of balancing a spreadsheet and curbing the excessive spending that has caused the massive government debt. Isn’t this exactly what the fiscal cliff was about? A question of whether tax increases or spending cuts would rein in the federal budget. In this context, it makes sense that radical Republicans see the government shutdown as an investment; working through legitimate channels of government has failed (they attempted to repeal Obamacare over 40 times), and shutting down the government is a clear statement that America is heading in the wrong direction. Please don’t think this is solely about Obamacare, because it is not. If anything, Republicans need to choose their issues more carefully. Denying mothers and children access to health services because of a government shutdown is both immoral and probably not the wisest move to garner popular support. And yet the Tea Party doesn’t care, because to go along with Obamacare would be to allow unrestricted government spending and growth with no checks whatsoever. The problem here is the division among the American people. We may see ourselves as one nation, but there are two opposing viewpoints that define the population. Will we have another Civil War? Probably not. Does the resolution of the government shutdown solve the problem? Probably not either, for as long as America’s cultural identity is divided, neither Republicans nor Democrats will reach any long term consensus on the economic problems plaguing this nation.

november 8, 2013

news

A Glimpse of the Globe Information compiled by Roar editors from CNN, The Economist, BBC, Al Jazeera, The New York Times, Twitter and the rest of the Internet.

Iraq: what is actually happening? After a 1958 coup d’état in Iraq left the then-king dead, Abdul Karim Kassem, the leader of the coup, took power. One year after the coup, however, a political group set out to assassinate Kassem. The first attempt failed, but in the second attempt in 1963, Kassem was killed. The attack was carried out by the Iraqi Region of the Ba’ath party, a political party founded in Syria that was adapted to fit Iraq’s political scene. In 1968, Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, a prominent figure in the Ba’ath political party, assumed control as president and appointed Saddam Hussein as secretary and chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council. Hussein gained eminence in government and was appointed to serve as vice president under Al-Bakr. Al-Bakr remained in power until 1979 when he resigned, and Hussein was named president of Iraq.

A Sunni Muslim, Hussein appointed officials of the same religious sect as he. The Ba’athist party was comprised mostly of Sunnis, elevating internal religious tension. Hussein’s regime stopped Shi’ite and Kurdish demonstrations for political power, though Shi’ites make up the majority of the Iraqi population. Hussein invaded Iran in 1980 under the pretense that Iran had violated regional borders, but many believed that Hussein was threatened by the Shi’ite regime and wanted to topple it. Iran, a country recovering from a revolution that put Shi’ite Ayatollah Khomeini in power, did not surrender. The Iran-Iraq war last from 1980 to 1988, when both countries accepted a ceasefire agreement moderated by the United Nations (UN). In August of 1990, the Persian Gulf War started after Iraq invaded Kuwait. The invasion lasted seven months but

ended when the U.S. intervened. President George H.W. Bush ordered Operation Desert Storm, the military intervention of the U.S. in Iraq, and in April of 1991, Iraq accepted a ceasefire. The tension in Iraq led to UN intervention. The UN passed resolutions asking that Iraq give a detailed inventory of its weaponry, sells oil to fund humanitarian needs and end humanitarian crimes. Hussein did not accept any of these resolutions. Because of Hussein’s noncooperation with the UN resolutions and the heightened call for a war on terror following 9/11, President George W. Bush declared in 2003 that if Hussein and his family did not leave the country, Iraq would face military action. The immediate charges were that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and that the government had ties to terrorist organizations. Hussein did not comply with Bush’s demands, so

News this week

an international coalition was assembled to invade Iraq. Conflict continued for months, and on Dec. 14, 2003, the US Department of Defense announced that Hussein had been captured. U.S. administrators disbanded the Iraqi army following the invasion, creating a power struggle. This instability led to years of violence and guerilla warfare; America kept its presence in Iraq, fighting an antiinsurgency campaign until 2008. The US also stayed in Iraq o help the citizens draft a constitution and reorganize their government. This measure, however, has not been successful, as internal fighting among religious groups in the nation persists. The death toll of the war in Iraq, according to a recent poll, is estimated at about 500,000 casualties. There are daily reports of car bombs, and the death toll climbs as dozens die from these bombs every day.

In an impromptu news conference on Nov. 5, Robert Ford, the mayor of Toronto, retracted his past claims and admitted to smoking crack cocaine in one of his “drunken stupors.” New Jersey became the 14th state to allow samesex marriage. Governor Chris Christie opposes same-sex marriage but decided not to appeal. According to the country’s central bank, after nine quarters of contraction, the Spanish economy grew by 0.1 percent from July to September. With new information linked to documents released by Edward Snowden, Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel called Barack Obama to express anger at American surveillance of her mobile phone.

An Overview: The controversy: Saddam Hussein’s rule increased already-existing internal tension. Following his death and the 2003 invasion, Iraqi citizens were left with no organized government. The casualties: Although it is difficult to estimate exactly how many lives were lost since the 2003 invasion, a recent estimate puts the death toll at about 500,000.

Reuters

Nonsensical News: Rocks, paper, scissors — cheat!

The common game rocks-paperscissors (RPS) has been a universally-accepted method of settling disputes since the creation of rocks, paper and scissors. Yet recently a team of Japanese scientists discovered new way to circumventing this ancient and effective mode of diplomacy: the Janken robot. According to a BBC article, the cyborghand wins the game 100 percent of the time. Janken, however, is a cheater by standard RPS guide-

lines. Instead of picking which move it will use during the pre-oration “rocks, paper, scissors,” as is required by regulations, the robot reacts to its opponents hand movements. According to the BBC article, it takes only one millisecond for Janken to analyze and determine which of the three positions its opponent is forming based on their movements; Janken then almost instantaneously picks the move that will make it victorious. The international RPS board is still deciding how to handle the situation.

Public Domain

India launched an unmanned mission to Mars on Nov. 5 in an attempt to join a select group of nations that have successfully landed a spacecraft on the planet.

Fun and informational.

A hot, hot debate

Hot sauce. All it takes is a few drops to take any meal from icy to spicy, but any more and it can make a meal feel like edible tear gas. An unlucky town, however, is living within a cloud of hot sauce. According to a BBC article, residents of Irwindale, CA, filed a restraining against Sriracha, a hot sauce company with a factory in the town. Although there is a

filtration system for the stench, residents are complaining of watery eyes, irritated noses and headaches. They filed for a temporary restraining order against Sriracha, but a local court denied this request. The owner of the company will not change the sauce’s ingredients but will try to improve the filtration system.

Galactic Gaga We’ve all heard of celebrities reaching superstardom, but it seems that singer Lady Gaga has decided to take this title literally. According to a Huffington Post article, Gaga recently announced plans to

be the first-ever singer to perform from space. This announcement came as part of her plans for the third day of the Zero G Colony music festival. She will be taking the Virgin Galactic ship to get to space.

editorials volume 30

issue 4

november 8, 2013

The Cat’s

Meow All the news that’s fit to print ... and then some!

Wegmans opening delayed to 2035 After over a year of construction, the grand opening of the new Chestnut Hill Wegmans on Route Nine has been delayed to an unspecified date in 2035. The announcement has elicited both rage and disappointment from the student body and local parents. “My dad and I are furious. How are we supposed to get the highest quality groceries for Thanksgivikkuh? Wegmans was really inconsiderate of our needs,” junior Sue Peer-Hungree said. “I’ll have to take my business elsewhere. By the time Wegmans opens, I’ll be 38, wifed-up, filthy rich and owning two Maltese and a Bichon Frisé. I’ll have to reevaluate Wegmans at that time.” A group of Waban residents has taken a more political reaction to the announcement. “It’s absurd that Wegmans has the right to go back on its word and revoke the original opening date. There is a community of families that has built extensive dining plans based on the expectation that this grocery store would be open,” Cray Z. Mahm said. “I expect full financial compensation for the funds that I would have collected at my fundraising dinners. My passion for the community is second to none, and I think Wegmans should respect that.” Mahm and a group of other angered citizens stood on the side of Route Nine with picket signs bearing “GIVE US WEGMANS OR GIVE US DEATH” for 25 minutes before tiring.

New Common Application Site Praised for Success After years of work, the Common Application launched its new site for the 2013-2014 college application period. After launching in August, the platform immediately received overwhelming approval. Counselors complimented the site’s makeover. Callie G. Bord, head of the International College Counseling Association, said the site exceeded the organization’s expectations. “I am just utterly blown away by the excellence of the Common Application’s new site. It couldn’t be more user-friendly, functional or gorgeous,” she said. “When I first saw it on August 1 I had to send a congratulatory card to the designers of this website.” Students have responded to the site with similar positivity. Senior Trang Pak, whose attempts to apply to college were previously unsuccessful, said the new site has helped her. “I had to repeat senior year because the Common App site was so confusing last year. This new site is so simple. It has made submitting applications so easy and the print preview function allows me to check over my work,” Pak said. “Best of all, there are absolutely zero glitches. Someone so, so, so smart must have made this website. I bet they are like, Bill Gates or something. Like, that smart.” It is said that Kanye West and Kim Kardashian plan on inviting the site’s designers to their wedding, though sources close to the couple have failed to comment. Sources far from the couple have said the invitations will in fact be sent.

page

Students must know hidden consequences of social media When one of the Roar’s reporters was out to dinner with her family, the family at the adjacent table was enjoying a different kind of meal. The parents had given their children a movie on an iPad to entertain them throughout the dinner. The iPad — a tool blatantly meant to preoccupy the children for the duration of an otherwise intolerable family meal — demonstrates a growing trend of dependence on technology and social media. While few high school students spend family dinners students looking at iPad screens, the staff of the Roar is concerned by the direction in which our generation is headed. While addiction to technology is a major issue for both children and young adults, our generation is currently also grappling with an addiction to social media sites accessed through this technology. As Facebook continues to grow and more and more social media sites become popular, so too do more and more aspects of our identity find their ways online. Some members of the Roar hear constant hallway chatter about Facebook and Instagram “likes,” as if people now use these as a means to determine the success of a photo or memory.

Social media provides students with the opportunity to live vicariously through the Internet. With this opportunity come both clear and hidden consequences. The most obvious consequences are addiction and procrastination. The more profound repercussions, though, are seldom discussed. When social media users visit a site so frequently and for such diverse purposes, in a way it becomes a virtual home base. On Facebook, for example, many students communicate with friends, share pictures, comment on posts and study for classes. Users select which aspects of their lives they wish to publicize, manipulating the lens through which they are viewed. This ability to craft a virtual identity affects the way our generation interacts with and perceives one another. When spending actual time with friends, our generation seems to have the constant urge to share it with the social media world — as if this in some way validates it. Sharing photos and memories on social media can be enjoyable, but this need for “likes” and validation tends to make time spent with friends feel fake and less substantive. Use of social media shouldn’t come at the expense of personal relationships, and these

relationships shouldn’t be based around social media. Otherwise the relationship exists in the virtual world and fails to do so in reality. Facebook should not be a website that demands our daily, or for some users, hourly, attention. We shouldn’t attempt to present ourselves as flawless on social media sites, nor should we ever judge ourselves based on how “successful” a post or photo is. Until we recognize that Facebook can act as a barrier to productivity, engagement and friendship, we are empowering it to do exactly that. These sites, which have become a staple in many of our lives, can prevent us from being truly productive. Browsing photos on Facebook can come to replace the half-an-hour otherwise dedicated to English readings or History notes. Perhaps this tradeoff may seem inconsequential, but imagine all the hours in your life spent on social media and what you could have accomplished with those hours instead. Memorable experiences will never be created on Facebook or Instagram, so remember to look beyond the screen and take advantage of reality. Don’t let the screen define you.

Editorial Policy

The Lion’s Roar, founded in 1984, is the student newspaper of Newton South High School, acting as a public forum for student views and attitudes. The Lion’s Roar’s right to freedom of expression is protected by the Massachusetts Student Free Expression Law (Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 71, Section 82). All content decisions are made by student editors, and the content of The Lion’s Roar in no way reflects the official policy of Newton South, its faculty, or its administration. Editorials are the official opinion of The Lion’s Roar, while opinions and letters are the personal viewpoints of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Lion’s Roar. The Lion’s Roar reserves the right to edit all submitted content, to reject advertising copy for resubmission of new copy that is deemed acceptable by student editors, and to make decisions regarding the submission of letters to the editors, which are welcomed. The Lion’s Roar is printed by Seacoast Newspapers and published every four weeks by Newton South students. All funding comes from advertisers, subscriptions and independent fundraising.

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november 8, 2013

THE

EDITOR’S DESK Yonatan Gazit Editor-in-Chief

I run almost every morning. Regardless of how tired I am or how cold it is outside, if the night before – or much, much earlier that morning – I decided I’m running, I roll out of bed at 6 a.m. and run for half an hour. It’s usually pitch-black outside, and since I began this tradition in late August, the temperature in the mornings has progressively decreased. I consider my morning ritual to be a gut-check. In order to muster the will for these runs, I ask myself the same question every time my alarm goes off, “Is the IDF worth it?” I have yet to say “no,” lie back down in bed and get another 45 minutes of sleep. The IDF stands for the Israeli Defense Forces, the Israeli army. I began considering the IDF as a serious possibility for after graduation this past summer. I went on a six-week tour, Na’aleh, run by my summer camp. It was during that month-and-a-half in Israel that I began to seriously question what I wanted to do with my life. This past summer was not the first time I had gone to Israel; my father is Israeli, I have dual citizenship, I speak Hebrew fluently and visit family there at least once a year. Israel has mandatory service for all able-bodied 18-year-olds, which would apply to me because I’m a citizen, but at the start of junior year I got a military

editorials

Editor contemplates possibilities after high school, going to the Israeli army deferral. The army never came up after that trip down to the consulate, or at least until I brought it up again at the end of the summer. Na’aleh was the first time I visited Israel to see and experience everything it has to offer; all my previous trips were to see my paternal family. The further into our trip we went, the more I liked what I saw. I couldn’t point to one specific aspect or instance, but I began to become more and more infatuated with the overall impression of everything in the country: the language, the people, the places, the food and the culture. I grew to be infatuated with Israel as a whole. And a huge part of Israel is the army. Everyone puts their life on pause after high school and serves the country for two to three years. It’s just part of being Israeli. Now, at the time, I understood part of this was just the patriotic surge that comes with visiting a foreign country, so once I got home I gave myself a couple of weeks to mull it over. I didn’t tell my parents, family or any of my friends about it, just to give myself some time to personally weigh the options. Almost every conversation I had with my dad, mom or sister included something about college. “How are your essays coming along?” “Do you want to visit any colleges?” “Where do you want to apply early?” My life revolved around me applying to college, but after a few weeks I still was thinking about the army.

I told my dad first. One night I sat him down at our kitchen table and I just said it. We spent the next hour-and-a-half talking. At first he seemed shocked, but as that abated it was replaced by passive opposition. Now, he constantly stresses the ‘opportunities I have’ and how I should take advantage of them. Soon thereafter, I told my mom, sister and friends. I got very similar reactions from all of them, “You’re kidding. Why? You’re a smart kid. You’ve got it all set up, why go to the army? You’re not really the ‘army-type,’ Yonatan.” The constant criticism, instead of deterring me, made me think critically about my decision. I came to the realization that, most likely, going to the IDF will pose several challenges later in life. My chances of getting into higher-level colleges will be greatly diminished, and I will be at least three years older than my classmates. On top of that, going to the army is a daunting task on its own. Three years is a long time. Life in the army isn’t easy; you’re constantly worked hard, in a strict chain of command and have very little freedom. I would be away from home for three years, returning only annually. There is always, god forbid, the possibility that I may be injured, or even worse, die. These are very scary and real things I have considered in my decision. The question I need to ask myself – and do every morning – is whether the IDF is worth it. I still say yes. There are

certain things in life that can’t be taught in a classroom, and they are not easy or pleasant to learn. Such lessons, however, usually prove to be much more useful in the long run that geometry or United States history. What truly appeals to me about going to the army, though, is the connection it offers with Israel. The IDF is a huge part of a society that I have always had one foot in, but now I want to jump into it headfirst. Over the summer I realized how much Israel had to offer. In the long run of things, I won’t have a gaping hole in my life if I decide to pursue my studies, but I think that my life could be richer by going to the army instead. I hope the army will lead to a lifelong connection with a country that is part of my cultural identity and heritage. I believe that certain aspects of a life can’t be measured in numbers, diplomas or titles, and that at the end of the day, only I can judge how well I have lived my life. College will always be there, but the IDF is something that, if I want to do it, now is the time. I’m still keeping my options open, just like my father said to do. I’m applying to colleges, and I have until April 1, when colleges decisions are released, to make up my mind. I will admit that if I do get into a very appealing college, I’m not sure what my decision may be. I have a lot to consider and hopefully just enough time to make a thoroughly thought-out decision.

Volume 30 The Lion’s Roar

Newton South High School’s Student Newspaper The Lion’s Roar 140 Brandeis Road Newton, MA 02459 srstaff@thelionsroar.com

Editors-in-Chief Yonatan Gazit

Kylie Walters

Managing Editor Dina Busaba

Business and Production

Chief Copy Editor

Charlotte Huth

Daniel Ehrlich

Jordan Cohen-Kaplan

News

Sasha Kuznetsov Nathaniel Bolter David Li

Amelia Stern

Centerfold

Faith Bergman Hyunnew Choi

Graphics Managers David Gorelik Olivia Hamilton

Julie Olesky

Section Editors Features

Carly Meisel Parisa Siddiqui Sophia Fisher Maia Fefer Shelley Friedland

Faculty Advisers Ashley Elpern Brian Baron Paul Estin Thomas Murphy

Sports

Jack McElduff Darren Trementozzi Lizzie Fineman

Opinions

Veronica Podolny Jack Rabinovitch

Photo Managers Katie Asch Dylan Block Sofia Osorio

Aaron Edelstein

fun page

november 8, 2013 Columns, rows and squares Each take a digit, falling Between one and nine.

EASY: 5 6

8 2

6 5

4 6

79 10

11 16

15 16

CHALLENGING: 5

9 6

ACROSS:

1. Attempts 7. Casualties of war 9. Impudence 11. Maker of sardonic comments 13. Bonkers

8 1

9 6

1 4

is right around the corner! Can Word Search Thanksgiving you find all the words related to the holiday?

H E O B X K B J J O E L R W

F T N B Z O L N Z K I J W H

F L A G D E A T R O A R V R

K Z T E I B C G G F X K F H

V W A M N F K B Q G C G T B

Q E N T A K F N L P A P P J

K X O U G V R Y I B F P A A

Crossword courtesy of ukpuzzle.com

ROSSWORD

bad haiku by Tony Vashevko & Rob Hass puzzles courtesy of sudokuoftheday.com

R Y Y N W K I M T P N L R Y

P R L R Q F D H V D W I A T

U W X I F O A U E A S O D H

E Z F E E O Y Q C X O D E A

X G S I E T I B X O A K V N

F F A L L B H D A S D B F K

Z H G S X A M T C D Q M E S

H R B N J L L T T E M Q W G

Y X N B E L R N B R J U J I

J E D R D A O D Y C T G K V

J C K B M M R N Y K G N M I

D E L R A S G R J J B I F N

S M I N U L R K O P P F K G

A Y N M D T M G Q M S F Z Z

V I F M Q L E B X H H U R V

C H O M E C O M I N G T R D

P I E M C R B T B D R S Q H

F Y Z S Q A T O G F P U O S

1) Cinnamon 2) Black Friday 3) Fall 4) Football 5) Homecoming 6) Nutmeg 7) Parade 8) Pie 9) Red Sox 10) Roar 11) Soup 12) Stuffing 13) Thanksgiving 14) Turkey

also called For8 mosa 3. Approval 12 4. Painful 15 5. Eerily percep14 tive 6. Wonky 8. To have piled up 10. Heron relative 14. Food 12. Small gnaw15. Helps Grip ing animal 17. Lured 18. Specialist ter- 13. Stringed instrument with a minology circular body 19. Impure ver16. Covered sion of quartz walkway of DOWN: Greek origin 2. Asian island 5

Embarrassing Roar Staff Photo of the Month:

Julie Olesky: Chief Copy Editor & Selfie Model

opinions volume 30

issue 4

november 8, 2013

page

Freshmen discuss the difficulties of transitioning from middle school to high school graphic by Olivia Hamilton

Victoria Bergman & Noa Schabes Opinions Contributors

n eighth grade, we were repeatedly reminded that the transition from middle school to high school was going to be a burden. We were told the homework load would be overwhelming and many times more rigorous than what we received in middle school. Toward the end of the year, teachers gave us more homework to “prepare” us for what was to come. But we would soon find out that we didn’t need to preAylin Dedeoglu & Olivia Fredrick Opinions Contributors

hroughout high school, many students become overwhelmed with the vast number of responsibilities they are expected to juggle. Many students struggle to balance academics and clubs, but student athletes are face with the daunting task of balancing all three. As two competitive athletes, we understand the toll that the combination of sports and school can have on our sleep and social lives. Although it’s very important to keep up with academics, there has to be a balance between friends, sports and school. Not only do we need to make sure we are doing our schoolwork and going to practices, but we also need to ensure that we’re getting enough sleep and seeing our friends on weekends. Everyone is so committed to hobbies and academics that it can be hard to manage a healthy balance. Coming into freshman year we knew that the workload of high school would be an increase from last year.

pare for the amount of homework, but the study habits and learning techniques that we would need to master. When we arrived on the first day, we were inquisitive freshmen with butterflies in our stomachs. Still, the most challenging part was yet to come. We went straight to our advisories hoping to have a friend or familiar face in the classroom. Luckily, we ended up in the same one. We apprehensively looked at the schedules and compared them to see with whom our classes would be. Soon enough the bell rang and we had to ask random In middle school, it was very easy to procrastinate without consequences. Although we have only been high schoolers for two months, we can already see how much our responsibilities and expectations have changed. There is no time for procrastinating. In some cases this is good, because it forces us to focus, but the feeling of being overwhelmed is constant. If we get home from our sports at 9 p.m., there only at two hours left to do homework and still be in bed at a reasonable time. Close to 11 at night, we start to get tired and stop thinking straight, yet on some nights we don’t finish our homework until midnight or later which causes it to be done sloppily and carelessly. This cycle repeats for the whole week. Although time management is important and having a packed schedule makes us stay on task and do our work, there are days where there is simply too much to do. In middle school, if we missed a few assignments the repercussions would be minor or nonexistent. Now that we’re in high school, however, our grades can determine where we go to college.

upperclassmen where our classes were while fearing they would tell us to look for the pool on the fourth floor, a common rumor we had heard. The long hallways and myriad of classroom numbers confused us beyond belief. Kids piled the hallways, pushing into each other just to get to class on time. Thankfully, we met some trustworthy people who led us to the correct rooms. We had to ask the teachers and even the principal to lead us to a class. Repeatedly, the remarks “such freshman” or “clueless” whirled through the hallways. During the first week, we would nervously amble into the classroom walking in circles, moving from table to table, trying to find someone we knew. Our bags were twice the weight they had been last year: we had textbooks for physics, math, history and world language, each one weighing more than the last. Since then, high school has become a fun place to learn and grow. We feel more free and less stressed out then we did during the first two weeks of school. Now we believe that the previous eight years of our education were worth it, just

to be in high school finally. To us, being in high school means we are mature students who work to achieve high academic goals and strive to learn more each day. Now we believe our middle school teachers over exaggerated on how difficult this switch would be for us. They stressed us out more than we needed to be. We became so nervous with anticipation that we were unable to fall asleep at a decent hour for the first few nights before school began. This proved to be partially wrong: our teachers give us lots of support. Our guidance counselor made it clear that we can go talk to him at any time. Now, teachers are more willing to help you by being available during J block. In high school, teachers seem to be more encouraging and aspire to help all of us succeed. They encourage us to study and put in all of our effort by reminding us how all the effort will pay off in the end. The transition from middle school to high school is not easy, but quickly adapting has helped us and keeps us looking forward to this new phase in our life.

We’re sure that many people can relate to the idea of being “spread too thin”, but also feeling the necessity of accomplishing everything that we need to. Whether it be a sport, an instrument or an extra curricular activity, we all have something we love to do and to which we are dedicated. Should we be expected to give it up just to finish our schoolwork and get a good night’s worth of sleep? Sports serve as stress relievers to us. If we’re having a bad day or need to get our mind off of something, we resort to sports as an escape from the real world.

Although managing sports can be overwhelming with schoolwork in the mix, it would be worse for us to not have that part of our lives. It’s stressful to have so much on our plate, but sports take away that pressure. Coming into high school, we knew prioritization would be a big part of being able to maintain our passion for sports and keep our grades up as well. At this pace, if the amount of work increases with each grade, we see it becoming only more and more difficult to successfully juggle it all.

opinions

Chinese Exchange Students adjust to life in the U.S. Jack Rabinovitch Spotlight On China

The year is growing older and the days are growing shorter. The weather is changing since the Jingshan students first arrived, but they don’t seem fazed by it. This isn’t surprising, as during the autumn, Beijing’s weather is very similar to the weather here in Boston. When I arrive there in January I can expect temperatures reaching 41 degrees some days. Since their arrival here, the Chinese students have enjoyed a great deal of the outdoors, including weekend trips to Plymouth Rock and Niagara Falls. On Halloween, the students were treated to their first ever trick-or-treating experience. One would probably assume that the school system in China is much stricter than ours. Although some restrictions at Jingshan don’t exist here, (in America, teachers have a somewhat relaxed policy on raising hands, in China raising your hand before answering a question is required, along with standing up as you ask or answer a question), most differences the Jingshan students have noticed can’t be clearly defined as being more or less strict, relaxed or open-minded. Rather, the biggest difference they experience is how the school day is arranged. In America, teachers generally stay in one classroom, while students move from class to class. In China, the students stay in the same room for the majority of their classes, while the teacher moves from class to class each block. On the afternoon of the early release on Thursday, Oct. 10, many South students were hanging out with friends, celebrating the short day by going out to eat and enjoying some of the last beautiful and warm weather of the year. I was doing the same with the Jingshan students and teachers. The small group of South students and teachers arrived in Chinatown before the larger group from North, and as we waited, we explored the small section of Boston, finding a small Vietnamese restaurant that looked inviting. When our North friends arrived, we all went back to the restaurant and ate. Gwen Stefani, Katy Perry and Ke$ha played through the speakers of the restaurant, as our delighted teacher told us how much she loved the music, and how she would listen to it in China. While I’m sure the Jingshan students are undergoing a huge culture shock being in the U.S., interacting with them is a culture shock itself. You find out that many things you’d think were different between China and the U.S. are actually very similar. Many of the Jingshan students really love to play computer and video games, so much that they stay up late into the night playing them in addition to doing homework. This admittedly bad habit isn’t so far off from what many of my American friends do. The year is finally beginning to kick in academically. As winter nears it is a reminder of the holidays to come that seem to take over our November and December as Americans. It is also a reminder of how soon we’ll be leaving for China.

november 8, 2013

Gaming Perspective Students debunk the notion that violent video games cause violent tendencies in players

By Nathaniel Flemming and Charles Zou

graphic by Alex Cohen

The release of “Grand Theft Auto V” this September re-ignited the debate about the correlation between video game violence and real life violence. As with every issue covered by the media, the discussion quickly polarized. The argument against video games stated that since the games are interactive and put the player in control of a character, the violence carries a much greater weight than it would in a movie or book. In addition, video games often glorify violence by rewarding the player for killing people, thus providing an incentive to act like a homicidal maniac. The glorification of violence sends the message that violence is noble instead of illegal and dangerous. Opposers to video games argue that video games desensitize people to violence and make players see violence in a positive light, creating a disconnect from reality. The supposed proof of this theory is that several mass killers in the past were active players of or even addicted to violent video games. To be fair, there is evidence that video games increase aggression but only in a short period of about four to nine minutes. This was shown in an experiment where teenagers would play a violent video game, then pour an amount of hot sauce into a glass of water for someone to drink. Before deciding how much to pour, the teenagers were told that the person who would drink the water did not like spicy food. Playing violent video games in-

creased the amount of hot sauce distributed by the teenagers, showing that video games do indeed cause people to behave more aggressively than they otherwise would. Such a temporary surge of aggression is negligible in the face of countless other factors. It’s difficult to determine whether or not a violent act was committed due to video games or not, and shortterm aggression is unlikely to cause any actual violence. It’s safe to assume any well-adjusted, mentally-sound person can draw the line between reality and fiction and realize what is acceptable and what is not. Some studies have shown that

the idea that video games cause violence is that while sales of video games continue to increase, violent crime rates in America have decreased. Japan, one of the largest video game markets in the world, has a lower crime rate than America. In any case, people need to maintain perspective, and look at the bigger picture. It’s impossible to pin the blame for violent crimes on just one factor, whether it is video games or anything else. There are several factors that can make a person act violently. The aggression caused by violent video games is negligible. The assertion that playing violent video games creates real life violence does not have enough evidence to support it. Violent video games, however, should still be restricted from certain ages. Games like “Grand Theft Auto V” and “Call of Duty” carry “Mature” ratings for a very good reason: to warn people about the content and to stop violent influences from getting into the hands of children. This form of restriction is no different from restricting other forms of media that feature torture, dismemberment or other forms of graphic violence that are inappropriate for people under a certain age. But with this in mind, restricting what younger and more vulnerable people should watch doesn’t mean that those who are mature enough for the material should also be kept from it on the presumption that violent video games cause violent people.

There is simply not enough evidence to support the assertion that playing video games creates real life violence. people who play violent video games are more violent at school, but again causation is uncertain. The two things are certainly correlated, but we can never know which one causes the other. Maybe people who are naturally violent are more likely to buy violent video games, which would mean the games don’t cause the violence. In fact, there is a school of thought that violent video games can be a tool people use to vent frustration and anger, preventing violent acts those people could have committed. For some people, playing a video game can release aggression in a harmless manner. Perhaps the best argument against

opinions

november 8, 2013

UPGRADE

End of term one Kimye is engaged Early release yesterday Halloween Colleges extend application deadlines Turnitin account cancellation Girls soccer and girls volleyball make it to state tournament Red Sox win World Series

DOWNGRADE

NSHS Hookups

campus chatter The Lion’s Roar asked...

“Is it appropriate for students to post about their college acceptances on Facebook?” “I think it’s fine and people can do what they want, but people need to take into account sometimes they get into a college that they aren’t even going to go that is someone else’s first choice, and that can cause problems.”

- Kaela Meyer, Class of 2014 “I dont think people usually have a problem with that. It’s just a way for people to show that they got in and for other people to congratulate them ... I dont think it’s inappropriate in any way.”

- Harry Nanthakumar, Class of 2014 “I understand why people would not want that. Some people are super public about their lives on Facebook, though, and I think it depends on who you’re friends with, because if you’re friends with people who are going to get hurt by seeing that you posted something on Facebook then don’t post it.”

- Sophie Hill, Class of 2014 “If they’re going to the school then I think they should say that they’re going. But if everyone applies to between five and 13 schools, then posting on Facebook every single school that [they’re] getting into is not as special.”

- Mackenzie Targett, Class of 2014

School cafeteria serves chicken and waffles Jim Joyce’s call in Game 3 SATs on day of World Series parade There’s fall, winter and spring before it’s summer again Isn’t Thanksgiving yet

photos by Alexa Rhynd

Movie of the month: “Ender’s Game” I read the book “Ender’s Game” back in fifth grade. I don’t remember too much about it, but walking into the movie theater I had a general idea of what I was about to see. The general plot of the movie followed what I remembered from the book, although there was some deviation; many of the details that gave the book political undertones were left out. However, the two-hour movie was still captivating, and, in my opinion, deserved an overall thumbs up. The movie takes place in a future world, where 50 years previously an alien race (called the Formics) invaded earth and was just barely defeated. This society revolves around ensuring that the Formics never come back and

manage to conquer earth. Ender, a tactical genius, is singled out and brought to battle school, where the best and brightest children are turned into the future leaders of Earth’s armies. He excels in the school and thus must face the daunting task of being a leader while contemplating his eventual role, fighting the Formics, and its moral consequences. I found the beginning of the movie to be a bit slow, but the further into the movie I got the more I was drawn in. There were, however, a few cheesy scenes here and there that made me cringe a little in my seat. But aside from those few hiccups, I enjoyed watching what I had read seven years ago

By Yonatan Gazit

come to life on the screen before me. The CGI (computer generated imagery) throughout the movie were superb. From massive battles between human and alien spaceships in outer space to zero gravity training exercises, the scenes were dazzling. As a personal fan of such grand scenes, I loved those parts of the movie. There were plenty of scenes, combining the exciting plot and great cinematography, that kept me on my seat’s edge. Overall, the movie doesn’t have the same intellectual message as the book; comparing the two, it is much more of a thriller than a political statement. Yet, it is still a great movie to see for avid sci-fi fans.

87%

said wealth gives an advantage in the preparation for the college process

Financial Aid

Paying for Tutoring Have you ever paid for a tutor?

On Oct. 29, The Roar surveyed 156 juniors and seniors about money in academics and the college process

YES 60%

NO 40%

If so, for which subjects? Number of Responses

A S D N V A O I N S TA S I M

The Wealth Factor

School Classes

Test Prep

Both

College Counseling

graphic by David Gorelik

By Hyunnew Choi

The Roar investigates how students’ socioeconomic statuses affect them in the college application process

nce a month, senior Nikita Roy spends an hour and a half meeting with her college counselor, who narrows down Roy’s college list, helps her brainstorm ideas for her college essay and edits her writing. Roy said that she finds college counseling “really helpful” because her counselor guides her through each step of the application process. Roy, however, said that because of the steep prices for these services, students’ opportunities become dependent on their families’ economic statuses. “It’s unfair that [the services] are […] not easily accessible to everyone. If one person gets all this help, I think everyone should be able to,” she said. “Colleges do want to see certain things. How are we supposed to know what they want beforehand?” Roy and others said that students are spending an increasing amount of money on resources for the college process, such as tutors, counseling services and preparation courses for standardized testing, which leads to students of lower socioeconomic status feeling disadvantaged in the competitive application atmosphere. According to South’s college and career counselor Barbara Brown, the level of competition is especially high in Newton compared to the levels in other areas of the

country. “What happens in this community is [spending money on resources] is contagious,” she said. “I think that stems from the nature of the community where we value education so highly, and there seems to be a very strong element of competition to get into schools that we call top tier schools […] That creates a feeling of ‘I better buy service because it’s going to make my application better.’” Brown said t hat a lt houg h “t he competitiveness around money and services creates a poor aura,” especially for students who cannot af ford su ch s e r v i c e s , these students are not necessarily at a disadvantage because of the availability of low-cost resources. However, they may feel inadequately prepared compared to classmates who are able to access expensive resources. “I think that students who can’t afford some of these

things feel less than [their well-off peers], which affects their self-esteem, which then affects their testing,” she said. “It’s a vicious cycle.” Junior Charlotte Willett agreed with Brown that expensive resources contribute to a student’s level of

50%

23%

said financial aid will be an influential deciding factor in their final college decisions

said. “If I’m working with someone who has a tutor, their confidence level exceeds mine.” Willet has never paid for tutoring or counseling services for a number of reasons. She said that for one, she and her family are more mindful of financial spending now that her sister is attending college. In addition, the resources available at South are more useful than students may realize. “The first resort is go to a teacher and seek help,” she said. “You [also] have your guidance counselor who has known you for the past two years. Spending so much money on [counseling and essay editing] […] is like paying a stranger to make your decisions for you when

she could not repeatedly meet with counselors and ask for help on a regular basis as she can with her private college counselor. Junior Ethan Kestenberg agreed that private tutors and outside-of-school resources can be more beneficial than resources available at school. He said his SAT tutor was able to teach him “reasoning skills that school was unable to teach.” “Having a tutor is an easier path to achieving the scores that you want,” Kestenberg said. “That doesn’t make it impossible for people without the same money to attain SAT scores or anything of that sort […] [but] it might speed up the process.” Willett said that although paying for private tutors is often excessive, test preparation classes and courses are beneficial for students. “It is a disadvantage for those with difficult socioeconomic situations because they’re not receiving that extra confidence and extra knowledge of the process,” she said. “Everyone knows the basics of what goes on, but the small, intricate details that are given to you through extra money spending pushes your score up.” Brown, however, said that these classes come at high

Competition increases how much people do spend based on how much they can spend. It’s an unfair advantage for those who can spend more, because they will, and it gives them an edge. - Matt Muller, Class of 2014 confidence. “It’s not a difference in level of intelligence; it’s a difference in the level of confidence. If you go into any test with confidence, you won’t doubt yourself. That confidence comes from resources, from money,” she

[essays] are a very personal thing. By paying that much, I feel like you’re not getting that much in return.” Although Roy said that she recognizes the helpfulness of the resources available at South, such as the guidance counselors and English teachers, she felt that

said they have paid for a college counselor

costs and are unaffordable to many families. “You have kids paying $1,000 on test prep — that only widens the discrepancy between haves and havenots,” she said. The Princeton Review in Newton charges $999 for the “SAT Ultimate 30-hour Course.” The company also offers the same class made up of a smaller number of students, charging $1,599 for the course. Costs for 24 hours of private tutoring, on the other hand, range from $3,240 to $7,800. Senior Matt Muller said that these classes significantly increase students’ test scores, which determine their ability to get into prestigious colleges. He said that because more and more students are paying for these resources, students feel pressured to follow the trend in order to keep up with their competitors, not only at South, but also at high schools across the country. “South is pretty competitive, but it’s definitely happening in other places, too,” he said. “Competition increases how much people do spend based on how much they can spend. It’s an unfair advantage for those who can spend more, because they will, and it gives them an edge.” According to Willett, extravagant spending on resources is adversely impacting the college process as a whole, for both applicants and admissions officers are losing sight of integrity in the process. “[The college process] should honestly be about hard work and intelligence instead of how much money you have,” she said. “I feel like the college process has become biased towards those who have more money. It’s the difference between opportunity.”

centerfold

UNCAPPED COSTS

november 8, 2013 The College Receipt The Roar totalled the various expenses of the college process for 10 applications. Transcripts $3/school = $30 total Standardized Testing SAT: $51/sitting = $102 total for two sittings

graphic by Olivia Hamilton

SAT scores: $11.25/ school = $112.25 total for 10 schools SAT Subject Tests: $37.50/test = $75 total for two tests Advanced Placement test: $89 for one test Advanced Placement scores: $15/school= $150 total for one test and 10 schools Application Fees Cost to send applications = roughly $715 for 10 schools

Senior discusses the influence of wealth in the college application process

ne summer morning, as I sat in preparation for a college information session, I was taken aback by a simple question that was really meant just to break the ice: how many colleges had I visited? The answer was more than I felt like admitting. But the situation wasn’t as bad for me for as for a nervous girl sitting a few seats over, who was at something like her 14th session, all before her junior year. Newton has more than a fair share of parents like the mom who dragged that poor girl to so many colleges. After all, a community usually values education because of high ambitions for its children rather than for the sake of knowledge itself. Inevitably, seniors like me end up spending a whole lot of time thinking about college, not so much because we want to leave home, although we might, but because the importance of college has been drilled into us since elementary school. College should be an enjoyable experience, and it really does lead to better economic prospects; on average, those with college diplomas have considerably higher earnings and a higher rate of employment. Despite the benefits, the higher education system is heavily flawed. The application process is flush with misleading information. The costs are out of control. Worst of all, college deeply favors the rich. As the College Board reported, the total cost of attending a moderately priced in-state public college last year was about $22,261, or 43.6 percent of the national median income of $51,017. As a whole, even when adjusted for inflation, public four-year colleges in 2012-13 cost 357 percent of what they did 30 years before. Even so, they only cost about half as much as private institutions. In theory, financial aid is the answer for the large majority of American families, but most colleges simply cannot afford to contribute more than a portion of

By Benjamin Szanton demonstrated need. Out of over 1,100 schools that reported financial data to an annual survey by U.S. News and World Report, only 61 claimed to meet full demonstrated need. An even smaller number don’t consider need when it comes to admissions. Within the last few years, several prominent institutions, including Tufts University, Wesleyan University and Williams College, have been forced to stop being need blind. Paying for college in 2013 poses the risk of becoming unattainable for far too many people in this country. But the inequality of the system does not lie solely in the actual costs of college — just applying brings with it a slew of expenses. There is a fee waiver available for taking the SAT, but there is no such waiver for tutoring or for SAT prep classes, which strongly correlate with a better score and often cost upwards of $1,000. As the New York Times reported in 2009, average scores in all three sections of the SAT rose significantly for every additional $20,000 of family income. On both the math and writing sections, not only did kids in the highest income group get the best scores, but they had the biggest jump in scores over the previous income level of any group. In the critical reading section, they had the third biggest jump. Here in Newton, there can be some what of a disconnect with everything outside of our bubble. The median income in Newton is more than two-and-a-half times the national average. Nearly everyone at South expects to go to college, and many of us will be lucky enough to leave without anywhere close to

Total: $1,273.25 the $27,000 of student loan debt weighing down the typical American graduate. But still, money is on the minds of every college applicant. Will you need financial aid? If you say yes on the Common Application, will it affect your chances of admission? For many kids, if the financial aid package is inadequate, going to their preferred college may be very tough. It seems as though colleges feel the same competitiveness and insecurity that we feel while we are going through the application process. The colleges bombard us with mail, some even implore those students with high SAT scores to become a statistic by offering a reduced or waived application fee to raise the average SAT score of accepted students, allowing the school to appear to be of higher quality. There are many factors driving the uncontrollable costs of going to college, including shrinking endowments and paying financial aid, but one is the desperation of institutions to build incredible new buildings and facilities, bring in famous faculty (today’s tenured faculty at top universities often make about 50 percent more than 30 years ago, even though many of them teach relatively few classes) and finance lavish study abroad trips. At a certain point, enough is enough. Students should be able to enjoy college and get a lot out of it even if they don’t go somewhere that resembles the Taj Mahal. Additionally, there has been a sizeable increase in the number of administrators at most colleges, and college presidents have seen their salaries rapidly rise. College sports also drastically affect

The inequality of the system does not lie solely in the actual costs of college — just applying brings with it a slew of expenses.

the tuition. I will admit to being an avid college sports fan, but in general, sports at many schools may cost more than they are worth. Since 1980, 132 colleges have added football teams, making the number nationally 629. In 2009, when the costs of travel, equipment and ever-rising coaches’ salaries were considered, 615 of those 629 teams lost money. Of course, football and sometimes basketball does generate extensive media exposure for the top Division I schools. The year after Butler University went on an improbable run in the 2010 NCAA men’s basketball tournament, nearly beating Duke in the final game, they received 41 percent more applications. Unfortunately, the vast majority of mens and womens college teams will never generate comparable exposure. They will, however, cost money. At smaller or particularly academically oriented colleges, is having a golf team at the price of higher tuition worth it? It is tempting to say yes. It is tempting when looking at a college to be amazed at a gorgeous campus, state of the art facilities and everything else that it has to offer. It is tempting to forget that nothing comes without a cost. With controllable costs, it seems likely that many of the unfair advantages well-off students have in the college process could be minimized. According to a University of Michigan study of the last two decades, the gap between the rich and poor in getting college degrees has actually widened 50 percent, to the point where 54 percent of the rich and only 9 percent of the poor get bachelor’s degrees. Colleges need to cut costs, and there needs to be an entry standard that does not favor upper income students as much as the SAT does. As it is, the system is simply inequitable.

features volume 30

through the

issue 4

november 8, 2013

page

The mobile app Vine has gained popularity among South students for its quick and often entertaining videos

By Nighat Ansari and Sophia Fisher According to sophomore Phil Batler, the Twitter video app Vine tends to attract people “who have something to say.” “Vine is a way [people] can get [their opinions] out,” he said. “And there hasn’t really been another way for them to do that.” Vine, a mobile app owned by Twitter, allows people to create and share with their followers six-second videos that play in a loop, called vines, which they can also share on Facebook or Twitter. Sophomore Sydney Kaster, whose Vine username is Syd Kaster, said that Vine can benefit users by providing an outlet for talents or opinions. “A lot of people have [a Vine]. It’s a good way for people who maybe don’t have the ability to become famous to kind of show their talent in six seconds,” she said. Senior Amy Cohen, whose Vine username is Amy Cohen, said she enjoys using Vine because “I don’t mind showing that I’m weird to make other people laugh. There’s also a lot of Vines that people just use to be funny and be themselves and get a reaction,” she said. Freshman Rebecca Shaar who does not have a Vine account but watches Vines on Facebook said that people don’t make vines just to make others laugh. “I know people usually Vine about a common problem,” she said. “Anyone who’s irritated uses Vine.” Though Cohen creates vines every few months, she said that creating vines can be more demanding for users with many followers. “The people who think they’re funny always want more,” she said. “They have to provide for those people, to make them laugh again … I’m sure more popular people on Vine, they feel like it’s their job to do it.” According to Batler, a lot of time and effort can go into making a Vine that

expresses an idea. “A lot of people will … work hard on a six-second thing, like they’ll spend probably an hour trying to set something up,” he said. “There’s one guy, all of his vines are usually like ‘you can get through this’ and ‘stay strong.’” Guidance counselor Aaron Lewis said he has watched vines with various messages and tones. “[I’ve seen] everything from funny to just inappropriate,” he said. Shaar said that some videos are inappropriate for younger audiences, however. “The language they use isn’t really appropriate for younger people,” she said. Batler said he occasionally finds other users to be rude or obnoxious. “They’ll go onto [your Vine] and insult it,” he said. Lewis said that Vine, like some other types of social media, could potentially encourage cyber bullying. “It can be used in a way that can make fun of people,” he said, “or can be used in inappropriate way for bullying or hazing.

photo illustration by Alexa Rhynd

Students perform a scene as another records it to upload to Vine the social media site. to download the app, Batler said that his age was not checked when he downloaded Vine. Lewis said that the under-17 rule is primarily a legal safeguard. “Just so if it’s used in a way that’s not appropriate they have to have something in writing that says that,” he said. Imposing a stricter way of regulating age may not prevent younger users from downloading Vine, as there are ways to get around the rule, Shaar said. “If someone really wants a Vine, they’ll probably find a way to get one,” she

This day and age, people are always searching for some sort of validation of themselves on social media ... It feels good when people laugh at your stuff. - Amy Cohen, Class of 2014 Although Cohen has watched a number of serious vines, she agreed that most vines are meant for entertainment. “Usually vines are just to express humor,” she said. “[But] I’ve seen vines that have serious messages. I know there’s one in response to a video about animal abuse.” Although Vine users are technically supposed to be at least 17 years old

said, “so I don’t think making any more precautions will be [effective].” A number of students have only recently started creating Vine accounts, demonstrating that its popularity is rising at South. Kaster, who created an account before summer vacation, said that Vine is “something [I] like to check because there’s always funny things on it.” Cohen agreed that vines are primar-

ily made as jokes. “It’s an easy access to humor,” she said. “People enjoy watching them. I also think this day and age, people are always searching for some sort of validation of themselves on social media … It feels good when people laugh at your stuff.” Batler also said that the limit on the videos is what makes vines accessible entertainment. “I feel like the six seconds in Vine is equivalent to the 140 characters in Twitter,” he said, “the tone makes it funny.” According to Cohen, the videos’ length may seem too short for real meaning, but longer vines would make the app less practical. “The short video that repeats is what makes the app funny,” she said. “The beauty of it is that you can just sit there and scroll through a bunch of videos so quickly.” Kaster agreed that its brevity only enhances the experience of the viewer. “I think that if [a vine] was any longer, it would be too time consuming, and it defeats the purpose,” she said. According to Shaar, the short length of vines may also make the app more consuming for users. “A lot of people are just scrolling through their newsfeed or looking at their vines, and they seee a video,” she said. “It’s fast, it’s easy, it’s funny, so it’s addictive.”

features

november 8, 2013

THE COMMON APPLICATION The Roar follows four seniors as they navigate through the college application process and will reveal their identities and college plans when they make their final decisions By Parisa Siddiqui

yan* has committed to Macalester College, although he has also spoken to the coaches at Fisher and Pomona Colleges. “After my visit, I decided that [Macalester] would be the best fit,” he said. “Nothing guaranteed, but they pre-screened my academic record in the admissions office, and they said that I would get in. I’m not 100 percent [sure], but I’m 99 percent,” he said. “If I apply early, then I’ll go there ... the only thing that would keep me from going is if I got really bad grades first term.” Ryan said that now that he is almost guaranteed a spot at Macalester, where he is applying Early Decision, he will go through with the typical admissions process for the school. “I still have to do the application, but I think I’m only going to apply to this school, because I was told that I would get in,” Ryan said. He said that he is not going to go on any more college tours, but he has begun to fill out the Common Application. Ryan said that he is planning on finishing it soon, along with his supplements for Macalester. “I haven’t started any of the supplements. I haven’t finished the Common App, but I don’t think it’ll take too long, just a few hours when I have time,” he said. Ryan said that he has asked three of his teachers for recommendations, but he is not completely sure of their status. “I think they are mostly done, but I’d have to check. The are probably all done or very close to done,” he said. According to Ryan, Macalester scouts saw him play at a showcase at Brandeis College, and after that, they contacted him for his grades and his SAT scores. “After they got those, they asked me to come and visit,” he said. “It’ll be fun. I’ve heard college is great.”

llison* finished filling out the Common Application and sent in her Early Action applications to Emerson College, Ithaca College, UMass Amherst and UVM and she attended a program at UVM for specific students. “It’s for under-represented students ... they invited a bunch of [under-represented students] to just sit in,” she said. She also attended an informational program at Emerson College. After she turned in her Early Action applications, Allison began to work on her applications and supplements for regular decision schools. “I think I’m just going to work on my essays more. I think I might take the SAT one last time. If I get deferred from my Early Action choices, I’ll have to take [the SAT] again,” she said. “I’m kind of worried about my critical reading score, but I got a really good score in the SAT II test in English, so I’m thinking that could help me out,” Allison said. “I’m comfortble with my reading score and my math score was good, it’s just the critical reading.” Allison is applying regular decision to American University, Clark University, Skidmore College, University of Delaware and University of Rochester. She has all of her teacher and counselor recommendations submitted. Allison toured Emerson College and Northeastern University in mid-October. “[My top choice] is either UMass or UVM,” she said. She said that her primary concern before she turned in her early applications was the essay. “I brought my essay to my English teacher, and that was helpful,” she said. “I also brought my papers to my English teacher from last year and got some helpful feedback. Even though they both said different things, they were both helpful.”

eorge* finished his supplement essays and sent in his Early Decision application to St. Lawrence University, as well as Early Action applications to Colorado College, Lewis & Clark College and St. Mary’s College of California. “I have one teacher who is writing my recommendation, and I’m going to talk to another. I have essays written for every school, and I’m finishing editing,” he said. “I’ve asked for all the teacher recs, I just have to check to see how they are doing with that.” George is working with a college counselor to edit his essays. He turned in his Early Decision and Early Action applications on Nov. 1, and continues to work on applications that are due in the winter. “I’ve filled out all the supplements for my regular decision schools, but just first drafts,” he said. “I guess the toughest thing will be finding the motivation to finish it all after I turn in the early stuff.” He is applying to Franklin and Marshall, Hobart and William Smith and Whitman Colleges for regular decision. He is not planning to do any more college tours. “I’ve already visited everywhere I want to go,” he said. He most recently interviewed with Franklin and Marshall College. “I think I am done with all my college visits. I’ve visited all the schools in the Northeast and I’ve interviewed with numerous schools,” he said. He has also interviewed with Colorado College, Hobart and William Smith College and St. Lawrence University. George said that he is hoping to finish his regular decision applications within a month of turning in his early applications. “I [still] don’t know for certain what [I’ll major in,]” he said.

graphics by David Gorelik

ennifer* decided to apply Early Action to MIT, for which she had a completed draft by mid-October. “The thing about MIT is that it doesn’t use the Common App. It uses a different website where, instead of one big essay, there are five small supplements,” she said. Jennifer also had her first interview for MIT in midOctober. “I definitely was not prepared for some of the harder questions, but I made it through,” she said. Jennifer also decided not to apply to Rice University. “I’ve been struggling a little bit with the Common App essay to decide what the essay was about when my heart wasn’t in it, I guess,” she said. “When I turned it in for English class, it came out a lot more naturally than when I planned it out, then sat down to write it. It came out in a couple hours [for English class] whereas the other drafts had taken a lot longer and were not as good.” On Nov. 1, Jennifer submitted her MIT application and began work on other supplements for other schools. Her finalized college list for spring admission includes Columbia, Duke, Northeastern, Tufts, UMass Amherst and Yale. “I might just apply to WashU in St. Louis just because it doesn’t have a supplement and it’s a really good school,” she said. Jennifer said that she is applying to many highly-ranked schools because more schools means a higher chance of getting in to at least one. “The reason I’m applying to so many [schools] is because I’m not sure I’m going to get into any of them applying to a lot of schools means you’ll get into at least one,” she said. “I don’t know if it puts more pressure on me — it actually takes it off if I don’t have to get into just one of them.” Jennifer has also applied for a National Merit Scholarship.

*Names have been changed to protect students’ identities

november 8, 2013

features

Friend J

unior Josh Kaster had his whole weekend planned. Then he found out the concert he was going to attend had been suddenly canceled; the use of the drug “molly”, the purest version of ecstasy, was too common and dangerous to hold a concert safely. “It was unfair,” he said. “It’s upsetting that this drug has to ruin great concerts and experiences.” The concert’s cancellation was preceded by several deaths of young people at music festivals at the end of last summer, particularly at electronic dance music (EDM) events. According to multiple South students, the connection between EDM concerts and ecstasy use is apparent. Senior Jeff*, a self-proclaimed frequent drug user, said that molly enhances his experience at music festivals. “EDM is all about writhing action. You’re waiting for the beat to drop,” he said. “You feel that on molly. It’s like a roller coaster. EDM music and molly help each other in that way.” Physics teacher Alexander Kraus, who has been interested in EDM from a young age, said that not everyone at these concerts is there for the drugs and that the presence of illegal activity can make the events less enjoyable overall. “Just because one likes that kind of music does not make them associated with drugs. Frankly, a lot of the drug use spoils it for the rest of us,” he said. “It’s ugly and unattractive. People can’t walk straight or get themselves off the ground.” Jeff said that the authorities at concerts typically do not enforce the law when it comes to molly, as “there wouldn’t be a concert if the police arrested everyone. Too many people are on it. That would only happen if someone climbed on stage or made a scene.” Junior Luke* said that the drug may be appealing because some people who have used the drug said they had a positive experience; the side-effects of the drug were a big deterrent for him, however.

graphic by Kylie Walters

“I’ve done many more drugs than your average person,” he said. “But I research everything before I try it. And molly freaks me out … Anything that can elicit a loss of control like that freaks me out.” After using the drug, Jeff agreed that the loss of control while on molly is legitimate, especially in terms of sexual feelings and impulsions. “If I’m around a group of girls [while on molly], there’s no way I’m not going to try to get with them,” he said. “You have no rational fear in you at all.” Dr. Edward Boyer, chief of the division of medical toxicology at University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center, toxicologist at the poison control

The South community discusses the dangers of molly, a new form of the drug ecstasy By Carly Meisel otherwise they’d get dehydrated,” he said. “So they drink water. And they drink so much water that the sodium in their blood goes down, and they can get seizures as a result.” Jeff said that the possible adverse side effects of ecstasy are unknown to many students. “People who do harder drugs are generally impulsive. So it’s not very common to plan out usage,” he said. Junior Tara Lanahan agreed that the risks are not common knowledge around South. “The biggest risk is that people don’t know anything about [molly]. People think it’s okay because they’ve heard of other people using it. It obviously isn’t, because we’re hearing all about [people dying],” she said. Luke said that users’ ignorance might be partly due to the rebranding of ecstasy as molly. “The reason that molly is becoming more popular is because a lot of people have a negative association with the name ecstasy,” he said. “Molly doesn’t have as much of a stigma, and therefore is not as closely associated with the risks of ecstasy.” According to Jeff, doing research online helped educate him before he tried any drugs; he also said that the fact that

Molly doesn’t have as much of a stigma and therefore is not as closely associated with the risks of ecstasy in the minds of students. - Luke*, Class of 2015 center and an emergency room physician, said that this loss of judgment could be extremely harmful and is one of the many ways that ecstasy can lead to adverse events, including death. “[Ecstasy] drives your metabolic rate up, which makes you use more energy. You don’t take any breaks from dancing, because it feels very good, so you can through a combination of exercise and the drug, drive up your body temperature because your judgment does not tell you [to stop]. That could lead to hyperthermia, multi-system organ failure or ultimately death,” he said. According to Boyer, there are numerous other adverse effects from the loss of judgment. “You don’t perceive hunger in the same way because [ecstasy] decreases your need to eat. It affects how you experience thirst. Some individuals know they’re supposed to drink water because

he researches is an anomaly among drug users. “People … look at the Wikipedia page and it’s a lot of words. They think that they should just do it, not read about it,” he said. “Why do homework on a party drug? That’s the attitude. But you need to be educated before you try a drug. I like to know my [information] before I do it.” According to Boyer, an effect that students may not be aware of is a condition nicknamed the Tuesday Crash, a depression that appears a few days after using molly. “There’s enough data that people who use ecstasy end up with the ‘Tuesday Crash.’ That’s from neuron depletion. In the people who have depletion of neuron transmitters, how long can you tolerate that before you have permanent injuries?” he said. Luke said that this rebound effect after using molly is a major reason for him

to not use the drug. “After your brain exhausts all of the systems that make you happy in the way that molly does, then you have a serious deficit of that afterwards,” he said. “People get seriously depressed after.” Lanahan said that if more in-depth lessons on ecstasy were added to the South health curriculum, usage rates might drop. “If we add more lessons on molly into the curriculum with drugs and alcohol, it would make a difference, and people would take it more seriously. People are going to make a big deal if someone decides to use something like heroin, for example. That’s known as a dangerous and scary drug. Everyone is educated about that,” Lanahan said. “With molly, it’s such a newly popular thing that no one knows what will happen if you take it.” Luke said that South’s current antidrug curriculum is ineffective because it focuses too much on prevention and not enough on the dangers of drugs. “[South] gives us a bunch of dangers that they say are associated with a bunch of drugs … They don’t tell us that our hands will fall off if we drink beer before 21, for example, but it’s a [scare] tactic,” he said. “The issue is if you have somebody who has already gotten involved in drug use, then they probably are not going to want to listen to the ‘don’t do this’ approach. The information given by South is more reasons why the drug is bad to do, as opposed to this is what you can do to make it less risky.” Boyer said that one of the most dangerous aspects of molly is the randomness and unreliability of it — there really is no way to know the composition of the drug being taken. “The real problem with ecstasy is you don’t know what you’re getting. In a street or party environment, the composition is unknown,” he said. “The risks are unknown. If you cannot tell me exactly what is inside of it, I cannot tell you exactly what the risks are. You’re on your own.” Boyer said it is important to point out that it is against federal law for a doctor to report ecstasy usage in a patient to anyone else. Molly’s unpredictability, inconsistency and numerous risks make it such a dangerous drug, according to Boyer. “These drugs aren’t harmful because they’re criminalized. They’re criminalized because they’re harmful,” he said. “How many people do you know who jump into a lake headfirst without finding out how deep it is?” *Names have been changed to protect students’ identities

november 8, 2013

features

Relationships: Sanctity of the L-word

EDITOR’S NOTE: Every issue, The Roar publishes a different anonymous student’s perspective on relationships. The views expressed in the “Relationships Column” do not reflect the official views of The Lion’s Roar, nor are they intended as a guide or source of advice for others. It wasn’t instantaneous; it wasn’t love at first sight. My boyfriend and I became friends at age 10 and best friends when we were 13. Our story isn’t complicated. We’d always had underlying feelings for one another, but we were never single or available at the same time. We hadn’t openly discussed it, but our mutual friends knew it was just a matter of time. When we were 16, we hooked up, and we felt like, “Oh. We probably should have been doing this for a long time.” It was jolting and exciting, but it also just felt natural, comfortable, right. The fear that the closeness of our friendship would inhibit us from dating disappeared immediately. So we hooked up again. And then again. Then he asked me if I’d be exclusive with him, and we both laughed because the question was just a formality — of course I would. We knew that something good had happened and would continue to happen for a long time. One flawless month later, he said it. We were lying in bed together, and as I started to fall asleep… “I love you.” Well, that woke me up. I knew I loved him — he was my best friend — but was I totally in love with him? If I had to even wonder, I knew the answer was no, not yet. I asked him how he knew that he loved me. He proceeded to list the ways, which was nothing short of beautiful. I told him that I felt all of those things too, but I just wasn’t ready to call it love. Upon discussing that moment months later, he told me that my response left him feeling confident in where our relationship was going, yet understanding that I just wasn’t quite ready to say it. My response avoided the notoriously horrible “thank you” reply, which leaves the other person feeling embarrassed and, frankly, unloved. Two weeks after that moment, I woke up one morning and I knew. There was not one iota of doubt in my mind, and there hasn’t been since. Looking back, I could have said it when he said it to me; he never would have known that I wasn’t quite sure. But there was no better feeling than looking him in the eye and saying — meaning — that I was wholly and definitely in love with him. And if he or she is really worth your love, your lack of an immediate response will not invoke anger or defensiveness. Lying about feelings that aren’t there or aren’t fully formulated starts a relationship founded on dishonesty. Don’t be afraid to hold onto it until you’re ready to say and fully believe it. If you throw around the big l-word like Mr. Gagnon throws tennis balls at kids in the hallway, it’s not going to mean squat when you really are in love.

photo courtesy of Ashley Wasilewski

Junior Ashley Wasilewski travels to a stable several times a week to ride horses; jumping, as shown above, is one of her many skills.

Students pursue horseback riding Maia Fefer, Liza Sockwell & Ilana Zeldin

“People think it’s really easy and you sit there, but it’s not.” Although horseback riding poses Features Editor, Features Contributors a wide array of challenges for riders and A slice of the Wild West in now in their families, riders also learn several Newton: horseback riding. Several students valuable skills, according to Allard. “[Ridare pursuing this activity a central part of ing] teaches you a lot of things that apply their lives. to the outside … Patience is a big one,” Junior Margaret Allard, who has she said. “It helps [teach how] to look at been riding non-competitively for seven yourself and see how you’re influencing the years, said that a rider must be completely situation and not just blame things on the in love with the sport because of the time horse.” commitment. “It is difficult to do horseWasilewski said that she has changed back riding here without having it be your and matured due to horseback riding. “It main and only hobby,” she said. “You have taught me a lot of responsibility, [to] never to drive for half an hour to 45 minutes to give up or have any doubts … to keep get to any farms, and it’s expensive.” pushing through even though there are Junior Ashley Wasilewski agreed that difficult times. You just have to really keep in order to succeed in competitive riding, moving forward because there are other one must be willing to put a lot of time things to work for,” she said. into caring for the horse and training. “You Marty Wasilewski, Wasilewski’s faeither have to be in it 100 percent or not at ther, said he feels that in addition to teachall if you really want to get anywhere,” she ing valuable life lessons, horseback riding said. “You have to be very hard on yourself; has taught his daughter about herself. you have to spend all your time making “It has given her a lot of courage and sure your horse is healthy, making sure your horse is doing its job and [making] sure you’re doing your job.” Wasilewski, who spends several hours per week at the barn, said she often finds herself with not enough time. “I’ve actually been doing my homework in the car every day on my way to the barn so that I don’t have to worry about getting home late and doing it,” she said. - Ashley Wasilewski, Class of 2015 Sarah Blatchford, a 2012 South alumna who is majoring in equine business and management/riding at Johnson & has introduced her to some really good Wales University, said she is frustrated that friends,” he said. riding is not recognized as a sport. Blatchford said that the benefits of “It would have been nice if there the sport outweigh the negative aspects of [were] to have been more understanding it. “I would any day take the horse over about [riding] being a sport because it is homework … I don’t sleep much, but I love an Olympic sport, but I [have received] a it, and it’s [worth it],” she said. lot of [negative] attitude,” she said. “With According to Marty, seeing the certain sports they’ll give you a leeway with horses and the riders in union makes com[physical education]. They didn’t do that petitions enjoyable to watch. with [horseback riding]; they didn’t recog“The best moments are watching nize it as a sport.” them ride and … jump. [I like to] see them Sophomore Mikayla Kass, who rides enjoy the animal and have the animal enjoy during the summer, agreed with Blatchford them,” he said. and added that riding is strenuous and Although some ride purely for requires a significant physical effort. enjoyment, others, such as Blatchford, are “I know a lot of people say [riding is] seriously considering horseback riding as not a sport, but it’s a sport in the way that a career. “Being a professional [rider] is a it takes a lot of physical effort,” she said. lot harder than you think — you don’t get

You either have to be in it 100 percent or not at all if you really want to get anywhere.

health insurance and people really look at you differently,” she said. “I am an athlete. I ride every day, but it’s a battle.” Wasilewski does not know if she wants to pursue horseback riding as a career but said that she sees herself riding in the future. “I’m not sure if I will be able to get to the professional level any time soon, but riders go until they’re 70 years old,” she said. “They keep riding and competing, so there is hope for me in that [regard].” Marty said that although Wasilewski and her sister Rachel both love to ride, he does not see horseback riding as a probable career for them. “Rachel is interested in becoming a vet. Ashley enjoys riding and jumping but she [has] other interests,” he said. Whether riders decide to pursue horseback riding as a career or as a hobby, families play a vital role in driving them to the ranches, going to shows and lending emotional support, according to South riders. Blatchford said her parents support her by watching her competitions and acting as a back up when she is not able to come up with enough money to pay for equipment. “I’m really lucky to have parents to support me when I can’t afford it,” she said. “It’s nice to have people that care about you watch you [ride].” Kass, who does not own a horse and mostly rides for fun, said her parents are there for her emotionally. “My mom herself was scared to death to ride, but she was supportive of me,” she said. Blatchford said that with the support of her family, she is able to care for her horse and overcome the time management struggles of horseback riding, allowing her to more fully enjoy the activity. “I went on a trail ride, and my horse does not like moving water. She’ll go through puddles but she’s had lot of trust issues,” she said. “I had to get off to walk her through this water and it was deep … she just followed me straight through it. It wouldn’t be a big deal to most people, but [it] was really exciting because she trusted me enough to follow me right through. The everyday stuff is the best.”

november 8, 2013

features

Blaise Marceau is...

Every issue, The Roar randomly selects a student and explores what makes him or her unique.

BLAI SE OF GLORY Freshman Blaise Marceau strives to extend his passion for soccer beyond his academy team By Parisa Siddiqui As a toddler, freshman Blaise Marceau was already athletically inclined, according to his mother, Eva Marceau. “When Blaise was three or four, my husband and I would be running on the Charles River … and Blaise would follow on a tiny bike, and we would do the whole eight mile or 10-mile loop,” she said. “If you’re starting out that way at three years old, it’ll shape who you become.” Although Blaise still mountain bikes leisurely, his primary focus is soccer; he enjoys playing competitively on a club team despite overcoming numerous injuries and switching teams. “[Soccer is] like all I do and mostly what I think about during the day,” Blaise said. “Mostly everyday after school, I play soccer. It’s pretty serious.” Blaise plays soccer on a Development Academy team, which is “the next step past high school soccer,” according to him. “[Soccer] takes up most of the time in my life. I don’t really have time for anything else,” he said. Blaise played on the New England Revolution Academy team last year, but due to multiple injuries — including growth plate problems in his heels, a broken knee and a concussion — he was unable to play in most of the games last season. “I didn’t get enough play time that was required to stay on the team [this] year, so I left the New England Revolution, and now I’m on a team called the Greater Boston Bolts Celtic,” he said. “In the soccer world, you kind of get seen by other players and coaches, and that drives you forward. From the town [soccer team], I was recommended to go to a club team. From the club team, you get scouted to go the pre-academy. From pre-academy, you’re signalled to go to academy,” he said, “That takes years and years and years.” Junior Aleks Marceau,

Blaise’s brother, said that Blaise’s persistence and dedication helped him overcome obstacles in his career. “It’s really remarkable, his resilience. A year ago, he had a concussion, and he really worked hard to battle through that,” Aleks said. “He really has a passion for the game.” Blaise’s friend, freshman Troy Manditch, agreed. “[Injuries] would definitely set you back, but he’s a hard worker, so he’ll always love the game,” Manditch said. Blaise said that his interest in soccer arose from his family encouraging him to begin playing the sport in kindergarten and his family’s own athletic history. “My dad was on the U.S. ski team and my mom was a gymnast,” Blaise said. “They don’t have experience with soccer, but they

By Parisa Siddiqui

photo by Sofia Osorio

[Blaise] definitely tries his hardest in anything and everything he does. - Troy Manditch, Class of 2017 encouraged me to take it further with a town team, travel soccer. My brother did club soccer, and I followed him.” Aleks, like Blaise, also learned from his parents’ example. “Neither of our parents have played soccer, but I think that determination and work ethic required to play, they taught us that,” he said. Blaise said that his commitment to academics coupled with his dedication to soccer makes him want to play in college. “I definitely [want to play in college.] Soccer coaches have taught me this, that even though soccer is my life, school is always going to be number one for me. I need to get good grades even if I just want to play soccer,” he said. Aleks said, “[Whether Blaise wants to play soccer in college] is really up to him. His soccer could really take him far if he wants it to. The pro level

and the college level is a whole different ball game, when it stops becoming just a game and actually becomes your job. It’s always fun, but it becomes a lot more serious.” Blaise’s friend, freshman Henry Feldman, said that Blaise’s passion for soccer is enough to make playing in college a feasable goal. “He tries really hard. He loves soccer. He’s very passionate about it,” he said. “It depends on how hard he works to get there. I think he could play on a really good college team if he keeps it up, and he could go from there.” Because he has practice six days a week, Blaise said he does not have a lot of time for socializing. “It’s a struggle with my social life at South. You have no time to go to parties on the weekends, no time to hang out with your friends, no time to do homework with your friends,” he said. “But I get closer with my friends on the soccer team than my friends at South.” Eva agreed with Blaise that playing on academy teams has its pros and cons. “A disadvantage is that you aren’t playing in high school, so you are one step disconnected from the school,” she said. “You’re not part of the soccer community … and that’s a great way to meet people and a great way to get involved, but an advantage is the caliber of coaching that you are getting … if you have committed coaches and other teams that are operating under those same conditions, you’re going to have a high level of competition,” she said. Manditch said that Blaise enjoys competing, which contributes to the amount of effort he puts into sports. “He … has a very strong work ethic in any sport he does. I’ve played tennis with him, and [Blaise] definitely tries his hardest in anything and everything he does,” Manditch said. Blaise said that he likes longboarding, snowboarding, mountain biking, tennis and basketball. “It’s a competitive thing. I want to win, basically,” he said.

sports volume 30

issue 4

page

november 8, 2013

Down

but not out photos by Sofia Osorio

The girls soccer team has suffered several injuries this season, and some believe that a lighter preseason may have contributed to the multitude of injuries that have hit the team.

The girls soccer team powers through an abundance of injuries and qualifies for the state tournament, offering a chance for younger players to thrive at the varsity level By Helen Haskin and Clare Martin Several members of the girls varsity soccer team have found themselves sitting on the bench nursing their injuries, while their teammates compete in games right before them. Many said the number of injuries the team has seen this season has alarmingly surpassed last season’s. “Sometimes we’ve had almost as many players on the bench as we have playing. It’s crazy,” junior Katherine Cullen said. “Last year, there were three [players] who were injured, full season. This year there have been five or six players sitting out.” Athletic trainer Patrick JordanQuern has been working closely with the team to rehabilitate the players. “Girls soccer has a high incidence of hip injuries, head injuries and ankle [injuries],” JordanQuern said. “This year there have been a lot of stress injuries to shins and ankles. A surprising amount compared to years past.” Though it can be frustrating to lose players to injury, head coach Doug McCarthy said injuries are often just part of the game. “[Injuries] can be the very nature of the sport because it’s a lot of hard running and speed involved, and there is contact, and there’s always the opportunity for injury.”

Jordan-Quern attributes the mulhours a day, I think it is just the volume.” titude of injuries this season to strainTo cope with the loss of players, ing or undertraining in the off-season. the team has recruited many under“Strengthening and conditioning both classmen. Among them is freshman Ali before and during the season is really Nislick, who believes the injuries will important,” Jordan-Quern said. not keep the team from success. “It’s Senior captain Alekhya Chaparala definitely given us some obstacles, but I has an injured ankle herself. “I have no idea think we’ve become stronger,” she said. why we have As so many injuevident in ries this year,” the improveshe said. ment of their “O u r pre win-loss season was record, Culpretty much len agrees the same with Nislick. as all of the “Initially, I other years. think it hurt If anything, - Alekhya Chaparala, Class of 2014 us, but now I would say we are 11-7it was less in1, which is tensive.” really good for us,” she said. “We sort of The amount of injuries this season overcame what we expected we would compared to last season may be due to a do.” less demanding preseason. One funcAlthough the setback of injuries tion of the preseason is to prepare your can pull some teams down, it has given body for the season. “If you look at the South an unforeseen opportunity — less running and fitness we did during preexperienced players have more opportuseason, it was probably less than in past nities to play on the varsity team. With seasons,” Cullen said. “[You] go from younger girls coming up, it gives South almost no soccer to six days a week, four an edge in its upcoming years. Cha-

I’m just really impressed with the way everyone stepped up.

parala said she is pleased with the way that the younger players have filled the positions of the injured players. “I’m just really impressed with the way everyone has stepped it up,” she said. “There’s been just a lot of flexibility on the part of the team as well as a really impressive effort.” Jordan-Quern said he has been busy helping injured players return to the game. One of the ways he helps them overcome their injuries is through muscle strengthening. “I can teach them exercises to strengthen muscles around the injured area as well as treatment before and after physical activity,” she said. Jordan-Quern even suggested that uninjured players work on strengthening certain muscles in order to prevent injury from occurring in the first place. “Nothing is ever 100 percent injuryfree, but it definitely helps decrease the chance by avoiding predispositions caused by weaker muscles,” he said. Despite the plethora of injuries that have hindered the team in weeks past, McCarthy said he looks forward to rounding off the postseason well. “Hopefully,” he said, “we’ll be successful and be able to move on into the tournament, as we did last year.”

sports

november 8, 2013

Sophomore reinvigorates girls basketball team Sam Detjen & Darren Trementozzi Sports Reporter, Sr. Sports Editor

Last year, as the lowest seed in the state tournament bracket, the girls basketball team upset North in an early playoff game, drawing in many South fans and spurring the creation of fan t-shirts bearing the words “I believe that we will win” on the back. Sophomore Emily Chang, a freshman point guard for South at the time, said the victory was a huge shift in her basketball career. “[High school basketball] is really different from middle school basketball, but it was good,” she said. “I was honored to be a part of the team, especially going so far, and it was overall a really good experience.” Chang began her basketball career in the third grade. “I was never into sports before then, and [a friend] asked me if I wanted to play with her, and I say, ‘why not,’” she said. “Then in fourth grade I started playing travel basketball.” Chang now heads into her second year of varsity basketball. She plays for the Bay State Jaguars, her Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team, in the offseason. Chang totaled 340 points for South last season, averaging 14.2 points per game, and she made 81 three-pointers with an average of 3.4 per game. Girls varsity basketball team head coach Sam Doner is also Chang’s AAU coach. Chang said Doner’s guidance has

been instrumental and that he pushed her to such a high level of competition. “I think that he saw potential in me,” she said. Rachel Goose, one of Chang’s teammates on the Jaguars, has been playing basketball with her for four years. “She always has a good attitude when she’s playing, and that’s really helpful when it comes to the team in a game,” she said. “She holds the team together in a way, because if she’s in a good mood, she can make everyone else in a good mood too.” According to senior captain Shaylah Kelly, Chang has also become a role model for her teammates. “She’s very driven, so I think when she’s working very hard and doing the extra hours, everyone else wants to put in the extra hours,” Kelly said. According to Kelly, Chang combines her good work ethic with her promising talent. “She’s obviously a good shooter and dribbler. She just has all the skills, and she’s always striving to get better,” she said. “I think we have a good chance this year of going far with her.” Senior and captain Lauren Levey agreed that Chang’s work ethic is contagious. “Emily has brought many things to the team. We definitely look to her to score, but she is also an amazing defensive player and all around she is a great girl who can help all of us by her work ethic,” she said. In addition to being a talented point guard, Kelly said that Chang is a good teammate off the court as well. “She’s very fun, and she always knows how to make people laugh, and I’m really glad she’s on the team,” she said.

At the end of last year’s season, Chang tore her ACL, but according to Kelly, she did not allow the injury to discourage her. “This injury that she recently had didn’t stop her; it just made her come back even stronger than she was before,” Kelly said. Chang said she expects the team to

do well this season despite the loss of last year’s senior players. “I think this year we’ll still go far because over the summer we’ve been all playing together, and the team has been working really hard, so I think overall we’ve really improved skill-wise and chemistry-wise,” she said.

photo courtesy of Emily Chang

Sophomore Emily Chang outruns a Franklin defender during a game last season.

sports

november 8, 2013

The Roar’s Jack McElduff interviewed ESPN reporter and South alumnus Andy Katz about his time at South and his career in sports journalism Jack McElduff: When did you start to get interested in journalism?

AK: Huge. I went to Red Sox games consistently every summer. [I went to] Celtics games; I was a Bruins fan. At the time, Andy Katz: The first couple of the Patriots were a clear fourth years of high school, I was a little when I grew up. Obviously that bit like the king of JV at South. The has changed over the last 20 years. first part of senior year, I was on I was actually a little more of a the [basketball] team, [but then Dolphins fan growing up, but with they] added another player. They the other three teams, I was a huge had a rule then that seniors were fan. not allowed to play on JV, so I got cut. I was crushed, devastated. But JM: Were you involved in any I didn’t want to not be around it, publications during your time at even though I couldn’t play at all. South? Local cable was just starting to do local games. So I went down there, AK: I worked for The Lion’s Roar, and proposed [covering] games. I which started with the class above ended up broadcasting the games, me. That was the first newspaperand I did a play-by-play. So I type job I had. ended up staying around with my teams and my friends in the media JM: Do you feel like South gave capacity. you a head start in your career? JM: Were you a big fan of the Boston sports teams growing up?

AK: Yes. Those were defining moments for me. I easily could have

gone in a different direction, like a life of crime. But if I had been on the team [and not gotten cut], I would have most likely not continued to pursue [journalism] in college. JM: What do you do on a typical day during college basketball season? AK: It’s constantly evolving. Over the past few years, I’ve been doing the “Three-Point Shot,” which is basically gathering news for the day. Am I going to a game? Am I going to Charlotte for ESPNU? Is there something I have to do at ESPN? I don’t really have a traditional day. One constant is setting the table for the day with those news nuggets in the morning. JM: What have you enjoyed most about your time working at ESPN?

ESPN

AK: The diversity of what I do. The fact that I write, I report, I host, I analyze. I now don’t just do college basketball — I’m a backup at Outside the Lines, which I love doing. It’s really the diversity over the last 15 years that I really love. JM: What was the most exciting sporting event that you have covered to date? AK: The one that pops in my head now is the 2010 title game, when Butler played Duke. The Memphis-Kansas game in ‘08 was great, but at [the 2010 game] I had great seats. I saw the whole shot, and it really almost slowed down. It was really a perfect storm. It was in [Indianapolis], and had that shot gone in, there really would have been a lot of great spin-offs of that would have occurred. JM: If there was one person in the world who you could interview, who would it be? AK: It’s not in the sports world, but people like Nelson Mandela, that would be a dream come true. I’ve been able to talk to a lot of interesting and intriguing people, but I don’t just have one like that. JM: How did you begin helping President Obama fill his marchmadness bracket?

AK: In 2008, we were interviewing him for a story, prior to the election. We were in a Hampton Inn in Dunn, North Carolina. There was a little free time after the interview, and I just asked him, “Hey, Senator, if you win, I’d love to come to the White House in March and fill out the bracket with you.” He said yes, and to [the White House staff ’s] credit, it’s ESPN Andy Katz helps President Barack Obama fill out his 2013 March Madness bracket. The two have been collaborating since 2009. become a tradition.

sports

november 8, 2013

WORKING

BEGINNING

OUT:

AT THE

GYM

photo by Kylie Walters

Two juniors offer their guidance and personal tips for training beginners

By Sumit Hariawala and Andy Wang

veryone who goes to the gym was a beginner at some point. Some newcomers make correct decisions, progressing steadily, while others make mistakes, wasting time and effort. Before you leap into the ocean of fitness, you should develop a fundamental knowledge of working out. In general, there are two essential parts of fitness: exercise and nutrition. Many people over-complicate these aspects of fitness, but simple concepts have been proven to be more effective. It’s difficult to find reliable sources nowaday on the Internet because they often misguide beginners, but that’s why we are here. If you don’t understand the purpose behind your actions relating to lifting and nutrition, you might be overthinking things. Setting clear goals and finding ways to reach them is crucial before you start anything. You will often hear people talking about lifting splits and routines, but how can you tell which one is best suited for you? As a beginner, planning training based on body part splits, such as arm days and chest days, is not recommended. Beginners should do either a full body routine or an upper and lower body routine as they progress. Training one body part a week won’t be as beneficial because you will be giving yourself too much time to recover, wasting a substantial amount of time you could have spent training. Lifting causes micro-tears in muscle tissue. These tears later recover and become stronger. This process of recovery does not require a full week. The rate of muscle protein synthesis is approximately 24 to 36 hours. Training muscles frequently will allow you to reach your goals sooner, but this affects the volume of exercise one should do. Frequency and volume are inversely related. If frequency increases, volume in each workout should decrease correspondingly and vice versa. Although volume in a workout can range depending on how frequently one works out, the overall volume can remain the same. Optimally, beginners should train in a full body routine two to three times a week. We recommend the Strong Lifts 5x5 program, which is five sets of five repetitions. Strong Lifts includes exercises such as bench press, deadlift, back squat, overhead press and the barbell row. Because beginners improve very quickly, Strong Lifts use a linear progression scheme, allowing one to steadily

increase weight and strength each week. Linear progression works well for beginners because strength develops steadily; thus, adding five pounds to the bar should be a realistic improvement for the following workout. Although training plays a key role in muscle building, nutrition is equally important. We understand that high schoolers are very busy and don’t have time to watch what they eat 24/7. Tracking food may be difficult, but it is still paramount to understand the amount of food you are putting into your body. Most athletes who endure strenuous activities and lift weights should try to consciously eat a higher protein diet. Generally, eating one gram of protein per pound of body weight should be more than enough for your body to optimize recovery and muscle development. Although protein is an essential macronutrient to muscle building, athletes should also have a well balanced diet, which includes plenty of carbohydrates and fats. Because many of us do not have the time to track our macronutrients, we should focus on two key parts: protein intake and total caloric intake. The only way your body can put on muscle is if you are in a caloric surplus, which means you eat more calories than your body requires. This surplus should be minimal to reduce excess fat gain while putting on muscle at the same time. Some people have trouble finding foods to eat that help them accomplish their goals, so here are some tips you can follow. Milk and low-fat/non-fat Greek yogurts, which can easily be added to your diet, contain high amounts of protein. If you are lactose intolerant, then you can opt for more lean meats such as white fish, tuna, chicken, turkey and many others. Although we only listed some ways you can reach your protein and caloric requirement, there are endless options that can discovered with only minimal research. At the end of the day, training and nutrition both serve as indispensable parts to the fitness lifestyle. Learning about this way of life can be easier said than done, but as always, we are here to help.

Because many of us do not have the time to track our macronutrients, we should focus on two key parts: protein intake and total caloric intake.

Email suhar97@gmail.com and aandywang@gmail.com with fitness questions.

A poem from...

Weakness It is said that he was weak because he would not conform, could not subjugate his will, would not let them imprison his mind, cage his spirit. Weak because he stood alone and not with the milling mob. Weak, because he would not speak the words they desired to hear. Weak, because he smiled when others wept, laughed when others wailed, stood tall when others bent beneath the toil of life.

John Lawless

They prayed for him to come to his senses and become as they. He, though he didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pray as they, desired the same for them. He knew that there was no strength in the coalition of the crowd, no truth in the mumbling of old truths, no love in the demands of unconditional love. He appreciated their prayers, they did not so much appreciate his. He would listen as the sound of the choir filtered through the air and caressed the trees and wonder why the vibration stopped when the hymn ended, why the sermon stopped when the preacherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s voice stopped echoing in the apse. He would sing the song in silence as he walked the village roads, roll the preacherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s words over in his mind, smile at soaring hawks and old barn cats, straighten a fence, remove a stone, bid good-day to those who thought him weak. He was not rich nor was he poor, neither wise nor foolish, he just was. And so he shared his weakness with all who thought themselves strong, his loneliness with the friendless, his thoughts with those who sought to teach him, his spirit with those who allowed their spirit to be caged.

John Lawless, Custodian and Poet

It is said that he was weak by those who never dared to share his weakness.

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