INVASIVEANDINAPPROPRIATE
October 2024
THELOWELL.ORG ONLINE EXCLUSIVES
LOWELL WELCOMES NEW PRINCIPAL, JAN BAUTISTA BY KAI LYDDAN
NEW YEAR, NEW STAFF: MEET YOUR NEW TEACHERS (PART 1) BY AMÁLIE CIMALA, THOMAS HARRISON, STEPHANIE LI, AND KAI LYDDAN
IMAAN ANSARI
Christopher Hernandez, Noelle Mak
Alex Hohn, Cayce Hewitt
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Editors-in-Chief
Thomas Harrison
Ramona Jacobson
Katharine Kasperski
News Editor
Kai Lyddan
Multimedia
Editors
Imaan Ansari
Katharine Kasperski
Yue Yi Peng
Art Manager
Yue Yi Peng
Reporters
Cecilia Choi
Amálie Cimala
Stephanie Li
Serena Miller
Mehreen Shaikh
Photographers
Christopher Hernandez
Dakota Colussi
Alex Hohn
Sydney Lee
Alex Mangot
Hannah Tandoc
Illustrators
Jeffrey Chen
Sarah Cuaresma
Cayce Hewitt
Noelle Mak
May San
Business Managers
Isabella Chan
Dena Nguyen
Web Manager
Katharine Kasperski
Social Media Manager
Anita Luo
Researchers
Maren Brooks
Anita Luo
Advisor
Eric Gustafson
COMING UP SHORT
As students at Lowell begin to earn paychecks from jobs, apply for financial aid, and make decisions about student loans and scholarships, many find themselves without the education needed to make informed financial choices. Plan Ahead, a required course for freshmen that fulfills SFUSD’s College and Career graduation requirement, constitutes Lowell’s effort to educate students on finances. However, Plan Ahead’s curriculum lacks substantive information on topics like banking, interest rates, and debt management, all of which are necessary information for any student who is planning to attend college, enter the workforce, and participate in the economy as an adult. According to the California Department of Education, having access to high-quality financial education leads to improved financial outcomes in adulthood, such as less debt and a higher quality of life. To provide students with a comprehensive financial education and ensure that they are better prepared to face the challenges of adulthood, Lowell should offer financial education classes.
Teaching personal finance through Plan Ahead is an unacceptable compromise. Plan Ahead discusses basic financial information, such as the difference between credit and debit cards, how to pay off loans, and how to open a savings account. However, rather than a dedicated Plan Ahead course, the curriculum is divided up among freshman teachers. Additionally, financial education is only incorporated within the section of the curriculum covered in freshman math classes, further limiting the size and scope of Plan Ahead’s financial education capacity. If students are not educated on the risks and benefits of different financial management practices, they will be unprepared for the economic decisions and financial issues that they will face in adulthood.
ings. Adding another would be no simple matter, and may take a long time. It’s also true that Lowell’s economics classes cover personal finance to some extent. However, Lowell has the capacity to improve its financial education offerings. It also looks like there is the money to do so.
To provide students with a comprehensive financial education and ensure that they are better prepared to face the challenges of adulthood, Lowell should offer financial education classes.
The California Access to Financial Education Grant (CAFE), which provides funding for high schools to implement financial education courses, was put into effect on March 24, 2023. According to the SFUSD website, topics covered in these state-funded courses would include investing, taxes, college savings, budgeting, and saving. Despite the fact that SFUSD was the first school district in the state of California to receive this grant, the funding has not been fully put to use. Better utilizing this money would allow Lowell to provide quality economic instruction for its students. Since Lowell fails to offer a dedicated financial aid class, the burden of this education primarily falls to parents. However, many parents do not have the financial knowledge necessary to provide their children with such information. Many students come from backgrounds where financial education was not taught or emphasized. Without a foundation of financial literacy at school nor at home, students are entering college with insufficient knowledge of how to manage their money.
It’s true that Lowell has an abundance of course offer-
Teaching students about saving for short- and longterm goals, as well as basic investment concepts, can set them on a path toward financial stability and encourage responsible habits. By introducing financial education classes at Lowell, we can address these demands at a critical stage in students’ development, ensuring that they are better prepared to manage their finances and make informed decisions as they enter adulthood.
The Lowell is published by the journalism classes of Lowell High School. All contents copyright Lowell High School journalism classes. All rights reserved. The Lowell strives to inform the public and to use its opinion sections as open forums for debate. All unsigned editorials are opinions of the staff. The Lowell welcomes comments on school-related issues from students, faculty and community members. Send letters to the editors to thelowellnews@gmail.com. Names will be withheld upon request. We reserve the right to edit letters before publication.
The Lowell is a student-run publication distributed to thousands of readers including students, parents, teachers, and alumni. All advertisement profits fund our newsmagazine issues. To advertise online or in print, email thelowellmanagement@gmail.com. Contact us: Lowell High School 1101 Eucalyptus Drive San Francisco, CA 94132, 415-759-2730, or at thelowellnews@gmail.com.
FORGOTTEN HOMEWORK
FROM THE EDITOR
Dear readers of The Lowell,
Welcome back!
In this magazine’s cover, “Invasive and Inappropriate,” we wanted to bring to light a prevalent, yet often overlooked issue at Lowell. Through the writing of this article, we heard from several students who have faced verbal harassment and inappropriate behavior from teachers. We understand this is a sensitive topic, but felt it was crucial to share their stories because of the negative impact these comments have on students’ experiences at school.
This magazine also comes in the midst of an election season. With the presidential race weighing heavily on Lowellites’ minds, we set out to explore the reasons why this election matters to students. We asked how students involve themselves in politics and advocate for the policies that are consequential to them.
We hope that our first magazine of the year can provide an opportunity for dialogue around the experiences of Lowell students and the issues that are significant to them.
Editors-in-Chief, Thomas Harrison, Ramona Jacobson, and Katharine Kasperski
ACCOLADES
NSPA Pacemaker Top 100
2018 NSPA Pacemaker Finalist
2011 & 2014 NSPA Online Pacemaker
2012 NSPA Print Pacemaker
2007 & 2011 NSPA All-American
2009 NSPA First Class Honors
2007 NSPA Web Pacemaker
2007 CPSA Gold Crown
ILLUSTRATION BY CAYCE HEWITT
INVASIVE AND INAPPROPRIATE
BY RAMONA JACOBSON, DAKOTA COLUSSI, AND
Lowell students share their experiences with verbal harassment and inappropriate behavior from teachers.
SERENA MILLER
INVASIVE AND INAPPROPRIATE
BY RAMONA JACOBSON, DAKOTA COLUSSI, AND
SERENA MILLER
As the final minutes of her class tick down, Carmen, a student under a pseudonym, is plagued with the dread she experiences almost every day before attending class. As she walks through the halls, she contemplates turning back and skipping her next class, but knows it will only lower her grade further. Her anxiety builds as she enters the locker room and begins to dress. Her heartbeat quickens with apprehension at the thought of the teacher pulling her aside for one of his invasive conversations. She said her teacher frequently singles out Carmen and her friends with uncomfortable comments on their clothes and personal lives. As she enters the gym, Carmen silently begins the mental countdown until class is over, allowing her to escape the stressful classroom environment created by her teacher’s behavior.
Carmen is not the only student who has experienced verbal harassment from a teacher at Lowell.
Verbal harassment from teachers, or inappropriate and invasive comments made by teachers to students, is a prevalent, yet often
overlooked, issue at Lowell. In a September 2024 survey conducted by The Lowell of 104 students, 36 percent of respondents reported that a teacher at Low ell had caused them to feel uncomfort able, and 20 percent re ported that a teacher had spoken or act ed inappropriately in front of the class. Additionally, 53 percent reported that they knew of other students who had complained about inappropriate conduct from a teacher at Lowell. Students said the harassment they experience is frequently gender-based, with male teachers often targeting female students with inappropriate jokes and comments about their appearances and personal lives. Students who have experienced harassment from teachers feel that their experiences have been discounted because they lack the severity of physical harassment. However, verbal harassment has had detrimental effects on their mental health and expe-
rience at school. Although Lowell’s administration has made efforts to address student reports of harassment and work with teachers to reform inappropriate behavior, this issue has persist-
According to Dr. Elizabeth Jeglic, a psychology professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, verbal harassment from teachers consists of comments that cross professional boundaries and make students feel uncomfortable. Dr. Jeglic believes that the invasive comments received by students at Lowell qualify as a form of sexual harassment. “[The comments] are sexual in nature and are a boundary violation,” Dr. Jeglic said. “They are also red-flag grooming behaviors, and can be indicative of nefarious intent.”
Data from Dr. Jeglic’s 2022 study of educator sexual misconduct in high schools illustrates a pattern in the gender dynamic of this misconduct, with 85 percent coming from male teachers and 72 percent targeted at female students. Addi-
tionally, the study found that out of the respondents who had been harassed, 94 percent had experienced verbal harassment. The impacts of harassment can continue beyond high school, she said, negatively affecting some students years into the future. “We found that in young adulthood, those students who had experienced educator sexual misconduct experienced poorer quality of life, increased substance abuse, higher levels of suicidal behaviors, and increased
you lived in my neighborhood because I saw you at the bus stop with a boy,’” she said. Comments such as these created a hostile educational environment for Carmen, and discouraged her from attending the class. “It made me really anxious to go to class,” she said. “I had so many absences for that class that year because I just didn’t have it in me to deal with that teacher.”
Jessica, a junior under a pseudonym, said that she has experienced harassment from both
In one instance, Jessica said, she came to school with long fake nails, and her teacher pointed them out to the student who she insinuated was dating Jessica, making a suggestive statement about Jessica and her nails. While Jessica’s teachers did not make explicitly sexual or otherwise threatening comments towards her, she said their behavior made her feel uncomfortable. According to Dr. Jeglic, verbal harassment from teachers crosses professional boundaries,
“IT CAN LEAVE THE STUDENT FEELING VIOLATED WHEN A PROFESSIONAL, WHO IS SUPPOSED TO BE LOOKING OUT FOR THEIR BEST INTERESTS, CROSSES THAT BOUNDARY.”
risk for subsequent victimization,” she said. Although the inappropriate comments received by students vary in severity, Dr. Jeglic believes that all inappropriate behavior from teachers has a detrimental effect on students. “It can leave the student feeling violated when a professional, who is supposed to be looking out for their best interests, crosses that boundary,” she said.
Lowell students who have experienced verbal harassment feel that it significantly impacted their daily lives while attending school, causing them to feel stressed and wary of further inappropriate actions from the teachers involved. According to Carmen, her teacher repeatedly made invasive comments about the personal lives of Carmen and other female students in her class. The most uncomfortable experience she had in the class, she said, was when her teacher informed her that he knew where she lived. “He told me, ‘I can see your address on StudentVue, and I knew
male and female teachers. Jessica felt uncomfortable with her male P.E. teacher’s choice of words while reprimanding her for wearing running shorts instead of the standard P.E. uniform shorts. According to Jessica, her teacher told her, “You can’t be wearing those shorts. They’re distracting me and the rest of the class.” She said one of Jessica’s female teachers made similar commentary about her appearance, as well as her romantic life. “She would try to get [involved in] my personal life, and would constantly insinuate that I was dating someone in the class and say inappropriate comments,” she said.
causing students to lose trust in the adults who are meant to support them and help them learn. Hannah, a senior under a pseud-
onym, said she experienced discomfort in a class where a teacher made inappropriate and suggestive comments toward his students. According to Hannah, the primary targets of these comments were female students like herself. Her The Lowell October 2024
teacher commented on his students’ weight and eating habits, referring to his students as overweight if they ate food in class, she said. Like Jessica, her teacher’s invasive behavior ranged from comments on his students’ bodies to speculation on their romantic feelings. “[The teacher] made a comment saying that I was obsessed with him in a romantic way. The novel we were reading in class had unrequited love in it, and he referenced that being me to him,” she said. Although the comments weren’t explicitly inappropriate, Hannah said, they crossed the line in terms of teacher-student interactions and made the classroom environment feel uncomfortable.
Verbal harassment is more difficult to quantify than other forms of harassment, and easier to deny. According to Hannah, many of the inappropriate comments that she received from her teacher were framed as jokes. She feels that framing their harassment in this way has allowed her teacher, and others like him, to deny the harmful nature of their comments.
“The teachers that are acting this way know that they can’t cross the line,” Carmen said. “They know that they can’t be overly inappropriate with the student, or put their hands on a student, but instead, they’ll make inappropriate comments.” Jessica has struggled to gain validation for her experiences of
inappropriate behavior from her P.E. teacher. She shared her story with her counselor, but feels that her report was unfairly dismissed. According to Jessica, her counselor claimed that Jessica’s teacher had an older teaching style and was not aware that his comments were inappropriate. She feels that excusing the teacher’s behavior in this way was harmful and unjustified.
“It gives teachers the benefit of the doubt when they’re saying inappropriate things to minors, and they should be reprimanded for that,” she said.
Lowell’s administration is limited by legal and district policies in their ability to address reports of harassment.
The San Francisco Unified School
District (SFUSD) provides Lowell’s administration with guidelines that they are required to uphold, and is in charge of taking disciplinary action against any teacher who is found to be guilty of significantly harmful and inappropriate actions concerning a student. According to Assistant Principal Isaac Alcantar, the distinction between more minor offenses and significantly inappropriate conduct is one that must be made on a case-by-case basis, after Lowell’s administration conducts an investigation into the report and gathers evidence. “If it was something to the effect of using inappropriate language or addressing students in a way that was unprofessional, that might be something where the administration just brings a teacher in and brings it to their attention,” Alcantar said. Under these circumstances, he said, a teacher would be notified that their conduct was inappropriate, and told to make adjustments to their behavior in the future. “If it’s something very inappropriate and harmful [in terms of] interactions with students, then we would let our district lead know, and they would be contacting our legal department,” he said. When a report is determined to be severe enough to be sent to the
SFUSD legal department, he said, Lowell’s administration is no longer in charge of any decisions relating to the report. According to Principal Jan Bautista, Lowell’s administration is devoted to addressing all reports of harassment that they receive. “Every report is significant,” Bautista said. “We do the investigation and gathering of information so that we can consult with the district offices about what degree, what level, how do we respond?” However, she said that reports made against staff, and subsequent investigations into these reports, are personnel issues and cannot be discussed with students.
dean,” she said. “Clearly, it wasn’t. I never heard about it again, and the suggestive comments just kept on coming.” Carmen has struggled to achieve long-term results from her
“I FELT MY FEELINGS TOWARD THE WHOLE SITUATION WERE INVALID, AND THAT [THE HARASSMENT] WASN’T REALLY HAPPENING BECAUSE EVERYONE REFUSED TO SEE IT.”
reports. “I reported him multiple times, maybe three or four times throughout the year, and the most that happened was that he went on leave for a little bit, but he’s still teaching,” she said. “He is hav-
Although Lowell’s administration is required to maintain confidentiality about the outcomes of reports and investigations, this lack of transparency feels frustrating and discouraging to students like Hannah. Hannah visited the counseling office to report her teacher for what she considered his inappropriate behavior, but saw no change. “They gave me this form for sexual harassment, and it said to explain details, give us bullet points of what’s happened, and then we’ll see if it’s worth bringing up to the
ing some consequences, but it’s not long term.” According to Dr. Jeglic, action against harassment in schools is often difficult to implement, with some believing that the issue is not severe enough to address. “We found that 11.7 percent of kids are experiencing harassment, so this is a very serious issue,” she said. “It is not negligible, and it has lasting consequences.” Jessica feels that teachers should receive harsher repercussions for verbal harassment, as she believes that it has a significant negative effect on the mental health of the students being harassed. “No person should ever have to receive those comments from anyone,”
she said. “If you’re going to make someone feel uncomfortable, you should face consequences for that.” Students who say they have experienced verbal harassment from teachers believe that in order to solve this issue, people need to share their experiences and work together to advocate for change. Hannah said that she felt isolated and invalidated in her experiences because others did not recognize the harm of her teacher’s comments. “I felt I was the only one, and I was so alone in that classroom. Even writing up the counselor’s report, I remember not wanting to turn it in,” she said. “I felt my feelings towards the whole situation were invalid, and that [the harassment] wasn’t really happening because everyone refused to see it.” According to Dr. Jeglic, only around 10 percent of the students who have experienced harassment file a formal report. “There is guilt and shame that goes along with the victimization, and that prevents disclosure,” she said. Carmen believes that if other students speak up about the verbal harassment that they have experienced from teachers, teachers will be pressured to reform their behavior or face heightened repercussions. “When teachers come back [from leave], nothing is changing,“ she said. “I want to actually see a difference in behavior from these teachers, because it’s affecting kids’ grades, it’s affecting kids’ attendance, and it’s affecting their mental health.”
SCHOOL’S IN SESSION
A FALL LOOKBOOK
RYAN NJUGUNA, 12TH GRADE
DANAH AROONCHAIPIROM, 12TH GRADE
“I just come up with fits in my head. Regular exposure to general media gave me the “creative mind” to put things together.”
“[Fashion] plays a big part of my identity as that’s one of the things that I take pride in and took a while for me to understand. It’s the first thing people around me will notice so I always like to leave a good impression.”
Inspired by a 90s fashion catalog format, here are the school outfits of four Lowellites and what inspires their fashion style!
JOHANNA YAN, 12TH GRADE
DALE WALKER, 11TH GRADE
“I usually just pick clothes based on how cold or hot it is. If I’m tired, I take whatever I pull out of my closet first.”
“I genuinely love clothes. I love that I am able to wear clothes that make me feel happy and allow me to express my own style.”
PHOTOS BY
This election matters to Lowellites.
Many Lowell students are actively following the 2025 election. Here’s why.
By Thomas Harrison and Amálie Cimala
Senior Ayden Dijkgraaf had been working to distribute voting resources for around a year, but it wasn’t until his friend had an abortion that he began to recognize the impact that the upcoming election could have on the people he loved. After learning of the limits on abortion proposed by Project 2025, a political initiative by the Heritage Foundation that is frequently associated with presidential candidate Donald Trump, Dijkgraaf knew it was important to vote to protect the abortion rights that his friend had exercised. Now, Dijkgraaf feels personally invested in his position as a poll worker, and he encourages other students to get involved with the election.
Dijkgraaf is one of many Lowell students with personal stakes in the upcoming election.
As the 2025 presidential election draws near, many Lowell students are worried about how they and their loved ones will be impacted by its results. According to a 2024 survey by The Lowell, about 70 percent of students believe that this election is more important than previous ones. However, some Lowell students are more engaged than others, depending on what is at stake for them in the election. Some students are advocating for their candidate of choice each day, while others are
less informed about the election and its potential outcomes.
To many of these students, the consequences of a second Trump presidency loom large over this election. History teacher Lauretta Komlos, who has taught during three different election years, sees Trump’s presidency as a major turning point in the political involvement of students. “Some of the actions that Donald Trump took at the
“If Donald Trump wins, I would likely have to either leave the country, or find some [other] way to ensure my personal safety and my right to continue existing as a queer trans person.”
very beginning of his administration really seemed to lead to student engagement,” Komlos said. After Trump was elected, students began asking her questions about limits to his power, which never happened during the Obama administration. She didn’t always know the answers to their questions. “He was constantly testing the rules,” she said.
A desire to avoid a Trump presidency has caused students like Dijkgraaf, who leans Republican, to vote for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the upcoming election. Dijkgraaf sees Trump as too extreme of a Republican, and he has views that directly conflict with the former president’s. “What’s at stake is women’s rights, the environment, and international relations,” Dijkgraaf said. He is also worried that a Trump presidency could be a bad influence on his generation. “When we grow up and we become fathers and mothers, we want to instill good values like compassion, care, and thoughtfulness in our kids,” he said. “We don’t want snooty, rude, sexist, entitled children.”
Queer students, like senior Gray Gardiner, see a second Trump presidency as a direct threat to their way of life. Gardiner, who identifies as
transgender and genderqueer and uses the pronouns ze/hir, feels that politics as a whole have become a fight for hir right to openly exist, and that Project 2025 is one of the biggest active threats to hir existing the way ze chooses to. Sophomore Cecelia Mills is similarly concerned that a Trump presidency would mean the suppression of her identity as a transgender woman. “As a queer person, I’m very concerned about the fact that Donald Trump has stated again and again, directly or indirectly, that he does not care about queer rights, that he wants to remove queer people from our country, and [that] his followers have also expressed opinions like that,” Mills said. Mills went as far as to say that she would not feel safe as a trans person in America under a second Trump presidency. “If Donald Trump wins, I would likely have to either leave the country, or find some [other] way to ensure my personal safety and my right to continue existing as a queer trans person.”
In the event of a Harris win, Gardiner sees this election as an opportunity to help queer people in states that aren’t as progressive as California. Ze referred to hir cousin, who is also trans, but lives in a state that places more restrictions on the lives of transgender people. “He doesn’t have the same ability to go play the sports he wants to play, and all of these [other] things,” ze said. “I just feel so bad for him and so many others like him.” Gardiner believes that this election is a unique chance to make a major difference in this country by keeping Democrats in power, which can benefit those like hir cousin who are impacted by state laws.
Some students, such as senior Amy Chandonia, don’t support either of the main presidential candidates. Though she leans towards the Democratic party, Chandonia, who is not old enough to vote, supports a third party candidate this election. A prominent reason for this is Harris’s unwavering support for Israel in the Israel-Hamas war. “[Harris is] basically supporting genocide, and if she is elected, that’s something we’re gonna have to deal
Cecelia Mills
with and face the consequences of,’’ she said. Chandonia is referring to the deaths of over 40,000 Palestinians by Israeli attacks, a number which, according to a statement by Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is made up mostly of women and children. Many of Lowell’s students align themselves with the Democratic party. A 2024 survey by The Lowell found that out of the students who had aligned themselves with a political party, about 84 percent identified as a Democrat. Because of this trend, Chandonia is worried about why students are supporting Harris. “I feel like there’s not enough attention being drawn onto the issues with her campaign and her plans for the future. [Lowell students] just blindly throw their support at her because she’s a Democrat,” she said.
Senior Helena Awwad supports Harris because she sees her as the lesser of two evils, although she does not feel that Harris is the best fit for president. Awwad, who is Palestinian, also takes issue with Harris’s support for Israel. “I’ve spoken to a lot of other Arabs about this, and I think the consensus that I’ve come to, and a lot of others have come to, is that we’re kind of left at this point with two options,” Awwad said. “One option is a felon who is racist and homophobic and will set us back 100 years. And then we have Kamala, who’s also problematic in many ways. However, I think we’ve seen a little bit more willingness to, I don’t want to say support Palestine, but
kind of ease what’s going on.” However, Awwad believes that Harris’s limited consideration for Palestine is likely performative, and a ploy to gain votes from those sympathizing with the Palestinian people. “It always begins with the same, ‘I will always support Israel, and Israel’s right to defend itself,’ and ‘what happened on October 7 was terrible,’ and this whole preemptive measure so that people aren’t offended before saying the most basic human response to what’s happening.”
Other students, such as senior Sophie Cullen, find themselves getting their first thorough look at politics in their senior year in classes such as AP American Government and American Democracy. “I feel like [AP American Government] made me pay more attention to [politics], but previously, my parents never really talked about it, so it just never got on my radar,” Cullen said. Cullen doesn’t use time outside of class to learn about the election, but believes it’s important to have a basic understanding of current political events in America.
In order to keep students informed, teachers such as history teacher Michael Ungar attempt to work current events into their curriculums. He believes it’s essential for his students to be involved with American politics, as he thinks politics will shape his students’ lives. “It’s going to be your world before we know it, and if you’re not engaged with politics and trying to influence politics, then you get politics that somebody else wants and not you,” he said. In her American Democracy class, Komlos puts a similar amount of effort into getting her students involved in politics. During the most recent presidential debate, Komlos assigned her American Democracy students worksheets to fill out while watching, in an attempt to keep them updated on the
current state of the presidential race. “If I get them motivated to be registered, be engaged, and vote in one election, they are far more likely to continue to be engaged voters throughout the rest of their lives,” she said.
Students have also devoted their efforts to getting their peers involved in the election process. Junior Sabina Kaharva, a junior varsity captain for Lowell’s Model UN team, works with the UN in Uzbekistan to teach women how to vote. In her own Uzbek community center, she has been promoting voting, as well as Harris, to young voters. Kaharva believes that keeping Trump out of office in this election is crucial to American democracy. “We have a candidate who is out there who is ready to take on the situation that the US is in, and we have one who’s just trying to use past experiences and personal attacks to somehow regain his term,” she said.
“I feel like there’s not enough attention being drawn onto the issues with her campaign and her plans for the future. [Lowell students] just blindly throw their support at her because she’s a Democrat.”
Not all students at Lowell are heavily involved in this election, but much of the student body believes this election is an important one. Because of this, some students are vocal about the importance of getting involved, whether people
feel the election impacts them or not.
“Think about your friends, think about your family, if you think [the election is] not going to affect [your] situation,” Dijkgraaf said. “Think about yourself in someone else’s shoes, and ask yourself what you would want for them.” Other students echo this sentiment, saying that everyone is impacted by this election. “We are the future of this nation, and even if a lot of us can’t vote in this election, it is still very much important for us to be informed and involved,” Mills said.
BY
Amy Chandonia
PHOTOS
HANAH TANDOC
IS LOWELL LONELY?
Loneliness poses a significant challenge for teenagers, and in a highly competitive academic environment like Lowell, it becomes even more overwhelming. In October 2024, The Lowell administered a survey to 145 students, gathering their insights on the experience of loneliness.
A GUT FEELING
By Cecilia Choi
For the third time in 30 minutes, I ask my first-grade teacher to go to the bathroom. I don’t have time to explain, and I don’t understand why my stomach continues to twist. I widen my eyes and scrunch my face to show my sincere desperation. She looks at me, unconvinced at first, then hands me a hall pass. Squeezing my eyes shut, I walk to my destination, wishing that it could all just make sense.
I’ve struggled with digestive issues, specifically diarrhea, for over ten years, and it isn’t something I used to disclose. But I grew tired of feeling like it was something I needed to hide. While this wasn’t something that I have to share, funky digestive systems and stomach pain aren’t uncommon and they’re some of many bodily dysfunctions that I don’t hear much conversation about. I’ve discovered through discussions about my digestive issues with friends and family that a lot of people struggle with conditions like eczema that present unwanted symptoms, and though we may not share the same issues, we’re able to understand and sympathize with each other, and offer support and advice. My stomach aches didn’t become a serious, near-daily recurrence until middle school. Over the course
But it wasn’t a real solution and it never worked, so I turned to the only thing that I knew would: using the bathroom.
of the pandemic, and the start of my return to in-person learning, I developed a lot of anxiety, which I found out affected how often my stomach would hurt. Somehow, I convinced myself that moving too much would also increase the stomach pain and I would limit or freeze my movement, hoping that it would go away. But it wasn’t a real solution and it never worked, so I turned to the only thing that I knew would: using the bathroom to relieve myself.
I was terrified of using public bathrooms in middle school due to their lack of privacy, but when I entered high school, my discovery of gender-neutral bathrooms at Lowell became a huge relief. However, when the sign-out policy and keys to these bathrooms were administered, that personal reassurance felt compromised. I’d used a sign-out system in middle school involving giant neon orange papers my teachers had to sign, with my ears burning. I tried to be discreet about it but ended up having to ask in front of the class anyway, which was something I didn’t want to repeat. Sometimes, my stomach felt so awful that I would miss half of a class to relieve myself, because the alternative was to uncomfortably squirm around and being unable to
pay attention. Once, during my sophomore year, I decided that it would be better to find a restroom than to go to my class for attendance, and by the time I felt alright again, two-thirds of class was over. It didn’t feel worth it to go to class afterwards, knowing that my friends and tablemates would ask where I’d been, and that the lesson would be paused while I explained in a silent classroom to my teacher why I had been gone for so long. In my mind, there was
However, when the signout policy and keys to these bathrooms were administered, that personal reassurance felt compromised.
no reason why I should have to share my business in the bathroom, and I worried that this wasn’t an acceptable or believable excuse to be gone for so long.
Over time, I learned that ingesting certain foods and drinks also led to digestive unrest, and I’ve done my best to mitigate them since. Lactose-laden, spicy, or cold foods and drinks were things I tried to avoid, or consumed in moderation with a Lactaid pill to lessen the effects. I also began trying to drink more water. Even though I still had some anxiety, slowly but surely, I started to feel a bit better.
I can face this with a little less worry knowing that I have ways to curb the pain, and that there’s people out there who share how I feel.
Gradually, I started feeling silly that I would sneak around the school in search of a bathroom. I realize now that most people don’t really care, and are just trying to go through their day. Even though I still find myself visiting the bathroom more often than I’d like, I’ve accepted that this is something I’ll have to coexist with for a long time. I can face this with a little less worry knowing that I have ways to curb the pain, and that there’s people out there who share how I feel.
MEDIA REVIEWS
Inside Out 2
BY STEPHANIE LI
At first glance, Inside Out 2 may seem like just another fun family movie. However, the film contains a deeper message: that change is difficult, but it allows us to strengthen our character and connect more fully with our emotions.
Inside Out 2 illustrates the necessity of experiencing and coping with a variety of emotions in order to develop and maintain a sense of self.
In the years since the first movie, 2015’s Inside Out, was released, not only have the characters grown up, many of the viewers have as well. The first film detailed the ways in which emotions such as joy, sadness, anger, disgust and fear function within our minds, representing these emotions through personified characters. Almost 10 years later, Pixar released the sequel Inside Out 2 in the summer of 2024. Set in San Francisco, Inside Out 2 follows the first film’s main character, Riley, as she becomes a teenager and experiences the major life change of entering high school. Along with her two best friends, Riley decides to attend a ice hockey camp and prove her worth to her prospective high school team. However, the night before she leaves for camp, Riley begins going through puberty. She starts to face the challenges of growing up, with new emotions, social connec-
tions, and hormonal changes. The film’s theme that adolescence is an emotional rollercoaster is instantly recognizable to anyone who has experienced the struggles and triumphs of life as a teenager.
Riley’s fear of change and loss causes her to worry about her future instead of living in the present. After she finds out that her two best friends will not be attending her high school, she becomes intensely devoted to earning a spot on her new high school’s hockey team, believing that team membership will protect her from being lonely and friendless in high school. Her efforts to make the team cause her to ignore and dismiss her best friends in favor of earning respect from the older players. The animated character Anxiety, which takes the form of a person, dominates Riley’s emotional control center and dictates many of her decisions throughout the film, causing her to damage her sense of self, as well as her old friendships.
Understanding her emotions and rediscovering her identity allows Riley to realize that transitioning through changes is a part of growing up. While Anxiety attempts to control Riley’s actions by making her worried about the future, Joy finds a way to bring positivity to Riley’s thoughts, allowing Anxiety to realize that she can’t control who Riley is. Simultaneously, Joy realizes that al-
though she is needed, she can’t control Riley’s sense of self. After experiencing a panic attack that rewires her mentality by displaying the negative impacts of her behavior while at the camp, Riley apologizes to her old friends, reviving their friendship. She comes to the realization that she does not have to pretend to fit in with the older players, and that it is more important to stay true to herself and her values. The filmmakers illustrate how a person’s sense of self is formed through personality and life experiences, and cannot be dominated by singular emotions like joy and anger.
The movie illustrates dealing with change in a deeply relatable way, allowing audiences to see themselves in Riley and connect to her struggles growing up and coping with her emotions. Riley proves that people can hold onto valuable memories and experiences from the past, while moving forward and evolving in the present. Inside Out 2 is more than just an entertaining movie. The film shows that change is inevitable and valuable, and it is es-
sential to stay true to your identity and emotions throughout the process of growing up.
10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU BY IMAAN ANSARI
On the surface, 10 Things I Hate About You may seem like another cliché, Disney-style romantic comedy, but it’s much more than that. This 1999 film takes a simple coming-of-age plot with common high school stereotypes and develops it to show the many facets of personality that real high school students have, while still taking the audience on an entertaining, hilarious journey.
The film follows Cameron (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) as he falls in love with a popular girl, Bianca (Larisa Oleynik). The only problem is that Bianca’s father would only allow her to date Cameron if her stubborn, anti-social older sister, Kat (Julia Stiles), also dates somebody. To get around this issue, Cameron pays the school’s resident bad boy, Patrick (Heath Ledger), to try and charm Kat.
The most notable aspect of high school life that the film explores is the struggle of breaking from feminine stereotypes, while holding onto your own sense of self. At the beginning of the movie, Kat is labeled as an opinionated, feminist rebel who doesn’t care what people think of her. Kat struggles with showing vulnerability and care for the
people around her, which is the cause of some of her abrasive nature. Unlike countless other rom-coms, where the stubborn girl becomes soft and falls for her dream boy, Kat keeps her harsher aspects, but with an added layer of vulnerability and a deeper understanding of herself. Although Kat does still fall in love, she manages to hold onto her personality in spite of this. The idea of love turning a girl soft produces a narrative that girls who have loud opinions and rebel against the feminine molds society has put them in are in need of being tamed. It simply isn’t realistic to think that falling in love can cause someone’s whole personality to change. Kat is a prime example of a character who realistically develops throughout the film, but never loses the essence of her character.
personality. While Kat does fall for Patrick, it is obvious that Patrick falls even harder — another example of the film going against stereotype. By the end of 10 Things I Hate About You, it is obvious that Patrick’s outer demeanor isn’t the only part of his personality. His development is realistic, even if his venture into singing isn’t.
Kat is not the only character who matures. Patrick also goes through significant development, showing the audience what’s underneath his bad-boy demeanor in a way that breaks from common rom-com tropes. He begins the film as an unapproachable, rigid character. As time progresses, however, he begins to show how deeply he has come to care for Kat and goes to extensive lengths to show it. The most notable example of this is his rendition of Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” which he sings to Kat in front of several other students. Patrick is interested in Kat and loves her despite her unwavering, stubborn
Cameron is another example of the film’s characters breaking from the unrealistic stereotypes present in other rom coms. He is not the archetypal loser new kid who lets the popular girl walk all over him. He is brand new to the school, crushes on the popular girl, and goes to extensive lengths just to get her attention, even learning French so he could tutor her and spend time with her. He is very straightforward with his intentions and has realistic reactions to events in the film. When Bianca treats him badly near the end of the film, he confronts her. Commonly in other rom coms, one person in a relationship is so smitten with the other, that they ignore their obvious faults. Cameron is not so in love with Bianca that he puts her on a pedestal and ignores all of her mistakes. Much like real life, he reacts and becomes upset when not treated well. While his complaints abruptly end when Bianca kisses him, he is still an example of the film tearing down stereotypes.
10 Things I Hate About You delivers a realistic, entertaining view of how high schoolers break from stereotypes, while maintaining the essence of their character.
DAD JOKES!
Across:
4. I used to not like facial hair, but now it’s __ on me
5. If Sat. and Sun. are strong, the rest are __ days
6. When a joke becomes a dad joke, it’s __
10. What a bufalo says to bid her son farewell
11. Poser noodle, maybe?
12. Blue that isn’t very heavy
13. Kid: “Did you get a haircut?” Dad: “No, I got them __ cut.”
15. What cows see at theaters
16. A self-centered crab can be described as __ 18. Cows with no legs
Down:
1. Sweaters that are friends
2. Something brown and sticky?
3. U.S. state with smallest beverages
7. Where penguins might vote in the election
8. Underwear that lawyers wear
9. A dad’s response to a “Road work ahead” sign - “sure __ it does!”
10. What a seagull becomes when it’s over the Bay
12. Easiest building to lift
14. Elevator jokes work on so many __
17. A faucet having to process something - let that __ in
NOELLE MAK