The Nueva Current | December 2021

THE NUEVA SCHOOL

131 E. 28TH AVE. SAN MATEO, CA 94403

Faculty share their Spotify Wrapped lists PAGE 6

With three part-time counselors departing, what's next for Nueva's mental health services? PAGE 3

THE NUEVA

Meow Wolf Santa Fe: a living fever dream of an installation PAGE 7

Recent tensions between China and Taiwan are avoided in household conversations PAGE 12

OPINION: The holidays are a carol-filled day of commercial escapism PAGE 14

DEC. 17 2021 | VOL. 5, ISS. 3

CURRENT

Founding Faculty: how has the upper school evolved since its inception?

Teachers who have been at Nueva since the upper school’s founding discuss the evolution of faculty, curriculum, and learning environment

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STORY SAM T.

South Asian Affinity Group aims to create a safe space for students Started by Anoushka K. ’23, the group encourages discussions of identity STORY ANISHA K. PHOTO SERENA S.

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t 3:15 p.m. every Monday, a sizable part of Nueva’s South Asian student population flocks to room 319 to tear open packets of Bourbon biscuits, toss spiced banana chips in their mouths, and talk. “...and he was like, ‘How do you pronounce your last name?’”

“I’m opening it—don’t eat all of it…”

“Hey, guys, I had a point today.”

Anoushka K. ’23 raised her voice to cut through the crosstalk and waited for students in the South Asian Affinity Group, or SAAG (think saag paneer), to quiet down before asking: “What do you guys want from this club, and how do you feel about having serious conversations?” She paused. “I mean, do we want to be philosophical or not?”

The noise level rose again as students

clamored to answer all at once—an issue resolved by designating an empty plastic biscuit tray a “talking stick” to be passed around—and the meeting got underway.

The noise level rose again as students clamored to answer all at once—an issue resolved by designating an empty plastic biscuit tray a “talking stick” to be passed around—and the meeting got underway.

Led by Anoushka, SAAG has grown since last summer from a group chat to weekly Zoom meetings and finally to a physical place for South Asian students to meet and discuss issues related to their racial and cultural identities.

“It’s a space where our ethnicity doesn't make us outsiders,” Anoushka said. “A place to celebrate our culture where we’re not a minority.”

Anoushka realized the need for an

affinity group for South Asians after joining the Asian-American and Pacific Islanders Club in her freshman year. In her view, SAAG is a fluid space, directed chiefly by what its members want. Group conversations have spanned everything from packed school lunch to colorism and its manifestations in Bollywood.

“I don't think there's a right answer for what we should do with this space,” Anoushka said.

Anoushka and a few other South Asian students created the group last spring, meeting over Zoom to discuss their visions for the club. Since then, SAAG has expanded to include members across all grade levels, as well as two faculty advisors.

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NEWS

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NUMBERS PHOTOS FREEPIK, ISABELLE S., SPALDING

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musical student preformances

made up the December concert series

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Candy Cane Grams sold by student council

seconds

was how long it took Cole B. '22 to make and chug a protein shake for his Senior Talent

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points

were scored by the boys varsity basketball team to win their spirit game

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NEWS BRIEFS

advisories

were visited by caroling members of a cappella group Nueva Notes

Wednesdays of Wonder workshops

were held during the fall semester

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STORIES ISABELLE S.

All-school game of Blammo promotes intergrade bonding

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ow spotted everywhere around campus instead of merely in the cafeteria: spoons.

Blammo, an assassin-like game where each person tries to “blammo” their assigned target by tagging them with a plastic spoon, began at the upper school on Oct. 27. Once someone “blammoes” their target, they inherit their target’s target, and the cycle continues until only one person remains standing. The winner is declared based on who has the most Blammos at the end of the game.

As of Dec. 3, 153 out of a total of 172 players have been blammoed.

Along with the new system of spirit points implemented at the upper school, each Blammo will reward five spirit points to the

respective grade, and an additional 20 points will be awarded to the winner.

The junior class is currently in the lead.

Student Council co-leads Avery C. ’22 and Andrew C. ’22 brought the game to Nueva from a summer camp a couple of years ago, originally initiating it at the lower school.

Since then, Andrew continued the tradition at the upper school. Especially in the midst of the fall semester with midterms, finals, and for seniors, college applications, the game aims to serve as a fun

stress reliever.

“We want to provide a way for students to have cross-grade interactions that’s not structured or academic-focused,” Avery said, also emphasizing the ninth and tenthgraders’ return onto campus.

Favorite moments in the game for Avery include witnessing the innovation and diligence of people holding their spoons.

“Even when people are playing in a spike ball tournament, they’re still holding their spoons,” Avery said. “Just seeing how committed people are is always fun.”

PHOTO BY ISABELLA X., GRAPHIC BY ALAMY.COM

Storytelling panels engender empathy and connection

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ach year, Equity and Social Justice Director Alegria Barclay organizes multiple storytelling panels for both students and faculty to share their stories to the community. Each panel highlights a particular theme, including messages of diaspora and immigration, political identity, masculinity, and forgiveness in the past.

The most recent panel, held on Nov. 17, spotlighted stories of imposter syndrome and the feeling of not belonging and the anxiety that accompanies that.

“I always solicit,” Barclay said, sharing how the imposter syndrome panel arised from a story shared with her by a fellow faculty member.

“At the end of the panels, I’m always stunned at how it all comes together and how the themes emerge,” Barclay said. “It’s quite beautiful, the way it organically works.”

Barclay believes the panels provide “little insights into people’s souls.”

“You wouldn’t know what someone felt. How could you ever know?”

Barclay said. “It’s an opportunity to share something a little bit vulnerable, and vulnerability really helps create connection.”

Along with opening up more perspectives, storytelling, as Barclay strongly believes, is the “best way to both create change and engender empathy.”

“More than any other action you can take, by just knowing another name, understanding where they come from, what they’ve been through, and what they believe, it really creates that sense of relationality and connection,” Barclay said.

With so much operating on assumptions and stereotypes, Barclay hopes the panels give everyone a moment of pause to recognize other people’s experiences. To Barclay, it is just as important what the audience takes away from the stories as what the speaker takes away.

“Every time I hear something about someone and I’m like, ‘Oh, I would have never thought that,’ I am reminded I never really know another person unless I take the time to ask them or to get to know them,” Barclay said. “I hope every time people hear a story, they are both deepened in their empathy and reminded that everyone has a story.”

As for the next panel, Barclay looks to either highlight stories about the multiracial experience or disruptive moments in one’s life, such as illness, death, or divorce. She invites people to lean into the possible discomfort and fear revolving around sharing personal stories and discover the reward of sharing.

“Many people have felt alone in their experience, and stories help you realize you’re not alone,” Barclay said. “And so to share a story, more often than not, is to help someone else feel validated. It’s a mutually beneficial thing.”

Nueva celebrates National Transgender Awareness Week

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hroughout the week of Nov. 13, Nueva students and faculty from both the lower and upper school worked to support and raise awareness around National Transgender Awareness Week, a oneweek celebration to advocate issues of prejudice the transgender community faces, ultimately leading up to the Transgender Day of Remembrance which memorializes victims of transphobic violence.

Among the efforts were two rallies aiming to increase visibility for the LGBTQ+ community at Nueva.

Held at both the Hillsborough and San Mateo campus drop-off locations from 7:30-8:30 a.m., the rallies were organized by middle and upper school students in the Nueva Gender and Sexuality Affinity Group (GSA) and headed by 4th Grade Teacher Lori Mustille.

Mustile described the rally as a “seed idea that became this beautiful, organically grown event” while emphasizing the presence of student and faculty support at the rallies and cross-grade interactions.

“A lot of these intersecting lines just happen naturally

as students are entering the school, putting their bags down, and joining to make a poster,” Mustille said. “It felt very Nueva.”

Remarking the residual effects of seeing pins on backpacks, stickers on notebooks, and posters on the walls, Mustille believes the week left an “indelible mark,” which was her favorite part.

“It was definitely that aura of ‘we did this,’” Mustille said. “It reminds us that this is just the beginning.”

Faculty and staff continued to advance the goals of the students and GSA through participating in a workshop on Dec. 7 hosted by Gender

Spectrum, an organization working to create a gender-inclusive world for all youth.

All in all, both Mustille and students of the GSA believed the week to be a tremendous success.

“It feels good to do real good,” Mustille said. “When you find people who are passionate about what you’re passionate about and all get together, you can’t explain it. It’s just it. You see empathy emanating from people.

That’s just huge. And there’s no words for that.”

PHOTO BY MITZI MOCK

Students arrived on campus earlier than usual to create posters and show support

NEWS A look into the future of the counseling program THE NUEVA CURRENT

With three part-time counselors leaving, Nueva strives to rebuild program stronger STORY SERENA S. PHOTO JOHN MEYER

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arlier this month, the community received news that the school’s three part-time counselors would be departing after the fall semester; Christine Tam and Gina Garcia would have their last day in December, while director of the counseling services Carmen Chow will stay on through midJanuary to help with the transition.

Though Head of School Lee Fertig acknowledges the concerns about a potential lack of student support going forward, he believes these departures to be opportunities for the counseling program to rebuild with an even stronger foundation.

When articulating the goals of the newly-envisioned program, Fertig stressed the importance of student empowerment and accessibility.

“The counseling program should ensure that students, faculty, staff, and parents have access to the resources that they need to sustain a balanced Nueva experience as best they can,” Fertig said. “It’s to provide strategies that help kids advocate for themselves and… strategies to help students and faculty and staff to advocate for others around them.”

The school has already hired one full-time counselor who will begin on Jan. 3, and they are close to

hiring a second full-time counselor.

According to the American School Counselor Association (ASCA)—a source that Nueva has been actively referencing—they recommend a 250 to one student counselor ratio. Using that math, the upper school should staff two counselors for the student body.

The school’s search has centered on seeking counselors with experience working in a school setting, so they have a familiarity with students and an understanding of the “cadence of schools.”

A willingness to collaborate is also a leading consideration for prospective counselors as discussion about mental health must remain at the school's core.

“We'd love to have somebody… who people—advisors, deans, and families—just feel really good about working with. People who are comfortable presenting information and facilitating workshops with parents and kids,” he said.

In addition to the counselors providing clinical services for students, faculty, and staff, Fertig hopes that the new counselors will be excited about branching out their work—whether that means being an advisor, teaching parenting classes, or leading a proactive social skills group.

He believes it is vital to ensure that the counselors are immersed in the school in more ways than one and have time away from their scheduled

appointments to make connections with the broader community.

“I would love for them to literally meander around… sit outside in the quad and talk to students at lunch… watch a basketball game, or listen to the steel drum band playing,” Fertig said. “For a mental health professional to work in a school like Nueva, to know who the students are and what they do and why they do it and how they do it is critically important.”

Fertig also intends to use this opportunity as a way to expand the upper school student support system more generally.

“I imagine a student support umbrella and within that umbrella, there is counseling, there is health services, maybe psych services… and the other one is learning support.

All of those things together really would form kind of the fodder for a student’s support,” he said.

Ultimately, Fertig asks everyone to trust that the school is working diligently to ensure the community has the best support possible. “​Just because we lose certain people doesn't mean that programs have to suffer. In fact, sometimes, not always, but sometimes, there's even a silver lining in the transition. There's even an opportunity,” Fertig said.

“We're going to jump at this assertively and make sure that we create even a more robust counseling program.”

A SAFE SPACE The glass cube at the end of the hallway is where counselors meet with students.

Omicron COVID-19 variant What protocol with the new variant looks like at Nueva and beyond STORY ISABELLE S. PHOTO FREEPIK

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s San Francisco reported the country’s first confirmed Omicron case on Dec. 1, the world awaits more information on Omicron, the new COVID-19 variant.

First detected in South Africa, ​the Omicron variant is the latest strain of COVID-19, designated a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization as more and more countries report cases.

With cases of the Omicron variant now recorded in several states, officials say that community spread of the new variant is inevitable. Scientists, however, caution that much remains unknown, such as its severity and how current vaccines perform against it.

The World Health Organization is currently working to understand the potential impact of this variant on existing countermeasures such as vaccines, which remain critical to reducing severe disease and death, including against the dominant circulating variant, Delta.

However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 transmission maps revealed the Bay Area to have lower transmission rates than the rest of the country with most counties in the yellow “moderate” tier.

At Nueva, an increasing number of students in the lower school are currently getting vaccinated with the upper school at a 100% vaccination rate. While vaccination records for the lower school will not be disclosed until January or February, Head of School Lee Fertig has faith in the community.

“We don’t have any reason to think our community is not going out and getting vaccinated,” Fertig said, estimating a 100% rate for the entire school by early spring.

In terms of the present, the Nueva community saw no cases with on-site surveillance testing for the week following Thanksgiving.

STORY ISABELLA X.

Parliamentary debate wins back-to-back tournaments, solidifies position as number one in the nation.

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ed by head coach Sam Timinsky, Nueva currently reigns as the number one varsity parliamentary debate team in the nation, with Rohan S. ’23 and Sam J. ’23 ranked as the third best parliamentary partnership.

At the tournament held at Campolindo High School on Nov. 6, the varsity team won 27 of their 30 rounds, holding the top five spots

Rohan S. ‘23 celebrates the end of the season with a mock-flow

before elimination rounds. The team went on to close out elimination rounds in semifinals, ending the tournament early and beating out eight other schools.

In a podium sweep, seniors Rajeev S., Davis T., and Pascal D. won the top three speaker awards.

The next weekend, at the National Parliamentary Debate Invitational (NPDI) on Nov. 14, Rohan and Sam emerged as co-champions, and the varsity team made history as the first Nueva debate team to win two tournaments back-to-back.

“Everyone

spent hours and hours prepping for these tournaments, so it’s pretty great to see it pay off,” said Sid C. ’24, who finished second at the Campolindo tournament alongside partner Ben J. ’24.

The two-win streak was so unprecedented that, in celebration, assistant coach Esha Shah dyed her hair pink and assistant coach David Siu got a buzzcut, while Timinsky agreed to a “huge temporary tattoo of the team’s choice.”

“I’m excited and terrified. Various images have been floated, including images of Taylor Swift. Here I thought they would pick a bird or some roses…”

Timinsky said.

Timinsky accredits much of the team’s success to years of hard work put in by the current seniors and the “several systems [they have built] that have made the juniors, sophomores, and freshmen extremely strong.” He

specifically praised the “dense and constant mentoring by upperclassmen.”

Remote learning has lent the team even more resources—alumni Eugenia Xu ’21, who now attends the University of Pennsylvania, returned via Zoom to coach the debaters. They have been a welcome addition to the team, inspiring students to continue their parliamentary careers beyond high school.

Adam K. ’24 shared how inspiring it was to see debaters who he looked up to “stay with the sport and transfer their experience to [the team].”

The team hopes to maintain their momentum entering the spring season: they’re aiming for a repeat win at the Jean Ward Invitational and a win at the Stanford Invitational, which they placed second in two years ago.

Timinsky added that winning nationals is “certainly in the cards.”

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

Parli wraps up fall season in top seed

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STORY ANOUSCHKA B. PHOTO GETTY IMAGES

Kelly Clarkson’s "When Christmas Comes Around…" shows that the holidays don’t just come in one flavor

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hristmas has come around, and so has Kelly Clarkson’s second holiday album. When Christmas Comes Around… follows Clarkson’s smashing 2013 success Wrapped in Red. Eight years later, Clarkson is at an entirely different point in her life, recently divorced from her estranged husband Brandon Blackstock rather than fresh into their marriage. Clarkson doesn’t shy away from the difficulties of being newly divorced, though; rather than trying to present the holidays neatly tied up in a bow like a Christmas present, When Christmas Comes Around… is a truthful portrayal of all the emotions the holidays can dredge up.

When Christmas Comes Around... can best be described as having three flavors: the bubbly cheer of holiday classics; the melancholy mourning of a love gone sour; and the empowerment of breakup anthems that scream “I’m moving on!” It’s poignant. It’s sassy. It received some criticism for that reason—“Maybe Kelly Clarkson should not have tried to do a Christmas album in the midst of a divorce. As far as I am concerned, it can go in the trash,” one Amazon user wrote—but I couldn’t disagree more.

Its fearlessness in doing away with the pressure to always be happy during the holidays is precisely what makes it unique and a must-listen during a holiday season coupled with the pain and uncertainty of the pandemic.

Clarkson’s song “Merry Christmas (To The One I Used To Know)” is, perhaps, the crown jewel of the album. Clarkson beautifully reckons with the loss of a relationship and the love she still feels

for whom someone used to be. “I know the past is all that’s left of you and I,” she reminisces alongside a moving piano melody, the longing palpable in her voice, “Christmas eve my gift to me is dancing with your ghost / So merry Christmas, to the one I used to know.” Some lyrics are pure poetry: the line “the snow falls like a fresh start on the ground” at once grounds the song in a magical wintry backdrop and conveys Clarkson’s yearning to rekindle a longlost love. And Clarkson uncovers how the holidays can be the catalyst for difficult emotions with lyrics like, “Once a year I let my heart go back to you and me / A secret gift I give myself on Christmas eve”— something that she opened up about further before performing on NBC. “I’m gonna be real with y’all, when I wrote [“Merry Christmas (To The One I Used To Know)”], I was crying my face off, which happens even at Christmastime, everyone,” Clarkson

said. “And I wrote this song for me, but also because there aren't many holiday songs for people feeling alone or lost or just plain sad other than Dolly Parton's classic 'Hard Candy Christmas,' which we all love."

Equally powerful are Clarkson’s break-up anthems “Christmas Isn’t Canceled (Just You)” and “Merry Christmas Baby.” “You ruined all my favorite things / But you won’t take Christmas from me,” Clarkson boasts, before delivering the iconic “Christmas isn’t canceled, just you.” “Merry Christmas Baby” is equally clever; “What I got you for Christmas / Is losing me,” Clarkson sings, playfully adding, “So have yourself a merry Christmas / Hope it’s not as cold as you.”

Meshing winter wonderlands with fiery jibes, Clarkson brings in another muchneeded side to the holidays.

Despite her impressive vocals in songs like “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas,” I felt that many of her classic remakes stuck out like sore

thumbs. Following the emotionality of songs exploring her personal life, incorporating those holiday classics in all their jubilance felt like Clarkson had succumbed to the manufactured

Its fearlessness in doing away with the pressure to always be happy during the holidays is precisely what makes it unique and a must-listen during a holiday season coupled with the pain and uncertainty of the pandemic. happiness she sought to avoid. However, I did thoroughly enjoy her remakes of certain songs. For instance, her jazzy, slick “Last Christmas” was both an inventive spin on the classic and relevant to the overarching theme of a love fizzled out permeating the album.

So, if you’re on the hunt for a new Christmas listen, try When Christmas Comes Around… In a holiday season that’s become unanimous with the expectation of joy and cheer, an album that acknowledges that difficult circumstances don’t dissipate because it’s December is precisely what we need. .

Taylor Swift’s best song just got better

Singer-songwriter’s 10-minute long re-release of her 2012 song “All Too Well” solidifies her lyrical genius and revolutionizes music industry once again

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STORY SELIN K. PHOTOS TAYLOR SWIFT

The "All To Well" re-release currently ranks fifth in Swift's Top Songs on Apple Music, behind "Lover," "Wildest Dreams," "Shake it off," and "Blank Space," which claims first.

"A

ll Too Well” was already a staple among Taylor Swift fans—now it's a universal favorite. Taylor Swift’s studio originally cut and butchered “All Too Well” before the release of her 2012 album Red, claiming that it was “just too long.” She was forced to cut several verses out of the song, making it five minutes and 28 seconds long—barely short enough to be deemed acceptable by industry standards.

However, thanks to a dedicated fan base and Swift’s talent for songwriting, the pop-star’s 2021 re-release of “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” made history, becoming the first 10 minute song to top the Billboard 200 and Hot 100 charts.

Swift had teased mentions of the existence of a longer recording for years, further cementing the song’s legendary status in her expansive discography, almost guaranteeing it to be a hit.

Nearly a decade later, the fervor

surrounding “All Too Well” hasn’t diminished.

The song itself is high profile: not-so-secretly written about the drama behind the fallout from Swift’s relationship with her celebrity ex, Hollywood star Jake Gyllenhaal.

When Swift initially announced the song, fans went wild, ecstatic for the long-awaited extended version of an iconic breakup anthem; after all, heartbreak is a universal anthem.

The song’s original lyrics are still in the 10-minute version, but they are scattered with four newly revealed sections of heartbreak and sadness, each stanza stitching together elements of the full story.

The picture is graphic; Gyllenhaal’s publicist must be working overtime to protect his wilting image. In between the illustrative lyrics, Swift delivers incisive indictments against her exlover, singing, for example, “I'll get older, but your lovers stay my age,” and “You said if we had been closer in age maybe it would have been fine, and that made me want to die.” Swift wields the truth—as she remembers it—like a weapon.

She particularly addresses the age difference between her and Gyllenhaal, a testament to her confidence in times where grooming is finally being addressed. Her lyrics emphasize the toxic dynamic of their relationship, noting the blame always being on her, and exposing the power imbalance present.

Swift used this song to disclose everything she had previously withheld and only hinted at, highlighting the relationship’s unreciprocated love: “[I was thinking] He's gonna say it's love, you never called it what it was,” she sings, sinking the blade into a moment

that’s so specific to Swift’s experience, yet infinitely relatable for many of her fans.

Swift also uses a part of the song to imply that her ex never showed up on her 21st birthday, singing “You, who charmed my dad with self-effacing jokes/ Sipping coffee like you were on a late night show/ But then he watched me watch the front door all night, willing you to come/ And he said, ‘It’s supposed to be fun…turning 21,’” harking back to the fact that she was never appreciated in the relationship, feeling like an option.

She even goes on to question what he expected of her, singing, “The idea you had of me/ Who was she?/ A never-needy, ever lovely jewel/ Whose shine reflects on you.” Swift represents the feeling that so many feel perfectly—never being enough for him, she had to make him the best while still never asking for anything.

Her lyrics make the listener feel understood, not missing a beat when it comes to the sadness and heartbreak

the feelings bring.

The new lyrics in the 10 minute version of the song introduce a cold bitter truth that was masked when she originally released the album. Along with some other newly released songs she calls “vault tracks,” (bonus songs Swift released with her re-recordings), the ten minute version of “All Too Well” doesn’t look too good for Gylenhaal: he’s in for a long ride of melancholy despair, as Swift swiftly reveals all that he made her go through.

Swift is arguably the only artist that can pull off crafting a 10-minute song that tops the music charts. Her immensely committed fanbase and her way of inching closer and closer to your heart as you listen to her lyrics, captivating any listener, are why her creations are such masterpieces.

It pushes both the boundaries of the music industry as well as music as an art, and it’s by far the best song on her re-recording of Red—in fact, it is arguably her best song ever.

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Rage, the Flower Thrower or Love is in the Air is one of the most iconic stencils by Banksy.

It shows a masked Palestinian throwing a bouquet of flowers.

A version of this stencil is on display in the San Francisco collection.

Reviewing Banksy

My experience of the largest private collection of Banksy artwork STORY AMIYA M. PHOTOS KYLE FLUBACKER, JOHN J. KIM

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elicopters adorned with bows, a man reaching back, prepared to throw the bouquet of flowers in his hand, and an ape with a sign hung around its neck that says, “laugh now, but one day we’ll be in charge” are all part of fascinating Art of Banksy exhibition in San Francisco.

The exhibit, billed as the “largest Banksy exhibit ever assembled” with over 100 original works, was refreshing and disturbing, well summarized by one of the many cynical sentences painted on the walls: “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable”—a quote from the artist himself: Banksy.

Illusive, anonymous, technically illegal, and known for his unique stenciled style and humorously cynical satire, Banksy has remained an infamous icon in the modern world of an increasingly bleak future and a reality both hated and beloved. The pseudonymous England-based street artist and political activist’s career is littered with vivid graffiti, secretive auctions, and crazy feats such as painting live animals and shredding one of his paintings, Girl with Balloon, after it sold at an auction for a bit less that US $1.4 million. The stunt earned Banksy a place in the art world’s figurative wall of honor, and sent waves pulsing into the radars of art connoisseurs and the internet, making it no surprise that an actual exhibit was set up.

“The Art of Banksy” was a showcase held in San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts, containing a collection of privately owned Banksy pieces whose owners had decided to assemble and present to the public. The display included prints, canvases, screenprints, sculptures, “unique works” and “limited-edition pieces,” mainly from between the years 1997 to 2008, the period from which came the works that are known best to the general public.

Although the venue looked imposing and orderly, like a grandiose museum reminiscent of a Roman colosseum, the inside of the building held an open yet stifled atmosphere of profound mystery and cloaked the air in a calm yet palpable excitement. The entire place was draped in black; the entrance of the exhibit itself narrow and nearly pitch-dark, opening up to an angled, snaking corridor.

Spotlights trained on the paintings and prints provided the only light, and murmured whispers alongside silent gestures added to the hummingly muted ambience of the exhibit’s separate world. Though adorned with numerous paintings, the walls were far from cluttered—each was situated just far enough to glimpse from up the line, but too far to read the caption properly.

Everyone moved in a painstakingly slow single file, caught up in their immersion of the detailed simplicity and drawn to the printed frames like moths to flame. The anticipation I felt for the next art piece was coupled with a

The dangerous rise of influencers

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t's difficult to scroll through social media these days without coming across an advertisement or promotion. According to social media analytics and intelligence platform Klear, sponsored Instagram post rates increased by 26.7 percent in 2021 alone, a figure that is expected to rise significantly in upcoming years.

While this growth may appear alarming, it is largely unsurprising from a marketing standpoint.

Many online creators and influencers, such as the Kardashians or Bella Hadid, promote glamorous and fast-paced lifestyles that romanticize the seemingly trivial parts of life.

These kinds of influencers leverage carefully curated snapshots of their extravagant lifestyles—mouthwatering food shots at restaurants, hotel rooms, outfits of the day, and more, all with each brand carefully tagged—in order to garner online followers.

With careful product placement, the influencer becomes the ideal blank canvas for convincing a brand’s audience that they too can obtain a glamorous lifestyle, if they make the right purchases.

rather literal. As novel as the entire exhibit felt, there was an air of vivid authenticity and rough reality in how deeply ingrained the street art style and mocking tone were to the gallery.

The modernization both juxtaposed and blended with the setting, the enclosed space filled with equal parts solemn awe and cynical familiarity.

One wall shared that Banksy first came up with the idea to use stencils after running from the police when he was nearly caught graffiti-ing a train.

He explained that he had to hide under a truck for hours, a situation brimming with personality and exuding the well-known feeling of “today could be going better.” In quotation marks, Banksy reminded viewers that people “either love [him] or they hate [him], or they don't really care.” What would have been just another art exhibit seemed special and even futuristic, like watching history being made instead of seeing history already gone by.

The entire experience was thrilling, the ludicrousness and slight fear that penetrated my mind dark and honest, and the concepts witty but not sheltered. I wouldn’t say I emerged from the exhibit feeling better than when I entered, but perhaps finding a piece of feel-good art wasn’t the point of entering in the first place. If ever given the chance to view this elusive artist’s works, I would definitely recommend, even if not for the art.

Consumerism and marketing are inescapable on social media platforms

Klear’s 2022 influencer marketing report explains that the past year has redefined the connection between online brands and their customers.

“Consumer habits have forced brands to prioritize digital and adjust budgets, which has dramatically increased the role influencers play in a brand’s overall strategies,” a November 2021 report read.

However, as social media marketing continues to expand, the morality of the phenomenon has become a topic of contention.

A study from Bazaarvoice reports that 62 percent of customers believe that influencer endorsements take advantage of impressionable audiences.

Many of these concerns involve a lack of accountability and transparency on the part of the influencer when promoting paid sponsorships for products and brands.

Disguising sponsored posts has become such a widespread phenomenon that some aspiring influencers— such as Nadine Muller, a growing influencer with over 30,000 followers on Instagram—are turning to authenticity as a method to differentiate themselves from the crowd.

“Authenticity allows me to set myself apart from the crowd,” Muller said in an interview with Vamp. “Our social feeds

are always trying to sell us something, so when users come across creators who genuinely recommend products or services they find it refreshing.”

However, even posts clearly labeled as sponsored may have the potential to mislead potential customers. Through brand guidelines, companies can manage nearly all aspects of an influencer's promotion, including product positioning, color palette, and design.

This level of regulation on promotions can lead to unrealistic expectations from consumers and pressure to buy certain products despite their actual quality.

“Having an unreasonably high opinion of material things can be unhealthy for consumers, and the artificial nature of the whole industry can seem a bit much at times,” said Laura C. 23’, who has previously purchased paraphernalia online.

The increase in influencer marketing has also prompted mainstream celebrities to follow in the footsteps of successful influencers by creating their own merchandise lines and products.

Celebrities like Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, and Harry Styles have all released new merchandise lines and online stores this year.

Vivi L. ’25 has been a fan of Taylor Swift for a couple years and was eager to buy her new merchandise products when

they came out.

“I wanted to buy her Folklore cardigan online because as a Taylor Swift fan, it's an iconic piece of merch to own,” Vivi said.

As more and more well-known figures enter the industry, mainstream celebrity trends indicate that the current state of influencer marketing is just the beginning.

TEEN SINGER-SENSATION OLIVIA RODRIGO POSES FOR AN INSTAGRAM POST PROMOTING HER 2021 ALBUM SOUR

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

STORY JOSEPHINE B. PHOTO OLIVIA RODRIGO, INSTAGRAM

slight impatience from how slow time seemed to pass there, but it also had a slightly hypnotic and calming effect that allowed me to relax some of the day-to-day tension I had been carrying with me.

A small nook off of the main corridor was decorated with prints of the infamous Girl With a Balloon, each with the balloon in a different color.

Towards the end of the exhibit resides a giant panel of Flying Copper, an image of a policeman with a gun, angel wings, and a round smiley face instead of a human head, pressed between two panels of glass. A large oil painting of an elephant was hung against one wall, while satires of an ape as a queen and mice in sunglasses equipped with paintbrushes lined another.

Although none of the full oil paintings I had hoped to see were on display, even the stencils held character and communicated in a way that was both simple and complex, almost crude. The black-and-white, while fascinating for a graffiti aficionado, could get old quickly to citizens of the fast-paced modern day, but the messages they proclaimed paired with the deliberately mindprovoking style kept attention fixated on them.

Interspersed between paintings and sections were quotes from Banksy and descriptions of his career timeline.

The captions were short, sometimes snarky, occasionally drawling, and

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A refreshing remake of a musical theater classic

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STORY GRACE F. PHOTOS 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS

The beautifully tragic adaptation of West Side Story was not only brilliant but paid tribute to the story based on a Shakespearean classic opinion

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n the canon of legendary musical theater lies West Side Story.

Originally playing on Broadway in 1957, this show features the musical genius of composer Leonard Berenstein and highlighted the debut of lyricist and composer Stephen Sondheim, who would later become a household name in the world of musical theater. It was a turning point in theater, as it was the first to make a direct commentary on racial and social issues of the time. The 1961 film adaptation, starring Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer, received critical acclaim and won 10 Academy awards, including “Best Picture.”

In 2018, it was announced that filmmaker Steven Spielberg would be directing and coproducing the second featurelength adaptation of this musical with a screenplay

by Tony Kushner. In addition, Rita Moreno, who played the role of

Anita in the original 1961 film, served as an executive producer, further showing Spielberg's commitment to pay tribute to the legacy of the film and musical.

Starring Rachel Zegler, who was making her feature film debut, and Hollywood veteran Ansel Elgort*. West Side Story (2021) was not only a perfect example of how a stage-to-screen adaptation should be done, but also balanced the tone of the original movie with a new commitment to authenticity.

Based on Shakespeare’s classic Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story follows two gangs, the white American Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks, as they battle for control of San Juan Hill in 1957 Manhattan. In the midst of the conflict, Tony (Elgort), a former member of the Jets and best friend of Jets leader Riff (Mike Faist), and María (Zegler), younger sister of Sharks leader Bernando (David

Actor Rita Moreno as Valentina in the 2021 remake after playing Anita in the 1961 original

Alvarez), meet and pursue a forbidden romance. Other notable characters include Bernando’s girlfriend Anita (Ariana DeBose) and Valentina (Moreno), the Puerto Rican owner of Doc’s general store and Tony’s main mentor. This story is beautiful yet heartwrenching, and drove even me—someone who grew up with this film and has been referred to as an “emotionless alien” on multiple occasions—to tears.

This film not only features the ingenious cinematic eye of Spielberg while staying true to the conventions of movie musicals, but it parallels the original film in a way that is both subtle yet effective. This film perfectly combined the emotional aspects of the story with the campy nature of movie musicals, and featured brilliant shots of group choreography in addition to intimate scenes featuring Elgort’s smooth baritone and Zegler’s delicate soprano. In addition, the color palette and certain shots, such as the balcony scene, were reminiscent of the original film yet still felt like a part of a fresh new adaptation. In addition, the role Moreno played both literally and figuratively in the making of this film had been the perfect way to pay tribute while attempting to fix the fatal flaws

of the original musical and film.

The fatal flaw of this musical is that it would never truly be authentic to the experience of Puerto Ricans, given the caricature-like portrayals in the original Broadway musical and film, and the attempt at political correctness could only be characterized as an attempt.

Spielberg was insistent that every Puerto Rican character would be played by a Latinx actor as an attempt at portraying authenticity, rather than featuring white actors in brownface as the original did.

West Side Story has a complicated legacy. While it made history with its heavier topics, yet was based on a foundation of racial stereotypes and caricatures. The 2021 adaptation made an attempt to fix some of these issues, but they still exist and cannot be forgotten.

However, especially in context of this story’s history, this adaptation was still brilliant, and portrayed this beautifully tragic Shakespearan tale in a way that will cement this film as a future classic in the world of movie musicals.

Spotify Wrapped: Faculty Favorites

INSTAGRAM: @THENUEVACURRENT

WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

STORY SERENA S. PHOTOS SPOTIFY

It's that time of year again, when Spotify delivers a report to its listeners of their listening trends over the past year, packaged as a gift called Spotify Wrapped.

We asked Nueva teachers to share their Spotify Wrapped with us. Whose top artist was Taylor Swift for the third year in a row? Whose favorite genre was indie rock? Take a look.

Matthew Gil

Associate Teacher—Math

LiAnn Yim

Amber Carpenter

Patrick Berger

John Feland

Journalism Teacher

Katie Saylor Director of

Internships, 6th Grade Writing Teacher

David Alban Hidalgo

Associate Teacher—Computer Science

Economics Teacher

Upper School English Teacher

I-Lab Engineer & Quest Co-Director

CULTURE

THE NUEVA CURRENT

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Grace's Culture Corner: freedom, first love, and forgiveness

Looking for a good listen, watch, or read? Here are some recent recommendations to get you hooked STORY GRACE F. PHOTOS YARA ZGHEIB, MGM, MITSKI

No Land to Light on

In Meow Wolf Santa Fe's House of Eternal Return, every door seems to lead to a colorful, surreal landscape.

Santa Fe’s House of Eternal Return Meow Wolf’s captivating Mystery

W

Written by:

STORY ROAN W. PHOTOS MEOW WOLF

YARA ZGHEIB

COMING: 1/4/2022

This upcoming novel with an anticipated release of Jan. 4 follows a young Syrian couple as they work towards building a life together, until a travel ban tears the two apart and leaves them stranded in separate countries. Containing topics that are both intimate and evocative, this novel will not only show a personal perspective on a polarizing political topic, but will question the true freedom in the “land of the free.”

Licorice Pizza Written and Directed by:

PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON

COMING: 12/25/2021

A euphoric trip for those who long to live in the world of 1970s cinema, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza follows teenage actor Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman) and Alana Kane (Alana Haim) navigating the journey of first love as they grow up in the San Fernando Valley in 1973. This film balances the complexity and nuances of the interactions between the characters with the almost idyllic setting, sending viewers on a dream-like journey throughout the film.

Laurel Hell Written and sung by:

MITSKI

COMING: 2/4/2022

Known for complex melodies woven with intimate stories, Japanese-American musician Mitski Miyawaki (known mononymously as Mitski) will be releasing her sixth studio album, Laurel Hell, on Feb. 4. Mitski combines powerful vocals with complex topics around her identity as a woman of color in her music, and this album will feature "songs that could help me forgive both others and [her]self.”

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

hen you first arrive of lost socks leads to the Forest, a at the place they call sprawling mess of swamp-like trees, Meow Wolf, you wouldn’t fluorescent lighting, and treehouses imagine it is anything more than made of plaster and plastic. The a small entertainment building. forest is the central area of the Beyond the unassuming exterior entire installation, with many hides a fever-dream conglomerate of rooms connected to it, such as an craftsmanship, time, and a hint of arcade and a multi-planetary travel insanity—an installation everyone center called Portals Bermuda. should experience at least once.

As you travel through this The permanent art installation, locale, you slowly begin to piece called the House of Eternal Return, together a story of loss, of love, is the product of more than 200 and of nightmarish collisions with hands and contains more than 200 other dimensions. With the death hours of narrative, much of which of the matriarch of the family, remains unraveled. Funded by Jean Selig, the family’s youngest thousands of donors—including son—Lex Pastore—begins to fear Game of Thrones author George R. that one day his sister will die. He R. Martin—the interactive exhibit begins to experiment on the family’s is located in the former Silva Lanes immortal hamster named Nimesku, bowling alley in Santa Fe, New hoping he will discover the secret Mexico. to immortality. His sister Morgan The journey begins in the lobby, discovers his experiments and a prologue of sorts, where the walls stops talking to him, and Nimesku are covered with incomprehensible disappears. scrawlings that beg the question: Through traveling around the “Why are these here?”As you travel installation, visitors see how the the installation, the answer to experimentation and eventual this mystery will become more death of Lex Pastore leads to apparent. Once you depart the the destruction of the fabric of lobby, you arrive in the pitch reality, how other dimensions are black facade of a small Victorian leaking in through the doors (or manor which supposedly exists in sometimes appliances), and what Mendocino, California. This house the true purpose of The Charter belongs to the fictional Seligis. In Meow Wolf canon, The Pastore family, consisting of Piper Charter has created a containment and Nicolae Pastore and their two zone around what they call the children, Lex and Morgan.

“Pastore Anomaly,” and disguised Don’t worry about being loud or it as an attraction. How cool is intrusive; they don’t seem to mind. that? Viewers become a part of In fact, there doesn’t seem to be the story! Meow Wolf’s innovative anyone around, and the house has combination of synthetic materials been catalogued by a mysterious and intricate story makes the organization known as “The attraction a highlight of any trip to Charter.” Documents and artifacts Santa Fe. scattered throughout the house are If you do visit, be sure to keep accompanied by QR codes, which your eye on every fragment of every summarize the object or writing in detail—you never know where the style of a lab report. something important will be hidden As you explore the house, you in plain sight, or when a door begin to realize not everything is as may lead to another otherworldly it seems. Doors lead to places which landscape. It’s truly an experience doors shouldn’t lead, while large to see. household appliances turn out to be doors themselves.

If you were to cut through the living room and go through the kitchen, you would find a clothes dryer with a slide hidden inside. The slide is accompanied with a mystical sound which plays from hidden speakers. This dryer is a portal, or at least an artistic representation of one. It’s difficult to climb into the door itself, requiring the person who wishes to pass through to fear for their safety as the machine shifts under their weight, but sliding through the portal leads to a room filled with lost socks.

A visitor steps into one of Crawling out the house's many portals of the room

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A fond farewell for Feland

Beloved I-Lab Engineer and Quest Co-Director John Feland departs from Nueva after three and a half years

“I like to leave places better than I found them.

And hopefully that's what I'm doing.”

STORY SERENA S. PHOTOS JOHN FELAND, EMMA Z.

INSTAGRAM: @THENUEVACURRENT

WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

F

or most, Oct. 31 is the day associated with costumes, bizarre hats, and wigs, but for I-Lab Engineer and Quest CoDirector John Feland, every day is Halloween. Wearing anything from Albert Einstein’s signature buzzed hair wig to a darth vader mask, these elaborate outfits are just one way Feland has fostered positivity within the community.

Even prior to his costumes, Feland was rarely without a decorative bow tie, cup of coffee in hand, and a contagious energy that made students laugh regardless of their time of day.

So when he shared his decision that he would be departing Nueva after three and a half years, the announcement was widely met with dismay and a bittersweet despondency from Feland’s students and colleagues.

“I'm definitely going to miss [Feland] next semester,” said Char P. ’23, who has taken design with impact and mechanical engineering classes with him. “Not only is he a great teacher, I'm going to miss making puns with him, and his outfits are always awesome—the tarantula hat is one of my favorites.”

The feeling is mutual; Feland already knows that he will deeply miss his students and co-workers. The experience he’s had at Nueva has been unlike any he’s ever had, and one that he won’t forget.

“I've never had the honor of working with such an incredible group of people and through some of the most challenging experiences,” Feland said.

“I just thank them for their patience with the puns and the prototypes.”

Feland believes will cherish the little moments at Nueva long into the future.

“It’s seeing other students show up to cheer at sports games…

It’s the Coffeehouse, the hallway conversations, it's all these pieces in which the community comes together to support each other,” he said.

His proudest moments have been when he’s able to contribute to the community, in both small and big ways. He has helped take over responsibility for piecing together the intricate puzzle that is the upper school schedule, working with Danielle McReynolds-Dell and Claire Yeo to create individual schedules for each of the 451 students. And during remote learning, he sought to bring joy to each day with his costumes, perfectly paired to match his virtual backgrounds on Zoom. It began as a way for him to try

and get his students excited to log onto Zoom for his classes.

“So much of our time around COVID-19 is spent talking about what we've lost and I wanted to give people something as fun as a distraction… or just that hope, that glimmer,” he said.

Even before the pandemic, Feland has always strived to provide optimism and support to students. Over his time at Nueva, Feland’s motivations have always been to the students and their ambitions. “It's curiosity and it's the chance to help make y’all’s dreams come true,” he said. “I like to leave places better than I found them. And hopefully that's what I'm doing,” he said.

From merging the Quest program and design with impact to redesigning the entrepreneurship curriculum and being the mastermind and co-scheduler of Wednesdays of Wonder, Feland’s impacts have been undeniably indelible—centered around creating opportunities for students to experiment in different disciplines, explore interests, and ultimately dig deep into their passions.

“I came back to education to help students increase belief and see their potential,” Feland said. “My goal was to open doors for people, but be okay if they didn't walk through.”

Currently teaching a mechanical engineering class, which will be led by math teacher Ted Theodosopoulos next semester, Feland explains that although some of the seniors in his class may become engineers while others will not, “they all know they could. And that that's the cool part.”

Though his official last day at the school is Jan. 1, 2022, Feland assures everyone that rather than a goodbye, he calls his exit a “See you later.” He hopes to return as a guest to speak about the history of technology and is already brainstorming ways in which he can continue to contribute to the community in the near future.

Feland will begin his work at CableLabs, located in Santa Clara, as part of their strategy and insights team. His job will be to take the developing technologies in the cable industry, find ways to partner with surrounding companies in the ecosystem, and then build new markets three to eight years out—all based on consumer needs. As Feland puts it, he is essentially “designing the future.”

“I've always been into this idea that it was always about tomorrow so I've been lucky enough to kind of work on creating the future through multiple

roles. And this is a chance to get back to that,” Feland said.

Feland believes his time at Nueva was invaluable as it taught him how to “temper the passion with patience,” a skill that will be necessary at his new job.

With a career change this monumental, Feland knows that the next stage of his career will be a learning experience in itself. Although unsure about where this next stride in his life will lead him, what Feland is sure about is that he will ultimately end up where he needs to be.

“Looking back on my life, there's no way I could have plotted it ahead of time. Each decision has been around what's the next thing because when I try and plan too far in the future, the crystal ball gets all cloudy,” Feland said, encouraging students to also take this advice and tackle each day one step at a time.

“Whatever you do next is gonna open up a collection of doors, and then from there, the next function of doors, and so on. And I don't know what doors [my new job] will open.”

So while he may not miss the crowds of students bombarding him with schedule changes, he certainly will miss the relationships he’s cultivated throughout the community.

However, Feland will always have a front-row seat in witnessing the growth of his students.

As Feland embarks on the next leg of his journey, he will always be thinking about how to spread positive impacts and hopefully, “help everyone have a better tomorrow.”

His advice to students: “take care of each other and have fun failing in spectacular ways.”

A man with many hats During remote teaching, John Feland showed up to class each day dressed as a different character and used his virtual background on Zoom as a complementing backdrop. His intention was to do what he could to get his students excited to log onto Zoom each day for class. During his time at Nueva, Feland has worn many different hats in addition to teacher, Quest Co-Director, scheduler, and purveyor of Wednesdays of Wonder workshops.

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South Asian Affinity Group aims to create a safe space for students Started by Anoushka K. ’23, the group encourages discussions of identity

cont. from page 1.

At SAAG’s first meeting, Anoushka introduced name-pronunciation mishaps as an icebreaker to widespread enthusiastic participation.

“Seeing that I wasn’t the only one experiencing that encouraged me to keep coming back to SAAG,” Talinn H. ’25 said. “I really felt like this is a community where I fit in.”

Similarly, Rajeev S. ’22 found the club to be a welcome inclusive space to explore his culture, especially after the isolation of lockdown.

“During the pandemic, I had a lot more time to reflect on my identity,” said Rajeev S. ’22. “I have a South Asian name, and a South Asian family. India should be a big part of my community.

But I wasn’t connected to it.”

The exposure to the diversity of student voices in SAAG encouraged Rajeev to expand his idea of South Asian identity to people who didn’t necessarily look, eat, or speak like him and his relatives.

“India is such a diverse country, and our club is comprised of members from all over India,” Anoushka said. “It’s interesting seeing the affinity and the shared experiences created between all of us. All over India.”

This diversity not only gave Rajeev a new outlook on how he relates to other South Asians but also on his own identity.

“I could no longer joke around and say, ‘oh, Indian tech support, convenience store,’” Rajeev said. “Instead, I can have a serious understanding of the South Asian community.”

For Talinn, a freshman on a campus where even upperclassmen aren’t completely familiar with one another after remote learning, SAAG provides a similar aspect of community.

“I’ve been able to bond with so many people outside of my grade,” Talinn said.

“Conversation flows so naturally because there’s one really big part of our identity that's the same.”

When Anoushka first formed the

group, one topic made conversation flow particularly abundantly—Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things unit in the English 10 curriculum.

“We struggled with separating our identity and our cultural connections to the book from the analytical nature of English class,” Anoushka said, citing differences in South Asian students’ interpretations of the text thanks to their cultural context.

Set in Kerala, The God of Small Things is a novel part of tenth grade English’s overarching theme of postcolonial literature. Members of SAAG found shared discomfort in the English classroom—above all, feeling like the “token brown person” and “spokesperson for India,” according to Anoushka.

Along with members Aanika G. ’22, Riyana S. ’23, and Anahita A. ’23, Anoushka met with the English faculty to discuss revising the The God of Small Things curriculum, suggesting adding supplementary readings to supply muchneeded cultural context.

“When I was asked how to pronounce a name, I didn’t feel Indian enough,” said Aanika, who is of north Indian descent, while Kerala is in south India. “I’ve never heard of those names either. I’m new to this culture, too—because India is so diverse.”

Anoushka and Aanika hope to continue making progress toward a modified curriculum and a better experience for South Asian students in the classroom.

“We want future classes to enjoy the book like we did, but without some of the tense moments that come from being a South Asian person reading South Asian literature,” Anoushka said.

To faculty advisor Veena Krishnan, the English curriculum revisions are an example of the club’s initiative.

“I think that's what is absolutely wonderful about the group is they're not just coming out with ‘we don't like this,’ but they're also coming up with possible solutions,” Veena said. “So people are more willing to listen.”

A scientific happy hour STORY SERENA S. PHOTO LUKE DE

GATHERING TOGETHER Anouschka K. '23 introduces the South Asian Affinity Group to students at the clubs fair this fall.

Veena, who immigrated from India and is in her 17th year of teaching, attended her first People of Color Conference, organized by the National Association of Independent Schools, last January. When Anoushka came to her with the idea for SAAG in March, Veena saw parallels to her experience at the conference.

“I found the POCC South Asian affinity group extremely supportive,” Veena said. “Around people with similar experiences, you don’t feel alone anymore.”

Before teaching at Nueva, Veena taught at a school in St. Louis, where instead of having a South Asian affinity group, the POC members of the mostlywhite community had a group oriented toward displaying their culture to the larger populace.

“I’m not sure the students in my previous school had that experience where they could talk to each other,” Veena said.

While SAAG members have the opportunity to learn from Veena, Veena

has gained some insight in turn into how her children might feel about growing up as South Asian-Americans, and the messages she passes down.

“Don’t discount any part of your identity,” Veena said. “You might want to now, but in the long run, those are things that identify you, and give you the freedom to have conversations with somebody.”

In the future, Veena hopes SAAG can expand into the middle school, to give younger South Asian students the same support and possibly extend curricular initiatives. Anoushka’s goals for the affinity group include expanding the scope of cultural events as well, but her top priority is keeping SAAG as an inviting space to students in need.

“I really just want to make sure that everything we’re doing is enhancing the community,” Anoushka said. “I hope SAAG continues to be a space where people feel they can be themselves.”

DATAS fosters scientific engagement in upper school community

information into the community through weekly presentations.

Previous presentation topics have included reimagining the housing crisis, bias in machine learning, or even environmental racism.

However, the group’s efforts go beyond setting up speaker systems and offering snacks for audience members.

One effort, in particular, is the extensive presenter training process that spans over six weeks through a series of around five meetings. From guidance in dissecting scientific journals to the formulation of an emotional story hook, DATAS members work to ensure the presenter feels confident and ready to share their findings with the community.

“If students can analyze previous research, then they should be able to teach other people how to analyze

previous research. And if they can teach other people how to analyze previous research, those people should also be able to present on it,” De said.

Though the group and their initiatives have been around for years past, this year the team has pushed to increase involvement and attendance during Science Friday presentations.

With three varying levels of participation—audience member, presenter, and DATAS member—they hope to provide accessible avenues for the student body to engage scientifically regardless of other commitments.

“If you want to get involved in something science related, you have to basically take a class here. We didn't want that,” De said. “A kid should be able to come in, have other interests, and if they like it, they should be like, ‘yeah, let's get involved more.’”

SCIENCE FRIDAY History teacher Chelsea Denlow presents a talk about the urban housing crisis in San Francisco at one of the earlier Science Friday presentations this fall.

DATAS also increases Science Friday participation through the casual style presentations in which students can fully engage in the speaker or listen while multitasking.

“You don’t have to commit to giving your full attention. We’re totally fine if people are doing homework in the back, but I just don’t think people know about that,” said Juliet Sostena ’23, who is training to be a DATAS lead next year.

Such strategies have proven effective and Science Friday presentations have grown from just under 40 average attendees to around 60 this year. Comparing the weekly event to the school’s “happy hour,” De believes that Science Friday is a laidback opportunity for anyone to learn regardless of someone’s scientific background.

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

A

s the smell of samonas wafts from the 175A/B classrooms and the sounds of “Bongo Bong” ring around the Café Courtyard, students flock towards the latest Science Friday presentation.

What started six years ago as an event to showcase student work from Science Teacher Luke De’s mechanisms of cancer class has grown into an event that forms a huge part of the upper school’s culture—a place for students to voluntarily get exposure to science without necessarily taking a specific course.

Hosted by Discussions and Talks About Science (DATAS), previously known as “Journal Club,” Science Friday is the core focus of 21 students working to pump out relevant scientific

STORY ANISHA K. PHOTO SERENA S.

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Founding Faculty: how has the upper school evolved since

Teachers who have been at Nueva throughout the high school’s nine-year lifetime discu faculty, curriculum, and learning environment STORY SAM T. PHOTOS NUEVA PHOTO ARCHIVE

INSTAGRAM: @THENUEVACURRENT

WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

I

n 2012, the Bay Meadows so many students know and love was a shadow of its future self. Empty lots covered the entire area surrounding the half-finished high school, with a few scattered apartment buildings looming in the distance. No Tin Pot, no Blue Bottle, not even the SurveyMonkey office had been erected yet. This former horse racetrack was home to little more than exposed concrete and weedy dirt lots. Meanwhile, the 73 students of the inaugural upper school class found themselves beginning their high school education 3.5 miles away at the College of San Mateo.

Since then, the high school has expanded to a state-of-the-art campus in the now-bustling development of Bay Meadows, with 451 students roaming its halls daily. The founding upper school class has long since left the Nueva halls for college. But there still remain a few faculty who remember the interim campus at the College of San Mateo.

One of them is Jennifer Min, current ninth grade math teacher and one of the architects of the Nueva upper school. Nine years ago, she stopped at nothing to make sure the jumble of puzzle pieces that comprised the high school fit together. While her position has changed throughout her time at Nueva, she still vividly remembers the excitement of starting something new.

"We set out with a bold vision to reimagine the high school experience,” Min said. “We wanted to extend Nueva culture of fostering a love and joy in learning, and inspiring students and teachers to imagine the possibilities.”

Alongside head of school Diane Rosenberg, associate head of school Terry Lee, and the board of trustees, Min and the other founding faculty did this by designing an academic schedule and program that embraced those values,

creating a broad and deep offering of courses with elective choices starting in ninth grade, and hiring remarkable teachers.

“When we were starting the upper school, I did everything and anything that needed to be done,” Min recalled.

She ended up juggling an array of roles—teaching an economics class and an entrepreneurship class (“I think it’s really important for all adults and teachers [at the upper school] to be in a classroom and be with students because it’s them that we’re here for and why we started the upper school in the first place.”); helping to order chairs and desks; hiring many of the founding teachers.

This group of faculty was instrumental in creating the foundation of what would become the high school experience.

Economics teacher Patrick Berger, who was hired by Min in 2015 to serve as the new economics teacher as she was leaving the classroom to assume an administrative role, ascribes much of this success to Min. “There is no single person who has done more for creating the culture of the upper school than Jenn Min,” Berger said. “She hand-picked teachers from around the country to fill the first several years of Nueva’s faculty roles and somehow put together a unified body of faculty that shared a common vision, passion, and sense of humor at one of the strangest and most unique workplaces in the world of education.”

Berger also mentioned how hard it was to find teachers that were a good fit for Nueva’s philosophy.

“You can’t tell teachers what their values should be, you can’t teach someone to shift their core identity,” he said. “So finding the perfect people to lead our school and classrooms forward was the most impactful thing anyone could have done.”

To teachers like Min, the early days were filled with a sense that everyone was in it together, and that they were at the forefront of building something truly innovative. One memory that stands out for Min is how the faculty wanted to

make the first day of the high school special for the students. In a seemingly harmless plan, the teachers covered a classroom entirely with blackboards and chalk so students could write whatever they were feeling to celebrate the beginning of the year.

“What we didn’t anticipate was how much dust the chalkboards would cause,” Min remembers with a laugh.

“We had to rent the space from the college, so that night the faculty spent about two hours cleaning.”

Like Min, the second hire for the upper school has also bounced between various roles. Elise Maar, who had worked previously in admissions at Stanford University, began as Nueva’s first college counselor. Maar and Min were both brought on one year before the official launch of the upper school to help with the planning. They

find a proper campus for the first class, this pursuit was never fully developed.

Maar ended up departing Nueva after three years, but this year she found herself drawn back to the place she helped create. Upon her return at the start of this fall, she assumed a different job in an area she knew well.

“I decided to come back because Nueva needed somebody to fill in for the interim director of admissions role, and I have that institutional memory,” Maar said.

Her time away from Nueva has given her a unique opportunity to see the evolution of what she helped start without being overtly involved after the launch. Although Maar said she observed vast differences, like a completely new building and very few recognizable faculty, she quickly became aware of one thing that stayed the same.

“It still feels like the [same] special [Jenn Min] somehow Nueva flavor, but just expanded,” she said. put together a She speculates that one reason unified body of Nueva has retained its core principles faculty that shared over the years could be due to the wellestablished lower and middle divisions a common vision, of the school. Many teachers, like passion, and sense Rachel Dawson, Hillary Freeman, and Lee Holtzman, eventually came from of humor at one the Hillsborough campus to work with of the strangest the upper school students. and most unique “Crossover teachers definitely help [maintain the positive learning workplaces in the environment] and also give some world of education. cohesion as we're physically on two campuses and three divisions,” Maar said. had a front row seat to see how the Another teacher Min hired is Mark ambitious plans for the high school Hurwitz, who has served as the upper evolved. school’s physics teacher since its “When we created the high school, inception.

I think there was a vision of really Hurwitz had a crucial role in reimagining high school,” Maar said. creating new curricula each year as “Now, we've gotten down to what really new grades were added. This was a is possible, given the constraints of… much more demanding job than any college admission and all that, yet other teaching position, as he had to being able to do all these incredible not only teach during the school year, things.” but also design new content over the Some of these aspirational ideas summer. are well known, like the original plan “During the first four years or for the upper school to operate without maybe more… high school didn't really grades entirely, but there are others exist yet. Every year, we were adding that were either abandoned early on or an entire grade,” Hurwitz said. never truly came to fruition.

However, starting at Nueva early on Min remembered an early plan also had its benefits. One of Hurwitz’s for academic progression favorite things about teaching in throughout a student's the same place for so long is the four years: “There would generational connections he has been be strands that would go able to make. through [a subject], almost “After you've been here a while, like a major, where you there may be more students, but could take a set of classes there's also more opportunity to see that were all intertwined with a whole family, maybe even several a theme.” families pass through, and that's In the scramble to gratifying,” Hurwitz said. “If you only assemble a curriculum and teach at a school for two years and you leave again, you're not going to experience that.”

FEATURES

THE NUEVA CURRENT

e its inception?

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uss the evolution of

Upper school students have seen many teachers come and go throughout the high school’s lifetime—a ship-of-Theseus dilemma that means there have been very few people to watch the school grow. Yet, though the few that have been here since the beginning have seen some changes, they all echo that the core principles Nueva was founded upon still endure nine years later.

FOUNDING FACULTY (LEFT TO RIGHT) Elise Maar, George Jemmott, Taryn Grogan, Mark Hurwitz, and Jennifer Min have all remained at or returned to Nueva since being part of the founding upper school team.

An inaugural Peru trip to remember STORY MARK HURWITZ

In their own words STORY JENNIFER MIN

“I

remember overhearing a student from our first 9th grade class sharing his thoughts on Nueva upper school with a prospective student, 'Here at Nueva high school we learn with our teachers, not just from them; we create and start clubs, not just join them.' Upon hearing that, I knew that we were off to a pretty good start!"

A true Nueva dance STORY MARK HURWITZ

“O

n the first 9th grade Peru trip I remember that we got to the hotel in Lima really late, midnight or even later, I think. As soon as we got there, one of the students discovered the need for prescription medication that had been left behind back at home. This meant that the head of upper school had to run around Lima trying to find a 24hr pharmacy at midnight and he was up even later than everyone else, so that was a disaster.

The next day, the entire grade was split up into two groups, and my group had a 5 a.m. flight to Cusco. My group members got around three hours of sleep and immediately had a full day of sightseeing in Cusco, which

wasn’t a fantastic idea, as everyone was cranky and tired. The rest of the trip wasn’t too different from how it is now and we were able to explore Cusco and hike Machu Picchu.

The return flight was a little annoying as it was from Cusco to Lima to Newark New Jersey to back home. Nothing too dramatic happened but there was one student who really wanted to buy an armadillo-shell guitar and he didn’t end up having enough money, so he begged classmates and teachers for cash until he finally got it.

However, what we didn’t realize at the time was that giant armadillos were an endangered species meaning that if the shell on the back was a giant armadillo shell, rather than a normal armadillo shell, then it could be confiscated at customs upon returning home.

After learning this, everyone started panicking and we all literally measured the shell to see which species it was but it seemed to be in the gray area between the size of a small giant armadillo and a big normal armadillo. It seems customs didn’t have the same attention to detail that we had, though, as they didn’t even give it a second look.”

“T

he first upper school dance was held in the middle school cafe and obviously it was only 9th graders as that was the only grade at the time. I thought it was pretty sweet honestly, and one of the highlights was how some kids brought a 3-D chess board and we all argued about the way the knight should move in a 3-D space. One other anecdote I remember is that at some point the head of upper school at the time, the other Mark, and I talked about the lyrics to ‘Africa’ by Toto.”

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

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VOL. 5 ISS. 3

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A tense silence at Chinese-Taiwanese dinnertables Taiwan’s status as an official nation has long sparked debate, but in Chinese-Taiwanese households, there is little room for discussion.

STORY ISABELLA X. ILLUSTRATION ISABELLA X. VIA WOMBO.ART

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WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

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ensions in Chinese-Taiwanese households have grown colder with the winter weather, as with China’s recent increase in military pressure, students find older generations are reluctant to engage in conversations surrounding ChineseTaiwanese politics.

For Olivia C. ’24, family reunions are spent dodging discussions of the increasingly strained relations between Taiwan and China. Her dad’s side of the family is Taiwanese, while her mom’s family is from mainland China. Olivia’s grandparents, like many first-generation immigrants, hold strong allegiances toward their homelands, but conversations regarding Taiwan’s political status remain surprisingly sparse.

“Nobody ever wants to talk about it. It always feels like there’s a communication barrier due to having to act polite and stereotypically Asian,” Olivia said.

Olivia's experience is not uncommon; the conflict avoidance occurs in other Nueva families, including my own, as Taiwanese and Chinese populations have long argued over the issue of whether Taiwan is politically considered part of China.

In 1971, Taiwan (then called the Republic of China) lost their United Nations seat to China (the People’s Republic of China), supposedly due to pressure from United States president Ronald Reagan.

Upper school Mandarin teacher Jamie Gao, who was born in Taipei, lived in Taiwan when the country’s UN recognition was lost.

“People were out on the streets protesting. We were like ‘Reagan, you betrayed us!’” Gao recalled.

Since then, many in Taiwan have been keen on establishing a position as a recognized country.

The landslide presidential reelection of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) representative Tsai Ingwen demonstrated a shifting trend towards the support of independence, with a 2020 Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation survey reporting that around 54 percent of respondents supported official independence for Taiwan, an 8.1 percent increase from the previous year’s poll.

Gao agreed with this majority, arguing that—legislatively—Taiwan has checked all the boxes to be an official country: “People always compare Taiwan with Tibet, but we have our own official government and bureaus independent of China…we even have our own passports.”

Gao also condemned Taiwan’s recent barring from attendance of World Health Assemblies for being “so anti-Taiwan,” especially with the island’s effective handling of COVID-19.

So why is China so persistent in their quest to reclaim Taiwan?

Chinese netizens reflect a common sentiment as they gather on social media to express their indignation towards Taiwan’s refusal to reunite.

“Why can't he be Chinese and Taiwanese at the same time? It is like my brother does not acknowledge me as his brother anymore, which is unacceptable,” said one user on Weibo, a popular Chinese social media platform, whose stance was echoed by hundreds amongst the

platform.

The Weibo users’ stance is similar to that of Chinese president Xi Jinping, who declared in a speech celebrating the 100th birthday of the Chinese Communist Party (CPP) that, “Solving the Taiwan question and realizing the complete reunification of the motherland are the unswerving historical tasks of the Chinese Communist Party and the common aspiration of all Chinese people.”

Tensions in recent years have only increased: just two months ago, on Oct. 3, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said that 39 Chinese military aircrafts entered their “air defense identification zone,” while the United States have increased their support for the self-governed island. In 2016, Tsai and President-elect Donald Trump spoke over the phone in an event that marked the first time since 1979 that a United States president or President-elect had directly spoken with a Taiwanese president.

Since then, U.S.-Taiwan relations have only deepened. In November, five United States lawmakers paid Tsai a surprise visit, intending to reaffirm the United States’ “rock solid” support.

“We are here in Taiwan this week to remind our partners and allies, after two trying years that we've endured, that our commitment and shared responsibility for a free and secure Indo-Pacific region remain stronger than ever,” said U.S. Representative Mark Takano.

Faced with split allegiances—to Taiwanese and Chinese heritage, as well as an American identity—this discourse has caused a political rift that doesn’t seem bridgeable anytime in the foreseeable future.

Chinese-Taiwanese families continue to dance around topics regarding East Asian politics, blindsiding children towards important cultural discussions.

Olivia, who has an interest in politics and international relations, expressed her disappointment in missing out on “such vital conversations.”

“I hate that I’m left oblivious to the opinions of my family and relatives on an issue so definitive of my cultural identity,” she said. “It’s such an interesting and divisive topic that I wish I could learn more about.”

Another Chinese-Taiwanese student, Owen Y. ’24, said that his grandparents’ refusal to talk about the subject, despite them holding “very strong national beliefs,” highlighted a feeling of disconnect from his cultural heritage.

“I’m a third-generation immigrant, so I already feel quite isolated from my [Chinese and Taiwanese] heritage…I see the news online and I want to reach out,

SURVEY: TAIWANESE POLLER'S NATIONAL IDENTITY (SOURCE:TNCF) 86.6% Taiwanese 4.6% Chinese

1% both 4.5% other

but [my grandparents] don’t want to talk about it,” Owen explained.

While the subject remains taboo for Olivia and Owen, in my family, debate festers in private, whispered conversations. Growing up, my mom frequently referred to China as a “bully,” meticulously keeping track of Chinese-Taiwanese relations and condemning China on every instance.

She was born in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, while my dad was raised in Fuzhou, China. When they got engaged, the outrage amongst both families was immense.

My mom recalled, “When my mom heard about it, she cried and wouldn’t speak to me for months.”

The Chinese side of my family didn’t handle it much better: my grandpa gathered a dozen of his relatives and held a meeting to discuss how to deal with the matter. It was an act of “filial betrayal.”

Tensions ran high for a long time, but students like Olivia and Owen have learned to live with the political chasm. The two sides of the family rarely interact, and when they do, there’s an almost sterile politeness. And Chinese politics are never, ever discussed. But as these conversations continue to be shunned and avoided, the question remains: is it worth stepping into tense, uncomfortable territory to allow younger generations to understand the politics behind their cultural identity?

CHINESE–TAIWANESE

RELATIONS TIMELINE

THE NUEVA CURRENT

The overshadowed epidemic

FEATURES

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STORY GRACE F. ILLUSTRATION SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN

The upper school has seen a new sense of urgency with the mental health crises of its students

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n the shadows of the COVID-19 pandemic lies another epidemic: the decline in teenage mental health.

“I definitely noticed that a lot more students are coming into counseling compared to previous years before the pandemic,” said Carmen Chow, the Director of Counseling Services. “On average, we have about 12 students a day coming into counseling, while in the past, the average was about five to six students.”

Chow has noted an increase in the severity of student mental health crises, such as panic attacks.

The abrupt transition from sitting alone at home to constantly being surrounded by other students and stimuli can be a jarring adjustment, especially for those who struggle with mental health issues.

“For the most part, it feels like people do appreciate being back in person,” said Christine Tam, middle and upper school counselor. “But I think there's an aftermath of what happened in the last year and a half that people are still grappling with.

I think the pandemic just threw everybody off the tracks, and while some people can get right back on, some are having a little bit of a harder time getting better.”

Upper school Science of Mind teacher Oliva Barber echoes this sentiment, and also feels that students’ energy levels and social batteries have

shifted.

“The challenges of the last two years have depleted the energy reserves of people,” explained Olivia Barber, upper school Science of Mind teacher. “So when we face something stressful, we just don't have the same energy reserves to pull from that.”

More than that, with face masks, many facial communication cues have disappeared — which can be a difficult experience.

“We've lost the nuances of communication,” said Sean Schochet, upper school Science of Mind teacher “We've lost the sense of sarcasm in the fun playing around with people and the compassion and empathy that we show with our faces being covered.”

With this mask-induced social ambiguity can come a sense of isolation and feeling stranded— something hard to escape. According to Schochet, the stigma surrounding mental health and mental illness has created a barrier towards seeking help.

To him, it’s crucial to work toward breaking these barriers.

“I think the main thing is to destigmatize mental health,” Schochet said. “No problem is too small to talk about, and I really want students to bring up their struggles when things aren't going the best way… because I think students will feel they're not alone. Students need to feel validated in their feelings.”

The counselors and SOM teachers

feel strongly that this struggle is also a learning experience and has built a sense of solidarity among students and faculty alike.

“Going through this shared threshold of intensity simultaneously with everyone has allowed me to just see how you all are such deep and complex and extraordinary individuals in a really beautiful way,” Barber said.

With regards to the stigma and the everlasting rhetoric of “my issues aren’t serious enough,” the SOM teachers and counselors are strong advocates for the prioritization of mental health and having open conversations about these topics.

“I think a lot of people get discouraged because they think that nothing can change, nothing will be different. But I do want to let people know that when you talk to a counselor, when you do get treatment for mental health issues, they do get better,” Tam said.

Though mental health services at Nueva will be undergoing a colossal change throughout the next semester, SOM teachers and counselors encourage selfadvocacy as well as continuing to

prioritize one’s mental health.

“Name the one thing that you can do that will make today a better day, and listen to yourself and actually do that,” Schochet said. “And then tomorrow, you could again say ‘What is the one thing I can do to make today a better day?’”

How Does Social Media Affect Our Mental Health?

An interview with Vicki Harrison, Program Director for Stanford Psychiatry's Center for Youth Mental Health & Wellbring, on the topic of social media and how teens can develop healthy relationships with using it STORY ELIANNA K. PHOTO PIKISUPERSTAR

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I think part of the problem is the way that we've incorporated media into our lives. The ease of having technology at our fingertips bring a pressure repond, comment, or like a post right away, creating an anxiety-inducing urgency.

Social platforms started as a way for people to communicate together, but now they are being run by marketing and advertising.

This creates a challenge, especially when it comes to body image and appearance. Most platforms for young people like Instagram and Snapchat are image based. There's a pressure to curate photos, to make them look as good as possible, without really realizing that what you're seeing from other people is also curated and not necessarily authentic. Not everyone really understands that, or even if you do, when you see so much of it, you still embed that image in your mind as an ideal that you need to emulate or live up to.

Some people claim that the unattainable vision for women's bodies has had a negative effect on adolescent girls for a long time, even before the existence of social media.

What are your thoughts on this?

I would agree. I think that it's something that socially we've struggled with, especially in Western culture, where we have this kind of Western ideal of beauty. However, I think there's complications that social media have added to it because of the volume of images that we're ingesting on a daily basis as we are engaging with media. It used to be that you would just maybe see a couple billboards driving down the street or a magazine or two, but now it's everywhere.

What coping mechanisms and strategies do young people use to get around the challenges that they experience when using social media?

You could look at the GoodforMEdia website and watch some of the videos that our older teens have submitted, which talks exactly to that question.

And some of what they share is that they'll really choose and be selective about who they follow or unfollow and try to create more positive streams in their platforms. And also taking breaks is huge, setting notifications, setting timers.

How can we leverage social media to support adolescents so that social media has a lesser negative impact on their mental health?

We can try to create some different norms that have a better balance of online and offline activities. A lot of people that have cut back or been able to take breaks say that they feel differently and it changes their mindset. That said, I think we want technology to positively influence our lives, so it's really about striking that balance.

What would you say to a teenager who experiences this anxiety or low selfesteem as a result of engaging with social media?

We all can try to be more mindful of how we interact with our devices. So, it's a good thing to be aware of if you feel bummed out after spending 30 minutes on Snapchat.

But also, I don't know that we are at a point where we can really have a cause and effect relationship yet and say social media is causing me to feel depressed or anxious. It might be a contributing factor and there might be other things going on in your life.

So I would just encourage anybody who's feeling anxious or depressed regardless of potential causes to reach out to a trusted adult, someone at school, someone in the community that they feel comfortable talking to or a friend and share that with them and then try to engage with some resources just to help with that.

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

icki Harrison is Program Director for Stanford Psychiatry’s Center for Youth Mental Health & Wellbeing. She works with communitybased projects promoting wellbeing, early intervention and increased access to mental health services for young people ages 12-25. These projects include the GoodforMEdia project, a peer mentoring initiative for older teenagers and young adults to share experiences and advice on using social media, and alcove, an integrated youth mental health center designed with, by, and for youth that embraces mental wellness, increase community connection and provide access to culturally-responsive services.

What are some of the struggles that young people report in their social media interactions?

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OPINION

VOL. 5 ISS. 3

Have a holly jolly day of commercial escapism As an outsider to Christmas, the capitalist dreamscape of winter holidays is a nuisance STORY GRACE F.

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n the winter of 2019, I spent two weeks in my favorite city in the world: Tokyo, Japan. I had visited many times before, as I am Japanese, but never before in winter. I felt like a child again: the Christmas decoration displays and jolly music, which I typically felt bombarded by, made this city that I was familiar with feel like a wonderland. And yet, as someone who has never actually celebrated Christmas in my life, this whimsical winter wonderland was only a reminder of how the intense commercialization of this holiday manifests itself.

As an outsider to Christmas in general, my main impression of this holiday growing up was that it was just an excuse for kids to flaunt their privilege and live in a world filled with cheap LEDs and mediocre

peppermint candy. Though the aggressive flashing lights and strange obsession with Mariah Carey can be seen as comforting, the commercialization of this holiday never sat right with me.

To me, Christmas seems like the strangest mix of a meaningful holiday and a capitalist dreamscape. While I’ve always found myself bored on the day, my friends in elementary school were always boasting about their expensive treasures which they were gifted by a “mythical old man” who was really just a pseudonym for wealthy families.

The “Christmas spirit”—consisting of cheap snow globes, poorly decorated Starbucks cups, and any other material aspect of this holiday—is a shallow attempt at creating a sense of “magic” which ultimately becomes a massive display of societal escapism.

I don’t have anything against wanting to partake in this

societal conception of the Christmas holiday — I even enjoy romanticizing my life while listening to vintage renditions of popular Christmas carols.

However, I’ve always felt that the rest of the world travels to some dimension that I have never experienced, making me feel as if I’m isolated in the real world.

Though candy canes and the aforementioned Mariah Carey can be fun, it simply becomes a reminder of the confusing nature of this holiday in which I have never participated.

Though it certainly does get me in some sort of spirit (though I wouldn’t necessarily call it the Christmas spirit), the intense commercialization of this significant holiday has always raised a question in my mind on how religion and capitalist society can live in harmony, and whether the meaning of this holiday is elevated or diminished.

Christmas Craze In 2021, the average American will spend $997.73 on gifts and other holiday items.

Happy Holidays: Making the holidays more culturally inclusive

It seems simple, but a small language change can make huge strides towards cultural representation STORY NATALIE L. PHOTO MYWINDOWPAINTING

INSTAGRAM: @THENUEVACURRENT

WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

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s you make your rounds of gift shopping this season, you may hear voices of customer service workers chime out “Happy Holidays!” or “Season’s Greetings!” In the past decade or so of winter holiday seasons, businesses and the general public have taken responsible action and shifted from saying “Merry Christmas” and using predominantly Christmas-centered greetings to “Happy Holidays.” As people become increasingly aware and supportive of respecting other cultures and religions, it is critical that large businesses make an effort to include those who celebrate other winter holidays like Hanukkah (a Jewish holiday) and Kwanzaa (a non-religious celebration of African-Amercian heritage).

The use of “Happy Holidays” is not only culturally respectful, indicating an awareness if not appreciation for other cultural holidays, but a convenient way to blanket Thanksgiving and New Years as well.

The commercial use of the phrase “Happy Holidays” has unfortunately sparked

controversy. During Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign for presidency, he observed America’s lessened use of “Merry Christmas” in public situations and the rise of more inclusive phrases. Instead of joining the movement, he claimed that he would fix this “issue.” However, it is not only foolish, but ironic that certain Christmas celebrators and Christians take their holiday of joy and love, and have turned it into a political hot topic against those who prefer the more welcoming term “Happy Holidays.”

From being bombarded with red and green storefronts on every city street, to blasting Christmas carols, it is obvious that Christmas is the most widely recognized religious celebration in the US. Even our academic calendar is built around the Christian calendar—winter break allows those celebrating Christmas to have time off without missing school or work. The prominence of Christmas is evident—the ratio of Christmas-toHanukkah observers is to 14, and that of Christmas-to-Kwanzaa is one to 49.

Despite this, being inclusive of all religions by saying “Happy Holidays” does not in any way exclude or diminish those who observe Christmas. Instead, the phrase is simply more considerate of the diverse beliefs and cultures of all Americans. However, more efforts are still needed, as without further measures that truly works towards inclusivity, “Happy Holidays” rings hollow and feels rather performative.

In order for large companies to show that they have prioritized being inclusive of all their shoppers’ observed holidays, they could do something as simple as adding a seasonal Hanukkah section in their stores, like Target annually offers. Additionally, individuals and influences could take action to spread information about Kwanzaa on their Instagram story to provide substantial incentive for increased future acceptance of the respectful, well-intentioned holiday cheer “Happy Holidays.”

The increased use of “Happy Holidays” represents our country’s progression towards making more cultural groups represented.

Ultimately, the more America works towards taking meaningful action, the more it can be ensured that everybody truly has a joyful holiday season.

CORRECTIONS The Nueva Current welcomes comments and suggestions. We seek to publish corrections and clarifications in the subsequent issue. Please email any corrections to thenuevacurrent@nuevaschool.org.

Corrections: Issue 2, published Nov. 19, 2021: On the top of p.1, in “How the 5 to 11 vaccine approval is affecting Nueva,” there was a typo in the title. On p. 2, in “First CSL Day since quarantine prompts community bonding,” the grade of photographer Christine Z. ’24 was not mentioned. On p. 3, in “Students and faculty share the stage at fall Coffeehouse,” senior Jonathon T.’s name was misspelled. On p. 5, in “Slices Pizza: a decent addition to the Bay Meadows eateries,” the prices of individual slices of pizza (ranging from $3.50-$4.50) and full rectangular pizzas (ranging from $30-$32) were not mentioned. On the same page, in “Alec Baldwin is not the one to blame,” the accompanying photo was not credited to AMA highlights. On p. 6, in “Progressive or problematic? The rise of thrift shopping in the upper-middle class,” the grade of Eva S. ’22 was incorrect. On p. 11, in “Why are we still teaching Heart of Darkness?”, “lens” was misspelled in the subheading.

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OPINION

THE NUEVA CURRENT

Academic success cannot be expressed through letter grades

Should students recieve letter grades at midterm?

Overemphasizing grades devalues the process of learning and negates the long term goal of becoming a better student

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STORY ELLIE K.

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very student knows the feeling of receiving an essay grade. The moment is marked by uncontrollable and unavoidable fluttering in their chest as their fingers hover over the link to their essay. This was the essay they stared at for hours, carefully crafting each word, structuring strong arguments and analysis to separate their selected quotes from the text underlined in a blue marker. They were proud of their work when pressing the button to submit on Canvas.

Now, their pride is replaced with uncertainty as their breath quickens to the rhythm of their foot bouncing up and down. Then, suddenly, their result flashes on the screen, and after a quick calculation, they determine their grade and breathe out with either disappointment or relief.

Moments like this illustrate how overemphasizing letter grades would harm a positive learning mindset and environment. Having our efforts oversimplified into one of five letters after dedicating hours to produce our best work ignores the rigorous process of learning and becoming a better student. So, let’s keep not having grades during the midterms and for assignments— letter grades prompt students to value the result over the journey, which in turn develops unsatisfied consumers instead of creative and curious individuals.

Grades inadequately represent academic success. While grades can be helpful in quickly relegating students into tiers, which might be useful in college admissions, they disregard the nuanced journey involved in understanding a topic and that each student has a unique and individual learning style.

GRAPHIC BY VECTEEZY

STUDENT STANDOFF Rubrics won't cut it—why we should bring back letter grades at midterm Letter grades are important representations of academic success STORY AARON H.

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GRAPHIC BY CEDARS-SINAI

other time besides the final days of a semester—is harmful. It does not boost our motivation to simply pursue the experience of learning sans grade and it most definitely does not improve our outlook towards school.

At the midterm, we are given rubrics, or “templates,” in lieu of grades, which are vague and often have no way to be translated into a letter grade until deep into the semester. Instead of replacing a grade, rubrics should accompany a grade; if I were given a B in Math, I could then analyze the rubric for further detail of how to improve.

And yet, I am only given a rubric with no idea if I am on the right or wrong path to my letter grade goal, lost in my multicolored green-andyellow-highlighted rubrics.

As a community, we must remove the ambiguity around grades. Grades need to be accessible without having to organize a tutorial just to uncomfortably ask a teacher “what will my grade be?” And most importantly, we must be given a concrete letter grade—or score that can be converted to a grade through an universal system—for major assessments as a checkpoint and a consistent indication of our progress throughout the semester.

We live in a world which defines our academic success by a GPA, where grades are the keys to unlocking the gates to college. So why are there so many barriers?

Nueva, we need our grades to be easily accessible.

In my experience, I have noticed letter grades use a “one size fits all” format, with an over-generalization that neglects to recognize each student’s strengths and weaknesses within their work. A letter grade doesn’t represent the enormous gains a student might have made or the countless meetings they attended to improve their writing style.

Rubrics are a superior alternative than letter grades to describe academic performance.

A rubric can more accurately reveal a student’s success in class and works to turn the process of receiving feedback into one incorporating goal-setting, areas in need of improvement, and moments to celebrate instead of one where anything lower than an A is disappointment.

Letter grades further blur the reasons for academic motivation.

When prioritizing grades, students’ perspective of academic achievement is unrealistic and fuels feelings of inadequacy and burnout.

In an antiquated letter grade system, students are absorbing information in order to see Canvas spit out an “acceptable” grade, not to kindle passion and interest.

And solely pursuing recognition in school settings through letter grades does not develop confident students, either. Personalized rubrics, on the other hand, encourage students to aspire to gain knowledge and celebrate the process of learning — something core to Nueva’s institutional mission.

In the end, choosing to structure feedback as a deliberate and specific rubric instead of providing one grade or percentage means the difference between an unappeasable student and an impassioned “lifelong learner.”

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THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

he question, “Do you know what my grade will be?” is one surrounded with unnecessary ambiguity. It is a question that rings through parent-teacher conference calls and tutorial meetings with a sense of discomfort. And the responses we receive? “I don’t want you to think about the grade. What matters is self-improvement.” “Learning is a process. It’s okay to fail.” “Learn from it. We’re here to learn.” These are the vague answers strung together with too many letters and not enough letter grades, knitting together perfectly unhelpful and ignorant sentences.

Telling us grades do not matter and de-emphasizing their importance is naive and does not set us up to face the world’s harsh reality. Grades are the gatekeeper, the unfair and unfortunate security guard to our futures, and to ignore this fact creates a naive teaching culture within Nueva.

The Princeton Review, which offers college admission services, bluntly states in their article “What Looks Good on College Applications?” that GPA is the most influential factor that colleges consider:. “It reflects your performance as a student over almost four years of your life and offers insight into what sort of college student you will be.”

So creating a stigma around receiving (or asking for) a definitive grade during midterms—or any

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OPINION

VOL. 5 ISS. 3

The unhealthy rise of hustle culture Your worth is not be determined by how packed your schedule is STORY ISABELLE S. ILLUSTRATION EMI Y., CONTRIBUTIONS BY CALEB F. & ROHAN K.

M

y relationship with the term “hard work” has always been convoluted. I do believe in hard work paying off, leading us to success, and the importance of pushing ourselves. But time and time again, I have to remind myself that although working is important, so is everything beyond work. I do take breaks to do things I love beyond homework (and admittedly, a little too much Netflix here and there). Yet I can never chase away the lingering sense of guilt and the neverending feeling of always having more to do constantly bugs the back of my mind.

Hustle culture, or performative workaholism, is the idea of putting work above all else, glorifying and illuminating overwork as a form of respect from not only others but oftentimes, yourself. Once sucked in, it’s almost impossible to escape its tendrils. Constant exhaustion and perpetual meetings are a mark of success— and often, something to brag about. Perhaps stacking your calendar with meetings and extracurriculars makes you feel more accomplished. Perhaps working into the ungodly hours of early morning heightens your sense of hard work and productivity. To be fair, I am also no stranger to this feeling of

“accomplishment.”

In such an academically rigorous environment like Nueva, the culture of viewing a highstress work culture as admirable and respectable subtly but undeniably surfaces at times.

Pulling all-nighters can be deemed hardworking, dedicated, and almost boastful. Especially with the end of the term rapidly approaching with waves of assignments rolling in, the pressure to exceed expectations was only inflamed by hearing about what my peers were doing and witnessing their capabilities firsthand.

However, beneath the seemingly glamorous light of performative workaholism lies a bugging sense of self-doubt.

I’ve often found it much easier to compare my work habits to that of others—should I be spending my free time more “wisely?” Should I be meeting with teachers, catching up on work, getting ahead on work, meeting with teachers even more? There always seems to be more to do to fill the 1,440 minutes of the day—but at the price of my mental and physical health.

Although it is still something to be worked on, cutting ourselves some much-needed slack is essential in combating the culture of hyperproductivity and the pressure to be productive.

College, in their own words

STORY ELLIE K.

A

s seniors near the end of the college applications season, we asked upper school students, faculty, and staff to define what college means—or has meant—to them as part of their educational journeys. From eighth graders to faculty members, everyone's perspective of college is unique, incorporating feelings of stress or excitement. To Nueva community members, college provides students with the opportunity to truly find themselves.

Siana K. ’25

“To me, I don’t think that I am close enough to college where I can fully grasp the stressfulness of it.

As of now, it seems like an exciting experience and freedom to choose what you want to pursue. As I have gotten older and closer to the idea of college, I feel my attitude towards it has changed. It’s no longer a place where it just is the idea of moving out of your house.

It is a place where you can choose your carreer path, and follow your passions.”

Jehnna Ronan, Upper School Science & ISOS Teacher

Mei Mei L. ’24

Gavin Bradley, Director of College Counseling

Houjun (Jack) L. ’23

Holden K. ’26

Alex C. ’22

“It took me a little while to figure out how to navigate the system so I didn't feel very prepared for some parts of college.

[College] is such a crucial developmental stage for a young person [at] that timing in your life, and so I think you form a lot of strong memories from college. I still look back fondly and mostly on the friendships and community that I was able to form for myself in college, and the amazing teachers I met.”

“As a college dropout and a 25-year educator, I think the process of going to college is perceived as too linear—many people don’t go straight to college or straight through college— besides some regional and curricular differences most college experiences are far more alike than they are different. College is a time and a place to continue the process of growing up intellectually and emotionally, hopefully away from your family, which results in both a credential and an experience.”

“[College] seems so far ahead that it can be hard to think about in perspective. I would imagine college would be stressful, new, and mostly exciting because of the larger opportunities both academic and not. As college gets a bit closer I find my perception of it slowly shifts to be more and more real, but it is still a thing in the distant future.”

“As a sophomore, I try my best not to stress about college. I know that it will become very lifeconsuming as I get closer to applying so I'm trying to enjoy my freedom while it lasts. I used to think that I could hold off thinking about college until I actually had to apply, and although I wish that were true, I've realized as a high schooler that unfortunately, my actions now already matter so much to colleges.”

“I am confused by college applications. Unlike something equally flawed but clear (the SAT test, whose objective measurements are clear and laid out), the application process seems to be a hackable black box where various inputs/methods/philosophies get mysteriously mapped to outcomes. I think much of the anxiety comes from this fact.”

“Private school kids [in the Bay Area] put a lot of stress on themselves to succeed academically. My perception of higher education as essential in 'having a good life' has always been internalized, but my perception of college in terms of a personal experience has changed. College has changed from a grueling means to a rich and happy end to a process by which I can learn more about myself.

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THE NUEVA CURRENT

ENTERTAINMENT

Breakfast, quick and easy

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STORY NATALIE L. ILLUSTRATIONS NATALIE L.

Breakfast recipes that can keep up with your fast-paced schedule and keep you fueled

W

ith many of us adapting to the fast-paced lifestyle of the school year, it remains critical that we fuel our bodies beyond a cup of coffee in the morning, even with simple recipes. Smoothies, yogurt parfait, and avocado toast are jam packed with flavour and nutrients.

Strawberry Tropics Smoothie - Frozen strawberries - Frozen peaches - Frozen mangos

- 1 banana - Greek yogurt - Whole milk

Parfait On-the-go - Trader Joe' Greek Nonfat Yogurt - Honey - Blueberries - Bananas

Place ingredients in a blender.

Blend. until smooth. Serve.

Tip: Thaw out half of your fruit– that way, your smoothie is the perfect consistency when blended!

Slice bananas and assemble toppings onto the greek yogurt. Serve.

Tip: Perfect to eat in the car or on the go!

(Trader Joe's Greek Nonfat yogurt isn't a must, but it's great with the fruit)

Avocado and Tomato Toast - Half an avocado - 3 cherry tomatoes - 1 piece of bread - Salt/pepper to taste Mash avocado, halve tomatoes, and toast bread. Assemble avocados and tomatoes on toast. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.

Tip: Cook the tomatoes on medium heat for 2 minutes to enhance flavor!

Nueva Classes, as Myers-Briggs Types What's the MBTI type of your favorite class?

STORY ISABELLA X. PHOTOS NUEVA PHOTO ARCHIVE, SOPHIE T., SERENA S.

I-Lab courses: ISTP

Theater: ENFP

Nueva’s math curriculum differs from the prototypical high school math course; there’s a focus on questioning how widely-accepted formulas and theorems work. Proof after proof, question after question, INTPs use their introverted thinking (Ti) to understand concepts and theories (Ne).

The I-Lab gives students the tools to unpack and understand the world in a hands-on environment.

ISTPs direct their introverted thinking (Ti) toward understanding concrete, real-world systems (Se).

ENFPs’ extroverted intuition (Ne) allows them to embrace the spontaneity and freedom of being onstage.

Their introverted feeling (Fi) makes them love diving into what makes a character, and are incredibly in-tune with their emotions and emotional expression.

Economics: ESTJ

History: ENFJ

Sculpture: ISFP

Economics is an objective look into the turbulent world of stocks, bonds, and investments. Though investors will often make rash, costly decisions, studying economics lets students take a step back to observe the effects of money-making choices. Nobody would get as much joy from this overhead view as the ever-rational ESTJ, whose dominant extroverted thinking (Te) makes them flourish in quick decision making.

Nueva’s history classes seek to go beyond just dates and memorization, and instead, students are encouraged to look into the humanistic motivations that drove civilizations. Bellicist theory, mercantilism, and raison d’etat, though they may seem to just be words on a page, are ultimately broad-scope studies of human decision making through emotion and desire: a subversive demonstration of dominant extroverted feeling (Fe).

Similarly to ISTPs, ISFPs love hands-on experiences—and what’s more hands-on than sculpture? Their introverted feeling (Fi) makes ISFPs incredibly in tune with their personal desires and morals, but they often struggle to outwardly express these emotions. The creative medium of clay allows for an outlet to let out their deepest feelings.

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

Math courses: INTP

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ENTERTAINMENT

Crossword Puzzle: Holiday edition

BY AARON H.

VOL. 5 ISS. 3

MASTHEAD THE NUEVA CURRENT Student Newspaper of The Nueva School EDITORIAL TEAM Editor-in-Chief Anouschka B. ’22 Design and Social Media Editor Emma Z. ’23 News Editor Isabelle S. ’23 Opinion Editor Anisha K. ’22 Culture Editor Grace F. '23 Features Editor Ellie K. ’24 Entertainment and Sports Editor Serena S. ’23 Faculty Advisor LiAnn Yim

2. A Christmas gift (airholes necessary) 7. The man in the red suit's nickname 12. Birds with three stomaches 13. Friend of Hakota in "Avatar the Last Airbender" 14. Common winter break location 15. A popular drama series named, "The Next _____" 16. Star Wars's beloved baby _____ 20. 82nd Academy Award winner for: Best Animated Feature 22. Type of festive colored lights 23. The most popular Christmas food (combined with 8 down) 25. It's fun to _____ in the snow 26. It was the downfall of Derrick Rose 27. Unagi in English 29. _____ Valley, San Francisco, CA 30. Daughter of 6 down

DOWN

1. Bring your crush underneath this for a kiss.

2. You want to get a ____ with Santa (Abbr.)

3. Evil synonym 4. Commonly known for their outages (Abbr.)

5. "Mom, can I ____ open a present?" (Abbr.)

6. Artist of Christmas in Harlem 8. The most popular Christmas food (combined with 23 across) 9. "Don't _____ to their level" 10. A nice way to end a letter to Santa (Abbr.)

11. #17 in National Universities 2022 17. The stars of To Grandmother's House We Go 18. Luke _____ 19. I'M ROLLING IN THE DEEEEEEEEP 20. A time zone 21. 30 across combined with _____ is the home of 7 across 23. "_____ and Teller" 24. A group treatment program (Abbr.)

28. The Executive Office of the President (Abbr.)

THE NUEVA CURRENT

strives to provide informative and impactful articles for our community.

Our issues cover stories related to our school, the Bay Area, California, and other relevant spheres. We are dedicated to helping readers understand the ways in which we can all make a difference in the world around us.

The opinions expressed in The Nueva Current belong solely to the writers and are not a reflection or representation of the opinions of the school or administrators.

500 print copies are distributed for free to students and faculty members in all three of Nueva’s divisions.

The Nueva Current is a member of the NSPA.

BY ANISHA K.

QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR SUBMISSIONS?

Comic

INSTAGRAM: @THENUEVACURRENT

WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

ACROSS

STAFF Josie B. ’25 Claire D. ’22 Aaron H. ’24 Selin K. ’24 Natalie L. ’25 Amiya M. ’25 Jack P. ’25 Sam T. ’22 Roan W. ’24 Isabella X. ’24

We welcome your voices. We accept photographs, illustrations, articles, and other pieces of work. Please email us at thenuevacurrent@ nuevaschool.org.

STAY CONNECTED www.thenuevacurrent.com Instagram: @thenuevacurrent Twitter: @thenuevacurrent 131 E. 28th Ave. San Mateo, CA 94403

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SPORTS

THE NUEVA CURRENT

19

Girls basketball team rebuilds foundations with new players STORY SERENA S. PHOTOS PHOTOGRAPHERS

C

oached by Larisa Nakasone and assistant coach Gavin Bradley, the 12 member girls varsity basketball team is working to improve as a unit and rebuild team chemistry.

Though the team’s current record is 3-1—with losses against Castilleja, Mercy Burlingame, and Crystal Springs Uplands, and a win against Pacific Collegiate—they are still in the midst of pre-season and have yet to play any league games.

The team hopes to utilize these more competitive non-league games as practice and as a way to test out their new playing style, experiment with plays, and allow some of the lesser experienced players to get comfortable with the game.

“We have a new coach and two of our players aren't at Nueva for the fall semester, so there have been some changes in how we work as a team,” said Char P. ’23 who has been on the team since their freshman year.

Regardless of these challenges, Char believes that the team is on track to having a great season.

“We're definitely improving… which to me is more important than whether we win or lose,” they said.

To team captain Hope H. ’22, the best part of the season has been witnessing the growth of her teammates and the general supportive attitude of the team.

“Since we’re kind of building from the ground up, it’s been really great to see the team become more comfortable playing with one another,” she said. “[We’ve] learned how we can uplift one other, and I think we’re going to go into the second half of the season with a strong foundation.”

The team's goal, though far in the future, is to make it to CCS and past the first round.

HANNAH S. '22 dribbles upcourt

Boys basketball evolves to accommodate more members

Boys soccer kicks off the season strong

STORY JACK P. PHOTOS PHOTOGRAPHERS

STORY SERENA S.

T

he 19-member varsity team, coached by Sergio Rivera, is excited to be back on the field after a heavily modified season last year with only one game and limited participation. Though the season has just begun, the matches have proven beneficial in providing competitive practice and opportunities for new players to get a feel for the game.

During their first non-league game on Nov. 30 against Eastside College Prep, the team won 3-1 and on Dec 9. beat East Palo Alto Academy 4-3—which Nathan S. ’25 describes as the season highlight.

“It went right down to the wire and it was great to get our [league] first win of the season,” he said. Alex W. ’24 also believes that the season and matches have had a “competitive environment which lacked for the past two years.”

In addition to victories, Gabe A. ’24 shares how he hopes for the team to “mesh more” and build chemistry.

“Our team has a lot of dedication… The addition of the freshmen has been incredible with their talent and the energy they bring,” Alex said.

As a freshman, Nathan also believes the upperclassmen are doing a great job in including and welcoming all the new players.

“The environment has been very supportive with the other players making sure we all feel part of the team,” he said.

The team is excited to continue to play more games with their eyes set on CCS as the finish line.

T

The ball is back on the girls soccer field

T

LENA C. '25 dribbles away from defender during game against East College Prep

he girls soccer team has kicked off the season with regular practices five times a week at the Bay Meadows field and middle school campus and the team spirit blooming in the return to normalcy.

Coached by Daniel Zerbruk, the 20-person team has played three games thus far, winning 10-0 against Eastside College Prep, 7-0 against East Palo Alto, and coming close to beating Aragon High School with 0-1.

Witnessing the growth trajectory of the team from when it was founded in their freshman year, team captains Mira D. and Maya C. ’22 mark the inherent leadership displayed in not only upperclassmen but also less experienced players.

“We see many veteran players transition from being taken care of to the players who take care of new players, even those who have only played for one or two years,” Mira said.

“Everyone has so much leadership on the team.”

As captains, both Mira and Maya aim to reciprocate the welcome and support they received when they first joined the team.

“Of course, taking care of the younger players comes with age. But we also recognize that we were treated really well when we were freshmen, and we want to put that out for the current freshmen,” Maya said. “We want them to really enjoy this experience so that they’ll keep coming back.”

Mira also comments on the team’s technical skills this year, having done more exercises this season than before such as juggling contests, futsal games, and weekly scrimmages with the boys soccer team.

“We may not have the most physical team this year, but we have a way more technical team than we have had any other years, and that definitely shows

TYLER H. '23 poses for a headshot

STORY ISABELLE S. PHOTOS AMY KOSTISHACK

the growth of the team,” Maya said.

Although the season has just recently begun a few weeks ago, an entirely new sense of community has sprung up.

“To me, our team feels very united already,” Mira said, with Maya sharing how small acts as a team such as wearing jerseys on game days show they “really are one team.”

“Everyone, especially the freshmen, just really want to get to know each other because we didn’t get to have that social mechanism during the COVID,” Maya said, describing the team as “more integrated than ever” having done a scavenger hunt at the beginning of the season and currently engaging in a Secret Snowflake exchange.

Having lost in the early rounds of CCS in previous years, the team hopes to pass the first round of CCS this season.

THE NUEVA SCHOOL . 131 E. 28TH AVE., SAN MATEO, CA 94403

he basketball season has started off strong after the varsity team won their opening game 49-47 against Mills High School.

According to varsity coach Barry Treseler, the team has “stacked some tough opponents at the onset” to challenge them, raise the level of their execution under pressure, and unite toward their goals.

Students on the team initiated this culture themselves by choosing a new motto for this year: “Win as One.” The team of 16 students across all four grades are on the court practicing for over two hours a day, five days a week, preparing to play against their biggest rivals, Summit Shasta and Pacific Bay Highschool.

Tyler H. ‘21 shared that their main goal when playing their rivals is to work together.

“The best wins come when our entire team contributes,” Tyler said.

Treseler additionally hopes the team can carry the lessons they learn during the season on and off court.

“Basketball is not only about the sport, but an approach to life albeit under competitive pressure,” Treseler said.

The boys basketball program has been steadily growing in popularity over the last several years. Due to an influx of freshmen on the JV team this year, the coaches recently created the fosh team, which is short for freshmen.

This year, Mike Green returns as the assistant coach of the varsity team. On the JV team, Keiran Bradford will be head-coaching for the first time and will be assisted by Mike Rutherford.

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VOL. 5 ISS. 3

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Becoming a Local Legend of Bay Meadows Park On her first day off season, cross country runner, Kelly P. ’24, decided to rollerblade a marathon STORY ELLIE K. PHOTOS CHRISTINE Z. '24

A

INSTAGRAM: @THENUEVACURRENT

WWW.THENUEVACURRENT.COM

fter a long weekend at the State Championships, most cross country runners spent their first free afternoon resting. Kelly P. ’24 had other plans. That Monday evening, she could be found finishing nearly 50 laps of rollerblading around the Bay Meadows Park Loop. She was easily recognizable by her bright pink pajama pants, and she was brimming with enthusiasm.

The idea came to her during class, right before lunch. Anna F. ’24 on skis, Sasha C. ’24 on a skateboard, and Joshua R. ’24 on a scooter, all accompanied Kelly for the challenge.

Christine Z. ’24 cheered them on from the park’s sidewalk.

“I don't even know how this idea came into my mind. [...] I didn't bring any shorts, or good clothes, or any nutrition,” Kelly said. “It was very impulsive and spontaneous.”

Kelly began roller blading during the quarantine, and often joined Zoom advisory meetings last year while skating back to her house, her phone’s camera bouncing as she skated.

Today, she has improved to an average mile of around 6:41 minutes, though coming to a safe and complete stop remains a challenge.

Thomas R. ’23 ran a marathon during a cross country practice in early November. Watching him and cheering along with other team members was the “main inspiration” for Kelly.

A few weeks later, Kelly and others began their own marathon, “rolling” instead of running a distance of ​​26.2 miles.

“Physically, [the marathon] wasn't that hard, but mentally [it] just got really boring, especially when it got dark,” Kelly said.

Anna, Sasha, Joshua, and Christine all eventually left,

having completed a range of one to 13.1 miles.

To Joshua, the idea was bizarre, even though riding on equipment made the process less physically rigorous.

“It sounds ridiculous when I say it out loud,” he said.

Joshua primarily focused on entertaining the “ridiculous” idea and keeping up with Anna and Kelly, who were flying ahead on him on their rollerskis and rollerblades. In the end, Joshua finished 13.1 miles.

After completing his half marathon on a scooter, Joshua stayed to support Kelly.

Joshua’s cheering combined with the girls’ soccer team kept Kelly going, who later called their energy “rewarding.”

“I feel like once I started, I shouldn't stop,” she said. Kelly even mentioned the insignificance of two hours in “the bigger picture.” The short duration, in addition to minor physical difficulties and immense pride, all made the experience worth it.

Though on many occasions, Kelly wanted to rest.

“Mentally just going in a loop that many times is really tough,” she said.

“It makes you want to quit.”

Two hours, 55 minutes, 26.24 miles, and two packs of Mott’s gummies later, having only fallen once, Kelly finally sat down. It was dark, and her friends had all left. But only one thing was on Kelly's mind, aside from the pride of finishing a marathon: her post on Strava, a mobile app to document runs or other athletic activities.

“The whole time I was thinking about my Strava post and what I was going to title the rollerblade,” she said.

“I [needed] people to recognize that I rollerbladed a marathon because I was actually really proud of it.”

To her satisfaction, according to Strava, she became a “Local Legend on Bay Meadows Park Loop,” after hours of rollerblading in a circle and posting a summary onto her account. Strava acknowledges the many efforts of runners,

ROLL OUT Joshua R., Kelly P., Anna F., and Sasha C. pose for a photo before taking their various methods of transportation to Bay Meadows Park.

highlighting various achievements, especially the longer runs. The marathon was Kelly’s 17th Strava success.

The end of the cross country season liberated Kelly and the other runners to pursue their own after school workouts.

“Sometimes I just felt trapped in it,” Kelly said. “That freedom really made me want [...] to do something really fun and different.”

Kelly demonstrates that exercise is not a chore but can be an opportunity for fun. Though marathons are not the usual choice for an interesting afternoon activity, it still served as a

positive and memorable experience for Kelly and her friends.

“I think everyone should try this at least once. You can run a marathon, walk a marathon, rollerblade a marathon, or scooter a marathon,” Kelly said. “Do anything in the distance of a marathon because it is a big mental challenge, but it is very rewarding.”

During her own experience, on the long, challenging miles, Kelly found herself contemplating: “If I don't do this, I'll just be sitting down. And what's the fun of that?”

Running across the finish line

Cross Country team runs in States after long but rewarding season STORY CLAIRE D. PHOTOS ROBERT LOPEZ

O

n Nov. 27, the cross country team participated in their last meet of the season: the State Meet. With a pre-season starting in late June, the cross country team has been running around the clock for around four months.

The official season started on Aug. 23. Since then, the 40-person team has been meeting six days a week both in-person and virtually to prepare for meets and run as a team.

However, even before the season started, the dedication the seniors showed over the previous years helped them perform at their highest level and inspire the younger students.

Robert Lopez, the team’s head coach, said that the results this year are not simply the results of their efforts this past year but all four years spent here, especially for the seniors.

“The level of development they’ve had from their freshman year to their senior year has been astonishing,” Lopez said. “I think it serves as a great example for my younger grades of what can really happen when you dedicate yourself.”

Their hard work paid off with a great performance throughout the season. The team ended up placing first for the women’s team and second for the men’s team in CCS, paving their way to the States meet and extending their season by two weeks. They trained through Thanksgiving break to prepare for States before finally attending the culminating meet and finishing in

the top 10 out of 24 for both Varsity teams—the men’s team seventh and the women’s team ninth.

“For both of our programs to finish in the top 10, that was really great,” Lopez said. “When you’re making it to the highest level of competition, which is the State Championships, and you’re placing in the top 10 as a team for both genders, I think we’re doing something right.”

Through the entire season, the team has supported each other and finally finished off a long and rewarding season. “​​This was an amazing experience.

Everyone involved is so nice, from the team itself to the coaches to Mallory the nurse,” Ariane Y. ’24 said.

After this final stretch, the cross country members can finally relax after a long but rewarding season.