Print Edition: January 21, 2015

The Pitch

Walter Johnson High School

January 21, 2015

Volume 60, Issue 4

6400 Rock Spring Drive, Bethesda, MD 20814

Photo by Kara Gordon

Joanna Robbins, a kindergarten teacher at Ashburton Elementary, lays out the daily agenda which includes identifying unknown words in a text, analyzing the human lifecycle and describing informational books.

Curriculum 2.0: Elementary school material undergoes changes

By Kara Gordon

In recent years, the primary education curriculum has vastly changed from the kindergarten days of most WJ students. Recently, both preschool and elementary age students have started learning in more comprehensive and involved ways.

MCPS has implemented a new primary education teaching plan called “Curriculum 2.0” which is broadening instruction beyond reading and mathematics.

Lesson plans are now being tailored to each student and their personal learning needs. Many years ago, one lesson was taught to the entire class, but now students are broken up into groups by level to make sure that they are learning at a pace that suits them.

There is more emphasis on critical and creative thinking and academic success skills.

For example, students are encouraged to write with purpose and with intent to inform, persuade or engage the reader. The curriculum explicitly lists ways parents can help their children make the most out of school, encouraging parents to be more involved with their children’s academics. Subjects such as arts, physical education, social studies, and science are now being blended with math, reading and writing in an interdisciplinary way to teach students skills that will enable them to learn and succeed in almost any environment. With the new curriculum, students are prompted to thrive academically and socially.

With these changes, concerned parents and faculty are questioning the rigor of primary education.

However, Charlene Garran, principal of Ashburton Elementary School, is confident that the progressively more challenging academics are benefitting the students.

“There’s a lot more rigor that was added to the

curriculum which promotes a lot more collaboration with the students, a lot more group work and critical thinking skills with the students. The levels of questioning that we are asking of the students are a lot more sophisticated,” said Garran.

WJ English teacher and elementary school parent Janelle Ryan has some issues with the changes.

“While I think it’s important to challenge students in critical thinking, often it’s at the expense of learning the basics,” said Ryan.

Ryan admits to spending afterschool time with her daughter working on basic math skills that she feels the new curriculum overlooks. Her daughter is currently memorizing the multiplication tables and spends extra time at home practicing because memorizing these

Opinion

facts is not part of the school curriculum. Ryan questioned her daughter’s teacher on the problem and was told that the students are expected to already understand the relationships between numbers rather than memorizing the multiplication facts.

“After six and a half hours at school, [my daughter] is exhausted when she gets home. There is no time at school for play and socialization,” said Ryan.

Despite her concerns, Ryan also sees how the curriculum changes could be of value to students in the future. For example, now that students are taught to write with different purposes at a young age, she feels as though they will grow to be better writers in their high school years.

Despite these issues, Garran insists that the new curriculum is focusing on foundational skills and not rushing through the basics. She finds that Curriculum 2.0 teaches students in a way that promotes their academic advancement to an extent that is appropriate for them.

“I find that we are able to provide students a stronger foundation with Curriculum 2.0. We are able to provide many more learning opportunities at different levels. We differentiate learning in order to meet students at their individual instructional level in order to help them make progress,” said Garran.

Senior Hannah Teicher, who is involved with child development and early childhood education, interns with other WJ students in a 5th grade class at Wyngate Elementary School. Teicher said that the curriculum is very different compared to when she was in kindergarten, but she is supportive of the changes. She finds that the new academic plan allows students to develop socially and academically.

“I don’t feel pressure to push students academically, but more to encourage them to challenge themselves.

The new curriculum forces students to work more with their peers than the teacher, which helps them with social skills and independence,” said Teicher.

At Ashburton, students are seated at round tables to further prompt collaboration.

The increasing rigor of primary education includes more sophisticated topics than in the past.

“They talk about things outside of the classroom, for example the feminist movement, not only historically, but also how it’s changing our world today,” said Teicher.

Parents, teachers and principals agree that the new curriculum has increased the rigor of primary education but they differ in their beliefs of whether these changes are beneficial or detrimental to students. As time goes on, educators, students and parents will continue collaborating to ensure that children are receiving the best education possible.

What’s inside: Feature

Students debate whether or not Take a deeper look at the APEX program and community. some classes should be Story on PAGE 15 required.

Story on PAGE 5

A&E

Sports

Find out what’s new in style for The young Varsity Hockey club the new year. aims to overcome veteran Story on PAGES 10-11 competition.

Story on PAGE 20

NEWS

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

Dear Pitch readers,

It is a new year and a new issue of the Pitch, now coming to you as a Columbia Scholastic Press Silver Medalist. As a result of our critique, we have now changed our Editorial section to “Opinion.”

We have been working hard to bring you the best in 2015. This issue, News pays tribute to sophomore Noah Marks and previews Pennies for Patients. Opinion debates the merits of required classes, while A&E displays the offerings of some new restaurants and activities in the area. Feature takes an in depth look at the APEX program, and Sports interviews the wife of Jason Motte about his foundation benefitting cancer.

We wish you all the best in 2015.

Happy reading, Your 2014-2015 Print Editors-in-Chief Selma Stearns, Ben Resnick and Audrey Marek.

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JANUARY 21, 2015

Religious holidays removed from MCPS calendar

By Gideon Epstein

In the last few years, several Montgomery County residents protested, fighting for the recognition of Muslim holidays on the MCPS calendar. MCPS has chosen not to grant a day off for Muslim holidays.

Instead, on Nov. 11, MCPS decided to remove all names of religious holidays from its school calendar.

Now, rather than stating “Passover” or “Easter,” the calendar will simply read, “Spring break.”

According to MCPS, its actions were backed by a 1999 Circuit Court of Appeals decision (Koenick vs.

Felton) which determined that many minor holidays do not qualify for days off. Holidays are considered to be minor if they do not cause a significant portion of the school community to be absent. Closing school for Muslim holidays was not an option based on this criteria.

“While the operational impact of some holidays may not rise to the level of requiring us to close school, we do respect the rights of students and staff to celebrate those holidays,” stated the MCPS website.

Freshman Amina Hossain, who is Muslim, said that whether or not it will be successful in pleasing all religions, MCPS made this change because they wanted the protests to end among Muslims and others.

“MCPS [also] made the decision because they thought that it would be equal for all the religions if they don’t put all the holidays in the calendar,” she said.

This seemingly minor change has led to controversy among many students at WJ, including junior Ari Mendelson. Mendelson said that the change was made in order to console some of the hardship that many Muslim students and teachers experience.

MCPS excuses all legitimate holiday absences for students. Despite this, missing a day of school can be very taxing, especially in high school where make-up work often mounts up to over four hours. According

to Mendelson, this is a main reason why Muslims have advocated for this change.

While Muslims would like to see days off for all major holidays, the main one they are concerned with is Eid-al-Adha, a holiday commemorating Abraham’s willingness and kind spirit. Eid-ul-Adha often takes place near or on the same day as the Jewish day of repentance, Yom Kippur (which MCPS does have the day off for). According to the Washington Post, one of the reasons MCPS’ decision is more meaningful than it sounds is because in future years, when Yom Kippur and Eid-al-Adha fall on the same day, Muslims will start to expect to have Eid-al-Adha off every year.

Despite MCPS’ efforts in establishing religious equality, some people feel that the decision has not helped at all. Mendelson said the decision to remove religious names from the calendar was not a smart move. “[Everyone] in the county needs a day off for their holiday,” said Mendelson. “There’s a good number of Muslims in the county, so there should be a day off [for their holidays].”

The goal of this decision was to have greater religious equality for all religions. Because of the compromise made by MCPS to remove holiday names from the calendar, Mendelson feels that it will lead to less religious equality.

“They have denied Muslims the right to a day off for their holidays so it decreases the equality between religions,” said Mendelson Though MCPS tried to satisfy the requests of protestors, the lack of days off remains an issue for Muslim students and staff.

“MCPS circumvented the action they should have taken and were put into the limelight because they avoided the issue, rather than attack[ing it],” said Mendelson.

Principal intern Afie Mirshah-Nayar takes over the principal job

By Audrey Marek

Principal Intern Afie Mirshah-Nayar is acting as principal of WJ until Feb. 13 while Principal Jennifer Baker observes and assists at Meadow Hall Elementary School. At the same time, Dr. Michael Doran, principal of Wootton, is visiting WJ while his principal intern, Jeff Brown, acts as principal at Wootton.

All of these moves are part of MCPS’s principal intern program.

“It is like student teaching for principals,” said Baker. Prior to the move, Baker began slowly transferring some of her responsibilities to Mirshah-Nayar so that the transition was not jarring for the staff and students, or for Mirshah-Nayar herself. Upon Baker’s return, Mirshah-Nayar will begin slowly returning the responsibilities to Baker, again to prevent an abrupt transition.

The six-week period is an attempt to give the principal intern a realistic experience of what it is like to be principal by removing the sitting principal from the building. It is also a chance for sitting principals to experience other schools’ atmospheres and methods.

“I’ve never worked in an elementary school,” said Baker. “Elementary school teachers are the masters of differentiation because they have [students] at all different levels, so I really want to see what they do for differentiated learning in the classroom and I’m hoping to get some ideas.”

Since Doran arrived, he has been taking over many of Mirshah-Nayar’s administrative responsibilities while she is filling the role of principal, with the exception of her responsibilities relating to the freshman class.

“We get to choose what the visiting principal does and what we do, and the students that I’ve worked with, that I’m very familiar with, I want to continue to work with,” said Mirshah-Nayar.

Each sitting principal makes a list of three schools but will still be an assistant principal if she returns they would like to go to for the six-week period. Doran next year. chose WJ due to its proximity and comfort level.

“I wanted a school that I would feel comfortable in; I live near here, and I’ve always liked WJ,” said Doran. “I think WJ is very similar to Wootton and it’s done some really neat things so I thought, ‘Well, I’d like to be somewhere I could learn a few things too and maybe bring them back to Wootton.’”

Both Baker and Doran have previously had principal interns, both of whom are now principals of middle schools. The visiting principal element of the program is relatively new; the last time Baker left for a six-week period, it was to go to the central office. Baker was once a principal intern herself, while Doran, who came from Fairfax County, never was.

“Dr. [Alex] Goodwin had me as an intern, but it was not a six-week period,” said Baker, “I did a week.”

Being a principal intern does not mean that the participant is guaranteed to be a principal the following year; it is more a preparation for an eventuality. It also involves other components than just shadowing the principal.

Each intern has a team of professionals advising them consisting of a principal, associate superintendent for high schools Dr. Christopher Garran and another MCPS official. Mirshah-Nayar’s team is comprised of Baker, Garran and Larry Bowers, chief financial officer for MCPS. “One day a month I go to a day-long training,” said Mirshah-Nayar. “I also have a team of professionals that meet with me once every six weeks, and I have these things called professional development team meetings where I share the work that I’ve been doing and I get Photo by Audrey Marek Jenifer Baker, left, will be visiting Meadow Hall Elementary feedback.”

Mirshah-Nayar is a principal intern for only one year, while Dr. Michael Doran, center, visits WJ and Afie MirshahNayar, right, acts as principal.

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JANUARY 21, 2015

NEWS

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In Memoriam of Noah Marks: 1999-2015 All photos by Audrey Marek

Photo Courtesy of Facebook.com/WeLoveYouNoah

On Jan. 5, many students wore bow ties in memory of sophomore Noah Marks, who passed away on Jan. 1, 2015.

Marks was involved in WJ S*T*A*G*E, Forensics, Advanced Choir, the GSA and The Daily Lineup as well as other activities. The community has deeply felt his loss.

Marks’ funeral service was held on Jan. 4, at Temple Beth Ami. Many of his friends have had informal gatherings in his memory. There is also a collection of posters, messages, flowers and other objects that mourners have left on Fleming Park pedestrian bridge in memory of Marks. Some students wore orange on Jan. 7 in his honor.

Marks was the county forensics champion in drama as a freshman, and was cast as Reverend Parris in WJ S*T*A*G*E’s “The Crucible” as a sophomore.

Many of Marks’ peers have taken to social media to recount their experiences with Marks and express their sorrow over the loss. Some have talked about Marks’ personality and unique qualities. A Facebook page has been created titled “We Love You Noah,” as a place to remember Marks and share photos of him with his family. In the days after his death, many of Marks’ friends changed their profile pictures to include Marks in memoriam.

Teachers and administrators have also been affected by Marks’ death. Principal Jennifer Baker and other members of the faculty attended his memorial service, and some teachers wore bow ties in his honor on Jan. 5. Baker also sent out a letter informing the WJ community about the loss and offering links online to aid students and their families, as well as in school counseling.

Marks’ parents have established a memorial fund, which benefits the arts program at WJ. They also encourage donations to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

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NEWS

JANUARY 21, 2015

P4PP: Pennies for Patients Preview

By Kara Gordon & Selma Stearns

February

Graphic by Selma Stearns

Another popular event, Mr. and Mrs. WJ, a pagent-type competition for seniors to participate in, will take place on March 6. Admission is $5 for any individual attending.

Every year during the month of February, the community gets heavily involved in donating to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s School andYouth Program, Pennies for Patients, and this year is no exception. The Leadership class is introducing a couple of new creative fundraising events to revamp the month of donation. Along with the new Pennies for Patients events this year, previously featured events made popular among students are being brought back.

Game Night Another new event being put on by

Leadership this year is “Game Night.”

The event consists of opportunities for students to play a variety of different games, such as poker and various board games, led by different Leadership students.

Students will purchase tickets at the door, which can be redeemed to play any of the seven to 10 games. Refreshments will be available to purchase, and there will also be a drawing for different prizes.

Senior Danya Firestone is a member of the group in charge of coordinating the event, along with seniors Josh Jacobs, Jazmin Morinigo and Evan Boone-Lewis. She anticipates that Game Night, which will take place on Feb. 17, will be an event that appeals to many diverse people.

“We’re really excited about it because it’s a new event and we think it will bring a lot of different kinds of people,” she said.

The student commons will be decorated with a Las Vegas theme including elevator music, and students who are leading games will be dressed formally.

Firestone emphasizes the versatility of the event and the power students have to do what they want.

“Each student can dictate what their night will be like,” said Firestone. “If they want to stay and play poker the entire time, that’s their decision or if they want to try out each of the games they can do that too.”

Thrift

The newest event in the P4P lineup is “WJ Thrift.” Senior Isa Herold is part of the team that is organizing it. The idea behind the event is to create a highquality environment similar to that of a consignment store, where students donate clothes throughout January and February and then the clothes are sold for reduced prices.

“A theme we’re trying to promote is ‘clean out your closet for the new year,’” said Herold.

Also, local stores will donate clothing to be sold along with students’ old clothing on Feb. 23 at lunch and after school. Herold hopes that the event

will attract parents and members of the community, along with WJ students.

The clothing that isn’t sold at “WJ Thrift” will be donated to an organization called Mi Casa, which works towards providing resources and clothing to homeless youth.

Herold is excited for the new event because she knows there is a large demand for low-priced, high-quality clothing.

“I know I really like shopping at consignment stores,” she said. “We’re going to emphasize that we need good quality clothing and [the clothes] need to be clean when we receive them.”

Glo & Pong

The most popular events in past years have been “WJ Glo,” a dance to promote awareness about leukemia and lymphoma, and “Pong for Pennies for Patients” (PPP) according Rainer Kulenkampff, who teaches the Leadership class. “‘WJ Glo’ is a more casual dance that features a couple students and a local DJ who all play electronic music,” said Kulenkampff.

Students dress in neon clothing and accessorize with glow sticks. A DJ booth is set up at the front of the gym and colorful lights flash around the room. Tickets cost $20 and have sold out quickly in past years. Another event Kulenkampff finds equally successful is Pennies for

Patients Pong. This is a game that consists of cups filled with water on PingPong tables and teams of two face each other trying to get Ping-Pong balls into the cups. Part of the fun of the event is the creative team costumes and the friendly competition.

“It is a great opportunity to support a good cause, enjoy the company of your friends and partake in some WJ traditions,” said Kulenkampff. “These are also great opportunities to post Instagram and Twitter pictures to share what you are doing and create awareness for a very important cause at the same time.”

Carnival

The carnival is a P4P event that appeals to not only high school students, but also younger children. Many fun events such as darts and toilet toss, a game where rolls of toilet paper are shot by the player into an open toilet, are run by student volunteers in all grades. The event will take place Feb. 7 from 12-4 p.m. with a backup date on Feb. 14. There is a $5 entry fee with an additional fee for tickets starting at $5.

Senior Tara Tanasovich is a member of the Leadership group that is in charge of the event. She is excited for the carnival and looks forward to the student body getting involved.

“Students should be excited for the event because it’s a great community event. All the feeder schools are invited as well as teachers and faculty.

There will be great carnival games, cotton candy and moon bounces,” said Tanasovich.

Parents, students, teachers and members of the community can all gather to play games, win prizes, and ultimately support a worthwhile cause. This event also gives feeder students a chance to become familiar with WJ and get to know their future school.

Last year, there was a snow day on the planned date for the carnival.

“This year we are more prepared with a backup date, said Tanasovich. “We are reaching out to all the schools in the community and making sure everyone is excited.”

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JANUARY 21, 2015

OPINION

THE STAFF

Do schedules restrict or benefit the student body?

Graphic by Steven Judge

Required courses are beneficial for students

By IrisVukmanovic

There is a long list of requirements a high school student has to meet in order to graduate, including everything from SSL hours to extra-curricular activities and clubs. The most important and time consuming requirements are the ones involving course selection.

As of now, MCPS requires that every student have four credits of English and mathematics, three science and social studies credits, one fine art credit, one technology credit, one physical education credit and half a credit of health.

Required courses limit the number of elective courses that students can take, but there is a benefit to them.

For one thing, there are many students out there who do not know what they want do when they grow up. One way to combat this indecision is to be exposed to as many different options as possible. The more courses students try, the more likely they are to find something new they really like. Whatever the

new interest is, it does not have to be for a career; it could just be a new hobby.

For example, a student may be completely uninterested in science, and if given the option, would avoid taking it.

However, because students must have three science credits due to course requirements, this student is forced to take a class that while he initially was against, he may end up enjoying. This interest could lead to a variety of new activities, such as clubs and projects, that the student participates in with genuine interest. If he hadn’t been forced to take the science class, he may never have discovered the new opportunities and topics he now enjoys.

One could argue that taking a class not originally desired can make school more of a chore than it needs to be.

However, this is practice for the real world. When a person gets a job, it’s almost guaranteed that they will not like every aspect of it. So the sooner people get used to it, the better they will feel

about it throughout their lives.

Also, having basic knowledge in a variety of skills and topics can be very useful for connecting with and speaking to others. This widens a student’s network considerably because they are relating to people they otherwise would not have known.

One little piece of knowledge can change and improve how someone lives. For example, taking a digital art class and learning how to use Photoshop can be applied not only for fun artistic purposes, but skills such as advertising a new product you made.

Required courses may not seem like a student’s cup of tea, but I think one can gain a lot from them. It’s much better to be well-rounded and slightly knowledgeable in a lot of topics than to be really great at one thing and not know about anything else.

Students are restricted by scheduling and credits

By Emma Higgins

Beginning in freshman year, students feel the pressure to take certain classes and subjects in order to graduate or be accepted to certain universities. This pressure comes from many sources including teachers, counselors, parents and colleges.

Although many students do not know what they want to study, the expectations put on them can limit their ability to explore their interests. Likewise, students who know what they intend to study after high school are forced to take miscellaneous classes that do not pertain to the field they plan to pursue.

In both cases, students are expected to take classes and subjects that may be an unnecessary burden on them and prevent them from putting their energy and focus into the courses that matter to them and their plans for higher education.

A major source of stress is the requirement that students acquire a certain number of credits for a variety of

subjects. Often, this restricts students and limits their freedom in scheduling.

When students must fulfill art, physical education, health and technology requirements they have to clear space in their schedules in each of their four years in high school, causing them to lose precious time in which they might prefer taking a class in which they are interested.

Academic requirements can have the same effect. If a student has determined that math is a22% subject he or she does not wish to study further, he or she should not be expected to take many more years of the subject and even continue 54% into AP mathematics courses. Schools could easily create an exam on basic, 24% practical math that would allow students to place out.

For many students, high school is a time of change and discovery in which they face new experiences and learn more about the world ahead of them.

Freshmen learn a lot about themselves as well as their peers, and a majority of

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EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Audrey Marek, Print Co-Editor Ben Resnick, Print Co-Editor Selma Stearns, Print Co-Editor Amanda Gross, Online Co-Editor Marissa Nardella, Online Co-Editor ADVISOR Sylvie Ellen, Print and Online NEWS Izzy Salant, Print Editor Gideon Epstein, Print Assistant Editor Anna Hovey, Online Co-Editor Kelly Chartrand, Online Co-Editor OPINION Nick Williamson, Print Editor Charlie Kanter, Print Assistant Editor Zoey Becker, Online Editor FEATURE Anja Shahu, Print Editor Kevin Lu, Print Assistant Editor Leila Siegel, Online Editor ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT Annika La Vina, Print Editor Mary Kate Greening, Print Asisstant Editor Hitomi Mochizuki, Online Co-Editor SPORTS Jake Weinischke, Print Editor Patrick Jorling, Print Assistant Editor Kevin O’Leary, Online Editor Grant Weaver, Online Assistant Editor COPY EDITORS Suejean Han Kathryn Van Artsdalen Hannah Sachs Daniel Flesch ART Steven Judge PHOTOGRAPHY Sarah Schecker PUBLIC RELATIONS Shashank Narayan, Social Media Consultant, Business Manager Gideon Epstein, Assistant Business Manager STAFF WRITERS

Evan Candelmo Daniel Leonard Emma Higgins Iris Vukmanovic Allie Miljanic Kara Gordon Hannah Sachs Kathryn Van Artsdalen Daniel Flesch Suejean Han Meg Tamara The Pitch is published eight times a year by the students of Walter Johnson High School, population of 2,234 and located at 6400 Rock Spring Drive,Bethesda, Md. 20814. Advertising and subscription rates are available by calling 301-8037184. Opinions represent those of The Pitch staff and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the staff, faculty or student body. We welcome letters, articles, photographs and artwork, to be submitted to room 193 or e-mailed to thepitch@walterjohnson.com. The Pitch is an award-winning paper that works towards providing the student body with accurate, as well as credible, information.

this discovery is freely executed.However, when it comes to the process of finding or pursuing a passion, many students will be restricted as much as they were in elementary school. Supposed core subjects such as math, science, history, and language are stressed above others while some courses are kicked to the curb.

Everyone has at least one friend who has complained about required courses.

AWARDS One may dislike a specific class, but Columbia Scholastic the more common complaint is that Press Association the class is preventing them from takMarylander Award ing another that is more interesting and Newspaper Division C appropriate for them. This issue could 2011 American Scholastic be easily avoided if the class constraints Press Association and requirements were more lenient, Columbia Scholastic First Place allowing students to find where they fit 2011 Press Association best.Those who wished to take a variety Gold Medalist of subjects would be able to do so and 2009, 2013 Columbia Scholastic those who wished to specialize would Press Association also have the freedom to focus in and Silver Medalist only take courses of a certain genre.

Columbia Scholastic 2014

Bronze Medalist 2011

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OPINION

JANUARY 21, 2015

We’ve got spirit! No, we don’t!

By Suejean Han

really lacks spirit.

Back in elementary and middle school, spirit days SGA and Student Leadership have taken initiative were the highlight of our school years. Everyone on this issue and tried various tactics to get students would enthusiastically join pumped for upcomin, dressing up in ridiculous ing events or spirit outfits to show pride in their days. For example, school. However, as students senior and SGA transition from their elemenpresident Justin New tary school years to middle started @wjsga15 school years, and middle on Instagram. With school years to high school over 800 followers, years, the level of spirit and this account is able passion exponentially drops. to reach out to a big Sure, there is a pretty good portion of WJ’s popportion of students who still ulation. Facebook, participate in spirit days, but too, is a powerful let’s be honest, the percenttool in this effort. age of kids who actually do Leadership and SGA spirit versus kids who don’t utilize the MadCows is low.

2014-2015 Facebook Why is this? Well, to be page to the same adblunt, spirit days are wildly vantage. inconvenient. If a student But simply informneeds to be somewhere afing students when ter school and does not want and what spirit days to be seen in such eccentric are coming up is not clothing, he or she is not goenough, and this is ing to want to wear the outproven by the minifit to begin with. Additionmal change in the ally, some people just want amount of spirit that to avoid the discomfort of has been seen. There tying their hair in all differneeds to be a way to ent directions or wearing create an incentive numerous beaded green and to convince students white necklaces. For whatthat doing spirit is ever reason, our school eswell worth the effort.

Photo courtesy of Senior Audrey McMaster pecially lacks the motivation Students (left to right: Seniors Danielle Orsak, Audrey McMasAt WJ, there is a to engage in such activities. ter, Sammi Ehrlich, Maddie Collier) participate in Tacky Tour- spectrum of “spiritAs much as we would like to ist Day and display their school spirit. ness”. We have those say that we are all super spirwho go all out and ited, and while there are definitely some very spirited put in their 200%, and then we have those who don’t wildcats out there, as a whole, the WJ student body participate at all. Currently, this spectrum is extreme-

Managing stress as a high school student

By NickWilliamson High school students face many sources of stress and anxiety throughout the day. Tests, grades, college applications and regular school work are all important causes of stress, and having a little anxiety just shows that we care. However, some students become overwhelmed by all of these different factors and have difficulty remaining calm while they deal with them.

When this happens, the situation only gets worse because not only do they still have a ton of work to do, but now they are freaking out and having trouble focusing on what they need to get done.

While the phrase, “stop stressing out so much” may not exactly be the advice you want to hear when it is 11 p.m. and you currently need to finish a project you haven’t started, and then study for two tests the next day, it is important to hear. The first step to managing your stress and the work you need to get done is to take a second to relax and clear your head. One grade is not going to make or break your entire academic career, and driving yourself crazy over work you have to do is far worse for you than not doing particularly

well on an assignment.

My goal has always been to be complacent enough about my work that I stay relaxed and maintain a level head, yet care enough about doing a good job to still be efficient and be able to focus on achieving my goals.

By trying to stick to that, I manage to stay pretty relaxed about what goes on at school or at home and feel sure of myself and content with my progress on the work that needs to be done.

That said, I am guilty of occasionally cramming for a test, or trying to get a project done last minute because I kept putting it off. When students get in these situations, it is easy to start panicking over the amount of work they need to do in one night, especially if they do not understand what is going on. The important thing to remember is that it is okay to ask for help in these situations- teachers may not be enthusiastic to help you on an assignment you’ve been putting off for the past week, but there are also parents, friends and classmates who will be more than willing to assist you.

Stress can motivate students to get their work done but staying relaxed about what you have to do will improve how you feel and the work you do, and students should have a goal of trying to find a balance that works for them.

ly polarized; there is barely any in-between.

Although I’m totally guilty of not participating in spirit days due to pure laziness and not wanting to look entirely tacky, our school as a whole should start considering engaging themselves in spirit days more. Not only is doing spirit fun, but also, in a way, it unites us.

Imagine being able to see our hallways lined with people in pajamas or costumes. Wouldn’t you get a sense of togetherness? We all look dumb together, but we all are showing school pride, together.

Moving on doesn’t mean never coming back

By Ben Resnick

I knew I was ready to start moving on at about noon on Sunday, Nov. 9, the day my family got a new dog.

Next fall I will be going off to college. Although I am preparing for my future and thinking about what I will do in the next four years of my life, up until the dog I wasn’t sure if I was really ready to go and move on. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to live on my own.

But when the door of my family’s van opened up and a dog leaped out with the rest of my family, I knew I could begin my journey into adulthood.

Some people joke about their parents getting pets to replace them when they leave for college, but this was not a joke. My parents came home with a four year old dog named Benji.Yes, its name is Benji. My name is Ben, and they got a dog named Benji.

Originally, I said no. I wanted veto power; I did not want Benji Resnick living under the same roof as Ben Resnick. I was fine with my family getting a new dog, but not one with my name.

I continued to think about my family’s newest member. I realized I truly am ready to move on; I have learned as many lessons from my parents as I am going to and I have relied on them for long enough. And although I will not be living with my family anymore, they will still be caring for Benji Resnick, even though all we share is a name.

I realized that even though I will be leaving, I will not be forgotten at home as I go off to college, I will always be a part of my family.

Moving on to the next chapter of life is a frightening and daunting task for anyone. For me, Benji is a symbol that even though I will be leaving and moving on there will still be people at home and around the community who care about me.

So remember that even as you move on and things change, it does not mean that you have to leave the past entirely behind. And even if your parents get a dog that steals your name, it does not mean they’re forgetting you either.

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Pitch

JANUARY 21, 2015

Now that the second semester has begun, The Pitch asked WJ students, “What is your new semester resolution?”

Hailey Chaikin

OPINION

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The Pitch polled 50 WJ students at random on the following questions: What do you think about removing religious holidays from the calendar?

Freshman

I do not like the change .......................................34%

“To get good grades and study more.”

Indifferent..................................................................30% I support the change.............................................20%

Photo by Charlie Kanter

Chris Carlyle

It doesn’t matter, we still get the days off......16%

Sophomore

“To get a better grade in chemistry.”

Do you think high school develops enough knowledge useful in the workforce?

Photo by Charlie Kanter

Rachel Nevett Junior

Yes..................................................................................36% No...................................................................................36%

“To get my driver’s license.”

I don’t know................................................................28%

Are schedules too restrictive?

Photo by Charlie Kanter

Yes, they are too restrictive...................................48%

Jimmy Wyderko

Senior

No, they create well-rounded students............32% Indifferent...................................................................20%

“To not cry myself to sleep every night.”

Photo by Nick Williamson

The Pitch Opinion

Programming is a growing field and an increasingly useful skill in today’s technology-oriented world. Many jobs now involve programming, including engineering, transit coordinating, jobs involving archiving or organizing information and many others. Programming has also become a large part of engineering education. It seems then that this skill should count as a technology credit in Montgomery County high schools so that students can include it

in their schedules if they wish to enroll.

While Foundations of Technology and other tech classes like Introduction to Engineering Design are useful, it seems that they are not objectively more useful than Programming. Because Programming is offered anyway, it would not cost the school any more to reestablish it as a credit. Students can quickly run out of room for electives with core courses and other requirements like art and PE. This means that a practi-

cal class like Programming, with realworld applications, does not fulfill any requirements. Making Programming a tech credit, as it used to be about six or seven years ago, would encourage students to take the class and also help movements like Girls Who Code gain traction with high school students.

Especially since the initial reason for its removal is unclear, programming should be reinstated as a tech credit.

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OPINION

JANUARY 21, 2015

World conflicts generate anti-Semitism and other forms of discrimination

Teen driving: A blessing and a curse

By Selma Stearns

In the United States, one can drive with adult supervision between the ages of 14-16, depending on the state. This is a freedom that many American teens take for granted. Most places in the world require drivers to be at least 18 years old, which may be because in places like Europe, there is more emphasis on public transportation and biking, but regardless, younger driving ages are a blessing and a curse.

The pros for being able to drive myself around are abundant. I no longer have to call my parents when I need them to pick me up from endless rehearsals or press days for The Pitch, let alone all the times I made them drive me back and forth from my friends’ houses. Now I leave by myself in the morning and return sometime after school by my own free will, and on weekend nights, as long as I’m home by 12 a.m. (the legal curfew for provisional license holders), they have no need to worry about me at all. Also, sometimes I bring my brother to and from his social and schoolrelated obligations which is a great help to my parents.

However, allowing teens to drive so young can have negative consequences; everyone knows that many teenagers are bad drivers. All you have to do is walk out into the student parking lot to see crooked cars parked perilously close together by teens who rushed out of the parking lot in order to make the first bell, and I am equally guilty. I got my permit over a year ago, and yet I have never driven on the highway and never honked my horn, so I am certainly more inexperienced than many of my peers. No matter how trusting I am of the individual, I feel semi-anxious every time I am in the car with a teenage driver and I don’t really know why.

Because our brains are not fully developed, decision-making skills may be impaired, and teenagers are notorious for making poor choices, especially related to vehicles. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the leading cause of death for teenagers is car crashes, and around 25 percent of those crashes involve a drunk driver under 21. Recently, a teen from the local community was killed in a dangerous car crash at 2 a.m. by a woman who was believed to be driving drunk. This incident was a severe blow to the community, and brought about a lot of discussion about driving while under the influence.

However, that is not to say all teenagers abuse their driving privileges in a dangerous way; according to a 2012 survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 10 percent of teens in high school drink and drive.

In the U.S., we take it for granted that teenagers have the freedom to drive before they can legally drink. In Switzerland, however, it is an opposite situation. The legal drinking age is 16 for beer and wine and 18 for spirits, while the driving age is 18. General European culture focuses more on public transportation. Also, because alcohol is introduced in the home at a much younger age, it is not seen as taboo for teenagers to drink. All of these factors come together to reduce the risk of teen drunk driving. Don’t get me wrong, I am very thankful that I have the freedom to be in charge of my own location and transportation. However, it’s always important to remember that we need to be appreciative of the rights and responsibilities available to us as American teenagers.

Illustration by Steven Judge

Assumptions regarding different ethnicities and religions are harmful to society and the people they effect. For instance, Muslims suffer from a misguided association with terrorism, and the Israel-Gaza conflict has created an increase in antiSemitism towards Jews.

By Charlie Kanter

In November, on the campus of University of California, Berkeley, a man waved the flag of the terrorist organization ISIS, and then waved an Israeli flag. The video of the event was released on Nov. 19, and the students’ reactions were drastically different. When he waved the ISIS flag, he received comments such as “good luck.” When he waved the Israeli flag, people passing by said that “all of Israel are killers” and “[Hamas] is the greatest” refusing to acknowledge terrorist organizations for what they are. This video shows an obvious misconception about the Israel-Gaza conflict. The fact that people fail to recognize terrorist groups as harmful and ruthless demonstrates ignorance. There seems to be a rise in anti-Semitism all over the world as a result of the Israel-Gaza conflict, as well as lasting forms of discrimination because of past events in history.

Currently, a large source of anti-Semitism stems from the recent Israel-Gaza conflict. There have been many Israeli deaths and many Palestinian deaths over the past twenty years. The conflict is a deep, complicated issue that is too long and intricate for the attention spans of the majority of people who read about it in the news and online. Because of this, people will make assessments of the conflict based on little information. Many base their views and opinions on number of deaths, and when they see there are more deaths of Palestinians than Israelis, they assume the Israeli government is mostly at fault. There is a misconception that Israel is the bad guy because of the basic numbers and statistics. Part of the issue lies in the fact that the majority of Israel’s population is Jewish. Israel is known as

the “Jewish State,” which tends to cause many people to associate all Jews with Israel and its government’s actions. People evaluate Jews based on undeveloped evaluations of the Israeli government. Many read in the news that Israel shot rockets into Gaza, take note of the Palestinian casualties, and think “the Jews just murdered some people.” In France as well as in other countries, there have recently been anti-Semitic riots and unrest. Our society’s short attention span contributes to anti-Semitism – people don’t know enough to make correct evaluations of people.

Events in history all over the world tend to cause a lasting effect on our actions. Anti-Semitism is not the only form of discrimination that arises as a result of a conflict. A prime example is Sept. 11, 2001, when two planes were hijacked by Muslim terrorists and crashed into the World Trade Center in NewYork City.

Because of the tragedy that happened over a decade ago, people still tend to think “terrorist” when they see someone who appears to be Muslim. Many terrorist groups are Muslim, and so people therefore associate all Muslims with terrorists, especially here in America.

The increase in airport security as a result of Sept. 11 is justified and much needed, but the discrimination is not. Stories of innocent Muslims getting “randomly” checked at airports still pop up online every once in a while. In addition, Muslims generally endure discriminatory comments regarding terrorism.

The source of discrimination tends to come from a lack of knowledge and a generalization about all members of the group. People have to learn more about issues to avoid developing shallow points of view, and stop discriminating against others because of their hasty assumptions.

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JANUARY 21, 2015

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

9

Student fandoms bring fiction to life

By Mary Kate Greening

Modern-day fandoms date back to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.”

In 1887, fans of the stories would re-write or change the plots by putting the protagonist in different situations, known as fanfiction. They would even mourn

DOCTOR WHO Iconic British show “Doctor Who” is known for being the longest-running science fiction television show, and just had its 50th anniversary in Nov. 2013. This show has a large fan base both in the United Kingdom and America. Senior Emily Burk is the president of WJ’s “Doctor Who” club, a group that meets weekly to watch and discuss episodes of the show.

“We’re a very close knit fandom,” said Burk. “If you know someone who likes ‘Doctor Who,’ you are immediately friends with them.”

In terms of extremely involved fans, Burk said they’re mostly harmless, and they are enjoying the same content as everyone else, just on another level.

“They’re fine as long as they don’t do anything creepy, like sexualizing the show or writing disturbing fanfiction,” said Burk.

in public when Holmes’ character “died.” The term “fandom” describes a subculture of fans characterized by common interest in some specific kind of media, either books, television shows, movies or bands. These fans often gather and debate theories, create costumes, called cosplay, that mimic their favorite characters,

and discuss other aspects of the fandom’s content, like plot twists or character deaths. Today, there is a fandom for just about everything, and fans can share their work and discuss their fandoms on social networking sites, like Tumblr, DeviantArt and Pinterest.

Harry Potter is a seven book series by British author J.K. Rowling, and was made into a set of eight movies by Warner Brothers. Since the 1998 release of the first book in America, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” the famous wizard has gained an impressive fanbase, filled with inside jokes and even its own music genre based on the content, Wizard Rock. WJ’s Harry Potter Club participates in the Harry Potter Alliance, a worldwide group of Harry Potter fans who are activists for equality, human rights and literacy. “...the fandom is huge, since Harry Potter is a worldwide phenomenon,” said Harry Potter club president, sophomore Julia Sandberg. “I feel that the fandom is fairly close-knit and most people are aware of the fandom’s inside jokes.”

A N I M E

H P A O R T R T E Y R

Anime is a type of Japanese-style cartoon, derived from the abbreviated pronunciation of “animation” in Japanese. It has a large following in the U.S., and is produced with either English subtitles or English dubbed in for Japanese, where the original animation is kept but English actors voice over the characters’ dialogue.

“Fans enjoy the variety of the genre,” said WJ Anime club president, junior Bridget Huminski.

Subgenres include shounen, marketed to young or teenage boys, shoujo, marketed to teenage girls, seinen, marketed to older viewers and includes a darker, more psychological mature theme, and slice-oflife, which documents the everyday life of the main character.

According to Huminski, anime fans show their love by writing fanfiction, drawing fanart and cosplaying their favorite characters.

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE

There are 11 differences between the first and second picture. Answers can be found online at wjpitch.com.

Good luck!

Photos by Annika La Vina

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

JANUARY 21, 2015

2015 is finally here; try somet

By Annika LaVina and

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try

As a student lunch staple, Chipotle has plenty of locations accessible to students, including an upcoming branch in Montgomery Mall. The chain features delicious combinations, ranging from burritos and bowls to quesadillas and tacos. Its close proximity and student- friendly prices provide a fulfilling lunch for students who have limited time to get back to school. With New Year’s, students might want a change from the norm and might crave something different from the typical burrito.

Cava

Like Chipotle, Cava offers a pick-andchoose style ordering in which customers can select from a variety of options, such as a bowl, salad or pita sandwich. The Greekinspired chain presents unique choices, such as falafel, tzatziki sauce and sriracha yogurt.

Cava, a refreshing alternative to Chipotle, has locations in Bethesda and Rockville, and also has a new site in Montgomery Mall.

s! thi

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Juice Bar

Puree

All photos by Annika La Vina

Located in downtown Bethesda, health juice bar Puree offers customers an alternative to eating vegetables by turning them into juice instead. They offer all-vegan, allorganic ingredients in a variety of juices, shakes and snacks.

Located at Pike and Rose, iPic Theaters is a new, modern twist to the classic movie experience. Loaded with reclining chairs, a decadent menu and a personal waiter, iPic theaters combine luxury and cinema with a modern flair.

Prices range from $10-$14 depending on the movie and seating, but iPic never disappoints for a more lavish movie event.

For a cheap and entertaining night out, students flock to Regal Cinemas to catch a movie or hang out with friends. Late night showings prove perfect for a Friday night out and discounted matinees make a Saturday morning relaxing and fun. Locations in both Bethesda and Rockville make the theaters accessible to students all around the area.Ticket prices range from $10- $13.

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iPic

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JANUARY 21, 2015

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

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thing different in the new year Mary Kate Greening

Like

Gourmet pizza has gone local! Pick-andchoose style pizza joints are one of America’s rising food trends, and &pizza is sure to live up to expectations. Located in downtown Bethesda and Pike and Rose, a new establishment along Rockville Pike, &Pizza lets students create their own personal pizza for $7-$9. Custom pizzas are made quickly, and signature meals, such as the Kiss and Fire, which is topped with ricotta cheese, meatballs, and strawberry balsamic, are ready to fire upon request.

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With multiple locations around the area, Papa Johns’ is sure to please with its fast delivery and savory pizza. Cheap prices enable students to enjoy an appetizing meal on a Saturday night while staying on budget.

COMET

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Ping-Pong

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If you’re looking for a unique pizza experience, Comet Ping Pong, located just outside of Friendship Heights, combines table tennis and gourmet food for a fun night out. Grab friends and head over to the hip establishment that headlines interesting pizza combinations such as The Smoky, which consists of smoky Mushrooms, smoky Mozzarella, smoky Bacon, melted onions and garlic. Prices range from $10-$20 per personal pizza.

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Thrifting has become a trending phenomenon among teens around the nation, and our area is lucky to house our share of large, high-quality thrift stores, such as Montgomery County Thrift Shop.

Deal-hunting has become a favorite past time, which thrift stores definitely fulfill.

Uptown Cheapskate combines designer labels with thrift store prices. Found just off Rockville Pike, students can find their favorite brands and trends for less than half the original price. If you have gently used clothing that you are willing to part with, Uptown Cheapskate will buy it from you. Their clean, modern store appearance and their high street clothing makes this a perfect place to buy clothes that are new to you.

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

JANUARY 21, 2015

Fashion Club presents winter layering looks

By Meg Tamara In the middle of winter, staying warm is necessary.

Layering is a must for the season. However, it is easy to overdo layers. The members of the Fashion Club will show you how to layer effectively to create clean, warm outfits without looking bulky. Before you start layering, make sure to stock up on winter essentials, including coats, scarves and sweaters.

Outfits modeled by Owen Brinker, Ferddy Gedeon and Lin Yuan.

Photo by Annika La Vina

Fashion Club Meets Every Wednesday at lunch in Room G22 Photo courtesy of Leena Loo

If you don’t want to sacrifice your short dresses for the cold season, wearing tights under your dress will keep your legs warm. Pair your tights with socks and thick boots to keep your feet from freezing, and throw a cardigan over a dress to keep your look sophisticated. If you’re going outside, put on a black wool jacket over your outfit to stay warm.

Vest

Tights

Photo by Meg Tamara

For a classic look, wear an oxford shirt under a thick knit sweater for warmth. Throw on a navy blue or black wool coat with a notched collar to keep your look elegant. Investing in a high quality winter coat in a versatile color like black or navy blue will make any outfit stylish. Top it off with a checked scarf and messy hair for an element of sophistication.

Wool coat Black & white Black and white are easily one of the most flattering color combinations. Pair a plaid black and white oversized coat over a bright top (not pictured) to add interest and a pop of color to your look. A pair of oxford shoes will keep your look stylish and androgynous if you prefer a less feminine look.

Photo by Meg Tamara

Photo courtesy of Leena Loo

During the winter, down vests are your best bet for staying warm on temperate winter days. Wear them over denim jackets or jackets with light material to avoid looking bulky. Pair your jacket with a flannel shirt, dark pants and casual sneakers for a cool, athletic look.

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JANUARY 21, 2015

FEATURE

Operation Understanding DC encourages mutual respect

By Anja Shahu

“For someone who doesn’t have that privilege, it’s a small thing but it’s something that demonstrates the The rustling of papers echoed through the room. daily prevalence of privilege and how someone who Rigid bodies crammed next to each other let out does have that privilege may not recognize it,” said short breaths. With eyes shut, they waited.

OUDC member Maxwell Kanefield.

A single voice broke the silence.

At the end of the privilege an OUDC member “Take a step forward if you can find a Band-Aid in holds a dollar bill at the frontwalk, of the room to represent your own skin color.” monetary opportunites.

The students to the The response was immediate – a majority moved up, front tend to be the ones with the most closer privilege and a handful moved back, one hesitated before making have a greater opportunity of taking the dollar than the decision. Silence fell across the room once again. the people in the back.

On Dec. 19, Operation Understanding DC (OUDC) “The people who are in the front are more likely came to Rachel Cederbaum’s AP English Language to get dollar, but the people in the back do have a and Composition classes to hold a workshop that in- shot atthe getting the dollar if they try hard enough,” said corporated the “privilege walk”.

OUDC member Ari Brinson.

In this exercise, which OUDC holds at many Recently, incidents like the Ferguson protests and schools, students line up and take steps either forward the death of Eric Garner have contributed to rising or backward depending on whether privilege-related racial tensions. As people protest on the streets, nonstatements apply to them. The statements vary widely profit organizations like OUDC increase awareness of from general ones equating privilege with being white the reasons behind these protests, explaining privito more specific ones that illustrate the daily struggle lege that comes with being white, through the activities of the less fortunate. However, all the statements work like the privilege walk. together to trigger dialogue about privilege. QuesIn 1993, social entrepreneur Karen Kalish founded tions, like the Band-Aid one, help to delve deeper into OUDC, a program that works to eradicate discriminatopics such as assumed privilege. tion.

Every year, OUDC accepts a new class of 24 student members – 12 black and 12 Jewish – to give them the opportunity of acquiring leadership experience. These two groups are the only participants allowed because together they are able to look at their paralleled histories of slavery and the Holocaust.

Historically, the groups have had previous contact and support; many Jewish people were in support of the American Civil Rights Movement. Jews were an integral Photo by Anja Shahu Students in Rachel Cederbaum’s AP Language class practice an exercise on understand- part of the success of the Freeing privilege that might otherwise not be recognized. dom Rides, a series of bus trips in

13

1961 to protest segregation against black Americans.

In the first part of the OUDC program, the members learn about American history, including events like the Civil Rights Movement, slavery and general topics like Jewish life in America.

The second part of the program consists of a three and a half week trip during the summer that follows the path of the Freedom Riders. Along the trail, the members have the opportunity to meet civil rights leaders, ex-freedom riders and even current day activists.

“It’s really burst my bubble of Bethesda,” said Jewish member and WJ senior Rachel Matheson. “There’s so much to be done… How could I not do anything, considering the minimal risks that I face and the risks that other people face every day just for being black?”

In the third part of the program, the members travel throughout their community churches and schools to make speeches and hold workshops to raise awareness about topics such as white privilege in the community.

When they visit schools, OUDC usually incorporates activities similar to the privilege walk.

Of course, the exercises like the privilege walk do not come without imperfections. Especially when done in an affluent area like Bethesda, the general statements cannot perfectly gauge each and every student’s personal privilege.

“I was a little bit surprised when Jewish people [had] to take one step back because growing up around here, there is a huge Jewish population, and it doesn’t seem like something that would make you less privileged,” said junior Elijah Cole, who participated in the OUDC workshop.

Nevertheless, as the lines went from neat rows to a staggered mess, the message of the exercise still resonated. Race, religion and sex impact someone’s privilege. Therein lies the mission of OUDC: spreading awareness of the different opportunities available depending on race, religion and sex leads to growing support for the underprivileged through the rejection of current social norms.

Important programming skills not prioritized by MCPS

By Kevin Lu

The registration period for next year’s classes is fast approaching, and when filling out the form, many students choose classes based on the class requirements to graduate. One of the MCPS requirements is the technology credit. Currently, students can fulfill this requirement by taking either Introduction to Engineering and Design (IED), Foundations of Technology (FoT) or Design Tech Solutions (DTS). However, this was not always the case.

Several years ago, programming classes fulfilled the technology credit requirement, but MCPS split at the county level. Computer science and technology were separated, so technology classes like FoT, DTS and IED continued to offer technology credits while computer science classes like Programming now only offer elective credits.

After this change, the popularity of programming classes declined sharply.

“Not enough people are choosing programming as a class,” said technology teacher Kelly Dunston. “They can’t fit the class into their schedules.”

However, the falling number of programming students in MCPS does not

correlate with programming’s growing importance in society. Programming skills are valuable to have in a world where new technology is so prevalent. “[A] rise in attention naturally accompanies [a] rise in importance,” said Philadelphia Classic (PClassic) organizer Nate Chodosh. “I think that basic programming skills are very valuable for [high school students] to have. Part of this importance is due to the prevalence of technology.”

The PClassic is a competition that offers prizes to high school students in the top scoring teams in a programming competition.

Having programming skills helps students in more ways than one. In school, programming is one of the few classes that teaches students how to use a set of computer programs and solve diverse and complex problems.

As the importance of programming increases, many organizations have started to encourage students to learn programming. These organizations realize that the world needs more programmers, so they encourage students to develop computer science skills at an early age through the creation of pro-

gramming competitions. Many of these competitions reward the winners with scholarships, like PClassic.

“The PClassic exists to encourage interest in [computer science] by showing programming doesn’t have to be limited to the classroom and can actually be a lot of fun,” said Chodosh.

Girls Who Code is another organization that is working to encourage high school students, specifically girls, to learn programming and to pursue opportunities in computing fields. Senior Caroline Braviak even put together a Girls Who Code club to provide students with a computer science education in an after school extracurricular learning environment. Braviak started the club after she participated in the Girls Who Code Summer Immersion program.

“I had a great time and decided to take a club back to WJ to encourage more girls to get involved in computer science,” Braviak said. “I think that computer science is not promoted enough.

Since it’s not a core class, it is often forgotten.”

Information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor

Graphic by Anja Shahu

FEATURE

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Student Profile: Ben Jaffe

JANUARY 21, 2015

Senior interns at a veterinarian office and advocates for pet health awareness

Photo courtesy of Ben Jaffe

Senior Ben Jaffe helps treat many different animals through his internship.

By IrisVukmanovic

Finding a good internship is often tough for high school students. They have to be creative and motivated to find one that is powerful and meaningful to them. Senior Ben Jaffe worked very hard to find an internship in a medical field.

“When it comes to being a doctor, you need background and that’s why I really wanted an internship in the medical area,” said Jaffe. “There’s obvious restrictions if you want to intern at a hospital; you’re not going to be able to watch because humans have all these confidentiality concerns [while] animals don’t.”

So Jaffe got an internship at Montgomery Animal Hospital that he works at three times a week. The parallels between humans and animals make a veterinary internship beneficial for students like Jaffe who are interested in pursuing a profession in the medical field.

“Cats and humans, for example, have really similar reactions to diabetes,” Jaffe said. “That’s why if you have a really fat cat you’re going to probably have to deal with insulin injections.”

Not only has he learned about various ailments ani-

mals can suffer from while working at the animal hospital, Jaffe has also been exposed to a lot of dramatic situations right from the start, similar to what a doctor would experience in an emergency room.

“On my first day, I saw a c-section [of a dog] giving birth to nine puppies. I saw a skin tumor that got removed. It was a giant one on the face, and an amputation,” Jaffe said.

Unfortunately, the animal hospital isn’t capable of helping every animal that comes in for treatment. For Jaffe, seeing animals die is one of the toughest parts of the job.

“Most of the time, in high stress environments like that, the staff likes to have fun and joke around and make it so that it’s not as awful in there. But then there are the moments when you know it’s too late, and it’s dead silent,” said Jaffe.

The experience helped Jaffe realize that he wouldn’t be able to be a veterinarian because of the difficulty in dealing with the deaths of animals.

“You feel so awful when a cat or a dog dies because they don’t understand what’s happening,” said Jaffe.

However, his aspirations of becoming a doctor have not wavered.

“When a human’s dying you can talk to them. You know they [can] have closure,” said Jaffe. “With animals, you see a really sad face up until it’s too late and you feel absolutely awful. The whole innocence of it makes it really hard.”

Despite the emotional hardship, it’s the hard moments that keep Jaffe and his coworkers determined to dedicate their time to care for the animals. They make sure to pay close attention to the animals’ needs, which isn’t always easy.

“You have to be observant of their behavior because they aren’t going to speak up and tell you what’s wrong,” said Jaffe.

Because next month is National Pet Dental Health Month, Jaffe advised pet owners to be aware of their pet’s dental health and possible health problems, such

as periodontal disease. Periodontal disease occurs when plaque forms and slowly develops on animals’ teeth.

Jaffe said that there’s a layer of nutrients by the teeth, and that eventually bacteria gets underneath it and manifests. The bacterium start to rot teeth and makes the gums inflame. Then the jawbone starts to decay and bleed profusely. It bleeds so much that the bacteria gets into the blood vessels and travels all around the body.

“You can get kidney disease, heart disease, liver disease from not brushing your teeth. And it’s a huge problem with dogs and cats which is why they need to get regular inspections of their teeth to make sure that they’re okay,” said Jaffe.

So make sure to take care of your pet, and watch out for their dental health; not just because it’s going to be February soon, but because it’s the best way to take care of man’s best friend.

Photo courtesy of Ben Jaffe

Jaffe works with another worker at the Montgomery Animal Hospital.

Students challenge themselves with college courses

By Daniel Flesch

For the past couple of years, students have been offered the opportunity to enroll in college level courses. Currently, these courses are being offered by Montgomery College. Upperclassmen are given the chance to enroll in these courses before every semester. Students are consistently encouraged to take these courses through advertisements from the Guidance Office made on The Daily Lineup and flyers seen throughout the school.

The classes offered through the school take place at WJ in the morning and are meant to emulate a college class environment for students that engage and challenge themselves.

There are prerequisites for taking these courses. Courses are available to seniors with an unweighted GPA of 2.75, and juniors with an unweighted GPA of 3.0. Students who are at least 16 years old and have completed their sophomore year are also eligible.

This past fall, the two courses offered to WJ students were COMM108 Intro to Human Communication and PSY221 Intro to Abnormal Psychology.

Intro to Human Communication covers communication theory and develops communication skills for personal and professional relationships. For the Psychology class, a student must have obtained an AP Psychology exam score of

four or five to enroll.

Amy Mattingly, a senior, is enrolled in Intro to Human Communications.

“I’ve learned techniques that I can use to help improve my communication in different environments,” said Mattingly.

“I’ve learned how to become an effective public speaker.”

Ryan Manning is also a senior enrolled in the Intro to Human Communications course.

“It introduced me to the workload college students have,” said Manning.

“The professor was great.”

Mattingly and Manning highly recommend taking MC courses because of the skills they have acquired through the course.

“It made me a lot more confident when giving speeches and made it easier for me to work together with other people in group projects,” said Mattingly.

They also believe the courses can prepare any student for the responsibilities that a college classroom demands.

Taking these courses creates a different schedule than that of a student not enrolled.

“It takes up two class periods and I only have the class twice a week, so I get to sleep in until third period three times a week, so that’s really nice,” said Mattingly.

Student interest in these courses during second semester has increased.

Photo by Selma Stearns

Students taking Intro to Abnormal Psychology pay close attention to their professor’s lecture.

This spring, the courses of PHIL201 Morality and Contemporary Law and BSAD101 Intro to Business are being offered. The Morality and Contemporary Law class examines social issues of current interest from the legal and ethical viewpoints. The Intro to Business class engages students in the principles, practices and functions of business by examining its field and environment.

The cost to enroll in an MC course is approximately $447.00. This fee in-

cludes an application fee, a three-credit course fee, MC fees and estimated textbook cost. Students who are looking to enroll in one of these courses should first meet with their counselor to discuss eligibility and to receive an Early Placement Approval form. Then, they must obtain written approval from a parent or guardian on the Early Placement Approval form and meet with a Dual Enrollment Program Assistant (DEPA) in counseling room #155D.

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JANUARY 21, 2015

FEATURE

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APEX life culture &

Illustration by Steven Judge

Advanced academic program fosters more than success

By Hannah Sachs and Allie Miljanic

In the English language, “apex” is defined as the highest part of something, but at WJ, there is a unique meaning to that simple four letter word. The APEX Scholors Program was founded in 1996 as a WJ signature program to compete with rigorous magnet programs such as the IB program at Richard Montgomery High School and the magnet program at Montgomery Blair High School that were attracting the top students who would otherwise have fed into WJ. According to the APEX Scholars Program information on WJ’s website, “The APEX (Advanced Placement Experience) Scholars Program offers a rigorous, comprehensive four-year curriculum to a select group of academically able students. The program uniquely combines honors and advanced placement courses yet students remain an integral part of the high school community at Walter Johnson.” While this explanation may seem rather clear, the true purpose of the APEX program is stimulating classroom discussion.

The major elements that APEX is known for are its Capstone project, community and cheating.

Capstone Project

David Uhler teaches the APEX seminar, a required evening course for seniors. The abrupt switch from a Philosophy seminar to a “Capstone project” was extremely upsetting to a number of people this year, as demonstrated by a meeting demanded by students and parents to discuss the project, as well as the backlash recorded in emails sent on the APEX listserv.

Students seem to be most upset about the idea that by changing the senior seminar to an independent project, they feel that they are being robbed of the community aspect they would have enjoyed so much in the seminar setting.

“The seminar was supposed to be a time [where] we could all get back together again and talk about philosophy, since there were no longer APEX classes during the day, yet this was totally eliminated,” said senior Solomon Kritz, who dropped the revised senior seminar in protest and will consequently not be graduating as an APEX Scholar in the spring.

However, many teachers believe that the Capstone project is beneficial to students.

“After hearing complaints for a number of years, we thought we would rework the course to make it more focused and not be all over the place,” said APEX coordinator Nathan Schwartz. “So that’s why we came up with this senior project.”

APEX teachers decided to remove the philosophy seminar and rework it into a senior capstone project.

“So as it is currently, it first gives the students more opportunities to work as individuals and to really go a little bit deeper into their own individual interests and pursuits while still hopefully reflecting on their core values, and what is important to them,” said Uhler.

Community

The community and friendships that are fostered and built as a result of the program are important to many APEX students.

Students in the APEX program are required to take several classes together, including AP Government and Politics, Honors Biology, Honors English 9 and 10, AP U.S. History, AP World History and a revised senior seminar. Thanks to these classes, students in APEX form a strong bond.

“I’m glad I joined APEX, not necessarily because of the course load and teachers, who I do believe were excellent, but because it gave me an opportunity to make friends I don’t think I would’ve made without APEX,” said senior Amanda Tang.

After moving to the WJ area before high school, Tang knew no one; through the APEX program, she quickly found a group of familiar faces that she grew to know and love.

When reflecting on their APEX experience, students often remark that the camaraderie they established with their fellow APEXers allowed for more open and free-flowing class debate.They also acknowledged that they feel there is less judgment in their APEX classes.

Consequently, ideas and conversation come more easily, especially for those who tend to be more introverted.

This fosters an intellectually stimulating and chal-

lenging environment in which students are encouraged to venture outside of their comfort zone.

“To me, the hallmark of the APEX program was not its intensity or its work, but the cohort of students who studied and learned together over four years,” said Kritz.

Students feel that they can count on their fellow APEXers not only for explanations or informal peer tutoring but also for guidance and support.

“We tend to provide a bit of a safety net for one another,” said junior APEXer Daniel Singer.

Cheating

Some students mentioned that being in classes filled with academically-driven students from early on in high school has helped them pick up some good study habits, such as forming study groups, but also a few bad ones. One of these less admirable habits is cheating.

Oftentimes, one APEX student will complete a study guide and post it in the APEX Facebook group.

The other 45 members of the group simply print it out and use it to study. “[APEX] definitely created an environment that fostered cheating,” said another APEX student who asked to go unnamed.

Although students in APEX are notorious for being among the most motivated students, some APEX students believe teachers assign their APEX classes more work and pointless assignments with the assumption that they should be able to handle it all. Some turn to academic dishonesty in an attempt to get all the extra work done.

“Every major incident of cheating I have caught has involved an APEXer,” said a teacher who chose to remain anonymous.

Various teachers have described APEX as a group of high achieving students who are generally more concerned with their final grades than how they earned them. They remarked that this often results in widespread cheating on seemingly inconsequential completion-grade worksheets and weighty summative assignments.

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FEATURE

JANUARY 21, 2015

WJ S*T*A*G*E prepares to present One Acts Students have unique opportunity to perform and direct plays rying about the huge audience.”

Student directors select their cast and organize rehearsals. Colleen McAdory, who teaches theater, directs S*T*A*G*E’s fall play and spring musical. However, during One Acts, McAdory steps back to offer support and guidance while students direct the shows.

Sophomore Sean Mahoney, who is currently participating in One Acts, has been involved in the past three shows of S*T*A*G*E’s main stage productions but not as a lead performer.

Photo by Anja Shahu

Freshmen Sean Siegel, Shahar Bezherano and senior Sam Moore rehearse their parts in the one-act play “Visitor from Mamaroneck” directed by senior Chopper Carter-Schelp.

By KathrynVan Artsdalen

Most of WJ’s theater and musical shows, such as “The Crucible,” “Aida” and “Les Misérables,” are produced by S*T*A*G*E, WJ’s drama club. But One Acts offers another opportunity for students to gain experience directing and performing theatrical productions.

One Acts are short plays that last from 10 to 25 minutes. One of the most unique aspects of One Acts is that seniors from WJ S*T*A*G*E are completely in charge of the production.

“The productions are much smaller than the main stage productions [that S*T*A*G*E] puts on, but we strive to make them just as professional,” said senior Amanda Tang, a lead actor from “The Crucible,” who is directing “Words, Words, Words.”

Anyone who has not been a lead performer in S*T*A*G*E’s main stage productions can audition for One Acts for a chance to practice their acting skills and become better performers.

“One Acts is a great opportunity to showcase some very, very talented people who the student body may have never seen perform before,” said Tang.

Senior Krista Smith-Hanke is performing in One Acts for the first time.

“I’ve always wanted to audition for one of the main shows but I was too nervous,” said Smith-Hanke. “One Acts is a way for me to do S*T*A*G*E without wor-

Photo by Kevin Lu

(From left to right) senior Joyce Mbogba, freshman Gabe Gleeson (floor), sophomore Joe Bowers and freshman Sophie Shulman react to interesting information from freshman Olivia Kunkle in “Sherlock Holmes and the Emerald of Alcazar”.

“The fact that One Acts is run by [my] peers and students really makes [me] more comfortable and helps create a friendly environment,” said Mahoney. “[I have made] a lot of new friends [because we] need a cast that works well together or else the show won’t be good.”

Students in One Acts spend a month practicing and perfecting their performances. One Acts rehearsals are not as demanding as the main stage production rehearsals, which can last for four months.

“Rehearsals are really laid back,” said Smith-Hanke.

“We start with a game, do a run-through or two and then do character exercises.”

“One Acts [are] more relaxed [than the productions

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on the main stage] because they are much shorter,” sophomore Rachel Loewy said. “There isn’t really a set, so there is no crew necessary.”

One Acts productions have very low budgets, and many of the props and costumes come from old S*T*A*G*E performances.

On the weekend of Jan. 9 and 10, there were four performances: “Sorry, Wrong Number,” directed by senior Bradley Stein; “Words, Words, Words,” directed by seniors Tang and Stefanos Nickoloff; “Sherlock Holmes and the Emerald of Alcazar,” directed by senior Izzy Salant, and “Visitor from Mamaroneck,” directed by senior Chopper Carter-Schelp. “The Game,” directed by senior Danya Firestone has been postponed.

Loewy and Mahoney both have greatly enjoyed meeting upperclassmen and developing their acting skills in One Acts. “[My experience participating in One Acts has given] me the confidence to go into more main stage productions and try and get some bigger roles because I [have been] able to discover my abilities as an actor,” said Mahoney.

One Acts is a learning experience for students, who can get a taste of directing and performing their own shows while also enjoying camaraderie in a laid back and supportive environment.

Photo by Anja Shahu

Junior Liam Graff and sophomore Mary Rosenbaum practice for the act “Words, Words, Words” written by David Ives.

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January 21, 2015

SPORTS

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SPORTS

JANUARY 21, 2015

Hitting the mat hard: The wrestling team tackles the season

By JakeWeinischke and Sarah Schecker

First year coach Blake Herrin intently watches a match from the sideline. Herrin won two Alabama state wrestling championships in high school before continuing his career at American University.

Junior Aubrey Horner studies an ongoing match prior to facing his opponent.

All photos by Sarah Schecker

The wrestling team started the season with an undefeated 7-0 record prior to the annual Big Train Dual Meet at WJ.

From running stairs to spending time in the weight room, the WJ wrestling team spends hours each week preparing for their matches. Come match time, the team puts its arduous and rigorous training to use.The Pitch staff documented the team in action and witnessed the team’s success firsthand.

The referee thrusts sophomore JD FitzPatrick’s hand into the air, signaling FitzPatrick’s victory.WJ defeated RM by a whopping score of 63-13.

Coach Tom Wheeler observes his team during a recent match.

During meets all eyes focus on the center of the gym where the action is going down. In the back, the scoreboard of the match keeps track of how many points each wrestler earns during a match. Players can earn points by making specific moves.

Senior Alex Forrest takes a water break and gets advice from Coach Wheeler during the match against Richard Montgomery. “All that goes through my head [when I step on the mat] is that nothing matters for the next six minutes but beating my opponent,” said Forrest.

All taped up and ready to go. Senior captain Maxx Espinosa grips his ear guards closely before his match. Written in marker are the words “Dos XX’s,” Espinosa’s nickname from the unusual spelling of his name.

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JANUARY 21, 2015

SPORTS

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MLB pitcher Jason Motte aims to strike out cancer

By JakeWeinischke

the clinic, requesting donations to fund the purchase of blankets for cancer patients caught the eye of both Motte and Caitlin, leaving them both contemplating how they could play a role in combating cancer too, and so began the Jason Motte Foundation.

Upon seeing a t-shirt featuring a sizable backwards K, the symbol indicating a strikeout, an idea struck Motte. He contacted Eric Ross, one of the founders of 108stitches, the St. Louis based t-shirt company that produces the backwards K t-shirts. He ordered 300 shirts featuring the backwards K and the word, “cancer”, directly below it.

The original stock of 300 increased exponentially and as of last year, the shirts were present in all 30 MLB clubhouses as players from around the globe joined hands with a common goal to strike out cancer.

“The baseball community is a very giving community.

Baseball is very much about giving back and players truly live up to that,” said Caitlin.

Not only have the shirts fostered the growth of the Jason Motte Foundation, they have also planted the seeds for various other cancer charities to sprout Photos courtesy of Flickr, Mercy Health across the baseball comIn 2014, Motte was presented with the Roberto Clemente award, designed to recognize munity. Each team has its the player who best represents the game of baseball off of the field, in the community. It is own KCancer representanamed after former Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Roberto Clemente who tragically died in a tive who is tied to a separate plane crash while delivering supplies to victims of the 1972 Nicaragua earthquake. cancer research fund. For “Tommy John” reconstructive surgery, and sidelining every shirt sold, five dollars benefits the Jason Motte him for the entire 2013 season and a large chunk of Foundation while the other five dollars is donated to the KCancer representatives’ individual charity. the 2014 campaign.

The Mottes’ means of fundraising varies, but is Still, Motte managed an extraordinary impact, this based primarily on their annual fundraiser hosted in time striking out an entirely new opponent: cancer.

Motte and his wife Caitlin were initially inspired to Memphis, Tenn. traditionally in November. The event join the battle against cancer during a December, includes a series of activities including dinner, dancing, 2010 visit to the West Clinic in Memphis, Tennessee, and a silent auction. “[Motte] collects autographed items from players where Caitlin’s grandfather Lynn Doyle was receiving treatment for stage four lung cancer. A sign outside and coaches throughout the baseball season. He tries In 2012, St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher, Jason Motte accumulated 42 saves, tying Atlanta Braves closer, Craig Kimbrel, for the most in the National League. Along the way, he struck out 86 batters over the course of 72 innings, en route to signing a twoyear contract extension with the Cardinals. However, only a few months later at the end of spring training for the 2013 season, Motte tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, forcing him to undergo

to gather things you cannot usually get. Items vary from signed balls, hats and game used bats to All Star jerseys, cleats and game used bases,” said Caitlin.

Additionally, the Mottes’ hosted the organization’s inaugural cornhole tournament this past year.

“We had 110 teams comprised of fans from all over the country and St. Louis Cardinals playing against each other. It was a raging success with over 450 people in attendance and over $94,000 raised for cancer research,” said Caitlin.

WJ has similarly been involved in the fight against cancer, with the annual month long Pennies for Patients fundraiser. Taking down the opposition is WJ’s nature and as indicated by the motto of the Jason Motte Foundation, “Let’s strike out cancer!” the battle is a team effort. The work of campaigns such as Pennies for Patients and the Jason Motte Foundation have fostered the growth of success stories, including that of recent WJ graduate, Aram Dommerholt, who in February 2014 was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma.

“Not that long ago, lymphoma in the stage I have it would have been a death sentence. Today, thanks to the millions of dollars donated for research from Pennies for Patients and other fundraisers, it has nearly a 100 percent success rate,” said Dommerholt. “If not for charities like these, I would have never lived to become an adult. I literally owe my life to these organizations and could not be more grateful.”

According to its website, the mission of the Jason Motte Foundation is to provide comfort and care where there is a need for those affected, either directly or indirectly, by cancers of all kinds.

Fact: In addition to the Roberto Clemente Award, Motte was also nominated for the 2014 Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award and the Branch Rickey Award for his service in the fight against cancer.

Fact: The foundation’s merchandise is available at www.jasonmottefoundation.org All proceeds are devoted to cancer research and to provide comfort and care for patients at treatment facilities.

Sports

What’s Inside

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The Pitch takes a look at the fine details of a wrestling match through photos.

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MLB pitcher Jason Motte looks to strike out cancer.

JANUARY 21, 2015

Hockey rides youthful talent to strong start, earns big wins over BCC, RM

By Patrick Jorling It is often said that a team with less skill and more experience will have more success than a team with more skill and less experience. So far this season, WJ hockey has reversed this trend. With only one senior on the roster, the team has jumped out to an impressive start to the season, compiling wins against a series of tough teams, including an impressive 6-2 victory over rival BCC. With more talent than ever before and

All photos by Sarah Schecker

Sophomore Nathan Berger races toward the puck in a Dec. 19 game against Whitman

strong leadership, the team looks to compete with the county’s traditional powers for a state championship.

The team’s deeper bench this season allows players to maintain endurance throughout the games and enables them to finish games stronger.

“Last year we had a pretty small roster of young players,” said senior captain Toby Wu. “This year our players have improved and we now have a larger bench.”

The coaches have seen players’ attention levels rise along with the talent, which has allowed coaches to teach more complicated systems.

“There’s a lot of talent, but [the players] listen, so we can apply systems that actually work this year, whereas maybe in previous years that would have been harder

to do,” said assistant coach Joe Perone.

With such a young team has come with some advantages, as they have established a solid core for the future, as well as having teams overlook them due to their inexperience.

“The positives of having a young team, are that people can sometimes underestimate us, and that in the future [the underclassmen] will have a lot of experience and knowledge of high school hockey,” junior Brando Kobernick said.

Perone can see the positives from a coaching aspect as well, as the coaches can instill a culture for years to come.

“Typically older players, as with any sport, think they know better a lot of the time, but a young team allows us to establish a routine and culture that will be fruitful over the coming years, not just this year,” Perone said.

However, having a young team comes with its share of drawbacks.

“The negatives are the lack of experience and the smaller and weaker size, which can lead to fear and mistakes when having to face taller seniors,” Kobernick said.

The smaller size of the younger players can also make it a tough adjustment to compete with the much bigger and stronger upperclassmen.

“A big issue [the underclassmen] have to overcome is their size,.”Wu said. “Most freshmen do not have the size or weight to bump heads with the average senior.”

After a strong start, the team looks to meet its high goals this season by competing with the better teams such as Churchill and Wootton in the county and

Senior capitan Toby Wu prepares for a faceoff during a December game against rival Walt Whitman High School.

maintaining the early success they have had so far this season.

“Our main goal this season, is to maintain our consistency in our games,” said Wu. “We still are working things out, being a young team, nothing is set in stone yet so there is room for improvement.”

Kobernick said the team should aim for loftier goals, as they look to compete for respect of their rivals and look to vie for a division title. “[Another] goal for our team this season is to make it to the playoffs and prove to other teams that WJ is not a team to mess around with and that we can compete in this division,” said Kobernick.

Sophomore Nathan Berger takes a shot against Whitman.

Caps front office blunder still resonates in D.C. two years later

By JakeWeinischke As the 2012-13 lockout shortened NHL season drew nearer to the trade deadline, the hometown Washington Capitals general manager, George McPhee, sought out an experienced second line center that could propel his team deep into the playoffs.

On April 3, 2013, McPhee took a major gamble, trading top prospect and 11th overall pick in the 2012 NHL entry draft, Filip Forsberg, to the Nashville Predators in exchange for veteran center Martin Erat and right wing, Michael Latta.

Over the course of the next two seasons, Erat would play a mere 62 games for the Capitals, registering one goal and 25 assists. Latta has totaled 35 games for the Capitals thus far, accumulating one goal and five assists for a total of six points.

Now two seasons later, both McPhee and Erat are no longer employed by the Capitals. However, the consequences of the widely debated blockbuster trade, continue to weigh heavily on the organization.

Twenty six games into his first full NHL campaign,

the 20 year old Swedish phenom, Forsberg is producing at a point-per-game pace and leads the NHL with a plus 21 rating (as of Jan. 8). Additionally, he leads all rookies in both goals and points, and ranks second in assists, behind the Calgary Flames left wing Johnny Gaudreau. Most importantly, he has helped his team to a stellar record, sufficient to sit atop the Central Division of the Western Conference.

Meanwhile, Erat, now 33 years old, has entered the twilight of his career, playing for the Arizona Coyotes. To add insult to injury, Michael Latta has yet to score a single goal so far this season.

So what exactly does this mean for the Washington Capitals? George McPhee made a mistake, and one of a profound magnitude. Despite efforts with Brooks Laich and Marcus Johansson, the Caps front office has endured several years of struggling to find a top six forward to center the Caps second line.

Upon drafting Forsberg, D.C. hockey fans were optimistic that the problematic second line void would be filled, and they had every reason to be. Forsberg had been rated as the top European prospect of his

draft class and he corroborated this description.

While on loan from the Capitals, prior to being traded, Forsberg scored 33 points in 38 games for Swedish club, Leksand during the 2012-13 season, helping the team earn a promotion to the Swedish Hockey League for the following season.

If anyone could adequately fulfill the Caps’ need of a second line center, Forsberg was the man. McPhee yielded the greatest possibility of filling that gap, for practically nothing at all.

Hockey legend Wayne Gretzky once said, “A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.” This observation holds true not just for the players, but the front office officials as well. It’s easy to calculate a player’s current value and potential. In McPhee’s defense however, tracking a player’s developmental progression and predicting the future worth of that player, is a significantly harder task.