Volume 35 • Issue 1 October 11, 2017 University Prep 8000 25th Ave. NE, Seattle Colorblindness runs in the family
NEWBIES ! PA G E
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D O O H R O B H G I E N R U O D E D I V I D BRAVE
Two students stepping out and making their own class Page 7
CRAVE
Checking out Capitol Hill’s favorite burger spot Page 10
RAVE
Waking up at 8 to dance away the morning Page 14
NEWS
IT’S NOT JUST DOWN SOUTH
There’s a controversial statue in our backyard FREMONT’S FAVORITE WAYS TO VANDALIZE LENIN
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Paint his hands red to represent the blood of the many deaths he is responsible for.
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Dress him up in a tutu to show his spirit for the pride parade.
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Throw some Christmas lights on him to get ready for the winter holidays.
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Glue a sex toy to the top of his head to show disrespect for this arguably unsavory historical figure. (Sources: The Seattle Times, Seattle PI)
BY ANNA INGHRAM times you see the hands of he removal of the statue painted red [to Confederate statues represent] blood.” across the Southeast There are clear parallels of the United States has between the debate over triggered mass protests the Lenin statue and the both for and against their Confederate statues. Both removal. At the same time debates are over statues of that people were protestpeople who had questioning the removal of Confedable effects on history. erate statues, there were However, there are a few others standing in front key differences. For one, of a statue in Fremont, dethe Confederate statues manding that it be taken were created to glorify down, according to The the deeds of those they Washington Post. represented. That has The statue wasn’t of a Con“I’ve always felt the federate statue is ... something figure, but of Commuto create a sense of nist leader Fremont being differVladimir Lenin. It ent .” stands in —HISTORY TEACHER PAT GRANT front of shops on a privately owned piece of land. never been the meaning “[Lenin] was a founder of the Lenin statue for of the Bolshevik Soviet Fremont. “I’ve always felt Union,” history teacher that the statue was less of Pat Grant said. As a leader something to honor Lenin of the Soviet Union, he specifically, but more of overthrew a short-lived desomething to create a mocracy in Russia, which sense of Fremont being was followed by a bloody different,” Grant said. civil war in which an estiAccording to the Seatmated millions died. tle Times, the statue was There are clear reasons found by an American in why people might want a junkyard in Poland. He this statue taken down. was so impressed with the “Lenin was a figure that artistry of the statue that overthrew democracy, he had it shipped home to which we [as Americans] Washington where it has value,” Grant said. In remained ever since. general, his legacy is not a The Confederate statues, positive one. however, were put in place “He made a lot of chang“to immortalize these es that ended up killing leaders of the Confedera lot of people,” senior acy,” Grant said. “They Anton Shenk said. “Somechose certain Confederate
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PHOTO: JADE BUCHANAN-MOH
leaders who were most in support of slavery [to make statues of.]” Lenin was not installed to be honored as Confederate statues were, but does that make it OK to display a statue of someone who caused long-lasting damage for his people? There’s no easy answer, though many people have strong opinions on it. Recently-resigned Mayor of Seattle Ed Murray called for the removal of the Lenin statue. “We should remove all these symbols, no matter what political affiliation may have been assigned to them in the decades since they were erected,” Murray said. On the other side, some love the statue. “It’s super popular and part of the [Fremont] shtick,” Mike
Clark of the Fremont Arts Council said in an interview with The Seattle Times. Shenk’s mom grew up in the Soviet Union. “My mom is fine with this statue because it’s not being idolized,” Shenk said. “If you had communists rushing Fremont [and] defending the statue in the way that people have been defending the Confederate statues, my mom probably would be a little worried about that.” Looking forward, people have many opposing ideas about what should be done with with both the Lenin statue and Confederate statues. “My personal take on it is that consideration and reflection are really important,” Senior Ema Bargeron said.
LENIN’S PHILOSPOSHY Lenin was a Communist, inspired by Karl Marx, and believed in a political system driven by the working class. However, he did not think that democracy would
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be the best option for the country, but rather authoritarianism. He believed that only Communist leaders had the education and authority to lead the country,
and that they had the obligation to take power using whatever means were necessary, including violence. (Source: Encyclopedia Britannica)
The statue of the Communist leader Vladamir Lenin has been scrutinized recently, prompted by protests of Confederate statues. His hands are often painted red to represent the blood of the many whose deaths he is responsibe for.
COMPETING FOR OFFICE
NEWS
Mayor’s race narrows as students and faculty evaluate candidates BY ZUBIN ABRAHAM-AHMED AND BEATRICE CAPPIO eattleites will soon have a significant chance to change the running of local government. On Nov. 7, the opportunity to decide the path of the city’s future will be determined by ballots cast for the city’s next mayor. History teacher Pat Grant stresses the importance of the mayor’s office for the city. “[The election] is important because the mayor is the chief executive of the city government,” Grant said. “Who runs cities is very important because of [their] certain powers.” Following recently-resigned former Seattle Mayor Ed Murray will either be Cary Moon, an “urban votes in the primary. Her planner and engineer,” supporters include Murray according to her website, and former Washington or former U.S. Attorney Gov. Chris Gregoire. Jenny Durkan. Moon has a critical vote Though the candidates from offer former differ“I hope that [stumayoral ing attributes dents] can support candidate for the Nikkita seat, the candidate of Oliver. Grant their values.” She also sees has the —INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC little sole endifferTEACHER JASON PARKER dorseence bement tween of the the King County Democrats. candidates’ positions on Instrumental music key issues. “My impression teacher Jason Parker, a foris that the two candidates mer Oliver supporter, will are not that far apart,” be voting for Moon. Grant said. “Largely [the “I believe [Moon] holds differences] were based many of the ideals that on their backgrounds and are important to me at the the emphasis they give to center of her campaign,” issues.” he said. “She is going to Durkan won the most
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STUDENTS’ THOUGHTS ON THE ELECTION Which candidate are you supporting for Seattle mayor? Moon: 12%
Durkan: 40%
Unsure: 48%
PHOTO: BEATRICE CAPPIO
center people of color, women and marginalized communities in all of her decision-making.” Parker would like to see a leader from outside of the traditional political field. “I think that Jenny Durkan is yet another centrist or right-of-center Democrat that is just going to continue the status quo [that] is driving all of us – people who are not millionaires – out of the city,” he said. Sophomore Lillian Ellis sees Durkan’s lengthy experience and ties to traditional political interests as pluses. “Durkan, being very experienced at reaching out to others, has more potential and is more qualified to run,” Ellis said. “Durkan has more sus-
tainable goals. I think that she presents her goals in a way that she can follow through [with them].” In terms of the candidates’ goals, Ellis is especially concerned with their abilities to handle the “complex problems” Seattle is facing. “In my opinion, homelessness is a big issue,” senior Stella Biehl said. “Supporting sanctuary for people is very important. That’s something our city should continue to do in the face of challenges from the federal level,” Grant said. Parker sees the election as an important one for students to take note of, though the majority of students can’t vote. “I hope that [students] can support the candidate of their values,” he said.
The UPrep community has expressed differing opinions throughout the current Seattle mayoral election.
Do you consider this election important? Unimportant: 16%
Important: Indifferent: 48% 40%
Methodology: A poll was sent to 40 Upper School students selected randomly.
A WOMAN AT THE HELM With the changing face of the mayor’s office comes a new variable at play: gender. This fall, Seattleites will choose the first woman to sit as the city’s executive in more than 90 years. Elected in 1926, Bertha Landes was the first and has been the only female mayor of the city, according to The Seattle Times. Sophomore Lillian Ellis thinks it’s about
time for Seattle’s second female mayor. “Seattle thinks of itself as such a progressive city, as a sanctuary city, but we haven’t had a woman mayor in such a long time,” she said. “Representation matters.” Instrumental music teacher Jason Parker sees this as a progressive milestone. “It’s great that we have two women in the race because
women’s voices have been traditionally less heard than men’s voices in politics,” he said. “The civic industry [is] typically male dominated. We want to make sure women have representation. Having a female mayor could really contribute to that. That representation leads to only more representation,” senior Allison Bunker said.
Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 3
THE OPINION PAGE
EDITORIAL
OPINION COLUMNS
WE SHOULD KNOW TOO
Suicide Isn’t Funny
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have so much homework today I’m going to kill myself.” “Dab one more time and I’m putting a gun to my head and pulling the trigger.” “Go shoot yourself.” How often have you heard yourself or one of your friends say something like this? Based off of personal experience, the answer is probably at least once this week, maybe even every day. Or maybe you have been so accustomed to hear these kinds of morbid declaraBY OLIVIA tions of self-harm that you POOLOS can’t distinguish suicide from a knock-knock joke. In University Prep’s freshman-year health class, there’s a brief tutorial on steps to take if your friend or classmate shows signs of suicidal intention. One step was clearly emphasized: If the person tells you they are going to commit suicide, do something immediately. Call them or their parents, or tell a counselor. Complications arise, however, when so
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he desire to expand is completely justified, but where we begin to take issue is that the planning has been tucked away from students’ eyes. One could argue that current students will have graduated by the time the building is completed, meaning we have no stake in the project. But UPrep has students on committees for reshaping curricula that will be put into place after they graduate. What’s the difference? If they can trust us with what will be taught, surely they can trust us with where it’ll be taught. It’s troubling that it takes protests from neighbors for students to realize that there’s backlash to a project that we naively thought was progressing smoothly. Why are those who oppose the project our first source of information instead of our administrators? As students, and in cruder terms, investors in UPrep education, we have the right to know what the school plans to do. The student body, for the most part, has no idea what’s going on. The limited information that we have has trickled down the grapevine with the source being the biased, exaggerated flyers placed on cars and telephone poles by neighbors opposing the project. People living nearby have a right to know what’s happening. But, the students whose families will be paying for parts of this also have a right to know where their money is going and the issues behind the proposed uses. We aren’t asking to be on every committee or to answer bi-monthly surveys. But, as investors, we ask to be considered as partners that could help bring ideas, or simply help defend the project, instead of being left to our own devices to learn the future of the school we love.
The Puma Press University Prep’s Student Voice Winner of Three Pacemaker Awards Editors Micho Matuszewski Mahir Piyarali Copy Editor Beatrice Cappio Graphics Designer Carli Belouskas Reporters Zubin Abraham-Ahmed Jade Buchanan-Moh Melissa Funes James Garvey Sydney Hurst Aaron Igra Anna Inghram Grace Kellogg Aidan Lee Ian Lee Olivia Poolos Join us online Instagram: @uprepmedia Twitter: @uprepmedia Web: blogs.universityprep.org/ uprepmedia Send feedback: pumapress@ universityprep.org Cover Art: Carli Belouskas
many people joke about suicide. How can you tell if they suddenly turn serious? Additionally, for people for which suicide is an issue that hits close to home, a seemingly harmless joke about killing oneself can become upsetting. Imagine if one of your friends committed suicide because they had severe depression and anxiety and, the next day, another friend makes a joke about how they are going to hang themselves. It becomes a lot less funny. In today’s generation, more and more young people have depression and, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide is the second most common cause of death for high schoolers. With this statistic, I think it’s fair to say that it’s never okay to tell someone to kill themselves. It can be triggering or possibly even fatal. Next time you notice yourself or one of your friends making a suicide joke, try to catch it. Though it may seem innocent in the moment, by making the joke you’re contributing to a harmful social practice where everyone laughs when someone really needs help.
Their Heritage is Hate
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ver the summer, the nation was fixated on the demonstration in Charlottesville over the placement of a statue of the Confederate General Robert E. Lee. The rally that tore through Charlottesville left many with an all too familiar feeling of disbelief and disgust. To many, this display of blind nationalism was unimaginable. To the less naïve, this crime was as American as white-picketed fences. Stated simply, in reaction to the proposed BY ZUBIN removal of a statue of ABRAthe infamous ConfederHAM-AHMED ate General, an ignorant group rallied to protest the statue’s removal. While some people have embraced the American Confederacy’s hateful past, some blindly worship it or claim the need to honor the casualties. Yes, hundreds of thousands of Confederate soldiers died, but they died for nothing more than hate. A common argument of the statues’ supporters is that we have to preserve history and art. What goes unrecognized is that these removed monuments are
often merely relocated away from a town’s square or park. The president’s reaction was unhelpful. He fed the fire by straddling the line between irrational and thoughtless, issuing statements that only enable bigotry. To address the violence, the reality of the situation lies in its necessary and accurate categorization: domestic terrorism. This rally was not protection of art. This rally was not protection of heritage. People protecting the Confederacy speak of “heritage, not hate.” That couldn’t be further from the truth. Confederate heritage is hate. The Confederacy fought for slavery. Supporters of these statues want to honor battle for genocide and oppression. While the statue’s supporters speak of the importance of honoring history, they should examine the reality of the history they want represented. This commotion is a metaphor for the broader challenges of the unattainable American dream. No, taking down the statues is not censoring history. No, this outcry being made about the monuments is not liberal “snowflake” sensitivity again. This is about people being sensible for once.
About the Cover: This cover was inspired by the recent posters found around the neighborhoods near the school stating that we need to “Stop the UPrep Invasion.” This cover depicts the division and rising tension between UPrep and surrounding neighborhoods. – Carli Belouskas 4 University Prep • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • Vol. 35, No. 1
NEWS
NEWS BRIEFS
WHAT’S UP AROUND SCHOOL?
White Affinity Club
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t University Prep, there’s a new affinity club for white students, founded by physics teacher Moses Rifkin. The purpose of the club is to create a place for white students to come together and talk about racial identity, racism and how whiteness affects their lives. “I think all of our students have a racial identity that impacts their experience in the world,” Rif kin said. “The times where I have been encouraged to look at my own privilege have been limited. I would like to see a place where that happens more,” club leader and senior Allison Bunker said.
Minority students have concerns about the club, stating that an racial affinity group for the majority race is redundant. “Their main purpose is to help with social justice. But, by segregating the one race, they are creating another problem,” said sophomore Devin Wagner. Rifkin and Bunker encourage anyone with concerns about the club to come voice those concerns to them, and learn more about their purpose and agenda. “I know there are people who don’t feel jazzed about it,” Bunker said. “I understand that completely. To them, I say, ‘Ok, let me know why. Let’s talk about it!’”
Homecoming Was A Success
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his year’s homecoming was held at Emerald City Trapeze Arts. Under thick white trapeze nets, balloons, lights and streamers transformed the space into the perfect venue for partying. The dance was DJ’d by a student from Nathan Hale High School. A dance floor took up most of the space, while students who tired of dancing could sit at one of a few round tables at the back and snack on mini tarts. A corner was set up for photos, taken by junior Zach
Harvey. Students trickled in starting at 8PM, and most stayed for a few hours before leaving to get after-dance food or to hang out with their friends elsewhere. “The music wasn’t the best, but seeing all my friends all dressed up was fun,” sophomore Nubia Robles said. The dress code was semi-formal, so outfits ranged from velvet blazers jeans and flannel shirts. Overall, the dance was proclaimed a success by many and will be hard to top.
Spirit Week!
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niversity Prep’s annual Power Puff football game was a demoralizing 25-minute session of crushing defeat for the juniors. By the end, the scoreboard read 28-0, seniors. A key player for the senior girl’s team was senior Ellie Marks, who used her speed and force to lead her team to victory. The game was refereed by English teacher Alec Duxbury. The much-anticipated boy’s Buff Puff game was much closer than the Power Puff game. The lead bounced back and forth between the seniors and juniors, to the excitement and angst of the crowd. Buff Puff attire ranged from pink muscle T-shirts (juniors) to the iconic American
flag short-shorts worn by senior Donovan Bown. In the last 10 seconds of the match, the score was tied, 26-26, and a spike by junior Owen Morgan won the game for the junior’s team. The juniors then proceeded tcelebrate, which involved all the players to sit in a line on the court and mime rowing a boat. The homecoming assembly was the finale to Spirit Week. The assembly was outer space themed, and representatives from different houses competed in games such as “Saturn’s Rings,” (Hula-Hooping across the gym) and “Paper Rocket Building.” In the end, a clear victory was claimed by the Gray House.
Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 5
THE SCHEDULE SHUFFLE
PHOTO : OLIVIA POOLOS
NEWS
WHAT THE STUDENTS SAY
With UPrep’s new schedule, classes shift around each day BY AIDAN LEE fter a few years of planning, the new schedule is here. That means that the old color day schedule is now gone. This new schedule has 5 days of four classes, and adds two new parts to the day: Community Time and office hours. The change for returning students has been overall positive. People are enjoying the slower schedule with fewer classes, and an improved design for the schedule. A poll taken by the Puma Press shows that about two-thirds of students liked the new schedule, over the old one. However, there are also people who feel change is mandatory. Within the poll taken by the Puma Press, people were given the option to say what they wanted to change, and many people wanted the length of lunch to
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change. Because there are fewer periods in our school day, that made our classes longer. Every class is now one hour and ten minutes, which is longer than the old color days. However, everybody will be getting an equal amount of time in each class throughout the year. “I like how it spreads out homework more” said Junior John Higley, “I can prioritize my homework” This new schedule has been planned and worked on for about three years, and targeted the goal of slowing down the pace of day. “The reason we implemented this schedule, is to slow down the pace of the day a little bit as one of the major goals, and anecdotally, from what I hear, and what I observe, we are hitting that goal,” Director of Upper School
A QUICK LOOK AT INTENSIVES Coming soon: Intensives. Intensives are a focus period on a single class. These will substitute for the current four class a-day schedule, and will replace all classes currently taken with a single class. Currently, the plan
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Ken Jaffe said. Another change with this new schedule is when clubs occur. There is a new area of time called Community Time. This time is used for assembly, long advisory meetings, study hall and clubs. In previous years, many people would either make, or join clubs, which would meet during lunch. This year, it has changed, and clubs have been moved to community time. “I am very excited about the new Community Time, and how I can use the time for longer club meetings. However, I am not very fond of how they set up the club times in Community Time, as clubs will average about 2 hours a week of meeting time” freshman Aidan McHugh said. Another section within the schedule is office hours. Office hours are
is to implement intensives within two years. “The plan is to have the daily schedule to stay the same, but for there to be a six class cycle” said Associate Director of Upper school Sarah Peterson, “It’s not determined yet, so we ha-
used to study, or time where you are recommended to meet with a teacher so you can possibly discuss an upcoming test/quiz, or catch up on late work. This time can also be used as a personal study hall. Some students will prefer using this time to study, or complete work. “I think it’s a good time period, during the middle of the day where you have classes that you still need to go to, so you can finish the homework for those classes,” said sophomore Kodaren Anand normally, I complete homework either for today or for the next day” With the wait for the schedule now over, students are sharing their opinions on the change for the brand new schedule.
ven’t given up on 2018-19 yet” For this period of time, you will commonly have academic classes. You should be expecting a class like math. Remember, the teacher needs to fill the entire day with activities.
Best part of the new schedule? Fewer classes - 51% Later start time - 37% Other - 12%
Was the schedule an improvement? Yes - 71% Sort of - 49%
What would you change? Length of Lunch - 61% Community Time Length - 27% Length of Classes - 12%
STUDENT-LED ACTIVISM
NEWS
Feminism is a new class run by students, but getting to this point wasn’t easy
BY MAHIR PIYARALI hough the name is simple, “Feminism” is a new class with an interesting caveat: it’s entirely student-run. Seniors Abigail Donner and Emma Van Deursen created a class where students run the show. In a student-run class, there’s no active teacher in the room. According to sophomore Ashley Shackelton, this has brought benefits. “[Having] no teacher leads to students being more comfortable sharing ideas with their peers,” she said. Van Deursen agrees. “Without [teachers], it’s an environment where students feel comfortable talking about such difficult topics.” Though there’s no teacher in the room every class, there’s a faculty adviser who assists the class. “We plan out what we’re going to do and figure out how the class will be run and how to spend the time,” photography teacher and feminism class adviser E-chieh Lin said. After getting approved by the department for the course, Donner and Van Deursen submitted a proposal to the Instructional Learning Team. The ILT is a committee comprised of department heads and other administrators with the role of reviewing course proposals and giving feedback for revisions. “There was a lot of back and forth with the ILT with changes, recommen-
THE PROCESS OF MAKING A CLASS
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Secure a faulty adviser. Even though you will be the teacher of your class, there still needs to be a faculty advisory for meetings and guidance.
PHOTO: MAHIR PIYARALI
dations and disapproval,” Donner said. “[The ILT] gave feedback that the course needs to be more academic opposed to the advocacy-oriented proposal they gave us,” academic dean and ILT member Richard Kassissieh said. After reworking their course, Donner and Van Deursen met another roadblock. “They were then told that the course should be more advocacy-oriented,” Kassissieh said. After revising, they were met with more feedback. “[The ILT] then told us that it was too non-academic,” Lin said. This repeated rejection by the ILT led to frustration. “Once I heard all of this pushback, I realized
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
Besides not having an active teacher in the room, what are the differences between a student-led class and a normal class? First, at least in the case of Feminism, the class is only worth three credits as opposed to the normal five. “Because the class is only five credits, they don’t meet every class period,” Lin said. Instead, the class meets about two times a week, with the third class period becoming a free. Additionally, the leadership of the class is different to one of a normal class. Though Donner and Van Duersen created the class, they, too, are students. “We want to rotate leaders of units,” Shackelton said. “[Donner and Van Duersen] are leading the first unit because they
that there is some unconscious bias of sexism,” Lin said. Kassissieh has a different read on what happened. “We didn’t have a proper method for approving student-led courses,” he said. “So, we decided to treat [Donner and Van Deursen’s] class like a teacher-led one. This led to some mistakes in the review process.” Though the review process is over, some students feel like there’s pressure from the administration. “[The administration] is using this class as a way to judge if there will be more student-led classes,” Shackelton said. “We have to keep everything we do. We aren’t allowed to throw anything away.”
This idea was refuted by Kassissieh. “It’s true that we want to use the current course as a way to study student-led courses,” he said. “But, I haven’t asked them to not throw anything away. That’s their interpretation of what we told them.” Despite differing opinions, the class is in full swing. “Hopefully, we can change what feminism means at [UPrep],” Van Deursen said. Though the amount of pressure from the administration is debated, Donner has used this as a drive for making the class successful. “I want to show that this can be a success and that they won’t regret approving it,” she said.
Because the class isn’t a full, five credit, course. They don’t meet every period. When they do, it’s full of discussion on the applications of feminism in everyday life.
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Submit a proposal to the acadmic dean outlining curriculum, learning objectives and teaching methods.
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Present proposal to the Instructinal Learning Team and Academic Council for approval.
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Present approved course at the electives fair. Meet with adviser to plan the course for the following year.
created the class, but next unit that’ll change.” This means that the next unit the class decides to go into, there will be two new students taking the lead. Another difference, according to Shackelton, is in the actual curriculum of the course. “No one can physically assign us homework,” she said. “Any assignments that we end up doing, are assignments that we as a class agreed to do.” Lastly, the course is designed to be advocacy-orientated. “We’re going to try and do service projects in the community,” Van Duersen said. “We want to try and work at Mary’s Place and a few other women’s shelters around us.” Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 7
GROWING PAINS
FEATURE
WHAT DO THE NEIGHBORS SAY? “University Prep has been sneaky and subsequently disingenuous in their planning.”
“I suggest that UPrep consider ethics classes. And the first students I would suggest is the Board of Directors and Management.”
BY GRACE KELLOGG AND MICHO MATUSZEWSKI ver since University Prep’s founding in 1976, the student population has grown. With it, the school always worked to accommodate more students. From sharing space with Temple Beth Am, to renting portable classrooms to finally building the school we know today, UPrep has ever-expanded to fit a growing need for room. Now, there’s another expansion in the works. The expansion, including a “39,630 square foot, three story building with a partial basement and surface parking,” according to the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections Coversheet, will be constructed on the corner of Northeast 80th Street and 25th Avenue Northeast, diagonal to the current school buildings. The school envisions the expansion as its ticket to better accommodate an ever-growing student body. “There’s a demand for more students and we want to serve [that] demand,” Head of School Matt Levinson said. However, those living near the projected site
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have expressed concern over the expansion and the school’s handling of neighborhood interests. A public comment letter found on the city of Seattle’s website stress that “pedestrian safety, increased traffic, noise and neighborhood privacy” are huge concerns for families nearby. Nate Furman, UPrep neighbor, has serious concerns over the financial impact the expansion will have. “The project will … reduce the value of my home and my neighbors’ homes.” Furman said in a public comment letter to the city. “At least one real estate agent has submitted a signed statement ... that agent opined that a single-family home in the neighborhood would lose $50,000 to $75,000 in equity if this project is built.” Furman is not alone in his concern over a possible financial disconnect between the school and neighbors, and what that may mean down the line. Many neighbors are also aghast at what they feel is a visual and physical imposition into the neighborhood, and expressed such in their own letters
FAQ WITH THE CFO
Our questions, answered by UPrep Chief Financial Officer Susan Lansverk How much will it cost? approximately a year to build once we We are in the early design phase of the start construction, we don’t have a firm project, just step one of applying to build timeframe on when the new building will a school building on the Friends Church open for use. We are hoping for the fall property. We have more phases of design of 2020 or 2021, but we will need to be to complete before we have a cost. further along in the process to determine that. When is it going to be able to be used? What is going to be in it? There are several phases of design The expansion on the Friends Church and permitting with the city, and it’ll take property is for the ULab: An Individual
Learning Laboratory – this is a 39,000 sq.ft. building that includes modular classrooms, a makerspace, multi-purpose commons spaces, and a half court gym. Why is UPrep Expanding? We need expanded building space to increase the number of students who can come to UPrep, and to provide the most cutting-edge education possible to all of our students.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
Go to the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections at this link: http://web6.seattle.gov/dpd/edms/, and type in project number 3018711. You can find public comments and building plans for the school expansion.
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to the city. “The proposed building is totally out of scale with the surrounding neighborhood,” neighbor Marsha McGillivray said. In order to complete the new building, the current Friends Church and North East Tool Library would be deconstructed, both of which are viewed as important neighborhood assets by surrounding residents. “A school building is not going to look like a house,” Levinson said. “But there are ways to break up the large mass of a school building into smaller pieces [...] we made every attempt to do that in the design.” Posters placed in the surrounding area by the group Ravenwood United read: “Save our Neighborhood from this UPrep Invasion!” These posters included information on the building plan, stating that the expansion’s “current plans include a moat, skybridge and rooftop terrace.” When asked if the building plans include a moat, skybridge or rooftop terrace, Levinson said that “we don’t believe any of the features of our design would be considered a
FEATURE
The UPrep expansion causes a neighborhood stir WHAT DO THE NEIGHBORS SAY? “University Prep pursues a relentless quest for expansion and total disregard for my community. The proposed construction is completely inappropriate.”
moat or skybridge.” However, there will be a rooftop area that could be used for meetings or gatherings. One of the posters from those who oppose the current plan for expansion claimed that such an act would violate the school’s mission statement. The poster claimed it does not take into account the “interdependence and complex community” the neighborhood relies on. Posters also included statements saying that the expansion “had been planned for six years without community input.” However, Chief Financial Officer Susan Lansverk stated that the six-year secret planning schedule was inaccurate. “Yes, there were conversations with the church, but that’s not planning in secret,” Lansverk said. “We didn’t start designing the building until [...] last year.” According to Lansverk, the early conversations between the school and the Friends Church were preliminary discussions about the “possibilities down the road,” so that both the church and school would have time to consider the
options. The project was made public by the school on June 30, 2017. The school assembled a public forum in order to gain neighborhood feedback on the project. “We want to continue to hear concerns. [We need] to gather all that feedback, and then, [consider] ‘How do we evaluate the feedback as we move forward with designs?’” Levinson said. Levinson estimated the construction as ending in 2020 or 2021 in an ideal world, making current Upper School students unlikely to use the building during their tenure. Without experiencing the new building themselves, students seem neutral on the idea of a school expansion, somewhat due to the lack of information currently available to students. “There hasn’t been too much information but hopefully they’re gonna be coming out with more,” junior Sebastian Grathwol-Sear said. Sophomore Ella Durbin is also not entirely clear on what the expansion is and what to think about it. “I don’t really know how
Are you in support of a UPrep expansion? Yes - 75.9% No - 6.9% Unsure - 17.2%
Do you think that UPrep has a responsibility to the community to communicate on the buildin Yes - 82.8% “These rich families No - 17.2% Are you in support of ataken UPrep expansion? have enough Yes - 75.9% If the expansion was in your neighborhood, would you be concerned? ofUnsure the area as it is. ” No - 6.9% - 24.1% Unsure - 17.2% Yes - 41.4% Are you in support of a UPrep expansion? No - 34.5% Yes - 75.9% Do you think that UPrep has a responsibility to the community to communicate on the building plans? No - 6.9% Yes - 82.8% Unsure - 17.2% No - 17.2%
Do you think that UPrep has a responsibility to the community to communicate on the building plan If the expansion was in your neighborhood, would you be concerned? Yes - 82.8% Unsure - 24.1% No - 17.2% Yes - 41.4% to feel,” DurbinNo said. “I go - 34.5% If the expansion was in your neighborhood, would you be concerned? here, but I also feel bad beUnsure - 24.1% cause I wouldn’t want that Yes - 41.4% near my house.” Neighbor Linda Mar- No - 34.5% tin-Morris best summarized Are you in support of a UPrep Expansion? the overall opinion of the Yes = 75% neighbors. Unsure - 17% “In short, I’m OK with change. I’d love a school as No - 8% a neighbor. I’d even be OK with a private school as a neighbor. But, I want that school to act like a neighbor, with consideration and awareness of the needs of other neighbors.” Levinson believes the school has acted like a good Do you think UPrep has a responsibility to neighbor every step along the community to share plans? the way. Yes = 83% “We’re listening to the No - 17% concerns of the neighbors and plan to work to respond to those concerns as we work with the city during the permitting process,” he said. “Being a good neighbor is an ongoing process.” For now, the project is Would you be concerned of an expansion still in its feedback gatherin your neighborhood? ing phase, and the informaYes = 41% tion collected now could No - 36% affect the project’s future Unsure - 33% as a whole. Until more communication takes place, what comes next is an unknown quantity.
WHAT DO STUDENTS THINK?
FEATURE LAYOUT: MAHIR PIYARALI POLL GRAPHICS: CARLI BELOUSKAS BACKGROUND IMAGE: CREATIVE COMMON EDITORS’ NOTE: BACKGROUND IMAGE DOES NOT REFLECT UPREP EXPANSION PLANS
Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 9
PHOTO COURTESY: MELISSA FUNES
SENIOR NEWS WILLS
RAMBUNCTIOUS RAVING
DAYBREAKER proves waking up and dancing is worth getting up early
BY MELISSA FUNES From blocks away, I could hear music blaring, joyful cheering and a lot of jumping. Outside of the entrance to the rave, I saw a group of what looked like your average “yoga moms” dressed only in pajama onesies. I knew that this was going to be different. It was 10 am on a Saturday and I was going to a morning rave located at a penthouse in Fremont. Up a staircase towards the top of the penthouse, I was greeted by rainbow balloons, a birthday hat and confetti. Once inside, the atmosphere was hype. People were raving and everyone was smiling. The event is called DAYBREAKER, and it’s a yoga class followed by a day rave based on wellness,
dance and community. After going to the day rave, I can most definitely say it lives up to the hype. I started in the middle, where the DJ was located and the majority of people were raving, bubbling in and out of the center as they jumped. Even though there was a little mosh pit, it was all very relaxed and was primarily made up of sensible jumping. After 30 minutes of actively dancing with a 40-year-old mom wearing a shark pajama onesie and her nine-year-old son wearing Christmas pajamas, confetti, balloons and glitter were shot down on me from the balcony, It was time to go outside to re-energize myself with the complimentary Sparkling Ice drinks, four different types of Clif Bars and the most delicious
chocolate covered pretzels. Outside, yogis gathered, spinning on their heads, breakdancing and holding headstands. Everybody was so nice. Multiple people came up just to say hello and strike
“Words can’t even describe how many weird costumes I saw.” up conversation. The positive energy was outstanding, even with the kooky costumes. Not only did the costumes range from fiveyear-olds wearing blue dragon robes to 80-yearold couples sporting Pokemon onesie costumes but there were also people of all ages. I even saw UPrep’s very own Mr.
Marshall! For those uninterested in raving or being outside, there was an indoor balcony that overlooked the rest of the dancing, making it great people watching. As I watched the people below, I got easily distracted by the unconventional dance moves. One of my personal favorites consisted of a bunch of awkward hip twists followed by a really high leg kick, reminding me of an uncoordinated sock hop dance. Although I was out of my comfort zone and words can’t even describe how many weird costumes and dance moves I witnessed, I’m happy I went. In 20 years, if DAYBREAKER is still around, I know for a fact that I most definitely will be attending as a 38-year-old mom.
THE SCIENCE BEHIND MOVEMENT IN THE MORNING
WHAT’S SO BENEFICIAL ABOUT GETTING UP AND DANCING? According to the New York Times, it’s has been proven that people are happier when they get up and move - starting their day on a more energized note. The goal of
10 University Prep • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • Vol. 35, No. 1
most morning dance parties such as DAYBREAKER is to create an entirely new genre of experience. DAYBREAKER specifically is focused on bringing people together to start
the day in a more present, healthy and creative way. The founder of DAYBREAKER, Matt Brimer, said the idea came from his desire to get moving before the day broke
with people he loves. Considering that most people appeared to feel transformed both physically and mentally after shows that the idea has come to life.
Running around and dancing with the ballons as confetti was shot down on the crowd was extremely fun.
5 ESSENTIAL ITEMS FOR EVERY DAY RAVE
1
Glitter: Nothing says I’m ready to party like a little extra sparkle.
2
Portable Charger: Its always necessary to make sure you can keep your phone charged no matter how long you are raving.
3
Water: It is always important to stay hydrated, especially when sweating.
4
Comfy Closed Toed Shoes: Nothing can ruin a good time like your toes getting smashed.
5
Fanny Pack: A good easy place to put your portable charger, water, glitter and any other extra items!
NEWS
UPREP OR HOGWARTS?
The house system has arrived at University Prep, and its here to stay
something that our school BY IAN LEE has struggled with,” Peterhis year, the house son said. system is in full The house system might swing at Universibe able to create more ty Prep. With it came a cross-grade unity and foscouple of changes to the ter UPrep’s often missing organization of the Upper school spirit. Sophomore School. Jason Xu agrees that it First, four ‘Harry Potmight create more unity. ter’-esque houses based off “I think the house sysof the colors of the previtem was put in place to ous schedule’s days of the combine people from difweek. A blue house, green ferent grades and establish house, white house and connection with them. grey house were created. You see people in your The class cup became the class mostly every day house cup. “As the school has grown larger and, in the last decade, “There was a conwe have gone from nection between mixed grade advisories to single grade students across advisories, there grades that had was a connection between students been lost.” across grades that -ASSISANT HEAD OF UPPER had been lost. The question was how SCHOOL SARAH PETERSON can we have a formal structure to have but not so much with the interaction across grades,” other grades, so I think Assistant Head of Upper the house system will School Sarah Peterson allow people to bond with said. different grade levels,” Xu The idea of a house said. system is not original to Sophomore Charlie UPrep. Though a Hogwarts Kauffman thinks that the and ‘Harry Potter’ relahouse system is fine, but tionship might be drawn, could be improved. that wasn’t the original “I think the house sysinspiration. Instead, the tem is an interesting way idea of a house system was to create communities in drawn from other schools the school. However, the across the country. point system for the house “We aren’t the only cup could be better. It’s school in the universe that hard to verify who was does this. Plenty of other at what sporting event schools across the country for instance,” Kauffman have implemented this said. successfully, and it has There are things he does helped foster school spirit,
STUDENT OPINON ON THE HOUSE SYSTEM
T
Do you like the house system at University Prep?
Yes 17% No 70% Unsure 13% Do you like having a house cup instead of the class cup?
PHOTO: YEARBOOK
like about the house cup though. “I think the house cup is a better system than the class cup, because it lessens the chance of seniors always winning,” he said. “I have talked to some students about the houses and they have seemed reasonably enthusiastic about it. Change is legitimately hard for high school populations. They don’t always know what the school has been like before they were there,” Peterson said. “The
house system currently is a work in progress, but it has been working well so far,” Peterson said. However, Peterson does not want to leave the future of the house system just for the administration to decide. “I think there are lots of cool possibilities for what could happen within the house system in the future. I would encourage students to think about what it could be used for,” Peterson said.
Earlier this year at Field Day, members of the Upper School got to show off their new house t-shirts as they competed against each other for the first time.
Would you like to go back to the class cup system?
Yes 45% No 45% Unsure 10%
CURRENT HOUSE SCORES 85 63 57 51 Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 11
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SENIOR WILLS
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK Another year brings fresh faces to UPrep
BY JADE BUCHANAN-MOH AND SYDNEY HURST AXEL ANDREWS, FRESHMAN “[UPrep] is a really cool campus with a lot of great teachers and kids.”
JACOB TAYLORMOSQUERA, SPANISH “I’m starting a book project. It’s a big personal goal right now. There’s a book already published, with 16 other authors, that we published to get funds for Colombian adoptees to pay for DNA testing. This other book is much more of a personal memoir.”
DANIELLA SANCHEZ, SOPHOMORE “The community here has been very welcoming so far. The teachers are helpful and the students are very open once you get to know them.”
MOLLY ROBERSTON, ENGLISH “I’ve been at an all-boys school for the past five years, so this is definitely a new experience. I’m also struck by how committed everyone in the building is to being the best they can be. It’s a very exciting feeling.”
NOUR ASSILI, JUNIOR “[Being an exchange student in a foreign country] gets you outside your comfort zone. It challenges you to learn more about yourself and about the world.”
PHOTOS: JADE BUCHANAN-MOH AND SYDNEY HURST
ALANA KAHOLOKULA, ENGLISH “I would like to develop a strong working relationship with my students. I think that it’s really important to be somebody that they can trust and come to to ask for help. I feel like that’s something I want to do for them.”
Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 13
REVIEWS
LI’L WOODY’S A BIG SUCCESS Trying out Capitol Hill’s popular burger spot a nice rustic feel with its BY JAMES GARVEY wood countertops and fter a brisk, lateopen kitchen. night walk near After looking at the the heart of Capitol menu, I decided on someHill, I found a little burger thing on the less exotic joint tucked away. From side and got a classic Li’l the outside, Li’l Woody’s Woody looks burger, like a “Definitely one of chochub olate for the the best burgers milkwandershake ers of I’ve ever had.” and a Capitol —RANDOM CAPITOL HILL side of Hill. A BURGER ENTHUSIAST fries, burger which outpost was for named “crack” by the those looking for a postrestaurant. For what I night-out meal, the spot ordered, the price was fair, consistently has a line coming to a total of $12. winding out the door. Although the wait for After a quick wait, I was my food was longer than greeted by the smell of I expected, it was defipatties on the grill and nitely worth it, because onion rings in the fryer. you could see it being The restaurant gave off
A
freshly prepared right in front of you. Seating was limited, but I was able to snag a spot upstairs where I swear it felt like 100 degrees. Finally, I got to sit down and enjoy my meal. The burger was topped with cheddar cheese and a handful of chopped onion and pickles, along with a generous portion of ketchup and mayo. Biting in, I could immediately tell that this was not your average backyard burger. The bun was perfectly crisp and the beef was cooked just right. The fresh onion and pickle added a nice balance, layer of flavor and texture to the greasy dish. Next up: the fries. They came in a basket filled to the brim and wet with
PHOTO: JAMES GARVEY
grease. To my disappointment, they were fairly bland and only had a hint of salt. If you’ve ever had Dick’s fries, then you know exactly what I’m talking about. Luckily, I’d ordered a chocolate milkshake, which was definitely the right choice. I overheard that dipping fries in the milkshake made them one thousand times better. Turns out, whichever drunk guy came up with
that knows what he’s talking about. After savoring my burger and experiencing the milkshake and fry combo, I knew that this place was special. The environment was crowded but cozy at the same time. The food was a satisfying slice of comfort that left me stuffed. I would definitely recommend Li’l Woody’s for anyone looking for a damn good burger. Grade: A
Li’l Woody’s Burgers acts as a central hub and meeting place for all Capitol Hill goers. The exceptional food keeps lines out the door.
SUBSCRIBE TO THE PUMA PRESS! For only $9.95, get every issue from the 35th volume of UPrep’s student newspaper mailed to your home. Email scollins@universityprep.org for more info.
14 University Prep • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • Vol. 35, No. 1
SPORTS
NO CUTS, NO BUTS
Allowing everyone to play sports may lead to problems BY AARON IGRA ot every player on University Prep’s junior varsity ultimate team is allowed to play in every game. Not because they haven’t had ten practices. Not because they’ve done something wrong. But because the team is too large to have everyone play in every game. This is a repercussion of University Prep’s no-cut policy. A no-cut policy means that every student who tries out for a sport ends up on a team—usually varsity or junior varsity. “Saying to someone you’re not good enough or you’re not qualified doesn’t fit with our mission of being an inclusive community,” Athletic Director Rebecca Moe said. However, with everybody guaranteed to play on a team, you end up with a much wider range of skill levels on each team. “Coaches will go back to the basics, just to reteach stuff to the people who are not as experienced. It takes a while to get back up to where someone who’s very experienced is,” senior basketball player Kyle Hodge said. Hodge isn’t the only one who takes issue with UPrep’s no-cut policy. “It can be kind of difficult to deal with people of different levels. You get people who have played their whole lives and people trying it out just because the school offers it,” sophomore soccer player Ashley Shackelton said.
QUOTES ABOUT THE NO-CUT POLICY
N
“It creates an inclusive and fun dynamic”
“It allows beginners to learn without expectations” PHOTO: YEARBOOK
Students also believe cross country and baseball that having a no-cut policy player Jacob Fried said. lowers the caliber and Others students believe image of our athletics that a no-cut policy takes program. This primarily away from the quality of affects the prothem gram. out“Sports “Saying to someone side of exist for you’re not good school, people as opto excel, enough...doesn’t fit posed and if you with our mission” to on don’t excel, the there may —ATHLETIC DIRECTOR field. be a better REBECCA MOE “I place for have you. No gotten crap from my select cut takes away from the team simply because my reputability of the sports school has a no cut policy. and from the recognition It makes the program less of athletes whose talent legitimate,” sophomore earned them a place on
the team,” junior cross country and track runner Ailey Birkeland said. Although UPrep allows everyone a chance to play, UPrep varsity teams try to win even if it means benching a lot of players. “We need to put the 11 players out on the field who are going to get us the best result,” Shackelton said. This goal of winning is prevalent throughout UPrep’s athletic program, including the athletics director. “Our varsity teams still strive for excellence. We like to win, we expect to win, and we do win,” Moe said.
UPrep’s no-cut policy leads to many players spending a lot of time on the bench.
“Bad players drag down the team’s quality and are a nuisance.”
“The variety of effort affects our progress as a team”
BENCHWARMERS The University Prep junior varsity ultimate team is massive with 24 players. Only seven players are on the field at a time, leading to a lack of playtime for many players. Transportation is also an issue as the entire junior varsity team and the varsity team do not fit on a single bus. One of the solutions the athletics department has tried is by having an active roster
for each game. 17 players are on this roster each game, while the rest have practice. Every player id on the active roster at least once, but the better the player is the more often he’ll be on the active roster, with the best players playing in every game. Between 9/18 and 9/20 there were three games with active rosters. To the right is how many of the games each player played.
How many games did each player play? One Game - 6 Players Two Games - 7 Players Three Games - 10 players
Vol. 35, No. 1 • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • University Prep 15
BACK PAGE
“If I can’t understand basic humor how am I supposed to get into college? “
“I would proudly disappoint Ellie Goulding for 30 seconds.”
“Quest. It’s like brunch, but for assessments.”
“I’m gonna marry interracially. It’s decided.”
“I’m a cowboy by marriage.”
HEARD IN THE
“I’ve never been so happy to see an Italian lingerie shop.”
HALLWAYS No, we don’t make these up
“It’s a trailer for a ballet, but it does look like she’s naked.”
“How do you tell a girl her eyebrows are too fuerte?”
“Science class: elitism is her middle name.”
“I can’t look through the microscope. My eyelashes are too big.”
Illustrious Illustrations by Micho Matuszewski
SCHEDULE SHENANIGANS
RANTS
• UPrep’s gene pool is extremely limited • Mr. Collins doesn’t like Sean Kingston • Going to advisory before lunch is idiotic • Perreten won’t let us stay in his AirBnB • It’s college application crunch time • We’re not as funny as we thought we were... 16 University Prep • OCTOBER 11, 2017 • Vol. 35, No. 1
&
RAVES
• PSL szn!!! • Mr. Collins knows all the lyrics to Ignition • We got nominated for *another* Pacemaker • Seattle will have a female mayor • It’s sunny in October • Homecoming was #litty