The Standard - Issue1 - 2018/19

the Standard

The American School in London | One Waverley Place | London NW8 0NP U.K. | standard.asl.org

NEWS, 2-4 Revisions to Code of Conduct Students react to the changes made to the official document and the newly-oultined repercussions for infractions

PAGE 2

OPINIONS, 5-9 Editorial: Support for students lacking With the inevitable pressures of high school, the Editorial Board discusses why there is a need for an increased presence of the student support team.

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FEATURES,10-18 Managing time away from school Prolonged leaves of absence can have implications for both teachers and students.

Members of the community speak on their experiences.

PAGES 16-17

CULTURE, 19-21 Remembering the Queen of Soul

Students and teachers reflect on Aretha Franklin’s legacy and the impact her music has had on them.

PAGE 21

SPORTS, 22-24 What’s the point of athletics?

Explaining the physical and mental benefits of athletics and why they make it a beneficial activity for all students.

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A familiar face

A London resident since 1965, and a member of the ASL security team for two decades, Access Control Officer Bhupendra Patel is a recognizable figure across several generations.

John Towfighi | Lead Features Editor

Story on pages 10-11 September/October 2018 | Volume 44, Issue 1

NEWS

Code of Conduct revised

Examining the reasoning behind the changes made to the High School Code of Conduct and the community response to the new document.

SOPHIE ASHLEY

LEAD NEWS EDITOR

At the beginning of the school year, a new Code of Conduct was introduced in both the High School and the Middle School.

Starting from April 2018, the principals, assistant principals, and deans of the High School and Middle School began to draft the new document, the main goal being to increase transparency and clarity of the document, as well as develop one consistent document between the two factions of the school.

The draft was completed in June, when Head of School Robin Appleby and the school’s legal advisors then edited it to make sure its contents were legal and in accordance with U.K. child safeguarding laws.

Director of Student Life James Perry cited the reasoning behind these changes to the switch in division heads over the last two years.

“When new division heads, in this case [High School Principal Devan Ganeshananthan], or new Head of Schools come in, they generally take a year and just absorb and just listen,” Perry said. “What [Appleby] realized was that we could probably improve a little bit in our documentation around discipline and the code of conduct.”

One way the administration executed these goals was through the addition of Level I, II and III infractions, the number denoting the level of severity of the action, as well as far more specific detailings of punishable offenses.

“If students can’t do x or can’t do y, let’s list it somewhere,” Perry said. “If [the administration] feel like something is a big deal, like harassment, then let’s make it a big deal and make sure that we give it its weight in the documentation.”

In addition to more specific disciplinary guidelines and their lev-

els of severity, the administration included a new statement defining harassment. Ganeshananthan, along with Perry and Director of College Counseling and Academic Advising Anne Richardson, worked together to write this statement. It was inspired by that of Ganeshananthan’s previous high school, Edgemont Junior/Senior High School in Scarsdale, New York.

While the statement of harassment at Edgemont Junior/Senior High School was required by New York State law, Ganeshananthan found that it was extremely successful. “Once the law came in and once we recreated the Code of Conduct to have a statement that aligned with that law, we definitely saw students and parents feeling more comfortable [and that resulted in] a rise in reporting rate,” he said.

Additionally, Ganeshananthan noticed that the statement of harassment at his previous school made it easier to identify cases of harassment and take action. “Because things were focused a little bit more… , people then felt a little bit more comfortable, and were like, ‘oh, this is happening, and this falls under

tects both potential victims and potential aggressors.”

One section of the new Code of Conduct that has caused controversy within the community has been the “Respect for Self ” section. This section details that “We expect students to respect their bodies and minds. Alcohol, drugs, tobacco, nicotine and e-cigarettes/vaporizers are all potential dangers to the health and safety of the individual, as well as to a sound learning environment. Possession, use, transmission or being under the influence of any illegal drug or U.K.-banned substance is prohibited. The misuse of prescription and nonprescription drugs is also prohibited, as is distributing prescription drugs to others. Cigarettes, e-cigarettes, “Juuls,” vaping or drug paraphernalia, alcohol or other intoxicants are not allowed on campus.”

Members of the community have also raised concern about the following infractions: “possession, use, transmission or being under the influence of any illegal drug or banned substance, alcoholic beverage, e-cigarette, paraphernalia or intoxicant of any kind”, “possession or transmission of a facsimile of any illegal drug or banned substance, alcoholic beverage, e-cigarette or paraphernalia” and “willingly and knowingly being in the presence of those who are in possession of, using, transmitting, or being under the influence of any illegal drug or banned substance, alcoholic beverage, e-cigarette or intoxicant of any kind.”

After reading these Level III infractions, Isabel Rosen (’19), wrote a letter on the back of her Code of Conduct contract detailing the issues she had with these sections, and posted it on the Grade 12 Facebook group.

“The problem that I saw with [the alcohol section] was that it was really open ended and really vague, and would give the administration power to have punishing powers over a lot of activities that don’t really have

THERE’S ABSOLUTELY NO INTENTION TO POLICE PEOPLE’S PRIVATE LIVES AND WHAT THEY’RE DOING ON A FRIDAY NIGHT. ROBIN APPLEBY, HEAD OF SCHOOL

2 News

harassment, and I should go make a report about this’.”

Perry notes that the statement of harassment is crucial, especially at an international school like ASL. “We’re a very diverse school and I don’t want there ever to be confusion about whether or not you can mess around with someone about their background or about their this or their that,” he said. “Hopefully it’s very clear, and hopefully it pro-

Isabel Rosen’s (’19) complaints regarding certain aspect of the new code of conduct, written on the back of her code of conduct upon returning it in to her advisor.

PHOTO BY ISABEL ROSEN anything to do with the school, like people drinking at their homes, or going out, if they were over 18 and purchasing alcohol,” she said.

It was specifically the wording of these sections, rather than the content, that bothered Rosen. “I feel like the focus you can see [of these sections is students] witnessing someone consuming alcohol or under the influence of alcohol or other drugs,” she said. “It just seems to go a little too far. I think that [the administration] should make all consumption rules [specific to students being] on school campus for code of conduct violations.”

In response to this controversy, Appleby wants to reassure students that the administration is not searching to get involved with student’s off campus activities unless it is necessary. “There’s absolutely no intention to police people’s private lives and what they’re doing on a Friday night, what they’re doing outside the school,” she said. “The school has always reserved the right to potentially have disciplinary consequences to

things that happen outside of school if those things are very very serious and impact the safety of students or the educational environment.”

In regards to the infraction surrounding being in the presence of intoxicated people, Appleby states that this rule mostly applies to on-campus behavior. “[This infraction is] really connected to on-campus behavior because everyone knows that drugs and alcohol are not allowed on campus,” she said. “We want other kids who might find themselves in the presence of somebody who had decided to do that, to realize that they really shouldn’t be there because we don’t want them to get inadvertently dragged into problems. But we’re not interested in punishing people who happen to be around people who are doing things that are wrong.”

During the last week of September, the Code of Conduct began a process of review by the board of trustees. Members of the administration also hope to get student input on certain sections, such as the dress code.

The Standard

Editorial

Integrating immigrants

Members of the community discuss ways Europe and the United States can improve the incorporation of immigrants into their society.

LEA GEORGE

is reflected poorly on everyone else,” she said.

Laxer also voiced her appreciation Over the past five years, many Euro- of Merkel’s decision to accept such pean countries have seen an increase in a large number of immigrants into incoming immigrant population. This Germany. “Merkel’s move was a bold has led to many opposing beliefs regard- one. I’m very impressed by it, and so I ing countries’ welcome policies, and the think more countries need to be willway immigrants are integrated into so- ing to upset the status quo for other ciety. In 2015, Chancellor of Germany human beings,” she said.

Social Studies Teacher Chris Wolf Angela Merkel welcommed around 1.3 million immigrants, which has been agrees with Laxer regarding Merkel’s both widely admired and criticized by decision to accept such a large number the German population. A homicide oc- of immigrants. “I think it was not only curred recently in the town of Chemnitz good, but necessary,” he said. Wolf’s in far east Germany, where two immi- support of Merkel’s decision to accept grants of Syrian and Iraqi backgrounds such a large numbers of immigrants were found guilty of the murder of a 35 stems from the fact that he deems it cruyear old citizen. Many have seen this cial for Germany’s economy.

Due to the birth rate in European murder as another opportunity to quescountries decreasing, governments have tion the safety of german citizens.

Recently, many right wing Ger- found that the tax paying community man conservative citizens have tak- is smaller, and families are no longer reen to the streets to protest against placing themselves.

Wolf said that politicians were Merkel’s welcome policy. This was followed by a counter demonstra- aware of this, and have started acttion by citizens that were protesting ing accordingly, which is the primary against anti-semitism, racism xeno- reason Merkel has accepted so many immigrants into Germany, and why phobia, to protest such ideologies.

Beatrix von Storch, leader of the Al- he believes other European countries ternative for Germany (AfD), a far right should follow her lead.

“The biggest part is that economiparty in Germany, said that 447 murders have been committed in the last year by cally, if Europe can’t figure out how to integrate immigrant populations then illegal immigrants.

However, Germany’s Interior Min- pretty shortly, within the next 20 to 30 istry revealed that only 27 illegal immi- years, they won’t be able to generate the grants attempted or committed crime revenues to actually keep their countries in 2017. With tension amongst poli- going. Their countries are going to go ticians and the public rising, Merkel’s bankrupt,” he said.

In addition to Wolf, Connor Eaton policies have never been questioned (’21) feels that other European countries more than they are now.

Isabelle Laxer (’21), a member of should have followed Merkel’s decision.

Model United Nations, believes that “What I would have liked to have seen the protests that have risen against though is more cooperation from the Merkel’s decision to accept immi- rest of the European Union. I hope that grants are stereotypes of the situa- there was a more equally distributed of tion. She emphasized that one cannot load [of refugees],” Eaton said.

Additionally, Laxer feels that globmake such a big generalization based off of one person’s bad decision. Laxer ally, we are not doing enough to sucrelated this to ISIS and Islamophobia. cessfully integrate immigrants into the “That’s what’s been happening a lot in everyday lives of countries. Although she terms of Muslims where a teeny tiny believes that there are countries successfraction acts horribly, and that fully accommodating their immigrants into society, the job programs for immigrants are weak in the integration of people into the workforce. “There’ are so many people from They Syria...who have the skills [ i m stop and have the potential to migr b a e work [in] higher [paying] cage ing tre nts] n e jobs,” she said. s, th a ey n ted like ed to Laxer stressed the imporeed treat to st dogs in tance of remembering the fact e d art b Isab like h that most of these immigrants e elle Laxe umans. ing once had successful jobs, and r (’2 that their knowledge should not 1) go to waste because of their current status. Furthermore, Laxer said that the quality of the refugee camps,

NEWS EDITOR: PRINT

“

ILLUSTRATION BY GABY IWEGBUE where many refugees are kept for shelter are “horrible”.“They [immigrants or refugees] need to stop being treated like dogs in cages, they need to start being treated like humans.”

Nadeen Kablawi (’19) worked at a refugee camp in Lesbos, Greece over the past summer. “It was extremely overcrowded, one of the camps fits 800 people, but it had about 2000... electricity and water are very limited so only a few people had access to it,” she said.

Laxer believes that countires could improve the living and integration conditions for immigrants by providing immigrants more language courses and medical access.

Kablawi added that although language pograms did exist in the camps, they were limited. “It was really hard to communicate with them because they all spoke different languages so they couldn’t really talk to each other or talk to all the volunteers either. I was the only volunteer who spoke Arabic,” she said.

Wolf also believes that there are many ways countries, especially the U.S., could be improving the integration of its refugees and immigrants.“ I think the government [of the U.S.] does a terrible job of integrating immigrants and setting them up for success,” he said.

Wolf explained that the U.S. government separates immigrants into “settlement zones” based off of where they believe the certain population of immigrants will be able to integrate easier. Wolf feels that removing these settlement zones, it will decrease the feeling of segregation and solitude for the rest of society. “They feel isolated. “Once they’re [in the settlement zones], they’re

expected to kind of get on with it, and they are spread out all across the country, which turns out to be way farther and way bigger than any other experiences.”

Kablawi also said that this separation between the refugees and the rest of society is also seen in Lesbos. “I think that the Greek government does not want them to be integrated. They are very separated from the rest of the population in the main city, Mytilini,” she said.

In regards to the rise of extreme right wing views across Europe, Wolf believes that such perspectives often arise amongst those in less wealthy socio-economic backgrounds who feel that their government is helping foreigners rather than aiding their own people.“[The less wealthy citizens] see their government giving out money to foreigners, and yet they don’t have a lot. So, what they begin to coalesce around is this idea of the, ‘we’re being victimized because our government doesn’t spend that kind of money on u s , they spend t h a t kind of money on these other people’,” Wolf said.

Wolf believes that such people also blame refugees for making them pay higher taxes, yet they

fail to remember that if the refugees had not entered their country, taxes would be even higher.

Wolf feels that one of the ways to possibly avoid such conclusions, in Germany specifically, would be if Merkel had clarified what her intentions were when accepting 1.3 million refugees. “In the way of preparing the population to receive these people and integrate them and assimilate them, that’s a different story. That’s where there needs to be more effort.”

Additionally, Eaton feels that the rise of right wing extremism is due to the need to accuse refugees. “You can blame these people for these issues, blame them for terrorism in Germany, blame them for labor market decline in Germany...

It’s just an easy way to push an agenda that’s built on blame and hatred,” he said.

re p l e we o e p n lio 9.5 mil untries.

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STATISTICS FROM REFUGEECOUNCIL.ORG AND UNHCR.ORG

September/October 2018

News 3

Breaking new ground More than halfway through the renovation of the Waverley Entrance, the main focus remains on the demolition of the previous entranceway and the temporary security changes required to accommodate the process.

SOPHIE ASHLEY

LEAD NEWS EDITOR

HOUDAH DANIELS STAFF WRITER

The construction on the new continued through the summer months and currently is making progress to be opened in January 2019. The new design was a collaborative effort between professional architects and

above the bookstore and kitchen.

This will prevent leaks in that area once the project is done.

As the school finishes week 14 of the construction, many changes have been made to accommodate the process, including a temporary entrance.

Head of School Robin Appleby noted that the temporary entrance at the Community Arts Building was a necessary addition. “You still want to have a gate on Waverley because when people get off the tube, or

Members of the contracting team began demolishing the asphalt in front of the school over the summer. developers, as well as several members of the ASL community. The new Waverley entrance is expected to be narrower, and will also have a glass canopy roof to serve as rain protection. Additionally, the new design will allow for an easy-access elevator for wheelchair users as well as those with strollers.

The purpose of the renovation was to update the previous design in terms of aesthetics as well as for security reasons, which was driven by the need to renovate the stairs.

After 14 of the 24 scheduled weeks of construction, most of the focus has been on the demolition of the main staircase, the portland stones on either side of it and the asphalt in front. Director of Operations Jim Heynderickx highlights the importance of taking this stage of the construction process slowly as, “[the asphalt between the sidewalk and the island] is literally the roof and ceiling of the bookstore and the kitchen.”

The construction team had to remove the pavement stones and break up the asphalt in order to remove and replace a waterproofing layer

4 News

where we need the buses to pull in, you don’t want them to have to go all the way round to Loudoun,” she said. “That was a gate that already was there for emergency egress when we built the Art Building so it made sense to put it there.”

Meher Deol (’19) noted the current impact the temporary entrance has had on her day to day experiences at school. “I’m glad we actually have two entrances [as opposed to Loudoun accommodating for both] because it’s easier to leave and go [to] the High Street,” she said. “I think the only thing about the new entrance is that you have to walk across Waverley Park, and it can get really crowded. A lot of Middle School, or Lower School, kids play there so it is hard to get across.”

A change to accommodate this crowding is through the revision of bus schedules before and after school hours. The school buses which journey to and from student’s houses, as well as those for sport practices, have been split up between Loudon Road and the new entrance. “We split it up to have less traffic back up,” Appleby

said. “[The school] didn’t want the busses to clog up the whole street and bother the neighbors.”

The reception area, whose previous home was in the Waverley Entrance, now resides in the lobby of the Community Arts Building.

There have been additional security implementations to enhance the safety of the temporary entrance; however, from a security perspective, Head of Security Roi Yefet said that it doesn’t make a significant difference.

“We moved the desk, we added one more camera, we have security guards standing outside, so basically nothing has changed,” he said.

Throughout the construction process, the security team has also implemented new access control and other security measures. One new measure is the updated ID card system. “It’s a completely new system. It’s unhackable,” Yefet said. “It’s the same piece of plastic but the language inside is completely different… it’s more secure.”

To replace the barriers at the Waverley entrance, security guards are now standing outside the temporary entrance with hand-held technology that identifies members of the community from a swipe of their card. They are often used at less busy times, such as in between classes or on weekends, rather than drop-off and pick-up.

These changes, as well as an additional camera at the temporary entrance, have been put in place for a more secure, strengthened system overall.

Even with the security updates, Appleby emphasized that there has

The new design features two narrow entrances, a glass canopy covering an outside area, and an elevator for disabled use. The new entrance will open in January 2019 been no threat assessed. “It was a bit of an old-fashioned design that we had before, most new buildings aren’t built with a completely open front, the way we had the steps,” she said. “[The redesign kills] two birds with one stone, getting a better entrance that’s aesthetically pleasing and one that’s safer.”

Heynderickx, among others, met with the contractors for an update on the Waverley Entrance renovation project on September 11, as it passed its half-way point on the schedule.

The construction remains on track and on budget, with an estimated

completion date of December 3, 2018. “That [completion date] also gives us a bit of a buffer,” Heynderickx said. “If [the contractors] run into one or two week delays it’s OK, because that just extends it into December break.”

The project, at an estimated cost of £1.8 million, was funded by fundraisers through members of the community. None of the money used was taken from tuition or any school reserves.

Even with possible delays, access to the main Waverley Entrance will be fully restored in early January.

The asphalt outside of the Waverley Entrance was removed in order to replace the water-proofing layer above the kitchen and book store. ALL PHOTOS FROM JIM HEYNDERICKX

The Standard

EDITORIAL

Taking care?

CARTOON BY GABY IWEGBUE (’19) The stress of high school can often feel overwhelming. Many students struggle with heavy workloads, time consuming extracurriculars and pressures that come from an active social life.

This Editorial Board believes it is important that students feel they have a trusted support system within the school that they can rely on.

While the school provides students with a counselor, there are almost 500 students in the High School. Although we recognize that many other high schools in the U.S. have a greater number of students to counselor ratio, it is unrealistic and unfair to both the students and the counselor to have only one person caring for over 500 students.

Students should be able to establish a relationship with the counselor, but the overwhelming ratio of students to the counselor prohibits the formation of a meaningful one.

Similarly, we believe that it is unwise to assume that all students are willing to see a counselor whom they do not know very well, as it results in students not reaching out to the counselor when an issue arises.

Although the advisory program was intended to act as a solution to this, it is evident from student feedback that this is not the case. Students only meet with their advisor twice a week, and as a result, meetings to discuss heavier topics such as stress and anxiety are frequently rushed.

Additionally, advisors are also teachers and have to account for and prioritize their classes, which does not always leave them with the time to build strong relationships with their advisees.

Moreover, with the continual changes in advisors and the advisory program, some students have had a different advisor every year, defeating the purpose of creating long-lasting connections over two years.

Moreover, the assembly on safeguarding on October 2 prompted some questions for this Editorial Board as the purpose of the safeguarding team remains unclear. At what stage should students approach those on the team over the counselor? Is the safeguarding team intentioned for students to report concerns about others, or primarily themselves? Although safeguarding provides a secondary support system to students,

many of the adults on the team are unfamiliar to students, thereby making it more unlikely for students to utilize this resource.

Therefore, we believe that, should resources and budget permit, the school should attempt to hire a second counselor. Although we acknowledge that hiring a new member of staff is expensive, we view this as a beneficial use of resources as it would drastically lower the student to counselor ratio in the High School. Having two counselors would not only provide optionality to students and reduce the pressure on the sole counselor, but also cultivate more individualistic relationships between students and counselors.

Furthermore, the counselor needs to be more visible within the school. The Editorial Board believes the counselor should attend and lead assemblies and classes throughout the year to describe their role and encourage students to reach out to them. These meetings would allow students to know when to approach the counselor or talk to them about another friend.

Additionally, making the counselor’s role more public would be beneficial to new students

as they would be made aware of ASL’s support system from the get-go. A counselor is an important resource in the High School, and it is crucial for students to not only be aware of it, but to also utilize it when necessary.

Another solution to the lack of visible support would be to further integrate the peer leadership program into the High School.

Younger members of the community can better connect with other students who have experienced similar academic and social pressures of high school. As of now, peer leaders attend a Grade 9 advisory each week, but there seems to be a deficit for the rest of the community.

This program ought to be expanded in order to provide another opportunity for students to communicate their issues. With the proper training, peer leaders would be able to efficiently pass on information to the counselor.

With extra support from the school in the form of another counselor, further visibility of the counselor, and more effective integration of the peer leadership program, a safer and more supportive environment can be created.

ANANYA PRAKASH Editor-in-Chief PHAEDRA LETROU Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Print ALEXANDRA GERS Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Online CHRISTINA LEONARD Online Director SOPHIE ASHLEY Lead News Editor LEA GEORGE News Editor: Print JONATHAN NOVAK News Editor: Online JONATHAN PHILIPS Opinions Editor JOHN TOWFIGHI Lead Features Editor MARTHA DUFF Features Editor ISABELLE LHUILIER Features Editor NAZ OZTURK Culture Editor: Print ROHAN HAARMANN Culture Editor: Online LILY WHITMAN Sports Editor: Print MICHAEL FLAHERTY Sports Editor: Online QUINN WHITMAN Media Director EMILY FORGASH Media Editor IMOGEN WEISS Media Editor SHANNON MILLER Adviser

MISSION STATEMENT The Standard staff and adviser are dedicated to creating a collaborative, open forum that cultivates productive dialogue within the School community by publishing exemplary student news media according to the strictest standards of journalistic integrity.

the same location issue-to-issue represent the majority opinion of the editorial board. They are unsigned.

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STAFF WRITERS Sal Cerrell, Lucas Romualdo, Allegra Albanese, Eli Nilson, Izzy Harris, Taylor Anderson, Houdah Daniels, Estee Jorgensen, Lena Levey, Anastasia Ruimy CARTOONIST Gaby Iwegbue, Zainab Adil

September/October 2018

Standard

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Opinions 5

OPINIONS

Split Conscience

Brexit

Jonathan Philips | Opinions Editor

A hard Brexit is the only deal that returns economic freedom, restores U.K. sovereignty and strips Brussels of their power.

Brexit. Currently it is one of the most divisive issues. To anyone who respects the national will, the question is not if we leave the E.U., but how. The question is: which E.U. institutions, if any, should we be part of?

My preferred answer is none of them. I support a hard Brexit. Let me start by with refuting a common misconception: There will be no mass food shortages caused by Brexit. In the news recently there has been a lot of talk regarding a hard Brexit causing food shortages.

This is ridiculous on many accounts. Firstly, we are not going to stop trading with the E.U., they are World Trade Organisation (WTO) members and so are we. By default we have trading privileges with them, irrespective of our Brexit deal. Secondly, and perhaps most importantly, the U.K. is an incredible wealthy country. When people have money to buy things, like food, there is always people to sell, that is the nature of markets.

A hard Brexit does not mean a no-deal Brexit. A trade deal is in fact ideal. But regardless of the deal struck with the E.U., a hard Brexit will allow the U.K. to execute its own trade deals with other nations – a privilege that being part of the E.U. did not allow.

To make an accord between two countries is hard enough, but to get 29 countries (28 being in the E.U.) to agree on terms is near impossible.

Furthermore, it is less beneficial to each nation. British interests are not the same as Belgian interests, which are different than the Croatian and Polish interests.

Being part of the E.U. meant that in trade we had to compromise between 29 countries, being out of the E.U. will allow trade deals that are compromises between two. This will make trade deals more plentiful, more dynamic and more suited to the needs of the British economy.

Regaining the sovereign right to make trade deals will allow Britain to thrive in the 21st century.

Trade is one of the hot button issues regarding Brexit, but immigration is perhaps even more controversial. I do not think all immigration is bad, but who comes to the U.K. should be the U.K.’s choice. That is not bigoted or xenophobic, it is common sense.

The U.K. is a generous welfare state and when millions of E.U. immigrants come into the U.K. they do put a strain on public services. Although those same migrants do contribute a lot to the economy, it still means less hospital beds for citizens in the NHS and more crowded roads and public transport.

6 Opinions

Hard Soft

Having control over immigration should help the U.K. harness its economy – when additional workers are needed workers should be welcomed, and when they are not needed the U.K. then has the choice to restrict immigration.

The U.K., with its full sovereignty, will remain a strong country and become a global Britain – if we play our cards right with a hard Brexit (i.e. keeping tax rates low, encouraging building houses and businesses) the U.K. could become the Singapore of Europe.

“

Europe’s parliament, which we had no say in electing, will be superior to ours, we will be subservient to their laws, not our laws. This is a situation that no self-respecting country should allow.

Besides the practical benefits of a hard Brexit, there are also moral considerations that favor it.

We have to ask ourselves what did the majority of the U.K. vote for. As Prime Minister Theresa May puts it, “Brexit means Brexit.”

A soft Brexit is an attempt to keep as much of our membership in the E.U. as possible while still technically leaving. It is Brexit in name only. It would be a contortion of the national will.

Many soft Brexit proposals concede some governing power to the E.U., a body that we will have no input it. Their parliament, which we had no say in electing, will be superior to ours, we will be subservient to their laws, not our laws.

A soft Brexit is a situation that no self-respecting country should allow, and that no other country has willing subjected themselves to.

We are leaving the E.U. either way, hard or soft Brexit. We will not vote in the E.U. parliament, we will not have any power over their decisions.

But we will be held accountable to those laws. It boils down to this: if the purpose of Brexit is to regain sovereignty over Britain, which deal does that better?

A soft Brexit is focused on keeping the U.K. closely aligned with the E.U. This entails free trade, following E.U. regulations and likely freedom of movement.

The U.K. voted for Brexit; instead of calling for a second referendum or trying to subvert the national will through parliament, let us all come to a consensus on what Brexit should look like.

The way I see it, there are two choices.

The first choice is a hard Brexit. This would truly mean that the U.K. leaves the E.U.: we would leave their customs union, their immigration area and the trade area and regulations. The second choice, and far more moderate path, is a soft Brexit. This option, like the hard Brexit, covers a range of deals; at its core, however, a soft Brexit is focused on keeping the U.K. closely aligned with the E.U. This would entail maintaining free trade with the E.U., staying in the E.U. customs union and certainly making some concessions regarding freedom of movement.

The benefits of this type of deal are immense. The transition from having E.U. membership to going it alone will be much smoother – the E.U. and the U.K. are so integrated that any fallout between the two bodies will inevitably result in some turmoil, but a soft Brexit attempts to mitigate that.

A soft Brexit will ensure that the supply chains that Britain has become accustomed

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The transition from having E.U. membership to going it alone will be much smoother – the E.U. and the U.K. are so intergrated that any fallout between the two bodies will inevitably result in some turmoil, but a soft Brexit attempts to mitigate that. to will remain. Our food, clothes and services will likely come from the same places. This avoids a nightmare in logistics, and simplifies shopping for consumers.

Our businesses will be able to sell easily to their E.U. customers; multinational corporations who make London their E.U. nest, will be less likely to leave for Paris, Berlin and Frankfurt.

This all sounds rosy, however, it is the nature of roses to have thorns: all the benefits, and there are most certainly many, of Brexit are wiped out by a soft Brexit.

Brexit was supposed to liberate our island.

The E.U. parliament was not supposed to rule over us; we were supposed to make our own trade deals.

In the scenario that I have outlined above, this is not the case. Many would argue that a soft Brexit is a Brexit in name only: a compromise between remainers and Brexiteers that leaves both sides unhappy and ultimately the country worse off.

If Brexit is our only path then the soft Brexit salvages many of the benefits that leaving the E.U. entails. That really is the main sticking point of soft Brexit – the status quo. In fact, the softer the Brexit, the closer we are to the status quo.

The status quo is central to the issue of the Irish border. If the U.K. left the E.U. customs union then the Irish border could become a hard border, where goods were searched. Because of the integration between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland as well as the precarious political situation on the Irish border, a hard border would be very undesirable and could even result in hostilities. If a soft Brexit plan is elected and the U.K. stays within the customs union then the status quo can remain unchanged.

Truth be told a soft Brexit is not perfect – it is simply not better than being in the E.U. In fact E.U. membership may actually be better as we get a say in the institutions we are a part of. But because of the ease of trade and the maintenance of the status quo, a soft Brexit is clearly the superior choice.

Split Conscience is a recurring feature that addresses two sides to an issue, one that the writer themsleves is undecided about. It is written by the Opinions Editor. Students can scan the QR Code to vote on which side of the issue they stand.

The Standard

Divided Democrats debate socialism LUCAS ROMUALDO lucas_romualdo@asl.org

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While Republicans in most states have unified behind traditional right-wing candidates, the Democratic candidates are busy attacking each other.

Throughout this past election cycle, self-described democratic socialist candidates within the Democratic Party have been challenging traditional, establishment incumbents in primary elections across the U.S. In some elections, the socialist candidates have won.

Although the democratic socialist wing of the Democratic Party is growing, the party establishment still renders a more powerful endorsement, according to FiveThirtyEight, a political analysis site. The power struggle between democratic socialists, who support further government intervention in the economy and a more isolationist foreign policy, and establishment democrats, who support more relaxed economic regulations and more globalist policy, threatens to rip the party apart, and in so doing, changing America as we know it.

A Democratic National Committee Chairman election was triggered in February 2017 after Chairwoman and U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigned over an email scandal, which indicated that the Democratic Party favored Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders in the 2016 Presidential Primary. As this was the first major Democratic election since the 2016 election, this race served to demonstrate how the ideological makeup of the Democratic Party has changed. In this race, democratic socialist Representative Keith Ellison was defeated by estab-

lishment Secretary of Labor Tom Perez despite a great deal of public support for Ellison’s campaign. In an attempt to appease the socialist wing, Ellison was appointed as Deputy Chair, a largely ceremonial position.

In many Democratic primaries since, there has always been an establishment frontrunner and a democratic socialist challenger. A prominent example of this pattern was the primary for New York’s 14th congressional district, encompassing parts of the Bronx and Queens.

Ten-term establishment congressman Joseph Crowley was expected to easily win his primary and cruise to reelection. He was also mentioned as a possible Speaker of the House should the Democrats win in November. However, socialist candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won by 10 percent, despite having no government experience and being only 28 years old.

Ocasio-Cortez had a grassroots campaign style, focused on engaging personally with voters, knocking on doors and talking to people, especially young people. She mobilized swathes of previously inactive voters. This campaign prevailed against Crowley’s typical campaign strategy of corporate, big-donor fundraising and T.V. advertising.

This was again seen in the Florida gubernatorial election, where democratic socialist Mayor Andrew Gillum faced off against frontrunner Representative Gwen Graham. Although Graham was

Progress Report MEAL DEAL

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more than 10 points ahead in the polls, Gillum narrowly won the primary. In the end, Gillum’s grassroots organizing and support won against Graham’s fundraising skill and political experience.

These closely contested primary races will inevitably lead to losses for Democrats in general elections. Incumbents are often weakened by the attacks from primary challengers, and therefore have a tougher general election if they win.

Meanwhile, the socialist candidates often have less government experience, less electoral experience, and “socialist” as a label can be used to attack the candidate effectively.

While Republicans in most states have unified behind traditional rightwing candidates, the Democratic candidates are busy attacking each other. This gives the Republicans more opportunities to focus their energy on attacking the Democratic candidates, who are, in addition to their infighting, ignoring the attacks from across the aisle.

While fierce opposition to President Donald Trump may be enough to save the Democrats this election cycle, the effect will die down. This problem will be especially important in the 2020 election, where the many prospective Democratic candidates will be occupied with a divisive primary while Trump and the Republicans spend political capital attacking them.

A Trump reelection would be the

PHOTO 1 FROM PHAEDRA LETROU PHOTOS 2 AND 4 FROM EMILY FORGASH PHOTO 3 FROM LEA GEORGE PHOTO 5 FROM IMOGEN WEISS PHOTO 6 FROM WIKIMEDIA

LEVEL III INFRACTION

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This Editorial Board of 1.

The Standard gives the school its first 2. report of the school year 3.

ultimate blow to the Democratic Party. If, despite Trump’s numerous flaws and the powerful opposition to his administration, the Democrats are unable to defeat him, then the Republican Party will feel empowered by the voters to pass greater restrictions on immigration, install travel bans, and repeal government benefits.

While some of these policies have the potential to do good in America, travel bans and immigration restrictions will hinder the U.S. economy and the U.S.’s international favorability will deteriorate. Policies like immigration bans would make it more difficult for U.S. companies to hire cheap labor, decreasing U.S. economic growth.

Moreover, it would be bad publicity for the country, making other nations less willing to negotiate with the U.S. These consequences of Trump’s reelection would be undesirable at best, all as a result of Democratic infighting.

To avoid such a catastrophe, Democrats must defeat the democratic socialist faction (while appeasing the socialist supporters), and regain control over their party to present a unified front in this election cycle and every election in the foreseeable future. As long as the Democrats are stuck in primary infighting, the Republicans will have a good chance of retaining control of the government.

Meal deal price: (B) I could get the same lunch at Panzer’s for the same price and see Eyal. Naz Ozturk

4.

(Bossman) Gregory Dale, Ph.D: (A+) Both impactful and inspirational, sometimes we forget the power of the mental side of the game. Jon Novak

Assemblies: (D+) Where is the musical. Phaedra Letrou

5.

Mother nature’s identity crisis: (B-) Make up your mind please, it’s getting confusing! Emily Forgash

Sophomores off campus: (A+) Starbucks, see you soon!

Lea George

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Code of Conduct: (F) Writing this is a Level lll infraction Jonathan Philips Post Scriptum: We love nouns.

September/October 2018

Opinions 7

The life and legacy of John McCain SAL CERRELL sal_cerrell@asl.org

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Politicians who share his resolve for American unity have been drowned out by extreme, radical candidates who cringe at any whiff of possible bipartisanship.

The life of Senator John McCain inspired generations of Americans.

He was an American war hero, captured and brutally tortured during the Vietnam War, unfaltering even in his darkest hours.

In his political career he fought for values, voted on principle and was always eager to pursue bipartisan legislation on issues he deeply cared about. The hope he had in the American people was reflected in how he spoke of prosperity and the continuation of democracy.

McCain maintained his commitment to America until the day he died.

The courage he possessed was most recently demonstrated in his infamous thumbs-down vote, to kill legislation that would have stripped healthcare from nearly 30 million people, if not for his courageous stand. This moment will forever live in the minds of millions of Americans. Yet, as he began to sicken and age, so did the support for the values he held.

Politicians who share his resolve for American unity have been drowned out by extreme, radical candidates who cringe at any whiff of possible bipartisanship.

Republicans and Democrats alike have retreated to their respective corners, vowing to destroy any piece of legislation the other side puts up, regardless of the content of the bill.

Opportunism has corrupted many in the Democratic caucus, resulting in targeted speeches for political gain, rather than a genuine, purposed at-

tempt at creating a dialogue.

Republicans are unable to abide by precedent and norms previously respected. The process, or lack thereof, on the nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court is evidence of that.

Democrats are not, and should not be exempt from criticism. Despite the image they portray, of being upholders of the law and patriotic citizens defending the country, they have used their positions only as a stepping stone to higher office, rather than to carry out the needs of the people they serve. They have attempted to brand themselves as progressive icons, shying from substantive policy in favor of symbolic actions to attract the press. Instead of using committee hearings to gain clarity on issues, Democrats have used them to advance their political interests, rather than the country’s. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders and Corey Booker are just a few of who have corrupted the political system. We have therefore been unable to create laws that a majority of the American people want.

The most recent tax reform bill passed late last year was one of the more unpopular pieces of legislation in history, having little to no support amongst the electorate. Petty politics and opportunism have consumed Washington, and the era of McCain, and putting country over party has all but escaped American politics.

Although our would-be leaders have fallen victim to this political disease, and many show little to no enthusiasm to change the climate in Washington, hope should not be lost.

We, as young adults in an ever evolving world, should attempt to fill this void by pursuing ideas that are larger than life. McCain often spoke of this concept, and until this death, fought to keep the values of dignity, honor and respect present in the Senate and in our politics. Young people must attempt to carry on his effort.

We have seen more and more young voices speak up in the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas school shooting, pressuring their representatives in both houses of Congress to take action to protect schools.

They have inspired thousands of other teenagers to join them in the fight, shown by the “March for Our Lives” in Washington earlier this year. But it doesn’t have to, and shouldn’t stop with just gun control. Teens and politicians alike should select issues of importance and fight for change, just as the Marjory Stoneman Douglas students have done.

We should take action, and just as McCain did, stand for something more important than ourselves. I challenge every ASL student to pursue this idea, especially at a time of great division in politics.

Defining the impacts of #MeToo ALEXANDRA GERS alexandra_gers@asl.org

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We, as a society, ought to do better than giving men like Louis C.K. a proverbial slap on the wrist.

8 Opinions

On November 10, 2017, comedian Louis C.K. admitted to five allegations of sexual assault. “These stories are true,” he said in a released statement. Now, just 10 months later, C.K. has returned to the spotlight with a surprise performance at the Comedy Cellar in Long Island, New York. However, instead of being met with shock and disgust as I would have expected, C.K. was met with a standing ovation.

C.K.’s return to comedy has brought about questions of what the appropriate amount of time away from the public eye should be for an individual who has been swept up in the #MeToo allegations. The answer, to me, is indefinitely.

Noam Dworman, the owner of the Comedy Cellar, said in an interview with the New York Times, “There can’t be a permanent life sentence on someone who does something wrong.” But sexual assault and sexual harassment aren’t minor mistakes, or doing “something wrong.” These acts are an invasion of someone’s humanity; they are a tool to make women, who are the frequent victims of these crimes, feel secondary to powerful men. C.K. even recognized himself that what he did was wrong, not only inherently, but especially because he was in a position of power.

Apparently Dworman doesn’t have to worry about men like C.K. being given a “life sentence,” because time and time again men in positions of power have been able to return from the peripheral of society, given enough distance from the situation. In C.K.’s case it was just nine months. In news anchor Matt Lauer’s case, it was ten months. Despite being accused of indecent exposure, giving

a female colleague a sex toy and sexual harassment, Lauer is planning to return to television after being fired from NBC News in November, 2017.

While I do believe that there are some flaws with the #MeToo movement, largely due to the fact that it has swayed from its original purpose as a symbol for solidarity amongst victims, it has granted those who have been wronged the ability to topple industry giants such as C.K. Or so I thought. Both Lauer and C.K. set the precedent that given enough of a ‘time-out’, anyone can make a comeback, despite having sexually assaulted or sexually harassed someone.

These men continue to be forgiven for their crimes, despite the fact that in the U.S. common sentencing for each case of indecent exposure includes incarceration for up to one year, and the obligation to register as a sex-offender.

However, neither of these men have served jail time, and men in similar situations rarely do. While this is in part due to the lack of charges brought to court, victims shouldn’t be forced to testify for the ramifications of men like C.K.’s actions to be life-long. Furthermore, C.K.’s reappearance and men like Lauer’s inevitable return are a slap in the face to victims of sexual harassment and sexual assault.

If victims see that their aggressors are probably going to return exactly to their same social standing, the likelihood is that they will question the validity in

reporting the incident in the first place. If you wonder why so many victims are hesitant to report their experiences with sexual assault or sexual harassment, just take a look at Dr. Christine Blasey Ford.

While testifying against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh her testimony was ruthlessly picked apart by a Senate judiciary committee and an attorney. So

Some of C.K.’s movies such as I Love You, Daddy, were stopped mid-production after the allegations of sexual assault surfaced.

while, yes, more victims should report their instances of sexual assault, I can understand that they feel as if one year of jail time will do nothing to these men.

According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, only 43.3

percent of heterosexual female victims reported their instances of sexual violence. This number needs to be higher; we, as a society, ought to do better than giving people like C.K. a proverbial slap on the wrist. It shouldn’t just be men like Harvey Weinstein, who was accused of 13 instances of sexual assault, who are excommunicated from their industries– it should be all perpetrators of sexual violence.

PHOTOS FROM IMDB.COM

The Standard

Death penalty: need for reform LEA GEORGE lea_george@asl.org

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The United States is still engaging in an unconstitutional and unlawful activity.

Although considered an extremely controversial legal and moral matter, I firmly believe that the abolishment of capital punishment in the U.S. is crucial for the following reasons: cases of innocence and racism which have led to wrongful convictions, the persistence of the myth that it helps to deter crime, and simply the fact that it is unconstitutional. It is ridiculous that this abolishment has not yet occurred.

Since 1973, around 144 people have been exonerated from death row in different states. I find this statistic to be haunting, as the possibility of the execution of an innocent human is clearly plausible. In fact, according to an article in The Washington Post, which was published in July 2015, the innocence rate of those sentenced to capital punishment is 4.1 percent. Furthermore, the process of exonerating someone from death row is extremely long and thorough, and I have read through many cases that exemplify this lengthy process.

Dennis Musgrow was sentenced to the Alabama death row in 1988.

In 2015, it was reported that he had passed away on death row due to lung cancer. During this time, a decision was pending on the account of whether or not Musgrow was in fact innocent, as many pieces of evidence surfaced in his defense. His attorney asked the U.S. District Judge David Proctor to be rapid with the decision due to his medical situation but evidently this did not happen.

Musgrow’s case is a harrowing example of an innocent man being put at risk by the death penalty. According to The Times, in 2013, out of the 2979 people on death row that year, 31 died simply due to other causes than the death penalty such as murder or suicide as the process

of execution and also exoneration is too long.

Amongst the multitude of misconceptions about capital punishment lies the belief that the use of the death penalty deters crime in states that practice it. A study conducted in 2009 proved that 88 percent of the U.S.’ most qualified criminologists believe that the death penalty fails to avert crime. It is easy to find studies proving that the use of capital punishment across states does in fact decrease crime rates, the National Research Council reported that more than 30 years worth of legal research and studies on the deterrence of crime in relation to the death penalty did not include credible evidence supporting their conclusion. Therefore, these studies have also been found to lack the inclusion of key variables, and fail to account for missing data, and I simply cannot understand how opinions on the death penalty can be justified with non-credible evidence.

To achieve the results that the U.S. wishes to have in regards to deterring crime, I believe that it is crucial for the country to abolish its use of capital punishment as a whole. As a country, I feel that it is basing its beliefs on this topic from studies that have proven to have little to no supporting evidence.

Canada’s abolition of the death penalty in 1976 and

their subsequent decline in murder rates shows that the death penalty fails to achieve what citizens desire: a decrease in crime. The U.S. should see these statistics as evidence for the need to abolish the death penalty, rather than unreliable research.

Furthermore, after reading several books about racism on death row, I have concluded that racial discrimination plays a decisive role in the sentencing of the death penalty. In order to work towards completely abolishing racism, the U.S. must first abolish the death penalty as well. According to the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), in Alabama, every year, around 65 percent of murders have an African-American victim, whilst 73 percent of those awaiting death row had a white victim. This is a prime example of how racism plays a major role in deciding which cases are fit to result in the death penalty, as white victim cases on the death penalty are more frequent. Yet in general, murders have more African American victims. Furthermore, the EJI also states that only one percent of chief prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges and juries are African-American.

Both of these statistics exemplify mass disproportionality in race regarding death penalty convictions, and those who are convicted. It is possible that if the death penalty were to be abolished in the U.S., racism would curtail,

and the lives of minorities would surely be protected.

Finally, the U.S. Constitution states under the Eighth Amendment that, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Yet to me, this simply has begun to seem hypocritical, because as a nation, we base our principles on this constitution, and it is its duty to uphold them. Capital punishment is and should be seen as cruel and unusual punishment, as it once was during the U.S Supreme Court case of Furman v. Georgia 1972.

In Furman v. Georgia, Henry William Furman was attempting to rob a private home. However, a family member found him and caught him ny surprise, causing him to trip and fall. Unfortunately, the gun Furman was carrying fired as he tripped, and killed the resident who found him. Furman was convicted of murder and sentenced to the death penalty. However, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction because of their consideration of the death penalty being unconstitutional and a violation of the Eighth Amendment. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the death penalty to be struck down and abolished on both state and federal levels because of their inability to properly identify a case that would be fit for cruel and unusual punishment.

To this day, the amendment has not changed, and therefore, it is apparent to me that the U.S. is still engaging in unconstitutional and unlawful activity if it continues to enforce the death penalty.

This confuses me, as I once viewed the U.S. as a country that followed its constitution religiously, and kept the well-being of all citizens as their number one priority.

Balance and self expression through fashion LILY WHITMAN

lily_whitman@asl.org

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For some, fashion can be an extension of the self or a way to reinvent oneself.

Within the High School, students enjoy using fashion as a form of self-expression. Although caring about clothes can sometimes be seen as frivolous and superficial, for some, fashion can be an extension of the self or a way to reinvent oneself. A style of dress can be a visual manifestation of where one stands, colored by history, culture, emotions and politics.

Gianni Versace once said, "Don't be into trends. Don't make fashion own you, but you decide what you are, what you want to express by the way you dress and the way to live." I interpret this as Versace saying that people allow fashion to have authority over them instead of allowing them to have authority over fashion. Many people use fashion as an art to express themselves in any way they wish. Fashion is what makes people feel more creative and accomplished.

September/October 2018

In today’s society, some people only look at what is in style instead of actually using their creativity to wear what they feel comfortable in. When I look at buying and wearing clothes, I don’t have the confidence to try out new and different styles that may be on trend, yet I see my friends expressing their creativity through their own styles and clothing.

I truly believe fashion is a essential part of our high school culture.

People are not afraid to express themselves by finding their own styles or trying out trends. In high school, people try new things, and with fashion, students are able to experiment with different pieces and aesthetics and play around with clothing to see what styles fit them.

Along with this idea, fashion can also be a point of controversy. It is common to see some individuals take style too far by wearing cloth-

ing too revealing for a school environment. In a learning environment, one should come to school wearing something they feel comfortable in and that is respectful to their teachers and peers. I am not indulging the idea that women should not be able to wear what they want, and am in no way censoring people’s style and interests in fashion, but in a society today that sexualizes women and teens so regularly, I believe it is essential to feel comfortable.

In today’s society, schools are teaching girls, at a very young age, that they are on display, and that is not OK. Alongside that, for women, the feeling of being watched is unsettling, but very common. I’m uncomfortable when I’m waiting for the light to change, when I am walking home from school, and I feel uncomfortable when I’m at the gym. I feel uncomfortable when

walking back from practice. This is why dressing comfortably in school and for school is so important. I believe in expression through fashion, but when getting dressed, it is also important to make sure that you are comfortable. In no way am I condoning the idea that some schools should restrict what girls are wearing because it is “distracting to boys,” but I think it is important for girls to feel safe when walking through school and while walking down the street.

I think that fashion is a great form of self-expression, and I believe that everyone should have the freedom to wear what they want, unless it is offensive to others’ cultures, heritages or religions.

With that said, it is important to dress appropriately, so that when coming to school, you are ready to learn and be happy in a school environment without feeling uncomfortable.

Opinions 9

Features

Behind the front desk Access Control Officer Bhupendra Patel has spent the past two decades of his career at ASL. A constant amidst a transient community, his name has become synonymous with the school for students, teachers and parents alike.

John Towfighi | Lead Features Editor

C

losed for construction, the Waverley Place od marked a major shift in how he worked his job. entrance feels empty; not because of the ab- “Hardly anybody knew where the school was and sence of students streaming in and out of the then the next day, all these news companies were gates, but because of the lack of radio calls, “good right up there with their cameras ... they wanted to mornings,” and friendly energy owed to Access interview everybody and we don’t want to publiControl Officer Bhupendra Patel, the man be- cize everything, but all around the world everybody hind the front desk since 2003. knew what the American school was,” he said.

One of the most recognizable characters in the Patel remembers that it was less than a week school, the self-dubbed “face of ASL” is currently after 9/11 before the school took initiative to hire residing in the Art Building while the construction what he calls “the men in black”: the team of seis carried out – his first time removed from his home curity guards seen standing around the perimeter at Waverley in 15 years. of the school. “Former Head of School Bill Mules Patel’s two-decade-long career at ASL began in had a contact at the embassy and the embassy then 1998, five years prior to the opening of Waverley, recommended this company,” he said. when Loudoun Road still served as the main enSince the involvement of the external secutrance to the school. Patel mentioned how in those rity company, Patel has worked with hundreds days, the level of security was the polar opposite of different guards as the employees are usually of how it is now. “I found out they were looking ex-military on one to two year work experiencfor [security guards] here and I got in on my first es. Despite their short replacement cycle, Patel interview and was told to start working straight feels that he has developed a stronger sense of away,” he said. “I just had a temporary name tag what it means to work with others to protect and that was that. I just had to say ‘welcome every- the school.“Everybody respects me and I just body.’ I didn’t know who was who – nobody had count them as a team,” he said. “In fact they to show school IDs in those days. If you asked are so professional security-wise that I have someone for their ID, it was rude.” learned a lot from them.”

In his first few years Being immersed in his at ASL, Patel recalls the work has become routine outside community befor Patel, who took up ing relatively unaware his first job at the age of of the school. There was 17. At the time he had reno perimeter fencing, cently moved to London low security threats, and with his Kenyan father often times confusion and his Indian mother, atas to the actual wheretending night classes outabouts of the school. side of school to improve “[People wouldn’t] rehis English. His family alize I worked for the moved to the U.K. in the school and they would 1960s following Patel’s say, ‘excuse me? Is this father who went ahead Loudoun Road? Is that and worked to bring them American school some- Patel with his friend and religious mentor. over. As Kenya was prewhere?’,” he said. “And viously a British colony, when they’d come back out they’d still see me and moving to the British capital offered economic opthey’d ask me, ‘how come you’re still standing here?’ portunity. In line with his father, Patel picked up a and then I’d tell them I work for the school.” job shortly after his own arrival. “I was walking one However, the originally low profile of ASL day on the street, and outside a Tesco it said a warechanged forever in 2001 following the September house person was needed, so I saw the manager and 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S. For Patel, this peri- he said I could start the next day,” he said.

10 Features

Honest working became the foundation of Patel’s adulthood, who had moved around jobs in London for more than 20 years before arriving at ASL. He explained that despite his first job’s low pay of 40 pence per hour, being employed taught him to care for himself. Balancing school, his Tesco job, and delivering morning newspapers, Patel began to shape his habits and daily schedule. “At the end of the week I’d have £7 in total, so I didn’t have to borrow money from my parents. I had my bus fare, pocket money, and then at 19, the same Tesco employed me full time,” he said. “[In] 45 years, I have never been unemployed. I have always found some kind of job.”

“In 45 years, I have never been unemployed. I have always found some kind of job.”

Bhupendra Patel, Access Control Officer Alongside working, religion has a been a primary focus of Patel’s life. Raised by a Hindu mother, Patel has been spending Sundays at temple since he was a child. He mentioned times in his youth when he would go to Hindu camp in Mogri, India, meeting new friends and spending school holidays learning prayers and playing games. He has kept an active role in his religious community since, visiting the same camp on a retreat once a year. The retreat is a chance for Patel to connect with old friends and others who share common interests. He sometimes gives talks to the youth about his life and his memories of growing up at the camp. He maintains relationships during the rest of the year by going to temple with his friends and attending seminars.

“That religious experience and training made me a nicer person. Coming to London at 16, I could have diverted from this path – London life was new, with pubs and clubs and things like that, but I was able to keep away from that,” he said.

The city of London has been Patel’s residence since his family’s original move, and he noted that it has been interesting to watch Britain’s capital grow and become more diverse over the years. “When I

The Standard

“AT THE AMERICAN SCHOOL WE ARE COUNTED

AS A TEAM. EVERYBODY RESPECTS EACH OTHER NO MATTER WHAT JOB THEY DO.” ACCESS CONTROL OFFICER BHUPENDRA PATEL came here, there weren’t many Asians. Now you go, every corner shop belongs to an Asian. I remember there were only [a few] Premier League players who were black, now most teams only have one or two English players,” he explained. “The times have changed ... I think now it’s a multicultural society ... they respect all religions and I think I’m very privileged because we have so many different nationalities here at ASL ... I see students walking hand in hand and it doesn’t matter who they are, where they come from, and that’s fantastic.”

The sense of comPHOTOS COURTESY OF BHUPENDRA PATEL munity Patel feels at Acess Control Officer Bhupendra Patel with former Head of Security Barak Favé. Favé and Patel ASL extends to his own job. With his position at built a strong friendship over their years working in the security department together.

Waverley, he has spent the past 15 years at the center of conversation and com- for those around him too. “[After Mules retired] passes to previous CEO of Barclays Bank Bob Diamotion. “It’s been fantastic because the team on my Coreen Hester kept me there for 10 years, and Rob- mond’s private box at Chelsea Stadium. “I watched right-hand side is all the Head of School offices, and in Appleby now as well, and you know, I have met probably 50 matches there in the Barclays box, his on my left there is Admissions and [at] my back so many nice people.” daughter and his two sons went to ASL and because there is Advancement,” he said. “You know they all Greeting students every year since 2003, Patel I knew the kids he invited me,” he said. “[Everyone count me as one of the team, and also the main- remembers a great number who graduated between there] would ask ‘which branch do you work for?,’ tenance people they say ‘you are one of our own,’ then and now, and knows the familiarity is recipro- and I’d say ‘no, I don’t work for Barclays,’ and they’d so I don’t only do security. At the American School cal. “Every time there is an alumni reunion some- say ‘how ... did you get here?’ And I’d say, ‘I know we are counted as a team. Everybody respects each one tells me, ‘as soon as your name was mentioned Mr. Diamond,’ and the people there, nobody had other no matter what job they do.” there was the biggest cheer’,” he said. “The school met Bob Diamond, they’d only heard about him, When Waverley Place was made the main en- has decided that before I retire they want to take me and they were all like ‘wow’.” trance in 2003, Mules asked Patel to take the seat at to one of these alumni events.”

Crossing paths with thousands of members of the front desk. “He trusted me. I think some good For Patel, the end of his tenure at ASL may be the community, and with nearly half a century of words had gone around about me from the parents in sight. His contract ends in three years, and he is work experience under his belt, Patel feels like he and the trustees – it’s my nature, I respect every- content with his time here, even reaping some ben- could be ready to move on to a more relaxed life. body, so as soon as that entrance was opened I was efits he had not expected. Over his career he men- “This is my 21st year and I think this could be put there and I’m still here,” he said. tioned some highlights as getting to see former U.S. my last job,” he said. “I have three more years, and His large blue chair behind the front desk of the President Barack Obama, escorting Tom Cruise then I’ll probably spend six months in India and school has been a great fit – not only for Patel, but through the back entrance, and getting regular six months in the U.K.”

September/October 2018

Features 11

Taking steps to

Students discuss the changes they have with the fashion industry and their h

A

ttending elementary school in one of the world’s most polluted cities, New Delhi, George Yardley (’21) witnessed first hand the effects of climate change and the disregard of sustainability. “Right next to my school there was this humongous slum... with piles and piles of trash,” he said.

Yardley explained how growing up he was told to stay inside and avoid the polluted air. Seeing the complete inaction of the people and government in protecting the environment is what initially sparked his interest in sustainability.

Similarly, Co-President of the Sustainability Council Jacob Nathan (’19) always had an interest in sustainability, but it grew when he took part in a beach clean up in Mexico the summer before his junior year. “About eight volunteers managed to fill eight full bin liners full of plastic in twenty minutes... That for me was a real wake up call,” he said.

Nathan said that being able to witness the tangible impact an individual can have when cleaning the environment motivated him to “do a lot of research [and watch] a lot of documentaries” about the environment.

The True Cost, a documentary about the unethical practices of the fashion industry, inspired Nathan to make changes in his decisions as a consumer. The documentary reveals how the industry has become one of the greatest polluters and continues to exploit laborers around the world. This has been a consequence of “fast fashion,” the cycle of mass production of clothing, which attempts to capture changing fashion trends, leading

Phaedra Letrou | Depu

to a substantial amount of waste and labor exploitation. Popular brands include Zara, H&M, Primark, Urban Outfitters and Topshop. After learning this, Nathan purchases his clothing from sustainable fashion companies such as Absolutely Bear and Rapanui Clothing.

Nathan said that “one of the brands [he buys from] produces their clothes in a renewable energy powered factory, pays their workers fair wages, source their cottons sustainably and they do all of that without the detriment to the environment that some brands have.”

When companies produce clothes, wastes such as dyes can easily enter water systems and make their way to the oceans. According to an article from The Independent published in January 2018, the second largest polluter of clean water is textile dyeing.

Polyester has now become one of the most widely used fabrics in fashion due to its cheap manufacturing process. The Independent further reported that polyester garments easily shed microfibres when placed in domestic washing machines.

These fibers can then enter the water supply, ultimately increasing the amount of plastic in the ocean. Such microfibers are threatening aquatic organisms as they do not biodegrade.

When Yardley became aware of the fashion industry’s malpractices, he also changed his approach to purchasing clothing. He now buys the majority of his clothing from second-hand stores to reduce his carbon footprint since the clothing has essentially been recycled. “You could almost argue it is the best option that you have to be sustainable... [because] there are [only] a few companies out there that are actually dedicated to [sustainability],” he said.

Co-president of the Sustainability Council Monet Streit (’19) agrees with Yardley that buying second-hand benefits the environment greatly. “I love shopping at thrift stores and second-hand places, so that you’re using the circular economy,” she said. While Streit is nervous about the great number of clothes being produced and thrown out globally, she appreciates the changes individuals and companies are making to be more sustainable.

EVEN WHEN IT’S ANNOYING OR A PAIN FOR ME, I REMIND MYSELF IT’S MORE IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT THAN MY OWN NEEDS. NATALIA SMITH (’21)

Natalia Smith (’21) was also motivated to make changes in her lifestyle after watching several YouTube videos on how to live sustainably. She is currently making an effort to purchase only ethically made clothing from companies such as Everlane who “share exactly what the price is for your clothing and where each penny is going.”

Alongside monitoring what companies he supports when purchasing his clothes, Nathan has tried to implement other changes in his lifestyle to be sustainable. “I’ve attempted to totally cut out single-use plastics, I no longer eat red meat and [instead eat] as much

500 million straws are used daily in the U.S.

13.3kg of C p ro d u c e d p er k

STATISTICS TAKEN FROM PADI.COM, EARTHDAY.COM,CIRCULARECOLOGY.COM, TIMEFORCHANGE.ORG, WASHINGTONPOST.COM

12 Features

The Standard • Septe

o sustainability

It can take 2,700 liters of water to make one cotton t-shirt

made to live sustainably, their concerns hopes for the environment’s future.

uty Editor-In-Chief: Print

C O 2 a re kg o f b e e f

ember/October 2018

EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS THAT [CLIMATE CHANGE] IS A BIG PROBLEM, BUT IT’S A BIG PROBLEM WITH HOPEFULLY 7.6 BILLION INDIVIDUAL SOLUTIONS. GEORGE YARDLEY (’21)

plant-based [food] as I can,” he said. By educating himself on the subject, Nathan has been able to convince some of his friends to make changes in their own lives, pointing to how a few of them now use reusable water bottles.

He has also managed to convince his parents to switch to a green tariff, meaning that some of their household’s electricity is matched by renewable energy purchases made by their energy supplier.

In attempts to live a zero-waste lifestyle, Smith has found alternatives to typical plastic and paper products. “I always carry bamboo utensils with me, I have a reusable water bottle, in bathrooms I don’t dry my hands with paper towels, I just let them air dry. In the kitchen if I need to wipe something up I use a rag instead of paper towels,” she said.

Streit agrees with Smith and believes that if everyone were to make small changes, there would be a great positive impact. “I do all the little things. I use a reusable water bottle, I try to limit my plastic waste as much as I can, I try to bring my lunch everyday so I don’t have to buy packaged food, I don’t charge my computer overnight because that’ll waste energy, I turn off the lights. I do everything that I possibly can,” she said.

Nathan also how small actions can have many benefits, and encourages students to get involved in helping

protect the environment. “You don’t have to go to protests, you can sign online petitions, it takes five minutes of your life,” he said.

While Smith acknowledges how her lifestyle changes have come with some inconveniences, she is determined to continue them. “Even when it’s annoying or a pain for me, I remind myself that it’s more important to think about the environment than my own needs,” she said.

Nathan tries to have an optimistic view of the future for the Earth, but is also realistic for the changes that need to happen. He believes that developed countries need to be able to match the expectations they are placing on developing countries. “If you look at our meat consumption as a global population, we now consume more meat than ever,” he said.

Nathan explained how this is due to countries with growing middle classes view meat as a luxury product since it has been labeled as one in developed countries.

160,000 plas tic bags are use d every secon d

Yardley is hopeful that people will come together to make a difference.

“Everyone understands that it’s a big problem, but it’s a big problem with hopefully 7.6 billion...individual solutions,” he said. As a member of the Sustainability Council, Yardley will continue to motivate others to try and learn more about the environmental challenges occurring throughout the world.

Streit also has a positive outlook for the future of the environment. “If you look at all of history, the environment right now is the worst it’s been, but we’re also... doing the most in history that has ever been done to help it,” she said. Streit will continue to “try to show people the effects of what

they’re doing, so [they] know their impact and then make their choices.”

Nathan believes the greatest step one can take is to firstly become educated on environmental issues, then take action. “It’s very easy to say that you care about an issue, but if you’re not actually doing something, then what’s the point? It’s very easy to go educate yourself and actually understand what is going on.”

Features 13

Knowledge beyond APs

Assistant Principal Karen Bonthrone discusses her past research on spiders and bacterial polymers, and her creation of the Advanced Independent Research Colloquium course.

G

Ananya Prakash | Editor-in-Chief

rowing up in Scotland at a public primary school, Assistant Principal Karen Bonthrone remembers having a distinct disinterest in social studies. “I didn’t like the social studies very much, but that’s because it was just so badly taught. At that time it was very dry, and I didn’t see the point of it,” she said.

Rather, it was the sciences and math that caught her attention.

Without a formal science curriculum at her primary school, Bonthrone was introduced to sciences simply through what she considers luck. “This was long before they invented the national curriculum. I was just lucky that the head teacher of my school had a background in science and he gave science lessons,” Bonthrone said. “[The lessons] were probably beyond what most normal kids would get to in their last years in primary school.”

This initial exposure to science motivated Bonthrone to pursue the

knowledge, but it was one of those slightly lucky encounters.”

Building on years of studying science, Bonthrone had an intuition that she believed could answer the zoologist’s question. After spending months researching spiders’ threads, she found her initial intuition to be true: the unique levels of carbohydrates in the spiders’ threads changes its elasticity, thus allowing them to create distinct types of threads.

Bonthrone got involved in her second project on bacterial polymers through her interest in the different branches of science and their intersectionality. “I wanted something that was broad. I liked the idea that I was doing primarily physics in terms of the technical piece, but then also was able to do some chemistry and I had to also learn a whole bunch of microbiology,” she said.

After her time at Cambridge, Bonthrone went on to do more research at Birmingham University, where she

fer students the opportunity to pursue their chosen subject area beyond an Advanced Placement (AP) class, to tighten up and formalize previous independent study courses and to make greater use of the school’s research lab.

Bonthrone emphasized the importance of this course in its ability to let students extend themselves in specific areas and build a genuine interest in a subject. “There’s a growing awareness that doing more APs is not necessarily the beall and end-all of education,” she said. “If you have got no passion in an area and you are just doing it to collect another AP, that’s not a great thing to do.”

The Research Colloquium is a yearlong course that begins with an introduction to knowledge, philosophy and ethics, taught by Bonthrone and Science Department Head Andrew Ringham. Although inspired by the IB curriculum’s Theory of Knowledge course and the AP Capstone, the Research

PAS S I O N CURIOSITY I N S P I R AT I O N

worked on a European wide project that looked at the microbial treatment of radioactively contaminated waste water. “This was not long after Chernobyl,” Bonthrone said. “Drinking water that has been chemically treated does not remove all of the radioactive ions.

We were developing a method that could reduce the last final traces.”

It was also at Birmingham that Bonthrone started teaching at a university level while simultaneously continuing her research. “I had to make a decision if I was going to go down the academic track or teaching. I decided I actually liked the teaching, maybe more so, and so I did my teaching training degree at Birmingham,” she said. After obtaining her degree, Bonthrone began her journey of teaching at schools across the world. She taught first in the U.K., but then went on to work in Spain, the U.S. and Indonesia, before coming back to the U.K. again to teach at ASL. After settling down at ASL in 2008, Bonthrone took a two year leave to pursue another degree. “During that time I did a masters in education, focusing on curriculum and assessment,” she said.

Now, alongside being the Assistant Principal, Bonthrone also teaches AP Physics 1, and has created a new course that was implemented this year: the Advanced Independent Research Colloquium.

Creating the Research Colloquium was a result of three main goals: to of-

T H E O R Y O F K N OW L E D G E I N I T I AT I V E 14 Features

Colloquium differs in its flexibility and structure. “For the first few weeks, we are doing a background into how do we define knowledge: what is knowledge, what makes something knowledge and something not so worthy of calling knowledge. We’re going to look at how knowledge is gained in different subject areas,” Bonthrone said.

Toward the end of the first semester, students will focus on their individual projects, begin background research and find a faculty member that specializes in the field to mentor them. “The plan is that everyone will be ready by the end of the semester with a thesis, with a structure, and with someone to help them supervise that,” Bonthrone said. During the second semester, students will be working on their research projects and be meeting with their supervisors.

Finally, the year will conclude with a “mini academic conference,” where students in the course will have to present and defend their thesis to parents, students and other faculty. “What I’m trying to do is mimic as much as possible the academic research process that people will meet at university,” Bonthrone said. “Hopefully people will love it.

We really want students to think that this is an opportunity for themselves to really dig into something… and develop interest in a certain area.”

BACKGROUND RESEARCH

FA C U LT Y M E N T O R

subject further. “I just was absolutely fascinated. We’d come and do little physics experiments and chemistry experiments. That just triggered something in me. That was it, all the way through high school,” she said.

Bonthrone’s passion for science was unwavering, ultimately leading her to attend University of Edinburgh, and then Cambridge University for her Ph.D. in chemistry. “When it came to picking my courses or writing my UCAS [Universities and Colleges Admissions Service] statement, that wasn’t difficult because I knew exactly what I wanted to do,” she said.

At Cambridge, Bonthrone was eager to participate in research and got involved in two large projects. One, in “non-technical terms,” was on the stretchiness of spiders’ threads and the second looked at “a bacterial storage polymer that could potentially be used to create biodegradable plastic bottles.”

The first project was inspired simply through a single conversation Bonthrone had with a zoologist at a conference. The zoologist, Bonthrone described, was struggling to understand why spiders created threads with such different elasticities and densities. “He talked me through it and by chance, I went, ‘I might have a way of solving that’,” Bonthrone said. “It’s not entirely luck because you’re building on a huge background

THESIS

YEAR-LONG PROCESS OF THE ADVANCED INDEPENDENT RESEARCH COLLOQUIUM

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL KAREN BONTHRONE

A CA D E M I C C O N F E R E N C E DATA C O L L E C T I O N

“THERE’S A GROWING AWARENESS THAT DOING MORE APS IS NOT NECESSARILY THE BE-ALL AND END-ALL OF EDUCATION.”

S P E C I A L I Z AT I O N The Standard

An indirect path to teaching

Three teachers discuss their previous interests in landscape architecture, aviation and concert flute, and the events that inspired them to choose a career in education.

Isabelle Lhuilier | Features Editor

W

hile driving along a winding desert highway in California, English Teacher Eve Berinati had an experience that would catalyze a drastic change in the trajectory of her working life. On her way to the University of California Berkley to pursue a career in landscape architecture, a minor car accident resulted in the journey taking longer than Berinati expected. “I was listening to a recording of a poem [Wild Geese by Mary Oliver], I spaced out and I had a little fender bender,” she said. “Once I got to California I had a little crisis and decided that I didn’t want to go to landscape architecture school, I just wanted to go back to Vermont because that was my home.”

However, listening to the radio on her drive back to Vermont, Berinati heard an essay on the radio called

and the September 11 attacks, discovering that not everyone shared her positive opinion of the U.S. “I can remember getting into these debates about people saying how much they disliked George Bush,” she said. “Those conversations made me realize I wanted to work in a place where you are always thinking and exploring and really just being a lifelong learner and thinking about what was happening in the world.”

For Berinati, teaching High School students is a way to let them benefit from the same opportunities she had.

“I felt like my high school experience, my high school teachers had really given me that capacity to be able to choose my own adventure,” she said.

In contrast, Stetsko, who comes from the small town of Elida in Ohio, decided to teach high school as she felt that she had a “lesser quality,” educa-

Stetsko white water rafts with friends on the Tully River in Australia.

After university, she spent six months traveling around Australia and New Zealand where she was inspired to pursue teaching.

PHOTO COURTESY OF PEGGY STETSKO “Against School,” by John Taylor Gatto which sparked inspiration within.

“People were calling into the show and talking about how the public education system in America was broken and I was like ‘that really sounds like something I should try and fix’,” she said.

In the ten years before becoming an English teacher, Berinati had a range of jobs including being an organic farmer, cooking in restaurants and attending massage school. After living in Hawaii, Berinati decided that, as a next career, she wanted to become a landscape designer. “My motivation was that I wanted to make resorts in Hawaii more sustainable because I was really interested in organic agriculture and sustainability,” she said.

Similar to Berinati, Math Teacher Peggy Stetsko had a distinct experience which encouraged her to choose teaching. After attending Northwestern University, Stetsko spent six months backpacking through Australia and New Zealand where she came to hear a different, more global opinion of America than what she was used to.

As she was traveling in 2001, Stetsko had many conversations about politics

tion as a teenager. “I started realizing that my passion was making sure young people had a lot of the opportunities that I didn’t have in my life,” she said.

Growing up, the idea of a career in teaching never crossed Stetsko’s mind.

Initially aspiring to be a flute performance major, Stetsko ended up turning away from a career in music as she felt the industry was simply too competitive. “Such a limited career choice just felt kind of narrow to me so I ended up going to college without having a major decided,” she said. “I got all the way through undergrad without ever thinking about choosing a career in teaching.”

On the other hand, Science Teacher David Partridge felt that he possessed the skills required to be a teacher from an early age. “[At school] I was often chosen to give speeches and when I was at university I really enjoyed running seminars and workshops,” he said.

While originally considering doing a doctorate in biology at Imperial College in London, Partridge decided to spend the first years of his professional career teaching in high school.

“I enjoyed working with kids and enjoyed the activity of teaching it-

September/October 2018

self,” he said. He then spent five years teaching at the Westcliff High School for Boys, a British school in South End, which he described as “Hogwarts but without the magic.”

However, similar to Berinati, being a teacher isn’t the only career Partridge has had. His life took a different turn as he left his first teaching job to complete a masters degree in aeronautics, specializing in helicopters, at Cranfield University. He then moved to the Ivory Coast and spent the next 10 years of his life working for the World Health Organization (WHO). “I was able to combine my biology and my aviation working in a project to conquer [the disease] River Blindness,” he said.

Due to the success of the project, Partridge “worked [his] way out of a job,” and moved back to London. In 1997 he was accepted for a job at ASL as a biology teacher, but has taught across the sciences in his 21 years at the school.

Looking back on his time in West Africa, Partridge believes that he has been able to apply lessons he learned to his own teaching style. He discovered the importance of taking an interest in multiple fields of study and not just relying on one. “Not only did I apply my aeronautics and my medical entomology but I had to learn about epidemiology of diseases, I had to know geography, I had to learn French and speak it like the Africans do,” he said. “I basically had a 10-year education in all the sciences.”

Additionally, he learned how to interact with all types of people, a skill critical in developing strong relationships with parents and students. “[I was] dealing with all kinds of people from the night guardians of the place we were working in, the cleaners, right the way up to the government officials and the head of the WHO,” he said.

Berinati in Canada during her senior year of High School. Her successful experience is one reason that inspired her to teach High School students. PHOTO COURTESY OF EVE BERINATI Although his life has taken many loquacious - it’s hard to shut me up so it turns, Partridge particularly adores his is nice to be able to express and have a current job as he describes “getting a captive audience sometimes too.”

Similarly, Berinati chose to teach English as she not only enjoys sharing her passion for reading and writing but feels that teaching communication is crucial. “I feel that teaching students … to speak and write their truths, to truly understand what they read, to listen well, is the key to our survival as a human race, and the only hope for peace and justice in our world,” she said.

Partridge would give those aspiring to be a teacher three pieces of advice: know your subjects, develop skills of getting materials across and, most imMath Teacher, portantly, enjoy working with kids. “It’s Peggy Stetsko [ineffective] being someone who is very buzz” off seeing his students learn and knowledgeable and very good at exposcollaborating with colleagues. “I love iting if you don’t like engaging with and my colleagues. There is never a day that having fun with young people,” he said. goes by where I don’t learn something “I sometimes like to say I teach kids and from them,” he said. “I am also quite after that I teach science.”

“

I started realizing that my passion was making sure young people had a lot of the opportunities that I didn’t have in my life.

Partridge left, at 32 years-old, with his pilot in command, Juan Vasquez, at a helicopter base in the town of Odienne, in the northeast of the Ivory Coast.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID PARTRIDGE

Features 15

Managing time away Examining the academic and social effects of long term absences for both teachers and students.

Alexandra Gers | Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Online

CARTOON BY GABY IWEGBUE (’19)

Faculty and Staff Leave

S

ocial Studies Teacher Becky Mason returned to school in March, 2018 after missing a year of school for her second maternity leave. According to the U.K. government, women are entitled to up to a year of maternity leave with varying degrees of payment. Deciding to take the full allotted year, Mason informed the school in March, 2017.

For the remainder of the 2016-2017 school year, ASL hired a long-term substitute, Christine Putnam, to fill in for Mason’s AP Art History and World Civilizations II classes. “We had a three week overlap time which was really nice because that meant that if there was anything that came up, I was still around.

[It was also] in case one day I didn’t show up because I was having a baby, she was there,” Mason said.

Similar to Mason, Math Teacher Neil Basu was absent from school due to the birth of his daughter at the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year. Basu took two weeks of paternity leave in October, 2017, as well as a month of shared parental leave, a U.K. government program that allows new mothers to share

16 Features

their year of maternity leave with their partners, attaching four weeks to his paternity leave.

All teachers applying for an extended leave of absence must go through the Human Resources (HR) department to ensure that the school is aware of the changes and can make necessary adjustments. In some instances, such as unexplained immediate departure from school, the leave would be unpaid. “[The teacher] would start by speaking to their principal and then the head of school ultimately to request that leave of absence, and it may or may not be granted depending on the circumstances,” HR Manager Megan Gomm said.

However, in the case of long-term illness, faculty and staff are then classified as “disabled,” according to Gomm, and are eligible to receive disability pay and remain an official member of ASL staff.

ASL also provides health insurance of varying degrees to all employees as a supplement to the free health care provided by the NHS. “It is important that our benefits are competitive and that

our employees feel taken care of, but the rates vary a little bit,” Gomm said.

Mason explained that after returning to school, she had to readjust to balancing her home and work lives. “I have to figure out how I do that so I can still have a nice time with my daughters, plus I don’t always want to be bringing work home. What I miss about maternity leave is the time. You don’t feel as hurried,” she said.

For Basu, his paternity leave allowed him to be present with his family while they adjusted to their new life. “That month initially was just incredibly beneficial for us to be together and to support each other in those super weird, scary, but also perfectly fine things, but things that were new to us,” he said.

Similar to Mason, Basu believes that the major benefit of paternity leave was the extra time to support his wife in their routine as well as to watch his daughter’s growth. “[My wife and I] could share the responsibilities of all the chores... there’s all the stuff that we have to do to upkeep our life like groceries and cleaning, to be able to do all that and to spend that time

and give [my wife] a break so that she could regroup and relax,” he said.

Both Basu and Mason found that being away from work made them realize that they missed the people and energy associated with teaching.

For Mason, she felt that although her maternity leave was helpful, she was nastolgic of the meaningful conversations that being a teacher allowed for.

“What I missed most was the day to day interactions with people. My normal day when I was on maternity leave was maybe having meaningful interactions with a baby and maybe two to three other people, whereas now I interact with hundreds a day,” Mason said.

Because Basu became the Grade 9 Dean at the beginning of the 20172018 school year, his job was to develop relationships with both the students and the families of Grade 9, making his departure from school particularly difficult. “I missed the energy and the positivity that the kids bring into the classroom, that they bring into my office,” he said.

The Standard

Physical Illness

H

eadaches, swollen throat, fever and exhaustion. In October, 2017, Ray Leavenworth-Bakali (’19) began to suffer from these common symptoms of glandular fever, more commonly known as mono, causing him to miss four weeks of school.

Leavenworth-Bakali believes that this incident wasn’t the first time he’s had glandular fever, but in the past he brushed it off as a common cold.

In this instance, he recalls being in physical therapy for a hip injury and almost fainting from exhaustion, leading him to seek out a doctor.

“I couldn’t eat or drink or talk. For about a week my throat had closed up, and after that I was exhausted all the time,” he said.

Despite missing a substantial amount of school, Leavenworth-Bakali feels that being away from school wasn’t difficult, but returning and making up the work he missed was the greater challenge.

“Each teacher needed me to com-

plete every single piece of work that I’d missed,” he said. “It just sort of took over my life having to do all this work and it became really stressful.”

According to the High School attendance policy, “a student may miss no more than six class periods in a semester-long course and 12 class periods in a year-long course.” However, under the circumstances of long-term illness, other measures to accommodate the situation must be taken including receiving a medical note to excuse illness for longer than three days and potentially having to retake a course if the student exceeds the maximum number of allowed absences.

When Helen Grace (’17) became ill during the spring of her junior year, she exceeded the maximum number of allowed absences and technically based on the attendance policy, “failed out of every single class,” that she was taking. Grace, like Leavenworth-Bakali, was diagnosed with mono. However, she fur-

ther developed an allergic reaction after a misdiagnosis, resulting in her hospitalization for a week and subsequent absence from school for about a month.

Prior to her hospitalization, Grace explained that her teachers were hesitant to believe that she was actually sick. “The first couple of weeks when I was just at home in bed, essentially delirious from how high my fever was... no one really believed [me] until there was proof of hospitalization,” she said.

In the fall of her senior year, Grace had to make up a few assignments but explained that all of the “work was graded very nicely.”

Despite missing school amidst the high-pressure transition from junior to senior year, she believes that her illness did not have a meaningful impact on her college application process. “I missed taking an SAT, but the College Board refunded me and scheduled a new test,” she said.

“NO ONE REALLY BELIEVED [ME] UNTIL THERE WAS PROOF OF HOSPITALIZATION.” HELEN GRACE (‘17)

Impact

“I COULDN’T EAT OR DRINK OR TALK... I WAS EXHAUSTED ALL THE TIME.” RAY LEAVENWORTHBAKALI (’19)

September/October 2018

or both students and teachers, takFemotional ing prolonged absences can leave and mental implications.

When Mason returned to school in March, 2018, she picked up former Social Studies Teacher Todd Pavel’s classes. However, Putnam had been previously covering Pavel’s classes, causing the students in those classes, U.S. History and World Civilizations II, to have three teachers over the course of one school year.

Mason recognized that this can be difficult for students, especially when it comes to grading discrepancies.

However, she believes it can also be beneficial, as she had no awareness of her student’s abilities. “I’m just dumped right in and have to jump in and assess them… with no understanding or background, so in a way it’s probably very honest because I don’t have any preconceived ideas of my students,” she said.

Although Alex Stone (’19), who had Pavel, Mason and Putnam as teachers in her junior year, did not find that the three teachers had drastically different teaching methods,

she found that the distinct grading methods had a significantly negative impact on her grade for the course.

Similarly, she believes that the continuous changes made it difficult to establish strong relationships with the teachers. “I think this is really unfair to the students because it takes usually a whole year for a student to get to know a teacher and make a relationship and to find out what they think is important and what they want the student to learn and work on in that class,” she said.

Basu agrees with Stone, and explains that it can be difficult for students to have established a relationship with one teacher, only to have to get used to another teacher for a short period of time. “It’s always a little bit different. They develop a relationship with me and then there’s this other person,” he said. “It’s the little things like right before a test, the way I am versus the way another teacher is just slightly different.”

When teachers return, Mason believes that they sometimes have to readjust their mentality, as being on

leave can require them to learn new skills and adapt to new practices. For example, when Mason returned from her first maternity leave, the school had switched to standards-based grading, requiring her to re-learn a new style of grading and teaching.

As a result, Mason had to change the way she scheduled her time in and out of school. “I avoid bringing any sort of planning home because I need to think about it more, and I don’t always get the time,” she said.

However, for students, the time away from school can be socially taxing as well. Leavenworth-Bakali explained that missing out on extracurricular activities, such as attending the 2017 boys varsity soccer ISSTs, made the recovery process even more difficult. “From October [2017] until January [2018] I didn’t hang out with my friends on the weekend or anything so it made it really hard to stay positive throughout,” he said. “I was spending my weekends not really doing much and it made it hard to come back knowing that I’d missed so much.”

Features 17

Trans-Atlantic gun reform The U.S. and the U.K. have historically handled gun violence differently, but there is hope that will change.

Emily Forgash | Media Editor

T

he 1996 Dunblane Massacre was described as the worst multiple fatality shooting the U.K. had experienced at the time, according to The Guardian. It took place at the Dunblane Primary School in Stirling, Scotland, where 43 year old Thomas Hamilton opened fire on a class of 29 primary school students. He hit all but one, killing 16 of the children as well as their teacher. There has not been a school shooting in the U.K. since.

Directly after the tragedy, Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister John Major and Leader of the Opposition Tony Blair, called for a change in gun ownership laws, effectively making it so that no one could privately own a handgun in Britain. According to CNN, more than 162,000 handguns were surrendered.

To Emma Whitman (’21), the government’s reaction to the massacre was notable because they saw the need for change, and then they followed through with that change. “I think that’s impressive compared to what we [have seen in the U.S.],” she said.

Following the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, which claimed the lives of 20 students and six teachers, direct legal action was attempted. Two major bills were proposed with hopes of stricter gun laws: the Assault Weapons Ban of 2013 and the Manchin-Toomey Amendment which focused on improving background checks for people wishing to buy guns. Both documents failed to pass the Senate. After the laws were denied, five shootings have transpired in places where no gun ban was in effect, with a death toll of 10 or more

in each shooting. These shootings resulted in a total of 149 deaths.

Whitman sees distinct differences in the aftermaths of the Dunblane Massacre and the 2018 shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Marches and significant movements are occurring more frequently in the U.S., with the hopes of inspiring the government to make significant changes.

In contrast, the change was almost immediate after the Dunblane tragedy.

Despite the shootings happening in the U.S., Whitman feels very safe at an American school.

On September 10, the school informed the community that there would be an immediate closed campus due to the anniversary of September 11 the next day, coinciding with the Jewish holiday, Rosh Hashanah. “When we got that text saying to stay inside, [gun violence] didn’t even cross my mind,” Whitman said. “I don’t think about guns when I’m in London, whereas when I’m in the U.S. I always have a thought in the back of my head that something could maybe happen if someone chose to, she said. “If something were to happen here, I feel more protected in that someone would take action afterwards.”

Ishaan Rahman (’20) feels similarly to Whitman when it comes to his safety in the U.K. in relation to gun violence. “In the U.K., I do feel pretty safe [because] there is heavy regulation around guns,” he said.

On the other hand, Rahman doesn’t think the U.K. is safer than the U.S. in general. “There are things that would replace guns as a pretty equal danger in many respects. [For example] the knife crime in London is higher than it is in New York, which I find surprising,” he said.

Rahman believes that the crime rate is the same in the There have been 23 U.K. than it is in the U.S. shootings in the U.S. “These gun shootings [in the with more than 10 U.S.] actually don’t contribto the majority of the deaths, five of which transpired in ute crime we see in the U.S. A lot a place with an automatic weapons of the crime is the same that ban, and 18 of which occurred in a you would see in the U.K.” The U.S. government location without any gun bans. implemented a trial Assault

Weapons Ban in 1994 for ten years. Now, there is a lot of controversy in the U.S. on whether the implementation of another Assault Weapons Ban would be beneficial. “I don’t think something like an Assault Weapons Ban works [because] during the period of the Assault Weapons Ban [in the U.S. from 1994 to 2004], you had the Columbine shooting and a few other shootings,” Rahman said. “It’s obviously a huge achievement that the U.K. hasn’t had a disaster like [the Dunblane Massacre] in 22 years, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the U.K. is a much safer place than the U.S. in terms of crime.”

“

39

percent of homicides in the U.K. are a result of knife crime. Knives are the most common weapon used in homicides in the U.K.

4

percent of homicides in the U.K. are a result of shootings.

It’s a huge achievement Guns are the least common that the U.K. hasn’t had a weapon used in homicides in the u.k. disaster like [the

Dunblane Massacre] in 22 years, but that doesn’t mean that the U.K. is a safer place than the U.S. Ishaan Rahman (’20)

Although Michelle Raiole (’22) does not think that an immediate ban on all guns in the U.S. would be constructive, she believes that someday one needs to be put in place. “I definitely think that semi automatic and automatic rifles should be banned, but I think we should take it slow so that everyone gets adjusted [...] and there’s not outbreak and a lot of chaos,” she said.

Raiole thinks that time played a big part in how the U.S. and the U.K. handled shootings. “I think the reason why [shootings] were handled better here in the U.K. is because we’ve let it go on for so long in the U.S. This big movement really only started recently, but when something big happened here, [the government] immediately got on it,” she said.

Raiole is beginning to see a change in how gun reform is being handled in the U.S. “We’re giving students a voice, and I think that’s really important and a big change on how the U.S. is moving forward as a society.”

73

Percent of homicides in the U.S. are a result of shootings.

An assault weapons ban bill failed to pass the senate in 2013 with a

60 - 40 vote against the bill.

STATISTICS FROM BBC NEWS, THE LEDGER-ENQUIRER, STATISTICA, THE U.S. GOVERNMENT

September, 1994

October 16, 1996

September, 2004

February 14, 2018

10 year Assault Weapons Ban Trial commences in the U.S.

U.K. government implements Assault Weapons Ban on all guns except for .22-caliber target pistols.

10 year Assault Weapons Ban Trial ends in the U.S.

Parkland shooting in Parkland, Florida results in 17 deaths.

18 Features

March 13, 1996

April 20, 1999

December 14, 2012

Dunblane shooting in Scotland results in 17 deaths.

Columbine shooting in Littleton, Colorado results in 15 deaths.

Sandy Hook shooting in Newtown, Connecticut results in 26 deaths.

The Standard

Culture

Sculpting creative action Art installations in London are attempting to prompt environmental change and activism.

Quinn Whitman | Media Director

M

ore and more frequently, accessible urban art installations are being used in a way to comment on current issues and inspire people to take action. The Tusk Rhino Trail is the newest method that London has served as a setting to highlight the intersectionality between environmental activism and the visual arts.

The exhibition consists of 21 painted rhinoceros sculptures located around Central London, each by a different contemporary artist. The project was commissioned by Tusk, a charity that helps to raise awareness for poaching and protection of the rhinoceros and elephant populations. All of the sculptures were taken down on September 24 and moved to Christie’s for viewing in order to prepare for the auction on October 9, the same week that world leaders will meet to attend the International Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade. The proceeds will go to charities to help support Black Rhinoceros populations across Africa.

This isn’t the first time London has displayed such sculptures in order to raise awareness for an endangered species. In the spring of 2010, the incredibly successful Elephant Parade, which consisted of over 250 Asian Elephant sculptures, raised over £4 million through auctions for wildlife conservation organizations.

City-wide installations like the Elephant Parade and the Rhino Trail have been able to raise awareness of the importance of retaining and growing the population of endangered animals.

The individuality of each of the rhinos serves as a strategic way to help showcase the results of decades of human-wildlife contact and the beauty of these unique animals.

One of the pieces that demonstrated this was created by Chief Design Officer for Land Rov-

er Gerry McGovern (3), which was displayed in Trafalgar Square. The chrome coating of the sculpture helped to display the preciousness of the species, and its red tusk signified the animals that are killed for the sole purpose of their tusks.

McGovern said that the red horn helps to “[signify] the absurdity of this beautiful creature being hunted for such a small part of its overall being.”

Another powerful statement was made through Rhino Noir by Charming Baker (6), which was displayed outside of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office off Whitehall. Baker is known for destroying his own work by shooting, sawing or drilling it and then subsequently putting it back together. The sculpture consists of several different pieces of the rhinoceros sawed

“

If enough action isn’t taken soon enough, these animals will be reduced to photographs like the ones on David Yarrow’s sculpture. apart and then put back together, except instead of standing upright, the rhino is falling down on its front legs, helping to show the detrimental impact humans have had on the rhinoceros population. The world is destroying the population of the black rhinoceros and Baker’s work helps to show the permanence of this issue.

Sculptures from the showing of the Elephant Parade in April 2010 at the Royal Hospital Chelsea.

PHOTOS BY QUINN WHITMAN

Finally, another striking piece was the sculpture by photographer David Yarrow (1), which was placed in the Duke of York Square. He not only used the sculpture to represent the endangered rhino, but to send a message to his viewers that we are playing a part in the decimation of multiple species around the globe. If enough action isn’t taken soon enough, these animals will be reduced to photographs like the ones collaged on Yarrow’s sculpture.

The Tusk Rhino trail is an effective installation that is shedding much-needed light on

By Nancy Fouts

By David Yarrow

By Nick and Rob Carter

September/October 2018

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4 5

1

3

the issue of poaching and the loss of the environmental heritage of African landscapes, as well as the importance of environmental activism for endangered species. By effectively identifying the ideal balance between visual art and environmental activism, the Rhino Trail has instilled a sense of agency within me as a result of the magnitude of these consequences.

It is possible a key part of the wildlife lanscape could be lost and it is our job to be activists to be sure that doesn’t happen.

By David Mach

By Gerry McGovern

Rhinoceros sculptures from the Tusk Rhino Trail.

They were on display throughout September and will be auctioned off at Christie’s on October 9.

Rhino Noir by Charming Baker

6

PHOTOS FROM TUSKRHINOTRAIL.COM

Culture Commentary 19

Netflix’s Insatiable does not satisfy viewers appetite for a new comedic teen show Naz Ozturk | Culture Editor: Print

T

he new Netflix show Insatiable, starring Debby Ryan, was very clearly what its title suggested. The show was realeased on the streaming website on August 10. After finishing all 12 episodes of the show’s first season, I felt an urge to email Netflix and demand compensation for the 504 minutes that I had wasted watching the show. Insatiable was supposed to be a dark and twisted comedy portraying the revenge story of a formerly bullied teenage girl: a mix of 1980s classic Heathers and 2000s hit Mean Girls. However, the show turned out to positively convey an array of health issues such as fatphobia and eating disorders.

The show focused on the main character Patty, portrayed by Ryan, and her body. “Fatty Patty” is a girl who struggles with body image and continuously uses unhealthy methods such, as starving herself, to lose weight.

The opening scenes of the show convey a montage where Patty is bullied for her weight by her classmates. She is regularly ignored and forced to feel inferior. However, over the summer “Fatty Patty” suddenly loses 70 pounds due to her jaw being wired shut because of an accident.

This was an immediate warning sign. Teenagers struggle daily with their body image and self esteem. Eating disorders are a serious topic which

should be regarded and addressed with care. However, in Insatiable, it seems that after struggling with anorexia and living off of a medically necessary liquid diet for three months, no one is worried about the self harm that Patty could have caused herself by enforcing an eating disorder.

Instead, the show depicts its characters as part of a society which praises Patty for her new figure, ignoring the means by which she got it. The people who had the most influential relationships with Patty, such as her pageant coach Bob Armstrong and her mother, lionized Patty’s new figure and treated her former figure as if it was a disease that she had overcome.

To draw attention to the fatphobic nature of the show, Patty, who was deemed unpopular by her peers, becomes well liked and the center of attention due to her new slim figure.

Her reputation is instantaneously transformed as all of a sudden people who bullied her start to fawn over how pretty she is.

I was already starting to lose interest in the show since, in reality, your problems don’t suddenly disappear if you become pretty. In every few episodes, Patty would say some generic statement about the emptiness of beauty such as “I might be pretty on the outside, but I still feel ugly on

the inside.” Despite this, it was clear that beauty was still portrayed as the most prominent virtue a person could have; Patty got away with almost anything because of her appearance, once she had lost weight. For a coming of age story, to me, this show only seemed to reiterate one erroneous message to young viewers: being beautiful and skinny are the only true virtues worth possessing.

Continuing to watch 25-year-old Ryan struggle to portray a true 17-yearold, I had one question lingering in the back of my mind: was I the only one who noticed the potentially harmful messages that are conveyed in this show? As a multi-billion dollar company, Netflix must have predicted that the show’s array of fatphobic scenes would receive a backlash. I refuse to believe a boardroom full of press agents were completely proud of their body image, that they failed to see that creating a protagonist who witnesses nothing but praise for their eating disorder could actually ultimately provoke victims of fat shaming and eating disorders.

Nevertheless, no trigger warning was found anywhere within the 12 episodes of the show. This resulted in the show becoming a despicable cinematic experience: portraying potentially triggering and harmful content, especially towards young viewers.

Books beyond the Harkness table

Books shouldn’t just be read to receive a grade or stimulate conversation during Harkness discussions.

Here are the following books recommended by teachers for students to read before they graduate.

Allegra Albanese | Staff Writer

H

igh school students often get wrapped up in attempting to read every classic work of literature before they graduate to demonstrate literary sophistication, regardless of whether they enjoy the book or not.

I know that I have fallen prey to this tendency, having ventured into the works of Homer, Tolstoy, and Dickens simply for the names, and finding them to be less than scintillating.

As a result, I went searching for book recommendations from the people I deemed most experienced in the world of literature: my teachers. While their book choices were fairly diverse, each teacher chose their book with the same theme in mind: identity. Through my interviews, I learned that reading extends beyond scanning words off a page and taking in foreign knowledge: to read is to discover oneself. It is only through books that are compelling, like those recommended by the teachers, that students will learn to love reading for what it is: an introspective source of entertainment and insight.

With that, I challenge other students, to read one of the books on this

list. Maybe they will find out that they are destined to be an astrophysicist or an influential playwright. Maybe they won’t. Either way, they have something to write about in the section of your college application titled “Tell Us About The Best Book You’ve Read In The Past Year.”

“At the end of the day [reading] is not a discipline to be studied, it is more like art.”

Devan Ganeshananthan, High School Principal

“Broaden your mind with language.”

Victoria Hamadache, World Languages Teacher “Aujourd’hui, maman est morte.”

The infamous opening line of Albert Camus’ “L’Étranger” (The Outsider) introduces what is to be an evocative and intriguing investigation into the philosophy of the absurd. What begins as the story of an ordinary man who must deal with the many perils life throws his way, soon transforms into a senseless murder and a riveting debate over moral order. What is it like to be condemned for being an outsider, a stranger, an alien? Meur-

20 Culture Commentary

PHOTOS FROM FLICKR AND OBERON BOOKS

sault, the protagonist will tell all in a mere 200 pages.

“L’Étranger is the perfect pocketbook,” said World Languages Teacher Victoria Hamadache, who is of the opinion that all high school students should explore “L’Étranger” before they go off to university. “It is important for youngsters to [read books in different languages] as it broadens your mind and you get that different rhythm, that cultural aspect, that window into what that author or poet was

It has been almost 70 years since George Orwell published his renowned dystopian novel “1984”: an eerily accurate prediction of life in the year 1984.

Orwell’s masterpiece has reappeared on many bookstores’ bestseller lists multiple times since it was published in 1949, notably after Edward Snowden leaked classified information about the NSA in 2013 and after President Donald Trump was inaugurated in J a n u a r y 2017. These two events, while differing considerably, have called readers to again explore “1984” and draw frightening parallels between the themes in the book and current events. High School Principal Devan Ganeshananthan encourages high school students to do the same.

Living in London has influenced

Ganeshananthan to re-explore the main themes of 1984, principally surveillance and control. “Everything has come full circle for me. Now living here in London and seeing the aspects of Big Brother and CCTV and surveillance and treading that fine line between dystopian government intrusion and personal freedoms,” Ganeshanathan said.

To read the rest of Staff Writer Allegra Albanese’s article in anticipation of Teen Book Week on October 7, see standard.asl.org.

The Standard

Remembering the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin’s passing on August 18 marked the close of a celebrated life in music, activism and American culture. Impacting millions, including teachers and students, her legacy lives on in song and spirit.

John Towfighi | Lead Features Editor

Imogen Weiss | Media Editor

D

ubbed the “Queen of Soul,” the late Aretha Franklin left a legacy unmatched as a musician, activist and actress throughout a career that spanned across five decades. In light of her recent passing at the age of 76, her spirit and music has reclaimed a stake in Spotify playlists and internet downloads for both her long-time fans and those just coming to recognize her name.

Franklin’s ability to make music that evokes emotion, a result of her booming voice and pristine repertoire, has made her a singer that resonates with people from all generations. For Lily Foussé (’21), Franklin’s song “Respect” often blasts from her house speakers, inviting both her and her mom to begin dancing in the middle of the kitchen.

“It’s a super upbeat [song] that really uplifts my spirits,” she said.

Similarly, Social Studies Teacher Terry Gladis’ favorite Franklin song is also “Respect.” His interest in the song comes from the story of its composition. Originally an Otis Redding single, detailing how a woman should treat her husband when he comes home from work, Franklin arranged her own version of the tune in which the roles are reversed. “I love that song even more because Aretha Franklin takes that song and turns it around for respect for women,” he said.

This talent of arranging others’ music for her own delivery was a key part of Franklin’s appeal for Choral Director Lisa Ross, a long-time fan. “She would take music that was already written and completely transform it and make it her own,” she said. “She had such a vision of what the music could be and it came

PAINTING BY ELLA STAPLETON (’20)

from her – she made it authentically Aretha, no matter what the song was, she put her stamp on it.”

Echoing Ross, College Counsellor Nicole Thompson believes that Franklin’s mix of skill and emotion made her an extraordinary interpreter and singer.

“As a vocalist myself, I can appreciate her range, her power, just the sheer magnitude of her voice and the raw emotion,” she said. “I think a lot of vocalists now are technically proficient, they can hit the right notes, but there’s not the same emotion behind it.”

post-war America that had new sights set on racial equality. For Gladis, Franklin’s success with music that supported these ideas of equality and change built awareness amongst her fans. “A lot of her songs represent the idea of a protest movement or something that is lingering in society that needs to be addressed,” he said.

Moreover, Thompson thinks that Franklin used her position as a singer to emphasize the sense of a unified community. “It feels to me like Aretha was the first mega-star vocally... and that transcended genres but also

On a more personal level, Gladis believes that a part of Franklin’s legacy was that she represented what it meant to be a strong woman. “My dad passed away when I was a child...I was raised by my mom and my sister and now I live in a house with three other females. To me, a powerful...woman is something that is extremely important as a father, son and a husband,” he said.

Franklin was the paragon of a strong woman, performing as an African-American female in a white American male dominated society.

“SHE HAD SUCH A VISION OF WHAT MUSIC COULD BE...SHE MADE IT AUTHENTICALLY ARETHA NO MATTER WHAT THE SONG WAS.” CHORAL DIRECTOR LISA ROSS Similar to Thompson, Ben Berry (’20) was drawn to Franklin because of this raw feeling and truth in her voice and lyrics. Recognizing her “undeniable talent,” Berry believes that Franklin is a testament to the power of expressing what resides within. “I really enjoy Aretha Franklin’s soul,” he said. “You know it’s clear that it’s completely natural.

Nowadays a lot of singers will try to force soul that they might not have.”

From a historical standpoint, Franklin’s soul served as a beacon for the African-American community during a

September/October 2018

communities,” she said. “She reached into the mainstream and had people of all backgrounds listening to her music and she was that voice that everyone tried to emulate.”

Ross explained how her music and this feeling of community was an important cultural part of the Civil Rights movement. “Having anthem after anthem after anthem of freedom and equality, but doing it in a soulful way brought energy and richness to a really important period of American culture,” she said.

“Back then being a black female she had to overcome many more obstacles than say a white singer in her position,” Berry explained. “And she continued to just bring this sense of community and togetherness with white listeners and black listeners which I think was very powerful.”

This ability to bring people together stemmed from Franklin’s musical skills. Gladis thinks that her fluency in a variety of styles made her work an inspiration for artists in countless musical genres. “Nobody can inhabit

a song like her...As far as jazz, blues, and, rock, she was an icon,” he said.

Retaining a strong presence in the music scene up to her passing, Franklin continued performing concerts until 2017. Three years ago, she played the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors, and notoriously sparked visible emotion in former President Barack Obama as seen in a video clip that went viral.

For fans, Franklin’s music will never reach a distinct peak. “There are so few artists that live up to what they were decades and decades ago,” Foussé said. “Artists [like Franklin] don’t reach a peak because their music lives on and on. They still inspire other artists and people today and I think that’s why they are still relevant.”

Something that struck Thompson about Franklin’s passing was the international awareness and attention from people of all ages. “I was kind of blown away at how much news I saw in London, in England, all around Europe and that was very heart-warming,” she said. “Also for people who grew up not necessarily listening to her music ... recognizing her worthiness of acknowledgement and tribute is something I appreciated.”

Rated by Rolling Stone magazine in 2013 as the #1 best singer in the world, Franklin’s legacy is nothing short of legendary. Like Foussé, Ross believes that Franklin’s contribution not only to music, but to American culture, has made her one of the best to ever sing. “Aretha is obviously the queen of soul,” Ross said. “She’s just one powerhouse of a woman.”

Culture 21

Coaching success: introducing the new fall coaches Five new coaches share their experiences of how they got into the world of sports.

Michael Flaherty | Sports Editor: Online

Ricky Machel Varsity boys soccer coach

Varsity girls assistant volleyball coach

Varsity girls assistant soccer coach

Mo Jama

Kaitlyn Wren

Alex Capparos (’97)

How did you get the job at ASL? I coach at an academy local to here, Soccer Chance Academy, and [Athletics Director] John Farmer reached out to me and asked me if I would be interested. I came in and I just fell in love with the school as soon as I visited and went from there.

How did you get the job coaching volleyball?

I was coaching Grade 8 volleyball last year and then I knew there was a position open with varsity. I coach High School girls for softball, so I talked to Farmer about if this position was open and if I had an opportunity to join the team.

How did you get the job at ASL? Some of the parents had [told me] to work at the school because I coach some of the girls outside of the school. So I spoke with [Farmer] he gave me an interview.

What have you thought of the soccer program so far?

I love the tradition. There is a very strong tradition here, which we are trying to build upon this year. We’ve got a lot of young players this year which excited me as well, so there is long-term project. I didn’t want to go somewhere where we would have had a lot of Grade 12 students who would be leaving [with a lack of young talent]. I’m really excited about working with [the younger students] in the years to come.

How would you compare Middle School volleyball to High School volleyball?

Middle School is much more developmental, focusing on the skill: teaching them rotations, getting them to improve on their skills, [and] overhand serves.

Whereas at the varsity level it’s getting them to use specific plays and using their hitters to an offensive advantage as well as developing our defense to have successful games.

How did you get the job at ASL? I’ve coached at ACS Cobham for the past four years and I’ve known John Farmer just through that. In my normal day-to-day job, I work for Young Life, which loads of students at ASL are involved in and that moved me here to Central London. So I was working out in Cobham and just through that connection, Farmer got in touch and [said], ‘Hey, we know you coach volleyball, would you like to coach here?’

How did you get the job at ASL? I was looking to get a tennis coach qualification and [Farmer] said they are looking for tennis coaches and Farmer said to come and have an interview. Then I got that job, and then I became the soccer coach because Farmer said they were looking for coaches. [Farmer] knew I was a big soccer fan and I also played soccer [at ASL] so I thought: why not coach soccer?

How did you get into volleyball?

I played for eight years in America.

Loved it. I was quite sporty growing up but volleyball was just the sport for me.

There’s a huge teamwork and collaboration that’s required for the sport. There’s no all-star you can really have in volleyball because everyone has to serve and everyone has to play. It takes the whole team to cover the whole court. So I got involved doing that in America. Once I moved over, then I started coaching.

What do you do outside of ASL? I trade options and futures on the Stock Exchange and I work for myself. I am usually done by about 2 p.m. every day and this ties in perfectly with my day job.

What do you do outside of ASL? I am a full-time coach and teacher at Soccer Chance Academy, which is a full time academy for 16-19-yearolds. We have 56 boys, 37 of whom have been [dropped] from professional clubs. We have boys from Chelsea, Fulham, Queen’s Park Rangers, Tottenham, and we work with them everyday on their game as well as playing in a league. Outside of that I have a little French bulldog that keeps up my time.

Alison Muthig

What is your volleyball background?

I played volleyball through High School and then I focused on softball during college. Once I graduated from college I started playing indoor and outdoor volleyball while I was living in the U.S. for six years.

Do you prefer softball or volleyball?

I don’t know that I prefer one. I think I’m more comfortable from the softball side having my own experience of softball at a higher level.

What do you think of the program so far?

So far, so good. I like the seasons. I like that it’s a four month program and then [the students] move into a different sport.

How did you get into football?

I played football a lot when I was younger and as I got older I was on the sideline a lot and watching and that is where coaching came in. I realized that on the sidelines I would shout out instructions to my teammates. Then it was an easy transition for me to become a coach.

How long have you been coaching?

I have been coaching for 11 years.

So I am quite experienced coaching six year olds all the way to 26 year olds.

Do you prefer coaching or playing more?

I like the playing aspect more but I don’t have the same ability as I used to so now I prefer coaching.

JV girls volleyball coach

What do you think of the ASL program so far?

I am loving it. I genuinely am. It’s so organized, the coaches are all so great and we all get on so well. It’s really great communication and really great camaraderie within. Even the staff, which I’ve been so blown away by, and even the community of the school has been really open and really welcoming.

JJV boys soccer coach

How did you get into sports?

I’ve been playing tennis since I was 3 years old and soccer since [I could] kick a ball. So I played soccer and tennis at the varsity level and also JV and in Grade 7 and Grade 8. All the teams that I’m coaching, I’ve probably played in. Tennis, I played at a club level. I never competed in college but I probably still play a couple times a month.

To read more about fall sports, read the fall sports preview written

by Sports Editor: Online Michael Flaherty on standard.asl.org.

PHOTOS BY EMILY FORGASH

22 Sports

The Standard

What’s the point of athletics?

The importance of participating in athletics, and the benefits of physical training in a team setting.

Christina Leonard | Online Director

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hile the ASL athletic teams are consistently strong - ISST banners line the gym - only 70 percent of High School students typically takes part in those teams.

Studies have long demonstrated that physical activity is crucial for a healthy body and mind and that being part of any type of competitive team provides many other benefits for students. Recent studies have concluded that combining these two concepts -- physical activity done in a team setting -- provides an indisputable advantage to participants. It is time to acknowledge that sports need to be about far more than athletic excellence. It is time to rethink the point of ASL athletics.

The significant positive outcomes of physical activity are clear and well-known; amongst other things, it decreases the chance of heart disease, stroke, obesity and cancer. The mental health advantages of being active – better memory, improved quality of sleep and reduced anxiety and depression – are equally certain and gaining wider recognition. Less well known to the typical non-athlete, however, are the additional social, psychological and academic benefits that come from being part of a competitive sports team.

Socially, athletes learn through experience the value of teamwork and competition. By working as a team towards a common goal, athletes develop essential group communication and problem-solving skills that they will call on throughout the rest of their lives. Early experience dealing with winning and losing prepares athletes to better manage competition off the field as well.

Team sports improve psychological well-being by boosting self-image and enhancing a sense of community. Team athletes are also often the happiest in the community as they are part of a group, able to interact with peers, coaches and mentors regularly.

From an early age, athletes can actually see that hard work and practice leads to success when they score a goal in a soccer match or catch a pop-fly in a baseball game after practicing for hours in their backyard. Being able to confirm for oneself that practice does makes perfect can instill a drive in student-athletes to work hard and routinely translates into academic achievement.

Just last month, the Mayo Clinic published the results of a Danish study, which looked at the connection between sports and longevity. The study found a strong correlation between longevity and sports that involved the most social interaction.

Tennis players showed the largest lifespan increase at 9.7 years while badminton players came in second at 6.2 years.

In a recent Time magazine article, the study’s co-author, Dr. James O’Keefe, said that “for both mental and physical well-being and longevity, [...] our social connections are probably the

September/October 2018

single-most important feature of living a long, healthy, happy life.” He said that, “perhaps the most important feature of your exercise regimen is that it should involve a playdate.”

Viewing this new information about the importance of socialization in combination with what we already know about the benefits of physical activity and being part of a team, leads to the simple conclusion that ASL should engage all students in team sports. Currently, there seem to be two main factors preventing the majority of students from doing so - differing interests amongst students and limited funding of the athletics department.

As student interest and skill in sports vary widely, ASL, like most other schools, has long offered various non-sport group activities, such as robotics, Model U.N. and even school publications.

While these activities expose more students to a team mentality and all its associated benefits, according to the new research, ASL is failing the participants by not including a physical component in those activities. As a community, we need to educate the students who see themselves as non-athletes about the benefits of athletics and provide a non-threatening way for them to enter the “sports world.”

However, the reality at ASL at the moment is that the Athletics Department is not able to serve all the students who already want to participate.

Athletic Director John Farmer explained that team cuts only happen from a facility or safety standpoint, which boils down to a lack of sufficient resources.

Cutting students from sports team has been any ongoing challenge for Farmer for the past several years. Last year, there were no cuts from any of the High School teams, but this year, there were five people cut from boys soccer.

With ASL’s transiency, there is no easy solution to the cutting situation under the current athletics department model that can only select a limited number of students with the aim of being very competitive.

As it is now clear that the benefits of athletics need to be extended to all students, ASL should embrace the concept of requiring all students to participate in team sports of some sort, perhaps by expanding the places on the traditional teams, adding new sports or integrating a physical component into traditional non-sport activities.

As a first step, the athletics model would have to adapt to become more inclusive, focused on the cultivation of a fully well-rounded student, not athletic excellence or awards.

To accomplish that, and prepare all of our students for a long, healthy and successful life, ASL would need to invest more in this re-imagined High School athletics program.

Setting double standards

Double standards between male and female tennis players is becoming increasingly apparrent.

Lily Whitman | Sports Editor: Print

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he 2018 U.S. Open Tennis Tournament has been filled with controversy. Before the tournament even started, French Tennis Federation President Bernard Giudicelli and American tennis player Serena Williams were in disagreement pertaining to the announcement stating that there would be a new dress code introduced.

This new announcement was after Williams wore a black catsuit during the French Open in June, her first match after her pregnancy. The suit was worn to help stop blood clotting, a condition she’s dealt with since giving birth last September. The new dress code stated that it would ban players from wearing such form-fitting clothes during the tournament. Guidicelli believes that players should “respect the time and the place,” and although Williams’ outfit was for medical purposes, it is no longer allowed in the French Open.

While Williams took the dress code change with respect, many of her fans called this move by the French Tennis Federation sexist. Actress Elizabeth Banks wrote: “The amount of control men feel the need to exert over women is petty-level with this one. Serena Williams is the [Greatest of All Time]. The game respects HER.” Television show creator Shonda Rhimes wrote: “The game seems quite content to be played no matter what women wear. Perhaps this man should focus on his own fashion choices and respect the GOAT’s right to wear whatever the hell she pleases. #getoffhercourt.” This attention from celebrities underscored the sexist views and misogynistic approach of the tennis federations to clothing in tennis.

Another example of sexism in the sport was an incident, also in the U.S. Open, involving French tennis player Alize Cornet. After a short 10 minute break between the second and third set of Cornet’s match against Swedish player Johanna Larsson, Cornet came back to court, had her fresh shirt on back to front, she changed at the back of the court and got a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Cornet’s shirt change sparked controversy as male players are allowed to not only change their shirts but change them on the court, while females have to change their shirts while specifically, sitting on the bench. An example of this double standard is John Isner, who changed his shirt 11 times throughout a

three-plus hour game without recieving a single code violation. This raises the question: is tennis really fair in their standards for men and women?

Most recently, in the Women’s final of the U.S. Open, Williams incurred a penalty for alleged sideline coaching, which is not allowed.

Tennis has a major emphasis on self-reliance and this rule prohibits coaches from making any attempt of coaching, including in warm up, and any gestures that might be audible and visible, or anything that could be construed as coaching.

Williams received a penalty for allegedly getting signals from her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou. This was a precursor to what would eventually turn into a feud between Williams and the umpire, Carlos Ramos. Williams, who was ahead 3-1 in the second set after breaking Japanese player Naomi Osaka’s serve in the fourth game, gave up the lead by losing her own serve in the fifth game.

Losing that momentary lead in a game where she double-faulted twiceleading to Williams smashing her facket on the ground.

Upon this, she received a point penalty which allowed Osaka to start serving the sixth game at 15-0. It was the combination of the code violation for coaching and the racket abuse charge that surmounted to the loss of the point called by Ramos. Williams walked off the baseline to start yelling again at Ramos, and she called Ramos a “thief ” for stealing a point from her.

This resulted in a third penalty for what was deemed “verbal abuse.” Williams stated that if a man were to use more explicit language than her, that they would not have a point docked.

There are multiple examples where men have used different and arguably worse language, including profanity, which has not been called for a penalty. In the U.S. Open Men’s Singles Championship in 2009, Roger Federer, complained about a call and was blatantly rude to the umpire, clearly using profanity and telling the the umpire, “Don’t tell me to be quiet, ok, I talk when I want to talk.”

These inconsistencies highlight the extent of sexism in tennis, and how there are double standards with men and women. As a society, we can improve to make standards the same, or similar for men and women instead of having the unbalanced standards that we have in society today.

Sports Commentary 23

Sports

Fall Sports Preview T

his year, field hockey has a much bigger team than previous years, and has designated Orange and Black teams to compensate for the increase in numbers. Head coach Randy Richardson said that he wants to help every girl succeed regardless if they are new to the sport, as long as they have a sincere desire to improve.

Richardson looks to captains, Theo Longboy (’19) and Martha Duff (’19) as the leaders of the team. “One type of leader that… is the strongest type of leader is a leader by example,” he said. “Both Duff and Longboy have demonstrated last year and this year that they have all of the attributes to be a leader in a sport as challenging as field hockey.”

The team’s most recent results were a 3-0 loss against Aldenham school on September 25 and a 1-1 draw against St. Augustines school on September 26.

Coverage continues on standard.asl.org

strongest type “ofTheleader is a leader

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by example.

Head Field Hockey Coach Randy Richardson

24 Sports

Allegra Albanese (’20) tackles for the ball in the midfield against St. Benedict’s.

PHOTO BY QUINN WHITMAN

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