the
TOWER
Wednesday, Apr. 19 , 2016
Volume 89
Issue 22
@thetowerpulse
Grosse Pointe South 11 GP Blvd. Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 48236
How the Gearheads placed at the State Quarter Finals
SARAH BELLOVICH ‘19 | Staff Writer The Gearheads-- the For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) robotics competition team comprised of both North and South students-- competed at the State Championship last Friday, April 14. According to South student Ponette Rubio ’18, Safety and Business Captain of the Gearheads, the team has gone to four competitions total, three as
part of Regionals and one for States. “We had a pretty good robot, but there were things we didn’t anticipate as part of the game,” Rubio said. “But having that chance to go to States, we were able to improve and work on our robot.” The Gearheads received the Chairman’s Award, the highest award possible from FIRST for the winning presentation given by Rubio and Grosse Pointe North student Ritika Pansare ’19, and
submitted by the chairmen’s team, headed by During this time they try to shoot balls known as South’s Hannah O’Grady ’19. This award, which “fuel” into a raised boiler or loop about ten feet goes to the team the judges believe has had the from the ground, followed by having to place 11greatest impact on their community, allowed inch gears said Rigotti. the Gearheads to continue At the Howell District onto the state level, Rubio competition, their robot, the People were crying and it was Twister, shot fuel into the boiler said. “People were crying a very emotional moment with an 80 percent accuracy and it was a very emotional rate and successfully climbed a moment because we have because we have never won it rope nearly every time, another never won it in the history in the history of the team, and task, improving on Twister’s past of the team, and there were according to the there were quite a few alumni performances, quite a few alumni from Gearheads season summary. Gearheads who were there from Gearheads who were “This season started out a little so there were quite a few there so there were quite a rough at our first competition tears,” Pansare said. “It was which was at Centerline, but few years. just extremely exciting.” overall we got our act together and This season the Gearheads Ritika Pansare ‘19 we really pulled together as a team,” also received the Industrial Rigotti said. “I think it was a great season, especially Safety Award for the second year in a row, and because last year we lost a lot of our senior members Driver and Build Captain, South’s Josh Rigotti ’18, and we lost two of our team captains, so I was quite and Rubio were nominated for the Dean’s List Semi- proud of our team’s effort this year.” finalist award by their mentors for their dedication Meetings are usually held on Thursdays from 6-9 and excellence. am at the Grosse Pointe North Fabrications Shop. At each event the teams have 12 qualification matches that last about two minutes and 15 seconds. PHOTO COURTSEY OF GEAR HEADS
Band members take on the Big Apple LAUREN THOM ’18 | Photo Editor Many musicians dream of playing on one of the most prestigious stages in the world for classical and popular music: Carnegie Hall. Around 70 South students are seizing the opportunity to live out this dream. The band and orchestra is traveling to New York City from April 18-22. This includes students from orchestra, symphony orchestra, concert band, symphony band, and wind ensemble. Band teacher Christopher Takis said every two years the band and orchestra go on trips that alternate between domestic and international. “It’s the first time we’ve been to New York City,” Takis said. “Two years ago we went to Austria and Germany, and four years ago we went to Los Angeles. Every couple years it’s different.” Takis said he and Orchestra teacher James Gross try to choose destinations that offer good educational value, and center the trip around those venues. “Two years ago, for example, there is no bigger place for the center of the classical music world than Vienna and the Zalcberg in Austria, and then here in the states there is no bigger venue than Carnegie Hall in New York City,” Takis said. Renee Liu ’19 is a member of Wind Ensemble and plays the Oboe. She is attending the trip and said she is most looking forward to playing at Carnegie Hall. “Playing on such a highly regarded stage, it’s almost like an honor and it’s humbling, because this time we’re paying to play there so it might motivate me to work hard so that someday I can be invited to play there and really earn my spot,” Liu said. “It’s a really valuable
experience and it’s always cool to say you played at Carnegie Hall.” Takis said students will also get to indulge themselves in typical New York City sightseeing and tourist attractions. This includes Central Park, the Lincoln Center, the Upper West Side, Museum of Natural Art, Rockefeller Center, the 9/11 Museum. S and the students will also meet with a faculty member from the Juilliard College of Music. All the students from both orchestras and all the students from the three bands combine into one orchestra and one band, Takis said. They then meet outside of school to prepare the music they will be performing at Carnegie Hall. Ta k i s s a i d , personally, It’s a really valuable he is excited experience and it’s always for this trip because he cool to say you played at has never Carnegie Hall. been to New Renee Liu ‘19 York City. “ I ’ m looking forward to seeing everything the city has to offer, how fast pace it is, and how people cram in such a small amount of space,” Takis said. More than just the aesthetic of the city however, Takis said he feels the anticipation building for playing on the Carnegie Hall stage, and is excited for students to realize the reality of what they are about to go into. “I mean to say they have shared a stage or played on the same stage as some of the most incredible musicians in the world- they will be able to say that for the rest of their lives,” Takis said.
Vow of Silence
Members of the Gay Straight Alliance club will be taking a vow of silence for the day on April 21 to honor all those who didn’t have a voice when faced with bullying and discrimination due to their sexuality.
ELLA DIEPEN ’19 | Staff Writer “Silence is very powerful,” vice president of gay straight alliance (GSA) Harry Susalla ’18 said. April 21 is the Day of Silence, a day of action to spread awareness about the discrimination, bullying and harassment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students all over the country. This annual student-led day is set up by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), which is a big supporter of LGBT rights in schools. The Day of Silence has been held each year since 1996. Grosse Pointe South’s GSA students will have a day-long vow of silence that represents the silence that the LGBT community feels at school due to anti-LGBT hate crimes or bullying, according to Susalla. According to GSA president Oliver Lardner ’17, there is homophobia and discrimination of LGBT students at South. This day represents the people that are unheard and feel like they don’t have a voice. “LGBT students have been bullied and GSA posters have been getting torn down,” Lardner said. For Susalla, the Day of Silence is very important to him, he said. “I am an openly gay man at South,” Susalla said. “The Day of Silence helps me feel that I have a voice even though I’m not talking that day. It allows me to express how I feel and how a lot of my friends that are also part of the community feel at school. The Day of Silence helps show the rest of the students, the administration and all staff that we feel an effect of students using the word ‘faggot,’ ‘dyke’ or ‘tranny’ in the hallway and it makes us feel silent and not welcome.” According to the Gay, Lesbian Straight
Education Network (GLSEN), LGBT youth are four times as likely as non-LGBT youth to say they had been sexually harassed online and three times as likely to say they had been sexually harassed via text message. “In general, people who are in the LGBT community are in the closet and don’t feel like they can come out and be themselves because they feel like they don’t have a voice,” Lardner said. “They feel that way because people react poorly to their sexual orientation.” This has negative effects on LGBT students in multiple ways, for example its effect on their education at school. “Students are not able to learn if they are scared to come to school. It’s crucial that the school system acts upon that,” Susalla said. The LGBT community is still discriminated in society, oftentimes not even intentionally, Lardner said. “Even though a lot of people think that the gay community is accepted because same sex marriage is legalized, there are still a lot of things that need to be done, especially with the transgender community today,” Susalla said. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), adolescents in grades seven to twelve found that LGBT youth were more than twice as likely to have attempted suicide as their heterosexual peers. For the Day of Silence, teachers are going to be informed and participating students prepared, Susalla said. To read the full story, go on www.thetowerpulse. net
Senior Parents’ Night BLAIR CULLEN ‘18 | Staff Writer
The annual senior parent meeting will be taking place April 20. Senior advisor and activities director will be holding the meeting in the auditorium from 7-9 p.m. “The meeting will cover a lot about what’s coming up for seniors, such as prom, all-night party and graduation,” senior class advisor, Jenna Roebuck, said. There will be opportunities for parents to sign up for the senior all night party and graduation robes and any information missed, according to Parent
GRAPHIC BY KATHERINE BIRD ‘18
Sponsor, Betsy Enders. “The agenda will cover the all night party, expectations for graduation and other events coming up, and the advisor will talk about her experiences with the class,” activities director, Maria Mitzel, said. The informational meeting will allow any questions about senior honors night and will allow parents to sign up for some of the upcoming events according to Roebuck.
THIS WEEK AT SOUTH...
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Boys varsity lacrosse takes on crosstown rival Grosse Pointe North at 7 p.m. at South.
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The Quidditch Club will hold an interest meeting at 8 a.m. in 292 or 3 p.m. in 144.
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South’s band and orchestra will travel to New York to perform at Carnegie Hall.