Classic newspaper Volume 22 Issue no. 5

Vol. 22, No. 5 Summer 2006

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Townsend Harris High School at Queens College

149-11 Melbourne Avenue, Flushing, NY 11367

Seniors dance the night away at Prom

by Marissa Green The Class of 2006 danced and dined on June I, 2006 for their Senior Prom at Floral Terrace from 6 to II p.m.

The reaction of most of the senior class to one of their final celebrations of their high school career together was one of j-ubilation . Senior Michelle Montgoris reflected on the night by saying, "It was something everyone was building up to, so it was definitely hard to live up to what everyone was expecting it.to be. However, it turned out to be an amazing last get-together for the Class of 2006."

The celebration started at 6 with a cocktail hour and then a sit-down dinner later in the evening. "The dessert was really good; it was definitely a highlight of the night," declared senior Alexandra Stergiou. She added that ev-

eryone looked great that night. She described how the atmosphere really was an important part of what made the night so special.

The setting of the prom also received high praise from those who attended .

Senior Alyshia Remtula complimented this year's continued choice of the Floral Terrace as the catering haH by stating, "The place was perfect for our class, It wasn't too big and it wasn't too small. Actually, it even brought- us all _ closer together."

Prom was the product of a lot of hard work and planning. Alyshia said, "There. wa~ a . lot going on. You have to not match dresses and not match colors. Because if you do, you have to buy a new prom dress. But at the end of the night, Seniors Christopher Amanna, Ewelina Kara, Lori Khrimian, and ller guest enjoy the . it's all worth it." · evening's festivities.

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Harrisfest II holds on to·devoted fans

by Stephanie Pak Harrisfest was held for the second time this year on Friday, May 12, due to its popularity as a school event. Although the turnout was meager, the audience did not let it stop them from hav-

ing a great time.

Bona to -Vada, Kmnik Kredenti·a ls,

United Nations, Bad Mitten Bunch, Sasha and the Diamonds, and the wellknown local band Waistina were among some of the groups that performed along

United Nations brings down the hosue at the conclusion of Harrisfest.

with soloists, such as Deborah Chang, Tm;govn'ik, and Silbia Han. As a

ara

ists dedicated songs to the senior class, such as the band United Nations, who

surprise, Lara Torgovnik also sang with performed "Graduation (Friends ForMichael Finkelstein and invited English ever)'' by Vitamin C, and Silbia Han, teacher Joseph Canzoneri on stage to who played a special request for theseplay guitar for the song "Landslide" by niors as well. Despite the inevitable Fleetwood Mac. technological difficulties, the show went From alterna- on as the audience clapped, sang along, tive rock to rap and cheered to encourage the performto folk music, ers. The audience became very enthusimany different astic and rushed to the stage when the genres merged rock band Waistina performed. The autogether for. dience interaction greatly increased as a small moshpit was formed.

Harrisfest.

"I never "I love Harrisfest because it allows knew how tal- you to see just how talented your felented my peers low students really are, outside the classwere . The en- room. Who knows, you could be sitting thusiasm and next to tomorrow's Grammy-winning loud volume of artist. The audience was great and rethe music let me ally supportive, even when performers relax and have made small mistakes , or when technolfun," said ogy simply failed on them," said Silbia sophomore Han .

Ms. Wallace, who is the advisor for ..

Stephanie "But the annual Harrisfest events, acknowledged the students' hard work as well. be even more "Harrisfest is truly unique in that everysuccessful if the thing is in the hands of the students. music IS more They organize everything, practice, perdiverse,"she form, and print the tickets ." She added, "It's a great way for the students to have added.

Several art~ fun and appreciate each other's gifts."

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Special Spring Insert!

Editor Farewells p.2

College Stats -p. 6-7

Travel the world p. 8-9

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The Classic Summer 2006

Editor-in~Chi. ef

Ch.ris Aman·na bids adieu

Dear readers: . Unless you are in the shoes ofan editor. you can never fully appreciate all the wor{that goes into a newspaper. There are big tasks (e.g. writing in-depth features). There are medium-sized tasks (e.g. editing someone else's work). And there are a lot of minute, painstaking tasks (e.g. figuring out who's the second person from the left in the picture on page 4, making sure there are equal margins in a text box, attempting to delete one word from an article so the layout will fit, and inserting that pesky missing comma).

I'm not pointing all this out to evoke sympathy-- believe me the last thing I want is pitY. My rationale is instead to say something about the type of person who rises to such a challenge. He or she must combine a healthy portion of dedication with a generous slathering of insanity.

I can honestly say this the most accurate way to describe my fellow editors. They are the reasons why I'm going to miss doing all of that craziness (comas included).

A strange bond has developed between the editors of The Classic. We are like old friends, parents, spouses, siblings, and ex-lovers all r.olled into one.

We tell stories, we freak out, we quarrel, we eat together. we gossip, we sing, on occasion we work, but most of all we laugh. Between Diana's Romanian techno, Rookie and I reminiscing about middle school, and t!ze interesting language used in some of the things we receive, there is rarely a time a smile is not on our faces. I would like to thank all of these women for making my time with The Classic bearable and would also like to offer a few words to some other importantpeople: · Jocelyn, the super editrix: I am so confident in handing you the reins of The-Classic that I'm looking forward to reading 'next year's issues. You have the talent, organization, and dedication that this job demands. You also possess something I lack -- a backbone. So go ahead and use that trademarked iron fist, but do so judiciously. I know the paper has a ·brightfuture under your leadership.

Rooki, a.k.a. me: Words cannot adequately express how much I'm going to miss shouting "Rooki!" every time I see you and hearing your perfunctory "Ctitifer" response. Who else w~ntto Bay, has eczema, loves Swedish Fish, the color green, cinnamon-raisin bagels, and vanilla ice cream with chocolate sprinkles, and takes the "E" intoJamaica_? You want to know who? Nopne.

Diana, my other half: Although you've'been.absent in recent months, I can 'tignore the nearly four years we've spent together. To be honest, I didn't like you whe~ we fir.~t met, JJut o.m;eJaccmted_you as-an un>likable person, I began io like you. As you can see, you defy logic, but that's a good thing. You were our comic relief, our DJ, and our Zag at's guide. I only regret that you weren't here in the final throes of The Classic XXII. Regardless, I wish you only the best of luck. .·. . . · · · · ·: ' My. other editors: Alex, ;you ate a Jalentedphotographer, and I appreciate all you have done for the paper. Michelle, you are the athlete of the century and not a .badwriter to boot. Ml_lriel, it is nearly impossible to convey the amount of literary and artistic talent you possess. I sort of sprung this job on you last minute, but given the circumstances, you were a great help. Laura, I know you had other priorities, and I'm not criticizing you for that. I just hope that with your copious free time during senior year. you can help out a. little more.: Dedicated Classic staff, my bebutiflil-jour~alists: To all ofyou'who stuck around and endured the in{>anity, I cannot thank you enough. Remember that you provide the main ingredient for the paper. The editors qdd seasoning, m'ix things up in a big bowl, and add a spring of rosemary for garnish, but without you we'd have nothing. So keep those articles coming (and do~ 't forget to copy and paste them into the body of the e-mail).

My advisors, illustrious and numerous:·· I have had 'the disiinguished honot of serving .u,nder three different advisors. Freshman and junior year I was under the guidance of the incomparable llsa Cowen. She possisses dn·~npard,Jleled breadth of knowledge a,nd experience, coupled with extreme dedica- • tion. For this reas~n. I am delighted to know that shewil! retur'!- next year as Classic advisor. and I wish her the best of luck. I must also thank Peter Wamsteker. from whom I formally learned the craft ofjoun1.alism. Your Class was memorable and will carry a lasting effect in my life. And last, but certainly not least, I thank Richard Cappuccio, this year's advisor. You accepted a gargantuan challenge that not many people would be willing to undertake, but you proved yourself to be an adept and dedicated advisor.

Everyone who has ever picked up a copy of The Classic: Although The Classic may not be the most timely publication, nor the most glamorous, just remember that we are your publication. We chronicle the events that impact the lives of members of the Townsend Harris community, as well voice your opinions. So please treat us with respect and send us your letters.

On that note, farewell Classic, farewell Townsend Harris. Thank you for all that you've taught me.

Sincerely, Christopher Amanna, Editor-in-Chief

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Sports· Editor Michelle Montgoris says goodbye I can't believe that two years have passed since I was first asked to take over as Sports Editor. In these two years I've gotten so much accomplished and met so many people that have only helped me confirm that I want to pursue sports journalism as my future career.

Working on The Classic and with the editorial staff in particular has been an am'a zing

experience, not only because it is a fantastic publication, but because of the people that worked on it as well. I regret that I was never able to dedicate as much time as I should ·have to The Classic because of sports obligations, but to their credit the editors and the advisors (plural because we've had so many of them) have always been completely understanding of it, and for that I thank them

Jocelyn Wright

Laura Shubert

Rookminie Behari

News Editor .

Feature Editor

Entertainment Editor

Michelle Montgoris

Muriel Leung Vivian Shibata

Alexandra Stergiou

Co-Art Editors

getting very little accomplished in a large amount of time.

Keep writing and spreading the news, I look forward to reading future issues when I come back to visit. And on one last note, congratulations to my fellow class of 2006 graduates, and thank you for four amazing years. Good luck in college and remember, life is like a fastball -if you wait on it too long, it will blow right by you.

!llews Staff: Marissa Green. Elana Gulotta. Megan Law. Marisa Lupo. Gloria Palma, Max Rivlin-Nadler. Lance Tomas, Lonny Zaretsky

Christopher A manna Diana Bell Co-Editors-in-Chief

Sports Editor

with all my heart. The last four years on The Classic are something that I will take with me through college and reflect on as the reason I am pursuing journalism when the road throws curveballs at me that may make me want to stop. I'll miss each and every member of the staff and the many late afternoons spent in Ms. Wischerth's room eating massive amounts of junkfood and

Photography Editor

Feature Staff: Faith Aronowitz, Cindy Chen, Tiffany Cheng, Annie Choi. Jasmine Daniel, Shruti Karnawat, Sangsoo Kim, Veronica Kim. Linda Kung. Sydney Lowe. Kate Lu. Adriana Mateo. Julita Mienko. Stephanie Pak. Mary-Grace Papatheodorou. Jennifer Park, Darcy Rendon. Priti Shah. Nisha Singh, Judy SingKissoon. Anita Sonawane. Elizabeth Striapko. Samia Ullah, Christine Whang, Janet Whang. Devon Wright, Madeleine Wright Sports Staff: Maureen McCluskey. Robert McCullagh. Alex Rush, Lance Tomas. Nathlie Stephens. Wendy Yan Artists: Mitchell Bader. Darren Deoraj. Rowena Eng. Kinberly Lo. Bonnie Ng

Richard Cappuccio

Kimberly Quon

Advisor

Business Editor

Principal - Mr. Thomas Cunningham

Photography Staff: Warren Cheng, Ashley Guzman. Natalia Guzman, Kenneth. Ho, Hannah Kang, Sunny Liu. Sumit Patel. Angglelia Sutjipto, Raksha Thapa, Priscilla Tran Business Staff: Janet Hwang

Corrections: · The following errors appeared in the February 2006 issue of The Classic: "Holocaust survivor talks to Hebrew classes" (page 5) was written by Ramandeep Singh; "Memoil3'exposes audience to new culture" (page 6) was written by Sydney Lowe.

Townsend Harris High School at Queens College 149-11 Melbourne Avenue, Flushing, N.Y. 11367

The Classic is an open forum for the expression of student views. The opinions expressed therein should not be taken to represent those of the administration or faculty or student body as a whole.

Readers are invited to submit letters to the editor.

Letters should be placed in Mr. Cappuccio 's mailbox in Room 315 ore-mailed to thhsdassic@yahoo.com. The Classic reserves the right to edit all letters. Letters must include name and official class. Names will be withheld upon request.

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The Classic

Summer 2006

Reactions to· Random Scanning Chec.ks

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by Jasmine Daniel, Sydney Lowe, Jocelyn Wright, and Madeline Wright On April 26th a letter was distributed to students and parents during band 2.

This letter stated that the Department of Education would begin random mobile scanner searches at all, New York City public schools .

The decision is part of a new safety initiative by the New York City Police Department and is being implemented at public high schools and middle schools citywide. These searches will be random and unannounced; temporary scanners similar to the metal detectors at airports will be set up on the day of the scanning. Illegal items found, including cell phones, which are banned by theDOE but legal under the law, will be confiscated.

This decision was based on the success of metal detectors at Impact schools,. where crime has decreased by 59%. Recently, the New York Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Chancellor Joel Klein in opposition to the scanners. The Urban Youth Collaborative, a student group, has also organized a petitioning campaign seeking "safety with dignity."

Students., parents, and teachers are also petitioning for changes to the policy that allow students to have cell phones provided they are not used during the school day.

Here are the reactions of the students, parents, and administrators. As of yet, Townsend Harris has not been subject to these random searches.

Opinions on the random scanning checks and their relevance .· at Townsend Harris:

"The school should check for weapons such as knives, guns, scissors; however, electronics should not be taken away."

Alia Onefater, parent of junior Alina Onefater

"I think scanning machines p'eriodically is a good safety measure, but I do not agree that cell phones should be confiscated. I agree that the school safety is of utmost importance but the· safety of children also · relies on using cell phones to communicate with parents."

Regina Asaro, parent of freshman Francesca Bartalini

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Election Results

by Megan Law He~e are the results of the 2006 SU Elections and comments from some of our newly elected -officials.

SU President: Michael Bye "I just opened a new jar of elbow grease and applied it liberally."

SU Vice President: Jim BrianEstil _ "It is good that the school wants to be more safe, but in speaking that this is Townsend Harris, there's not much danger .. .. No [I do not think this practice is relevant at Townsend] because these kids seem responsible ."

Marie Telfart, parent of Jennifer Deliard "It is ridiculous and unacceptable. It is also a waste of time, money, and manpower." parent of senior Jane Wong

"I want to thank my supporters for all their help."

Treasurer: Peter Park Secretary: Kelly McCann ''I'm glad I'll be secretary next year. I'm going to help work on other projects like fund raisers aside from keeping notes and everything. I have a lot of ideas so I'm ready to get started." ·

Senior Vice President: Jason Lee "I am humbled by the amount of support I have received during this election. I plan on continuing thy work that the previous SU Senior Vke President had done and making the senior year for the class of2007 a great one."

Junior Vice President: Daniella Silva

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"It's a legal obligation. Is it legal to do it? Yes. IS it necessary? It's necessary if you have students who are breaking the law . . . The random scanning is a reality check for us."

Susan Getting, Assistant Principal of Humanities "If you're asking if I feel they're necessary, then no, but if they're going to travel around to every school, then no schools should be exempt. I feel it's a 14th Amendment issue." . history teacher Linda Steinmann "I think random scanning checks are · always going to reveal some surp.rises, but as a priority, Townsend ·should be very low on the list becau~e there are not going.to be a lot of surprises. I think it's a poor use of money and energy and time to look for something that's not going to be there, but keeping us on the list [of schools to scan] is a fair practice."

Ellen Fee Assistant Principal of Mathematics

"I believe that scanners are currently ngt necessary at Townsend Harris High School. I think that scanners are an appropriate tool for schools that have a "The occasional phone call during lunch large number of criminal incidents. I bands from a bathroom stall really believe that in some schools, scanners doesn ' t affect our students ' learning are one tool that can be an effective way capacity, and we certainly don't bring to ensure the safety of students. It knives to school on a regular·basis. Our certainly is not the only one. school is so, so safe; the biggest threat At Townsend Harris we know our student body, we have well trained we ever have is a bared midriff" junior Jenn Polish School Safety Agents, and we provide students with picture ID's. These are "You need to do scanning. Maybe not at . some other ways that help e!lsure the Townsend Harris, but definitely in the safety of everyone."

Thomas Cunningham, Principal city." junior Marissa Kinsey '

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Opinions on the policy of confiscating cell phones: "I basically use my_ cell to call my parents. They like to know where I am after school. There aren ':t enough_ payphones nowadays so it makes it harder to get in touch." freshman Benjamin Snyder

Freshman-Sophomore Vice President: Kathe.rina Bal_ram Public Relations: Marsha Sukach "Even though I ran unopposed, I am glad that I got the position of public relations and that I'll have the opportunity to improve comm~nications throughout the school."

Consultative Council: Mahmuda Khan RSAC: Yewande Salau "Thank you to all the people who voted for me. I could not have done it without you."

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Junior SLT: Carmelle Alipio

"I am upset about it. My school schedule changes everyday: I need to talk to my dad after school." freshman Jordano Sanchez "I think it's silly. Most ofus live so far from school, so it's important that we are able to get in touch with our parents." sophomore Pryanca Zaman· "Parents lose touch with [their] children, especially in the post 9/11 worfd. It is ... a necessity for children-- parents can take appropriate measures to take care of their children."

Rajusam Kuruvilla, parent of freshman Reena Sam "I don't think they should be. That's the one way students communicate with their parents if anything goes wrong and the parents communicate with their children. As long as the phones are not used during class, I think when students get out of class they need to call their parents and say I'm finished . I'm on my way home. Or I'm bringing 5 friends for dinner." math teacher Eleanor Reilley "Security measures are good .. But I feel children should be allowed to carry cell phones so that parents are able to be in touch with children in case of an emergency."

Rajusam Kuruvilla, parent of freshman Reema Sam

"I agree that cell phones should not be used in school and anyone who does text messaging, calling, etc. should have consequences. However, before and after school, for safety concerns, I want my child to be reachable by cell phone."

Regina Asaro, parent of freshman Francesca Bartalini "Teenagers need cell phones to communicate with thei'r parents and should t_herefore be allowed to have them. They should never have them turned on because it's rude and interrupts the educational focus of the day. If a parent really needs to get a hold of the student during the day, they can always call the school, but after school it's more difficult."

Ellen Fee, Assistant Principal of Mathematics "I have mixed feelings about the policy.

On one hand, cell phones should not be allowed to be used during the school day.

As the Chancellor has noted, illegal pictures have been taken and possibly used in inappropriate ways, such as sharing exam questions. Cell phones have also been used by gang members to contact other members. On the other hand, I feel that cell phones provide lines of communication before and after the school day. In general they bring a greater degree of safety to their users and comfort to their families."

Thomas Cunningham, Principal

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The Classic

Summer2006

Agent Samsonoff retires

by Madeleine Wright One of the school's dedicated security agents, Mary Samsonoff, wiH be retiring this June. She plans to move to a Pennsylvania town named East Stroudsburg where has already p.jcked out a plot of land on which her new house is currently being ouilt.

After having worked 21 years as a security agent, Ms. Samsonoff is ready to seek a quiet, more peaceful life outside the city. Moving to Pennsylvania will allow her to be closer to her a daughter, a speech pathologist, and her grandchildren. "It feels like a good time to move," she said. She has been planning her retirement for three whole years.

Ms. Samsonoff spent most of her career at John Bowne High School, where she worked for 17 years. ••I was assigned there by the Division of School Safety back in 1985," she said. "There was a very mixed group of students, and I loved working there and helping them."

However, life at John Bowne was often stressful for Ms. Samsonoff, who made frequent student arrests on charges including weapon possession, harassment, and criminal trespassing. ''I had a file of student arrests this thick!" she said, expanding her hands to the length of a large box. Ms. Samsonoff also began to feel restless at her job, saying, "It was too long in that building, and it was getting too state."

She asked her supervisors in 2002 to be transferred to Townsend Harris "to get a new perspective on life." About working at Townsend Harris, Ms. Samsonoff said, "What's not to love? The atmosph~re is calm here, and the students are mature and intelligent, and you can reason with them."

Ms. Samsonoff greatly tooks forward to retirement and is literally counting clown the days. ''l'U enjoy sleeping late and doing thi.ngs I want to do,'' she said. "I'll get to pursue my hobbies, such as sewing, gardening, and animal watshiug. There are plenty of animals i:n tib.e Poconos. I'm also ~O· ing to do some traveling and maybe go to Paris where my husband was born."

Looking back on her days at Townsend Harris, she commented, "My four years here went by so quickly. They just tlew by .... Working around young people definitely keeps you young. It keeps you on your toes and up with the times."

"I'm going to miss everyone here, but change is good," she said. "I have a little granddaughter, and I'll be able to visit her more often after I retire."

Young mu~icia·ns astoun,d audi.en·ce

by Jill Markowitz . Seven young musicians blew their audience away wi.th assorted violin, cello, and piano solos on Sunday April 9 at The Lefrak Music Building at Queens College. All of the performers were winners of a former concerto competition.

The concert began with Katherline Liccardo, age 13, on violi-n, performing the Allegro from Mozart's Concert in G minor. She was foiJowed by Kai Manners, age I0, on piano, performing a movement from the Concertina in F major by Haydn. Next came Juliette Hainline, age 11, on piano, perfanning altthree movements of Haydn's Concertino in G minor. Sophomore Adriana Mateo o.n violin, age 15, concluded the first half of the concert with the first movement, ''Summer," from The Four Seasons by Vivaldi.

The second half started with a bang as eleven~year-old Ari Evan performed the Prelude and Allegro Moderato from Lalo's Cello Concerto. N·ext, Nicolas Ryba, also 11, performed on piano the Allegro from Concerto in D minor by Bach. Helen Yao, age ll, ended the concert with the Presto from Mendelssohn's Piano Concerto #I in G minor.

Senior Alex Boukas found the concert enjoyable. "The quality of the performance was exceptional given the young ages of some of the soloists."

English teacher Robert Babstock was inspired by Adrianna's performance.

"Someday I hope to be almost as mature as Adrianna," he remarked. He went on to say that "she is a diva of the fiddle. I can't wait until she branches out from classical music and tries her band at country, alternative, and hip hop." ., Adrianna was extremely pleased by the outcome of the concert and was happy to see that the audience was appreciative and attentive. "You always come across an audience who is inattentive; however, this concert worked out really well," she said. Her fears about being able to connect with the audience were also put aside. "There was a wide range of ages in the audience as well as performers. This allows you to connect more to the audience and pull them into the music, making them understand what it's really all about. In the end, we had a lot of fun on stage, while saying something profound and rnoying at the same time," she added.

Spdng Concert bdngs audita-dum to life

by Faith Aronowitz Despite the unseasonably chilly weather outside, music, like a sweetsmelling aroma, wafted through the auditori urn on Thursday, May 18 at the annual Spring Concert. The Tenth Band, Concert Band, Intermediate Band, String Ensemble, and Chorus show.cased their musical talents for fellow

students, teachers, and parents.

After the formalities ofthe Pledge of Allegiance and the Star Spangled Banner, the Intermediate Band, directed by Mr. Peter Lustig, kicked off the concert with a bang with "March Slav," a slow march by Tchaikovsky. They conclude.d their segment with "James Bond Returns," a medley of songs featured in the

The Ten th Band and Conductor Peter Lustig jazz up the evening with "In the Mood." .

James Bond movies. The band surprised Miyazaki took the stage singing the aria "Queen of the Night" from one of the audience with a James Bond skit, featuring junior and Intermediate Band Mozart's most famous operas, The member Sebastian Lagos as 007. The Magic Flute. "She was phenomenal!" skit was centered on the "sabotaging" remarked one parent. That opinion was of the Intermediate Band by the String certainly shared by many. Another parEnsemble. In it the "secret weapon," ent exclaimed, "Phenomenal is the only word I can think of to describe her perMr. Lustig's baton, was stolen; eventuformance." She was a difficult act to folally it was returned to him. low, but the chorus took the stage again Following the Intermediate with an a cap pella version of "Over the Band, _the Chorus, directed by Dr. Mari ko Sa to, performed Rainbow' ~ in four-part harmony. Follow- . their first number, a rendition ing the Chorus, the String Ensemble, di of Billy Joel's "New York State rected by Paula Zarmon , performed four pieces including Mozart's Eine Kleine of Mind." Then Slyde Lustig's Nachtmusik and Czardus, featuring soTenth Band picked up the tempo with several catchy loist and renowned violinist. Foster tunes, including the familiar Wang.

Headlining the concert, the Concert numbers "In the Mood" and "Fever," which was accompa- · Band, also directed by Mr.Lustig, ended nied by ·senior and All-State the concert with three numbers, Chorus member Lara "Bacchanale," "Toccata for Band ," and Torgovnick. They concluded "Mancini Magic," a medley of TV and their segment with "Water- movie themes written by Henry ~elon Man," a piece in which - Maocini. Jessica Yang, who plays the all band members had a chance alto saxophone, said, "I thought we to showcase their i mprovisa- sounded amazing . It was a great contion skills. Sophomore Michael cert overall." Mr. Lustig agreed:"It was Best, trombone player and one of the best concerts we ever had. member of the Tenth and ConAll three bands played very well. There cert Band, said, "I thought we - wasn't a single mistake. Every piece was played as well as· the bands had ever did amazing. Everyone?s played them. Usually in a concert, there improv sounded real good."

The audience was in for a is something that goes wrong, but that treat as guest soprano Selina didn't happen tonight."

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Scholars experience

The. ~Ciassic

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Summer 2006

Bro~dway

by Mary-Grace Grace Papatheodorou, John Over the course of seven meat pies is the best way to experience as a TDF scholar.

Papatheodorou . Santucci, Nathlie Stephens , months, the Ope_n-Doors summarize my favorite show," Through TDF, we all learned to New York City has long _ Melissa Tsang, Evangelos Townsend Harris group at- he said. Sweeney Todd was the look at the theatre as a place to been a \Yell-known center for Vekios , and Caswanna'Spruill, iended six Broadway shows: TDF group's first outing, and see views on our current world the arts and theatre. It is a cui- who was chosen as an alterSweeny Todd , Doubt, Jersey' it was tural center full of life and ex- nate. TDF was created by Boys, Bridge and Tunnel, The by far citement. As New Yorkers, it is · Wendy Wasserstein, a PulitzerColor Purple, and The History t h e our birthright to live the thrill Prize winning playwright, to Boys. Every show revealed dif- best. of the theatre once in a while identify and provide support, ferent aspects of Broadway, - It was because it is right at our door- including financial as~istance, e;;:(lr(~~sr rrwR;; varying from fun and engaging a mustep. It is a gift to have the the- to encourage and enable dimusical-s to more serious, - sical atre so c lose to us a place to verse audiences to attend live thought-provoking plays. Each with "-~ vent out the frustrations we ex- theatre and dance. As part of show sparked new ideas and very perience in our lives, a place to the Open Doors Program, stuquestions that set the tone for funny, learn something new about so- dents attended six Broadway heated post-theatre discussions s e flciety, or simply just a place to shows for free. At the concluover pizza. "My favorite part of 0 us, have fun. Broadway itself has sion of each play, they partici- _ each session was the discussion drahelped shape New York City pated in a seminar discussion . afterward over pizza. Not just matic, _ into what it is today, and as New conducted by a mentoring thebecause I love pizza, but be- a n d Yorkers we must understand its atre artist. Each student also cause it felt really good know- thrillvalue and take advantage of this kept a journal in which they reing that other people pondered i n g privilege that is at our finger- corded their reactions to the what I pondered during the play m otips . show. - Robert Longbottom, a and felt the same way I did," ments.

In September, The Theater Broadway director and chore- - said Caswanna Spruill, who, It is a Development Fund (TDF) of- ographer,served as the mentor despite being an alternate, at- show · fered eight scholarships to stu- for the Townsend Harris stutended four of the productions that dents wishing to experience _ dents . Eng lish teacher Richard the Open Doors group attended. will more of the theatre. The stu- Cappuccio also worked as the When asked to retlect on his · have dents were Krystal Hartley, liaison between the student TDF experience , Evangelos anyLina Li, Matt Medina, Mary- group and TDF. Vekios declare!} The History o n e Boys his walkfavorite . ! n g " T h e out of themes it it beaddressed ing spellbound by its creativity clash and combine i_nto someon the and charisma," he added. thing as beautiful as a simple meaning of Though everyone 's experi- play or a lavish musical. Theknowledge ence with the Open Doors pro- atre became so much more than spoke to gram differed, each student left a place to watch some good actme di- with incredible memories . ing, dancing, and singing, but req.Iy, and "There is no other prograni like it became a place that awakens for this Open Doors," said Lina Li the mind to new realms of reason it when looking back on her ex- thoughts and ideas. Looking back. it seems that Oscar Wilde ·-affected perience over the past year. ...J Ill me more "You enter thinking you're just clearly ·said what we "all learned c: than any going to get to watch Broadway from this program: "The theatre 0 o t h e r plays for free , and you leave is the most immediate wa_y in changed forever,.- from the which a human being can share ~play," he way you think about Broadway with another the sense of what ~ explained. ~p o h n to the way you think about life." it is to be a human being." u Santucci Krystal Hartley described the TDF has decided to fund 8 0 had a dif- overall experience "as an em- more scholars for the 2006~ c. ferent fa- bodiment of what drea)Tis, 2007 school year. Applications vorite hopes and imagination are will be available in the fall for TDF scholars and mentor Bobby Longbottom smile for the camera at the TDF s h 0 w . made of. It was beautiful." anyone who is interested in pargraduation. " Human I was also impacted by my ticipating .

PLAYBILL

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Fed Challenge Triumphs in First Round

by Ramandeep Singh What is the current Federal Reserve Bank chairman Ben Bernanle's take on inflation targeting, and what are the pros and cons of targeting? What would happen to the prices of bonds if China decided to suddenly dump all of its bond reserves?

These are just a couple of the questions students faced at the Fed Challenge on March 28th and April 7th. The Fed Challenge, an academic contest held at the Federal Reserve Bank in Manhattan, is des igned to test the students'

knowledge of economic poli- · lower rates, and back it up with minute question and answer cies. After a disappointing seasession about the presentation evidence in the form of these indicators," explained Ameriand U.S. economics, the team son last year caused by a short.age of members, seniors Nalin can his tory teacher Jaime advanced to the second round .

Kashyap, Joshua Budhu, Atin Byrne, who advises the club.

"It felt awesome that the Teams from the tristate area Sana and juniors Noureen team did make it through the Ramzan, Lisa Liu , and Alice important first round ," said prepared a IS-minute presentation on the economy with a I 0 Moy advanced past the first Nalin Kashyap, president of round . minute question and answer · the Fed Challenge Club. "Out session, in hopes-of winning the of around I 00 teams , only 25 Preparing for the Fed Chal$50,000 first prize.

During the advanced to the second round. " lenge is not a simple task. "StuFederal Reserve Bank first round, the team discussed dents must gain an understandwhat the Federal Reserve economists and officers who ing of economic indicators and judged the competition tJSed a how they interact and contrib- should do about the short-term interest rates it controls and reccomplex scoring system. Beute to the. economy of the U.S.A.They then have to make ommended that the rates be incause the THHS team didn't score enough to enter the· secan interest rate ' policy recomcreased due to existing intlamendation, to raise, hold, or tioriary pressures. After the I 0 ond round , they did not ad-

vance to the_finals.

"For thi"s reason, the team didn't win anything," explained Ms. Byrne, "but it was an enormous effort and a fantastic achievement for the team to make it past the first round .

This is not easy to do ."

The students had been pteparing for the competition since September, studying every piece of economic news . ''Despite all the work and late hours spent in the school (up to 5 :30 on certain days and meeting at school -on weekends) , it's been a great run ," declared Nalin Kashyap.

Where to now? Class of AGGARWAL SUNITA ALAMISRAT AMANNA CHRISTOPHER AMINI MARY AM (Tina) ANKUMAR SEEMA ARCIDIACONO CHRISTINE ARCOS BRYAN ARENA ROSANNA BADALOVA IZABELLA -~ BASSO KENDRICK BAYARD NICOLE BELL DIANA BENARDIS STEPHANIE BENITO BERNADETTE BLOOM ERIN BOCHYNSKI MICHELLE BONNER ANA-MARIA BOUKAS ALEXANDER BRANCH TIFFANI BRASS DEBRA' BRODOWSKI JAKUB BROOK ALEXANDER BUDHUJOSHUA BYRNS KATHERINE CARAHALIOS LAUREN CARR KETURAH CASS ANTONY MICHAEL CATALANO PETER CEBADA FRANCISCO CEDENO CANDICE CHAI LI BIN CHAKPENNY CHANG KENNETH CHAWENGWONGSA TINA CHECA CONSTANTINE CHEN GLORIA CHENG TIFFANY CHEUNG RAYMOND CHIU DAVID CHOI IN SUN (Annie) CHRISTOFORIDIS MARIA CHU JENNIFER I CITRON RANDI CONLISKSHANNON CONSUEGRAJOANNA CONTE JOSEPH DAVIS BRANDON DEFENDRE JOSEPH DELACRUZ ANDRE i DELUTY AUSHA DENNIS SIMONE DEVORA ABIGAIL DIGIOVANNI ERIC ,DIN AS JACQUELINE I DIPLAN Y ANILKA DOUGLAS DIANE DURANTE DANIEL EHRLICH ROBERT ELIUK STACEY FADIKA SARAH FALLON ELEANOR FIROZA KARIN :FISCHER ASHLEY

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N.Y. Institute of Technology SUNY - Stony Brook fSUNY] CUNY - Hunter (HONORS) fCUNYI Boston UniversitY St. John's CUNY- Hunter (HONORS) !CUNY] St. John's St. Jolin's CUNY - Queens [CUNY) St. John's Lehigh NYU (A&S) Boston University Fordham SUNY - Farmingdale [SUNY] CUNY- Baruch fCUNY] CUNY ~ City (HONORS) fCUNY] St. John's SUNY - Stony Brook [SUNY] SUNY- Purchase fSUNYl Fordham fEA 1 Boston University NYU (A&S) fED] Colgate U of Mass U of Virginia Skidmore CUNY - Queens fCUNYl CUNY - Baruch fCUNYJ St. John's Out of U.S.A. CUNY- Brooklyn (HONORS) [CUNY] Boston University St. John's CUNY Oueensborough CC CUNY- Baruch (HONORS) fCUNYl NYU (A&S) Northeastern University _...,I I St.John's Amherst CUNY - Baruch fCUNYl NYU (Gen. Studies) NYU (Steinhardt) [ED] SUNY - Binghamton fSUNYl SUNY - Buffalo [SUNY] Hofstra J I SUNY -Albany fSUNYl SUNY - Buffalo [SUNY] Boston University LIST College Boston College SUNY - Stony Brook [SUNY] SUNY- Stony Brook fSUNYI Boston University CUNY - Hunter fCUNYl Columbia Union College N.Y. Institute of Technology SUNY-Albany fSUNYI CUNY - Queens (HONORS) Boston University CUNY - City Sophie Davis [CUNY] Wellesley Marist ~

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NYU (Tisch) fEDl NYU (A&S) GOMEZ MARTIN SUNY- Stony Brook fSUNYl GRABER DANIEL Amherst [EDl GRECKI EMILY SUNY - Binghamton fSUNY] GUIDO LAURA NYU (Stern) GUO LE.DENA NYU (A&S)fEDl GUZMAN NATALIA St. John's GYURA TZ PETER Boston UniversitY HAMILTON YOLANDA SUNY - Buffalo fSUNYl HANSON DANIELLE U of Virginia HARRISON JIW AL (Adriel) SUNY - Stony Brook fSUNY] HASSAN KHALED Northeastern University HICKEY JENNIFER 路, Boston College HIPOLITO HOWARD Rensselaer HOVICTOR SUNY- Binghamton [SUNYI HSUEH MARION St. John's HUNDLEY A VAN NYU (A&S-) fED! HUNG CATHLEEN CUNY - Baruch fCUNYl HUSSAIN UMAIR NYU (A&S) fEDl JABLONKA OLGA SUNY - Binghamton fSUNY] JACOB NOEL CUNY - Baruch !CUNY] JARAMILLO JONATHA CUNY - Lehman fCUNYl JEMISON MISHA ,_ Fordham JETER STEPHANIE ~ CUNYOueensborough CC JOHN GATANAS ' JUNG SARAH (Sarah) Syracuse CUNY - City Sophie Davis [CUNY] KAINTH MANDEEP Manhattan College KALLADARY AN ULYSSES CUNY - Hunter [CUNYl KALPAXIS ANDREAS - li CUNY - BaruchfCUNYT KAMVISIOS SOPHIA School of Visual Arts KARA EWELINA CUNY- Baruch <HONORS) fCUNYl 路 KARNA W AT SHRUTI Rensselaer KASHY AP NALIN SUNY - Geneseo ISUNYl KATZ SAMANTHA Temple KAUFMAN JENNIFER CUNY - Baruch fCUNYl KHAZEY ALIREZA Columbia KHRIMIAN LORI Pending KIM ANNIE Boston University KIM DANIEL Syracu-se KIM IN YE Cornell HE KIM JANE Columbia KIMSANGSOO Boston College KIM VERONICA Brown [EDl KOMADA JOHN ISISSA U of Delaware KORNBLA TI ALLISON CUNY Quccnsborou-gh CC KRIV AC ALLISON SUNY- Stony Brook fSUNY] KROMIDAS JOHN CUNY - Hunter fCUNYl KURIEN NANCY SUNY- Buffalo fSUNYl KUTIL MONICA Brown KW AK WOO YONG KEVIN Penn State- University Park LAMBERT BRITTNEY LASKARIDIS CONSTANTIN N.Y. Institute of Technology LATHOURAKIS -STAMATIOS St. John's St. John's LA YIN BRENDAN NYU (Gallatin) LEARY BRENAE St. John's LEE BONNIE _ St. John's , LEE MELISSA SUNY - Binghan-iton fSUNYl LEE TIMOTHY George Washi11_gton University LEHRMAN REBECCA

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NGKIMBERLY 0 BRIEN JAMES .

OBERLANDER ·SARAH OHANDREW OLSZEWSKA CAROLINA OLSZEWSKI KRYSTINE OROZCO OSCAR ORTIZ ELBA OTOMO YOSHIE OWENS MOLLY PAGADUANJONATHAN PALMA GLORIA PAMPALONE NADIA · PANTANOJONATHAN ' PANTELIDIS MICHAEL PAP ANTONIOU NICOLE .

PERRY RACHEL PETGRA VE VANESSA PITT AS APOSTOLOS PNEUMAN AMANDA POKHOY SAVITA PONSOT ELISABETH POONTING POWER TIMOTHY PREPOSIELYSSE .QUON KIMBERLY RAMOS KRISTEN . REBAZA ANDRE REMTULA AL YSHIA RISIMINI LAURA RIVLIN NADLER MAX

SUNY - FIT [SUNY] CUNY - Queens (HONORS)" St. John's Sarah Lawrence .CUNY - Queens fCUNYl Duke [ED] N.Y. Institute of Technology •.

Polytechnic CUNY - Baruch [CUNY] CUNY- Hunter [CUNY] M.I.T. [EA] CUNY- Queens [CUNY] CUNY - Queens [CUNY] CUNY - Queens fCUNYl Vassar N.Y. Institute of Technology St. John's Duke CUNY- Queens [CUNY] U of Michigan U of Rochester SUNY- Stony Brook lSUNY] Williams College SUNY- Stony Brook [SUNY] CUNY - Queens (HONORS) SUNY- Stony_Brook [SUNY] Adelphi [EA l Cornell ILR CUNY - Queens [CUNY] Sarah Lawrence University of Maine at Orono Columbia [ED] St. John's Northeastern University CUNY,. - Queens (HONORS) CUNY - Queens !CUNY] CUNY - City [CUNY] SUNY - Stony Brook [SUNY] NYU (A&S) Fordham Northeastern University LIU-Friends World St. John's· Fordham CUNY- Queens [CUNY] SUNY- Binghamton[SUNYl NYU (Gen. Studies) SUNY - New Paltz [SUNY] Northeastern University Hampton U. CUNY- Queens (HONORS) Pace-Manhattan CUNY - Hunter (HONORS) [CUNY] Colby NYU (Gen. Studies) Fordham Sarah Lawrence Wellesley Vassar CUNY- City Sophie Davis [CUNY I Boston University Fordham fEA 1 Oberlin

RODRIGO IRIS RODRIGUEZ JUAN (Joey) ROSSI FRANCESCA ROUSON COURTNEY RUSH ALEXANDRA RYAN CAITLIN SAHAATIN SAMALOT AMBER SANTANA STEPHANIE SARRAN LESLEY SCHWEITZER CYNTHIA SEBAGAARON SENOL GULSAH SERRANO NESTOR SHAH PRITI SHAIKH AFSHAN SHENG JENNIFER SHI ALMA: SHIBATA ERI SHUSTER LIY A SIERZPUTOWSKI GINA SIMINO\lSKY ALLISON SKOTNICKA ANETA SORDILLO GIANNI STARK BRITTANY STERBENZ PETER STERGIOU ALEXANDRA STERNBERG SCOTT STROUBOS LEMONIA SULTAN MARY AM SURANA SHREY SZE CHRISTIE TALA Y MARLIES TESFA YE MARTHA TOBAR KEVIN TOLETE PATRICIA TOMECEK CHRISTY TORGOVNIK LARA TRAN FRANCES TRAVERS BRIDGET TROSA DANIELLE TUZ GABRIELA UDAIRAM INDIRA URQUIDI ANN ELYSE VANCE STEPHANIE V ANWINCKLE LINDSAY VELASCO JOELI VIRGINTINO VINCENT VON OHLEN SANDI WANG FOSTER WIDOM STEVEN WONG JANE WONG JENNIFER YANWENDY YEH JENNIFER YEOUNJASON YUTIFFANY ZAHARIEFF ANNABEL ZALIHA DANI ZAMAN RAZEEN ZHENG ANJIE ZHENGJAMES ZOHRABIAN VA TCHE

Columbia Baylor University Lehigh CUNY- Hunter fCUNYl U of Maryland Hobart & William Smith CUNY - City (HONORS) fCUNYl Polytechnic Boston University SUNY- New Paltz fSUNYl SUNY- Binghamton [SUNY] SUNY - Binghamton fSUNYl CUNY - Baruch (HONORS) fCUNYl Lehigh Northeastern University Out of U.S.A. NYU (Stern) fEDl Barnard CUNY- City (HONORS) [CUNY] Dartn'louth · Pending SUNY- Binghamton fSUNYl NYU (A&S) [ED] CUNY - Hunter fCUNYl .

U of Pennsylvania Depaul University NYU (Tisch) U of Marvland NYU (A&S) fEDl NYU(A&S) Cornell fEDl Wellesley fED] Pomona Columbia Fordham Vassar NYU (A&S) NYU (Steinhardt) CUNY -Queens (HONORS) University of Mary Washington Mt. St. Vincent St. John's St. John's SUNY -Binghamton [SUNY] Dartmouth St. John's Barnard Boston University Stevens Institute of Technology Harvard IEA 1 Hofstra St. John's St. John's CUNY - Baruch [CUNY] Amherst Williams College [EDl NYU (A&S) - Pending SUNY-Albany fSUNYl .

Sarah Lawrence · Amherst St. John's Manhattan College

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The Classic

8 Townsend Harris makes new friends ' in Turkey Summer 2006

by Madeleine Wright to us."

The people of Ankara and "I think some people would Istanbul, Turkey opened their be nervous about travelling to arms to sophomores Kelly Turkey since it's right next to McCann, Jessica Spinoza, and Iraq," said Kelly, "but I felt reVaughn Watson; juniors Ellen ally comfortable. My host and Abramowitz, Elizabeth Pryor, I got really close and felt at and Christopher Serna; as well home with her family." as Assi_stant Principal of HuAlthough Turkey is an ethmanities Susan Getting and nically and religiously homogCOSA Adam Stonehill in the enous nation, the Turks were acsecond part of the Turkish- cepting of the American exAmerican student exchange change students and treated program.The program, which them, in the words of Ms. Getended in mid-April, was de- ting, "like royalty." Ellen exsigned to forge better relations plained, "Turkey is a predomibetween Muslims and non- nately Muslim country, but the Muslims post 9/11 and to pro- Turks are very accepting of vide both Turks and Americans -Christians and Jews, as well as with a better understanding of all races and ethnicities. The the other's culture. All partici- Turks don't like Bush or the war pants agreed that the goal was in Iraq, but they do like Americans ." met successfully.

If there were fears about beEnglish is not the national ing in close proximity to Iraq language of Turkey, but the exwhile in Turkey, they were change students and admini-strasoon alleviated by the warm . tors experienced few difficulties. _and hospitable nature of the communicating with the Turkish people. "The Turks people. "It was not difficult to made us feel so welcome; it communicate with students in was extraordinary," said Ms. the school because many of Getting. "They gave us gifts; them learn English in school the . they gave us their time and en- same way that we learn Spanergy, and opened their homes ish or French," explained Christo us, eve·n though they dido 't topher. The language barrier know us . It was beyond any- "wasn't a huge issue" for Kelly thing I expected." Christopher because "my host translated for agreed, saying,"The people me all the time ." there could not have been nicer Ankara Ataturk Lises, the

high school the American stu- in Turkey," said Ms. Getting, dents attended "was very dif- "but the kids were shocked." ferent from Townsend Harris," She added that "the squatting ·according to Christopher. The helps get your thigh .muscles walls were plain and undeco- stronger." rated, the dress code was manThe Americans also learned datory, and "at first sight the that the Turks are a nationalisschool seemed very empty and tic people. At Ankar~ Attaturk bare," Christopher added . The · Lises, the entire school ascourtyard w~s enormous, stu- sembled every Monday and Fri- · dents were allowed to leave the day afternoon in the courtyard building, and there were ten for the raising and lowering of minute breaks between classes, the Turkish flag and the singduring which students could ing of the national anthem. The talk on their cell phones, listen principal would also give a to their iPods, buy candy and speech and pep talk before dissandwiches at the snack bar, or missing the students. Nevertheeven have water fights. less, the Turks, said Kelly, The American exchange stu- "consider themselves Eurodents also gained valuable in- pean, and they are extremely sight into Turkish culture by proud of their culture, tradi-_ visiting museums and going to tions, and food." ·c ultural events, mosques, baThe American exchange stuzaars, restaurants, and ice skat- dents also learned about some ing rinks. The students also lis- shared values and beliefs betened to Turkish pop music, tween Turks and Americans. picked up a great amount of the Ellen said,"Sila, my exchange Turkish language and Turkish sister, and I have many values dances, and became ysed tq and hopes in common: family, Turkish customs, such as greet- education, travel, fixing the ing friends by kissing them on world, finding that perfect guy. both cheeks.

We come from totally different While the responses to the backgrounds, religions, countrip were overwhelmingly posi- tries, families, and societies, but tive, the students did experi- . I cannot tell you how many -ence slight discomforts during nights we stayed up Iate talktheir stay in Turkey. " I had al- ing and advising each other on ready been to China, so I wasn ' t our lives. It was amazing to find surprised about the squat toilets a best friend halfway across the

Turkish students share

by Jocelyn Wright Upon returning from their three-week stay in New York City, the six Turkish exchange students compiled a newspaper called Atati.irk Lisesi Times describing their experiences in .

America. Here are excerpts from their articles.

Sila Derici

exp~rience

in America

ferent from my first thoughts ."

CanerLiile

Gozde Gok~ek

" If I were to ask, ' How would you change the world if you had Mert K. Ekinci a chance?', all of us would an- "This student exchange proswer, ' We , the Turks, don't · gram is a great experience and think we can change the world an opportunity- to see the real unless all of the folks agree with America that the movies hide our opinion and say "we do not from us . But there is one negawant any wars anytime, any- tive side of this program as well

"I think America is -a country which is completely different , from the others. In this program that we are taking part in, people meet with different cultun~ s . I think this is the only thing that is necessary for world peace . I learned lots of things with this program .

At first I saw that it is a pity for people of two different countries to view each other with prejudice.

I also saw that when people who have different values go well together,. they can do anything .... "

"Before coming to the USA, I wasn ' t expecting the New Yorkers to be that friendly . I thought they w"'ouldn't really care about us . On the contrary, I was taken by surprise by their hospitality and friendliness ....

The people in school came up to us to talk and welcome us. Reyyan Nigdeliogliu Whenever they saw me in the "As we are the 'TURKISH halls, they greeted me sincerely -STUDENTS' wandering which made me happy in a for- around your school from eign country. If I was in my the first day till now, I had country, I wouldn't really care . a very good impression. whether the people greeted me Really! You guys have or not, but in a foreign country been so welcoming and it [maked me] feel. .. as if I kind to us that I don't want wasn't a foreigner but a normal to leave . Townsend Harris student in the school ... To sum High School looked very up, New Yorkers are sincere, big and cold on the outfriendly, willing to help some- side, but inside it's very one who is in need. I am so warm like the people inhappy to get to know real New side it. The first thing that York people who are quite dif- got me we~e the posters."

world."

Jessica and her Turkish host shared an experience similar to · Ellen and Sila's and wrote a song on the guitar about people of different cultures coming together and getting along despite their differences.

On the final day of the trip at the airport, tears came to the eyes of the American exchange students because they had to part with their Turkish friends with whom they had gotten so close. This was not a final goodbye, however, and anumber of the American exchange students continue to keep in regular contact with their Turkish friends via E-mail. Some have even made plans to invite them back to New York during the summer.

"I think that the trip did achieve its goal in breaking down the stereotypes that Americans have of Turkey," - said Christopher. "I didn't know what iurkey was going to be like at first. -I was a bit worried because of the way Muslim nations are portrayed in the media. Luckily, now I know the truth about Turkey : the people are kind, the food is amazing, the history is fascinating, and the cities are great. I would go back right now if I could ."

where : Peace at home, Peace in the world ."

as the good side of it which is that I ' m away from home where I'm used to living and trying to _adapt to the way the people live in this country in which everything is strange and odd .... I'm really grateful to be here and I confess I'm not interested in going back."

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The Turkish -and [\merian exchange students stop for a group photo.

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The Classic

Summer 2006

,

"Bienvenue a Paris!" read the signs at the Charles De .Gaulle Airport that greeted the 17 students and 2 teachers who went on this spring 's trip to France.

Participants visited Paris, Provence, and the Cote d ' Azur during the I 0 days they spent in France . Upon arriving in France, the group was joined by students from Massachusetts , French teacher Mariat d' Souza and English teacher Georgette Wallace organized the trip .

After arriving in Paris at 9 in the morning, participants were in for a day of sightseeing. After checking in at the ·hotel , they visited the Latin Quarter, which is also the student quarter. In the evening they visited the Arc de Triorriphe and the Champs-Eiysees. The next morning they saw Notre Dame , the Louvre, and climbed the Eiffel Tower. Sunday afternoon the entire group visi!ed Versailles , and that evening they trooped up to Monte-

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9

·Estudiantes exploran Espana

Etudiants vistent France

by Jocelyn Wright

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Ma:rtre, a city on the hill where you can · get your portrait sketched.

The following morning the group hopped ofl the Train a Grande Vitesse , or TGV, a high-speed train that travels at up to 320 mph that got them to Provence in jus.t three hours . They visited Avignon, the Pont du Gard, and Roman ruins in Nimes . Participants saw more of the Provence countryside the next day during their excursions to Les Baux, Aries, the Camargue Region , and Aigues-Mortes.

After two days it was time to say goodbye to Provence and the group got back on their tour bus and headed for a hotel in Cannes where they spent three days. From there they made a day excursion to Nice. and Eze. The group also got their passports stamped in Monaco and see the changing of the guards at the castle of the royal fal)lily.

Saturday morning marked the group 's last day in France as they headed back to the United States · on an 8-hour flight.

~y

Christopher Amanna

As they exited the glass jetway, 33 students and four staff members looked up at the high-tech interior of MadridBarajas Airport. This was . it- they had arrived in Spain and would be spending the next nine days exploring all that the north of the country had to offer.

After collecting their luggage, the

Burgos, the city ofEl Cid. Rodrigo Dfaz de Vivar, known more commonly as El Cid , was a military and political leader in II th century Spain . He is revered as a national hero and is the subject of one of the Spanish language ' s greatest literary works - El Cantar del Mio Cid, del Pilar. This massive church was the site of a visitation by the Virgin Mary. Ms.

Spanish travelers pose in front of one of Spain's many cathdrals. , '

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Les touristes take a break from sight-seeing to say ''jromage!" in front of the Eiffel Tower.

travelers, headed by Spanish teacher Amelia Betancourt, met their trip coordinator, Michael, who hailed from Britain . That first day .the group experienced the two of the Spanish capital's great museums - the Reina Soffa Contemporary Art Museum and the Prado.

The next day, they took an excursion outside of Madrid to see the Escorial and the Valley of the Fallen. The former is a massive 16th century monastery ; the latter is a austere basilica hewn into a mountainside as a remembrance to the victims of the Spanish Civil War. Leaving Madrid for good, the group made their way t~ Segovia, a medieval town noted for its well-preserved Roman aqueduct. The travelers also had the opportunity to ascend a narrow spiral staircase to the top of the tower of the Alcazar, a medieval castle.

On day 5 they found themselves in

Ezquerra used the time in Zaragoza to see her parents with whom shehad lunch in a cafe in the main plaza.

The final destination on the trip was Barcelona, that fabled city situate.d upon the Mediterranean. Travelers got to see up close the organic architecture of Antonio Gaudf, specifically the Pare Guell and his yet unfinished Sagrada Familia Cathedral. They also walked along the fashionable Ramblas down to the gorgeous beaches at the southern end of the city.

"Espana fue fabulosa," said senior Melanie Friedman. "The best part was the carousel by the sea in San Sebastian," she added .

History teacher Franco Scardino was equally impressed by the journey.

"Spain is a beautiful country and I had a great time seeing all it had to offer," he said.

Trip to Greece and ltal·y -educates and entertains Wischerth , students visited Athens, Classical languages may seem use- Mycenae, Delphi , Pompeii , Sorrento, less or dead , but students had the op- and Rome, exploring archaeological portunity to experience ancient cultures sites in addition to learning about the firsthand during the midwinter recess. · different architectural s.tyles that have Over nine days, students immersed developed th_rough the centuries .

Mr. Hagerty summed up his expethemselves in the history and culture of rienc-e in a single word: "InspiraAncient Greece and Rome as a suppletional."

He believes that his own exment to their study of Latin and Greek. periences will enrich his lessons . LikeAccompanied by Latin teacher Andrew many of the students he chaperoned, Hagerty and Art teacher Margherita this visit to the Mediterranean region was his Mercedes DriYing School first. He says he 38-15 Bell Blvd .. Suite 202 · Bayside, -NV _11361 now has a "fuller Tel. 718.28 J.026Z: appreciation" for what he teaches and can now create a for tht 5 Hour pre-lictn~ng course, Point and lnsuranct Reduction cuursc . "home for the and Road lesson packages, schedulu/pricing ¥hit us at: facts."

by Kate Lu

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The Classic Summer 2006

B~ood

Drive measures success in pints

Poets vi'S:it Hollywood at rea,ding

by Stephanie Pak

A record fifty six pints of blood were collected from students and staff members at this year's blood drive , held on April 26 . That is-a 20% increase from last year's donation thanks to an overwhelming number of donors . Senior Gloria Palma and Coordinator of StudentActivities Ad am Stonehill organized the event together in an effort to collect blood that could be used to save lives.

Before giving blood, donors had to have their blood pressure, temperature, hemogl ~.bin content, and pulse checked.

All sample-s collected must also undergo regular procuedres such as testing for HIV and blood type identification before they can be used .

Afterwards, donors munched on snacks and received a droplet-shaped . sticker that said, "I just gave the gift of life" and a small red stress ball shaped · like a heart.

Responses to the blood drive were positive."Donating blood makes me feel good because I feel that I am really helping someone out," said junior Luis Vega.

"I think it's important to donate blood because it can save lives," he added.

Mr. Stonehill deemed this year's drive a success. "As a whole, every year the blood drive is running more smoothly," he said. "The first time people give blood, their nerves come

by Rookminie Behari and Jocelyn Wright

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into play, and they can possibly faint.

However, many donors were giving blood a second tim·e this year, and they were definitely more relaxed this time," he explained.

There were many people willing to give blood but unable to do so because they did not meet specific requirements.

"I would have donated blood as well,

but I haven: t _turned 16 yet," said sophomore Bianca Edirisinghe, "Otherwise I'd definitely donate because it's for a good cause. It can go a long way.''

To qualify to give blood, donors have to weigh at least II 0 pounds and have to be at least 1_6 years old. Paperwork is also required .

Hollywood star walks and banners adorned the library on Wednesday, March 29 for the semi-annual Phoenix poetry reading which was Hollywood· tbemed. Many students and teachers shared both their own work and that of their favorite poets during the two- hour event.

Phoenix Edito·r -in·Chief Melanie Friedman spake fondly of the poetry reading: "I thought it was a great theme and I thought there were a Jot of memorable per€ormaoces." These performances included her own r~ad­ ing of a poem about Audrey Hevbum an,d junior Krystal Hanley's tribute to HoHywood, which was weU-recei-ved by the audience. ''1 wb'u:td walk a coun·

try mi1e to see Kystars poetry performance any eld day,'' said ·- Eng'Hsh teacher lt<Ybert B.aest<>ck. Attendees atse en· joyetl EngJ,ish teacher Joseph Canzoneri's poem, "Dirty Base·

bafJ Caps," which is slated for

'Two Gentlemen' take ,centerstage to the tee with his charming persona and his strong presence as he spent numerous scenes on the stage by himself. The chemistry between both Francisco and Emily Grecki, who played Julia, lit up the beginning of the play. with their romantic love scenes.

Most memorable was Jenn Hickey's rendition of Lance; servant to Proteus. With only a ·stuffed dog as a prop, she had the audience laughing hysterically and smiling · ~ whenever they heard the a.> '§ wheels of her wagon sweep 0 ~ across the stage floor. ]0. .

Raeann. Walters, got it right with the dance parts she choSeniors Francisco Cebada and Kevin Tobar argue while Jen Hickey adores her dog, reographed to catchy tunes by Ray Charles, John Lee that allowed the audience to get famil- Hooker, Frankie Lymon, and Joey Dee

by Marissa Green Charismatic and classy define the iar with the plot of the story and the and the Starlighters. The dancers were unique coHaboration achieved by our characters that they would be meeting. well rehearsed and were smiling brilAt first, understanding the liantly showing that they were having school's talented young actors and staff presented on April 7' 11 and 8' 11 with their Shakespearean language was a bit dif- just as much fun as the audience was rendition of William Shakespeare's Two ficult. However, the language soon be- .having watching them.

Mr. Canzo"neri 's passion for gan to feel like modern day speech since Gef!tlemen of Verona. · Shakespeare shined through the perforFrom the cleverly thought out play- each actor spoke slowly and clearly to of every student in the play. He mance bills to the beautiful scenery, this play bring every member of the audience into put a lovely message in the playbill diswas enjoyable and very well presented. the Shakespearean realm. cussing how relevant he felt this play All the actors completely stripped otT It was directed by Shakespearean afiis to today's times : "It's essentially cionado and English teacher Joseph their New York City student gear and about a guy who dumps his girlfriend Canzoneri with the assistance cif his lin- truly made themselves the characters because he thinks he loves his best guistics classes. The play consisted of they all seemed born to play with exfriend's girl.

Ask high school students quisite costumes. First-time actor Fran- · 21 different scenes and began with a very funny and informative overview cisco Cebada fit the character Proteus if they know what that's all about." His

publication this fall . .Reactions to the poetry reading were positive. Sophomore Alejandro Zarate described the event as "innovative and [in] true Townsend Harris style!" Junior Krysta1 Hartley added, ''Altogether the poetry reading just exhibits that there's an alternate side to Townsend Harris ... because we can hear the poetic talents of teachers and students. It's wonderful for us to convene.."

When asked if the poetry reading was successfuJ, Mr. Babstock said, 1'Success is a word from the business world that all poets abhor.''

contagious dedication to Shakespeare was most evidently seen with the special guests involvement of Anthony, Joseph, and Julia Canzoneri, Mr. Canzoneri's children who played outlaws. Their parts were the icing on the cake that sealed the sweetness and preserved the message that at any age, Shakespeare can be appreciated .

Many times our student body is clas- sified as study nerds and workaholics.

However, this presentation reaffirms our school's strong reputation for creating well-rounded Renaissance men and women.

Mr. Canzoneri stated, "I think Shakespeare lived." After watching this, I think Shakespeare will continue to live on in the hearts of every person in that audience who has now been touched by Two Gentlemen of Verona .

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11

Summer 2006

Hawks keep pace with' themselves -Injuries aid

by Alex Rush The Boys' Track team has been, in recent years, one of the most consistent and celebrated teams of the school and this year was no different for the outdoor team . With just the right balance of senior leadership and underclassmen energy, the team continued their successes from the cross country and indoor seasons right through the spring._ · Seniors Jon Pantano and Shrey Surana were .the leaders on the team, both by their titles of captain and by their examples. Pantano put together an im-

pressive resume this season, including a third place finish in the 4 X 800 Meter Relay and a sixth place finish in the 800 Meter Run at the Queens Championship on May 19. Surana was part of the same relay team with Pantano and also had a ninth place finish in the 3200 Meter Run .

Freshman Chris Guerrero put on quite a show for his elders this season, placing second in the 3200 Meter Run in the Freshman/Sophomore City Championship on May 27. and winning the same race on .May 13 at the Bruce Selman Memorial Meet. Sophomore

Alyas Hamid, not to be outdone, was part of a third place 4 X I 00 Meter Relay team at the Queens Championships and also had a tenth place finish in the 800 Meter Run at the Freshman/Sophomore City Championships.

With the graduation of Pantano , Surana, and fellow seniors Joey Rodriguez, Oscar Orozco, and Constantine Laskaridis, the Hawks will look to Guerrero, Hamid, and juniors Samuel Ok and Jonathan Vazcones to continue their winning ways next season.

Surprises serve success for girls

by Alex Rush "The fact that we were missing last year's seniors made me think it would be difficult to have a winning record ."

Oh, how wrong senior Allison Kornblatt was about the Girls' Varsity

Tennis team . Despite losing the seniors in question, the Class of 2005's Jacqueline Chancer- and Christina Tsirkas, .the Hawks put together a 9-3 record in the Queens "A" division and clinched their fourth consecutive play-

Blowout loss end~ boys' hopes of championship

by Michelle Montgoris An ll-4 loss to the Frederick Douglass Academy ended the Boys' Varsity Baseball team's season on May 30. Despite battling back to tie the playoff game at two after a quick two-run first inning deficit, Frederick Douglass forged ahead with a run in each of the third and fourth innings and blew the game out with folff more in· the fifth and three in the sixth to put the Hawks away.

The loss ended what was otherwise a successful season. Their 11-5 record gave the team their third straight playoff appearance under coach Ray Adamkiewicz.

The team was impacted largely by the six seniors in their starting lineup, seven overall Centerfielder Danny Durante sported an impressive.. 347 batting average during the regular season, which was nicely complimented by his .475 on-base percentage and his .592 slugging percentage. Starting pitcher Nestor Serrano dominated on the mound, racking up five wins with only one loss and a 3.70 earned run average, allowing only 17 earned runs and striking out 40 batters in 32.2 innings. Catcher Max Rivlin Nadler, first baseman Joseph Conte, second baseman Brendan Lavin, and rightfielder Vinny Virgintino, as well as outfielder Scott Sternberg round out the list of seniors.

With such a bulk of their starting lineup graduating, the Hawks will look to juniors Chris Cerbone, pitcher, Cletus Schuyler, third baseman, ancl David Bournas-Ney, left fielder, to carry the team next season and relay their experience in the playoffs to the up and coming players.

off berth before being stopped by Curtis High School in their first playqffmatch on May 5.

Kornblatt and juniors Yashan Gui and Katherine Chancer suffered losses in the first, second, and third singles matches, respectively. The doubles teams of sophomores Jill Markowitz and Melissa Lin and junior Laura Schubert and sophomore Elena Gulotta won both their matches in vain, as Curtis prevailed 3-2.

• Nonetheless, the season .was a success on account of the way the girls enjoyed the time they spent together.

Coach Shari Basis credits said success to the "cohesive and supporting" atmosphere tha.t surrounded practices and matches.

"There is good chemistry 'between the members of the team and a high level of enthusiasm," she said.

Kornblatt, along with fellow senior Sarah Fadika, will pass on the responsibility of carrying the team to next year's seniors Chancer' and Schubert, who will undoubtedly hope to continue the team 's streak of playoff appearances next season.

Michelle Montgoris contributed to and updated all articles.

in striking out -season

by Robert McCullagh A 12-0 loss to William C. Bryant on May 17 all but epitomized the Girls' Varsity Softball team's season . After holding the opposition scoreless for the first four innings, the wheels began to come off for the Hawks. An error here, a nicely timed hit there, and soon the mistakes began to snowball as Bryant erupted for 12 runs in the last three innings to hand the hawks their tenth loss of the season. At 4-10, 2006 was the first time the Hawks -did not qualify for the playoffs in three years. _ It was a season plagued by injuries for the girls. The team took a devastating blow when second string pitcher and third baseman Cecilia Ehresman broke her arm during the spring break. The incident ended the freshman 's promising season and placed the pitching duties solely on their first stdng pitcher, senior Michelle Montgoris. As .the season went on the innings began to take their toll on her shoulder, and Montgoris was unable to pitch the 1<1st three games · of the season. Junior Meaghan Mapes was also hit by the ·injury bug, sprainc ing her wrist on a slide into third b~\se on May 3 against Richmond Hill and then fracturing the same wrist in the third inning of that final game against Bryant.

Nonetheless, the season was a success in the eyes of the team .

"I've never been a part of a team who could go 4-10 and still have this much fun," said Montgoris. "We've got a good core here, young athletes who want to win but who truly enjoy the game, and l can see this team going far in the next couple of years."

With the graduation of three of their starters, Montgoris, third baseman Danielle Trosa, and short.stop Caitlin Ryan, the Hawks will look to Ehresman, Mapes, and sophomore Danielle Abatemarco to carry the team next season.

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loss ends Hawks' 4-5 record aces· Hawks playoff run at goal. line

by Lance Tomas The Boys' Vars!ty Handball team rebounded from a tough 3-7 2005 campaign to end the 2006 season at 4-5, with their fourth win coming in their last game against Martin Van Buren, 3-2, on May 5.

It did not look good for the Hawks after the first and second singles matches, as senior Daniel Kim and junior Gary Wang each lost to their respective opponents, 21-7 and 21-18. However, junior Corey Chen got the comeback started with a 21-8 win in his third . singles match with help from his two aces and three kills. Junior Ilya Borukhov and sophomore Priyank Patel

by Lance Tomas followed with a 21-19 first doubles 15 saves by sophomore Diana match, and sophomore Michael Kokoszka and three shots on goal each Coritsidis and freshman Pak Chi Chan by sophomore Mariella Romano and delivered the finishing blow to Van junior Cait Kilpatrick were not enough Buren with a 21-6 second doubles win. to save the Girls' VarsitySoccer team It was a tough season for Kim, who first playoff game, as they saw their seais the only senior on the team . Despite son come to an end on May 31 with a 2his four aces and 18 kills in seven 0 loss to Midwood High School. matches, he could muster only a 1-6 Although they did not go as far intQ record in singles play. Wang had some- the playoffs as they would have liked, what better luck, riding six aces and 15 the girls' season was far from a disapkills en route to a 3-4 singles record. - pointment. Romano, Kilpatrick, and se- With eight freshmen and five sopho- . nior Natalia Gu.zman tied for sixth in the mores on this year's roster, the team will Queens "A" division with nine goals look to Wang and Chen to relay their each . Romano led the team in assists experience to the younger players and with six assists, which also placed her build a foundation for years to come. third in the division.

Kokoszka, as starting goaltender, saved 78 out of I 08 shots this season, and 15 of 17 in the one playoff match.

With the graduation of the only other goalkeeper, Brenae Leary, Kokoszka looks to be an important part of next season's team .

A total of seven seniors will be leaving the team this year; in addition to Leary and Guzman, Candice Cedeno, Danielle Hanson, Graziella LoBrutto, Stephanie Santana, and Ann Elyse Urquidi have seen their time on the team expire. Along with Romano, Kiipatrick, and Kokoszka, the team will look to their youth in freshmen Julia Fusfeld and Lorena Russi to fill the voids in coming years .

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The Classic

Summer 2006

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Seniors serve up aces byMichelleMontgoris Coming off a disappointing .5-5 season last year in which they did not qualify for postseason play, the seniordominated Boys Varsity Volleyball team turned in an impressive 8-5 record this season before losing to John F. Kennedy in two straight sets, 25-22 and 25-14, in their first playoff game on May 13.

Senior Kenny Chang had three service points in the loss, while fellow seniors Kendrick Basso, Jakub Brodowski, and Jason Yeoun added two each.

Yeoun also had three digs and

three kills, while Brodowski added the Hawks' only ace of the day. Senior Kevin Kwak passed for ten assists and also added five digs, while senior David Chiu had three kills.

These six seniors were the starting six for coach Elizabeth Dempster, who had a roster of 16 people total. Three seniors, James O'Brien, Victor Ho, and Andre de laCruz , were also on the team as substitutes . When asked why she took ~o many people on the roster, Dempster said, "If they ' re interested, if they're responsible, dedicated , and willing to .work hard, I'm

willing to put them on the team . ''I'm looking for them to learn and build for next year based on experience," she added. · The players in question include sophomores Robert Lum and Peter Park, who despite a lack of playing time this season look to factor in largely on next year's team in the absence of the nine current seniors.

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Honorable mention goes out to the members of the Girls' Outdoor Track team, who qualified for the PSAL City Championship on June 4 and to juniors Devotia Moore, who won two first place titles at the meet, for an astounding 14 total first place finishes during the course of the season, and Susan Wasserman, who placed in the top ten of aH but one of her races this season. Congratulations on a tremendous effort!

Hawks fall short of champs

by Lance Tomas It took 16 matches, but the Girls' Varsity Handball team was finally defeated by Boys and Girls High School, 5-0, May 20. The loss came after a stellar I 5-0 overall season record, which was compiled by 12 regular season and three playoff wins.

Senior Xiu Ming Gao, who went undefeated during the rest of the season, simply could not overcome Boys and Girls'

Quasia Watson in the first singles match. Juniors Linda Thai and Joann Lee ran into a similar situation in their second and third singles matches, respectively. Factor in two doubles losses, and the result is an end to an otherwise dominating season.

Thai led the entire city in aces with 98, as well as leading the Queens I division with 18 kills. She figures to fill the first singles void that will be

left by Gao's graduation. According to coach James Jordan, Gao was "the fire that keeps the team warm. · "She's our shining star," Jordan wrote on her PSAL athlete · profile.

Thai and Lee, as well as sophomores Jorgena Mato and Michelle Kwa, will have to step up with their experience from this season to continue the Hawks' winning ways in years ro come.

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Boys serve Queens .., competition an ace

by Robert McCullagh After a 9-3 regular season record left them second only to Benjamin Cardozo in the Queens "A" division, the Boys'VarsityTennis team was stopped in the third round of the playoffs by Brooklyn Technical High School on May II. After junior Sean Doerfler lost his first singles match, I 04, junior Michael Malhame evened t h e

by Maureen McCluskey game After compiling a 4-2 regular season record, qualifying for the postseason, and seeing one of their own fencers with a win the first ever PSAL Girls' Individual fencing Tournament, what better way would there be for the Girls' l 0 - 2 fencing Team to end their inaugural season? second Winning the championship, of course. singles That's exactly what happened at Long Island High School on May 5, as the Hawks took on Stuyvesant High

Female fencers foil city competition

School. Senior Donna Mordente won both of her "A" matches, and fellow senior Erika Matos won one of her two to give the Hawks a 3-1 edge. In the "B" match, junior Amy Feng, the winner of the individual tournament, was perfect in her two matches, while senior Eleanor Fallon went one for two. When all was said and done, the Hawks had a 6.75-2.25 victory and the first Girls' Fencing Champion title.

Their success came as no surprise to coach Debra Michlew.itz, who had predicted midseason, "These are the best girl fencers in the city and are capable of going all the way. These girls can compete with the best of them; boys included."

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the third singles match against sophomme David Ferrari as well as the first doubles match against junior Sebastian Lagos and sophomore Wai Lon Wong.

Junior Julian Felder and sophomore Gabriel Felder salvaged the second singles match in the 3-2 loss.

Despite the loss, it was an otherwise successful season for the boy's under first year coach Khurshid Mutakabbir.

Doerfler entered the 2006 campaign with a 24-l career record and suffered only one loss the entire regular season .

Cardozo ' s Jai Yoon defeated him on March 29, becoming only the second player in three years to defeat Doerfler in a regular season match.

Not to b'e overlooked , Malhame also had an excellent season, going 5-3 in the regular season and adding a perfect 3-0 record in three playoff matches.

High flying Hawks celebrate athletic prowess

by Darcy Rendon Athletes from all areas of sports were on hand on June 7, but it wasn't for any kind of meet or tournament. The 21st Annual Athletics Sports Awards Dinner and Dance was held to celebrate the achievements of school athletes who work long, demanding hours to better their performances.

This year, before any awards were handed out, the athletes

took a minute to acknowledge the Girls' Swimming and Girls' Fencing teams for their respective New York City Champion· ship titles.

The Athlete of the Year Awards, the highest award given to one malt: and one female bas.ed on their outstanding athletic interscholastic career, were presented to seniors Michelle Montgoris and Nestor Serrano. Montgoris i.s a mem-

ber of the Girls' Bowling, Bas- of the team.

Principal Th_omas ketball, <:md Softball teams, Cunningham took a moment to while Serrano is a member of extend his heartiest congratulaBoys' Indoor Track and Basetions and praises to the athletes. ball teams.

Individual awards were also . "As participants, you have conpresented to the Most Valuable sistently met high standards Player, the Most Improved though both drive and skill and Player, and the Rookie of the yet you have enjoyed the pleaYear of each team . A Coach's sure of the game. The prowess Award also went to those who you have developed is retlec~ possess qualities each coach tive in both individual and felt contributed to the success group performances. You regu-

larly test the limits of athletic and academic endurance."

Wanda Nix, the head of the Athletic Department and Academic Dean, felt the event was successful. ') think it went well," she said. "It's always nice when you can get people together with common interests and have a good time. I think everyone enjoyed themselves tonight."