March/April 2020 by tjTODAY Online

TJTODAY vol 5 issue 6

march 2020

thomas jefferson high school for science and technology 6560 braddock rd. alexandria, va 22312

finding

PRIDE our

With the Virginia Values Act passing the General Assembly, we explore what it means to be LGBTQ in a changing political climate.

ABSTRACT

Furiously gripping each other’s hands, seniors Luke Ostyn and Nishanth Alladi act out a fight scene in the opening act of German Honor Society’s iNite performance in which they incorporate classical Schuhplattler steps. “The motivation for having the fight has to do more with getting the crowd into our act and just trying to have fun while we’re up there,” Ostyn said. “The story of the fight does attempt to showcase German values; the brawlers start out at odds with one another, but the fight concludes with the victors picking up the losers, and all four leaving as friends.” PHOTO//Antonio Martin

STAFF

EDITORIAL BOARD

Editors-in-Chief Justin Chang Irina Lee Grace Mak

Broadcast Executive Producer Ashley Huang

Online Managing Editor Sonia Kanchan Pratika Katiyar

Social Media Manager Sid Ram

Photo Editor Anushka Molugu

Team Leaders Vikram Achuthan Aumena Choudhry Stuti Gupta Anuj Khemka Minjoo Song

Staff Writers Nathan Mo Yulee Kang Jeremy Kim Forrest Meng Raed Mirza Ayush Das Christina Lu Keertana

journalism staff. The staff is deeply

Senthilkumar Eric Feng Nirja Divekar Niharika Chandna Annika Duneja Gabriel Ascoli Miriam Antony Nicholas Artiedamarin

Jessica Feng

Adviser Erinn Harris tjTODAY is the official newsmagazine of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology published by the

committed to a code of journalistic ethics that demands the exercise of accuracy, good judgment and impartiality. The content of tjTODAY

tjtoday.tjhsst

tjhsst_media

is determined by the editorial board. Unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of the staff of tjTODAY, but not necessarily the opinions of individual editors.

@tjtoday_news

tjTODAY

CONTENTS tjTODAY vol. 5 issue 6

mar. 2020

28 16 12

cover story 06

LOVE, PRIDE With Virginia Values Act and FCPS’ new sex education curriculum, we explore what it means to be LGBTQ in a changing political climate

features 04

HARMONIZING A CURE, CAMPAIGNING AGAINST CANCER Sophomore Andrea Silva’s work in raising money for blood cancer research through outreach and committment

ALL NITE LONG The inside look behind the largest performance at Jefferson

sci-tech 14

sports 18

ROCKING AND ROLLING TO A NEW 16 THREAPY Senior Victoria Graf introduces music as potential treatment for neurological diseases

RECREWTED After getting recruited to college for crew, senior Summer Keating shares her experience as a coxswain

THE MACHINE Senior Caleb O’ Cain’s three-year journey towards wrestling dominance

opinion 24

FOR THE LOVE OF LANGUAGE SB 323 should not allow students to swap world language classes for computer science classes; instead, we need to mandate both

TAKING THE TJ FROM HACKTJ Jefferson’s annual overnight location has been forced to relocate, adding to new changes enforced by FCPS

REBUILDING WITH AMBITION The Jefferson PC Rebuilders club is helping fix computers for underprivilged children

SWINGING INTO SOFTBALL Senior Julia Drennan’s drive shapes her softball path to varsity captain

ELECTRIC BUSES The first step towards combating climate change

WE NEED A BREAK Why the addition of mental health break rooms in FCPS is an important step towards advocating for student’s mental health

entertainment 28

MUTTERPERL THROUGH THE YEARS Taking a behind the scenes look at the diverse highschool acting career of Senior Joshua Mutterperl

A BOOK REVIEW WORTH BILLIONS With his knack for storytelling and his ability to convey even the most minute of details, Mezrich tells the story of how the Winklevoss twins essentially made bitcoin

Dear Thomas Jefferson Community,

April 4, 2020

At the time of this writing, Fairfax County Public Schools have cancelled school for the remainder of the academic year in response to COVID-19. Since Virginia confirmed its first case in Fort Belvoir on March 7, COVID-19 has spread rapidly, with 2407 confirmed cases and 52 death in Virginia at the time of this writing. As a result of social distancing measures taken to slow the virus spread, the TJ Drama “Newsies” production, indoor drumline and colorguard seasons, spring sports and more have come to an abrupt halt. This April issue was originally intended to be published in March, a momentous time in Virginia for LGBTQ legislation. With the sudden closure of Fairfax County Public Schools in reaction to COVID-19, we felt grateful that the health of our community was a top priority, but disappointed that we would not be able to share the work of the journalism staff as originally intended. Due to COVID-19, we have altered some stories to reflect how they have been impacted by the virus, and other stories were transferred to tjTODAY’s online website. While we were not able to bring the stories in this issue to you at their most timely, we hope you are still able to enjoy the stories of the community around you, reminding us that in times of crisis we derive our strength from loving those around us. Above all, we hope that you remain safe, healthy, and happy during these tumultuous times. Sincerely, Justin Chang, Irina Lee, and Grace Mak Editors-in-Chief of tjTODAY

love,

PR I by Justin Chang, Irina Lee, and Grace Mak

COVER STORY 7

R IDE Members of the LGBTQ+ community share their experience defining their own label in the midst of outside resistance and legislative changes

S I U T P T E ’ T A HA ’S SJ • PH SE • IT’S JUS UST T A P ASE J I A U T HA ’S ST P • H J SE IT’ A U PH S J ST A •I A U T’S ST A PHA S PH JU P E H AS ST A S E A E IT’ • P S N IT’ HA S S O E JU J T ST A P UST A P A P HAS A HA HAS E • E• • I SE I T’S • I I T T ’ JU S JU ’ S S S J T U T • I PH S A A AS T’S AS PH PH T E• JU E • ASE ASE ST IT IT • I

US A P ASE • IT JU T H S ’ • S A A T US S I J T A PHA E • T’S UST J S I P U T A E PH H ’ S S • A T AS J S I A U T E ’S ST P HA E • • SE IT’ IT’S JUS A P AS • IT S JU JU T A H E• S P ’ S S T H T I SE IT’ JUS A P A P A S •LOSING H T H A THE J LABEL A I A U T S S SE ’S ST P E H • I JUS A P AS • IT E T A T’S T H • A A S PH JU I P T E H ’ S S A • A •I T S S I E T A E T’S • ’ S P • I H T’S I JU T’S A T S ’ S S E JU J T DEFINING LGBTQ+ U • S S A ST L T AG B P T T Q IT A ’ H AP S A P P SE HA HAS SE • HAS S E • E COVER STORY 9

t’s just a phase. That’s so gay. Bisexuals don’t even belong in the LGBTQ community. These were all real words spoken to Jefferson students. On March 6, the Virginia Values Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity,

made passage to the governor. Even as this legislation marks a new era of acceptance, it would be naive to assume that a change of law means a change of heart. The following stories capture the heart of being LGBTQ: the hopes, the fears, the anger, and the humanity of finding and accepting identity.

For a group so defined by labels, members of the LGBTQ+ community say that labels describing sexual orientation and gender identity can become a source of anxiety, preventing them from coming to terms with who they are. Senior Sophie Uy and freshman Alexandra Funk are members of the LGBTQ+ community who currently identify as bisexual, meaning that they can be romantically attracted to both men and women. Although the “B” in “LGBTQ+” stands for bisexual, both Uy and Funk have experienced pushback against their sexual orientation within the community. Often overshadowed by hostility from outside, inner-community conflicts over label definitions and who actually belongs in the community can be hurtful in the search for identity. “People say that being bi is like trying to be in the LGBT community without wanting to commit to being fully gay or lesbian or trans,” Funk said. “We still have inner community fights, which I think is really challenging, because when you

think you finally found that safe space and people that can relate to you, there’s still a lot of arguments and disagreements.” After being invited to an LGBTQ+ Facebook group known for its encouraging environment, Uy found a post talking about several stereotypes. “There was one post I saw where they made a comment on how all bisexuals are promiscuous or they’re all unfaithful to their partners,” Uy said. “I knew inside that it wasn’t true, but I couldn’t help wonder if they were right.” A large part of the issue surrounding labels is that they evade solid definition. Funk, who is considering identifying as pansexual instead of bisexual, says that different people will have different ideas of what each label means to them. “Because the community is covering such a wide range of people and sexualities and identities, it’s really hard to identify these labels as something for everyone,” Funk said. “For me, it’s the label that you choose to give yourself. You can define it the way that you want to.”

esbian

isexual

ransgender

+Transsexual +2/Two-Spirit +Intersex +Asexual +Ally +Pansexual +Agender +Gender Queer +Bigender +Gender Variant +Pangender

ueer/ uestioning

“Realizing that it was okay to choose to label myself as I want helped me solidify a world identity, and it made me realize that it's okay to not necessarily have everything figured out.”

SOPHIE UY, 12

SB 868 HB 1663

Though label definitions can be variable, Uy felt constant pressure to avoid changing labels, even with an identity that was still changing. Part of the pressure came from a culture of open pride. “I'm not trying to put down those people because the fact that they're able to be so openly proud about who they are and what they do is super inspiring to me, but it created this internalized pressure for myself that I also, like them, had to have everything figured out, and I had to be vocal and loud about it, but that's just not who I am as a person,” Uy said. That pressure put Uy in an uncomfortable spot when she was trying to fully understand her identity. For a few years, Uy identified as aromantic, or having no desire for romantic relationships. Uy believed that this part of her identity was set in stone until a series of startling events occurred. “I'd have moments where I would be

confused with whether I really was in love with somebody or if I just cared about them a lot because they were my friend,” Uy said. “It made me realize that I am capable of falling in love, and I don't know whether it'll happen again or when it'll happen or if it'll happen, but I know that it's something I'm capable of.” Once constricted by categories imposed on her, she realized that she could define her own. Uy’s final step in coming to terms with her own identity was realizing that it need not stay the same. “If you let [labels] consume you and be the hallmark of [your] identity, it can restrict you and close you off from thinking outside of that,” Uy said. “Realizing that it was okay to choose to label myself as I want helped me solidify a world identity, and it made me realize that it's okay to not necessarily have everything figured out.”

VIRGINIA VALUES ACT Jan 10 VA Sen. Adam Ebbins (D-Alexandria) introduces SB 868, providing nondiscrimination protections for LBGTQ members in public employment and housing

Feb 06

Bill passes in Senate (30-9) and in the House of Delegates (59-35)

Feb 26 Lawmakers give bill final passage to VA Gov. Ralph Northam (D)

FEATURE 11

RESISTANCE

n denial. Raised in a Christian household, junior Drew West wasn’t sure at first about being gay. It wasn’t until after he spent months talking to friends and self-reflecting, that West decided to come out to those around him—including his friends and parents. Though West’s friends and family were supportive of his identity, West overheard conversations at Jefferson in which students would toss around slurs or remarks considered insensitive towards the LGBTQ+ community. On other occasions, West recalled comments at church concerning his sexual orientation. “[Your sexual orientation] is not a choice, and I think a lot of them think that it is and that's definitely wrong,” West said. “Mind your own business and don't insert yourself and try to make people upset. I think if you have those views that are anti-LGBT, you can hold them, but just keep them to yourself and don't impose those on other people. If someone is just living their life, you don't have to go tell them that they're wrong for existing.”

Like West, Gay-Straight Alliance president senior Miko Miwa occasioanlly hears students using LGBTQ+ slurs as insults in the hallways. “I've learned to move past it,” Miwa said. “I have a lot of friends who have immigrant parents that come from places where being gay isn't accepted, and so I know a lot of people who have very homophobic parents, and it's something that sometimes seeps through the kids at TJ as well, and I think that's a learned behavior that has to be unlearned sometime.” Miwa felt that the root cause of student attitudes toward the LGBTQ+ community stemmed from parental attitudes. “I want parents to consider and look at the suicide and depression rates of LGBT teens who feel unaccepted, and to listen to the stories of people who've had trouble coming out to their families, or the struggle we've had in our childhood of not knowing if we're right or not, or feeling weird or abnormal,” Miwa said.

CHANGES

s more members of the LGBTQ+ community have embraced their identities, legislation addressing LGBTQ+-related issues has also spiked. The Virginia Values Act, awaiting governor Ralph Northam’s signature, would make sexual orientation and gender identity a protected nondiscrimination class in areas like public or private employment. Another bill in the works would result in school board policies accomodating transgender students, and on March 2, Virginia became the first Southern state to ban conversion therapy for minors. “Having this legislation is a step in the right direction in that it ensures that we're able to live a better life. And while I don't think it will necessarily change a lot of people's minds or the culture, it’ll at least add some sort of safety net for us,” Miwa said. Opponents of LGBTQ+ legislation feel that the government is forcing citizens to accept “LGBTQ ideology.” Parent and Child Loudoun, a group of Loudoun residents who advocate for transparency and parental involvement in public education, is among these opponents. The advocate group, which protested Loudoun County’s efforts to diversify school libraries by including LGBTQ books, expressed their own concerns.

“Such policies make the government and public schools complicit in promoting transgender ideology,” a representative from Parent and Child Loudoun said. “This type of ‘nondiscrimination’ has already resulted in legal and administrative persecution of individuals who did not comply, intentionally or accidentally, to requests by LGBTQ individuals.” Despite opposition, Fairfax County Public Schools made LGBTQ+-friendly revisions to its nondiscrimination policy P145 in 2016, adding guidelines for school officials regarding treatment of transgender and gender nonconforming students. Jefferson’s administration has also taken its own steps to further implement these guidelines. In 2017, principal Dr. Ann Bonitatibus used her previous experience as superintendent of Conejo Valley Unified School District to change the signage of several hallway restrooms, instructing staff to leave student use of these restrooms unquestioned. “We want to create a welcoming and accepting culture at TJ,” Bonitatibus said. “No questions asked when a student needs support. How do we meet students where they are? How can everyone feel comfortable living their lives when they come to school?”

Harmonizing a CURE CAMPAIGNING against CANCER

by Nathan Mo and Yulee Kang

0,000 dollars in seven weeks. It’s a daunting task, but this is exactly what Andrea Silva’s project, Harmonizing A Cure, intends to complete. The initiative is part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Students Of The Year program, a philanthropic leadership initiative for high schoolers around the United States to develop skills like entrepreneurship and marketing while simultaneously raising money for blood cancer research. When Silva talks about her experiences while working on Harmonizing A Cure, she says that one question she often gets is, “Why did you want to work with the LLS?” Given that Silva has no direct connections to cancer, she believes the question is valid. “I’m not necessarily interested in oncology, and I’ve never had [a relative] who’s been affected by cancer, so people would be like ‘Wait, why are you doing this, like what’s your connection?,’” Silva said. “Through the campaign, you start to gain a purpose, and it’s interesting to be able to say ‘Yeah, I’m doing it for a good cause.’ Through my work [with the LLS], it’s really opened my eyes to the effects of cancer and being able to make a difference, even a small one, matters a lot to me.” Silva initially had no knowledge of the program, but after being reached out to by her base school friends, she and her twin sister, Avril Silva, knew they wanted

Rasing money for blood cancer research Sophomore Andrea Silva strives toward her goal through outreach and commitment.

to join the campaign. “There’s candidates and team members; the candidates are like the big team leaders, and they [the team leaders] have to form the teams,” Silva says. “Our candidates were three juniors that I was really close to, they reached out to me and my sister and were like, ‘Can you guys help us raise money for this?’ And my sister and I agreed.” Despite being new to the program, Silva and her sister were inducted into Students Of The Year’s Team Member Hall of Fame for their impressive drive and work ethic. “They do a Hall of Fame at the beginning of the campaign for those who have prepared well for the

campaign, like being involved in meetings and sending out emails for outreach. So we were recognized for being prepared for the

event,” Silva said. The key to raising $50,000 in just seven weeks, according to Silva, is being able to communicate efficiently with others and form a wide network. “Part of it has

been having a big network and kind of like bringing all the network together. That’s a huge part of it. Not just family and friends, but I’ve been talking to teachers here and people I haven’t talked to in years, asking them for money.” Silva said. Over the past few weeks, she has reached out to numerous companies both small and large, ranging from her orthodontist to the professional soccer team, Washington Spirit. “I reached out to the Washington Spirit which is a professional soccer team in D.C., I’m pretty close with the CEO so I reached out to them and they gave us auction items such as a signed soccer jersey or a soccer ball because they have people who are playing on the national team and that kind of stuff.” Silva said. At the end of each fundraising period, an auction is held at the gala where teams can raise more funds through five auction items, providing companies more ways than one to help their cause. Based on the type of company that they are, Silva and her team can make the decision whether to ask for funding or an auction item. w “I used to have braces. I just got them off like a few days ago, in fact, but I reached out to them and they were really all for it.” Silva said. “We actually got a signed soccer ball from the Washington Spirit, so we’re planning to use that at the auction.”

FEATURE 13

176,200 The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s report of the approximate number of Americans that were diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma in 2019

I’m not necessarily interested in oncology, and I’ve never had [a relative] who’s been affected by cancer, so people would be like ‘Wait, why are you doing this, like what’s your connection?’ Building a strong network is a crucial skill for this organization which gives Silva more experience communicating with adults and companies which can help later on in life as well. Despite the amount of time she’s had to put into the project, Silva says that if she had the opportunity to do it again, she would. “It’s a lot of commitment, and it’s taken a lot of time from other things that I do as well.” Silva said. “But at the end of the day, I’ve gotten a lot out of this, and I think that if I do have the opportunity to do it again, I would definitely consider it.”

1 Silva holds a sign for Harmonizing A Cure at a fundraising event. “This is my first year doing it, and it’s a new experience. Just asking people for money, and like reaching out to companies, asking for sponsorships and it’s like, adult stuff, but it’s interesting and it’s really cool,” Silva said. 2 Silva poses with the rest of her team at an event. “One of the most important lessons I’ve learned through the campaign is the importance of timeliness - sometimes, I kind of regret not reaching out somebody sooner,” Silva said. 3 Silva poses with her twin sister. “I’ve always been pretty involved in my community. I was in student government in middle school, and I actually created a volunteer fair to give people opportunities for volunteering at my school and that was the first time that was done,” Silva said.

250,000,000 The amount of money in dollars that the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society raised in 2018 to support lifesaving research, patient and healthcare provider support and education, and advocacy efforts for blood cancer patients

ilence. Students are gathered in the Holmes Middle School library, without any inkling of what is about to happen. They wait until three Jefferson students break the news: the Holmes students will each be receiving their own personal laptops. Some are shocked, and others are unable to believe what they’re hearing. For Jefferson’s PC Rebuilders Club, whose purpose is to fix outdated, broken computers and donate them to underprivileged children, this one moment fits into a much broader mission.

REBUILDING WITH

AMBITION Jefferson’s PC Rebuilders Club is helping fix computers for underprivilged children. by Ayush Das and Raed Mirza

Organizing: The rebuilding process is a complex procedure that culminates in a donation event during the end of the school year. The first step of the operation is to obtain funding and identify students to give the computers to. Funding and providing defective laptops are handled by Virginia Star, a local organization which refurbishes computers. After this, it is up to the club to collect parts and determine who to give the laptops to. Usually, they contact local elementary and middle schools and see if the schools have any kids in mind. This process usually takes between one and two months. Once the logistics and initial details are finalized, there is still a lengthy process before rebuilding the computers actually occurs. “We’ll take inventory first. [To do this] we’ll have people pick up a computer, look at what’s wrong

with it, and put all the information in the spreadsheet. That way we have everything organized and know how many parts we need to order, what parts, all the different types of computers we have, and we can check each computer’s progress as well,” club co-president Nathan Wong said.

Building: After the team finishes creating the parts database, they start rebuilding the computers. “Usually we start on the hardware stuff because that’s the most important to get up and running. It usually takes a month or so to get parts, and then we’ll put all those in. After that we’ll work on installing new software like Windows 10 on the computer,” Wong said. However, this process does not always go as expected, and sometimes projects are even abandoned. “Some of the computers are really old, and they don’t always have compatible parts. Sometimes we just have to let some computers go,” Wong said. In the end, the effort and dedication of staff members comes to fruition with a donation event that takes place near the end of the year. The donation events also allows club members to understand the impact of what they’re doing. “I realized the impact that this club can have because there were some of them [Holmes students] that couldn’t believe it and kept questioning it. We got really emotional. It was nice to see how all of our work throughout the year was being put to good use at the end of the day,” Wong said.

SCI-TECH 15 Club members also see the benefits of the club, as they are able to explore and cultivate their interests in technology while helping the community. “We’re actually able to have hands-on experiences with the computers and we’re able to use our skills to build these computers rather than just thinking about how we would build them,” sophomore club member Christopher Arraya said. This year, the club has also started construction on desktop computers that they plan to use exclusively for training new members about the process and the concepts of building PCs, which has intrigued Jefferson students who are interested in technology. “I think [the PC rebuilders club] is awesome. This is a natural interest for a bunch of people at TJ to have and how computers are built and constructed and I think that they’re doing a good thing refurbishing these and donating them so people can use them,” first-time sponsor of the PC rebuilders club Malcolm Eckel said. “And I appreciate that about TJ that there are a lot of student clubs that are genuinely student-run, or we just facilitate and that makes me very, proud to be a teacher of students sort of taking things on themselves.”

Impact: The laptops that are fixed are helpful to students, and Wong believes that they are a necessity in the modern world. The laptops donated by the club are not associated with FCPS, which allows the user to have more flexibility and freedom when using the laptop. “I think nowadays it’s almost mandatory to have a [computer]. You use it for homework and just doing research and besides all the school required stuff, it’s pretty important to have it just to be an informed citizen in today’s society,” Wong said. 1. Senior Nathan Wong upgrades hardware in a computer that is set to be refurbished. It usually takes between one and two months for hardware parts to come in. “Usually we start building with hardware because that’s the most important thing to get up and running, “ Wong said. 2. Current seniors Rohan Voddhi, Kavin Ilanchezhian, and Nathan Wong pose with 25 newly-refurbished laptops which were donated to students 2.

3. at Holmes Middle School in August 2019. The laptops were donated by the VA Star organization to be refurbished for underprivileged children. 3.Assembling in the Holmes Middle School library, PC Rebuilder club’s leadership and Jefferson principal Dr. Ann Bonitatibus present laptops to surprised students. “Some couldn’t believe it and kept questioning it,” Wong said.

recrewted by Pratika Katiyar and Sid Ram

After getting recruited to college for crew, senior Summer Keating shares her experience as a coxswain

wish. Swish. Swish. Water laps against the boat to the rhythm of her calls. With each stroke of the oars, the boat propels forward, and senior crew coxswain Summer Keating is in command. For Keating, joining the crew team was meant to be. “I knew that I wanted to join TJ crew before I got to high school, and I’m so glad I did,” Keating said. “The reason I joined crew was actually because one of my friends’ parents thought I would make a good coxswain because I was small, and coxswains are supposed to be short and light. I always knew that I wanted to be a coxswain.” Crew has been a part of Keating’s life since the 6th grade, where she was a part of a program called Resilient Rowing. However, Keating didn’t actively pursue recruitment until her junior year, but began thinking about it earlier.

“I started thinking about continuing crew in college during sophomore year, and started seriously talking to college coaches junior year. I don’t remember a specific time when I decided I wanted to continue in college, but crew has been such an amazing part of my life that I couldn’t imagine not doing it,” Keating said. Keating expressed how her involvement in crew has allowed her to make friends since her freshman year. “It’s an amazing way to meet friends freshman year because there are so many dedicated and active people surrounding you,” Keating said. An experienced rower, Keating often works with novices to foster a sense of community that she saw as a freshman in crew. “Summer is a great coxswain -- just today she gave me advice while we were out on the water about my form, which was super helpful because I could correct it immediately,” novice crew freshman Emma Cox said.

SPORTS 17

“Crew has been such an amazing part of my life that I couldn’t imagine not doing it”

Ultimately, Keating decided to commit to Williams college, a liberal arts school that offered her both academic and athletic benefits. “I chose to go to Williams college for both academic and athletic reasons. Athletically, I loved the coaches and the team. Going on an official visit there was super helpful because I could meet students at Williams, go to classes, and watch practice. Academically, I loved the classes I visited and professors I met. I like how Williams is a liberal arts school because it allows for more variety in classes,” Keating said. While college crew presents new opportunities for Keating, there are still constants that she hopes carry through from her experience with Jefferson crew. PHOTO// Annika Duneja

“I’m excited to meet new people and become a part of another team in college crew. I hope that people have the same driven and positive attitude as members of TJ crew,” Keating said.

1. Posing with other rowers after a mixed 8 race during fall Resilient Rowing, Keating holds a medal in hand. Resilient Rowing is a rowing club located in Burke, VA that Keating has been a part of since 6th grade. 2. Running her finger down the bow, senior Summer Keating examines her boat. As a coxswain, she sits at the front and helps guide her boat. “I always knew that I wanted to be a coxswain,” Keating said. 3. A part of the Olympic Development Program, Keating poses with another coxswain at the USRowing tent. “We started training in Philadelphia and at the end of the month we flew down to Sarasota to race against the other US regions.” Keating said. “My favorite part was that the coxswains were able to learn from former Olympic coxswain, Marry Whipple by FaceTiming her every week. During our last week of ODP, we got to meet her in Florida and learn from her in person before racing.”

FOR THE

LOVE OF LANGUAGE Illustration by Muhib Zaman

The passage of SB 323 is sparking a debate between the value of world languages and programming languages. Instead of allowing students to swap world language credits for computer science, we should mandate both.

19 LEAD EDITORIAL 25

world language is more than the sum of its words. Learning one in high school is a core part of every Virginia student’s experience, but Senate Bill 323 could change that.

The bill proposes to permit students who are pursuing an advanced diploma to substitute two standard units of credit in computer science for two standard units of credit in a world language. It passed the Virginia Senate on Feb. 11 and the Virginia House on Feb. 27. Permitting students to swap world language credits for computer science credits ignores the history woven into language and the opportunity to turn our students into global citizens. Where a spoken language will always be more than the sum of its past subjunctive tenses and comma placement battles, a programming language will never be more than its if-else blocks and logic statements. History and culture lie at the core of every language, a fact that is acknowledged nationwide with the descriptor “language and culture” tacked on to the title of every AP foreign language course offered by the College Board. By allowing students to swap foreign language for computer science, lawmakers draw an equal sign between two subjects that cannot be compared. Even as we make the case for world languages, the growing necessity of understanding programming languages in an increasingly tech-dependent world is not lost on us. According to a report done by a job market analytics firm known as Burning Glass Technologies, programming jobs are growing 12% faster than the market average. It would be foolish to believe that knowledge of world languages alone is enough for our students to take on the 21st century. Unable to deny the necessity of both subjects to secondary education, we propose amending the bill to mandate credits for both foreign language and computer science classes in lieu of allowing a substitution. We now stand at a crossroads between preparing our students to be tech-savvy global citizens and leaving them bereft of skills necessary for the 21st century. The choice is ours. AGREE: 14

DISAGREE: 3

TIMELINE OF CHANGE After being read for the third time, SB 323 passed the Virginia Senate with a 36-4 vote. It is then put on the calendar to be read by the House.

FEB 11

FEB 27

SB 323 passed the Virginia House with a 80-20 vote. Similar to the procedure in the Senate, the bill was read 3 times before the vote.

PENDING After passing both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly, the bill will need to acquire the Governor’s signature before being passed into law.

Mar y Poppins

2017-18

by Anushka Molugu and Miriam Antony

MUTTERPERL through the YEARS Taking a behind-the-scenes look at the diverse high school acting career of Senior Joshua Mutterperl

s Newsies nears the end of Jefferson’s theatre program this year, it also nears the end of Senior Joshua Mutterperl’s high school career in performing arts. Mutterperl was recently awarded a Best Actor medal at the VHSL State Theatre Festival. He has played the lead in many of the school’s past productions, ranging from comedies such as Monty Python’s Spamalot to dramas like Curious Incident of The Dog in the Nighttime. Under the guidance of drama teacher Andrew Reid, he has been able to extend his range from smaller roles to bigger characters. “I actually knew Josh before he came to Jefferson, because he would do programs with the company I worked with before, Acting for Young People, so Josh was definitely someone I’d worked with before. It was kind of cool to work with him in his teenage years before he goes off to college,” drama teacher Andrew Reid said.

That made his role in Mary Poppins so fitting towards his skill as an actor. In Mary Poppins, Mutterperl played the happy-go-lucky Bert, a chimney sweeper and Mary Poppins’ long time friend. The character is interesting because his imagination allows him to transform into almost anything, which fits with the play’s theme of transition from childhood to maturity. “There was a scene where I would appear and he was dressed like a policeman so I had all these different like costume changes that I would constantly be playing the same character but fulfilling different roles, like wearing a beret, being an artist, things like that,” Mutterperl said. “So it was really fun to play around with props because I really like props.” Although Mutterperl’s role, Burt, was not the main character, he devoted just as much attention to character formation. Although Mary Poppins is a more comedic play, Mutterperl incorporated what he learned from previous dramatic productions. “I tried to find an arc for the character that incorporated a more dramatic twist to it because part of the show explores the kids… and their relationship with their father. I thought about how that might connect to Burt’s own personal history that I created in his relationship with his father,” Mutterperl said.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime

Spamalot

2018-19

One of his favorite comedies is Spamalot. In the production he played Sir Robin, a cowardly knight, who is part of the round table and loves Broadway. This was quite different from his characters in previous productions because he was much more comedic, but Mutterperl was ready to step to the challenge of playing a humorous role. “Spamalot was a really nice opportunity to tap into that comedic side because that’s where I always felt like I was strongest as an actor,” Mutterperl said. “When I was making jokes and just being really loud and boisterous.” Although Sir Robin is very quiet, his love of Broadway allowed Josh to take the lead in some scenes and lead in a musical number. Sir Robin sings, “You won’t succeed on Broadway, if you don’t have any Jews.” “It’s like a funny kind of satirical riff. It’s interesting to me because I myself am Jewish, so it kind of works that I am the one who gets to tell that story for that song. It’s just a funny line,” Mutterperl said.

ENTERTAINMENT 21

2019-20

Newsies

On the flipside from his comedic roles, Mutterperl has also excelled in playing a wide variety of characters in dramas. One most prominent was Curious Incident of a Dog in the Nighttime, where he played Christopher Boone, a fifteen year old math whiz accused of killing his neighbor’s dog. Mutterperl takes to a new level of acting to portray a character who has behavioral difficulties that keep him from interacting normally with the people he knows. “There was a fine line I had to walk between overplaying the experiences of those who face additional challenges, which would clearly be offensive, and underplaying those experiences, which, in my opinion, would be just as offensive,” Mutterperl said. To pull off this performance involved much thought behind the scenes since Mutterperl wanted to honestly portray Christopher. The playwright did not actually officially diagnose Christopher with any disorder, so Mutterperl had more freedom to create the character. “In many ways, Curious Incident felt like the culmination of what I had been learning for years. Like obviously I will to continue to learn and grow, but this required really complex character creation, which I have gotten better at with every show, I feel,” Mutterperl said.

2019-20 Newsies marks the second-tolast play of the drama season, with Mutterperl as the charismatic Jack Kelly, an orphan newsboy who, with the help of his companions, goes up against the biggest player in the newspaper industry to make sure his voice is heard. Being a musical, it poses a new challenge to provide the same emotion used in dialogue through song. Mutterperl, however, doesn’t have a problem with either. “I will admit that I like both,” Mutterperl said. “When we don’t have singing, I can focus on really putting my all into the acting and spend all of my time getting the character exactly right. But singing provides a unique way of expressing emotion that regular speech doesn’t quite show.” As his high school drama career comes to an end, Mutterperl reminisces on what TJ Drama has taught him. “TJ Drama has shown me the incredible things that artists can create by working together, even at the high school level,” Mutterpel said. “We have phenomenally talented light, sound, costume, and set designers, as well as actors, and when we all work together, we can create beautiful and meaningful art.”

itcoin Billionaires” by Ben Mezrich is a thrilling story of how the Winklevoss twins, after competing in the Olympics, started pouring all their money into Bitcoin. To understand the story, one has to understand the context. When the Winklevoss twins were at Harvard, they were trying to make a social network called the Harvard Connect. They hired Mark Zukerberg, who worked with them until a few months later, when he made Facebook. Alleging that Zuckerberg stole their idea, their ensuing feud with Facebook, the biggest social networking company of the time, only villainized the Winklevoss name. Mezrich’s side of the story tells something different. It starts from the beginning of the twins’ lives, from when they were still in high school to their college days. The author also tells the story of their parents, how they met, and how their dad had to work hard for success. He goes on to write about how the twins rowing career at Harvard as they trained to become Olympic-class rowers. After reading Mezrich’s background on the twins, it gave me the impression that the twins were hard workers, and it made the rest of the story a tale of the two hardworking twins trying to be part of a revolution. It made me feel more sympathetic towards them as most thought that they originated from riches. The background stories of the twins helps the readers change their opinions of the twins from villains to entrepreneurs. Before “Bitcoin Billionaires”, the twins were viewed as people who tried to steal Mark Zuckerburg’s idea for a social network. After reading the book, I viewed the twins as hard workers that found the next form of currency. Ben Mezrich wrote “Bitcoin Billionaires” beautifully. He goes through every detail of the Winklevoss’ journey, from going to different small banks to store the key to their fortune, to the stories of what happened after Bitcoin.

A Book Review Worth Billions By Nicholas Artiedamarin

With his knack for storytelling and his ability to convey even the most minute of details, Mezrich tells the story of how the Winklevoss twins essentially made bitcoin

ENTERTAINMENT 23

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FOREMAN SAYS FAREWELL I like to think that I brought a certain level of understanding and compassion about what a TJ student has to go through and to allow them to still be able to have all these experiences, even though they’re dealing with a million other academic responsibilities and stress and all those things I was in a band in middle school [and] I was recruited to do band in high school as a piano player. I loved playing and then I realized that I might want to be a performer. And then my sophomore year, I became a section assistant. As soon as I got to teach other people, I realized how much more rewarding that was for me and how much more fun I had sharing it with everyone else. I just wanted to give students that same experience in their high school. PHOTO by Maria Abramova REPORTING by Sid Ram

The biggest message I need to give the students is that the program is them and not me. The band program here is about the kids that make it up. Teachers will come and go, instructors will come and go. It really transcends any director. The students are what makes the band what it is.

My senior quote would be ‘I love you, and I’m proud of you.’

WHAT I’VE LEARNED

Band Director

Adam Foreman