The Black & White Vol. 56 Issue 5

FEATURE

FEATURE

SPORTS

Seniors apply to schools abroad

Artist spotlight: magician Chris Imperial

Softball club prepares players for season

PAGE 15

PAGE 8

Walt Whitman High School

PAGE 18

7100 Whittier Boulevard Bethesda, MD 20817

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Volume 56, Issue 4

SGA brings back charity fundraising months

by MIRA DWYER

Best Buddies vice president Lily Tender cringes at the cold. Tender was one of almost 50 Whitman students who ran into the frigid Chesapeake Bay for the annual Polar Bear Plunge Jan. 25. Nearly 4,000 people in total willingly waded into 39 degree water to raise money for Special Olympics Maryland. Photo by BELLA YOUNG.

Director Chris Gerken resigns after 12 years with Whitman Drama

by JESSICA BUXBAUM Vibrant costumes, powerful vocals and elaborate plots that push the boundaries of typical high school theater have taken center stage at Whitman for the past 12 years under director Christopher Gerken. But come March, Whitman Drama will perform its first production in over a decade without his direction.

Gerken resigned abruptly as director of Whitman Drama Jan. 9. Principal Alan Goodwin didn’t disclose a reason for Gerken’s resignation in his email to Drama Boosters. The Boosters wrote in a subsequent email to families that the Board “[did] not have any further information at this time.”

Without a familiar director and with opening night of the play scheduled March 1, student production staff members have been stepping up to lead the program and keep the production on track after losing nearly a week of rehearsal amid the changes, stage manager Jennie Yu said.

“We no longer have someone telling us what needs to be done, so everyone is having to figure that out for themselves,” student director Kevin Hatcher said.

“But we’re all very trained and very qualified for our positions. It’s just a bit more stress, but we’re handling it, and our whole team is very committed and determined to put on the show.”

Many students had grown accustomed to Gerken’s leadership and were blindsided by his resignation, said junior Emmy Lane, who has acted in multiple Whitman Drama productions.

“In my mind, Whitman Drama is Chris Gerken,” Lane said. “I guess it’s just so hard to imagine that it isn’t going to be that anymore. I

didn’t believe it at first, I really didn’t.”

In his 12 years at Whitman, Gerken became known for his avant-garde productions and willingness to push students outside of their comfort zones. Several of his shows won awards and nominations from the Critics and Awards Program (Cappies), which honors high school actors, stage technicians, singers, dancers and musicians.

In the overture of last year’s production of “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Gerken chose to include timely references to controversial move-

ments, like Black Lives Matter.

“Chris was really good at taking a conventional show and making it unconventional,” Yu said. “That wasn’t something that every director would think about doing, because ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ juxtaposed with current events. It was a very unique approach, but I think Chris was very talented at that.”

“Gerken” continued on page 14

The SGA will hold two charity months this year to raise money for the nonprofit Pencils of Promise during February and Children’s National Medical Center during April.

Ninety percent of the money raised in February will benefit Pencils of Promise, a charity dedicated to building schools in Ghana, Guatemala, Laos and Nicaragua, while 10 percent will go toward buying supplies for Jost Van Dyke, a British Virgin island that was hit by hurricanes Irma and Maria. The money raised in April will be for Children’s National Medical Center in the District of Columbia.

Last year, the SGA switched the model of LLS month, which raised money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as part of a nationwide fundraising challenge, to four separate charity weeks: Mental Health Week in February, LLS Week in March, Environmental Week in April and Homelessness Week in May. This year, the SGA decided to have two separate charity months to revive the sense of school spirit they felt was lost during the charity weeks.

“The weeks were an experiment to try something new because a lot of people were sick of LLS month,” said senior Dana Gurland, chair of the February charity month. “What we decided this year was that what we missed about LLS month was how it was one condensed amount of time where everybody just sort of went crazy and got really enthusiastic about it.”

February will include past fundraisers like VikeA-Thon and Five Dolla Holla, along with other new events, such as one where students pay for tape strips to tape staff members to a wall. April will feature Walk Away Cancer and a music event called Fest. There will also be a mental health awareness week in March, which will include Whitman Idol.

Many students are hesitant to completely stop fundraising for LLS, but still support the new causes.

“I think it’s going to be a little bit weird because it’s always been LLS month and last year we had LLS week, so to just completely drop it, I feel like people aren’t going to like that,” junior Gracie Horn said. “But at the same time, I think they chose good causes that are really relevant right now.”

February was originally dedicated entirely to helping Jost Van Dyke when art teacher Nancy Mornini presented the idea to the SGA after visiting the island in January. The SGA switched to giving most of the funds to Pencils of Promise after senior Kelsey Bonham compiled and circulated a document expressing her concerns with the choice of the beneficiary and the transparency and legitimacy of the donation process.

“I think that Whitman students’ money is going to be put to much better use now, in a more accountable way,” Bonham said. “But I think that the SGA should keep records of exactly what they bought and how it got there, just as good measure.”

The SGA chose to dedicate April to helping Children’s National because of the popularity of Walk Away Cancer, an event created by Jaiwen Hsu (’17) in 2014.

The money raised will be given to Terp Thon, the University of Maryland’s student-run organization that raises funds and awareness for Children’s National.

“Charity” continued on page 2 Students act in Gerken’s 2015 production of “Sweeny Todd,” one of 25 shows he spearheaded in his time at Whitman. He also played a role in the annual talent shows and one act festivals.

Photo by MICHELLE JARCHO.

2

briefs

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Charity months reintroduced

Solar panels to be installed

February

by MIRA DWYER

Whitman and four other schools in the county will be installing solar panels this summer.

The panels will feed directly into the school’s electrical system and produce a projected 293,000 kilowatt hours of energy. The county approved the plans nearly a year ago, but the solar panel company, SunEdison, went bankrupt, said assistant director of MCPS Department of Facilities Management Sean Gallagher.

MCPS is now partnered with the energy company Constellation in a 20-year agreement in which Constellation pays to install and operate the panels while MCPS pays them for the energy the panels produce. This agreement saves MCPS approximately $10,000.

Principal Alan Goodwin first asked for panels when he became principal 14 years ago because he wanted to power the parking lot lights all night, he said. The high installation costs didn’t allow it at the time, but with new technology, lower prices and the recently-installed roof, the panels are now a possibility.

Many are excited that MCPS is becoming more environmentally conscious.

“I think it’s great,” AP Environmental Science teacher Kelly Garton said. “It will be both economically and environmentally friendly, and the more people that can support solar energy, the better.”

Pencils of Promise Jost Van Dyke Island

by EVA LILES The Gaithersburg Book Festival Short Story Competition and the Junior Achievement Essay Competition—two literary contests for high school students in the District of Columbia area—opened this month. The winners will receive cash prizes.

The Festival, which takes place in March, recently launched their annual short story competition. Participants must submit a short story that is 1,000 words or less before the Feb. 22 deadline.

“Anything we can do to get kids and teenagers excited about writing and reading is important,” Gaithersburg Book Festival vice chair Robin Ferrier said.

Unlike the short story competition, the Junior Achievement Essay Competition provides an open-ended question for students to respond to. This year, the prompt is: “Several great entrepreneurs, including Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, dropped out of college before getting their degrees.

How important do you think a college education is to your future success?” Submissions are due Feb. 23.

Senior Kyra Du has entered four writing competitions since her junior year and believes they exhibit the diversity of students.

“For writing competitions, the beauty is that you can write about anything you want,” Du said. “The breadth of topics that kids can cover can definitely show the diversity in writing. All of the ideas from the different cultures—it’s just super inspiring.”

Spring Mill Bakery to close on Elm Street

by SYDNEY MILLER Spring Mill Bread Company announced Jan. 14 that its Bethesda location will be closing mid-February due to an expired lease.

The storefront has been on Elm Street for the past 25 years, and the company considers it their flagship store. Although their flagship store will be closing, six other locations in the Bethesda area will remain in operation.

“It is with a heavy heart to announce that Spring Mill Bethesda will be closing its doors after 25 wonderful years in our Bethesda neighborhood,” store owner Katherine Rurka said in an email to her employees. “We cherish those memories made over the 25 years and carry them forward in our other locations.”

Regular customers are upset about the store’s closure.

“It’s pretty disappointing because I’ve gone there all through my childhood,” sophomore Maddy Healy said.

“They have really good bread and cookies, and my family and I are going to miss it.”

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buy singing grams

Holla

g.u.y.s yard sale

singing grams delivered

chipotle dine out

vikeathon tape staff to the wall Graphic by JULIA RUBIN

continued from page

Literary contests open admissions

News

1

“You’re all sort of an inspiration for these kids,” said Cat Edwards, a development assistant at the hospital. “You’re saying ‘we’re lucky enough to be healthy and to be happy and to be in high school

and we want these kids in the hospital to get the same opportunities.’ Raising funds in any capacity is a huge help to the hospital, and it’s great you guys are getting so involved so early.”

Students are glad to have the opportunity to

dive into charities through spirit months again.

“It was good to address multiple causes, but I think it’s better to address just one or two for a longer time,” senior Josh Rich said. “Previously, during LLS month, the culture in school revolved

around that one cause for an extended period of time, which let us really dig into that one cause.

When you spread it thin into weeks, I think you lose some of that touch.”

Senior Zion Raeburn shares his experiences as a minority student for “I am Whitman,” a video produced by the Black Student Union. The video, which will be aired in class during February, comes in response to racial incidents earlier this year.

Photo by ANNABELLE GORDON.

Black Student Union creates video highlighting stereotyping at Whitman

by EVA HERSCOWITZ The Black Student Union filmed a documentary in early January about minority students’ experiences at Whitman. The video, titled “I am Whitman,” will be aired during the school day in early February.

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School’s student government created a similar video titled “I, too, am B-CC” in January 2015. After viewing this video on YouTube, BSU President Christiana Turay was inspired to create a similar one at Whitman, she said.

Earlier this year, two students used the N-word toward freshman Brian Ellis. Ellis spoke at an antibullying assembly about this experience in October. This incident further motivated Turay to create the video.

Following the incident, administrators visited classrooms to dis-

cuss inclusion and tolerance. Turay commends administrators’ efforts at addressing the situation, but she believes administrators should have asked minority students to speak at these visits and give their perspective, she said.

“It would open everyone’s eyes way more because it would come from a peer,” Turay said. “Every school wants their students to have a voice, regardless of their representation in that school.”

Media services technician Travis Swiger filmed the video, which features African-American, Hispanic/Latino and Asian students who speak about their experiences with racism and stereotyping. It also features teachers who propose solutions to promote diversity in the classroom.

In the video, senior Zion Raeburn discusses his experiences with stereotyping as an African-American student. For example, some

Whitman students assume their African-American peers are only involved in athletics, he said.

“It’s good to see that black people are doing more than just sports,” Raeburn said.

After he spoke at the assembly, Ellis received mixed reactions.

While some students commended him for his courage, other students viewed his speech as a joke. Ellis hopes Whitman makes the video available to other schools in MCPS and that students countywide view the video and consider the perspectives of minority students, he said.

“The speech and the assembly were not as effective as they could have been,” he said. “The video will not only affect the school, but it could probably send a message out to the county and the state.

Hopefully it will convince people to think before they act.”

News

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

County executive proposes $25M cut to MCPS

Whitman, BCC, WJ run clothes drive

by SYDNEY MILLER

by CAMERYNN HAWKE and MATT PROESTEL Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett proposed a $25 million cut to the MCPS budget as part of a $60 million cut to the overall county budget Jan. 2. Leggett also plans to make large cuts to Montgomery College, the Department of Health and Human Services and the police and fire departments, along with a smaller cut of two percent in every additional department’s budget.

The county’s income tax disbursement—a distribution of money collected from state income taxes— brought in less revenue than expected last fall, prompting the cuts, Bethesda Magazine reported.

MCPS Chief Financial Officer Nicky Diamond reported that when funds were reanalyzed, $3.1 million in savings was found, meaning that MCPS currently has a $19 million fund balance. The school system still needs to find $6 million in savings, but this shouldn’t affect the classroom or filling teacher positions, Diamond said in a BOE meeting Jan. 9.

Principal Alan Goodwin believes the shortfall could affect schools in multiple ways.

“You could lose money for initiatives like new technology in the building,” Goodwin said. “Many of our computers are 10 years old and due for replacement, maybe they wouldn’t be replaced. It can have an effect in so many ways.”

The county will make additional cuts to its budget, as the first

briefs

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Graphic by CHARLOTTE ALDEN

round of cuts only addresses half of the budget shortfall, said Jennifer Hughes, director of the county’s Office of Management and Budget. If the cuts aren’t administered within this year, Leggett will roll them out during the 2019 fiscal year, which already faces a $86 million shortfall at the county level.

Last school year, the BOE approved a $64 million increase to the MCPS operating budget, but the cuts will halt these plans.

Before the countywide budget cut was proposed, MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith had proposed a 2019 fiscal operating budget Dec. 19. His suggested budget asked for $67.3 million more than the 2018 budget. Most of that money would go to enrolling 2,472 more students in MCPS, as well as creating a new elementary school in Rockville, adding an eighth grade at Silver Creek Middle School and bolstering innovative programs for math and literacy. An increase in funds would also be appropriated to encourage cooperation with community groups.

The board planned to adopt the new budget plan beginning in February and will continue this plan with small alterations, Diamond said.

MCPS public information of-

ficer Derek Turner believes that Smith’s desired budget would help more MCPS students succeed.

“Many MCPS students have high levels of academic success, but there are still students that struggle academically. I think this budget will help achieve those higher levels of academic success,” Turner said.

“As superintendent Smith likes to say, ‘You don’t have to be sick to get better.’”

Some teachers expressed concern over budget cuts yielding larger class sizes, government teacher Colin O’Brien said.

“Ultimately, the county government will make the decision,” O’Brien said. “As teachers we should keep fighting for smaller class sizes and the best learning environment for our students.”

Goodwin hopes the cuts don’t interfere with students’ ability to learn, he said.

“Overall, the superintendent always does a good job of trying to avoid an impact in the classroom,” he said. “But $25 million is a lot and it will most likely impact students somehow.”

GOP tax plan raises concern about students’ debt, future

by CAMERYNN HAWKE

The Republican tax bill, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, was signed into law Dec. 22, promising lower taxes for Americans. Experts and Whitman families are concerned that the bill will lead to higher property taxes and underfunded social programs for middle-class families.

The bill is aimed at lowering taxes for all citizens, regardless of income. It calls for a 14 percent drop in the corporate tax rate and slightly lowers nearly every level of the individual income tax, most notably the top tax bracket, from 39.6 to 37 percent. The Washington Post reports that the wealthy will benefit most from the bill.

Passed after major opposition from the Democratic party and little discussion, the bill is surrounded by controversy: Democrats believe the bill lacks substance because it was passed entirely on partisan lines without any debate, while Republicans think the bill will solve existing tax code problems.

The majority of the bill’s provisions are temporary and expire in five years, which only delays the partisan battles that are already taking place, social studies teacher Andrew Sonnabend said.

“It’s almost as if they said, ‘Well at that point, Democrats will probably be in charge, and they’ll have to raise taxes to fix our mess, and they’ll be blamed, so we can go back to what we’re doing,’” Sonnabend said.

New rules for 529 plans—the tax-free savings plans that parents use to afford college—allow parents to use the plans to pay for private elementary and high schools as well. Some tax lawyers believe this will benefit students because parents will be more inclined to send their children to private school since the tuition will be tax free.

“My decision to send my children to private school wasn’t a financial thing because the schools here are good enough anyway,” Neha Dhir, mother of junior Alisha Dhir, said.

Tax lawyers and market analysts believe this bill could create a major hole in the budget at its projected price of $1.5 trillion, and many Democrats and some analysts don’t believe the bill will produce the amount of revenue Republicans claim it will.

“Essentially, this generation is paying for tax cuts with the younger generation’s money,” market analyst Sebastien Lasseur said.

Democrats worry that because the younger generation is still in high school and college, when they enter the workforce, they’ll essentially be met with a $4,275 bill, a tax lawyer said. This ‘bill’ is the amount of debt that the tax bill raises when divided between all Americans and could possibly lead to a shrinking social safety net.

Asked about the tax plan, many students responded that they didn’t know anything about it, or they were confused about the provisions of the bill.

Freshman Chloe Lesser knows about the significant individual tax cuts and the anger surrounding the bill, but no other major aspects, she said. Junior Yasmeen Gauri, who believes she is fairly educated on the tax bill, is concerned about its effect on taxes and home mortgage deductions for homeowners.

“Since you can’t deduct state and local taxes from federal taxes now, it hurts liberal states and disincentivizes supporting measures that use state tax deductions,” Gauri said.

Considering that many temporary provisions of the bill expire in five years, their expiration could lead to the same partisan fights already taking place, Lasseur said.

“It’s not like this bill passed, and we don’t have to worry about tax reform for another 36 years,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a problem that plagues our politics for a really long time—whichever side you stand on.”

Whitman and WJ student governments, the B-CC Honor Society and Whitman’s Sources of Strength came together to organize a warm clothes drive during the week of Jan. 15.

The collected clothes were donated to the Wheaton High Wellness Center, which distributes clothes to minors in the Wheaton community Jan. 22. Fourteen boxes of coats, hats, gloves and scarves were donated by Whitman students.

Whitman students who donated were happy that something so small could be so beneficial.

“It’s a great way to make a difference with something you may not think about, something like a coat just sitting in the back of your closet that can really help someone else,” junior Aubrey Lay said.

Montgomery County encouraged schools to do something to give back to the community during Martin Luther King week, SGA President Pablo Rothschild said. In response to this, Whitman’s SGA reached out to B-CC and WJ in hopes that a communal effort would have a more successful outcome.

“Even though we’re rivals,” Rothschild said. “We really wanted to reach out and make this a uniting community event.”

Medical marijuana dispensaries open

by MATTHEW PROESTEL As of Dec.1, qualified patients with a prescription can buy medical-grade marijuana from licensed dispensaries as part of Maryland’s medical marijuana policy. Since then, 22 operating dispensaries have opened in Maryland.

There are an additional 102 dispensaries that have been approved by the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commision, but do not currently have a storefront.

The U.S. National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health discusses how medical marijuana can be used to treat conditions like Glaucoma.

Cannabinoids effectively lower the intraocular pressure (IOP) and have neuroprotective actions, making them potentially useful in the treatment of Glaucoma, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine website.

Lori Dodson, deputy director of the MMCC, is excited about the Dec. 1 policy.

“Our staff is working very hard to make sure that the industry is up and running since the amendment,” Dodson said. “It was a historic day for Maryland.”

Potomac Holistics, a certified local dispensary, opened its doors to customers Dec. 1. During their first day in operation, they sold their entire marijuana supply, four pounds of marijuana, in just 15 hours. Another certified dispensary, Bethesda RISE, reported serving a few hundred customers when it opened Dec. 2, according to Bethesda Magazine.

Library installs charging stations

by MIRA DWYER Whitman recently added two charging stations to both sides of the media center as part of a renewed effort to modernize the library.

The stations are short poles with both Apple and Android charging cords and have a ledge to rest devices on while charging. Additionally, new couches with built-in charging cords will arrive February. The Whitman Education Foundation approved funding for both purchases.

Media center specialist Alexis Mazur first thought of the idea after noticing students scrambling to find outlets.

“I would see kids crawl under things to try to get to plugs,” Mazur said. “I’ve seen charging stations in airports and in the public library, so I thought they might be really beneficial to everybody and create some library buzz.”

Students express excitement at the increased availability of outlets, saying they’ve needed them in the past.

“Everybody’s got an iPhone,” junior Allie O’Connor said. “There have been so many occasions where I’ve tried to call my mom from my phone but my phone is dead, so I’m just stranded at school. I honestly think a bunch of people are going to crowd around them.”

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The Black & White|January 30, 2018

News

Immigration decision rattles community Temporary Protection Status repeal threatens to relocate close to 250,000

by ERIC NEUGEBOREN Salvadorans living in the U.S. under the Temporary Protected Status Program now have 18 months to find legal residency in the U.S. or risk being deported following an announcement by Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen Jan. 8.

The decision has prompted many of the 250,000 Salvadoran TPS holders to discuss whether to break up their families, go back to El Salvador or risk deportation by staying in the U.S. It could also cause economic troubles, as the deportation of TPS holders would cost taxpayers $3.1 billion, and the annual loss in the state’s GDP would be $1.1 billion, according to statistics from the Montgomery County Council.

Some immigration advocacy groups, like CASA de Maryland, have begun to help TPS holders by connecting them to immigration lawyers.

“When the TPS holders call into our offices, we give them an appointment to talk to some attorneys,” CASA worker Victoria Aguilar said. “We’ll also be holding a TPS clinic in February for TPS people to come and fill in their renewal.”

About 18,000 Salvadorans secured by the TPS program live in Maryland—the second most in the country—and Salvadorans represent the most common birthplace for foreign-born residents in Montgomery County.

“These people are very much part of Montgomery County and our schools,” said MD state Delegate Ana Sol Gutierrez (D-18), who was born in El Salvador.

“They have U.S. born kids, many of whom have already graduated, so there’s an absolute clear contribution of TPS holders.”

TPS holder Nancy Vasquez, who came to the U.S. in 2001 from El Salvador, works as a programming assistant in Baltimore.

“I’m not scared, just upset,” Vasquez said. “[Trump] doesn’t understand that we’re good people. We aren’t criminals. We contribute to this country. We pay taxes.”

The Trump administration began by ending protected status for Haitian and Nicaraguan TPS holders in November, causing many politicians, like Gutierrez, to expect the decision.

“When we saw the handwriting on the wall in Trump’s first speech that he was terribly anti-immigrant and thought that immigrants were criminals, we clearly saw that there was going to be an anti-immigrant administration,” Gutierrez said.

The Montgomery County Council has supported protecting TPS holders. In December, the council passed a resolution calling on Congress to extend the program. Council president Hans Riemer feels angered by the administration’s decision and will work with organizations to help the Salvadorans find legal counsel.

“The best case scenario here is that Congress takes action and resolves this crisis,” Riemer said.

“But in the meantime, we’re doing a lot of things to help people plan for the future. A third of these people have mortgages, their children are citizens and they have debt, so we’re going to see what kind of emergency measures we can take to help people make the best decisions for themselves.”

Honduran TPS holder Leenyn Diaz works as a general contractor in Virginia and is a father of three kids. The administration hasn’t made a decision for Hondurans, but if they’re forced to leave, Diaz says he’ll accept the decision.

“I already have the biggest gift of my life which is my kids and this great nation,” Diaz said.

“The country has provided me

Graphic by JULIA RUBIN

In response to President Trump’s comments about immigration, senior Emma Guirola posts a photo of the El Salvadoran landscape in support of its citizens. Photo courtesy EMMA GUIROLA.

the tools to be a better person, so I’m really grateful for what the country has done for me.”

Still, Diaz believes the administration’s intolerance of im-

migrants is unjust.

“Most of our people are really good people,” Diaz said.

“They’re hard workers, passionate and lovers of their work and

family. Even if we don’t know how to ask for something because of the language barrier, that doesn’t make us bad people.”

Net neutrality repeal hits close to home As students browse websites, pages load slowly and websites buffer. Finally, a message appears: “Page blocked. Content unable to be displayed.”

For many students, this could become a reality. Following the Federal Communication Commission’s repeal of net neutrality, many students may experience limited Internet access.

The FCC voted 3-2 to repeal net neutrality regulations Dec. 14. The repeal restores the legal framework that governed broadband providers before 2015.

In 2015, the FCC prohibited Internet Service Providers from blocking or slowing down content and prioritizing certain content over others. Without these regulations, critics fear that Internet providers will block information that the company disagrees with, said telecommunications and Internet regulation American

Enterprise fellow Daniel Lyons.

Many regular Internet users, like junior Rachel Zeidenberg, feel that the repeal threatens both open Internet and freedom of speech.

“As students, freedom of speech is so important to us,” Zeidenberg said. “Net neutrality may potentially take away our First Amendment rights.”

If the Supreme Court doesn’t strike down the repeal, Director of Strategy and Implementation at the Highlander Institute Eric Butash doesn’t foresee any major changes over the next two years. But he worries that over time, broadband providers may create tiered service packages, requiring consumers to pay a monthly fee for social networking, messaging and music streaming services. Because some consumers may be unable to afford this extra fee, the repeal may widen the “digital divide,” he said.

“I think people will forget about the neighbors that are in other places and other communities who can’t afford packages,” Butash said. “This is where we get to the point where the states and local agencies are realizing that the Internet is just as valuable as water to our houses.”

“

As students, freedom of speech is so important to us.

Net neutrality may potentially take away our First Amendment rights.

- junior Rachel Zeidenberg

“

by EVA HERSCOWITZ

For many consumers, their biggest fear is that

providers will infringe on free speech by restricting content. In fact, many companies that own telecom companies also own major media outlets. Because these parent companies may benefit financially from deregulation, Butash worries that they may prioritize financial gain over allowing users to access less-wealthy startups.

Still, Lyons cautions consumers from expressing their discontent on social media without being fully informed about the issue.

Simplifying the debate ignores important details, he said.

“It’s a highly complex of democrats question that I think is net best support left to Internet engineers and neutrality experts. Our soundbyte soci-

89%

ety has reduced everything to one that where most of the nuance is lost, and it just doesn’t work,” Lyons said.

“It’s not an issue that’s really reducible to an 140-character Tweet or a small social media post.”

89%

75%

of democrats support net neutrality

of republicans support net neutrality

Graphic by SOPHIE DEBETTENCOURT

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BW &

the

Opinion

The Black & White is an open forum for student views from Walt Whitman High School, 7100 Whittier Blvd., Bethesda, MD, 20817. The Black & White’s website is www.theblackandwhite.net.

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The Black & White|January 30, 2018

MCPS: Hold voter registration drives in high schools Maryland’s most closely guarded secret has nothing to do with corruption, gerrymandering or the spices we put on our crabs. Instead, it’s the fact that students can preregister to vote at just 16 years old.

In 2010, Maryland enacted a law allowing students to pre-register to vote at age 16, making it standard practice to combine teenagers getting their permit or driver’s license with registering to vote.

This way, when students reach voting age and come to the polls, their names are already entered into the system.

But using the Motor Vehicle Administration as the only point of access for voter registration means many students aren’t informed about the opportunity to register when they turn 16. In order to optimize voter registration—and subsequent turnout—of youth voters, MCPS should hold a voter registration drive for all high school juniors and seniors at the beginning of each new calendar year.

In-school registration is important because motor-voter laws aren’t enough. Not everyone gets their driver’s license before they’re eligible to vote—if at all— and there are vast problems with enforcement, such as officials at motor vehicle agencies forgetting to ask about registration, the Washington Post reported in 2015. In the 2016 election, fewer than 20 percent of eligible citizens had been offered the chance to register at a motor vehicle or other government agency, according to the Pew Research Center.

Limiting access to voter registration is harmful because representation in the electorate is especially important for young people. When the youth don’t vote, they

don’t hold their politicians accountable for issues that predominantly affect their age group, like education policy.

Voter registration in school also offers the opportunity for voter education. Students would learn how to submit an absentee ballot, find reliable information about candidates, vote early, and more. Information about the importance of voting along with encouragement from peers and teachers make registration seem more appealing—something that can’t be achieved when motor vehicle agency officials ask if citizens want to register as a straight yes or no question.

The unique benefits that come with encouraging students to register to vote in school are why voter turnout among the youth is 4.6 percentage points higher in counties that couple pre-registration with in-school voter education, found a 2014 study conducted by Duke University.

An in-school voter registration drive would admittedly cost money and time. But this isn’t a far-fetched proposal: statewide high school voter registration drives have already been successfully implemented in other states, including California, Florida, Vermont, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Online voter registration forms also only cost three cents per student, according to Project Vote, an organization that aims to build an electorate that accurately represents citizens.

It’s time MCPS holds a voter registration drive to ensure that every student is informed and pre-registered to vote. Every NSL class teaches students about the importance of voting; now, let’s actually teach them how.

Staff Editorial

Reduce teacher bias, replace names with IDs on assignments

by IVY XUN Ivy Xun. 356728.

With a few quick taps on the keyboard, replacing your name with your student-issued ID number is as simple as it is important.

To combat name bias and prevent unfair grading habits, teachers should allow students to use their ID instead of their names on summative assessments, like in-class essays or projects.

Favoritism does impact grading; in 2017, moderators from the Department for Education in Britain studied how 2,000 teachers graded students’ essays for over a year. Nearly twothirds thought “personal feelings about particular pupils influenced their assessments,” according to The Telegraph.

Whitman students agree; in an informal lunchtime survey of 44 students, 77 percent reported experiences of inconsistent grading due to perceived favoritism and 50 percent said they would feel more comfortable replacing their name with their ID number on large assignments.

While it’s unclear whether actual occurrences of bias are as prevalent and problematic as the survey indicates, it’s clear students should be protected from inconsistent grading and teachers from accusations of favoritism. The use of IDs helps protect from both.

In the classroom, teachers judge their students based on prior work, even if it’s not intended. Known as the “expectation effect,” prior behavior creates a perception of a student’s ability, explains Verdict, a legal analysis journal, This initial judgment is difficult to change and as a result, could give certain students a substantial benefit of the doubt on later assessments.

Some teachers have already tak-

teacher bias with student name vs. id number Joe Smith

C-

356728

+

A

Graphic by IRIS BERENDES-DEAN

en steps to combat this. For example, Spanish teacher Karen Ledet describes how the Spanish department often compares essays before grading, and teachers discuss with other teachers when they’re stuck or unsure about a certain grade. These steps are commendable and should be implemented on a larger scale with the use of ID numbers.

ID numbers offer a neutral starting point. Even without prior background knowledge, names can introduce potential stereotyping and prejudice. When faculty at research universities reviewed made-up applications for hypothetical lab positions, they “systematically rated male applicants higher than otherwise-identical female applicants,” cites Brookings Institute. As a result, systematic grading biases can perpetuate socioeconomic, gender and racial gaps in education, particularly affecting historically disadvantaged and underrep-

resented groups.

Blind grading also protects teachers. While English teacher Todd Michaels admits that there’s always some level of expectation that comes with a students’ name, from his experience, teachers judge the work and not the student. Replacing names with IDs will help add credibility to the grade teachers give and protect them against potential charges of discrimination and favoritism.

Some argue that to be involved with students and their writing development on a personal level, names are necessary. However, discussion over the grade or the comments and justifying it can always happen afterwards.

ID numbers ask teachers to judge the quality of the assignment and not the student. Let’s reject our predisposed notions and normalize the use of a surprisingly powerful six digit number.

Opinion

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

6

MCPS: make computer programming a tech credit

by JENNY LU The 21st century is all about technological development.

From the annual new iPhone to the millions of apps accessible by smartphones, the programming job market and technology are evolving at a rapid pace.

In 2012, the Montgomery County Office of Curriculum and Instructional Programs revised technology courses to fit the standards of the International Technology and Engineering Education Association Standards for Technology Literacy and the Maryland State Standards.

Among those changes, the OCIP brainstormed a curriculum for an introductory course to computer programming: Designing Technology Solutions, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Schools. Unfortunately, the class is not available at Whitman, and the available programming classes are not approved by the state as a technology credit, counselor Kari Wislar said.

By allowing all programming classes to qualify as a technology credit, MCPS would

encourage more students to try out computer programming and better prepare students for the changing job market.

With more than a dozen different jobs directly linked to computer science, it’s no surprise that it’s one of the fastest growing STEM majors out there, Fortune Magazine reports. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in all computer-related occupations is projected to increase 22 percent by the year 2020. With the everchanging job market, schools should be preparing students to adapt to the new requirements for jobs—knowing how to code would be a major asset.

At Whitman, the number of students taking computer science is significantly fewer than the those taking Introduction to Engineering or Principles of Engineering. In fact, there are ten IED classes and only two Programming 1 classes. IED and POE both qualify as a tech credit, which is required by MCPS for graduation, but instead of being a technology credit, computer programming falls under the

“elective” credit. Adding programming classes to the list of available tech credits could coax more students into choosing the class.

Some will argue that making the class eligible for a tech credit is unnecessary, because there’s still a good number of students taking the class. Although levels of computer programming classes are available at Whitman, most of the students taking the class are already interested in the field or have taken POE or IED. Since the class fills no graduation requirement, there’s no incentive for students without a technological background to sign up for it. Assigning tech credits to programming classes would give students that are unexposed to computer science a reason to try one of fastest growing professions in the U.S. Understanding computer programming and software is becoming a critical skill. MCPS should take steps to ensure its students adapt the skills needed to survive in this technological world.

statistics from CSEW and code.org

Graphic by MEIMEI GREENSTEIN

Teachers should ask for pronouns to promote trans inclusion Increase inclusion and decrease confusion by asking for preferences

by ANNA KORETSKY Sitting in class on the first day of school, a transgender student anxiously waits to be called. The teacher calls out a name—one the student no longer identifies with. To avoid the stress of coming out to a near stranger in front of everyone, they respond and allow themselves to be addressed with the wrong pronoun. It feels invalidating, but they wait until after class to correct the teacher.

Coming out to people you’re close to is stressful, let alone people you’ve just met. To make transgender students more comfortable, teachers at Blair High School began asking all students for preferred gender pronouns on the first day of school through private means. Some chose to have students write them on an index card or on student information sheets.

Whitman should implement a similar

policy: all teachers should be required to ask for students’ preferred pronouns anonymously on the first day of the semester.

Implementing this policy will normalize the process of asking for pronouns, promote acceptance of transgender students in school and help teachers learn students’ pronouns quicker.

A uniform pronoun policy would ensure transgender students aren’t singled out. Giving preferred names and pronouns can provoke anxiety for students coming to terms with their identity. Transgender students may not have their names changed in the school database and may be hesitant to correct the teacher in front of their entire class. If all students could inform teachers of their pronouns in a private manner, this anxiety would be lessened. Several Whitman teachers said they would be open to asking for students’ preferred pronouns at the beginning of the semester.

Requiring that teachers learn students’ preferred pronouns will encourage students to do the same in social settings. While asking for pronouns is currently an uncommon practice, it will seem like a necessary courtesy if it’s a first day of school routine.

Even though it may seem minor, normalizing the practice of asking people’s pronouns begins the step towards accepting transgender people. It reinforces the idea that not everyone’s pronouns can be inferred and that transgender people exist and are normal people, transgender junior Lukas Gates said.

This policy has been shown to promote acceptance and make students feel more comfortable beyond the high school level.

Vanderbilt University, for example, has online resources for teachers about changing vocabulary to go beyond the gender binary and explain how and why to ask for preferred pronouns.

Opponents argue that asking every for student’s pronouns on the first day will lead to jokes from cisgender students who may not care about the process, resulting in more harm than good. But the only way to get students to respect the process of asking for pronouns is to make it a normal practice. Initially, students might not take it seriously, but understanding the importance of asking for pronouns will be the first step toward ending jokes and misunderstandings.

Although most students may have never experienced being misgendered because someone incorrectly assumed their pronouns, this is a reality for many transgender people. Normalizing the process of asking for someone’s pronouns will be a positive step toward transgender inclusion and acceptance in our community.

Lukas Gates is photographer for The Black & White.

No logo, no problem: stop letting brands define style

by MADDY FRANK When you walk into Westfield Montgomery Mall, you’re greeted by a plethora of storebrand logos. There’s the iconic Abercrombie & Fitch moose, Lilly Pulitzer signature and Vineyard Vines whale. Each store has its own personality, and each personality has its own manifestation.

For a majority of these logo-based brands, most of the clothing is abnormally expensive.

For example, a white, 100 percent cotton T-Shirt from Kohl’s is $18, while a white, 100 percent cotton T-Shirt from Vineyard Vines is $42.

The only notable difference between these two shirts is the presence—or lack—of a logo.

Somehow, a small, stitched whale can double the price.

Logos didn’t always have such a spotlight. The trend only started in the 1990s, according to the Independent. Ever since then, clothes with nothing but a logo on them have gotten

even more expensive and carried even more weight. A simple solid color T-Shirt that says “Gucci” averages around $480, and sales of those shirts rose 111 percent in the last year, according to newsite Fashionista.

The appeal here, for a plain shirt that says nothing but a brand name, seems illogical. Somehow, we’re also deriving some significance from the logo itself. But what are we paying for when we buy that Vineyard Vines whale, or Ralph Lauren polo player?

Wearing these expensive brand names sends messages to the people around you, sophomore Noah Grill said. A large Vineyard Vines logo, for example, can show the people around you that you follow trends and care about how you present yourself.

But logos like this can also foster exclusivity. When logos send such strong messages to people, some will understand it, but others will feel isolated.

Logos are a lot like wearing the tag of a piece of clothing on the

outside. Those who own the same clothing, or paid the same price for their shirt, might feel connected. Those who didn’t, might not.

Different logos create different kinds of groups. People who wear Supreme tend to be part of part of a young counter-culture, while people who wear Gucci tend to be affluent and interested in high fashion. The logos quickly make this differentiation.

If you present yourself as a certain type of person, buying something from a brand that represents that image can feel necessary. Back in middle school, I strived for the trendy, fashionable and athletic look. I felt like I needed something from Lululemon to achieve this, so I bought the cheapest thing I could find: their iconic headband. Even though I owned multiple headbands from CVS, I bought it anyway so that I could wear the logo and look like an athletic fashionista.

For me, the personality associated with the logo was more important than the piece of clothing itself. Wearing a certain brand

Cartoon by TEDDIE FRANK.

can feel like the quintessential prop in the play of your life, the items you need to fit the character you want to be.

But letting logos become so meaningful is a red flag. We

shouldn’t assign personalities to stores, nor should we use that personality to amplify our own.

For the sake of our individuality, and our wallets, we should stop giving logos so much power.

Opinion

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

7

Give students more options, freedom: streamline NSL, history classes freshman year

by JESSICA BUXBAUM

freshman year

AP NSL

sophomore year

AP U.S. history

OR

freshman year

Honors U.S. history

sophomore year

AP NSL

History Curriculum 8th graders: U.S. history up to 1865 Honors U.S. history classes: continues that timeline into the present

APUSH: entirety of U.S. history from 1491 to the present AP NSL: focuses on the forms and functions of the U.S. government.

Graphic by ANN MORGAN JACOBI.

As students progress through math classes, everyone follows a nearly identical trajectory: Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2 and so forth. Each year, students decide what course level to take, whether it’s on level, honors or AP. This system caters to students’ changing needs, abilities and priorities on a yearly basis.

In contrast, government (NSL) and history classes are typically regarded as multiyear packages: take AP NSL as a freshman and AP U.S. History—a notoriously difficult class—as a sophomore, or Honors U.S. History as a freshman and AP NSL as a sophomore.

Although these packages aren’t required, teachers consider freshmen AP NSL students as being “on the AP track” and expect them to continue taking AP social studies classes because of this, social studies teacher Suzanne Johnson said.

NSL and U.S. History are graduation requirements, and students have to choose their own trajectory before the end of eighth grade.

To allow students more flexibility in class and testing selections, teachers should streamline social studies classes by encouraging all rising freshmen to take the appropriate level of NSL and then providing sophomores with the opportunity to take on level,

honors or AP U.S. History.

On average, approximately a third of AP NSL students are freshmen, and they typically have just as much success in the class and on the AP exam as students who take it later on, Johnson said. Students and teachers also tend to regard Honors U.S. History and AP NSL as comparable in difficulty.

Tests can provide college admissions with a better sense of a student’s interests and academic motivation, University of Southern California admissions officer Jaclyn Robbin said. But most students don’t know about SAT Subject Tests or aren’t thinking about the value of AP exams until long after eighth grade.

NSL and U.S. History are graduation requirements, and students have to choose their own trajectory before the end of Clearly, any student who can handle Honors U.S. History can handle AP NSL; however, not every student who can handle AP NSL can handle APUSH. Making that distinction after a year of high school and after taking an AP course is sound and calculated. Making that distinction in eighth grade is guesswork.

Packaging social studies classes can also limit a student’s testing opportunities. Students who take AP NSL as freshmen and APUSH as sophomores take an additional AP exam and can take the U.S. History SAT Subject Test. Students who choose a different path most likely won’t, because their history classes haven’t prepared them for either test.

AP classes and Subject

Admittedly, this academic path interrupts a student’s U.S. history education with NSL during their freshman year.

However, learning material that is appropriate to the student’s ability and interest at every stage compensates for discontinuity.

Furthermore, just as knowledge of U.S. history can be used to improve understanding of government, understanding of government could enhance a student’s learning of American history.

Nobody, let alone eighth graders, can see into the future. Every student changes and grows in high school, and a student’s social studies classes should be able to reflect this.

Teachers: Help students manage testing anxiety

by ELLA ATSAVAPRANEE Although testing is an unavoidable part of education, there’s nothing more stressful to a high school student than a high stakes test. Poor performance on a single test could mean dropping a letter grade and lowering a coveted GPA. At Whitman, where overachieving academically seems like the norm, the pressure mounts with each and every test.

An estimated 16 to 20 percent of students suffer from test anxiety, which the American Test Anxieties Association defines as extreme nervousness about taking a test. This can occur when students have an underlying fear of failure or feel pressure to do well.

Subject-Specific Test Days

It’s not uncommon to have three or four tests on the same day. When this happens to me, I almost always feel overwhelmed and insufficiently prepared. Instead of dedicating study time to each class, I’m forced to prioritize some subjects and ignore others. This increases my anxiety beforehand and leaves me with a feeling that I didn’t perform as well as I could have.

One possible solution is coordinating test dates between departments, effectively reducing the number of tests that fall on the same day and giving students more time to study for each

Test anxiety has been proven to reduce working memory, lower reading comprehension and increase mistakes, the study reported.

Test anxiety has been proven to reduce working memory, lower reading comprehension and increase mistakes, the study reported. But luckily, teachers can enact policies to lessen this academic stress for students.

subject. For example, the math department could limit their tests to Mondays and Thursdays, while the science department could schedule tests on Tuesdays and Fridays.

World languages department

head Rebecca Zatz believes that this is good way to reduce test anxiety in theory, but says it would be difficult to coordinate test dates among departments because of various scheduling conflicts and restrictions. Still, resource teachers should work closely with teachers in their departments to enact this policy.

One-Week Notice

I’m often forced to cram the night before a quiz or test because I had little notice. Every so often, I’ve walked into class panicked and unprepared because I didn’t even know there was a test that day.

Teachers should post upcoming test dates on the myMCPS calendar at least one week in advance so students can better manage their workload. The calendar allows students to see tests dates and assignment due dates for all their classes in one place.

Class Time for Study Time

Another simple way teachers can reduce stress is dedicating some class time to either review the material or allow students to study independently.

This option allows students to ask their classmates or their teacher last-minute questions before the

Graphic by JULIA RUBIN

test. Students would have more time to prepare and feel less worried about understanding the material.

While these solutions all have logistical scheduling hurdles to overcome, any one of

them would significantly help students manage test anxiety. As schools put more emphasis on test scores, teachers must implement policies to reduce stress and help their students succeed.

8

Arts & Entertainment

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Artist Spotlight: Charlie Imperial makes magic Freshman Charlie Imperial holds out four cards in his hand, face down. “This is a game of the imagination,” he says.

“Let’s imagine they’re all queens.”

Imperial has a volunteer select the red or black queens. She says red. He then asks her to pick hearts or diamonds. She chooses diamonds. “Is it possible that I could have known you would pick the queen of diamonds?” he asks.

“No,” she responds confidently.

“It is, actually,” he says, smiling. “And I did.

See, the queen of diamonds is the only queen facing up.” Suddenly the card lies face up in his hand. “It’s actually the only one with the red back as well,” he continues, flipping the card over to show her. “And I was so confident that you would pick the queen of diamonds, that I didn’t actually bother bringing any of the other queens.”

He drops the other three cards to the table: all are blank.

Imperial has been doing magic for two and half years, and has totaled easily over a hundred hours of practice, he said. He has performed before top Las Vegas Magicians David

Copperfield and Mac King as well as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX); he also auditioned for America’s Got Talent in Philadelphia.

Imperial first became interested in magic four years ago, when his father showed him a disappearing card trick. He thought the trick was cool, and immediately became frustrated when he couldn’t figure out how his father pulled it off.

Over a year later, Imperial’s started practicing magic after seeing magician Matt Franco perform on America’s Got Talent.

“I decided it was really neat,” Imperial said.

“From that day on I was just fascinated and kept doing it.”

Imperial learned magic through a combination of books and DVDs. The only mentors he sees in person are the members of a community of magicians, a group of adult magicians who meet once a week an hour and half away at the Magic Warehouse in Owings Mill, MD. “Whenever I go up there, they’re really nice to me,” Imperial said. “There aren’t many kids who do magic and work hard at it, and they’re happy to see that it’s being passed down from generation to generation. They’re happy to

teach me things as well.”

Because Imperial has no formal teacher, finding time to practice is up to him. He practices whenever and wherever he gets the chance, he said.

“Sometimes I’ll just be sitting in class with a coin, and I’ll just be fiddling with the coin,” he said. “Whenever I’m alone or something, or have time to spare, sometimes in the morning or before going to bed, I’ll just sit in here for like 30 minutes or so practicing.”

Imperial mostly performs for family and friends, though he wants to perform for wider audiences in the future. The first people to see his new tricks are usually his parents and brother junior George Imperial. His mom, Pyper Davis, said it has been really interesting to see how complex doing a simple magic trick can be.

“It’s actually been quite fascinating,” she said. “On one hand I think about magic as oh, kind of goofy, but from watching Charlie learn about it I realized there’s a lot more science to it.”

In addition to performing, Imperial also creates magic tricks of his own. He keeps a notebook in his room for new trick ideas, and when he finds

Freshman Charlie Imperial levitates a card between his hands. Imperial has performed for Las Vegas magicians David Copperfield and Mac King, as well as Sen. Ted Cruz. Photo by THOMAS MANDE.

something he likes, he develops a method for it. He sometimes sends his ideas to professionals who edit and then sell them, even though Imperial doesn’t make any money from it.

Imperial hopes to make a career out of magic

and eventually wants a regular show of his own, he said. For him, the best part of performing is doing a trick for somebody and seeing them look truly amazed.

“The feeling you have where you’re like ‘how’—

that’s a good feeling,” Imperial said. “When you figure it out you’re just like, ‘oh, okay so what?’ I want people to have that feeling of ‘wow, that’s really cool.’”

Students submit work for National Scholastic Awards

by BROOKE MCLEOD

After adding the finishing touches to their submissions over a month ago, several students are excitedly awaiting the results of this year’s National Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. The northeastern winners will be announced Jan. 30.

Three AP Studio Art students and at least four writers from the Creative Writing club submitted work to the competition Dec.7. Each submission will be considered for a Gold Key, Silver Key, Honorable Mention or an American Visions & Voices Nomination. National Scholastic will send congratulatory letters to award recipients in March, while the Gold Key winners will be eligible for a national award.

“

They’re already working artists.

They aren’t taking it for a credit, they already know they’re going to art school.

-art teacher Ms. Diamond

“

by THOMAS MANDE

National Scholarship is the longest-running recognition program for teens in grades seven to 12. As stated by the National Scholastic website, students nationwide submitted more than 330,000 works last year, with 90,000 pieces recognized regionally. The competition also offers opportunities to receive win scholarships for work that

deals with certain specific themes or categories.

Whitman has had over 12 Gold Key, Silver Key and Honorable Mentions and two National winners. All of the art awards are displayed in the Legacy Hallway at the front of the school.

Studio art teacher Jean Diamond encourages her students to participate in the competition.

“I think what’s very important is that we have a lot of children who really fall in that category of being ‘artists,’” Diamond said. “They’re already working artists. They aren’t taking it for a credit, they already know they’re going to art school.”

Senior Yuwei Yang submitted five pieces using the theme “Windows,” incorporating her prospective major in architecture into her work by considering how windows are crucial to a building because, they influence lighting and affect mood. Yang has submitted her work to Agriculture Fair and the Montgomery County Art Show, winning first, second and third place in both. Appreciating the support she receives from her teachers and she plans to pursue architectural design in the future.

Junior Morgane Evans, a writer who won an Honorable Mention last year for her satirical piece “Trump’s Perspective,” is competing in the critical essay category this year.

“I’ve been writing since I can remember, and I started writing stories down when I was five years old.” Evans said. “I took Creative Writing last year and have been part of Writopedia in D.C. since I was ten, and I think I’ve become a better writer because of that, and last year, I just couldn’t believe I won. I was so excited and happy, and I felt like I could do anything. Hopefully, I’ll win an award this year.”

Arts & Entertainment

9

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Artists & Makers Studios features local artists

by YIYANG ZHANG Visitors are met with a burst of color as they enter the faded, red brick building. The main hall is covered from floor to ceiling with all forms and styles of artwork, while small studios fall into a neat lineup along the other side. Visitors instantly feel the presence of a small, yet strong community of imagination and creativity.

Since its March 2015 opening, Artists & Makers Studios, an art studio in Rockville, has supported local artists of all ages and demographics, giving them a place to create and present their work.

“

“

“There’s a lot of metro area people that love the arts: some are collectors, some are artists themselves.

- owner Judith Heart

“We have artists fresh out of art school; people who are just done raising their kid and getting ready to start their own career; doctors and former attorneys who are finally getting to do what they

want and building a second career,” owner and executive director Judith HeartSong said. “I’m so lucky to work in the arts every day.”

The 36,000 square foot studio is the largest in Montgomery County and is currently a workplace for 153 resident artists. It also serves as a small gallery, open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday, with opening parties for a new exhibit typically on the first Friday of the month.

“I think it’s really important that we’re careful about how we represent art,” HeartSong said.

“We want it to be respectful, especially with D.C. being such a melting pot of cultures.”

The studio was recently picked for the best place to experience art by the 2018 issue of Best of Bethesda Magazine. Its upcoming exhibits in February are “Be Still” with Sheryl Massaro and Coriolana Simon, “The Dress as Icon” with Alexandra Michaels and “Revisioning the Flip Doll: Exploring Our Connections” will open Feb. 2, after its successful January exhibit “Frida and the Day of the Dead.”

The Frida Kahlo exhibit featured pieces from artists David Amoroso, Marily Mojica, Claudia and Sergio Olivios that emulate Mexican artist Frida Kahlo’s

style; each artist had their own depiction of her work. Amoroso was intrigued by Kahlo’s persona in addition to her artistic talent.

“Frida is a respectable figure since she was way ahead of her time and always had the strength to do what she wanted without worrying about what others may think or say about her”, Amoroso said. “It has always been my goal to create a portrait of her that says something new or different, so instead of focusing on her pain, which many artists do, I chose to focus on the beauty of Frida and the Mexican culture.”

While Mojica and the Olivios incorporate a lot of elements from the Day of the Dead—a Mexican celebration that honors deceased family members—into their artwork, Amoroso focuses more on Kahlo and displays various portraits of her.

One of Amoroso’s paintings, “Frida con Pajaro,” meaning “Frida with the bird,” features a black bird and background along with a sky-embedded body, which catches the attention of many visitors.

“It’s very interesting: because of her illness and hard life, she dreamed about having a better life and being a politician and revolutionist,” Elena Semenova, a visitor from North Potomac said.

Artist David Amoroso painted “Frida con pajaro” for a recent exhibit inspired by Frida Kahlo. The bird in the center pays homage to the Mexican artist’s iconic unibrow. Artwork by DAVID AMOROSO.

“All these dreams are in her head and making a great presentation of that as well presenting her unibrow—the bird was perfect.”

The studio is hoping to gain more popularity and be able to showcase the works of many more aspiring artists with the success of the Kahlo exhibit.

“Hopefully more people discover us,” HeartSong said.

“There’s a lot of metro area people that love the arts: some are collectors, some are artists themselves, some live right here in the community and around strathmore—they know what we’re offering.”

The exhibit “Frida and the Day of the Dead” was on display Jan. 5 to Jan. 25.

D.C. museum showcases female artists National Museum of Women in the Arts reduces ‘gender disparity’

by EVA HERSCOWITZ

Visitors at the National Museum of Women in the Arts admire the two special exhibits, “Magnetic Fields” and “The Clothesline/El Tendero.” Opened in 1987, NMWA showcases solely female artists. Photos by EVA HERSCOWITZ.

On the first floor of a historic building in D.C., hundreds of pink and white slips are pinned haphazardly to a clothesline.

Written on them are messages left by female visitors: “When you strike a woman, you strike a rock,” one reads. “Nos están matando,” Spanish for “they’re killing us,” reads another.

On the floor above, monochrome cloth hangs from walls, creating a grayscale fiberwork sculpture accented with metal. In the next room, Renaissance-era portraits line the walls. Though diverse, these works of art have one feature in common: they were created by women.

Located just five minutes from the White House, the National Museum of Women in the Arts is the only major museum in the world dedicated to showcasing solely female visual, performance and literary artists. With over 5,000 rotating pieces, the museum features works by famous and lesser-known artists such as Frida Kahlo, Elaine de Kooning and Mary Cassatt.

“If you think about other museums in the D.C. area, the representation is pretty small,” guide Erin Garland said. “So that’s the heart here: making sure that we’re championing women through the arts.”

Less than four percent of the artists in the Modern Art section of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City are female, but 76 percent of the nude portraits are female, Garland said. Through its 10 temporary exhibitions and one permanent exhibit, NMWA attempts to reduce gender disparity and oversexualization in the arts by displaying works of various styles, time periods and themes.

One of the two current exhibits, “El Tendedero/The Clothesline Exhibit,” created by artist Mónica Mayer, asks women to share their experiences with sexual harassment, assault and domestic violence by pinning messages recounting these experiences to a clothesline. In light of recent sexual assault allegations by celebri-

ties and the popularity of the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements, giving survivors a platform to cope is especially important, junior Rachel Halliday said.

“There were some people that had really terrible stories and other people that had seemingly less traumatic experiences, but just because someone’s experience is quote-un-quote more traumatic doesn’t mean that it’s actually more traumatic,” Halliday said. “Everyone’s experiences are valid. ‘The Clothesline’ is a great example of that because everybody’s stories were there together.”

On the second floor, another exhibit, “Magnetic Fields,” displays abstract art created by black female artists. These pieces, many of which tackle themes such as racism and sexism, challenge the conception that figurative art is the only way to convey personal experience, Garland said.

“Magnetic Fields,” which features work by 21 artists born 1891-1981, is the first exhibit to display only black female abstract artists in the U.S. Many visitors appreciate its unique concept.

“It’s important to have an exhibit like this to invoke thought,” visitor Zuri Hunter from the District said. “These artists touch on subjects that aren’t in mainstream media.”

Opened in 1987, the museum’s gallery boasts a diverse collection of oil paintings, sculptures and fiberwork. Many of the permanent pieces feature women of color, different ages and a range of time periods.

The museum experienced a surge in visitors following the 2016 presidential election. After the Women’s March, visitors were eager to celebrate the achievements of female artists. Garland hopes that people continue to visit this relevant and unique museum, she said.

“It’s really about bringing those stories to the forefront: protecting and promoting stories,” Garland said. “We don’t want women lost to history. We want that history to be preserved.”

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The Black & White|January 30, 2018

In-D

smartphones: an asset and an add iNCREASED USE INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM

by ELYSE LOWET AND JESSIE SOLOMON The bell rings and students rush to their next class. Some talk to the person beside them, others run ahead to meet friends, but most glance down at the glowing rectangular device in their hand: their smartphone.

In 2007, the year the first iPhone was released, smartphone worldwide sales totaled 122 million, a staggering statistic for a new device. Eleven years later, smartphone sales have reached nearly 1.5 billion, 12 times the amount sold in 2007, The Statistics Portal reported. The smartphone has become the norm, making its way into the pockets of 77 percent of Americans in 2016, the Pew Research Center reported.

As smartphone ownership increases and the average age for first getting a smartphone decreases, smartphone addiction has become a growing phenomenon, especially for

teens. A study by CNN found that nearly 72 percent of teens feel the need the respond to texts and social media messages immediately.

Outlining their concerns with overuse of the iPhone, two investors recently wrote an open letter to the company, asking Apple “to offer parents more choices and tools to help them ensure that young consumers are using [their] products in an optimal manner.” Apple responded, saying that future updates will include enhancements in terms of parental control and limiting phone use.

Smartphone companies have also made big strides in implementing safety precautions. The Black & White took a closer look at how the evolution of smartphones both benefits and harms its users.

Smartphones in the classroom Because smartphones are relatively new, their implementation into the classroom has been slow. Only within the last several years has smartphone use in the classroom become more common with students and teachers.

While smartphones were still gaining popularity, especially among high school students, flip phones were already a major distraction in class, teachers say.

“Phones were always a problem in the classroom because people would still use them for texting,” said psychology teacher Marisa Del Savio, who has been teaching at Whitman for 14 years.

Students could easily text without looking down at their flip phones which interfered with learning, English teacher Michelle Quackenbush said.

But now, since so many students own a smartphone and have constant access to the internet, social media and other apps, they’ve become a much bigger distraction in the classroom, said social studies teacher Andrew Sonnabend, who started teaching at Whitman in 2005.

“In the good old days before there were smartphones, kids got distracted by staring into space or maybe talking to the people around them,” Sonnabend said. “Now it’s just so much more of this ‘always checking.’”

Since so many students own a smartphone, cheating has become a more prominent concern.

Students can send each other test questions, look up answers, or take pictures of the tests with their smartphones with just a few swipes, which can be difficult to stop, Del Savio said.

Even so, smartphones still have benefits in the classroom. Many teachers have begun to use websites like Kahoot and Quizlet Live, two online games that help students digest material and increase student involvement, during classroom review sessions.

Smartphones also give students easy access to the internet, which comes in especially helpful if they come across a topic they want to further explore, Sonnabend said.

“It’s kind of cool in that there’s more access to more information immediately for students, and smartphones are great for that,” Sonnabend said.

e g a r ve a e h T rson pe s 3 d n e p s d n a s hour nutes 15 mi heir on t a day e n o h p

In 77 ame ow sm p

Graphics by JA

New safety features Whether it’s texting, calling, social media, or games, smartphones have simplified many aspects of everyday life. But recently, large smartphone companies, such as Apple and Samsung, have incorporated new safety features to ease parental concerns for their children.

In early September, Apple introduced a new safety feature called Emergency SOS on iOS 11. Users can click the lock button five times rapidly and a screen will appear with options to “slide to power off” or “Emergency SOS.” The second option will automatically call emergency services when swiped.

“I think that it makes it a lot easier if you are in an emergency situation,” junior Ian Sommerville said. “It’s one of the more beneficial updates.”

Apple also created a “Do Not Disturb while driving” feature in iOS 11, which automatically turns off

notifications when the phone senses that it is in a moving vehicle.

“I like it because I don’t feel the urge to check my phone when I’m driving, so I’m less distracted,” senior Zoe Taswell said.

One of Apple’s older features is the Find My Friends app, released in 2011. Parents can use it to track their kids’ locations or friends can use the app to locate each other.

“Smartphones are a wonderful way to stay safe,” mental health specialist Catherine Andrews said.

“Parents have a tracker they can put in their kid’s phones so parents know where their kids are and that’s very useful.”

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Depth

diction

n 2016, 7% of ericans wned a mart phone

ANA WARNER AND LANDON HATCHER

11

Effects on physical health One last scroll through Instagram or a quick response to a Snapchat is common before bed. In fact, 71 percent of people sleep either holding their phone or having it next to them, according to a consumer report from Bank of America. But using a phone less than an hour before going to bed has been proven to negatively impact sleep.

Studies have found that the blue light smartphones emit stimulates the brain and tricks it into thinking it’s daylight, resulting in a suppression of melatonin, the hormone that helps the brain fall asleep.

Each notification also keeps people awake, even after they planned to go to sleep.

“I’ll turn it off to go to bed, but if I see it light up again, I check the notification and then stay on for another 20 minutes before turning it off again,” Taswell said.

The over-reliance on smartphones has also led to diminished intelligence and ability to solve logical problems, studies have shown.

“It creates a collective brain for the world, which I do think has benefits, but as we’re now seeing, it has a lot of potential downfalls too,” English teacher Ryan Derenberger said.

uSERS CAN HIT THE LOCK BUTTON 5 TIMES TO OPEN EMERGENCY SOS

The average age to ge a smart t phone is 10.3 year s

sLIDING THE BAR WILL AUTOMATICALLY CALL EMERGENCY SERVICES

Effects on mental health In addition to physical effects, the smartphone can be a major factor in mental illness. The CDC reported that from 2007, the year the iPhone was released, to 2015, the suicide rate doubled for girls ages 15 to 19 and increased by 30 percent for boys.

Mental illnesses, like depression and anxiety, are directly correlated to second-hand uses of the smartphone, such as social media or gaming apps, as opposed to simple texting and calling.

“Most people aren’t really using their phone just as a phone; they’re mostly using it for social media or games,” Andrews said. “It’s keeping people from pursuing their usual activities or things they would normally be doing if they weren’t on their phones.”

In addition to lost face-to-face time as a result of the smartphone, social media has become a negative aspect in teens lives. With the rise of social media, teens often compare themselves to the best moments they see on their Instagram, Facebook or Snapchat.

A study done by San Diego State psychology professor Jean Twenge concluded that adolescents are more likely to

agree with hopelessness and unmotivated statements, such as “I feel I can’t do anything right” if they spend a lot of time on social media.

“I follow a lot of celebrities, and when you see pictures of their vacations, or their food or even their daily lives, it’s so glamorized,” sophomore Caroline Muir said. “It’s meant to be publicized, so they’re only portraying the best version of their lives.”

While social media outlets continue to expand their platforms, major smartphone companies also continue to release the newest products with the latest designs, making them even more attractive to the public eye. Because of this phenomena, smartphones will continue to be further involved into students’ lives, both inside and outside the classroom.

“Students who make the effort to focus and put the phone away tend to fare better,” Quackenbush said. “For other students, they get caught up in the social aspect, so they’re not fully present, and I think that’s what’s missing.”

Read 1/30/18

12

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Feature

A Saga of its own: understaffed yearbook pushes through adversity

by THOMAS MANDE It’s fifth period on a Thursday in room C215, and the yearbook class is in a frenzy. Students scramble from computer to computer, fervently creating pages, typing and editing. The classroom is ablaze with chatter as editors check the status of various pages, too many of which are not yet done. The deadline for submission passed two days ago; if the pages are not turned in soon, it could cost the yearbook hundreds of dollars in late fees.

Saga, the school’s yearbook, tells the story of each year at Whitman. Yet the yearbook staff has an overlooked story of its own—one that’s gotten far more complicated than the polished product lets on.

Saga’s staff numbers have plummeted over the past few years. When sponsor Elizabeth Keating joined five years ago, the yearbook had over 30 members.

This year, it has 10. In comparison, Walter Johnson’s yearbook has 32 staff members, Churchill’s has 21, and Richard Montgomery’s has 31.

To be able to fully distribute the workload, they need at least 20 people, preferably around 25, Keating said.

“When I first started out, [the staff] was actually too big,” Keating said. “Now it’s definitely too small for the amount of work that needs to be done.”

To cope with this drop in numbers, the staff has redesigned their production process to shoulder the extra work. They’re also searching for ways to increase their membership, knowing that if they can’t, producing the yearbook in the future will be difficult.

Remaking the Process

The yearbook isn’t created overnight—or over a few weeks or months.

The year-long process kicks off with four days of camp at James Madison University in July, where the staff bonds and takes classes on yearbook writing and design.

During the school year, the staff works through six month-long cycles. At the end of each cycle, about 70 pages are sent to the publisher to be printed. If they fail to meet these deadlines, they can be fined hundreds of dollars by Walsworth, their publishing company.

“It’s not like we just sit around doing nothing all day and magically the book appears at the end of the year,” Keating said.

“There’s a real process to it.”

For each page, staff members need to take photos, conduct interviews, write stories and lay out the page using the computer program Online Design.

Doing all of this for 70 pages with only 10 students has required restructuring the design process to maximize efficiency.

Instead of each student doing a certain number of pages, as in previous years, each page is now divided into content, design and copy, and each student is assigned one part.

“It was a difficult system at first, but it really works out because everyone gets to show their specialties and what they’re best at,” co-editor-in-chief Jackie Lesser said.

The staff is like a family, sports editor Kevan Nathani said. This helps them work more cohesively, but also allows them to be critical when needed, he explained.

“If we have something to say to someone, if we need to give criticism or we have feedback and all that, we’re not afraid to give it—we don’t sidestep what we need to say; we’re straight and very upfront with everyone,” Nathani said. “I think the book’s going to be a better product because of that.”

The new, more efficient system and the hard work of dedicated staff members has made the production successful thus far, and the staff has missed fewer deadlines than previous years with bigger staffs, Keating said.

Looking Forward

While this group has succeeded despite their small membership, staff size is still an issue. As understaffed as they are this year, the coming years could be more difficult, Nathani said.

“I think it could get pretty ugly, though, in the next couple years,” he said. “Next year specifically could be bad because we have no sophomores, so everybody in the class will be a senior next year unless we get new people, and that’s definitely a problem.”

To avoid this, Keating and the staff are doing everything they can to attract more students. In addition to their usual presentations to the journalism and art classes, they’re having counselors distribute yearbook applications during course registration and are working to establish a link with the Pyle yearbook to get incoming freshmen on the staff.

Some staff members feel that year-

Photo courtesy EMMA RABLEY.

book’s lack of membership stems from various misconceptions, ranging from yearbook being a joke class to the idea that the staff only writes fluff pieces.

“There’s no information out there about yearbook, so people just make their own assumptions,” co-editor-in-chief Sofia Fiscella said. “I’ve had people walk into this room and be like ‘is this the B&W room?’ or are like ‘isn’t the book done second semester?’”

The yearbook’s major draw is that students can experiment with writing, design and production, rather than being confined to one job, co-editor-in-chief Emma Rabley said. Being on the yearbook also allows students to shape the story of their high school experience—something that they and their peers will remember for the rest of their lives, she said.

“Being in the yearbook, you get to choose the way you want to chronicle [the year], and the way you want to present it to your grade and all the other grades,” Rabley said. “There’s a really big responsibility in that, but it’s also such a great opportunity.”

If the low staff numbers continue to be an issue, members think the yearbook will eventually stop being released. However, while having a year with no yearbook is a possibility, the book is too important to let end permanently, Lesser said.

“You want to remember these memories; otherwise you’re going to look back in twenty years and be like, ‘what was I doing with my life?’ and you’re not going to remember,” she said. “The yearbook is a way to capture the entire year.”

Graphic by SOPHIE DEBETTENCOURT

Photos by ANNABELLE GORDON

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Feature

13

Senior reaches semifinals in science competition

by EVA LILES

Senior Ayzhan Murphy was one of 300 students who reached semifinals in the nationwide Regeneron Science Talent Search, a science and math competition for high school seniors, Jan. 9. Murphy, along with the other students who qualified, will now await the list of 40 finalists who advance to the next level of the contest.

Scientists from around the country narrowed the 1,818 student submissions to 300 semifinalists. Each research project was reviewed by three or more scientists with doctorate degrees—mathematicians or engineers who specialize in the subject area of the entry. All of the semifinalists will receive a $2,000 prize and an additional $2,000 will be given to their high school.

Murphy was chosen for her research project, “Next Generation Liquid Biopsies: Dynamically Assessing Tumor and Host in Oncology Clinical Trials,” which she compiled into a written report. The research examines the use of a new kind of liquid biopsy, or blood withdrawal, from a patient to analyze patient immune systems and tumors.

“This was a revolutionary way of getting patient information and data for clinical trials and assessing the effectiveness of the drug because it’s not invasive, as normal biopsies are,” Murphy said. “It also will assess the immune system from the cells of the patient and will look at the circulating tumor cells that were in the blood.”

Murphy came up with her idea while

$25,000 Award

40 Finalists

$2,000 Award

300 Semifinalists 1,818 Student Applicants

interning for on of the NIH’s National Cancer Institute labs with other high school students.

“My internship is a two-year program,” Murphy said. “The first year I learned all of the lab procedures and learned what we do in the lab. The second year I independently came up with a project idea based on the research that I saw in the lab and based on the clinical trials we have open in the lab right now.”

Whitman students work with science teacher Melanie Hudock to find local internship opportunities that suit their areas of interest. Having matched Murphy to her internship lab, Hudock was proud to learn that the senior had been chosen as a Top 300 Scholar. “[The lab leader] wants people that are very outside-the-box thinkers, that look at things differently, are very, very inquisitive and have excellent work ethics,” Hudock said. “Ayzhan was an appropriate fit. It was really exciting.”

Murphy’s experience at the internship has also helped her shape her plans for the future.

“I want to be doctor in a clinical research hospital,” she said. “Although I’m interested in the lab research portion of clinical trials, I also want to work with patients, so that definitely helped me focus on what I wanted to do.”

Forty finalists will be selected Jan. 23.

The finalists win a prepaid trip to the District of Columbia where they will present their work to the country’s top scientists at the Regeneron Science Talent Institute.

The winner of the entire competition receives $250,000.

Senior Ayzhan Murphy works in a lab at the National Cancer Institute every weekday for her University of Maryland student Da- internship. During the summer of 2017, Murphy used her lab experience to develop her Revid Rekhtman (’17) was one of last year’s generon STS entry project. Photo courtesy AYZHAN MURPHY. 40 finalists. His experience visiting the the big issues of the time period, Rekhtman “It shows me that my research has District and meeting other competitors said come to something,” Murphy said. “It’s has changed his ideas of about what young “In the ’40s and ’50s, it was all about kind of unbelievable for me and surreal. I people can achieve. nuclear stuff.

Then we got into physics, don’t think I’ve come to the realization that “I definitely think that the competition introduced me to people that were doing and now a lot of it is researching cancer it’s happened.” a lot more than anyone else,” Rekhtman and technology and the internet,” Rekhtsaid. “It showed me all the things that you man said. “It shows how high school stucan do, even as a high school student or an dents are capable of being at the top of reundergraduate student. We should strive to search. It’s really pushing students to work towards the uncharted areas of science, and do what we can to help others.”

For more inforRegeneron STS, formerly known as that’s really motivating.” mation, scan Murphy is hopeful she will be chosen Intel STS, has existed since 1943 and adthis QR code as a finalist, but she already feels her work opted different sponsors through the years. for a video will make a positive impact in people’s The applicants’ projects change based on lives.

Students chose entrepreneurship over typical jobs

by CAMERYNN HAWKE Sitting at her desk, junior Sydney Maggin works on her first necklace of the day. She carefully places a blue bead on a clear string, then strings on three white beads. One blue bead. Three white beads. One blue bead.

Three white beads.

Maggin spends 10-15 minutes working on a choker like this one to sell for her business, Syd’s Beads. Maggin’s chokers, seniors Gaby Svec and Zoe Taswell’s bakery, Honey b. Cakery, and junior Tandis Esfandiari’s jewelry business TTEJewlery are prime examples of a growing trend towards entrepreneurship among students. These businesses allow students to pursue their own interests while keeping school a priority.

“I started selling chokers because I loved making them as a way to de-stress from school, and since I love art and playing around with colors and patterns,” Maggin said.“It seemed like people were interested in buying them, so I decided to try out selling them just to see what would happen.”

To order jewelry, clients contact Maggin and Esfandiari directly, and then they discuss the specifications of the product, like color or size, before creating and

Seniors Zoe Taswell and Gaby Svec, along with Isabel Taswell (‘15), bake cakes and other goods to sell at local markets. Taswell and Svec are two of many students that operate their own businesses. Photo courtesy GABY SVEC.

distributing the final order.

Esfandiari sells her necklaces for between $5 and $15, while Maggin sells all her chokers for $4 each. Maggin and Esfandiari both advertise their businesses over social media and through friends and have mostly sold jewelry to their peers at local high schools.

Maggin’s favorite part of the

business is the process of creating her jewelry and having control over her work, she said.

Esfandiari created her business as a way for her to express her creativity and manage her own time through designing jewelry and custom jean jackets.

Throughout the year she’s been running her business, she has donated many of her proceeds to

the Marathon Turtle Hospital and Humane Society International, two charities that she cares about.

Maggin and Esfandiari primarily sell their products over social media and to friends, and both maintain Instagram accounts, @syds_beads and @ttejewelry.

Svec, Zoe Taswell and her sister Isabel Taswell (’15) started

the bakery to take advantage of their free time in the summer and to make money while working together. They use social media to advertise, but gravitate more toward in-person advertisements.

They set up a stand at Crossroads Community Food Network in Takoma Park every Wednesday during the summer to sell their pies, cakes and cupcakes. The bakery also sold baked goods at Norman’s Farm Market and Bethesda Women’s Market. The trio likes the market scene because it offers exposure the business wouldn’t otherwise get, Zoe Taswell said.

“We started getting people who would come back again asking for us. They would come back to our stand every week wanting our cakes,” she said. “We kind of fit in the community there, and a lot of customers knew us and started wanting our product there.”

The trio also sells their products to friends at school. Svec, along with the other entrepreneurs, is proud of their work creating and running the bakery.

“In the beginning after seeing how much we had to invest in it, I didn’t think we were going to break even,” Svec said. “But I think its been really successful.”

14

Feature

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Gerken resigns, drama students reflects on his legacy Alumnus Sammy Zeisel (’10) remembers being cast as Mozart in “Amadeus”—which won three Cappie awards, including Best Play— his senior year. Zeisel now works as a directing apprentice at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, and he attributes his willingness to pursue the arts to Gerken’s high expectations for him in high school, Zeisel said.

“He treated students like professional artists,” Zeisel said. “His expectations for you were so high that you couldn’t help but elevate yourself to meet them. A 17-yearold kid had no business playing that role—or any role in that play really—but through Chris’s eyes, I felt like a seasoned professional in the prime of his career. That was the most amazing gift.”

Vocal director Jeffrey Davidson worked closely with Gerken to put on numerous Whitman Drama productions, and he acknowledged the impact Gerken has left on the program.

“He made a major difference in a lot of students’ lives in terms of drama. He taught a lot of really great skills and great passion for the art,” Davidson said. “There’s never been a bad show, and the community has gotten very used to that.”

However, students reported his method for motivating staff and directing them could be, at times, overly harsh or improper, so a change in leadership grants many

staff members a fresh start, junior Molly Herson said.

“It’s just a time now for people to be able to show this new director your talent and what you can do without any previous thoughts that Chris had on you,” Herson said.

Jonathan Rizzardi, the lead teaching artist at Round House Theatre, will fill Christopher Gerken’s role in directing the winter play, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.” Principal Alan Goodwin hired Rizzardi Jan. 17 with the help of Davidson, instrumental director Terry Alvey, technical director Travis Swiger and five Whitman Drama student leaders.

The Drama staff will make arrangements for Talent Show and hope to hire a permanent replacement after the production of “The Curious Incident.”

Staff members are confident in their ability to keep the program at its high caliber and are excited by the challenge it presents moving forward, Yu said.

“We have an opportunity now to exercise more creative freedom and to really step up, be professional and lead the program,” Yu said.

“He pushed us to perform at a level that we didn’t even know was possible, but now I feel like it’s on us to do that pushing for ourselves, and we’re all accountable to each other now more than ever.”

Jennie Yu is an online copy editor for The Black & White.

A total of 25 shows over 12 years...

2005 West Side Story 2006 Miracle Worker 2006 Funny Girl 2007 Dracula 2007 Aida 2008 The Nerd 2008 Damn Yankees 2009 Odd Couple

Junior Elena Markowitz works at Sal’s Italian Kitchen as a hostess. A portion of her salary comes from a pool of tips, so she makes $5 from each waiter every shift. Photo by ANNABELLE GORDON.

Govt. reintroduces tip pooling Waiters share, split tips under new policy

by ELYSSA SELTZER It’s a Monday night at Sal’s Italian Kitchen, and junior Elena Markowitz hands out menus as she walks a family to their table. After the meal is over, she helps clean up the table for the next group. As the customers get up, they leave a few bills for Markowitz in gratitude for her helpful service and friendly demeanor as a hostess.

But soon, restaurant workers may not be able to enjoy the large portion of their salary that comes from tips, as their minimum wage is at least $2.13 per hour because they receive at least $30 per month in tips.

On Feb. 5, following a mandate from President Trump, the U.S. Department of Labor will reintroduce tip pooling, a practice where restaurant owners pocket the servers’ tips or distribute among all workers.

Some student restaurant

workers believe that tip pooling can encourage teamwork and will distribute tips among all workers more evenly.

“I think that tip pooling is a good idea from the standpoint of a hostess or a bus boy,” junior Sydney Maggin said, a hostess at Wild Tomato. “Even though we aren’t directly waiting on customers, we still work to ensure they have a good experience at the restaurant.”

Lucien Koefoed, a store manager at Georgetown Bagels, believes pooling may discourage employees to go above and beyond in their position because they won’t be individually rewarded for it.

Because different jobs require varying degrees of work, some positions deserve bigger tips, he said.

Others think this practice promotes unfair treatment among the staff. Senior Genevieve Meier, also a hostess at Wild Tomato, believes some

Offer alternative to e-cigarettes, Juuls

2009 Into the Woods

by JULIA MCGOWAN

2010 Amadeus

In 2017, Juuls and vape pens grew in popularity in both schools and homes across the county. Vaping appears to be the cigarette of our generation; we know it’s bad for us, but we do it anyways because it looks cool. In response, students began searching for a healthier alternative to ingesting nicotine or marijuana while still vaping.

Many turned to essential oil vaporizers, which contain essential oil pods and don’t provide a head rush or offer physiological effects.

Brands like Vitastik and MONQ sell different types of sticks depending on the user’s desired mood or intent, including “Zen,” “Sleep” and “Happy.”

Aromatherapy—the inhalation and topical application of essential oils—is thought to enhance physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. When inhaled, scents enter the olfactory bulb, releasing key emotions and emotional behavior hormones like serotonin and endorphins in the human brain, according to Nuworld Botanicals.

Researchers have found lavender oil to help with mild insomnia, reduce stress and anxiety, and postpartum depression. Electroencephalography (EEG) and brain imaging using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) show significant changes during lavender aromatherapy consistent with its relaxing effects.

“For me, they‘re super useful for relieving stress because it’s a way for me to focus on breathing, especially since taking deep breaths

2010 Side Show 2011 Diary of Anne Frank 2011 Gypsy 2012 Frankenstein 2012 Anything Goes 2013 Brighton Beach Memoirs 2013 Miss Saigon 2014 Lord of the Flies 2014 Catch Me if You Can 2015 Arcadia 2015 Sweeney Todd 2016 Noises Off 2016 Jesus Christ Superstar 2017 The Crucible 2017 On the Town

positions include bigger workloads than others, which entitles those workers to the tips they earn.

“As a hostess, I don’t work nearly as much as the waiters do,” she said. “I think it’s only fair that they get the tips they make.”

Markowitz, a hostess, thinks that restaurant owners deserve more autonomy when deciding whether or not their specific business pools. If this legislation spreads nationwide, her and other restaurant workers fear the domination of tip pooling in all restaurants.

“It should be the restaurant’s choice if they want to tip pool or not,” Markowitz said.

“It should be the choice of the employee on whether or not they would like to work at a restaurant that pools or if they would rather work at a restaurant that doesn’t.”

Essential oil vapes gain popularity are the only way that Vitasticks work,” junior Sydney Maggin said.

Personal essential oil diffusers use vaporizer technology to deliver all-natural essential oil blends, which are then used for aromatherapy, according to the official MONQ website.

“

“

Continued from page 1

I wouldn’t say they’re good for you, but they’re definitely better than Juuls or anything else.

- anonymous student

Although the content inside Juuls and other essential oil diffusers differs in terms of substance, some teens are hesitant to try the diffusers because they portray an image of smoking.

Essential oils themselves, sold by brands like Doterra, are legal for minors to purchase and use, but the diffusers by MONQ and Vitastik aren’t.

“I wouldn’t say they’re good for you, but they’re definitely better than Juuls or anything else,” a student who re-sells Vitastik diffusers said. “They don’t add anything to your body that you don’t need, and they don’t do any harm.”

Despite the fact that essential oils haven’t been deemed as a drug by the FDA, many parents see use of the diffusers as a “gateway drug.”

“The essential oil vape is used just like a joint or a vape pen,” one parent said. “I really don’t like my daughter being a part of the culture at all.”

Feature

The Black & White | January 30, 2018

15

Taking a different route: students apply to college abroad The American college experience is a quintessential part of any young adult’s life. Attending football games, rushing a sorority or fraternity and living in cramped dorm rooms have become rites of passage. But some students choose to forgo these traditions and attend schools where college football, Greek life and dorm rooms don’t exist—universities outside the U.S. In the past two years, attending college abroad has increased in popularity by 25 percent among Whitman students, with students perceiving financial, educational and cultural benefits to these universities. Whitman usually sends graduates to about 10 foreign countries, with the most common destination being Canada, college and career coordinator Anne Hutchens said.

Students who wish to spend college outside the U.S. must first go through a different application process than their peers. Documents that must be sent to colleges abroad often differ from the requirements of U.S. schools.

“Students have applied to schools in Indonesia and South Korea, and I sent emails to those universities, making sure we’re sending the right documents,” Hutchens said. “Other schools from abroad come and visit, just like U.S. schools do. Those representatives are very helpful so that I can get contacts.”

The U.K. application system operates on a website called UCAS, which initially resembles the Common Application. However, the system caps students at five schools and requires students to definitively declare their major when applying. It also places more value on standardized tests than many U.S. schools, according to U.S. News.

Differences between countries’ application processes pose challenges for students, counselors and teachers alike. Xavier Roberts-Gaal (’16), now a freshman at the University of Oxford, conducted independent research about U.K. schools.

“I ended up guiding a lot of academic recommendations, because it differs from a U.S. recommendation,” Roberts-Gaal said. “The process is a little bit different in terms of reaching out to teachers and asking them to all send little bits and pieces.”

“

I like that I get to specialize earlier because that means I don’t have to take as many general education classes.

I can just focus on what I want to do.

- senior Ben Tutt

“

by HANNAH FEUER

Motivators for students applying abroad vary widely, from returning to a home country, lower tuition and spending less time in college. The U.S. has the highest average annual tuition fees of any country in the world, according to the OECD, an economic organization with 35 member countries.

For senior Ben Tutt, going to college for three years instead of four and not being required to take classes outside his major were important factors in his decision to apply to U.K. schools.

“I like that I get to specialize earlier because that means I don’t have to take as many general education classes,” Tutt said. “I can

just focus on what I want to do.”

The U.K. schools Tutt chose also had an earlier deadline for applications than most U.S. schools.

He decided not to apply to any U.S. schools after getting into some of his top choice schools in the U.K., and will attend the University of Oxford next year.

For sophomore Hirari Sato, cost is a key reason why she wants to attend college in either Japan or Canada, especially because her parents also must cover the cost of her twin sister’s tuition. But Sato, who has lived in four different countries, also has a unique reason for applying abroad: the potential for permanent residency.

“Since I’m not an American citizen, I can’t get all of the scholarships that others can. Also, I need to find a visa after I graduate, and that’s a really difficult process,” Sato said. “But if I go to college in Canada, a year after graduation they give you residency, so it’s easier to transfer into a job if I wanted to stay.”

Once attending college abroad, students must adjust to cultural differences both in and out of the classroom. For example, Greek life and American football, often considered staples of a traditional college experience, are nonexistent at European colleges, and students in Europe tend to have more formal relationships with their professors, reported USA Today. RobertsGaal said he needed time to adjust to life in the U.K. “[There are] slight differences in mannerisms,” Roberts-Gaal said. “But there are definite advantages to studying in the U.K. You get lots of easy travel to really amazing places all throughout Europe, everyone is super nice and Oxford is just beautiful.”

The Radcliffe Camera (above), and the Front Quad and Chapel (below), are icon locations of Oxford University, where many Whitman students chose to apply. The school is the oldest university in the English-speaking world.

Photo by XAVIER ROVERTS-GAAL.

The Black & White|January 29, 2018

16

Crossword

W C R O S S R D

TJ Today Presents: Around the world in 80 clues

by TIGER BJORNLUND and JOEY SQUERI 50. Table salt, chemically 51. Hawaiian flower wreath 54. Like Tallinn, Estonia, but for a Southeast 1. Like Moscow, but for Peru Asian nation 5. Star Wars or Star Trek, for example 58. You can do this in America, when 18 10. What one receives commission for 59. The two notes separated by “fa” in the solfeg14. Soon, to Shakespeare gio 15. Become less threatening or severe 60. Type of scientist, like Doofenshmirtz 16. A sports game always starts like this 17. Like Ottawa, Canada, but for a Scandinavian 61. Continent of 54-across and 48-down 62. Ruth and Dahlgren, baseball players nation 63. Miami-____ county 20. Tottenham winger Heung Min 21. Popular avocado variety Down: 22. Activity at Sydney’s most famous building 23. Exams for future attorneys 1.Young woman, in Glasgow 24. “___ Around,” House of Pain hit single 2. “___ the Wild” Chris McCandless biography 26. Like Sacramento, but for Kansas 3. Harvest, Hunter, or Blue, for example 29. Like Brasilia, but for Australia 4. Nelson Mandela’s party, abbr.

33. Like Italy for Rome, but for Port-au-Prince 5. Namesake desert of Jeep Wrangler variety 34. Sends in the mail 6. Michael Scott is _ ____ 35. Educational Advisory Board, in brief 7. Female friends, colloquially 36. Bear in the sky, major or minor 8. Money machine 37. ___ of approval 9. Civil service position above GS, briefly 38. Lead in to bug or fingers 10. Central Asian grassland 39. Back muscle, in gym terms 11. Politician’s helper 40. River through 41-across 12. Smile maliciously 41. Like Tripoli, but for France 42. Native animal of countries in 54-across and 13. The Incredibles fashionista Mode 18. Classic pants material 48-down 19. Sites of fetuses 44. Items at a rodeo 23. Type of radioactive decay 45. Father or Mother’s sister 24. One-handed Lannister in Game of Thrones 46. To hype up or promote 25. United Nigeria People’s Party, abbr.

47. Highest peak in the Alps: Mont ___ Across:

cartoon

26. Swedish outdoor brand 27. Verbal test on a rowboat?

28. Ski run of compacted snow 29. Loud recitation of words 30. Cabooses 31. FM listening device 32. Bottomless chasm 34. Military tour of duty 37. Penn or McVay 38. “___ dance with Mary Jane” Tom Petty single 40. Prepare corn to be cooked 41. Physicist Wolfgang Ernst 43. Ancient supercontinent 44. Like Bethesda natives 46. Border lake or Chevy model 47. Former title bank of Messi’s league 48. Like Afghanistan for Kabul, but for Vientiane 49. Prefix meaning against 50. Agency that investigates transportation accidents, abbr.

51. Volcanic discharge 52. Walking Dead main character played by Katelyn Nacon 53. Lazy 55. Department directed by Mick Mulvaney 56. Korean maker of the Sorento or Soul 57. Was winning

17

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Sports

One year later, pre-game music with words is back Teams can now play songs with lyrics during warm-ups After a year-long stint without lyrics in their music, teams are now allowed to warm up to their favorite songs, rather than solely instrumentals. Athletic Director Andy Wetzel recently lifted the ban, and pregame music with words is back for all Whitman teams.

Teams are now allowed to warm up to their favorite songs before games as long as they meet certain criteria. The songs cannot contain references to sex, drugs or alcohol and must be completely clean of vulgar language.

Starting February of last year, playlists were to contain

only instrumentals with no vocals. Athletes say these types of tracks grew boring and repetitive and were ineffective in pumping up the team.

“

beat all the way through, and the music was really boring and had no effect.”

Shaver added that when the team comes out to start the game, they have a lot more energy when

“

by CAMERON JONES

Some of the songs have the same beat all the way through, and the music was really boring and had no effect.

-basketball player Brendan Shaver

“It was very frustrating because we were only allowed to play instrumentals,” basketball player Brendan Shaver said.

“Some of the songs have the same

they have lyrics in their warm up music.

Athletes played songs containing inappropriate language and clean versions of explicit

songs in past years, forcing Wetzel to remove lyrical tracks from team’s playlists, he said.

However, after coaches and players repeatedly approached Wetzel throughout the 2017-18 school year about pregame music, he decided to revisit the issue.

In the past, Wetzel approved songs before playing them through the speakers at a game.

This required Wetzel to listen to or read the lyrics of every song on every team’s pregame mix.

This year, Wetzel created a new system that places all the responsibility on students and coaches.

“Now instead of me having to review every piece of music that comes through here, and look

up lyrics to songs that are awful, if I hear something inappropriate, that’s it,” Wetzel said.

This one-and-done process allows teams to play their music without approval. However, if any administrators, parents or fans report hearing explicit references or words, lyrics will be banned for every Viking sports team indefinitely.

“I want clean songs, not clean versions,” Wetzel said. “There are literally millions and millions of songs to choose from. If you can’t find 10 or 15 clean songs, then we have to have another discussion.”

Students balance athletics with vegan diet

by ARIANA FAGHANI

Varsity volleyball player Lauren Oppenheim competed with her elite club team, Northern Virginia Volleyball 16A team, last year. Oppenheim says her vegan lifestyle gives her extra energy. Photo courtesy LAUREN OPPENHEIM.

No meat. No fish. No dairy products. No eggs.

Despite the strict guidelines of a vegan diet, Rise of the Vegan reports, veganism has spiked in appeal over the past few years, growing by 500 percent since 2014. Many of these new vegans are Whitman students— and serious athletes as well.

Varsity volleyball player Lauren Oppenheim became vegan because of her concern for animal rights, she said. Oppenheim has felt her play improve with her dietary restrictions because she can still get necessary nutrients while enjoying the benefits of being vegan.

“I think the way that the dairy industry is composed is just as mean and terrible as the meat industry, along with the egg industry,” Oppenheim said. “I think if it was done in a more humane way, I might not have as much of an issue with dairy and eggs, but the way it’s done in this day and age in factory farms is just terrible.”

While there are many reasons to become vegan, risks regarding the transition should also be taken into account. For example, calcium, iron, B12, zinc and vitamins A and D are all vital in regulating mood and other critical bodily functions, but can be difficult to get from a vegan diet.

These risks potentially become more serious for vegan athletes because of the nutrients lost when competing in sports.

Oppenheim explained how the beginning of her transition to a vegan diet was challenging.

“In the beginning of my veganism, I wasn’t getting enough protein on a day-to-day basis as well as not eating enough, so the beginning was really tough energy-wise, but as I figured out how to actually be a healthy vegan, my energy bumped up,” Oppenheim said.

Track runner and lacrosse player Julia Curran noticed an increase in her overall energy.

“I think that being vegan helps me as an athlete because I have more energy and just as much strength compared to others,” she said. “I’ve never had any medical problems or concerns that were attributed to my vegan diet.”

Although some athletes see their performance improve, the main attraction for athletes who are considering going vegan is the energy increase. If athletes can maintain a healthy diet and still consume all required nutrients, veganism has been proven to provide reduced risk of diabetes and obesity, as well as improve energy levels, The New York Times reported.

Sports nutritionist Barbara Lewin is an advocate for plant-based diets, especially among athletes.

“It helps reduce inflammation in the body, and it’s overall healthier,” Lewin said. “As long as you’re doing it right and you’re eating a variety of foods, I think it’s the best way of preventing disease and maintaining good health.”

FAMOUS VEGAN ATHLETES

Damien Lillard

VENUS & SERENA WILLIAMS

professional basketball player

pROFESSIONAL TENNIS PLAYERS

Kyrie Irving

Demaryius Thomas

professional basketball player

pROFESSIONAL football player Photos courtesy GOOGLE IMAGES.

18

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

Sports

Softball slides into season with new club

by ERIC NEUGEBOREN In the frigid cold, junior Riley Kuehn stands in the batter’s box as her teammate hurls an underhand pitch to the plate. She readies her stance, and just before the ball crosses the plate, she swings and launches a towering shot to left field. She and her teammates watch the ball fly, and she heads to the back of the line, joining the members of the softball club.

The club, started last fall, meets every Wednesday when there’s good weather during the winter for hitting, fielding and pitching drills.

Kuehn, the club president, started the group to prepare the team for the spring season and to help athletes who don’t play softball competitively outside of the Whitman team get more time on the field.

“I wanted to make it a club to expand the Whitman softball community because we can get people who’ve never played softball involved, and it can be a mentoring program,” Kuehn said.

Softball players who aren’t regularly running the bases and perfecting their swing can quickly fall behind those who practice these skills on a club team.

“The club is a good way to stay active and be able to throw and hit before the season,” softball player Alyssa Kline said. “When the season starts,

you want to be in shape and have better skills.”

Having not played together for nearly a year, the team lacks some of the chemistry needed to start the season strong. By working together in the offseason, they’re able to regain their cohesion on and off the field.

“Just getting us together after not being with the team for the year has definitely improved how we work together and our friendships,” Kuehn said.

The teams also allow freshmen who plan on trying out in March to get to know their teammates better and understand the team dynamic.

“It’s a good way to get to know the players before the season started and from how they described it, it’s a good opportunity to practice before tryouts,” freshman Anna Berger said. “After doing it, I’ll be much more comfortable going into the season because I’ll know everyone.”

All training sessions are studentrun, as official coaches aren’t allowed to coach their players during the offseason. The main idea of the training is to provide a fun and meaningful way for the team to get together and enjoy the sport they love.

“It’s just a more informal way to get together and practice and a lot more fun than the practice with coaches,” vice president Anna Dicarlo said.

Members of the new softball club warm up before their meeting Jan. 25. Junior Riley Kuehn started the club to help players get ready for the new season. Photos by ANNABELLE GORDON.

Sports

The Black & White|January 30, 2018

19

Athlete of the month: Justin Carboni translates track & field to the outfield

by MATTHEW VAN BASTELAER

Junior Justin Carboni makes a routine catch in the outfield. In addition to drawing interest from multiple Division I baseball programs, Carboni is one of the indoor track and field team’s fastest sprinters. Photo courtesy JUSTIN CARBONI.

For many high school athletes, the offseason is a time to relax and prepare for the upcoming season. For varsity baseball player Justin Carboni, however, the offseason takes another form: dominating indoor track.

Carboni has played baseball since age five and has never looked back. As a junior, he’s on one of the premier youth baseball teams in the country and has fielded interest from Division I baseball programs such as Navy, Tulane and Georgetown.

Carboni is also a star for the indoor track team, running under coach Stephen Hays. Carboni quickly established himself as one of the team’s best sprinters. In the first meet this season, Carboni finished seventh in the county in the 55-meter dash with a time of 6.85 seconds.

“I was always pretty fast, so I did it to stay in shape in the offseason,” Carboni said. “I ended up really liking it. I got a lot faster, so it’s become more than just an offseason sport.”

In his first indoor track meet in December 2016, Carboni finished 15th overall in the 55-meter dash with a time of 7.1 seconds. Since then, the track team has improved its overall fitness, with special education teacher Aaron McFarland as a new coach to help them in the gym.

Carboni says that McFarland is teaching the team how to lift properly, which has helped avoid injury.

Hays knows that Carboni’s speed isn’t all thanks to indoor track, but believes his coaching has played a part in the sprinter’s improvements.

“You can always make someone

faster, but he was fast coming in as well,” Hays said. “He’s a hard worker, he works hard both in the weight room and during our track workouts.”

Varsity baseball coach Joe Cassidy saw huge improvement between Carboni’s first two years. Cassidy says that the outfielder’s defining quality is his speed.

“He improved more than any kid I’ve ever seen from freshman to sophomore year,” Cassidy said. “He’s continued to do that. He’s not just baseball fast, and not just fast for Whitman; he’s flat out fast.”

Year-round, Carboni plays for the Mid-Atlantic Red Sox, a youth baseball team based on the east coast, with players mostly from Virginia and Pennsylvania.

The team plays in tournaments almost every weekend, traveling from hotel to hotel.

Junior Jack Ryan has played with Carboni since seventh grade, and now plays with him on a club team. He credits Carboni’s success to his drive in practice.

“Justin’s work ethic is something that really sets him apart from other guys that I’ve played with,” Ryan said. “He’s always getting workouts in on both the baseball field and in the gym. That’s the biggest reason for his success as a player.”

After high school, Carboni expects to play Division I baseball. Though he doesn’t plan to continue running track, both Carboni and Cassidy feel the sport has helped Carboni on the field. Carboni says that the sport has given him a quick burst of speed, and Ryan agrees.

“He really uses his speed to his advantage on the field both offensively and defensively,” Ryan said. “He’s one of the fastest kids I know.”

English teacher leads weekly staff fitness class Weekly in-school workouts save teachers money, time

by LILY JACOBSON Sneakers slam on the speckled gray and white floor, echoing through the empty hallways as teachers complete a cardio exercise. As they run in a line, the group passes classrooms they taught in only 15 minutes ago.

“

We do a lot of exercises.

We usually focus on muscle development and weight loss by doing circuit training, and sometimes we meet down on the track.

- English teacher Omari James

“

Instead of exercising at a gym, many staff members pay to participate in English teacher Omari James’ fitness class at. After James received his personal training certification during second semester last year, principal Alan Goodwin requested that he start a fitness group.

“It’s important to be physi-

cally active, and I wish I could get to the gym more often than I do. I have staff that are very busy and don’t get a chance to go the gym either,” Goodwin said. “I know that he is a trainer at a club and likes to exercise, so it was a nice coming together of his talent and willingness and the staff’s need.”

The group, ranging from five to 10 teachers per session, meets every Wednesday after school for approximately 45 minutes.

James plans workouts in advance to focus on different goals and muscle groups each week.

“We do a lot of exercises,” James said. “We usually focus on muscle development and weight loss by doing circuit training, and sometimes we meet down on the track.”

Participating teachers appreciate having James as an instructor. Due to his certification training, he’s skilled and knowledgeable, AP Psychology teacher Sheryl Freedman said.

“He really knows what he’s doing,” Freedman said. “He changes things up enough, and if things seem too easy, he challenges us and makes things appropriately more difficult.”

The timing and location of the class allows teachers to fit exercise into their busy schedules, physics teacher Allison Hayes said. Working out at school takes away travel time and expensive gym fees.

“I really need to exercise, and

English teacher Omari James leads his fellow teachers in stretches. James, who works part time as a personal trainer, teaches a weekly fitness class after hours at school. Photo by HUNTER HULSEBUS.

it’s a lot easier to exercise right at school than go to a gym,” Hayes said. “The class is really beneficial because [James] is a huge pusher and makes me work really hard.”

Teachers also enjoy the invit-

ing atmosphere created by exercising alongside co-workers and collaborating and interacting together in a different setting.

“It’s fun to work out with other colleagues and be in a supportive workout environment,”

Freedman said. “Everyone is really supportive of each other and if somebody is struggling at something, then everyone gives them a good helping hand and encourages them.”

20

The Black & White|January 30, 2017

Back Page

On (Sound)Cloud nine: Whitman rappers, producers find audience, success online

by THOMAS MANDE

For two weeks last June, sophomore rapper Chris Bartholomew and sophomore producer Leo Ritter spent every afternoon working on a rap song to post on SoundCloud. Neither thought much of the finished product, a song they called “Beach,” but it’s been played almost 27,000 times since on SoundCloud.

Bartholomew, whose rapper name is Creebandz, says he started rapping as a joke after his friend Ritter, known as Nardobeatz, started making beats. After “Beach” skyrocketed to popularity, the pair’s music making became a more serious endeavor, as they continued to put out more tracks that gained popularity. The two now have over 120,000 total plays; most of their songs have a few thousand each.

“It was pretty cool, because then I was like, ‘okay, I guess people actually like my music I guess I’ll just keep doing doing it,’” Bartholomew said.

The success Bartholomew and Ritter found has since helped inspire more Whitman students to release music on SoundCloud. Whether seriously or just for fun, in the past six months, many other students have started writing songs, rapping and producing beats.

Most of the music put out by Whitman’s SoundCloud rappers mirrors mainstream rap, with similar beats and lyrics focusing mostly on money, women and status. Bartholomew’s lyrics aren’t meant to be good, or even true, he said. Instead, he aims to write lyrics that are appealing and catchy.

SoundCloud appeals to student musicians because anyone can upload music free of charge, and once it’s up, anyone can listen. For new artists trying to share their music, these features make the app extremely useful, Ritter said.

“Anybody who makes an account can listen to something you’ve put on SoundCloud, so literally anybody in the world can find what you have,” Ritter said. “It’s insane to be able to do that.”

The app’s popularity among students

Sophomore Leo Ritter works on beats on his computer. Ritter, known as Nardobeatz, has been producing music for less than a year, but already has over 120,000 plays on Soundcloud. Photo courtesy LEO RITTER.

has also increased the appeal of joining in on the rapping trend, sophomore Mateo Gutierrez said. Gutierrez, known as rUUg, has put three of his own songs on SoundCloud and said that all the music students have posted took the pressure off others who might not have wanted to become involved before.

“I feel like a lot of people like rapping but are scared to release stuff because they think they’ll get judged,” said Gutierrez.

“Now a lot of people are being like: ‘more people are doing it. Maybe I should try too.’”

When Gutierrez released his newest song Jan. 7, many of his friends posted the

Q&A

by JULIA MCGOWAN Local social media personality Amanda Rome West grew up in Potomac and graduated from the Holton-Arms School in 2016. Now a student at the University of Southern California, she explains how she uses social media, vlogging and yoga instruction to increase her fanbase and make career advancements. West said she aims to shift her social media platform and fanbase towards Instagram and Youtube rather than Snapchat.

Responses have been edited for length and clarity.

The Black & White: How did you build your fanbase?

Amanda Rome West: I started snapchatting, vlogging and doing YouTube in seventh grade, and I’ve always made videos that are comedy, lifestyle, fitness, fashion or food. I started teaching Yoga Sculpt and that really got me big online. I start-

link on their Snapchat and Instagram stories. The practice is common when someone releases a new song and helps new music get more plays faster, Gutierrez said.

This support and encouragement is one of the best parts of the experience, Gutierrez said.

“It’s definitely super awesome to see your close friends hype you up and stuff,” he said. “When I was recording that song, I was at my friend’s house and they were there listening and giving me support and hyping me up. I’m always nervous when I do this, because I don’t want to mess up and stuff, and they’re like ‘oh yeah, you got this, don’t worry.’”

SoundCloud is a favorite of amateur artists not only because of its accessibility, but also because of the potential it holds for career advancement. Many now-professional rappers, like Lil Pump and XXXTentacion, got their start on SoundCloud, and the app is known as the place to discover new artists.

“It’s showing people that literally anybody can make it,” Ritter said. “Like if Lil Pump’s famous… he’s literally just a regular kid, and now he’s one of the most famous people in music. That why everyone’s trying to do it—it’s something you can actually do. It has real life possibilities.”

With social media personality Amanda Rome West

ed hanging out with a lot of people who are really well known online and really big brands that I worked for, like Off White and Levon. I’ve worked for people like Justin Bieber’s photography assistant and all sorts of men’s fashion weeks, and it really just got me going. I lost my GoPro earlier this semester and I made a lot of posts about it, and I started a bunch of memes. Now, I’m on a reality show, and I’m wellknown online.

B&W: Can you talk more about your reality show?

ARW: My reality show is “West’s World,” and it’s all about my life, all the things I’m doing and any sort of situation I get into. It’s all fictional so it’s all based on my life, but it’s not real. It’s going to be on YouTube.

B&W: How do you deal with people who are rooting against your success?

ARW: I’d say to anyone

who’s my hater that they’re just giving me more press and more attention, and I appreciate all of their thinking about me and spending time worrying about me.

B&W: Do you have any advice for girls entering college who want to do what you’re doing?

ARW: I get messages from girls every day saying “You inspire me,” “How do I push through?” “People are bullying me—how do I push through?

Do I be different, artistic, or myself? How do I push through?” and honestly I just answer, “Just be you.” Whoever enters your life is meant to be in it, and just go with it. Whoever is going to college and wants to do what I’m doing, which is putting my life online, I give them the advice of portraying their most true self and really helping others by instilling messages of positivity and kindness in other people.

Amanda Rome West, also known as ARW, is an area local now well known on social media. Photo courtesy AMANDA ROME WEST.