The Oracle-January 2018

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Palo Alto Unified School District Henry M. Gunn High School 780 Arastradero Rd Palo Alto, CA 94306

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THEORACLE Henry M. Gunn High School

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Friday, February 2, 2018 Volume 55, Issue 5

780 Arastradero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94306

District renews resolution, protects undocumented students Amanda Lee and Megan Li News Editor & Lifestyle Editor

After the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Jan. 16, 2018 that “U.S. immigration officials have begun preparing for a major sweep in San Francisco and other Northern California cities, in which federal officers would [be looking] to arrest more than 1,500 undocumented people,” Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) and Gunn officials made it clear that they aim to protect any undocumented students in PAUSD schools. In a letter published on

the district’s website on Jan. 18, Interim Superintendent Karen Hendricks shared a school board resolution to designate PAUSD schools as sanctuary schools. “As educators, we know that students cannot learn when they do not feel welcomed and safe at school…All PAUSD students, regardless of national origin and immigration status, as children who live in the United States of America, have a right to a high quality public education,” she wrote in the letter.

The resolution was drafted out of concern for student safety with the current threats of nationwide Immigration and Customs

Enforcement (ICE) raids, where undocumented immigrants are being arrested and detained by federal officers for deportation.

Under the resolution, which is the district’s official policy, PAUSD “will not cooperate with immigration enforcement actions except as required by law,” and all requests for student information will be referred to the superintendent unless “there is an immediate threat to public safety.” Board President Ken Dauber said the resolution was passed to inform staff on how to handle queries made by immigration officials. “I think it will help to ensure that students don’t face

deportation without the district being fully informed about the enforcement action,” he said. “Of course, the district has to comply with the law, but it’s really up to the superintendent and the district office to determine what that means in particular cases and we don’t want individual staff members to try to do that and to make a mistake that disadvantages students…We already have board policy that regulates, to the extent that we can, law enforcement activity on campus, and for immigration, we’re taking this extra step.” School board member JenICE—p.2

Mural to be painted by art students on custodial offices Kristen Yee Forum Editor

Art students have started painting a mural on the custodial office after the idea was proposed by art teacher Deanna Messinger last semester. The inspiration for the project came to Messinger when she parked her car by the custodial sheds every morning. She saw how unpleasant the environment was for the custodians and set out to make a change by creating a mural on the walls of the office. “As I walked by the custodian’s new space every day going to my room, I [started] talking with Luciano [Hernandez] about how we could make the space a little better for them,” she said.

The mural will also serve to help mask the scent of the plywood that comprises the walls of the shed, a strong odor had been a complaint of the custodians, by adding a layer of paint to cover it.

Custodial supervisor Luciano Hernandez was excited when Messinger proposed the idea. “That’s when the idea came out and I was like, ‘Why don’t you have the students paint something?’” he said. “That’s how it started, and it’s truly amazing.”

Soon after, Messinger introduced the project to students and requested volunteers. Sophomore art students Jamie Lui and Ashley Hubenthal now lead the project. “I wanted to understand art more and how different landMURAL—p.3

Richard Yu

Sophomore Jamie Lui adds foliage to mural.

Gary Wu and Jeffrey Yao

Max Wang

California passes new education laws Ryan Li & Caroline Ro Reporter & Forum Editor

Last year, Governor Jerry Brown and the California State Assembly passed a set of sweeping reforms to the state education system that went into effect Jan. 1 this year. The new laws address topics ranging from sexual harassment on campuses to diverse social studies curriculums to increasing student voice on school boards.

Among these changes is Assembly Bill (AB) 728, requiring the California Instructional Quality Commission, an organization which works to recommend curriculum framework to the state Board of Education, to develop a model curriculum for high school students in Native American Studies. This bill further requires districts without an already-existing Native American Studies curriculum to take this model into consideration and use it as a basis for the curriculum they must plan to implement. In addition, AB 491 establishes a grant program to promote education on the exclusion, forced removal and internment of citizens and permanent residents of Japanese ancestry during World War II as part of the California Civil Liberties Public Education Act. Palo Atlo Unified School District (PAUSD) currently has processes in place to ensure that the material taught to students is compliant with legal requirements involving teachers and

staff across the district.

Although such topics are just now becoming mandatory by law, social studies teachers at Gunn have been incorporating them within their own class curricula for many years, as they feel that these topics are crucial in providing students with a more comprehensive and accurate picture of history.

Native American studies, for example, has been offered at Gunn for several years as part of the ethnic studies course, although not enough students have been interested to start a class. “Teaching an inclusive history is important,” social studies Instructional Supervisor Lynne Navarro said. “It would be impossible to teach U.S. history and look at World War II without looking at Japanese exclusion [because] it doesn’t make any sense.”

Navarro believes that although Gunn has already taken the initiative to teach a more diverse curriculum, the state is taking steps in the right direction. “I think if you don’t think about the whole picture, then you get what I had back in high school which, was the history of old rich white men,” Navarro said. “That’s not an inclusive history, so we need to look beyond that.”

Given the frequent talks of diversity, both in California as well as in national media, there has been a recent push for more education on the history and importance of race in the CA LAWS—p.3

2

News Stanford Blood Center, clubs organize on-campus blood drive Stephy Jackson

Centerfold Editor

On Thursday, Jan. 25, the Stanford Blood Center collaborated with iMed Club, Youth Community Service-Interact Club (YCS-I) and Sources of Strength to host a blood drive in the library. The blood drive’s purpose was to collect blood for patients in hospitals and spread awareness to students about the importance of donating blood. Stanford account manager Monica Doleshel helps coordinate all high school blood drives in the area that are in collaboration with the Stanford Blood Center. “The purpose of the blood drive is to collect blood from blood donor volunteers—preferably students, but staff and significant others are also welcome to donate,” she said. “Once that blood has passed all the tests required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it is then separated and sent to our local hospitals to patients who need blood transfusions.”

English teacher Diane Ichikawa reached out to Doleshel to start a blood drive at Gunn. “I was thrilled to be back and running blood drives again [at Gunn],” Doleshel said.

Ichikawa was motivated to start the blood drive following

the shootings in Las Vegas in October of last year. “My family lives in Las Vegas, and part of the reason why we wanted to do a blood drive this year is because we felt we needed to do something to help after the shooting that happened in October,” Ichikawa said.

Along with teachers, many students contributed to organizing the blood drive. “The students played a huge part in getting all of this rolling,” science teacher Angela Merchant said. “They made all the appointments [and] they organized all the volunteers to be here.”

Many of those involved in organizing the blood drive were there to spread the message that the need for blood never ends. “It’s important to start at a high school level donating blood because there’s an age requirement of 16, which is right in the heart of high school age," Doleshel said. “It’s good to get them started and educating them to understand that the need is 24/7. Understand that there’s a need every single day and that we shouldn't wait until there’s some big catastrophe to get involved in donating.”

Around 75 students signed up to donate blood on Thursday, including junior Chloe Shrager. Shrager worked in the Stanford Blood Center over the summer and stressed

the importance of donating blood. “I think that donating blood is a really simple and really easy way to give back if you’re healthy enough,” Shrager said. “I’ve seen first hand how important it is for people who are in need [of] blood transplants, and it’s a super valuable resource that is in high demand.”

Junior Edward Tang and sophomore Michael Tao are both members of the iMed club, which helped coordinate the blood drive. “There’s always a need for blood, so getting as much blood as possible is always important,” Tao said. The iMed club has been working to spread awareness about the constant need for blood donations. “People don’t recognize that it’s not just during disasters, and obviously the Las Vegas tragedy prompted a lot of response,” Tang said. “A lot of people wanted to donate blood after that, but even [during] the times between tragedies there’s still a need.”

The Stanford Blood Center, along with the iMed club, YCS-I and Sources of Strength, is trying to make the Blood Drive an annual event at Gunn. They hope to spread awareness about the significance of getting involved and donating blood on a regular basis.

Annual TEDx conference features range of topics, speakers Liza Kolbasov Copy Editor

On Jan. 20, the eighth annual student-run Gunn TEDx conference was held at Palo Alto High School’s Haymarket Theater. This year’s theme was Crossroads, and the conference featured diverse speakers on topics such as stepping out of your comfort zone, the complicated journey to success, the importance of writing and escaping a culture of comparison. “I thought that the speakers were pretty high quality,” TEDx co-president junior Hannah Kim said. “I like the messages that a lot of them carried.”

The Crossroads theme was chosen to emphasize uniting different ideas and aspects of one’s personality, as well as splitting away from the conventional way of thought.

“Crossroads is where paths intersect, and also where they diverge,” Kim said. “We wanted our theme to be something that is really like an overarching umbrella a lot of different people can relate to.”

Math teacher Michael Bautista evoked the Crossroads theme through his speech focusing on the importance of interdisciplinary learning. He brought together math and music, showing how the two are related and how applying music to math can make material more relatable to students.

“We can strengthen our knowledge on a topic by targeting different modes of learning,” Bautista said in his speech.

Senior Ethan Houston spoke about the crossroads within himself as someone who had moved several times throughout his life. “I'm always at this kind of intersection where I don't really know what identity I belong to,” he said in an

interview.

Houston’s speech emphasized the importance of recognizing different cultures of immigrants in the U.S. “What I wanted my main takeaway to be from the talk was that we

ferent connotation. “When I think of a crossroads, I think about strangers just passing by each other and being on their own paths,” Gao said. Her speech emphasized the harmful environment for mental health fostered by Gunn’s culture of comparison and the importance of escaping from that pressure. “I think it’s really hard to recognize when something is abnormal in that kind of environment," Gao said. "So talking about mental illness, I think a lot of people just pass each other by, [and] even if they might think that someone has something wrong with them, they won’t say anything about it.”

The theme also resonated in several of the performances at TEDx, including a jazz violin combo by Stanford University students Kartik Chandra and Doug Klink. “Piano and violin is not an uncommon combination, but… you don’t think of violins [as] jazz,” Kim said. “That’s an intersection of music.”

A lot of careful work and planning went into this year’s conference. The TEDx club started to work on the event in second semester of last year with their search for adult speakers. “The way that we collect adult speakers is we actively hunt them down,” Kim said. “[We think] ‘Here’s a cool adult who we think might make a good speaker at the Richard Yu Senior Ethan Houston speaks at TEDx about the event.’” These adults, such as this year’s Konstantin Guericke many similarities b et ween dif ferent cultures . from LinkedIn and Douglas Eck, a researcher working on art and technology integration, are then invited to speak at should travel to be able to empathize [with] and understand the event. After searching for adult speakers, the club put out an open call for student speakers, who began rehearsing these immigrants,” he said.

For senior Jenny Gao, the Crossroads theme had a dif- early this school year.

District, Gunn prioritizes safety of undocumented students ICE

-nifer DiBrienza stressed the district’s pledge to uphold the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) in order to protect student information. “The only way that we would have to tell, would be if there was an explicit judicial order or subpoena saying that we have to provide that information,” she said.

The district’s efforts would be reinforced by a proposed California bill to require federal immigration agents to obtain a warrant before arresting or questioning people.

The bill passed the state senate on Jan. 29, but still needs to pass the state assembly.

Immigration attorney and PAUSD parent Marcia Perez says that while the resolution is a strong act of solidarity, there is not much the district can do to prevent ICE agents.

“It is important to send a message of unity and that we stand with immigrant families, but it may be more symbolic than substantive,” Perez wrote in an email. “Yes, it is important for students to see that their district stands with them and protects them but ICE rarely, unless looking for a specific person with a warrant, conducts raids at schools or requests info from districts.”

Assistant Principal Pier Angeli La Place notes that the number of undocumented families and students in the district is unclear since the district does not collect information about immigration status. “It would be difficult to estimate because the nature of undocumented status is not too evident,” she said. “If I had to estimate, I would say that the number of undocumented students is on the smaller end of our community.” In the event that ICE agents were

to come onto campus, the tentative first course of action would be to withhold student information; without the school’s cooperation, ICE would have difficulty finding and arresting undocumented students. According to La Place, the school would not identify students or provide student schedules or locations unless the agents had a federal warrant.

Similar to churches, schools are generally seen as sensitive locations where ICE raids are an uncommon occurrence. However, Perez warns that agents may come looking

“I think it’s incumbent upon the rest of us as a community to do that and advocate for them.”

—School board member Jennifer DiBrienza

for a specific person with a warrant, and that off-campus locations can be dangerous for undocumented individuals. “It should be noted there is nothing stopping ICE from taking students and/or parents into custody once they step off school grounds onto public property,” she wrote.

The administrators emphasized that student safety is their priority and brought up the legal concept of in loco parentis, where a school acts as a guardian on behalf of the students’ parents. “My hope is [the arrests] never [happen],” Principal Kathleen Laurence said. “But I do want students who may be undocumented to know that we will do everything in our power to protect them, because the reality is,

when kids are at school, we’re in loco parentis... So if they’re my kids, they’re my kids and they’re not going anywhere.”

World Languages Instructional Supervisor Liz Matchett urges students to make their own informed opinions about the undocumented immigrant arrests. “At this point in your lives, you’re starting to be young adults and so it’s worth it to not just accept what adults tell you, whoever those adults are, [but] to look for yourself, to read the information and find out for yourself,” she said. “Maybe you believe that we should get rid of everyone who's here in an undocumented fashion, but I encourage people to look into that and find out what that would really mean, what would happen to our country if we didn’t have people here.”

DiBrienza believes the community has the ability to support any undocumented families. As these families are unlikely to raise their voices to protect themselves for fear of endangering themselves, she sees it as the community’s responsibility to do so on their behalf. “We can also continue to speak out, and to march, and to rally, and to contact our congressperson to let them know that we expect our representatives to stand up for our immigrant families,” she said. “I think it’s incumbent upon the rest of us as a community to do that and advocate for them.”

Dauber encourages the community to help undocumented families. “I think that offering friendship and moral support, offering to help fund legal services for immigrant families, housing—these families really are disadvantaged by federally mandated discrimination and the right response, I think, is to offer help wherever we can,” he said.

News THEORACLE 780 Arastradero Rd. Palo Alto, CA 94306 (650) 354-8238 www.gunnoracle.com

Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief Deiana Hristov Managing Editors Grace Ding Janet Wang News Sohini Ashoke Carolyn Kuimelis Amanda Lee Forum Caroline Ro Kaya van der Horst Kristen Yee Features Emma Chiao Chelsie Park Grace Tramack Centerfold Joy Huang Stephy Jackson Sports Paulo Frank Bridgette Gong Jack Mallery Lifestyle Megan Li Yael Livneh Katie Zhang Changing the Narrative Joanna Huang Photo Editor Richard Yu Graphics Editors Sherry Chen Jeffrey Yao

Staff Business/Circulation Eric Epstein Assistant Business/Circulation Ryan Manesh Copy Editors Laurel Comiter Jennifer Gao Liza Kolbasov Oracle/SEC Liaison Kaya van der Horst Graphics Artists Catherine Chen Tiffany Chen Mina Kim Grace Liu Gary Wu Photographers Justin Hong Sofia Sierra-Garcia Max Wang Reporters Quinn Arbolante, Colin Jaeger, Chiara Jurczak, Devon Lee, Ryan Li, Jamisen Ma, Natalie McCurdy, Elisa Moraes Liu, Peter Oh, Noa Rapoport, Joyce Shea, Sophia Siegel, Nikki Suzani, Tejpal Virdi, Grace Williams, Joshua Yang

Friday, February 2, 2018

3

Art students paint mural for custodial staff basic colors for each section of the mural. The MURAL scapes work,” Hubenthal said. “The project also finished product will be a mural of acrylic paint reflecting the art technique of “trompe l'oeil,” helped me with color mixing.”

Other students, like sophomore Jessica Ko, which tricks the eye into perceiving a piece of were hesitant to partake in the project at first. art in three dimensions. “It’s where there’s a “My initial reaction was that I didn’t want to break, in this case the wall, and we’re going into [paint] anything cheesy like rainbows and sunshine, but after I thought about it I thought it would be a good chance to try something new,” she said.

After the project was launched, Lui, Hubenthal and Messinger began to brainstorm ideas for the mural with the custodians. One of the primary goals of the students and Messinger is to create a space for custodians where they can feel comfortable and relaxed. The finalized idea is tropics-themed: it will appear as if the sheds are being broken Richard Yu into and leading to a place of clear skies and S ophomores A shley Hub enthal and Jamie oceans. “I talked with [Messinger] and I said Wang and freshman Chlo e Li work on the I wanted something refreshing like a beach or mural. something green,” Hernandez said. “[The students and I] talked about it, but, I mean, other another world,” Messinger said. “It will appear as though the wall is broken and behind it are than that it was almost all the students.”

So far, a basic foundation has been set down. the tropics."

Students are primarily painting after school, District workers have added a layer of primer, and the art students have begun painting the with FlexTimes open for those who would

like to participate, but have a tighter schedule.

Leaders Lui and Hubenthal have also started a spreadsheet tracking hours of painting to give out community service hours for participation. The project is still currently open to any students who would still like to participate, regardless of experience. “I think [there’s] a lot of us learning on the fly, because I didn’t have much experience and a lot of other students with us didn’t have much experience as well,” Lui said. “We’re helping each other create different techniques and styles.”

Messinger is now also planning beautification projects that are more permanent than the scroll paintings that senior Advanced Placement Studio Art students do at the end of the year. “I would [participate in a similar project] if I was given the chance,” Ko said.

There is no concrete deadline, although participants and Messinger would like to get it done as quickly as possible. Messinger hopes that the mural will remind students of all the hard work custodians do for the school. “The point for me, and that I hope gets across to the students, is to appreciate our custodians a little bit more,” she said. “A part of it is giving back to them.”

New California education laws in effect for 2018 CA LAWS

U.S. According to Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Board President Ken Dauber, much of this comes as a response to the rhetoric of the Trump administration. “I think that the election of President Trump and the racism and discrimination that have followed on that are probably why the legislature thinks it's important to teach diversity,” Dauber said.

Aside from changes in curriculum requirements, significant changes to the sex education curriculum and the availability of feminine hygiene products have been made as well.

Californian schools are now required to expand their sex education curricula to include a wider variety of topics including relationship violence, partner violence and human trafficking by AB 643, which was passed in tandem with AB 10 last year. This new bill will address a push by parents in Palo Alto to prepare and better educate students on how to handle and identify realistic situations involving sex and drugs, following the sexual assault scandals over the past two years. “We heard from a lot of parents that they want a curriculum that teaches students about how to handle real life situations including peer pressure, including sexual harassment, sex and drugs and in the context of sexual relationships,” Dauber said.

Comprehensive sex education is provided at Gunn as part of the Living Skills class, which is required by PAUSD for graduation. Gunn’s Living Skills class uses the Health Connected

Program, a non-profit organization that provides sex education programs also used to teach fifth and seventh-graders at PAUSD, which already includes information about early warning signs of relationship abuse. According to District Nurse Rosemarie Craig, information about human trafficking has recently been added on top of the sex trafficking curriculum and is set to be taught next year. “[The district] has just provided the update to add human trafficking and we already sent that out to our Living Skills teachers. It’s part of our Living Skills curriculum that hasn’t been presented yet for this year,” she said.

Craig says that relationship abuse is already in the Gunn Living Skills curriculum, and information on human trafficking has been received by Living Skills teachers to be taught this semester.

California AB 10 will require schools with at least 40 percent or more of their students qualifying as low income to provide free feminine hygiene products in half of their bathrooms. Although Gunn's low income population is below this percentage, Craig believes that requirements simply begin at lower-income schools because of their relative lack of resources and funding, but that such obligations should extend to Gunn as well. “I do know both of our high schools are looking at implementing this anyway, even though we don’t meet the 40 percent level. This is a way to say our kids deserve this just as much,” Craig said.

Currently, Gunn’s health office offers free feminine hygiene products but does not distrib-

INBOX

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Please include your name, grade and contact information should you choose to write one.

ute them to bathrooms around campus, as it is unclear who would be responsible for filling, maintaining and checking the restroom dispensers. According to Craig, however, the Gunn health office has been working with the Wellness Center to introduce a system that provides accessible tampons and pads in girls’ bathrooms.

“We have talked to the wellness centers already to look at figuring it out system-wise how to get [this plan] going,” Craig said. Their collective proposal to put feminine hygiene products is currently pending approval from the school board.

ABs 468 and 261 recognize the rights of student board members and require them to receive preferential voting rights (the right to formally express an opinion before the board votes) on all education boards, as well as open meeting materials and invitation to staff briefings provided to every other non-student board member. Preferential voting for school board representatives was adopted this school year, and Gunn’s student board representative, senior Advait Arun, along with Palo Alto High School’s Richard Islas, are already provided with the same meeting materials and treatment as other board members. The two representatives are also required to vote first during meetings. “We’re already ahead of the curve. [Student board members are already] full participants in meetings; they have every right to comment, they comment pretty extensively and I think they often contribute to the discussion,” Dauber said.

Letters and Comments may be edited to meet space requirements and the writer is solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.

Letters to the Editor, Comments and ideas for coverage may be sent to oraclegunn@gmail.com or posted on our Facebook page. These letters need not be from current students.

Maybe have a spotlight on a student or a relatively unknown school club or an event that’s doing something cool, and hand out more newspapers.

—Audrey Xie, 10 It would be cool if booths that contain The Oracle could be placed around campus. Maybe make magazines? They’re more modern and easier for readers.

—Grant Cheng, 9

Tech Editors Julia Cheunkarndee Andrew Zhao Adviser Kristy Blackburn December 8th, 2017

I think it would be interesting to see like student surveys on various topics.

—Tiffany Mu, 11

The Oracle is the second place Best of the West winner at the 2017 NorCal Media Day I really like how the Oracle manages to maintain an unbiased and professional attitude while still delivering interesting and relevant content.

—Zach Meyers, 9

4 Forum YouTube should manage content responsibly Carolyn Kuimelis

In recent months, YouTube has been under fire for letting inappropriate—and sometimes disturbing—content slip through their filters. On Dec. 31, one of YouTube’s most subscribed-to vloggers, Logan Paul, uploaded a video to his channel in which he filmed a body hanging from a tree in a Japanese forest infamous for suicides.

He starts the video by assuring his viewers that the title (“We found a dead body in the Japanese Suicide Forest”) is “not clickbait,” and that viewers should “buckle up.” Unsurprisingly, Paul faced immense backlash within hours of posting the vlog for his extreme disrespect and misuse of his influence. Unfortunately, Paul’s video is indicative of a larger problem surrounding online platforms. With exaggerated clickbait titles and grossly offensive videos becoming ubiquitous on the platform, YouTube is fostering an environment of extreme entertainment—one that has no morals and relies on shock value to get views.

It’s no secret that controversy elicits curiosity; people have been using flashy headlines to entice readers since the invention of the tabloid newspaper. But because anyone can enable their YouTube channel for monetization (meaning they receive money when someone watches an advertisement played on their video), set up an advertisement on their upload and create a flashy thumbnail, it seems that YouTube has turned into the perfect place for a competition on who can create the most over-the-top content and accumulate the most ad revenue. YouTube has over one billion users—almost one-third of all people on the internet. That’s a lot of clicks. YouTube’s increasing popularity, combined with the decline of traditional cable television as an entertainment source, makes it an attractive career option for aspiring entertainers. According to Forbes, the highest paid YouTubers made a combined total of $127 million in 2017. With more and more people relying on YouTube as their main income source, it’s no wonder that vloggers often resort to outrageous clickbait thumbnails to get views. Titles like “LIGHTING MY BROTHER’S POOL ON FIRE” and “EXTREME PRANKS GONE WRONG” make up the majority of videos on the trending page.

Of course, not all vloggers are money-crazy monsters; there are YouTubers who use their platforms to make a positive change. Last November, YouTuber Colleen Ballinger raised over $50,000 for childhood cancer prevention, and many YouTubers use their influence to promote good values and clean content. Still, the nature of YouTube is promoting a culture in which content creators will do and film anything to get views, and many,

like Logan Paul, forget when to put the camera down.

Of course, YouTube does attempt to do its part by removing inappropriate content from the website. The problem is, they just aren’t that good at it. Paul’s video was deleted in under 24 hours, but not by YouTube. Despite the company’s policy that prohibits violent or gory content posted in a shocking, sensationalized or glorifying manner, the video accumulated over 6.3 million views before Paul himself removed it from his channel. YouTube didn’t release a formal statement until after the controversy.

For parents, YouTube is the perfect way to keep a young child occupied: it’s portable, engaging and there are thousands of videos aimed directly at children. Because of this huge market, there has been a vast proliferation of short, computer-animated kids’ videos. Additionally, many channels pirate popular T.V. shows they know children will recognize. The problem arises, then, with disturbing knock-off nursery rhymes and T.V. clips. Videos of a fake Peppa Pig eating her father or drinking bleach appear to an innocent child as inviting and safe. It may be easy for some videos to slip through YouTube’s filters, but when children are mistakenly watching their favorite cartoon character committing such atrocities, there is a problem.

Another way in which YouTube controls its content is through demonetization of videos that do not adhere to the Community Guidelines. Videos including drugs, violence, inappropriate language or sexually suggestive content, for example, will be removed of advertisements; the creator will not earn a profit from views on the video. The troublesome thing is that the guidelines seem to prioritize the wrong things. After the Las Vegas shooting, YouTuber Casey Neistat posted a video announcing a campaign to raise money for injured victims.

He promised to donate all ad revenues from the video to his GoFundMe campaign. His video, however, was soon demonetized due to its content being related to a tragedy.

YouTube is popular because its format allows content creators to interact with viewers in a way that traditional media doesn’t allow. With the face-to-face interaction that social media brings, it’s easy for popular YouTubers to gain loyal subscribers. Thus, it is of the utmost importance that YouTubers—especially ones with young, impressionable fans—understand the influence they have over their viewers and think beyond monetary incentive when deciding what to post (or film). Unlike most mainstream celebrities, Logan Paul didn’t have an army of publicists filtering his content for the sake of his image.

But common sense and basic morals should have told him how grossly disrespectful and dangerous his filming and posting the video was, especially given the wide digital influence he has. Not everyone is going to make the right call in deciding what constitutes inappropriate content.

In these cases, YouTube has the responsibility to remove potentially harmful content—before the damage is done.

Up next

—Kuimelis, a senior, is a News Editor.

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Comments in the Crowd Do you think YouTube manages its content responsibly?

“Sometimes they may have their own opinions on things so they may keep certain content, but I do believe they manage content responsibly.”

Haleigh Broshan (9)

“I don’t think YouTube really cares about its content as long it’s making money.”

Xuanyi Wang (10)

“I feel like they help their bigger YouTubers and keep promoting the bigger ones. YouTubers are sort of becoming their own brand.”

Dylan Teare (11)

“I guess, yeah, it’s good that they removed [Logan Paul’s] premium ads.

They need people to watch the videos and make sure they are all good.”

Michelle Amalraj (12) ­—Compiled by Ryan Manesh

Forum

Friday, February 2, 2018

PDA interrupts SCHOOL, PROFESSIONAL ENVIRONMENTS

W u

—Livneh, a junior, is a Lifestyle Editor.

ry

To some Gunn students, public displays of affection (PDA) are just a part of life. But what can begin as a cute gesture can quickly become disrespectful, uncomfortable and inconvenient to others.

Gunn’s campus should not have to be subjected to view what should be private moments between two fully consenting students, and those who chose to partake in PDA should be aware and considerate of their fellow students.

A school campus is a professional environment, one meant for education and work. Students and staff should not have to dodge behind buildings and shield their eyes in order to avoid a couple making out in the hallway. Every place on Gunn’s campus should be a safe and comfortable space for everybody. Physical feelings of love or affection are a personal concern and should not be forced upon anyone who may not be comfortable with them, even if they are just accidental onlookers. At Marshall Middle School in Marshall, Minnesota, a study found 70 percent of students felt there were “too many displays of public affection,” according to British online newspaper The Independent. Couples that will see each other within the next 24 hours or over the next weekend should not be acting like one is leaving for a two-year deep-space mission; in the extreme case they are, goodbyes can be said before so others are not subject to their love.

While the term PDA covers the classic culprits of making out or groping, the umbrella term also covers smaller acts like holding hands, hugs or cheek kisses. Page 22 of Gunn’s student handbook defines PDA as “Excessive Affection,” citing that “excessive affection is neither appropriate nor permitted at any time during class, out of class or related to any school event.” But what does “excessive” really mean? Where do we draw the line from an innocent hug to indecency?

PDA—to an extent—is an essential part of a healthy relationship. The ability to express one’s affection for another through touch is crucial, mentally and physically.

Research conducted at the University of Northern Carolina showed that women who received more warm, physical touch from their partners had lower blood pressure and heart rates. Touch strengthens the immune system through gentle pressure on the sternum and solar plexus. This stimulates the thymus gland, which regulates and balances the body’s production of white blood cells, and in turn, keeps you healthy and disease free. Human touch has been shown to be extremely beneficial, but there must be a limit set and respected on campus.

PDA is not only uncomfortable to see—it is also uncomfortable to bear. Single students on campus who previously did not have to spend time thinking about relationships or ‘finding the one’ are now indirectly pressured by groping couples to find someone. Even if students are happy not taking part in dating culture, some may get the impression that they are expected to partake in similar activities. In reality, relationships should be a student’s unbiased, unswayed and consented choice, and no one should feel pressed to seek out a connection that isn’t there.

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Yael Livneh

Why do couples even engage in PDA in the first place? For starters, it’s a public proclamation of a pair’s love for one another. Couples can “prove” their love for one another by expressing it physically. Another reason could be in the brain’s chemistry—clinical psychologist Dr. Chloe Carmichael explains how some couples genuinely feel a thrill when they gain the attention of people around them. She believes the exhibitionism behind the displays add a level of thrill to a daily humdrum life. Even a simple a touch as holding hands has been shown to increase cortisol levels; in other words, you can get physically addicted to mild levels of PDA. If there is simply no way to wait until after school, there are plenty of places on or near campus where it may be easier to share a moment without fear of making others uncomfortable or blocking traffic. Avoid crowded hallways, parking lots or quads.

Stick to the edges of campus for the best bet for privacy during school hours—the walking path behind the football field and the locker space behind the language buildings are prime locations. In the end, do what makes you and your special one happy (but try to keep it PG for the rest of us).

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Staffer destigmatizes being single at school Sohini Ashoke It is undeniable that high school is an environment filled with a multitude of pressures ranging from academic to social. One of these pressures that I have come across during my experience at Gunn is the negative connotation surrounding being single. Through my two and a half years in high school, I have noticed that whenever it comes up in conversation that I am currently single, people tend to say things like, “Oh, it’s okay, you’ll find someone,” or just a plain old, “Aww that sucks.” Although sometimes these comments get to me and make me feel out of place or abnormal, I try to remind myself that being single is not a negative thing: you do not need to be in a relationship to feel content or have fun. The pressures to date in high school come from my peers, the media and general social norms.

To start off, I want to clarify that I do not believe that being in a relationship in high school is a negative or problematic thing. If an individual feels fulfilled and happy in a relationship, then they should continue to do that. My statement is that being single should not be stigmatized or viewed as a negative and unhappy experience. A benefit of being single is having more time for yourself. I have had more time to focus on things like The Oracle and Model United Nations, which give me purpose and make me feel accomplished.

I have also never had to deal with the emotional stress that comes from breaking up. Personally, a lot of my friends and peers around me are in relationships, and they often have difficulty with understanding that it is possible to be single and happy. Although I have no issue with people who feel that a high school relationship is worth it for them, I feel that it has given me more free time and happiness.

The mindset that dating in high school is the normal thing to do partly comes from subliminal pushings from the media. As a single person, it is hard to feel like not being in a relationship is normal when the media constantly suggests otherwise. In many popularized shows and movies, the conventional students are often portrayed as dating, with an emphasis put on how happy they are in their relationship. The single people in these kinds of shows are consistently labeled as the stereotypical lonely, uncool, wannabe kids. Some examples of this are through shows like Pretty Little Liars, Riverdale and even movies for younger kids like High School Musical.

In Pretty Little Liars, for example, Emily, Aria, Spencer and Hannah are in a relationship in high school for almost the entire show. Although the media should not be a place to look for how to conform to so called “norms,” the reality is that many teenagers do.

Not every person desires a relationship in order to be happy, and for some people being single gives them more freedom and, consequently, more happiness. People can even be aromantic and simply not experience any emotional attraction to anybody at all. Given the pressure that being a high school student adds already, the emotional stress that can come from relationships, healthy or not, can negatively affect your life. An example of this is that when an individual is in a relationship, there is an inherent responsibility for your partner’s emotions, especially during disputes.

The reality of the situation is that high school for many people can be a place of stress and pressures, and people in high school should start changing their mindset towards being single in high school. People should start to see the positives in being single instead of viewing it as a place of discontent.

—Ashoke, a junior, is a News Editor.

Richard Yu

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Single-gender organizations Elisa Moraes Liu As we enter 2018, society has come a long way in terms of gender equality, but there is still a long way to go. Gender inequality still pervades, and women face significant barriers throughout their lives. There has certainly been meaningful improvement over the years, but men and women still face largely unequal opportunities in society.

This is why single-gendered organizations still matter. Women's organizations, particularly women’s colleges, play an important role in breaking down barriers.

Women’s colleges were originally created to offer women access to education. For most of our history, women have been excluded from academic institutions of higher education. Women were not allowed to study in most Ivy League colleges, for example, until the late 1960s and early '70s. While the vast majority of colleges are now coed, singlegender women's groups still have an important role to play.

Today, women are underrepresented in many areas, including the media, boardrooms and elected positions. The wage gap, for example, remains prevalent even in fields that are predominantly female. Certain single-gender organizations can help empower women, especially when the organizations strive for achieving societal equality.

Single-gendered organizations play a big role in helping to break down gender stereotypes. According to a study by U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration, women are far fewer in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, occupying fewer than 25 percent of jobs in STEM. In women’s colleges, gender stereotypes regarding occupations are much less common. There are far fewer preconceptions about which fields are appropriate for women, and gender biases don’t stand in the way of opportunities. In contrast, in many coed colleges, advanced STEM courses tend to be disproportionately male. Due to this composition, female students receive the message that these classes are not for them. According to College Wise, women in single-gender colleges are 1.5 times more likely to major in math, science or pre-med than those who attend coed colleges.

Women's colleges also have a role indirectly empowering women. They provide their students with women-dominated environment, offering direct access to role models. This access to role models and less-restricted education has impacted female students far beyond the college walls. Women are empowered to become the leaders of tomorrow, and are given a lift on their way to breaking glass ceilings. Many “firsts” have come from women who attend these institutions. The first woman to receive a Nobel Prize, to serve as a U.S. Army General and to be in a presidential cabinet have all been alumnae of women’s colleges. Currently, 20 percent

of women in Congress attended women's colleges, an astonishing fact considering only two percent of women who attend college attend these institutions. Women's colleges provide an environment with fewer barriers that helps women thrive in their future careers.

Although single-gender organizations for women have a clear role in society, organizations exclusively for men are surrounded by much more controversy. Men have historically held more dominant positions within society and experience a lot more privileges than women. As such, men do not really need the empowerment and role models that single-gendered organizations provide women.

We are living in a constantly changing society, one that has left the majority of single-gendered organizations in the past. But, unfortunately, it has not left gender inequality in the past. Our society still provides extra challenges for women, and gender discrimination is present throughout our lives. While we aspire toward gender equality, we should not be hasty about eliminating all genderbased organizations. Yes, many are outdated. But organizations such as women's colleges still have an important role left to play.

—Moraes Liu, a sophomore, is a reporter.

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Boy Scouts salute at the National Scout Jamboree.

Photos courtesy of Wikipedia, the Athenaem and Nikki Suzani

According to a study by U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration, women are underrepresented in STEM jobs, occupying fewer than 25 percent of positions.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary's 2017 word of the year was feminism, defined as “the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes.”

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stand test of changing times Girl Scouts promotes equity, ambition Staffer

Nikki Suzani

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According to CNN, Boy Scouts membership dropped by 10 percent between 2013 and 2016.

Joshua Yang Last October, the Boy Scouts of America announced that they would be accepting girls into Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. This decision lauded approval from many groups, including members of the Boy Scouts and local scout leaders. It also faced backlash, especially from the Girl Scouts of America, the female counterpart of the Boy Scouts.

However, the inclusion of girls into a traditionally male-only organization such as the Boy Scouts is part of a growing trend to break the gender barriers constricting our society. This change has reverberated across many different settings, from the formerly gentlemen-only clubs of London to Harvard University actively discouraging students from joining single-gender organizations. It’s high time this happened—single-gender organizations are becoming less and less relevant as our worldview changes and are clearly not as effective as gender diverse groups.

Single-gender organizations were started because of the disparities between the roles of men and women in society. This was a time period when women faced severe discrimination in all aspects of day to day life. However, the openly biased gender roles of the 18th century have long since become obsolete.

Indeed, there has been a prominent shift in the perception of male and female responsibilities in the 21st century. Merriam-Webster Dictionary’s 2017 word of the year was feminism, defined as “the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes.” With movements such as #MeToo, the Women’s March and Time’s Up, single-gender organizations are increasingly viewed as obstacles in the face of achieving true equality between genders. In fact, a 2011 study by Diane Halpern on the effects of single-sex schools found that such forms of education increased stereotypes around gender and created institutional bias.

Additionally, gender has increasingly deviated from a simple binary form. In fact, Facebook has allowed users to select their gender from a list of over 71 options, including pangender, transgender and androgynous. Single-gender organizations can no longer commit to accommodating the needs of everybody. However, gender-diverse organizations will

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have no s uc h prob l e m s a f f l ic t i n g ls Gir t hem. For ex a mple, until recently, both the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts refused to accept transgender members, resulting in a lengthy court battle.

Single-sex groups have also been proven to offer a less suitable setting than diverse organizations.

The 2006 study “The Paradox of Single-Sex and CoEducational Schooling” led by Alan Smithers and Pamela Robinson found students from coed schools were much more satisfied with their education experience than students from single-gender schools.

The 1974 study by R. R. Dale also concluded that the coed environment was considered happier than a single-sex school by both teachers and students alike.

Along with the higher levels of content found in nondiscriminatory organizations, there exists a direct correlation between diversity and productivity. One team of researchers at the Credit Suisse Research Institute has found that a company having at least one woman on the board delivered higher average returns on equity and had better growth.

One common argument employed by singlegender organizations to justify their continued operation is their role in the creation of a community fostering support for one gender and increasing the likelihood of equality. However, this argument is inherently hypocritical—the concept of a group accepting only members of a single gender goes against the very idea of equality.

Instead, a solution that would strongly promote gender equality would be the limitation of single -gender organizations and the encouraged creation of diverse groups. As many areas of our society continue to develop at a breakneck pace—from tech to scientific research—we can no longer tolerate the prevalence of archaic associations only offering membership to a single gender. Not only have they become irrelevant with our shifting perception of gender roles, but they have been shown to be less effective than their more diverse counterparts. It’s time for these outdated organizations to finally reflect the values of diversity and equality they have been attempting to promote and foster.

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—Yang, a freshman, is a reporter.

Every other Sunday, I bike over to the Los Altos United Methodist Church to attend my Girl Scout troop meeting. The air is always abuzz with excitement, and girls from all different backgrounds mingle together as one. We recount our escape room trip over the weekend, talk about the fun troop activities we have just completed and show off our new badges, badges that include cyber security, technology education and making a difference in the community. When we have all settled down, the troop leader sighs. Our planned trip to go build houses in Mexico will cost an additional 50 dollars per girl. A new Girl Scout quits before even attending a full meeting. She’s joining the Boy Scouts.

Ever since its founding in 1910, Boy Scouts has been more popular than Girl Scouts with a current enrollment of 2.4 million as opposed Girl Scouts’ 1.8 million, according to their respective websites.

Boy Scouts is seei ng a d rop i n its nu mbers: 10 percent between 2013 and 2016, according to CNN. Instead of making efforts to integrate their minority communities, Boy Scouts has shifted their focus to include girls in their troop, effective January 2018. This futile attempt at revamping their club will ultimately take away funding from Girl Scouts programs. Girl Scouts will see a decline in members and will stop many activities that they do.

The girls who are going to Boy Scouts are going for all the wrong reasons. While people may believe that Girl Scouts is just a club that sells cookies, troops around the world teach girls 21st-century skills. When we were eight years old, our troop took us to speak to a world expert on the environment and send letters to President Obama about our concerns. When we were twelve, we went ziplining in Puerto Rico. At thirteen, a girl’s desire to go to the Women’s March brought the entire troop to Washington DC. Every single girl in Girl Scouts has the opportunity to explore her passions.

As for the physical part of the scouts? Girl Scouts has monthly camporees where they go out into campsites and live without electricity or running water. Older girls are the leaders for these occasions and are given decisions on what they want to include in the experience. Girls of all ages climb obstacle courses, crawl across logs, climb trees and pull themselves up walls. They also learn how to pitch a tent, build a fire and identify plants that are safe to eat. These activities not only teach girls how to live in the wild, but also teach them how to be leaders to other girls, stay safe, keep others safe and connect with girls from all over the state. Girl Scouts do just as much as Boy Scouts, and girls can be the leaders that decide the activities they care about.

Ot hers might a rg ue t hat Boy Scouts is being inclusive by adding girls and that it is important they cultivate these coed environments so that girls know they are equal to boys. However, Boy Scouts are putting the girls in girls-only dens (groups that they do everything with), meaning that they are still keeping it single gender. Instead of trying to take girls from Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts should focus on the 90 percent of American boys who are unwilling to join their program, and try to appeal to them.

At the end of the day, Girl Scouts helps girls explore their passions and do more for their community. But if Boy Scouts’ move is successful and Girl Scouts loses funding from the girls leaving their troops, it will only cause this program that serves 1.8 million girls to lose their ability to actually make a difference. It’ll stop girls’ passions in their tracks.

—Suzani, a freshman, is a reporter.

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Features Students produce collaborative hip-hop album "Liftoff"

Grace Liu

On Nov. 28, a group of over 30 students and alumni released a hip-hop album that be a celebration of the diversity of thoughts and emotions found on campus. now has over 12,500 total listens on SoundCloud. The album, titled “Liftoff,” was led by Like many others on the album, this was Singh’s first musical production. He besenior Zac Sanders, who had the idea for a school-wide album three years ago. lieves that it was an incredible learning process and advises anyone who wants to get Sanders became interested in music during his freshman year and has been pas- into music production to be extremely passionate about what they are doing, since it sionate about it ever since. He started off by learning how to rap, but found his niche is really easy to give up mid-way. “The most important thing you can do is find your in producing tracks for people to rap or sing over, or beats. Aside from the music itself, niche and keep at it,” he said. “The worst thing you can do is get into music and give there was one underlying feeling that attracted Sanders into the hobby: his desire to up after a week.” Singh says that making an album is more than just making music, spark creativity in others. “The purpose of the album was for people to have an and that almost anyone can help in some way. “You can contribute a lot and outlet to express themselves,” he said. “The album was a place for students still not record anything,” he said. “Just putting in ideas is huge [yet] super to share their voice, independent of school, but still [in] a way that Gunn underrated.” could hear.” This goal finally turned into reality when he brought toSanders had a variety of goals for the album, including showing stugether 30 student rappers to make 15 inspiring tracks for the student dents that they have the power to make something notable. “One of body. the main messages of the album was that teens could create someThe journey wasn’t easy: from finding musical equipment to identhing great,” he said. “I wanted the students of Gunn to have sometifying talent, there were a lot of moving parts in the process. The thing created by them.” He added that there are a lot of students on album was originally supposed to be released last May, but ended up campus talented in music who simply don’t have the means to record getting pushed back six months. “We completely grinded for like three their own music. According to Singh, the album was meant to be a months before the seniors left, but it was just so bad that we were like benchmark for documenting student creativity and encouraging stu‘There is no way we can drop this,’” senior Shaan Singh, who helped prodents to be confident in what they produce. Moreover, Sanders wanted to Sherry Chen duce the album, said. “It really came together by the end though. One of our bring students of all backgrounds and experiences together when making the most famous songs came together on literally the last day.” album. “I tried to get all the grades involved since I don’t feel any sort of grade divide,” The tracks are named after famous places all over the world, but the lyrics have a he said. “It was really cool to see seniors and freshman sharing earbuds, listening to the much more intimate meaning. According to senior Thomas Burton, who was featured album and getting inspired.” on the song “Amazon,” the tracks are related to each other, with each song having a The group is extremely proud of their work and hope they have inspired others to personal connection to the artist. “We would only have a few people in the studio at explore their creative side. They aspire to carry on the album’s legacy and keep promota time so we could keep it intimate and have the music come through better,” he said. ing collaboration and creativity within each class. “I’m not allowed to say much, but Burton explained that each song has a different perspective, and the album is meant to there is something in the works,” Singh said.

—Written by Tejpal Virdi

TOP FOUR SONGS 1. Liftoff (feat. Henry, Sean Yu & REVO): 2,032 plays 2. Tokyo (feat. Katie Chou, lil slide & Kemora Kun): 1,585 plays 3. Maui (feat. Waymyth, Mackenzie Mosier & orangeben): 1,244 plays 4. Interstate (feat. Wiexro, Eric Matthys & DeMario): 1,085 plays Find the album on Soundcl oud at : http s : / / s oundcloud.com/ zacsanders/sets/ liftoff

“The most important thing you can do is find your niche and keep at it. The worst thing you can do is get into music and give up after a week.” ­—senior Shaan Singh

“The album was a place for students to share their voice, independent of school, but still [in] a way that Gunn could hear.” —senior Zac Sanders

Left: Junior Yosa Salem and senior Zac Sanders listen to a new track. Middle: The lead organizers pose with the album cover after the album was released. Right: Students brainstorm musical ideas in the studio.

Photos courtesy of Zac Sanders

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Friday, February 2, 2018

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Freshman promotes creativity through online journal Andrew Zhao Tech Editor An avid reader of fantasy and science fiction, freshman Keshav Dhir manages Scribere, a free online literary journal. Every three months, the site publishes fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Scribere has four issues; the most recent one was published a month ago and includes stories ranging from a student discovering her mother having cancer to a sci-fi story involving government and aliens.

According to the website, anybody from ages 11 to 18 can submit a piece. Once submitted, a confirmation email is sent, and a board of editors determines whether the piece is fit for publishing or not.

The criteria for acceptance include an adequate plot, dialogue and engaging word choice. Near the journal’s publication, authors receive emails with either notification of acceptance or feedback and an encouragement to reapply. Finally, all pieces are uploaded and the journal is made live on the website.

Originally, Dhir directed his creative energies to writing and submitting his work to a publishing journal. But the experience was terrible. “I didn’t have anyway of knowing whether the publishers even received my submission,” Dhir said. “There was no way of contacting the publisher.” After having similar experiences with other journals, Dhir decided to create his own journal. “And that’s how Scribere was born,” Dhir said.

Dhir, the founding editor, recruited two Gunn students, sophomore Chiara Jurczak and freshman

Sachait Arun, to his team. But even with this team, setting up the journal was challenging. One major roadblock Dhir faced was building the website. Dhir was unfamiliar with website design and had to learn everything from scratch. “This site actually took probably about 30 to 40 hours using Wix,” Dhir said.

In addition, Dhir and his team needed to obtain grants to pay for their website, their workshops and their promotional materials. However, getting grants is easier said than done. “It was not exactly a cakewalk; there is a very extensive application process,” Dhir said. Nevertheless, Scribere succeeded in obtaining grants: one from Palo Alto Think Fund and another from Disney for National Mentoring Month.

These grants were used to hold creative writing workshops for Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD). There were three in total, and they were held at Gunn and Fairmeadow elementary school. According to Palo Alto Online, the workshop started off with participants writing in response to prompts such as “Describe a time when you felt elated.” Later, participants could share their works with other people.

“If they do so, they receive feedback from the other participants and me, plus Scribere’s board,” Dhir said.

At the end, all attendees received a custom notepad and a pen. Participants could choose to hand in their work for consideration for the upcoming March issue.

Dhir holds numerous jobs at Scribere. He is the primary manager of the Scribere website, and he makes sure that all approved pieces are published on it. In addition, he is in charge of finances: he pays the bills for the website and the promotions. Although Dhir is the founder, he has a board to assist in reviewing the submitted pieces.

According to Dhir, Scribere is unique in that it gives feedback to potential authors. Many journals give little to no information if they reject a submitted piece; Scribere does the opposite. If a piece is rejected, the board will write feedback detailing why the rejection occurred. “This way, we encourage authors to re-submit their work,” Dhir said.

Due to his success with Scribere, Dhir was recent-

ly featured on Palo Alto Online. Dhir believes that the article will help more teens get to know about and hopefully submit to Scribere. “I think that it will definitely help bring more publicity,” Dhir said.

As for the future of Scribere, Dhir has few set plans. However, he will definitely keep Scribere online only. “It is a lot cooler to see your work online instead of a book,” Dhir said.

Dhir himself is interested in pursuing a writing career. One of his aspirations is becoming a journalist, which includes joining The Oracle. Another potential path for him is to become an author. “I would like to do something with writing,” Dhir said.

Visit the literary journal at www.scribere.org

Sofia Sierra Garcia

Graphic by Jeffrey Yaoo

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vemo d e e f t h he t w o t a l l t o d t ha t o n n o k o e n g “I b u t ’s em t hink it s mov eed to . n e i t n m ls. I e t h n ea k tai y hav wome d to spthing the au se y nee some t h i s bec it. The that’s , but em a do ua lly, to do e s t h ” o o Us f ic u lt nt g iv a e T verM d i f ve me “ emw o ot e k f h o o t ” O . l m nce k k ind ve a rion hin c ha Ma “ I t ent is you hare beingr n a a se fo em hm Chelsie Park mov d becauors whohe net b a d fres t — t e t c ra a le a nder s a r i l y efiFeatures Editor of mg ged u ne c e s e are d e to d ra e not re, ther deser v a lso The “Me Too” hashtag went viral on social media in Oct. 2017 after sevs om gs. Su le who ere are thin ly peop but th ople.” eral sexual misconduct allegations against film producer Harvey Weinstein nite amed, cent pe surfaced. This viral hashtag sparked the #MeToo movement, supporting ua n mX be n e inno a i l l i survivors of sexual assault as well pushing for the end to sexual violence in W som ma n schools and workplaces. h s e —fr The use of this hashtag on social media has helped demonstrate the widespread prevalence of sexual assault and harassment. Popularized by actress Alyssa Milano in 2017, the hashtag has been used on Facebook and Twitter 1.7 million times in 85 countries, according to CBS. Many celebrities like Jennifer Lawrence, Viola Davis and Simone Biles have popularized the hashtag as well by sharing the hashtag with a short story of their own experience with sexual harassment or voicing their support for the movement.

The phrase itself was coined by social activist Tarana Burke in 2006 on the social networking site MySpace as part of a campaign to promote empathy and empowerment among women of color who had experienced sexual violence.

While the original purpose in 2006 was more aimed towards women of color, the purpose changed to encompass a larger meaning and group of people after it resurfaced in 2017. Now, men and women of all ages and races stand together to bring awareness to sexual abuse and its victims.

Not only is #MeToo spreading awareness, the movement is also taking steps to provide resources for victims to have access to healing and to advocate for changes in laws and policies surrounding sexual assault, especially for preventing sexual harassment in the workplace. The movement also emphasizes the importance of protocols that give victims in all industries the ability to file complaints without retaliation.

The #MeToo movement has even extended beyond the entertainment industry, making its way to influence legislation and policies. Inspired by the movement, Congresswoman Jackie Speier introduced a bill in Nov. 2017 that makes it easier to report sexual harassment on Capitol Hill. In the “Me Too” Congress Act, staffers in Congress may directly file a complaint within 180 days of the alleged misconduct without having to go through counseling, mediation and a 30-day “cooling off” period.

While the hashtag prompted conversations about sexual assault, it received backlash in countries all over the world, such as China, India and France, where sexual misconduct is not taken as seriously and incidents are rarely reported. Particularly in France, the hashtag sparked an intense debate when a public letter signed by over 100 French women denounced the #MeToo Movement.

The letter dismissed what the writers believed were relatively minor forms of sexual harassment. For example, a man rubbing his genitals on a woman without consent was described as a minor form of sexual harassment in the letter.

However, there was also repudiation of the letter itself, especially from young French women. The French version of the MeToo hashtag, #BalanceTonPorc (translating to #ExposeYourPig), started the BalanceTonPorc Movement, which has helped shift French attitudes towards gender relations and harassment in the workplace.

Despite the #MeToo Movement’s good intentions, the campaign has been criticized for having an undefined purpose, casting all men as perpetrators and causing people to become numb to the issue. Numerous actors have commented on the movement’s failure in distinguishing between varying degrees of sexual misconduct. However, Burke expected the backlash and emphasizes the need for everyone in the community, including men and women, to take action in order for change to happen. Burke has also laid out specific goals including actions toward protecting children in schools, updating sexual harassment policies and improving training in workplaces.

The #MeToo movement continues to reignite the importance for policy reforms in sexual misconduct in schools and the workplace. The hashtag provides support for victims of sexual assault, raises awareness for the prevention of sexual assault and inspires policy and attitude changes regarding sexual misconduct.

‘‘me too’’ sparks i n t e r n at i o n a l conve rsations

o” e To o f M “ s r m p. t he or t y i n t ea grou kp p l su i n as rea of u l ly m a ing re b “I f e nt , d unit en, we’ s. One nd m ,a ier ve m an m o cating at as wo f barr bout it oo” is edu ink th a lot ok ing a “Me T have I th down st ta l step. get to omen ing se is ju e a big ere youther w ces.” tho t can b nt wh ith o perien tha oveme d be w lar ex ia ldiv a m oice an d simi a V a v o’ve ha d ra ssa n wh e l rA enio s —

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Timeline of #MeToo

2006: Tarana Burke, a survivor of sexual assault, coins the phrase “Me Too” on Myspace.

Oct. 5, 2017: Actress Ashley Judd accusses Harvey Weinstein of sexual harrasment in a New York Times article.

Flickr

Oct. 29, 2017: Actor Anthony Rapp accuses actor Kevin Spacey of sexually harassing him when he was 14 years old.

Nov. 9, 2017: Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore is accused of sexually harassing underaged girls in a Washington Post article.

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Dr a ke S ch i l ler

TO REPORT SEXUAL ASSAULT ON CAMPUS: Report to any school employee or the District Compliance Office District Compliance Officer: 650-833-4262 or complianceofficer@pausd.org National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673

N ew s ex E d u cati o n pro m ote s s exual assau lt preve ntion

Joyce Shea In Aug. 2017, actress Alyssa Milano revived #MeToo to encourage people to speak up about being sexually assaulted; since then, millions of people have used this hashtag. An offshoot of this movement, #MeTooK12, focuses on bringing awareness of sexual harassment in schools. According to the Department of Justice, nearly 20 percent of girls between the ages of 14 and 17 have been victims of an attempted sexual assault. Inspired by the California Healthy Youth Act, Palo Alto has passed the new Required Comprehensive Sexual Health Education and HIV Prevention Education law, effective Jan. 1, 2018. This law mandates all students grades 7-12 to receive comprehensive sexual health and HIV prevention education once during middle school and again during high school. Through this law, students will learn how to prevent sexual assaut from occuring by learning about consent and signs of an unhealthy relationship between students. Students should be more invested in sexual harassment education as a part of school curriculum to learn a wealth of important information and to show their support for the prevention of sexual assault.

Sexual assault education will be a valuable addition to the Living Skills curriculum.

Before the implementation of this law, students learned about how women can protect themselves against sexual assault and about STDs and the harms of unprotected sex.

This course, however neglects to address both parties involved in sexual assault and harassment. The new curriculum seeks to show that all parties engaged in sexual relations are responsible for asking for consent, and provides a place in school to promote conversations about consent in sexual relationships.

When some students refuse to take the content seriously and are only taking Living Skills for credits, they are undermining the people who have worked hard to pass this law, as well as those who have fought for basic human rights on school campuses. The new law will add more material regarding adolescent relationship abuse and intimate partner violence, including its warning signs. It will be an important addition to the middle school sex education and Living Skills curricula by beginning the process of spreading sexual harassment awareness at a young age.

Moreover, students can take these lessons to college and beyond. According to Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN), an anti-sexual violence organization, a startling 11.2 percent of all college students are raped or sexually assaulted. It is useful to teach high school students that these actions are not acceptable. Many potential victims will learn how to protect themselves and others.

All middle school and high school students should be devoted to the sexual harassment prevention curriculum. The knowledge taught in these classes will help others in the future and change the way people respond to sexual harassment. By staying educated and promoting respect, students can create a more inclusive environment that reduce the amount of sexual assault in middle schools and high schools so that no student will have to say “me too” anymore.

— Shea, a senior, is a reporter.

e TOO Catherine Chen

Dec. 18, 2017: Time magazine names the “Silence Breakers” the 2017 Person of the Year.

Jan. 7, 2018: At the Golden Globes, Oprah Winfrey speaks about the “Me Too” movement and equality in the workplace.

Jan. 24, 2018: Former Olympic Gymnastics team doctor Lawrence Nassar is sentenced to prison for 40 to 175 years for muliple convictions of sexual harrasment.

Jan. 28, 2018: Grammy attendees accessorize with white roses as a gesture of unity for the “Me Too” movement.

Features 12 First encounters: teachers share stories about life danny hahn r e h

h te

ac

Currently on paternity leave, math teacher Danny Hahn and his wife Clara met when they were attending the University of Pennsylvania; he was a senior, and she was a freshman. At first, Hahn was intimidated by her seemingly cold nature, but began to develop a crush as he got to know her throughout the year. “I was like, ‘Oh, this girl is a little bit scary,’ but she was fun to talk to, and at the time she had a biting sarcasm that I thought was entertaining,” he said. “She’s changed a lot since then; she used to be a lot darker, and now she’s generally a lot more cheery.”

Despite his feelings at the time, Hahn was older than her and tried to avoid a relationship because it was Clara’s first year in college. “I really believe that freshman year is good for you to develop a lot of friendships, learn how to study and live by yourself; all of those transitions,” Hahn said. “So I didn’t want to swoop in and date her. Even though I liked her for a lot of the year, I kind of tried to play it cool.”

One of Hahn’s favorite memories before they began dating occurred in one of their dorm lounges. “There was a bunch of us hanging out and someone brought in a bag of clementines. And she was like, ‘Hey, give me one of those,’ so I threw it at her from across the room, and she just really casually caught it with her left hand because she was writing with her right hand,” he said. “And I was like, woah, this girl is really cool and has skills.”

The following year, when Hahn was out of college and staying in Philadelphia, the two kept in touch since he lived near campus. “She was a sophomore at the time and we hung out a lot,” he said. “I think she kind of started to get the vibe ‘[That] guy likes me more than just friends,’ so she sat me down and was like, ‘What are you doing, what’s going on here?’ So we got everything out on the table and realized that we liked each other.”

After completing his senior year, Hahn began looking for jobs around Philadelphia that related to his major in chemical engineering. He wanted to stay in the area because of Clara. One of his friends was a science teacher at a private school near Philadelphia and notified him that there was an open position as a math teacher. “So, I interviewed and got that job, thinking that it was just going to be a one year thing before I went into engineering,” Hahn said. “But I really liked, it so I stuck with teaching.”

Although Clara had initiated the relationship, Hahn was the one to propose. It was their two year anniversary, and she was still in her senior year. “We spent the day together for our anniversary, and when we were out at dinner, I proposed. She was like super shocked,” he said.

ma t

—Written by Jennifer Gao

Photos courtesy of Danny Hahn

Focus on Success advisor Erika Diaz knew the moment she met her husband that he was the person she wanted to marry. “The first thing I actually said to him was that I was going to marry him one day,” she said. “Then he laughed at me and said, ‘Sure you are.’”

At the same time, Diaz ironically didn’t like him for many reasons. “I thought he was a player,” she said. “He would always be talking to a few girls at a time and I never thought he would be marriage material.”

As a high school senior, Diaz met her husband Eduardo at a friend’s house; they have since been together for 15 years and married for 12. They started out as best friends. “We would hang out a lot and whenever I would introduce him, I kept introducing him as a friend, and he would get mad at me for that,” she recalled. “Then, I told him ‘Well you haven’t asked me or anything,’ and so he asked me and at first I said no.” She was a bit miffed at the time because he had initially rejected her, saying he felt that she was more like a sister to him. But the next day, Diaz told him “yes” and they started dating officially for the first time.

While their relationship was quite happy, there were many financially tough times for the couple. “We didn’t have any money,” Diaz said. “In college, our first Christmas we celebrated together, we were broke, so we wrapped cans under our tree as gifts.”

The Diazs also didn’t have much to eat during those hard times. “We lived on macaroni and cheese and Top Ramen for one whole month,” she said. “I can’t eat any of those foods at all to this day.”

For Valentine’s Day, the couple keeps their celebration simple, yet sweet.

“On Valentine’s Day, we usually grab dinner together, and he gets me one flower—I don’t like a lot of roses,” Diaz said.

Looking back at her journey with her husband, Diaz feels like she is the luckiest person on earth. “I am lucky I got to marry my best friend. Marriage and love is not easy and is not always hearts and flowers,” she said. “There are ups and downs along the way, but if you have a partner who is there with you through it all, it’s one hell of a ride. Make sure that special someone raises you up and makes you smile, because the best feeling in the world is being loved.”

focus on success advisor Erika diaz

—Written by Peter Oh Photos courtesy of Erika Diaz

13 with their high school, college sweethearts

Features

Friday, February 2, 2018

english teacher marc igler

Love can come at unexpected times, as in the case of English teacher Marc Igler, who met his wife while attending college at University of Southern California (USC).

During the winter of 1984, Igler, a college senior and editor for the Daily Trojan, the student newspaper, had his typical day in the newsroom disrupted by a knock on the door. At the time, he was unaware that the person on the other side of the door would change his life forever. “There was this beautiful young woman who said she wanted to be reporter for the Daily Trojan,” Igler said.

As per the paper’s recruiting protocol, Igler gave her a fact sheet— essentially “the test” of a reporter’s skills—and realized he recognized her family name. “When I heard her name at the time, I did a double take because at the time her father was a big professor of journalism at USC who was really well known,” Igler said. “He had a frightening reputation for being intimidating, but he was very well liked.”

This introduction created a lasting bond, as their relationship developed far beyond the college campus. Six years after that, Igler and his wife Jennifer Cray were married— a memory that Igler is happy to revisit even after almost thirty years. “I still remember what she looked like in a wedding dress,” Igler said. Now, the happy couple has been married for 28 years and has two daughters.

There are several qualities that make Cray the right one for Igler. “She has a great sense of humor, is really smart—smarter than me—is really beautiful and is a really good mom,” Igler said. “I kind of married up in that sense.”

Courtesy of Marc Igler

—Written by Bridgette Gong

Photos courtesy of Jeanette Tucker

living skills teacher jeanette tucker

“Obnoxious,” was the first thought that came to Living Skills teacher Jeanette Tucker’s mind when she first met Michael.

Now, they have been dating for 17 years. They met in the stockroom of Crate and Barrel at the Stanford Shopping Center in May 2000, when Tucker was a junior at Gunn. She was taking a tour of the stockroom to prepare for her new job at the store, where Michael already worked. “I thought he was cute the second I met him,” she said.

As coworkers, they often took their lunch breaks together. Goofing around as friends slowly evolved into a more romantic relationship.

They went on dates, but neither of them was clear on if the other person liked them. After a conversation in Tucker’s room in July 2000, they began to officially date. Their relationship faced disapproval because Michael planned to go to military basic training in August that year. “A lot of people told me, ‘Don’t waste your time with someone in the military,’ but I’m glad I didn’t listen to them,” Tucker said. “Sometimes you know what is best for you even when everyone else is going to say that you don’t know what is best.”

For the three months Michael was at the military basic training, Tucker wrote him a letter every single day. He then went to Iraq for a year and served in the military for a total of six years. “I would say that it’s pretty unlikely you meet your number one when you are in high school, but just because things seem difficult doesn’t mean that you have to throw it away,” she said. “If you found someone special who brings out the best in you and you bring out the best in them, maybe it’s worth fighting for.”

Tucker’s favorite attributes of Michael are that he is logical, calm and an incredibly supportive person who always wants the best for her. In Tucker’s high school years, Michael would not see her until she finished all her homework. “He was a very supportive person in terms of school and he was my biggest cheerleader for doing well in school,” she said.

On Tucker’s 21st birthday, Michael could not be with her because he was in San Diego for military preparations before he left for Iraq. Tucker, studying at DeAnza, received a call from her brother. “He was like, ‘Mike sent you something,’ and I was like, ‘oh okay, don’t tell me what it is, it’s a birthday present so I don’t want to know’,” she said. “He goes, ‘Okay, well this is weird’.” Later in the day, she opened the door of her house to find five vases of roses in the entryway. “I was like, oh my gosh so many flowers! I looked further into my house and every surface was covered in red roses!” Michael had sent 21 dozens, or 252, red roses as Tucker’s birthday present.

Even though they are not officially engaged yet, the couple plans to get married in the future. “It’s pretty amazing when you find a partner who brings out the best in you and encourages you to be your best,” she said.

—Written by Joy Huang

Graphics by Sherry Chen and Grace Liu

14

Sports

Sports reporters provide biased cover of Winter Olympics

Kaya van der Horst If you watched NBC’s coverage of the Rio Olympics back in 2016, you will surely remember the stellar performances by Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky, Michael Phelps and the first African-American woman to win an individual Olympic gold in swimming, Simone Manuel. While these phenomenal athletes received their well-deserved attention, their successes were disproportionately covered in comparison to the remaining 286 medals. In fact, after experiencing the Olympics through American media coverage, one may have been under the impression that the international sporting event primarily consisted of two sports and one country: gymnastics, swimming and the United States.

As modern viewing habits have given spectators the power to consume media tailored to their own schedules—without the hassle of constant commercial interruption—television networks must seek creative solutions to engage their viewers. In 2014, NBC Universal, a for-profit network, paid a hefty price of $12 billion to the Olympics until 2032 for exclusive U.S. broadcast rights. According to Bloomberg Intelligence, however, prime-time broadcast viewership was down about 17 percent compared to the London games in 2012. Thus, NBC has resorted to treating the Olympics as a form of pure entertainment, rather than valuing the beauty of the 306 Summer Olympic

disciplines. Through their overly dramatic “storytelling” model, tape delayal of events and heavy focus on American athletes and “popular” sports, NBC has failed to do an adequate job of thoroughly covering the Olympics.

context may have resulted in a more exciting package, the tape delayal ultimately took away from the uniqueness of a live event.

Similar to the importance of the World Cup, the Olympics are unifying moments of history in which masses of the global popula-

viewers—particularly women. In 2016, NBC Olympics chief marketing officer, John Miller, argued that people who watch the Olympics “are not particularly sports fans” and women are “less interested in the result and more interested in the journey.” this creates the conception that the Olympics are like an ultimate reality show and entertainment bundle. NBC used this banal form of Olympic storytelling to document gymnast Jordyn Wieber in 2012. Heading into the games, the 17 year-old Michigan native was considered one of the strongest competitors to win an all-around gold medal.

But even after her teammate Gabby Douglas ended up becoming the first black woman to win the all-around gold and Wieber missed qualifying for the all-around finals, NBC continued to focus on their preselected narrative on Wieber nevertheless.

Instead of solely celebrating athletes for their achievements, NBC has exploited them for their compelling stories—tweaking the footage in a manner that converts the global sporting event into a narrative of American dominance.

While American success Sherry Chen stories have overshadowed the French vaulter’s horrifically broken leg or Fiji’s first Olympic medal, perhaps the television network has adapted for the upcoming Winter Olympics. Instead of striving for the most endearing storylines in hopes of garnering viewers, NBC should focus on objectively covering the Olympics in a fair and unbiased manner.

In 2016, the opening ceremony commenced at 7 p.m. EST, but was aired an hour later on the East Coast at 8 p.m.: the West Coast had to wait an extra four hours until 8 p.m. PST. By starting the “show” at 8 p.m. and leaving the conclusive results for midnight, NBC pieced together segments in order to create the suspenseful feel of a television show. While the addition of editing and

tion set their differences aside to root on their favorite athletes. With the upcoming Winter Olympics about to take place in Pyeongchang, South Korea, viewers can expect a similar treatment of editing and delayed broadcasting.

In addition to the annoyances of tape , NBC’s contrived Olympic narratives are vain attempts of emotionally appealing to —Van der Horst, a senior, is a Forum Editor.

Faces in the Crowd Does sexist reporting occur in the Olympics?

“I think that the reporters of the Winter Olympics honestly just speak in a way to convey something fun. I feel the Olympics are fun to watch because reporters present their thoughts.”

Benie Cohen (9)

“I don’t think the reporters are being sexist because the reporters cover the material in an equal way. I think reporters are gender-neutral with their reporting.”

Victor Auyeung (9)

“I think the reporters, they keep it pretty fair. They show both men and women in all the sports and also discuss both in similar lights.”

Tori Fong (10)

“Reporters are just doing their job so I really don’t think that they are being sexist, and just for entertainment because they are just doing their job.”

Gloria Xiao (10)

“I was shocked by some of the women’s commentary. I strongly believe that women need to be treated the same as men. Wake up. It's 2018.”

Rina Newhouse (11)

“I think that they judge the players too much, no matter whether its a woman or a man. Most of the talk is negative, not positive.”

Sol Caselles (11)

“Personally, I care more for the events than the interviews and comments of reporters, but I think they do a pretty good job. They’re pretty neutral in terms of gender.”

Ankur Mishra (12)

“I really don’t pay attention to how reporters report the actual information. But I feel like the actual actions are more fun to watch.”

Joshua Wu (12)

­—Compiled by Katie Zhang

Sports

Friday, Feburary 2, 2018

15

WINTER ATHLETES MAINTAIN THEIR COMPETITIVE EDGE AS SEASON PROGRESSES Girls Soccer The girls varsity soccer team is nearing the end of its regular season with three wins and one loss . They took a victory during their most recent game with a win of 2-0 against Wilcox on Wednesday, Jan. 24.

Coached by Juan Mayora, the team is composed of girls from all grades. Junior Isabella Phillips has played soccer for Gunn since her freshman year and has watched her teammates develop their strengths and overcome their weaknesses over the years. “Around half our team is freshmen, which is a big adjustment because that’s a lot of new players, but it’s still been going really well,” Phillips said.

Leadership is a key aspect of the team dynamic and overall performance of the team.

“The beginning was a little rough, but we’re doing a lot better now, and we have some really good leaders on the team.” To Phillips, learning and growing from experiences are a source of pride for her and her team.

As the season nears its end, Phillips reflects upon her team bonding memories and realizes that her newly formed friendships have made a lasting impression. Her teammates are what make the sport a truly special experience, as each game and practice is an opporunity to bond, regardless of what the score comes out to be. “There are also practices where we just talk and hang out, and it’s just really fun [and] engaging with the people who are on the team,” Phillips said.

Photos by Max Wang

Girls Basketball

Boys Soccer

Wrestling Boys Basketball The boys basketball team is moving through the season strong, with only one loss in their league so far. Seeded first, the team is hoping to maintain their position as they move farther along. “It’s important that we keep our ranking high through league because it means we can move through the first rounds of playoffs more easily,” junior Erhan Carefoot said. The team is hoping to improve from last year. “Every year we are trying to get better, and it shows through our wins and losses,” senior Collin Griffin said. “We want to show our improvement by winning more games than we did last year.”

The team strives to maintain their successful record of wins as they take on Milpitas High School on Wednesday, Feb. 7.

Although Gunn’s wrestling team has only had six games this season, eagerness is already building within the team to do well.

Last year, they placed 4th out of 14 teams at Santa Clara Valley Athletic League with a score of 146.0, only 1-2 wins behind Los Gatos High School, which scored 156. The wrestling team will have six more meets, three of which will be conference meets.

“I’m really looking forward to my upcoming games. I love just being able to take people down, and I’m really enjoying my time on the team” sophomore Eeshan Borthakur said. “I'm also trying to improve my record: I am currently 3-5, and I’m trying to win more and more games and end the season strong."

The team is ready to end the season well and will take on Cupertino High School at home on Thursday, Feb. 8 for their first conference game of the season.

The boys varsity soccer team is aiming to make Central Coast Section (CCS). Team captain junior Bob Hahn explains the team’s current position and aspirations for the rest of this season. “Right now we’re third in the league, and hopefully we’ll make CCS pretty soon,” he said. Hahn hopes for improvement in these areas of this season. “Obviously we are hoping to get first in league and hopefully make CCS,” he said.

Hahn suffered a setback when he tore his Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) a few months back, but he views his injury as motivation for being healthier and is eager to quickly get back on track. “In terms of goals for myself, I’ve been out the entire preseason and first part of the season since I tore my [MCL], so my goal is to get back and be healthy by the end of the season,” Hahn said.

Hahn also explains how his experience with being captain has alleviated any potential stress from the position, making leading the team a breeze. “This is my second year being captain of Gunn’s team so it’s pretty easy, and I already know most of the guys pretty well,” Hahn said.

After the first fifteen games of the girls varsity basketball season, the team sits at 0-5 in league and 2-13 overall. Despite this slowstart, head coach Hamadah Sharif is optimistic that the points and wins will start to come soon. “We [have] a great group of kids,” Sharif said. “They work hard and they just got a good attitude. We got to offensively put up more points, and play a little better at a faster pace. But they’re holding it down defensively— we’ll get there.”

Senior Shristi Sigdel also has high hopes for the rest of the season. “I hope that we will finish with a winning record and move on to Central Coast Section,” Sigdel said.

Senior Chloe Gong is impressed with the growth the team has undergone over the course of the season as well as the enthusiasm of new members on the team. “I wasn’t really expecting everyone on the team because we lost a lot of seniors from last year, but I think that everyone is passionate about the sport and we’re just learning really fast compared to other years I’ve been here,” Gong said.

Next Tuesday, Feb. 6, the Titans will square off against Palo Alto High School in attempt to avenge their Jan. 13 loss.

—Written by Julia Cheunkarndee, Laurel Comiter, Eric Epstein, Liza Kolbasov and Ryan Manesh

16

Varsity teams welcome exceptional freshmen athletes

Kerawin Heaney

Jonathan Miradi

Girls Soccer

Wrestling

Freshman Jonathan Miradi circles around, looking to attack. He shoots in on his opponents’ legs and gets a takedown.

This year, Miradi qualified for the varsity team and is 6-4 with five pins—an impressive feat for a freshman. However, being a freshman on varsity has its downsides. “I feel awkward because all my friends are on junior varsity and I don’t have any friends on varsity,” Miradi said. “I also get very nervous before matches because I get intense butterflies, but it all goes away once I step on the mat.”

Miradi’s strong suits in wrestling are his strength, power and quick bursts. According to JV captain freshman Calvin Cai, Miradi is a physically strong competitor with a lot of mental toughness. The wrestling coach Eric Cramer thinks he and has excellent awareness on the mat. However, Miradi believes he needs to work on his fitness, stamina and being able to sustain his strengths for extended periods of time.

Cai and Miradi are often seen together during practices. “We work together, practice moves on each other and [Miradi] is a great partner,” Cai said.

Cramer also thinks very highly of Miradi. “He's very coachable, shows a lot of energy and has a great, positive attitude,” he said. “He is also willing to try new techniques and refine the moves he has already.”

Since he is a freshman, Miradi is more focused on improving his skills and techniques than on winning. “I selected him on varsity because I wanted to give him some experience in high-level wrestling because he shows a lot of potential,” Cramer said.

Miradi agrees with this goal.“I’m a freshman on varsity, so losing by a little bit is okay,” Miradi said.

Miradi started wrestling in seventh grade. “My dad used to wrestle, and I wanted to give it a try, and my friend Calvin Cai wanted me to go to the practices,” he said. “That year, I got second place in a competition, and that's really what hooked me onto the sport.”

Outside of wrestling, Miradi is an approachable person. “I am good at making friends,” he said. Before his matches, he talks to his junior varsity friends and eats as much as he can because he is starving after having to cut weight to reach a lighter weight class. He also thinks of moves he’s going to use and how to execute them with purpose. Going to sleep is also essential for Miradi before a match because it keeps him loose.

Miradi thinks a lot of people have wrong views and opinions on wrestling. “Wrestling helps you with a lot of things, especially commitment and discipline,” Miradi said. “People who half-ass this sport will fail for sure.”

—Written by Jamisen Ma

Joey Cianfichi Boys Soccer

This year, Joey Cianfichi is one of only three freshmen to make it onto the boys varsity soccer team. For most freshman, making it onto a high school sports team is an accomplishment itself; however, the few who do make it onto varsity must endure immense pressure and stress due to the level of skill needed to become a varsity athlete.

Ever since he started playing soccer, Cianfichi has been the smallest player on his team, something that has prepared him for varsity soccer. “A couple years back I played on a team where I was the youngest kid and all of them were already in high school,” he said.

According to varsity soccer coach Ken Luis, one of Cianfichi’s main strengths is that he uses body position and quickness to nullify the difference in size between him and his opponents. “He’s exceptionally good at getting advantages over bigger and faster players, which is why he’s done well on varsity,” Luis said.

Varsity has made him not only a better player, but also a more well rounded individual. Many teammates, such as sophomore James Hahn, describe Cianfichi as laid-back and fun to hang around.

One of the main struggles of being a freshman on varsity is fitting in with older kids; however, Hahn believes Cianfichi has found his place. “Everyone on the team kind of has groups, but generally we all just hang together,” he said. “I mean Joey fits in pretty well.”

Despite his mellow personality, Cianfichi is an absolute beast in the game. According to Luis, one of the main reasons Cianfichi made it onto the team was his excellent technique and extensive knowledge of the game. “From the very beginning Joey showed a lot of great skills on the ball,” he said. “His playing style is very advanced, very thoughtful and very effective.”

Even as a highly accomplished and skilled individual, Cianfichi still strives to be a better player. Cianfichi believes that in order to improve as a player, he needs focus on improving one flaw at a time, rather than attempting to fix everything at once. “If I keep doing well in one aspect of my game, then I can just get better at everything else,” he said. According to Hahn, Cianfichi has some aspects of his game he needs to work on in order to take the next step as a player.

“He’s smaller, and weaker than other kids, and his shooting is one of his weaknesses,” Hahn said.

At the pace he’s going at, Luis believes that Cianfichi has a bright future. “I think if he’s going the way he’s going, he could play college and/or pro,” he said.

—Written by Devon Lee

This winter season, select varsity sports teams including boys wrestling, girls soccer and boys soccer have added many freshman athletes to their rosters due to difficulty finding and recruiting qualified upperclassmen players. Varsity teams are usually comprised of seniors, juniors and occasionally a few select sophomores.

The freshman varsity experience is not common in public schools, but according to freshman soccer player Kerawin Heaney, the upperclassmen have kindly gone the extra mile to make freshmen athletes feel welcome. “All the upperclassmen are very supportive of us, and we really feel like part of the team,” Heaney said.

Heaney has played soccer all her life and transitioned smoothly to playing varsity for the first time this season. She currently plays on the girls varsity soccer team, which has had relative success over the past few years. “I’ve played soccer since I was really little, and now I play for Palo Alto Club Soccer,” she said.

Playing club soccer all year round for a local team is one way that varsity athletes stay healthy and fit during the school off-season. “It’s always important to eat healthy and stay in shape especially if you play a sport,” Heaney said. “Also, most of the varsity team plays soccer for the rest of the year on club teams.”

For any freshmen looking to potentially join a varsity sport this spring, Heaney shared a few words of wisdom regarding what differences and challenges to expect.“[While] practicing and playing with [varsity] has definitely increased my speed of play and intensity level, there are definitely higher expectations on varsity and the intensity level is several notches higher” she said. “If you are looking to come back to soccer, junior varsity (JV) is a great way to do that and I guarantee it will be really fun.

JV is currently recruiting.”

According to Heaney, upperclassmen athletes always push her to try something new, making practices and games with them an educational experience.

When Heaney first joined the team, she didn’t expect to get equal playing time and treatment during games as upperclassmen, many of whom are more experienced with competing in higher pressure environments especially during high-leverage moments. “At first I thought that I would get no playing time, but I do,” Heaney said.

She and seven other freshmen on the team of seventeen players have helped achieve the team’s 5-4-3 record so far. The girls varsity soccer team will round out their season with matches against Monta Vista, Lynbrook, Fremont, Milpitas, Cupertino and Wilcox, who they most recently beat 2-0 on Wednesday, Jan. 24.

—Written by Sophia Siegal

Lifestyle

Friday, February 2, 2018

17

Retro fashion makes comeback The Statement Accessory: Large earrings, big necklaces and unique sunglasses draw attention and can elevate any outfit. Last year saw a rise in the popularity of retro glasses like clear aviators, and they’re not leaving any time soon.

The Long-Sleeved Undershirt: Remember elementary school? Relive the good old days by layering a T-shirt over a long-sleeved shirt and keep warm while looking fly.

The Mom Jean: A current must-have in any fashion-lover’s closet, mom jeans subscribe to the high-waisted trend while allowing for a comfortable amount of leg room. Find a distressed pair to throw on when you’re feeling edgy.

The Converse: Alexis Chew

(10)

As a classic school staple, Converse are not an uncommon sight on campus. Grab a pair of white, high-topped ones to finish off any casual look.

The Leather Jacket: Add some spunky ‘50s zest to your outfit with a leather jacket—experience all the fun of being in a diner-inhabiting motorcycle gang without any of the danger.

The Wide-Legged Pant: The reign of the skinny jean ends in 2018; a relaxed fit is a maxed fit.

To achieve a bit of ankle-length flair, cuff your pants and enjoy your newfound freedom.

Add dimension with thicker-soled and wider-bodied footwear. For the adventurous, consider taking it a step further by pioneering the comeback of the white dad shoe.

Joey Marcacci (11)

The Chunky Shoe:

—Compiled by Megan Li and Yael Livneh Graphics by Megan Li and Jeffrey Yao Photos by Justin Hong

18

Lifestyle

Tackle new year with self-improvement Be honest It’s not easy to say what’s really on your mind, but studies show that people who are not constantly hiding secrets from their peers tend to lead a healthier and more relaxed lifestyle. Don’t be afraid to let others know what you want and what you need; they’re not mind readers, and you might be surprised at how willing they are to help once they know the issue. Try it out—be one hundred percent truthful for at least one whole week and see how much freer you feel once you get everything off your chest.

Get rid of your notifications first thing in the morning We all know how hard it is to ignore the incessant calls of Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, especially when there could be so much new content you missed after the recommended eight hours of sleep you surely got last night. However, this tip comes from some very successful people. Getting your unopened emails as close as possible to the target number of zero first thing in the morning helps you feel on top of things and will increase your productivity level overall. When you’re done, you can go back to scrolling through your Instagram feed.

Tell others about your goals So you have your list of goals. You’re motivated, you have a plan to reach your goals, but you might not want to tell anyone about what you’re doing. Why? It’s actually incredibly helpful to tell friends and family about your intentions; explicitly mentioning them to peers increases the chances of succeeding tenfold.

When you tell someone about your goals, they begin to expect improvement, which can pressure you to put more effort into succeeding.

Keep a daily journal You might feel like skipping over this tip. After all, you’ve tried keeping a journal before, and it never lasted more than a few days. However, the fact remains that having a space to let all your feelings out, to rant and not get a judgy look back, is extremely helpful. And you can always make it more original, change the whole meaning of journal. If you’re more of a vocal person, hit the record button and unleash your emotions. No matter how you do it, make sure that you have a way to let out all the bad feelings so that you have more room for the good ones.

Make time for yourself In order to self-improve, you first need to self-reflect. Take a small portion of your time every day to look at what you did, and see what you can improve on or do better. Once you know your strengths and weaknesses, you can start working on certain aspects of your life to improve and enhance who you are. Your goals may be unusual, but they will be unique to you and adjusted for your individual needs.

Photo by Justin Hong

Write down resolutions When looking at how to improve, putting your goals on paper prevents forgetting them and makes you more committed to reaching them. Many people forget their goals early in the year, only to realize your memory lapse when it’s too late. Your busy schedule can make it seem impossible to work on self-improvement, but writing what you want to accomplish will certainly make you feel motivated to succeed— or at least guilt-trip you into doing it.

—Compiled by Chiara Jurczak and Quinn Arbolante Graphics by Sherry Chen, Mina Kim and Yael Livneh

19 Ghosting surfaces as avenue for disappointment

Lifestyle

Friday, February 2, 2018

Grace Tramack Urban Dictionary defines ghosting as “the act of suddenly ceasing all communication with someone the subject is dating, but no longer wishes to date.”

In today’s standards of dating, ghosting is sadly a new norm for breakups. Due to the rise of social media and texting, communicating with loved ones takes less effort, but playing “games” with your relationship is also much easier—and more common.

From both personal experience and watching my friends suffer the same way, ghosting is the absolute worst way to let someone know you’re not interested. It’s disrespectful to the other person’s feelings, belittles the time the two of you spent together and leaves them with a lack of closure, always wondering what they did wrong or what went awry.

In the end, the ghosting victim feels embarrassed and as if they’ve been played, even though it is not their fault. Yes, they will get over it, but not without taking a massive hit to their self-esteem. When you ghost, be aware that what you’re doing is going to sting for a long time after, and that you deliberately chose to hurt someone you care about.

Some ghosters attempt to defend their actions by claiming that cutting the other person off hurts their feelings less than having the difficult conversation.

This argument could be understandable in some situations, such as if the two of you aren’t dating and have never discussed the matter. However, committing to a relationship means that you owe it to the other person to be honest and straightforward with your feelings. You may be trying to "figure out how you feel," but leading them on requires lying for an indefinite period of time, and you ultimately hurt them regardless of if you return or not.

Personally, I would rather someone tell me like it is than cut me out of their lives completely. Ghosting should not even cross your mind when thinking of ways to break up with your significant other; it’s simply called being a decent person.

—Tramack, a junior, is a Features Editor Tiffany Chen

HOW TO WARD OFF POTENTIAL GHOSTING Text them every single thing that happens in your day. Every single thing. Tell them all about the mind-numbing traffic on Arastradero at 8 a.m., that word you missed during vocab in English class, every time you floss your teeth, the tragic break-up of your favorite couple in the show you binge-watched all night, etc. Remember your old elementary school diaries? Consider this Diary 2.0.

Remind them you exist. “Hey, I’m still alive, you know.” And keep trying. Maybe they’re just scared about opening up about their feelings?

Tell them how you feel in writing. Proclaiming your love works both in person and over text. Write them thousand-word sonnets that Shakespeare himself would cry over. Bonus points if you perform it on the quad.

Play the sticker game. Messenger and iMessage have a lovely assortment of free stickers. Just download a few packs, and spam them like crazy.

Stalk them. Show up at their front door with a boombox blasting their favorite jam, a beautiful bouquet of roses and a nice box of chocolates—guaranteed to win their love (and maybe a restraining order).

Use unconventional mediums to express your emotions. Create a masterpiece of art. Bawl your heart out with a love ballad. Make a touchdown or goal in their honor. Heroic acts of rescue aren’t out of fashion yet.

If all else fails, forget them. If you’ve put in all that effort just to get their attention, and they don’t reciprocate, they’re not even worth it. Save your heart for the one who will truly love you.

—Compiled by Amanda Lee

Graphics by Yael Livneh

Read 11:23 pm

20

World Olympians bring skills to Winter Games Snowboarder Torah Bright: Representing Australia this winter, Torah Bright is one of the most talented snowboarders in the world. She earned a silver medal on the half-pipe during the 2014 Winter Olympic Games and won gold in that same event the Olympics before that. She is a renowned World Snowboard Tour champion and competes on the slopestyle and superpipe courses as well.

Cross-country skier Pita Taufatofua: Pita Taufatofua’s claim to fame was his appearance as Tonga's flagbearer at the 2016 games, but he didn’t let his 15 minutes of fame end there.

Qualifying to once again represent his nation, Taufatofua will be competing in cross-country skiing. We can only hope that he will be as majestic in this event as he was under the lights of the opening ceremony two years ago.

Luger Felix Loch: With a gold medal in singles luge at the tender age of 20 in 2010 and a second gold medal in 2014, Felix Loch will be gunning to complete a golden hat-trick this winter. Not only is he the youngest Luge World Cup champion ever, only 18 during his victory in 2008, but he is the youngest Olympic gold medalist in men’s luge history. He seems destined to secure a third golden finish.

Short track ice skater Racer Choi Min-jeong:

Representing the hosting nation of South Korea at the age of 19, Choi Min-jeong is a short track speed skater. She was awarded an individual gold medal in the 1500 meters in the ISU Short Track World Cup. At the age of 16, she became the 2015 Overall Ladies World Champion. Don’t expect her to be going away any time soon.

Figure skater Vincent Zhou: Check out the 17-year-old Palo Alto native as he competes on the USA men’s singles figure skating team. In March 2017, Zhou won the gold medal in the men’s free skating event at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. A young and staggeringly talented member of Team USA, don’t bet on this being Zhou's only appearance for America in the Olympics.

—Compiled by Jack Mallery Graphics by Sherry Chen

Photos from apnews.com, asiancorrespondent.com, celebmafia.com, eurosport.com and mercurynews.com