E D I TO R I A L S 4
UN I N
O PI N I O N S 5
NOVEMBER 2015 Volume XXVII Issue II
FE AT U R E S 6
S PR E A D 8 - 9
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L I F E S T Y L E 11
E N T E R TA I N M E N T 12
S P O R T S 15
MHSTHEUNION.COM For the latest updates
STUDENT VOICE OF MILPITAS HIGH SCHOOL
Student bicyclist hit by vehicle on Escuela Parkway, recovers
N EWS IN BR IEF Marching Band Competitions There will be marching band competitions on Nov. 14 at Golden Valley High School and on Nov. 21 at Fresno State University.
BY ABIGAIL ECAL
Jack Emery Food Drive The Jack Emery Food Drive starts on Nov. 18 and ends on Dec. 10.
“[The car] smacked my body on its windshield. The next thing [I] know, it was complete darkness.” Senior Edgar Sipat
Fall play premieres The fall play, “Almost There”, will premiere on Nov. 20. Students may also watch it on Nov. 21 and Nov. 22. Tickets are on sale for $8 starting on Monday, Nov. 16. Buy yours at room P-10! Stanford Blood Drive California Scholarship Federation (CSF) and National Honor Society (NHS) are hosting the Stanford Blood Drive on Nov. 23 at the MHS Library. Students may either sign-up with a club officer to donate and can only do last minutes sign ups at the library if you are 18. CSU and UC college deadline College applications for CSUs and UCs are both on Nov. 30. Start perfecting your applications and submit them soon! Thanksgiving Break is finally here! Thanksgiving Break starts on Nov. 25. There will no school until Nov. 30. Girls soccer season start The first girls soccer game is a home game on Dec. 1 vs. Prospect High School. Their season continues with an away game vs. Pioneer High School on Dec. 3, home game vs. Washington High School on Dec. 5, and away at Piedmont High School on Dec. 8.
Terra Walls | The Union
Team rooms, currently used by the football team, include a flat screen television set, shoulder pad and helmet drier, and removable name tags for each athlete.
$67,000 spent on team rooms may engender Title IX lawsuit BY ANNEALICE DESCAMPS KRUPA PATEL TERRA WALLS
Renovations to the MHS locker rooms completed over the summer may constitute a Title IX violation, according to Deputy Superintendent Cheryl Jordan. The boys’ team room was upgraded while the girls’ side of the locker room had no athletic room to begin with, Jordan said. On Aug. 25th, MUSD School board authorized the MHS Modernization Project by spending $17,856 from Bond Fund 211 for the JV Football Lockers at Milpitas High School. For the Team locker rooms, $49,627.60 was approved previously in May, along with the JV lockers for a total of $67,483.60.
According to the US Department of Justice website, “Title IX is a comprehensive federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity.” Because the team room is possibly out of compliance with Title IX, P.E. Teacher Deirdre Wyness as well as others are trying to work out a solution with the district. If they are not satisfied, Wyness indicated that she would file a Title IX complaint. “We met with Cheryl Jordan a month ago regarding the equity of the locker rooms and discussing solutions to remedy the inequity,” Wyness SEE LOCKERS ON PAGE 16
An MHS student was hit by a car while riding his bicycle to school on Escuela Parkway, according to Principal Cheryl Lawton. The incident occurred on Friday, Oct. 23 at around 7 a.m., Lawton said. According to Lawton, she cannot disclose the identity of the student nor the driver involved in the accident. The accident occurred before the crossing guards were on duty, Lawton said. “Fortunately, [the student] was OK,” Lawton said. “He got up and sat on the side to get ahold of a parent or guardian.” According to Traffic Safety Unit Officer Sergeant Sean Heneghan, the student is found at fault for not yielding to a vehicle close enough to be a hazard. Neither the student nor the driver’s identity can be disclosed other than the fact that the driver was a parent of a student in a nearby school, Heneghan said. The student identified himself to be Senior Edgar Sipat. Sipat’s perspective, however, contradicts the police’s account of the incident. According to Sipat, he was not
found at fault for the incident. Since the crosswalk light blinked yellow, it signaled that it was his right of way, Sipat said. “As I cross, there was this lady approaching, and she was 30 meters away,” Sipat said. “I was waving at that lady before I crossed that crosswalk. I crossed it and somehow the lady ran me over. [The car] smacked my body on [its] windshield. The next thing [I] know, it was complete darkness.” According to Sipat, the driver who had hit him did not flee the scene. The driver appeared to be in panic after she had hit him and also offered to call the police, Sipat said. “The lady was running towards me and crying and all shocked,” Sipat said. According to Sipat, his injuries include muscle strains on his left leg and grazes on both hands. He confirmed that he was not wearing a helmet. “Your parents say ‘make eye contact before you cross the street,’ but that didn’t happen obviously,” Assistant Principal Ethan Stocks said. “So it was a case of maybe the driver didn’t see him coming, and [the student] didn’t use the amount of caution while crossing the street.” It was easy to tell if he was crossing the street, Sipat said. “I was riding a yellow bike,” Sipat said. “If you were driving, you can see me.” [Sipat] was very lucky because he was not wearing a helmet, Lawton said.
Sewage back ups P.E. locker rooms, causes staff injury in G building BY DAVID NGO STELLA XU
The drains in the P.E. locker rooms have overflown with sewage three times during August and September due to tree roots in the plumbing, according to Physical Education Teacher Celina Reyes. Since then, the sewage pipes have been fixed, Reyes said. The sewage first came up in the boys’ locker room in the beginning of the school year, according to Reyes. At the time, students were not dressing out yet, so the school closed the locker room while it was being cleaned up, Reyes said. “You remember what the first week of school was like in P.E.? You’re sitting in the gym, taking role, getting clothes, and getting lockers,” Reyes said. “Some of the boys were going to put their stuff in the locker room, and they came out and told [Physical Education Teacher] Ms. Osborne, ‘There’s water coming up from the floor, and it stinks so bad.’” According to Reyes, at the second time, the same thing happened to the girls’ locker room. The third time, the boys’ locker room overflowed again. “The second time was on the girls’ side, where we made an executive decision to close it down and not have the girls dress in there,” Reyes said. “And the third time, the same thing.” This resulted in a large inconvenience for the P.E. classes, according to Reyes. The water was coming out and into the locker room, so students
had to get their things out from the lockers. P.E. was stopped for the day since students could not dress., Reyes said. “I flushed the toilet, and when I walked over to the showers, there was black water coming from the floor,” Freshman Taylor Tran said. The locker rooms, being newly renovated last school year and in the summer, have not been released to the school district yet, Reyes said. The contractor company, Kitchell, is still in charge of it, Reyes continued. “[Kitchell] called out Roto-Rooter, which is a plumbing company, and they came and fixed it,” Reyes said. “They said there were tree roots in the plumbing.” According to Assistant Principal Hilary Brittan, entirely renovating the sewage system was not part of the renovation plan that had taken place for the locker rooms last year. The old sewer is still there, Brittan said. “The things that are below the ground, that stuff wasn’t replaced, it was added onto,” Brittan said. “They added a second set of bathrooms so the pipes that went from that sewage we connected to the existing sewer, that is new, but the regular sewage system, that’s all the stuff that’s there from prior, that wasn’t part of the original plan.” There had been maintenance done to fix this problem, according to Brittan. In the future the pipes will be furSEE SEWAGE ON PAGE 2
Abigail Ecal | THE UNION
Superintendent Cary Matsuoka (right) addresses his plans for a new high school. Science Teacher Kathleen Downum (left), along with other MHS teachers write down their ideas, concerns, and questions for Matsuoka to answer.
Matsuoka plans for second high school
BY BROOKE TRAN
Discussion about building a second high school in Milpitas occurred Oct. 14 at a staff meeting led by Superintendent Cary Matsuoka. According to Matsuoka, the projected population growth for Milpitas is so overwhelming that the decision on whether to build another high school needs to take place. At the meeting, Matsuoka showed calculations of how the population was going to grow in the next decades and then provided a breakdown of how the population would increase enrollment in schools. The meeting was simply to bring up discussion on
the topic since creating and presenting a plan to the district will take time, Matsuoka said. “The largest number we should plan for is 115,000 people,” Matsuoka said. “We could have [a growth to] 5300 high school students in Milpitas,” Matsuoka continued. 5,000 students is such a big number and we can already feel the impact of having more than 3,000 students, Matsuoka explained. Eventually we are going to reach a point where we can’t put any more kids into one physical campus, Matsuoka added. “The pipeline of housing [in Milpitas] is dramatic,” Matsuoka continued. “Milpitas is the hottest housing market in Northern Califor-
nia from a developer’s perspective.” According to Matsuoka, 4,000 housing units are in the pipeline for Milpitas. Because of that, the district has to start planning for the future now, and the four scenarios that were brought up have a price range from 61 million up to 116 million, Matsuoka said. “These dollar numbers are big numbers,” Matsuoka explained. “When we start asking [the community] for something in the hundreds of millions of dollars, we have to be thoughtful about that.” Biology Teacher Lisa Brizuela expressed some concerns with the curSEE MATSUOKA ON PAGE 2
T HE U NION
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NOVEMBER 2015
NEWS
SEWAGE: Pipes leak in buildings FROM PAGE 1
Courtesy of Justin Mel Cortez
MHS Marching Band and Color Guard competed at the Bands of America competition on Nov. 7. Assistant Drum Major Noemi Crisanto (center) conducts the band members during their performance at American Canyon High School.
Marching band competes in new league BY SHERRY LAM
The approximated 140-member MHS Marching Band competed in Bands of America (BoA) on Nov. 7, a band circuit that they have not competed in before, Kaldy said. MHS Marching Band students are scheduled to compete in a few different competitions compared to previous years, according to Music Director Christopher Kaldy. The band is entering championships and competitions that are more at a national level, Kaldy said. “Officially, we were placed 15th overall out of the twenty that were there,” Kaldy said.” These are twenty of the top bands in the area. I’d say overall, we’re probably in the top twenty percentile of marching bands. We were competing against the very
best.” “I’ve been interested in Bands of America for a long time,” Kaldy said. “They rarely come out as far as California, and if they do it, it’s in Los Angeles and it’ll cost a lot of money to get down there and back.” “They’ve also had some regionals in Las Vegas, but again it’s the money issue,” Kaldy said. The regional championships for BoA was at American Canyon High School, Kaldy said. The Milpitas Marching Band competed against 20 schools in Division 4A, according to Kaldy. “I think [the BoA regional championship] offers a little bit of a different educational value and just a slightly different philosophy between the different organizations,” Kaldy said. “There are also different judges,
which is nice. Also, we’re being compared at a national level because [BoA] is more of a national organization.” There are different regulations in BoA compared to the other circuits MHS Marching Band participates in, such as the Western Band Association (W.B.A.), according to Assistant Drum Major Allan Zhao. BoA is similar to the WBA circuit, so there is not too much of a change, Zhao said. The MHS Marching Band is still competing in five competitions this year, according to Kaldy. The WBA championships, Northern California Band Association (NCBA) championships, and BOA are taking the place of the other competitions the MHS Marching Band would have gone to, Kaldy said.
Community service policies changed; students petition before school board for reform BY NICHOLAS LUC MIHIR THUMMAR
New community service guidelines were implemented by Service Learning Coordinator Renee Roche starting with the 2015-2016 school year, according to Roche. The changes were part of a process to make community service a more valuable experience, Roche said. Certain types of service, like fundraising events, are no longer going to be approved, according to Roche. Fundraising was more about serving a student’s club, rather than the community, Roche explained. “A lot of the things that are no longer going to be counted, like the fundraising, were things that students were doing, really for themselves,” Roche said. “My hope is that the program evolves to a point where students are really going out and helping others, and making the world a better place.” In addition to that, all classes have to fill out a new form if they wish to get their hours approved, Roche said. However, all hours done before the new requirements will still be approved, according to Roche. “Everything they’ve completed in the past can still be turned in,” Roche said. “So students are thinking they’re going to need to throw everything away and start over and that’s not true.” Freshmen are restricted to only 10 hours of on-campus community service, according to Roche. They must
also complete a senior year presentation if they wish to earn a maroon cord, Roche added. “The reason for the new restriction on the freshmen is to encourage them to get off campus,” Roche said. “To go out and see the world in a new way.” The new changes were intended to fall in line with school board policy on service learning, Roche explained. She emphasized an important distinction between service learning and community service. “The school board policy requires 20 hours service learning. Not 20 hours of community service,” Roche said. “Service learning involves going out and doing for others, and hopefully learning something about the world in the process.” All forms of service must be pre-approved, Roche said. The new form also requires students to write about how their work will benefit the community, Roche added. “I’m just looking for each individual student to reflect on their own work,” Roche explained. “The new form asks students to think about what they’ve done, and how they’ve made the world better and I think that’s powerful.” The process of getting community service approved has become more tedious, Operation Smile President Senior Gary Chen said. Clubs can no longer use a single approval sheet for all of their members and students must now individually fill out forms, Chen added.
“In the past when Ribovich was doing community service, clubs could use a single approval sheet for all their events and when Ribovich signed that, he basically gave the ‘OK’ for the club to do all the events on that sheet,” Chen said. “But now with Roche you have to fill out the pre-approval form individually for each event before attending.” Students in speech and debate work at the tournaments to help carry ballots, help feed the adults, and teach middle school kids, Speech and Debate Advisor Charles Schletzbaum said. These activities are now considered fundraising, and no longer count for hours. Without the volunteers helping out, it would be impossible to run the tournament, he explained. “If we don’t have kids helping out with feeding and parents helping out with feeding the judges and for getting papers from place to place then the tournament doesn’t go off,” Schletzbaum said. “Not only do we just look bad to the rest of the league, but we also don’t have a chance to make any money.” A group of students have started a petition to have their past hours be accepted, according to PEFL Coordinator Dena Chavez. They believe that denying hours to students who completed formerly allowed activities is an abrupt and unfair change. There will be a school board meeting to discuss the petition on Nov. 10, School Board Representative Alan Pham said.
ther worked on, Brittan said. About two weeks ago, they installed what they call a cleanout, which is another sort of entry point into some pipings so they can clean out the pipe,” Brittan said. “They’re probably going to do some additional work on the pipes.” The G building has also experienced similar problems. According to Foods Teacher Rosemary Keith, maintenance was done because of tree roots infiltrating the water lines and causing an overflow of water. “[Maintenance] had to come in,” Keith said. “The tree roots were in the water lines, and that caused the water to back up in from the foreground.”
Keith also experienced an accident when the water had overflowed. According to Keith, she fell between third and fourth period. “I slipped,” Keith said. “I went down, hit my head on the shelving, slipped so fast and hard. I think I got knocked out for just a few seconds.” According to Keith, the district knew about this problem with the water pipes. These problems pose a safety risk to teachers and students, Keith said. “The district said they’re going to start reaming out the water lines or sewer lines every six months. Up until now, they evidently haven’t,” Keith said.
Fourteen students suspended for dispute with administration BY AMAL MULAOMEROVIC BRANDON WETTENSTEIN
A confrontation between several students, administrators, and Milpitas Police Officers occurred during lunch at MHS on Tuesday, Oct. 20, according to Assistant Principal Ethan Stocks. The incident yielded 14 suspensions, Stocks said. A conflict between two students, a boy and a girl, started the incident and administration came to break up the fight, according to Stocks. Though the original skirmish was ended quickly, when administration asked the observing students to vacate their lunch area, the students refused to cooperate, Stocks said. “Basically we had a group of students, maybe 12 to 14 guys who just were non-compliant and would not disperse,” Stocks said. “They were agitated, they were using profanity, they were accosting security guards and the administration. We asked them to move along, just kind of break it up and go their separate ways, and they wouldn’t do that.” Junior Harvey Nguyen saw the event happen. “I was walking to my table, and from what I saw, a small boy-girl dispute, and I don’t know what about, but it’s a pretty routine thing,” Nguyen said. “Then teachers started crowding around like they always do and tried to handle the situation.” It was then that the students started to swear at security and administration, refusing to leave and yelling at the staff, according to Stocks. It was at this point that the campus resource officer, Officer Muok, was called in for backup, Stocks said. “We contacted our campus resources officer, Officer Muok,” Stocks said. “He came and started to assess the situation, asked the guys to move along. They wouldn’t do it.”
As the students repeatedly refused to leave the area, more police officers were called. Once the police arrived, 14 of the students on scene were given suspensions for creating a disturbance on campus, Stocks said. “When you are on a public school campus, you are under the jurisdiction of the administration,” Stocks said. “If an administrator asks you to do something, the expectation is that you do that. If you’re not, then you are now being defiant-- something you can get suspended for.” The incident looked like a war-zone at one point, according to Nguyen. After a student escalated the situation, even more cops were called, Nguyen said. “This one kid decides to take the situation and turn it into a war-zone,” Nguyen said. “He takes his backpack, slams it on the ground in front of one of the teachers nearby, and he cusses her out. The crowd lights up, and a couple more police officers came after that situation.” The administration’s use of Milpitas Police Officers was justified, though there were too many, according to Nguyen. “I felt like maybe there were more [police officers] than needed,” Nguyen said. “I felt like it was an appropriate measure to take though. It was the most bad-ass thing I’ve ever seen.” The motive for the students’ actions is unknown. Stocks said it makes no sense why some students would decide to defy administrators. “It makes absolutely zero sense to me why a group of students would just decide they weren’t going to cooperate and just sit on a table,” Stocks said. “There was no objective other than to just be a jerk.” Principal Cheryl Lawton refused to comment on the situation, stating only, “there was no altercation.”
EY E ON CA M PUS
MATSUOKA: New campus needed for rising population FROM PAGE 1 rent situation. There would be issues with safety, classroom sizes, and facility usage with one high school, but also possibilities of segregation and cut programs with two high schools. “ I think [the prevention of unequal schools] is going to come down to zoning,” Brizuela said. “I think it’d be
fair to have [equal amounts of ] low, medium, and high incomes at the schools. We have to make the right decision today so we head down the right path, Matsuoka said. The average high school size is about 1990 students, and that’s a comfortable, healthy size,
Matsuoka continued “We need time as a district to plan on the future; we have to start considering a second high school,” Matsuoka stated. “The data is so compelling about the way Milpitas as a city is going to change; it is going to become a very different place.”
Abigail Ecal | THE UNION
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NOVEMBER 2015
EDITORIAL
EDITOR I A L : The Opinion of The Union
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S T U D E N T V O I C E O F M I L P I TA S H I G H
Evacuation procedures outdated, not heeded We, The Union, believe that the administration needs to seriously reform the current evacuation procedures. There are so many problems that plague our current system. We have fake fire drills going off every other week. The alarms have become nothing more than a joke. If a real fire were to occur, students and staff would mostly be unresponsive. Neither students nor staff members take fire drills seriously, all having adopted a nonchalant attitude, simply rolling their eyes, collectively grumbling “Again? Really?” every time another one of those shrill noises pierces their ears. Alarms are supposed to signal us into action, alerting us of an imminent threat, but it has come to the point that nobody even blinks an eye when they go off. Teachers often don’t even bother to escort out their classes, telling everyone to just ignore it and wait it out. This apathy seriously threatens the safety of every person on campus, and it’s up to the staff to change this. Even when told to take action, teachers have no idea how to react. The staff, by no fault of its own, is not adequately informed about the evacuation procedure. They do not have proper instructions for where to escort their classes, since the classroom maps are outdated, and they end up just guessing where they’re supposed to go. This confusion leads to a disorganized and chaotic evacuation process. It is up to the administration to make sure that every teacher is fully prepared for what to do in an emergency. Even substitutes should be trained as to what actions should be taken. Staff must be informed about where they are to report with their class, rather than standing in the middle of the campus with a blazing fire rapidly approaching. Furthermore, the fact that we have so many false alarms going off every other week unnecessarily disrupt the classroom enviournment. Students are frequently interrupted in the middle of tests, exams,
and presentations, breaking the students’ concentrations and leading to more grief for the teachers. Oftentimes, teachers have to rewrite whole lesson plans or disregard the results of an entire class’s test because of the interruption. The intruder drill especially needs greater attention. During our last intruder drill, off-campus visitors were freely walking around campus, right under the nose of the administration, even though we were supposed to be in the middle of a lockdown. Strangers, who did not even belong to our campus, were on school grounds at the time of the intruder drill and went completely unnoticed by patrolling administration. If they were real armed intruders, our lives would have been in serious jeopardy. Staff members are also told to have their classes make barricades to prevent the intruder from getting inside, but many do not want to waste class time doing so since they know it is not a real drill. This means that when an actual intruder is on campus, they will be unprepared. Not to mention, we hardly practice earthquake drills, even though earthquakes are more likely to occur considering that we are in California. We are highly unprepared for what is arguably the greatest emergency threat we face living in the San Francisco Bay Area. We practice “inconvient time drills” every few months, but most are for intruders on campus. The administration should also have it so that more of these inconvient time drills are for earthquakes, which could happen at any time in the vicinity of the nearby San Andreas Fault. Taking into account these aforementioned concerns, it is necessary that the administration take quick actions to correct these issues. A situation could arise at any time, and it’s better to be prepared with a school united and informed as to what actions need to be taken to protect itself.
The Union is published by the Journalism class of Milpitas High School. The views in The Union are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the school, students, administration, or Milpitas Unified School District.
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S TA F F Ivan Huang Aysha Rehman Editors-in-Chief
Abigail Ecal • News Editor Stella Xu • Asst. News Editor Wee Jin Koh • Op-Ed Editor Brenna Hentschke • Asst. Op-Ed Editor Ashley Ricks • Features Editor Amal Mulaomerovic • Asst. Features Editor Julia Nguyen • Lifestyle Editor brandon Wettenstein • Asst. Lifestyle Editor Sherry Lam • Spread Editor Nicholas Luc • Asst. Spread Editor Terra Walls • Entertainment Editor Justin Nguyen • Asst. Entertainment Editor Divyesh Chotai • Sports Editor Mihir Hansalia • Asst. Sports Editor Ca-Zao Bui • Co-Copy Editor Brooke Tran • Co-Copy Editor Justin Tso • Asst. Copy Editor Amanda Nguyen • Photo Editor Gurshaan Bariana • Asst. Photo Editor Crystal Tran • Web Editor David Ngo • Asst. Web Editor Krupa Patel • Business Manager Amandeep Dosanjh • Asst. Business Manager Noemi Crisanto • Ad Manager Daanya Anand • Asst. Ad Manager
Aysha Rehman| THE UNION
EDITOR I A L : The Opinion of The Union
Congress meetings encourage student unification, while additions foster opinions and participation
We, The Union, commend the efforts of the Associated Student Body (ASB ) in encouraging participation during student-run Congress meetings. We believe that student input will make these meetings more interactive. As a result, monthly Congress meetings will become less of an obligation and instead encourage unification between the various clubs and organizations on campus. The monthly student body Congress meetings have long been considered a chore for many students who are leaders of CLOGs (CLubs and OrGanizationS) on campus. CLOG officers are expected to attend the Congress meetings to represent their clubs; however, Congress has largely consisted of ASB class reports. In addition, at previous Congress meetings, there has been a lack of participation on the part of CLOG officers besides the open forum that is squeezed in for the small remainder of the meeting. At the October Congress meeting, ASB officers initiated a discussion amongst attendees about these problems. This conversation encouraged CLOG officers to offer constructive criticism and suggestions for future Congress meetings. We appreciate the initiation of this discussion and believe that it is the first and most crucial step to making Congress meetings more representative of the diverse student body we have at MHS. One of the suggestions received by ASB asked for the use of online forms and polls during Congress
meetings instead of having students raise their hands and express their concerns to a room full of students whom they are not familiar with. Having this option will encourage participation from students who are otherwise hesitant to express their opinions. The ASB also suggested that the next Congress meetings will be more active and productive. CLOG Officers will be able to collaborate with each other, the ASB officers, and leadership students on service projects such as starting campaigns to raise money for a charity or creating posters for a staff recognition day. This collaboration will unify the diverse CLOGs at MHS and increase the reach and impact of these projects. Although much has yet to be done, making these small changes to how Congress meetings are run rather than completely changing the meetings will allow the student body to adjust accordingly. Making small, gradual changes to Congress meetings will ensure that these improvements will not be fleeting. We hope that Congress meetings will improve progressively by introducing more interactive activities and fostering a productive environment where constructive critcism and support are welcome. The diversity of the student body can be celebrated through uniting student leaders during these meetings which is one of the most valuable assets of hosting Congress meetings.
AnneAlice Descamps • Reporter Misbah Surani • Reporter Mihir Thummar • Reporter Kevin Zhang • Reporter
Jeff Colburn Advisor
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NOVEMBER 2015
PRO
Donating supplies for extra credit an imperfect but necessary policy Every year, students across the na- stub. If that is allowed, why shouldn’t tion are asked to bring in paper and the purchase of supplies that are givtissues for classes because teachers en to the school count as well? lack them. Since this trend of the stuResults are maximized when the dent community picking up the slack producer is rewarded. Every human for the nationwide failure to provide being with any sense of economics for the necessities of teachers will understands this. That’s why we have not change anytime soon, it would wages and grades. Some would aronly be reasonable for students to gue that students could be rewarded be rewarded for their contributions with something not involving grades, through extra credit. like a party. However, anything else Currently, using extra would surely require ficredit as an incentive for nancial and material redonations is a concept sources that could have frowned upon by many, been spent on supplies in and illegal as well. The logthe first place. We are inic behind this is that doing herently self-serving. Stuso would result in a “paydents typically don’t do to-play” system where the anything unless they like rich can buy a 4.0 GPA and it or if it helps them with the poor have no means to grades and college applido so. The argument here cations. Since students is malarkey. aren’t lining up to buy IVAN The idea that reams of things for their beloved HUANG paper and Kleenex boxes teachers, nor are teachers can compromise the integwilling to write stellar letrity of the American educational sys- ters of recommendation or advise a tem is absurd. Teachers aren’t going club for each student who donates, it to make it possible for a student to appears the only reasonable, non-repass a class with flying colors based source-draining way to increase doon the fact that they can buy 300 nations is offering extra credit. reams of paper. Students unable to The issue at hand shouldn’t be if donate are often provided with alter- we should give extra credit for a few native means of getting the credit as reams of paper. The real issue is the well, so it cannot be said that the extra fact that students and parents still credit given is an exclusive privilege. have to spend extra money for schools No matter what, students will con- to run after paying taxes. Since that tinue to bring in supplies schools fail won’t be addressed in the near future, to provide. The idea of rewarding ac- the next best alternative is to provide tions like this with academic incen- an incentive for students to donate tives is not a foreign idea. We already materials to the school: extra credit. have English teachers giving out ex- Only by adopting this policy can we tra credit if you are able to purchase a truly make up for the dearth of school ticket to the school play and show the resources that plagues this nation.
CON
Providing extra credit for supplies unethical, alternatives available Although the practice of giving own sinister and subtle ways, and extra credit for bringing in supplies classism and racism manifest themis technically illegal, many teach- selves through it. Giving extra credit ers do it anyway. Legality aside, this for supplies only further perpetupractice is ethically questionable ates the classist education system as well. Why should students be re- when we should be trying to fix it. warded for what their parents buy? Instead of advertising extra credit Students’ grades should be a reflec- for supplies, teachers could be advertion of their own academic work, not tising college application fee waivers of the amount of money their parents and programs like Questbridge for are willing to shell out. low-income students. Teachers who do this are Lastly, the main argusending the message that ment in favor of this pracgrades can be improved tice is that it is the most with money. This is detefficient way to obtain rimental because not all supplies. Students in our students have the opporcommunity should strive tunity to earn the extra to help our school to the credit. Teachers shouldn’t best of our abilities, but assume that every student we can do so without rehas parents with enough ceiving extra credit. time or dedication to buy First, teachers can simSTELLA supplies on the way back ply give students a list of XU from work. Nor should things classes need, and they assume that all stuask them to donate if posdents can afford these supplies. sible. While there may be a decrease Supporters of this practice may in the amount of supplies with the argue that some teachers offer al- lack of a selfish incentive, there are ternate opportunities to earn extra other ways to solve this. For examcredit. While that’s a slight improve- ple, teachers can tell students that a ment, privileged kids still get to take good birthday or holiday gift would the easy road, using their parents’ be some school supplies. Another money, while underprivileged stu- way to get supplies is a class funddents have to actually do the work raiser. Nobody is obligated to bring themselves. The two are completely supplies, but those who can, should. different ways of obtaining the same When the goal is reached, there can extra credit, which isn’t fair. be a non grade-related class reward. Furthermore, the argument is not It can be a movie day or a postponing that this practice will completely of an assignment’s due date, which corrupt the entire education system. wouldn’t cost any extra resources. The education system is already corThe idea that students deserve exrupt, but not in the way people may tra credit for their parents’ money think it is. Reducing it simply to rich stinks of entitlement. All members of kids being able to buy A’s trivializes the MHS community should donate the larger problem at hand. The ed- school supplies if their financial state ucation system is messed up in its allows them to do so.
OPINIONS
THE UNION
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College applications stressful, deter real passions Just as fall rolls around, so do seniors (on the ground, in agony) —with the exception of those who begin working earlier than Costco puts out Christmas goods. The source for this distress? College applications. Statisticians may conclude that the increase in blanket sales and coffee from September through January can be attributed to colder weather. However, I speculate that this trend is from the seniors who curl up with blankets and lattes, writing supplemental essays in Starbucks with no shame over their bummy appearance. All jokes aside, college application season is stressful; that is a given. With the rising number of individuals applying, the corresponding rising selectivity of schools, and the rising tuition costs, there is a sense of panic that circulates sleep-deprived friend groups and worried parents. As college applicants, 90 percent of our identity is condensed into a GPA and a few test scores. No matter where we fall on this spectrum of numbers, we are told that there is always going to be someone below, at, and above our level. The distinguishing factor, the thesis of our essays and the reflection of our extracurriculars,
is the elusive notion of “passion.” expects us to choose, and because There is a well-embraced philos- —the phrase that echoes in nightophy that by the time we apply, our mares—“they look good on the apps.” passions must not only be matured, In a desperate, last-ditch attempt but also be able to be expressed in a to try and assemble some sort of conprofound personal statecrete representation of what ment adaptable to the we’ve done throughout high systematic layout of the school in 650 words or less, Common Application. we cling to the instrument I contend that, surour parents forced us into prise, seventeen year for the past decade or the olds haven’t fully develsport we’ve been in since oped quite yet. Ask any we could walk. There is a one of us who we were trail that has been carved just a mere five years out for us. Wandering off of ago in middle school and it, into an eclectic forest of you’ll often get a paleinterests, isn’t praised if all ASHLEY faced, sweaty-palmed you can produce in an apRICKS response of, “Oh my plication is that you’ve tried goodness, please tell me nearly everything, but havyou didn’t find my Myspace?” en’t found that “one” thing. We, along with our passions, are I reject this. High school should be changing at a rapid pace. Instead of for exploring different alleyways and taking chances and dabbling in differ- taking healthy risks. Instead, it’s beent areas of interest, the nature of ap- come a nonsensical game of finding plications doesn’t allow for the time your niche, and if it isn’t found, faking that this meandering may solicit. your niche. It is my hope that this preWhat happens as a result of this? mature pressure to have it all figured “Side-passions,” potential real pas- out ends, and a spirit of discovery sions, are cast aside for “safe-pas- and even meaningful failure takes its sions,” ones that we choose simply place. Passion will naturally follow if because they’re what everyone it is not forced, on its own time.
Planned Parenthood funding ought to continue Congress passed a bill to defund hood, federal tax dollars do not even Planned Parenthood, an organiza- fund abortions and the majority of tion that provides healthcare and sex people visit this organization for otheducation, on the basis that it illegal- er services. The funding of Planned ly sells fetal tissues after abortion. Parenthood goes to the countless According to Planned services that this organizaParenthood, 2.7 million tion provides such as HIV people annually visit a testing, contraceptives, sex Planned Parenthood education, breast exams, health center for inforscreenings for reproduction mation and services, cancers and countless other and defunding this orreproductive health serganization would deny a vices. Abortion only makes majority of those people up three percent of the access to reproductive health services it provides. health care. The people who are in favor We cannot take away of defunding Planned ParAMANDEEP the useful services enthood are supposedly proDOSANJH Planned Parenthood life, but they are cutting off provides just because cancer screening programs there are claims of illegal and HIV testing services marketing of fetal body parts. The in- that can save lives. A lot of teenagers vestigation into Planned Parenthood also rely on Planned Parenthood for has actually revealed nothing illegal. contraceptives and information on In reality, the politicians who are sex education. If Planned Parenthood in favor of this investigation are the is defunded, a large amount of teensame people who have actively tried agers will struggle to access quality to ban abortion in the United States. reproductive health care. This bill was just a way for them to Also, abortion is a fundamental limit abortions. However, their argu- women’s right that should not be takment to defund Planned Parenthood en away by the government. Women on the basis to limit abortions is in- choose to have an abortion for many valid. According to Planned Parent- logical reasons such as lack of afford-
ability, pregnancies from rape, age, or simply because they don’t want a child at the moment. When women have kids, it has a huge impact on their lives and they should have a say in such a massive decision. Denying someone an abortion is more inhumane than allowing someone to have an abortion. Planned Parenthood is also one of the largest providers of contraceptives, which can prevent unwanted pregnancies from occurring in the first place. It’s ironic that the very people who are against abortions, which terminate unwanted pregnancies, are also against contraceptives, which prevent unwanted pregnancies. Also, a majority of the services provided are meant for women’s reproductive health and many low-income women depend on this organization to support them. Politicians do not have a right to make decisions on the reproductive health care of women Fortunately, the chances of this bill turning into law are miniscule. However, instead of focusing on limiting women’s reproductive rights, our government should pay more attention to issues that are actually affecting our country like gun control, racism, climate change, and poverty.
Masculinity adversely affects those of all genders Masculinity is a difficult concept to define. After all, how can one possibly pinpoint all the nuances of the male character into one neat definition? Strangely enough, the development of our modern societal constructs has narrowed the concept of masculinity into a tiny frame of conduct defined as toxic masculinity. From youth, we males are molded to be strong and controlling figures, built to hold our women upon our shoulders. We are aggressive and stoic, forbidden from revealing our frailties. We are told to reject all hints of our femininity: a gendered guise that, we are told, connotes weakness. But the reality of our identities tells us otherwise: we are fluid and inconsonant. Our femininity is an inherent part of our characters, and we shouldn’t be limited from expressing it. The prevalence of our gender norms create three common narratives amongst men. One is of the feminine male who strays from conventional manhood and is vilified for doing so. The second is of the hyper-masculine male who strictly complies with society’s expectations
but expresses this through violent inure young boys with such backward misogyny. The third is of the male discourse is a paradox. who desperately attempts to achieve The rising hashtag #masculinitythe image of hyper-masculinity, yet sofragile insightfully critiques our is constantly denied of it. All of these dated concepts of manhood, and does situations engender feelings of re- so hilariously at the expense of macho jection that pervade into the deepest feelings. Tweets that use the hashtag realms of our psyche. range from calling out ridicOur gender convenulously gendered products, tions foment harmful such as “bronuts,” the dodialogues that remind us nuts for bros, to criticizing that we are never good the extreme caution with enough. They tell femiwhich straight men conduct nine boys that they are themselves in order to not be disgusting and fragile. perceived as gay—because They condition straight being gay is obviously taboo. boys to believe that they The problem with toxic own the world, but don’t masculinity clearly roots prepare them for when much deeper than just mursJUSTIN they don’t. It’s the reason es and man-buns. StandardNGUYEN why people like Elliot izing our sexualities creates Rodger resort to killing unsafe environments that women after being rejected, and why inhibit expression and promote selfwomen have to find necessity in hid- hate. We can’t continue to encourage ing tasers and knives in their clothes. boys to censor themselves and subThe emotional repression that comes ject them to the subsequent mental with masculinity is the reason why duress. Instead of proscribing young men, who are given so much power boys from expressing their feelings, and benefits, have higher rates of sui- we must carefully cultivate them uncide worldwide than women do. As to til they can shine and support their how people can find it acceptable to female counterparts.
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the union THE ETHAN P.
STOCKS REPORT
Curious about the J. Crew clad administrator on campus? Here are some fast facts about Assistant Principal Ethan P. Stocks! BY ANNEALICE DESCAMPS
describe THE SCHOOL YEAR WITH one emoji: One movie that made you cry? “Shawshank Redemption”
Favorite potato type (Fries, baked potato, etc.): Don’t eat potatoes, too high on the glycemic index
Where do you buy most of your clothes? J. Crew, I’m like a walking J. Crew catalogue
What would your“senior most likely” be? Most likely to defy your expectations, I’m going to sound probably really egotistical on this
Weirdest thing a student has ever done?
Any lover’s quarrel, generally kind of uncomfortable
A song you sing in the shower?
I don’t sing in the shower but I love karaoke and I sing “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond
What are you thankful for?
The support of my family and friends
NOVEMBER 2015
FEATURES
Phan studies abroad in Japan over summer break by SHERRY LAM
Taking classes during the summer is the norm for many students here at MHS. Most students take these classes at local community colleges, but this past summer, Junior Yvonne Phan was able to study abroad in Japan. Phan attended Shoyo High School in the city of Noshiro, Akita with the Youth for Understanding (YFU) program, according to Phan. The program lasted for a total of six weeks from June to August, Phan said. Phan was one of 150 students from the United States who was selected to study abroad in Japan with YFU, according to Phan. “There were two guys and one other girl who studied abroad with me at Shoyo High School,” Phan said. “The guys were from Chicago and the girl was from Oregon.” Phan applied to study abroad in Japan because she was interested in
the Japanese culture that had such a strong presence here in America, according to Phan. Phan went to Japan with a basic foundation of the Japanese language, she said. “I didn’t know enough to have deep conversations with them,” Phan said. “I had a basic knowledge, but I learned a lot from being fully immersed. I knew enough to get around, and talk to people without them getting too bored. I would speak Japanese and throw in English when I didn’t know the word for it and people could understand.” Students at Shoyo High School had seven periods that were 45 minutes each, according to Phan. The classes that Phan took were classic Japanese, physics, math, English, calligraphy, home economics, computer science, and chorus, Phan said. “Since I didn’t know a lot of Japanese, I wasn’t expected to keep up,” Phan said. “I would have my own
books out and practice Japanese. I would also draw airplanes in my sketchbook. Since I knew English, I was like the [teacher’s assistant] in English class.” After classes ended, Phan would go to the clubs that she joined, Phan said. Phan joined the tea ceremony, art, and badminton clubs, according to Phan. “I wanted to take all the opportunities that I could to spend time with my friends and family. There were three festivals that I went to,” Phan said. “My mom would always dress me and my sister up in yukatas. On other weekends, my family would invite people over to have hot pot or barbeque parties.” Being an exchange student taught Phan how to live a more full and enjoyable life, Phan said. After six weeks, Phan grew very close to her friends and family and wasn’t treated like a guest anymore, according to Phan.
AP Spanish, DBA, AP Art students take local field trips by Krupa Patel
Field trips are a great way for students to learn more about the subject they are studying. Recently, AP Spanish students and some Heritage Speakers went to see a play, “Macario” at the Mexican Theater Plaza, according to Spanish Teacher Monica Rivero. The play is themed around Día de los Muertos and the issue of hunger, Rivero said. The play is based on a novel by B. Traven about a man who is the head of a family that’s poor in the pre-independence years of Mexico,
Rivero continued. “What I enjoyed most about the play ‘Macario’ was the decorations on the stage to make the play feel more alive and colorful,” Junior Ricardo Rodriquez said. “Another thing I like was the costumes and how the actors played their roles.” The senior Digital Business Academy (DBA) class went to the de Young Museum of the Academy of the Arts last month, according to Senior Sarah Taylor. “We went to the Academy of the Arts and took a tour of the campus as well as spoke to some college
recruiters on campus who talked to us about going to their school,” Taylor said. “We also self-toured the De Young Museum and went through the different eras of Art in America as well as some other countries.” AP Art students also went on a field trip to the San Jose State University Pixar presentation, Senior Olivia Le said. The students listened to college class lectures, Le continued. “During the Pixar presentation, we met people from Pixar who talked about interning opportunities to a whole body of college students,” Le said.
Homework Help Students raise funds for bicycles BY Amanda Nguyen
Many MHS students are involved in organizations that aim to have an international impact. For LyfeCycle team members and MHS Seniors Holly Nguyen and Vicky Huynh, this impact comes from providing bicycles to students in Bangladesh, according to Nguyen. LyfeCycle is a nonprofit organization that was originally founded by high school students in New York. Nguyen now serves as the Regional Director of California’s LyfeCycle team, expanding LyfeCycle’s mission to the West Coast, Nguyen said. “Our objective is to send bicycles to third world countries through fundraising and campaigning,” Nguyen said. “I was introduced [to LyfeCycle] a year ago by the CEO and CFO Jason Lu and Ariful Islam. I joined because I’ve always been interested in working with a nonprofit.” These bicycles are meant to provide a means of transportation for children in impoverished countries. Bicycles can effectively cut down on their commute to school, which could be several miles long, Nguyen said. “These bikes will give these students from impoverished countries a sense of freedom,” Nguyen said, “Most importantly, bicycles could save students the long journey it takes to get to school and cut a 1 hour walk into a half hour bike ride. Our main goal is to make a difference in their lives.” To accomplish this goal, the LyfeCycle team has launched a campaign on the popular
crowdfunding website Indiegogo, according to Nguyen. “[LyfeCycle] had a recent campaign on Indiegogo and we raised $850 to send over ten bicycles as a test run,” Nguyen said. “We were successful with our first run because we raised over our $700 goal. After seeing that success, we will be launching our next campaign around the end of November and we are trying to send over 100 bicycles.” The California LyfeCycle team plans to collaborate with team members in New York to launch a second fundraising campaign with a goal of sending 100 bicycles to students in Bangladesh. In addition to promoting online crowdfunding campaigns, the California team has contacted local businesses to help with fundraising, according to Deputy Regional Officer Vicky Huynh. “We are currently contacting food and tea places as well as bigger corporations to collaborate with us on fundraisers,” Huynh said. Although LyfeCycle is a new organization, its team members in California, New York, and Florida hope that the organization can expand and become internationally recognized, Huynh said. “We hope that LyfeCycle will get more exposure and people will want to get involved,” Huynh said. “Even though it will take some time, I hope, as the end result, we can be known globally with a large community of people helping us so we can make the world a better place.”
Web: http://www.lyfecycle.org/ Twitter: @lyfe_cycle Facebook: LyfeCycle
Skills Review Tutoring ESL
Headin’ for Success!
Success! Learning Center a non-profit educational & tutoring center
355 Dixon Rd. Milpitas CA 95035
(408) 263-9754 Visit us on the web! www.successlearningcenter.org
NOVEMBER 2015
FEATURES
the union
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New clubs on campus express future aspirations by MISBAH SURANI
MHS is home to a wide variety of clubs and organizations, ranging from service-oriented clubs to cultural clubs. However, this year, multiple new clubs have been started on campus, each with a unique purpose and impact to make on MHS. One such new club on campus is Leaders of Environmental Awareness and Protection (LEAP). Founded by Sophomore Kevin Tran, LEAP strives to raise awareness for environmental issues and works to alleviate these issues by conducting projects throughout the year, according to Tran. “Our main project would be fixing up and renovating the garden,” Tran said. “We are also trying to incorporate a recycling program within the school to maximize recyclable materials.” As of now, some teachers have recycling bins, and the custodial staff tries to recycle bottles, according to Tran. However, MHS has the potential to recycle many more items, so Tran intends to address this issue within this school year, Tran said. “We would just have an outside bin where everyone could just put in their food trays, which are recyclable, and bottles,” Tran said. “Members also have to free range and lead their own projects.” Tran’s motivation for founding this club was the poor condition of the school last year, according to Tran. He started LEAP to not only assist the campus and overall environment, but also to raise the general student population’s awareness about these issues. “We are trying to focus more on raising awareness and appealing to the general population,” Tran said. “Most people realize that the Earth is in danger, but they can’t bring themselves to change their lives to fit with the changing nature of
ecosystem and environment.” Another club that is trying to make a difference in the Milpitas community is Feel Good Do Good, founded by Senior Ciandra Oo. This club strives to work with incoming high school freshmen to help their transition to high school, according to Feel Good Do Good Vice-President Kaitlyn Fu. “Our mission is to teach about how to succeed in high school and what to watch out for and look out for,” Fu said. “Those workshops will be coming near the end of the year when the eighth graders are prepared to move to high school.”
Feel Good Do Good is one of the few clubs on campus that is geared towards assisting middle school students, according to Fu. Due to this trait, members of the club will have a unique chance to help the incoming high school freshmen; throughout the year, they will host workshops for the students at the end of the year. A club that is also targeting a specific issue is Lights on Trafficking (LOT), founded by Senior Patricia Ta. Ta was inspired to found the club because human trafficking is not as known as it should be, according to Ta. “The mission is to educate and help people acknowledge that human trafficking is not just in foreign countries but is also in San Jose and really close by,” Ta said. “It is a really important trend that is actually happening and affects not only people that are homeless but also students of all ages.” To achieve this mission, LOT plans to hold
small activities during their lunch meetings, such as writing letters to trafficking victims. In addition, they intend to host Share, Inspire, Discover, and Educate (SIDE) Talks, Ta said. “A n o t h e r big event that we have is SIDE Talks, in which we are going to ask administration and students to talk about the experiences that made them change their lives,” Ta said. “You are sharing your experiences to inspire others to change the way that they live and take those different experiences into consideration in their own lives.” Another club on campus is the MHS chapter of the national organization Girls Who Code. Started by Senior Daanya Anand, Girls Who Code strives to get all students interested in coding and engineering, according to Girls Who Code Vice President Sajel Shah. “As a national organization, Girls Who Codes empowers females into engineering fields,” Shah said. “The program was developed based on volunteers who teach girls how to code and basic programming languages.” Girls Who Code also plans to teach club members different coding languages and attend hackathons, which are team coding events and competitions, according to Shah. “Coding is universal, especially in this tech age, so if you know even a little bit of coding, it can go a long way,” Shah said. “Other clubs on campus don’t really have any coding implemented or any computer science focus, but our club teaches people coding and helps them develop an interest towards coding.”
Courtesy of Christine Bui
Left to right: Activites Director Joanna Butcher, Senior Ricky Hua, and San Francisco Giants Lead Pitcher Jeremy Affeldt recognize Hua on the field.
Hua recognized at Giants game for community service outreach by AMAL MULAOMEROVIC
Many of us see our 20-hour community service requirement as nothing more than a tedious chore and another check before graduation, but Senior Ricky Hua has gone above and beyond, completing more than 700 hours of community service during his past four years of high school. For his hard work, he was recognized on center field at the San Francisco Giants game at AT&T Stadium this past September, according to Hua. Already a winner of the prestigious Jefferson Award, Hua was nominated by Mrs. Butcher and selected by the Jefferson Awards committee to be invited to the game, he said. He brought five guests along with him: his mother, father, little brother, and his two good friends, Seniors Christine Bui and Calvin Truong. Before the game started, Hua and his family were escorted out to center field where he was introduced to Freda Statom, the director of the Jefferson Awards, and Jeremy Affeldt, the head pitcher for the San Francisco Giants. At home plate, Hua was honored on the jumbotron where the announcer gave a speech detailing his accomplishments, work, and community service, Hua said. “It was great!” Hua said. “I was really pumped the whole time and so
excited I couldn’t contain it. Standing up there was a really big moment as I looked out into the crowd.” Most of Hua’s hours were accumulated from MathEasy, a summer enrichment program where he worked at as a tutor for six hours a week for the past two summers. “As volunteers we got to really interact with the kids and help with whatever they needed,” Hua said. “We got to really bond with the kids; we got to open up to them and they opened up to us. It was really satisfying learning with them and having fun.” At the game, the jumbotron displayed a picture of Hua and his tutee, giving him a parting gift on his last day at the tutoring center. “Every year the students usually give the tutors gifts and he had gotten me a selfie stick,” Hua explained. “The picture was of us testing it out and it was a really candid moment showing pure joy on both of our faces. It was a really proud moment for me.” Hua was also involved as a board member for Interact, a community service club on campus. He attributes his passion for service to the inspiration he received from attending his first Fall Leadership Conference with Interact in his freshman year, Hua said. “Community service is fun,” Hua said. “It may seem like a lot of work but it’s really rewarding.
CGA’s Halloween Haunt: A spooktackular success by BRENNA HENTSCHKE
Who knew that the sound of bloodcurdling screams could be so satisfying? That’s how the Halloween Haunt team at California’s Great America (CGA) measured our success, and during my time working there, we were pretty successful. On top of terrifying people and having fun doing it, we could make people cry! The maze I was stationed in was Roadkill Roadhouse. Our motto was “If you kill it, we’ll grill it;” and in this case, the “it” could be you! The character description I was given was “Hillbilly Worker,” and my costume consisted of a plaid shirt and a pair of bloody overalls. I wielded a cleaver and a hacksaw, both of which were dripping with blood. My makeup artist gave me an exposed skull and, of course, a ton of blood (no surprise there). At the Haunt, we aimed to give people a good time. The most common response was a long string of loud and colorful language. The number two response started with a terrified jump, and ended with, “Oh, that was good,” and number three was general screaming. Of course, there were the precious few people who really made my night by not only screaming but falling back into their friends, which would then cause more people to fall. In general, the
more people on the floor, the better your scare was. It was fun when evil individuals would come through the maze, and they would point out the scaredy-cat, so I could in turn focus more on them in my crazed acting, causing them to freak out quite a bit. I had to refrain from scaring little kids that came through already in tears. Even though being a talent at the Haunt was like having an alter-ego, (pathetic high-schooler by day, crazy butcher by night), it was still nice to see familiar faces in the maze. Whenever I saw people from MHS come through, I would pick on them more. I would get right up in their face and try a bit extra to scare them. I suppose my ultimate goal was to scare them into recognizing me under all the blood dripping down my face. Of course, attitude was to be expected. In general, it came from haughty tweens and teenagers, which I targeted every time they came through. Identifying them was easy, since all they had to do was say something like, “That wasn’t scary,” or “You suck.” If only they knew how good it felt scaring them the second and third times round. When they struggled to mask their terror, I would give a triumphant “HA” to let them know that I saw that flinch, and that look of terror. Another class of people that came
through were the rowdy type who would hit on anything, including a bloody mess in overalls. I’ve never been told so much that I was hot, and I’ve never had so many people asked for my number. I would often respond with, “Sorry, I don’t play with my food,” “Even for a dead girl I’m out of your league,” or “666, call me!” And when people told me that I was cute, I would tell them that they weren’t. If I had to recall a favorite moment, it would be the reaction from a 60 something-year-old man. When he came through my room, I jumped out to yell, and he yelled back, entering us into something of a yelling match. Then he backed up, yelled again, and whipped out a big cross which he thrust towards me, as if trying to ward me off. He continued to hold it out as he inched his way around me. I was initially too shocked to do anything, but once I recovered, I yelled back at him, “That won’t help you much when you’re in the grinder!” At this, he laughed and then we parted ways. The overall experience of Haunt was a precious one, and the bonds that I was able to make with my coworkers are strong ones that I do not want to lose any time soon. This job gave me something to look forward to, and a chance to go all out with my love for Halloween. But, as with all good things, Haunt must come to an end. Hopefully, though, the fear that I induced into many people won’t!
Brenna Hentschke| THE UNION
Special Effects Makeup Artist Julian Bonfiglio applies latex and tissue to Junior Brenna Hentschke for California’s Great America’s Halloween Haunt.
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THE UNION
SPREAD
NOVEMBER 2015
OPINION: Gun control ineffective, not necessary With every instance of gun vio- of a threat to one’s safety, such as lence in this country, proponents the collapse of the government or of gun control cry louder and loud- enemy invasion, one is fully allowed er for stricter restrictions on gun to defend him or herself using guns. ownership, as though the passing of Stemming from this, in the eyes of such legislation is the elixir to one the Second Amendment, the gun of society’s most prevalent chronic is clearly a means of self-defense, problems. But look past what gun not destruction. The gun is simply control says and into what it caus- a tool, and ownership of that tool es, and you’ll find that gun control is completely within the rights of a is an ideal answer, not a practical citizen so long as he or she does not one. Sure, if we lived in harm others. Therefore, a perfect world in which do lawmakers have the people were divided into jurisdiction to strip you good and bad, gun conof the ability to protect trol wouldn’t even be an yourself from others? Of issue. But such a world course not! And yet some is not our reality, and as choose to ignore these such, a piece of legislation values on the grounds that serves only a perfect that the cost of human world should not be our life is greater than any reality either. ideal. And while it is un“The right of the people doubtedly true that huJUSTIN to bear and keep arms shall man life takes priority, it is TSO not be infringed.” The Secfar less clear whether gun ond Amendment was incontrol is even effective at serted in the Bill of Rights with this accomplishing its purpose, morally idea of an imperfect world in mind. right or not. Our Founding Fathers specifically Firearms have already been added this as a part of the United banned in several countries, such as States’ central foundation of laws. Great Britain, Japan, Australia, and American citizens are not required Canada. And yet, in these nations, to trust others, and the gun is the ul- gun crime has not been eradicated. timate symbol of that. In the event Even worse, violent crime, mug-
gings, and robberies have all skyrocketed as a result in the UK, and the rate of homicides has not fallen. Clearly, all the restricting of guns does is prevent law-abiding citizens from protecting themselves from those who choose to ignore authority. Those who are already breaking laws through malicious use of these weapons are hardly going to be foiled by yet another law. Regulations simply create an avenue for illegal activity, creating a market for the illegal sale and smuggling of guns that wasn’t there before. The idea of profit breeds opportunists, and illegal profit is even greater. I, myself, am not a gun advocate; I have never fired a gun and don’t look to do so any time soon. Gun control, however, isn’t about whether one likes or hates guns, or whether guns are inherently good or bad--in fact, this issue isn’t about guns at all. It’s about sacrificing one inherently American right in exchange for the safety of all, a noble cause in principle. But when principle clashes with the harsh, unintended consequences of reality, that principle has a cost. Ultimately, the cost of extensive gun control would far outweigh its benefits, and it’s a cost that our nation doesn’t have to take.
Sherry Lam | THE UNION
Current gun laws in the United States are stated. Source: nraila.org
As of October 10, 2015, there have been 52 school shootings in the United States this year. Twelve shootings on school campuses are shown above with their statistics. Souces include: www.usat
OPINION: More gun laws needed to avoid deaths From a young age, children are themselves simply don’t know how introduced to guns. Wait, let me to use them, as research published clarify, I mean toy guns. When you in the New England Journal of Medshoot someone with a stream of wa- icine states. The statistics show that ter or a Nerf dart, it’s all in good fun. individuals living in a home where However, when you start shooting guns are kept had up to a 170% insomeone with bullets, ehhh... it gets crease in risk of death by homicide less okay. Gun violence is a terribly caused by ignorance regarding how widespread and recurring problem to handle a gun. Self-defense can in our country, and people be considered a virtuous are just now starting to motive to purchase a gun, realize that we should do but it’s a dicey and unsafe something about it. one. You should leave With 40,930 incidents gun defense to those who taking place so far in 2015, know how to handle it. gun violence has caused On the flipside, if 10,334 deaths, according you’re not purchasing a to gunviolencearchive. gun to defend yourself, org. After all this bloodyou could be purchasing shed, why haven’t stricter a gun to hurt someone. gun laws been enacted? Background checks need CA-ZAO Stricter gun laws need to be stricter in order to BUI to be implemented in all prevent guns from falling states. The fact that it is posinto the hands of someone sible for the majority of Americans with malicious intent. Dylann Roof, to walk into a store and buy a gun the shooter of the church massawithout showing any licensing or cre in Charleston, South Carolina, permit is absolutely absurd. Many should not have been able to acquire people buy guns to protect them- a gun at all. He easily purchased his selves, but wouldn’t it be much saf- weapon from a store in West Coer for you and those around you to, lumbia, South Carolina because hmm, I don’t know, maybe call the the F.B.I. examiner who was tasked police who are trained and autho- with conducting the required backrized to handle a gun? The majority ground check failed to obtain the of people who buy guns to protect police report concerning Roof’s
racist background. The background check failed, the bad dude got the gun, and nine innocent people died. The documentary “Bowling for Columbine” includes a segment with gun-related-deaths-per-year statistics of a few countries with, surprise surprise, America having the greatest number at 11,127! Compare this number to countries with stricter gun laws, such as Japan with 39 deaths, Australia with 65 deaths, and the United Kingdom with 68 deaths, and it makes you wonder why our country hasn’t learned yet. Apparently, the lives of our citizens don’t matter as much as the constitutional right to bear arms. A stricter system of gun laws is necessary to prevent all these gun-related deaths. Whether because individuals buy guns with good intentions to protect people and screw up because they don’t know how to use the weapons, or because cruel people obtain rifles and decide to go on a shooting rampage, too many people die by the trigger, and it’s a problem that should have been eradicated long ago. You may think, “Well, guns don’t kill people. People kill people!” Yeah, sure, but it’s a whole lot easier to kill someone with a gun than it is to kill someone with, say, a sandwich.
A graphic with the total numbers of deaths, injuries, accidental shootings, and mas
NOVEMBER 2015
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OPINION: Does mental illness affect shootings?
Sherry Lam | THE UNION
421 students were asked their opinions on gun control laws in a survey.
In light of the increasing number of school shootings in the past few years, an important question has been raised--do the shooters suffer from mental disabilities, or is it just the easy access to guns that explains the motives behind the attacks? Research doesn’t give a definite answer to this question, but, in practical terms, no matter how accessible a gun is, if you’re relatively sane then you won’t pick it up and go ballistic on a bunch of classmates. Now, it’s impossible to say that every school shooter has a mental illness. However, from a practical standpoint, it seems that the main reason of shootings is the mental instability of the shooter. Sure, there are shooters who aren’t mentally ill and probably are just the result of too much Call of Duty, but these people are outnumbered by the shooters who have been associated with a mental illness or some sort of social anxiety. There were also shooters who are completely normal but managed to get their hands on a semi-auto and thought, “How better to test this thing out than on a bunch of school kids?” In comparison to the number of shooters with mental disabilities, however, the number of people in this category is
dwarfed. son on the planet, all in the course of There are studies that conclude one day. ” Now, I don’t know about that the mentally ill play an insignif- you guys, but if I saw this, I would be icant role in the rate of violence and sure to stay the hell away from this that the media blows up this mis- person. I’m pretty sure this is the exconception. To this, I agree. How- ception to the saying , “Any publicity ever, if these claims are true, then is good publicity.” Also, Harper was why have the majority of school a fervent gun enthusiast and often shooters been diagnosed with men- posted pictures of himself with tal illnesses? From Virginia Tech to heavy duty guns. Umpqua Community After all of this informaCollege, the perpetration, you’re probably thinktors were noted to have ing, “Is there anything I can some sort of instability do about this?” The plain that played a clear role and simple answer to this question is: No, there is esin their motives behind the attack. Seung-Hui sentially nothing you can Cho, responsible for the do to prevent a shooting. Virginia Tech shooting, If someone wakes up one was deemed mentally day and decides he or she would like to go Rambo on ill by a Virginia justice board and, from a our school, there is nothing MIHIR young age, suffered from we can do besides pray. Now, HANSALIA severe depression. Chris if you see someone sitting in Harper, the Umpqua a corner muttering phrases Community College shooter, was like “Death to all humans,” I suggest dealing with mental issues, accord- staying away from him or her and ing to his mother. He also seemed to telling an adult about that person be very anti-religious and revered because you can never be too sure. other killers, claiming on his blog: Or, better yet, try to talk to and be“A man who was known by no one, friend the person so in the unfortuis now known by everyone. His face nate case he or she decides to shoot splashed across every screen, his up the school, he or she might spare name across the lips of every per- your life.
Sherry Lam | THE UNION
today.com, www.cnn.com, www.fox40.com, www.washingtonpost.com, www.huffingtonpost.com, www.good4utah.com, www.ksn.com, www.mlive.com, www.napesnews.com, and www.wbaltv.com
A background on gun control BY NOEMI CRISANTO
Sherry Lam | THE UNION
ss shootings in 2015 in the United States as of November 9, 2015 is shown. Source: http://www.gunviolencearchive.org/
One of the greatest debates that the United States faces today is between the opposing views that Americans face over the issue of gun control and regulation. The two sides to the argument are split into those who believe that the United States government should regulate who can and cannot purchase guns and those who believe that the government should have no say in an issue that has already been declared constitutional. America’s history of the right to bear arms can be traced to the Bill of Rights in the Second Amendment, which states that “a well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” This amendment was ratified in 1791 and, since the ratification, has been the foundation for every pro-gun argument. The right to bear arms was a necessity back when the amendment was ratified because it gave people a sense of security and freedom in a nation that had just been established. There were some restrictions, but anyone could own a gun without needing a license because it was seen as a basic human right that
had been denied to the first American revolutionaries. In 1938, the Federal Firearms Act placed the first limitations on selling ordinary firearms and required those who sold guns to acquire a license and keep records of those who bought their guns. The Gun Control Act of 1968 was passed thirty years later with the intent of keeping firearms out of the hands of those who should not possess them due to incompetence, age, or criminal background. As time went on, there were other reasons for the government to restrict gun control usage. One of those reasons was school shootings. The fact that many children can die at the hands of someone who would not even hold a gun if there was more gun regulation served as a wake up call for many Americans. As more cases of shootings occurred, the United States government decided to interfere and pass a vote that instituted a mandatory background check for all sales of firearms at gun shows. To this day, citizens are still at odds over whether or not gun control is benificial and are reminded of their choices whenever a national tragedy strikes.
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Lifestyle
FASHION SPOTLIGHT by Crystal Tran
Paul Cao History Teacher
Blazer custom tailored Shirt from Express Tie from Giorgio Armani
Watch street corner in Vietnam
november 2015
Top 3 productivity apps to manage your schedule by Divyesh Chotai
Fall is typically the busiest time of the academic year. Apportioning your time between multiple activities may be difficult. However, by using some of these top-notch productivity apps, you can be efficient and organized on the go: 1. Todoist (iOS/Android/Web) Todoist offers a powerful to-do list. Not only is the app free, but it can also be seamlessly used across mobile devices, web browsers, and other platforms. Todoist can manage tasks and projects offline and sync them to the cloud later, meaning you don’t have to wait for your phone to catch a signal when you want to add a task while you’re traveling. You can also set up notifications to be reminded about upcoming deadlines . Todoist can create projects with sub-tasks and share them with others to collaborate. The most useful function of Todoist is in its capabilities of intelligent input, which enables users to speedily add tasks without scrollling through a plethora of menus. For example, if you type “Math HW due 12/1 at noon,” Todoist automatically enters your “Math HW” task for Dec. 1 at 12 PM. Even a little feature like this allows you to optimize your productivity throughout the day.
2. Trello (iOS/Android/Web) Trello uses the concept of boards, lists, and cards to help you organize your work in a single view. It’s great for visual and spatial thinkers who want to track different processes in a single view. In Trello, a board is used for project management. You can make lists in a project board that represent stages of production or any categories you want to set. For example, you can have a list full of items to complete, another containing items you’re working on, and a third that contains the work you finished. For each item in a list, you create cards that includes further details about that component. Trello makes it easy and visually appealing to organize cards as well. Within each card, you can add extra details like due dates, labels, and even attachments. Due dates and labels make it easier for you to reprioritize your assignments. Furthermore, you can directly drag and drop an image or PDF onto a card to attach it within seconds. This makes it really easy to include additional files that you may need to refer to. Although some may not prefer using Trello daily, the app is definitely useful for long-term planning .
3. Sunrise (iOS/Android/Web) Sunrise gives people with busy schedules an opportunity to tie up different events into a unified calendar. Sunrise can pull and combine all of your information into one display to help you plan your week. The best part about Sunrise is that if you make a change to an event in the app, it automatically syncs up with its respective service. For instance, if you change a Google event from 9 AM to 10 AM in Sunrise, it will automatically be changed to 10 AM in your Google app as well. This is exceedingly useful for those of us who rely on multiple platforms for tracking our events. The most notable feature is that of app integrations. If you use Trello or Todoist, both of which are compatible with Sunrise, your tasks and cards along with their due dates and respective details will appear in Sunrise. This makes it easy for users to check their deadlines all from one app instead of having to flip through different windows. Sunrise is highly recommended for everyone, since it will help you balance your time between studying for your upcoming test, going to a sports game, or even getting your college applications submitted before the deadline.
How to stay warm and stylish in the winter by Gurshaan Bariana
Pants from Express
As winter approaches, many of us are forced to change our entire wardrobes to adjust to the sudden change in temperature. The following tips and guidelines may help in a smoother transition to colder weather. 1. Layering Add layers to ensure constant warmth. Layers will allow you to easily adapt to the conditions so you are never too hot or cold. Although they provide flexibility, these articles will most likely be uncomfortable in a humid environment. 2. Outerwear With cold weather also comes the
Shoes from Frye James
His Fashion Inspir ation: “My fashion is inspired by a modern take on the 1960s; having a sister who is a fashion designer doesn’t hurt.”
possibility of rainfall. In order to prevent the unfortunate soggy sock situations, it is best to always wear a waterproof layer. Windbreakers, preferably those made of nylon are commonly worn during this time of the year. Although it may be important to stay dry, oftentimes we are still cold from waterproof layers. Any jackets or long sleeves made of cotton or wool will keep you insulated throughout the day. 3. Flannels Flannels and other long sleeved button-ups are also great for layering. 4. Socks The cold weather brings a dreary atmosphere that is often hard to
overcome. Fuzzy socks offer a way to keep you warm as well as offset the gloomy environment. 5. Boots Combat boots are advantageous in that they repel water and match with any outfit. Although they no longer seem popular in the winter, rain boots come in a variety of patterns and colors that allow you to stand out while still protecting your feet in the rain or colder weather. 6. Beanies Covering your head and ears is important to stay warm in the cold weather. Beanies serve this purpose and can save you from a bad hair day. Beanies are also a cool and trendy accessory to top off your outfits.
Alexandra Nguyen Math Teacher Jacket from Gap Necklace from Anthropologie Top from Goodwill
Amanda Nguyen | THE UNION
Skirt from J.Crew
The Flamin’ Hot Cheetos Mozerella Sticks and Pizza Cone are two of the most popular recipes from BuzzFeed Food. Buzzfeed Food has just recently become popular among students with over 9 million likes on Facebook.
BuzzFeed Food videos: realistic or misleading?
Watch from Nordstrom Rack
by Julia Nguyen
Boots from DSW
Her Fashion Inspir ation: “I get my fashion inspiration usually from bloggers and from my mood that particular day.”
Buzzfeed Food videos have been shared all over Facebook, making it that much easier to procrastinate on homework. The one to three minute recipes featured that require only basic cooking techniques and simple ingredients make Buzzfeed Food appealing to a lot of teenagers who are looking for a fun and easy way to make a delicious snack. With the quick cuts and fast forwarded editing it’s hard to tell if these recipes are as tasty and as straightforward as they seem in the videos, so I decided to put two of the most popular recipes to the test; the Pizza Cone and Flamin’ Hot Chee-
tos Mozzarella Sticks., which each have over 1 million views, to the test. The most costly and time consuming dish to make was the Pizza Cone. It took about one hour to prepare and bake, and the total for all the ingredients was just under twenty dollars to make six cones. Most of the preparation time was spent covering the cone cups with foil; a task that only took six seconds in the Buzzfeed Video, but took me 3 minutes. Furthermore, the cones were extremely delicate; they began to crack while I was adding toppings causing sauce to spill everywhere. The Pizza Cones tasted like a slightly crispier version of a Lunchables
Pizza, and in conclusion, this recipe is not the most cost or time efficient way to satisfy a pizza craving. The Hot Cheetos Mozzarella Sticks were very easy and inexpensive to make. A running problem in all of the Buzzfeed Food videos is that they do not give you any specific measurements which really affected the taste of the mozzarella sticks. As many times as I replayed the video, I still could not estimate the measurements well enough, and the finished mozzarella sticks had less flavore than I had hoped for. From the recipes I’ve tried, I can conclude that Buzzfeed Food videos are not practical, but are definitely fun to make and enjoy with friends.
november 2015
Lifestyle
iphone 6s features 5 MP
12 MP
(from 1.5 MP in iPhone 6)
#OOTD by Ashley Ricks
Cute outfit, ugly background? Capturing your “outfit of the day” on campus isn’t as challenging as you might think. Use this inspiration from other Trojans to snap some instaworthy #ootds! L R: A ngelina L in ,J eda A spiras , A retha L iev, D orothy Tran (9)
to
@YUNG _ AILZ @SNIPPETSWITHALEX
A ndy N guyen (11)
THEATER ENTRANCE FACING THE GREEN
@AN _ DEE
A lexandra N guyen (M ath Teacher )
14 grams heavier
2 GB RAM
(from 1 GB in iPhone 6)
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@ARETHALIEV
A ili M asuda (12)
(from 8 MP in iPhone 6)
THE UNioN
iPhone 6s includes new 3D Touch feature
by Justin Nguyen
Gen is probably the most talked about restaurant in our area right now. With its notoriously long waits and reputed cuisine, Gen is a restaurant that definitely lives up to its hype. At $25 per person for all-youcan-eat Korean BBQ dinner and $15 for lunch, pricing shouldn’t be an issue if you’re looking for a good meal. The first thing you notice when you walk into Gen is how big it is. There are tables that seat parties of all sizes, each set with grills for cooking your meat. Customers are seated with a set of side-dishes already on the table and given a salad bowl
C hris D o (11)
@JOM AR.Y2K
J omar E chaluse (9)
Gen Korean BBQ House
ANY BUILDING WALL
L BUILDING THE STAIRS BETWEEN E AND L BUILDING @ _ THEST YLECULT
Restaurant Reviews
tially, there is a new function on the 6s that allows you to capture the moments directly before and after a photo is taken, captured with movement and sound. (Don’t ask us how it gets the moments right before.) To “relive” the photo, simply put pressure anywhere on the photo and watch the photo replay. With this feature, you’re literally “capturing the moment.”You can also save these photos as your lock screen, able to rewatch the moment over and over again on your lock screen. Ultimately, this new 3D Touch feature for the iPhone adds a completely new dimension to the iPhone 6s that no other phone on the market currently has. Is it worth the upgrade? I recommend doing some more research into other specifics of the phone and going over your phone plan to see if it’s worth the upgrade for you.
@HELLOCHRISDO
So, what exactly is this new “3D Touch” feature? Apple has found a way to integrate an “entirely new way to interact with your phone,” according to the Apple website. Icon Shortcuts: Let’s take the phone icon as our example. Similar to what we’re all used to, when you tap on the phone icon, your recent calls come up so you can navigate to contacts, keypad, etc. Now, because of 3D touch, when you put slightly more pressure on the phone icon, different options pop up, allowing you to access different recent contacts and create a new contact directly from the icon. This applies to a multitude of different apps and icons, including Messages, Calendar, Maps, and social media apps. Essentially, it provides more streamlined access to the most
common functions of an app. Peek and Pop: The 3D Touch feature also introduces a new MultiTouch touch that Apple refers to as “Peek and Pop.” For example, maybe you are researching your essay topic for English. Now, when you’re doing your Googling, you can press down on a link and a preview of the webpage will show up, allowing you “peek” at the page before actually navigating to the page. If the page is of use to you, you put a short burst of pressure on the screen to “pop” into the page. If the page isn’t of use to you, simply let go and continue researching. You can also swipe up to view options for opening the page. You can also do this with links, including photos, sent to you in the Messages app or anywhere else on your phone. Live Photos: This is arguably the coolest aspect of 3D Touch. Essen-
A manda N guyen (11)
by Daanya Anand
@LOVELY YK AEE @THATSSOJAR
Julia Nguyen | THE UNION
R: G iselle C onstantakis , A liyah V illiados , K iara Lynn F ick (10)
faster finger print sensor
THE BLEACHERS to
(from 0.27 GB in iPhone 6)
THE FIELD UN ION
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0.28 inches thick
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JR L auron (11)
Am an da Ng
Take these ideas and keep on rocking your favorite fall outfits both on and off campus. #strutlikeyoumeanit #freeyourmind
Trendy restaurants and cafes are opening up all over the Bay Area, sending Instagram-ers and other social media users into a ‘food photography’ frenzy. But are these places actually worth the hype? Read on to find out.
along with the meat. Ordering your meats works like this: you can order 4 raw meats at a time for a max eating time of 2 hours. There’s also a small selection of soups and already prepared dishes. Cooking the meat is easy, and the waiters are very helpful. The beef bulgogi and spicy pork bulgogi are some recommended selections. The meat comes with three dipping choices: soy sauce, oil, and a salt mixture. When the meat comes, all that’s left for the customer to do is cook the meat and enjoy. And if you’re still craving something sweet, get their macaron ice cream. Gen is a fun and inventive eating experience. It creates a congenial environment that’s sure to leave everyone happy. The food isn’t any-
thing that’s blow-your-socks-off orgasmic, but just cooking the meat and sharing the experience with others is something you can’t miss. And if the wait time seems intimidating, there’s a variety of shops in the surrounding area that alleviate the boredom of waiting.
Milkcow Icecream Cafe by Terra Walls
Terra Walls | THE UNION
Justin Nguyen | THE UNION
In addition to the selection of raw meat and seafood, Gen also provides sauces and traditional Korean sideishes, like kimchi. with each order.
The grand opening of Fremont’s Milkcow Cafe was plastered on Facebook events for quite awhile. The photos on Yelp showed giant tufts of cotton candy on top of creamy soft serve ice cream, a match that, in theory, seems made in heaven. In reality, disappointing doesn’t even begin to describe the
quality of Milkcow’s desserts. There weren’t many options, but the combinations of ingredients in each soft serve cup made up for the lack of quantity available. I was slightly overwhelmed by the 12 incohesive combinations available, so I decided to go with Mango Tree: soft serve ice cream with mango slices, apple syrup, and cotton candy on top. I had high expectations since I was playing it safe with my order, but after a few scoops it was evident that I had just spent my money on overpriced milk flavored ice cream and cotton candy. I attempted to avoid rushing to conclusions, so I also tried Santorini. Oreo crumbles, Tropical Blue Syrup, Cotton Candy, and Pistachio Crumble added together sounds like an inedible mess, but to my surprise it had a little bit more flavor than my original order did. The hype surrounding MilkCow isn’t well deserved, but the concept itself was unique.
The prices are pretty expensive at around four to five dollars for one drink, but the drinks are organic and made with natural ingredients so it’s worth it. The drink I ordered was an assam black milk tea with honey boba. The flavor of the tea is more herbal than most other milk teas and a lot stronger. The boba was soft and had a nice texture. However, it was not that sweet and I couldn’t taste the honey. Overall, I would only recommend this place if you’re in the area because it’s located pretty far from Milpitas. The milk tea is still really good, but it’s not that different from the milk tea places available locally.
Tea Lyfe Drinks by Amandeep Dosanjh
Tealyfe opened up a new shop this summer at Story Road in San Jose. This shop sells a variety of teas and drinks and is known for incorporating organic and all natural ingredients in their products.
Terra Walls | THE UNION
THE UNION
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NOVEMBER 2015
ENTERTAINMENT
RATING KEY
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Amazing Pretty good Decent Not so great Bad Courtesy of FOX
From left: Chanel #2 (Ariana Grande), Chanel Oberlin (Emma Roberts), Chanel #5 (Abigal Breslin), and Chanel #3 (BIllie Lourd) discover a hateful Chanel shrine made by the Kappa Kappa Tau maid in the first epidode.
Scream Queens makes you scream ‘disappointing’
RATING:
when Dean Cathy Munsch requires that everyone be allowed to BY MISBAH SURANI pledge, no matter her size, looks, or economic background. Kappa Fox’s new horror-comedy Kappa Tau also loses popularity “Scream Queens” premiered when the mysterious Red Devil on Sep 22. 2015 with about four begins to murder sorority members million viewers. Started by Glee and associated individuals. The co-creators Ryan Murphy, Brad investigation to discover the Falchuk, and Ian Brennan, the show identity of the Red Devil is headed has been called a mashup of “Glee” by the show’s main character, Grace and “American Horror Story,” as Gardner, and her close friend, the plot follows a series of murders Zayday Williams. Grace, played by at the Kappa Kappa Tau sorority at Skyler Samuels, joined the sorority Wallace University. to follow her mom’s footsteps, The show starts by showing and is now focused on finding a scene set in 1995 in which an the killer and changing the unidentified baby is born at the sorority for the better, while Kappa House. The show then TV-SERIES Zayday, played by Keke Palmer, jumps twenty years into the REVIEW joins in hopes of leading the future when murders begin sorority and furthering her to take place at the sorority. goal of becoming the first black Run by the cruel Chanel Oberlin, woman president. the sorority loses its popularity As the 15-episode series
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progresses, the show takes on the classic format of “whodunit” as deaths and possible suspects increase, staying true to the creators’ promise of a death in every episode. There is also a satirical characteristic to the show, shown when portraying classic wealthy, pretty, and racist mean girls. “Scream Queens” has been able to boast many famous faces, such as pop star Nick Jonas, Glee star Lea Michele, and classic horror movie actress Jamie Lee Curtis. “Scream Queens” has received an average rating of 7 out of 10, but I personally had higher expectations for the show. The quality of the show decreased with many scenes in each episode becoming boring and dull, yet I must admit that I will continue to watch “Scream Queens” just to finally discover the true identity of the Red Devil.
The most controversial Donald Trump quotes BY NOEMI CRISANTO
Donald Trump is a television personality, real estate developer, business man, and presidential candidate for the upcoming 2016 election, according to his website. Trump’s comments are usually directed toward a specific group of people or gender and typically end up making news headlines because of the crude sense of humor that he uses to convey his thoughts. Trump’s opinion on women: “I don’t think Ivanka would [pose for Playboy], although she does have a very nice figure,” Trump said. “I’ve said if Ivanka weren’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her.” This comment refers to Trump’s earlier statement about not caring about what the media says as long as
he has a young, beautiful woman by his side, an example of how he effectively objectified women. His public relations representative later cleared up the matter, saying that Trump was attempting to make a joke about how he would like to date younger women. Trump on immigration: “The U.S. had become a dumping ground for everybody else’s problems. When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best,” Trump said. “They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists, and some, I assume, are good people.” It is said in the constitution that everyone has the freedom to express whatever he or she pleases and that is a right that Trump uses quite freely
and frequently. However, the fact is that Latinos accounted for nine percent of documented sexual assaults in 2013, though they make up 17 percent of the U.S. population. Meanwhile, whites accounted for 71 percent of sexual assaults and make up 63 percent of the population, according to Bureau of Justice Statistics’ National Crime Victimization Survey. Trump’s opinion on minorities: “Laziness is a trait in the blacks… Black guys counting my money! I hate it,” Trump said. “The only kind of people I want counting my money are little short guys that wear Yakamas every day.” Trump’s inflammatory and ignorant statements only fuel the negative stereotypes that many minorities already have to live with hearing from others.
Spectre, a weak version of Mission Impossible
RATING:
stadium. Explosions occur and we find Bond in a fist fight with Sciarra BY ABIGAIL ECAL in an airplane. Before the opening credits end, we are relieved to find Following the success of Skyfall, Bond driving the enemy’s helicopfans gathered in high hopes with ter into the beautiful sky. The rest the release of Spectre, the 24th in- is without spoilers, sorry. stallment of the 53 year old James The movie’s film score is comBond franchise. Directed by Sam mendable and the direction was Mendes, Spectre revolves around fair. Although I enjoyed most of the film, there were some irks James Bond coming across a in the film that were really perplexing message from his off-putting. past that eventually lead him to encounter the global crimiFor one, anybodywho MOVIE knows James Bond can agree nal syndicate and terrorist orREVIEW that he is in fact a very handganization, SPECTRE and its leader Oberhausen (Christoph some guy who is has a love Waltz). interest in almost every film, but The film starts off hastily, with particularly in this film, Bond was Bond in Mexico City with his mis- too passionate about almost every tress , he is dressed in a skeleton woman he encounters. In fact, suit and mask walking through a there were two women that Bond Day of the Dead parade. The intro- had flings with before he settles duction is Bond tracking down an into his main “Bond girl” in the Italian mafioso Sciarra (Alessan- film, Madeleine White (Lea Seydro Cremona) before the mafia’s doux.), the daughter of a previous leader sets off a bomb in a nearby antagonist in the franchise also re-
•••
prised in the film. The main issue with the film was Bond’s relationship with White. Their relationship was weak and rather annoying. We see their first encounter as a bitter spat between the two, as White does not seem to comprehend why Bond had found her in her “hiding place.” Their relationship was kept alive bybrief meet ups with death, followed by a passionate kiss. Apart from Bond’s love life, it is enough to say that the actions of the film were either trying too much or trying too little. The typical car chases were not thrilling and seem to be “down there” on the list of the best car chases in action movie history. Attempts at fights were featureless and the overall plot of the movie was too simple. Despite all that, the film was not awful. While Spectre cannot hold a candle near Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation, it was still decent.
MUSIC REVIEWS
WIPED OUT! by The Neighbourhood Alternative Rock RATING:
WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE by Drake and Future Rap RATING:
BY AYSHA REHMAN
BY MIHIR HANSALIA
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The Neighbourhood’s second album Wiped Out! is a blend of hiphop, alternative, and indie. Although the overall tone is darker and more reflective than previously released tracks, its soulful melodies take listeners back to a more nostalgic atmosphere. The album begins with the track “Prey,” one of the best on the album. This track is poppier than much of the rest of the album and is reminiscent of “Sweater Weather,” one of the band’s more well known songs. “Cry Baby” follows the same poppy undertones and compliments the angstier tracks in the album. Two of my favorite tracks on the album were “Welcome to Califournia” and “Single.” “Welcome to California” reminded me of the sound associated with bands more on the noisepop side of alternative. On the other hand, “Single” seemed to be a less refined and more refreshing contrast to the somewhat processed sound of the rest of the album. As for the title track, “Wiped Out!” picked up the pace from the beginning of the song kept going with its warped sound throughout. “Daddy Issues” had a similar sound in that it took on a darker tone, and it definitely had a lo-fi sound to it. Overall, I can’t say that I was disappointed with the album. Its genre bending tracks projected a tone that contrasted with the poppier tracks marking The Neighbourhoods earlier career. Despite the interest genre-mixing generates, the album is not for everyone.
Two of the hottest names in hip hop, Future and Drake, joined forces and released the highly anticipated joint mixtape What a Time to be Alive on September 20. Producer Metro Boomin, reunited once again with Future, shows his versatility on the tape, with slow relaxing beats on “Plastic Bag,” to the catchy and upbeat “Jumpman.” With Drake already platinum-certified this year and Future having released four major projects in the past 12 months, it is no surprise that the two came together to solidify their positions as the best rappers of 2015. What a Time addresses a variety of topics, from Future’s difficult childhood in “Live From the Gutter” to Drake struggling with the burden of fame in “30 for 30 Freestyle.” In most of the tracks, Drake seems to be out of place, and it’s evident that the two lack definite chemistry in the studio. It seems as though Drake was just thrown into songs such as “I’m the Plug” where Future takes over and leaves Drake on the sidelines. Future finds his groove early in the tape, and it becomes clear that it’s his. What the mixtape lacks in chemistry and cohesiveness, it makes up in its catchiness and flourishing production. What a Time acts as a transition into bigger projects for both rap moguls, with Drake’s highly anticipated Views From the Six and Future’s Monster 2 on the near horizon. What a Time to be Alive is a step in the right direction for both artists and creates a dynamic between the two that will hopefully materialize into other joint projects in the future.
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NOVEMBER 2015
ENTERTAINMENT
THE UNION
13
Fall P l a y l i s t BY TERRA WALLS
aves 1 | Autumn Le
The leaves are changing, the air is crisp and cold, and the infamous Starbucks red cups are out, which means its time for a fall playlist to accompany that pumpkin spice latte. From soothing RnB to mellow indie pop, this playlist has got you covered.
Ed Sheeran
er 2 | Warm Wat Banks
3 | Telegraph Ave. Daniela Andrade
4 | Weight In Gold
6 | How We Feel
Gallant
Panama
Ede 7 | From r
n
Hozie
Blu 5 | Baby le
e
King Kru
Amanda Nguyen | THE UNION
Reccommended T.V shows and movies on Netflix BY JUSTIN NGUYEN & CRYSTAL TRAN
Movies Foreign: “Blue is the Warmest Color” This French drama features a teenage girl, Adele, exploring her sexuality with an older, bluehaired art student named Emma. “Blue” addresses the struggles of being young, lesbian, and sexually repressed. It’s resonant, sensual, and everything a female comingof-age story should be. Horror: “Battle Royale” Japan is in a state of ruin, and adolescents are getting rowdier. To reestablish order, the government passes a law called the BR Act, in which one high-school class is randomly selected to participate in a death match and only one student can return home. It’s the Hunger Amanda Nguyen | THE UNION
Games, but far more grim. Comedy: “Kung Fu Hustle” Set in 1930’s Shanghai, two guys attempt to join a ruthless gang and are met with countless trials. Hustle is a hilarious nod to Chinese martial arts movies of the 70’s and 80’s and provides great entertainment for a Netflix binge night. Drama: “Weekend” The premise of this movie is simple: two men meet each other at a gay bar, and spend a weekend together. Weekend explores what it means to be gay, the difficulties of coming out, and the acceptance of one’s sexuality. TV shows Sci-Fi: “Marvel Agents of Shield” Connected to the Marvel movies, this show reveals the stories of all the background characters in
Marvel. Agent Phil Coulson runs S.H.I.E.L.D., a worldwide lawenforcement organization. The team works together in protecting the globe from extraordinary events and people. Comedy: “Portlandia” Main characters Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein show what it’s like to live in Portland, Oregon, parody-style. Armisen, Brownstein, and their supporting characters portray satirical emotions throughout the show. Anime: “Noragami” Hiyori is walking down the street when she jumps in front of a bus to save a boy. When she wakes up, she discovers not only that she is now half-phantom, but also that the boy whom she saved is a stray god. CONTINUED ON MHSTHEUNION.COM
14
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november 2015
NOVEMBER 2015
THE UNION
SPORTS
15
Soccer teams look forward to Girls' tennis improves in year of transition familiarity with her teammates and tournament that was held in San continuing previous successes their playing styles, according to Wu. Francisco in early September, Tran BY GURSHAAN BARIANA
BY JUSTIN TSO
As the fall sports season winds to a close, winter sports teams are gearing up for the upcoming season. Among them are the boys and girls varsity soccer teams, which are looking to build, improve, and learn from the mistakes of last season. The girls varsity season is continuing the most successful season in school history, as they were undefeated in the 2014-2015 regular season with a record of 17-03, winning the El Camino Division and breaking school records for most wins and least losses. As a result of the members' efforts, the girls varsity team has been promoted to the De Anza division. It’s easy to get carried away with all of this success, but Head Coach Mike Tomlin has remained even-keel about his team’s chances. “My expectations are that we will be challenged even more than how we were [last season],” Tomlin said. “With us moving up into the De Anza Division, and with us graduating nine seniors last season, we will have to work twice as hard to gain even a half of the success of last season.” At the same time, Tomlin is looking forward to the upcoming season. He expects to maintain the winning mentality that the team carried throughout the past season and for each the team members to fight for each other. As usual, Tomlin demands the full dedication that befits varsity athletes from his players. “They need to be prepared to step into the team and contribute something, whatever they have
to give, and not ever expect to be a secondary member of the team, otherwise they will probably be unhappy with their decision,” Tomlin said. “I would say that they should not consider trying out for either team, Varsity or JV, unless they are prepared to give their very best a hundred percent of the time.” The boys team, on the other hand, is continuing a relatively less successful 2014-2015 season. Head Coach Bill Leffler looks to improve on last season and make his players expand their skills, but the roster spots on his team are far from set. “Our goal before the season started was to be able to win our league and go to the CCS. As always happens, there were injuries and other obstacles that pop up during the year, and we fell short of our goals,” Leffler said. Those who do not try out can still support the soccer teams. Leffler emphasized the importance of supporters and encouraged anyone interested in soccer to attend. “I always say that if you love the game of soccer and have a desire to learn that you should try out,” Leffler said. “But even if you do not come out this year, please come by and view the teams playing this year. We have always had some exceptional players, teams, and great times.” Both teams began tryouts on Nov. 2, Tomlin said. The boys varsity team will have its first game on Dec. 5 against Willow Glen and the girls team’s first game will be on Dec. 1 against Prospect High School, he added.
The MHS Girls Tennis season has recently come to an end with a final record of 9-12, according to Coach Dong Pham. By the end of the season, the team will find out if it will be going to the Central Coast Section (CCS) Tournament for a championship, Dong explained. At first, the outcome of the season was uncertain with many players gone from the previous year’s roster, Pham said. “They [the players] are doing better, but we lost ten seniors this year, so it is hard to keep up," Pham said. “Overall, we have good doubles teams, and they are learning. We have some strong freshmen who help a lot.” As the season progressed, the team was able to identify its weaknesses, Varsity Co-Captain Jennifer Tran explained. After focusing a majority of their time trying to improve, the players' performance dramatically improved, Tran added. “Our team got a lot better over the season because when we first started everyone was consistent, but they didn’t have power," Tran explained. "After practice everyone started hitting a lot better.” The team participates in various drills to cope with any circumstances that would arise during a tennis match. One such activity involves doubles simulation with two players at the net. while other team members attempt to return the ball. Varsity Co-Captain Maggie Wu also explained how she grew into a better person and player over her four years on the tennis team. The success of her season can be attributed to the
“I’ve gotten the chance to witness the growth and improvement in my fellow teammates, especially the returning varsity players this year and my doubles partner that I’ve been paired with for two years,” Wu said. “I’ve also been able to train myself to be more calm and adjust accordingly with support of the team and coach. Tennis has helped me learn to have a humble heart and to be grateful after every win or loss.” The team was able to persist and grow over the course of the season, according to Wu. "With more experience and practice during the season, we were able to improve in strategy and confidence," Wu said. The year was highlighted by a visit to the 2015 Battle in the Bay Classic
said. The team did not do as well as it wanted, but still benefited from the experience, according to Tran. “Everyone got a lot closer, especially after the tournament,” Tran explained. “We drove to San Francisco and were able to hang out at the pier and get closer as teammates.” For many seniors on the team, it is still hard to accept that this will be their final year playing for MHS. Although they knew this day would come, it was still hard to completely accept the fact that they will no longer be Lady Trojans at this time next year, Tran explained. “It’s nice to have it finally be my last season and experience senior night and gifts,” Tran said. “But it’s kind of sad to think that next year I won’t be returning.”
Courtesy of Stephen Balsbaugh
Senior Co-Captain Maggie Wu returns a forehand during tennis practice
Cross country qualifies for CCS, 'Stronger as a whole' Wrestling aims to develop participants, BY MIHIR HANSALIA
The Cross country team has enjoyed a successful season, according to Head Coach Bridget Hall. The team was able to qualify for the Central Coast Section (CCS) meet on Nov. 14, according to Hall. Hall, who took a break from coaching cross country two years ago, said the transition back to coaching was smooth. Her one wish, however, was to get to know the kids more. “I didn’t know all the kids as much as I would have liked to, because I coached the seniors when they were freshman,” Hall said. “It’s hard to get to know a lot of kids while coaching a big team.” The team improved significantly since the start of the season, according to Hall. Most of the athletes achieved new personal records for their race times, Hall said. “The team has gotten closer as a group. Both teams making the CCS race is not only a testament of individual skill, but also a testament of the team getting stronger as a whole,” Hall stated. “At the league
trials, over 90% of the team had a personal record.” As for next year, Hall says the team is looking better than ever, and she’s looking forward to even more success. “We should have a really strong team next year,” Hall said. “There are only a few seniors on the team, so the team next year will have many returning kids. Fourteen runners qualified for the CCS race on Nov. 14, according to Hall. The girls qualified by an at large time, which means they ran under the
qualifying time. Six boys qualified for the race by finishing at a qualifying place, Hall said. Junior Andy Buchanan says that the season has been excellent for the team as a whole. Many of the kids have gotten faster and more mentally focused, according to Buchanan. “I feel like the team has gotten a lot stronger over the course of this season,” Buchanan said. “Overall, we were more focused and mentally prepared for the races, and it payed off.”
Courtesy of Roger Shaw
From left: Kieran Panili (9), Matthew Luu (10), Joshua Alimpia (10), Nathan Dulay (9), and Jomar Mendoza (10) compete in the Baylands Meet on Oct. 20
First water polo season a great experience for players BY AMANDA NGUYEN
As the water polo season came to an end, the MHS water polo team reflected on its growth and improvement throughout the season. The team made progress as expected, considering that many of the players have never played the sport before, according to Girls Water Polo Coach Jennifer Loomis. “Every new team is going to have a building year,” Loomis said. “This season has been difficult because the teams we are playing against are established. Out of the boys and girls we have 50 players , and around three of them had played the game before. So we were starting from the baseline level in terms of skills.” Besides learning the basics of the game, the players wanted to prove that they were good competitors,
according to Senior Varsity Player Diana Chavez. “For being a new team, we surprised the other teams because they thought we would not be able to play at all. Even though we didn't win, we impressed the other teams with what we could do,” Chavez said. Despite these initial obstacles, the players showed that they were improving as the season progressed, according to Chavez. “The teams saw us twice; once at beginning of season, once at the end, and some of the coaches of the other teams commented on how much we improved in that short amount of time,“ Chavez said. “We had players who didn't know how to swim, and you can really see how much they have learned and improved.” Although its overall record may not be reflective of this progress,
the team was optimistic about its improvement throughout the season, according to Loomis. “Having a losing season can get frustrating, but with the Varsity girls, even though the last few games they have been losing, [they] still come out of the water smiling because they realize that they are improving and keeping the score difference down,” Loomis said. Senior Varsity Player Caleb Lee hopes that next season, the players on the boys varsity team will improve to the level of the teams of their opposing schools. “I would recommend [students to join],” Lee said, “[Water polo] is a very physical sport so don't expect it to be easy, and be prepared to work hard every practice, and every game is going to be harder than you expect it to be.”
Hopes to perform 'better than before'
BY BROOKE TRAN
The 2015 MHS wrestling season started November 2, according to Coach Kent Mitchell. Tryouts took place during the first week of the season, Mitchell said. Wrestling is a difficult sport and requires perseverance, strong character, willingness to work hard, and athletic ability, Mitchell said. The goal for this season is to help the wrestlers become the best they can be, according to Mitchell. “Always, every year, my goal is to have the kids reach their potential, for them to be challenged, and to make an impact on their life,” Mitchell said. “That’s the best thing you could do. Every kid is different." Some wrestlers’ goal may be to play for the varsity team, while others may want to win a match, Mitchell explained. To allow that opportunity and to impact their lives is the goal, Mitchell said. Last season, six wrestlers qualified for Central Coast Section (CCS) Tournament, according to Mitchell. This year, the wrestlers are looking forward to the tournaments and hope to do better than before, Wrestler Megan Lam said. “This year, I have confidence that I’ll do better compared to last year,” Lam stated. “I took part of an intense training camp over the summer, and
I can’t wait to bring those skills onto the mat.” There are many tournaments that the wrestlers compete in throughout the year, but the one that Lam is most looking forward to is the Girls CCS Tournament. The tournaments are always large and are grate opportunities to meet different wrestlers from other schools, Lam continued. “Taking part of wrestling has made me stronger mentally and physically, and it’ll definitely help you learn something new about yourself,” Lam added. Mitchell’s advice to those who are not sure about joining is to just do it because they should challenge themselves. Wrestling can make individuals into better athletes than other sports can because of the skills involved, Mitchell added. “Do something hard,” Mitchell continued. “Do something with your life that’s not just easy for you.” Wrestler Kevin Nguyen agreed with Mitchell on his advice to prospective wrestlers. Nguyen enjoys the exhiliration of the sport and is looking forward to the season's start, Nguyen continued. “This sport is one of the most challenging things you will ever do in your life,” Nguyen explained. “And in the end, everything you did is worth it.”
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T HE U NION
NEWS
NOVEMBER 2015
‘Milpitas Monster’ raises money for art department BY ASHLEY RICKS
A screening of the film “The Milpitas Monster” was shown on Oct. 30 at 7 p.m., with a portion of the proceeds donated to the MHS art department, according to Art Teacher Irene Hentschke. The showing was at the Great Mall Cinemark-Century Theaters, with Principal Cheryl Lawton and Director Robert Burrill in attendance, Hentschke said. A total of $500 was fundraised as a result of this one-night event, Hentschke said. The funds generated will be dispersed amongst the entire art department and also put towards various scholarships for graduating seniors involved with the art program, she continued. “Robert Burrill used to be the photography teacher [and] was originally a very large part of the art department when he was a young teacher forty years ago —he’s still very tied to the community and is being very generous with his support,” Hentschke said. “This is a win-win situation because it gets his film out there, and then it also wins for the art program here at the school.” Those who partook in the original production of the movie are now parents and grandparents of students who currently attend MHS, Hentschke said. Because it spans nearly three decades, there is an added dimension of sentiment and appreciation for the way the film captures the roots of Milpitas, according to Hentschke. “[The film] provides an amazing look back at Milpitas history,” Lawton said. “I commend Mr. Bob Burrill [...] not only for making the movie happen but also for making sure it lives on for all generations to enjoy.” The film portrays a message highlighting environmental damage, Hentschke said. In a movie review written for Burrill, she writes that
the movie is “a refreshing classic from the 70’s in all its glorious details” and depicts “memories of a small community which is now a large city of the Silicon Valley.” Many individuals who personally grew up in this era of Milpitas attended the screening: “It was a wonderful community gathering because the main people who were in the audience at the theater [...] were basically senior citizens —it was a white-haired audience. It was so sweet,” Hentschke said. “The roots of Milpitas were there. These people from almost forty years ago were the students and all the public officials.” “The Milpitas Monster” was originally created by students at MHS along with Burrill while he worked as the photography teacher, according to Hentschke. Together, they wrote the script, filmed it, and put everything together, she continued. “The quality of it was really well done because Burrill [...] had it transferred from the old eight millimeter film into a digital version, so it was cleaned up and easy to see, and the sound was excellent,” Hentschke said. “It is over two hours long, but it was so much fun because you’re looking at what Milpitas looked like, long before the Silicon Valley came in.” There will be another Century Theaters screening on Monday, Nov. 23 at 7 p.m., with proceeds also benefiting the art department, according to Hentschke. “For the kids that grew up here, it is so much fun to see some of that history,” Hentschke said. “[The production team] got around everywhere when they were filming for this, and it’s still so relevant because it’s about the environment. A forty-year-old message is still really relevant today.” Tickets for the November screening will be on sale at the student bank for $10, starting on Nov. 9th.
Roof leak causes flood in P.E. office BY ABIGAIL ECAL
A opening through the Physical Education building has caused a leakage, according to Assistant Principal Hilary Brittan. There have been many occasions where the roof leaked in these buildings, Brittan said. According to Brittan, the water did not leak into the main part of the locker room but did leak into the P.E. offices. During the first occurrence of leakage, rain seeped into the electrical room as well as the storage room, Brittan said. “Some of that has to do with it is that the roofs are really old,” Brittan said. “This summer [the construction company] has done a number of roof patches and they didn’t do a very good job. Can you imagine two pieces of paper that are stuck together, and it has to get closed almost like tar paper, and the seams weren’t closed, so water has dripped through it, so all of those things combined cause the roof leaks.” According to Physical Education Teacher Corinne Osbourne, when she came to her office on Oct. 19, the rain water reached four feet from the ground. Due to the amount of damage the rain caused in the offices, students were not able to dress out for P.E., Osborne said. “I walked into my office and the water reached four feet deep,” Osborne said. “Everything on [Physical Education Teacher Kristina Edwards’] desk was wet. Behind [Physical Education Teacher Celina Reyes’] desk, four trash cans were left to collect the rest of the rain. ” According to Osborne, the whole situation has been frustrating for the entire P.E. department. Dealing with the leaking roofs interferes with all P.E. periods and causes them to lose
a day of class, Osborne said. “I know renovations are going on, but it’s the eleventh week of school, and it’s still not taken care of,” Osborne said. According to Osborne, as of Oct. 19, this was the second time the roof leaked before the school had decided to fix it. The construction company, however, worked on the roofs by 6 a.m. the next morning, Osborne said. According to Physical Education Teacher Jesus Zamudio, not only did the roof leak in the girls’ office, but it also leaked in the boys’ office on November 2. “Before there were bubbles, but it is the first time it is dripping from the light fixture,” Zamudio said. “It wasn’t as bad as last time, but it rained harder and it’s starting to seep through.” According to Brittan, as of November 5, the construction company is in the early stages of replacing the whole locker room roofs by next summer. “It hasn’t gone through the school board yet, but they’re going to do that because in reality it is the entire roof that needs to be replaced,” Brittan said.
AnneAlice Descamps| THE UNION
LOCKERS: $67,000 lockers spark controversy FROM PAGE 1 said. “She was supposed to get back to us within two weeks with a response from the D.O. [district office]. ” According to Principal Cheryl Lawton, the decisions regarding the locker room renovations were made before she became principal, during Former MHS Principal Kenneth Schlaff’s administration. “All of the planning and everything else started several years ago,” Lawton said. “The one who has been going to the meetings and everything is Ms. Brittan and that’s just because she oversees the facilities.” Lawton says that the oversight error occurred because no one brought up the possible Title IX violation, and that the school was built in 1969, before Title IX was passed. Assistant Principal Hilary Brittan says she is unsure whether or not there is a Title IX violation. “I don’t know enough about the situation to say whether or not there is a violation,” Brittan said. “As a former varsity basketball coach, I love the idea of having top notch facilities for female athletes.” According to Brittan, when it came to planning the renovations she was not part of the decision making. “Schlaff was the one who was completely overseeing the construction plans,” Brittain said. “He didn’t allow me to attend any of the construction meetings until March.” Former Principal Ken Schlaff, said nothing about football lockers , modifications, or any product specifics were discussed at any meetings during the planning phase. Only operation parts, such as length of construction were discussed, Schlaff said. “Somebody looked at the lockers and made decisions on it after [I left],” Schlaff said. Brittan took over facilities for operational purposes, Schlaff said. The difference between the boys and girls locker room is that one set of lockers has a storage room and the other a team room, according to Athletic Director Jeff Lamb said. “There was nothing added to the outside; the only thing was the things added inside the locker rooms,” Lamb said. These adjoining rooms are for any team that asks to use them, Lamb said. P.E. teachers were unaware of the team room renovations and were
forward and problem solve,” Edwards said. “Joe Flatley said that they discussed renovating the room and decided not to do certain things because it would be a Title IX violation so he admitted, or it made it sound like at some point somebody talked about it, but then they proceeded with the renovations anyway and didn’t add anything on the girls side.” This idea is echoed by Jordan, who agrees that there should be equality when it comes to facilities for both genders. “If there’s a boys’ athletic room, there should be a girls’ athletic room,” Jordan said. “The scope of the work was to modernize what was already existing.” The old team room locker rooms were outdated and needed renovations, Varsity Football Player John Macaulay said. “A lot of lockers were broken, smashed in, and on some of them the locks wouldn’t work so they wouldn’t be able to protect our stuff,” Macaulay said. “So I feel like they were in such bad condition that they really needed to be fixed.” Senior Athlete Alyson Shipp believes that it is unfair that there is a team room on the boys’ side and not on the girls’ side, she said. “It should be equal; if you’re going to give it to the guys, you should give it to the girls, like it’s just common sense,” Shipp said. “I don’t see why you can’t do it to both. If you have the money for one, you have the money for two.” The whole conflict could have been avoided if someone voiced their concerns before the renovations were done, according to Lawton. “Nothing was ever brought up until that one space got renovated and this got into a giant thing,” Lawton said. “What I understand, from talking to some of the teachers and some of the people who have been here for a long time, that’s kind of the evolution of what happened to the space, nobody questioned it, how come we don’t have this, it’s not fair.” As of now, plans are being made for a temporary space for the girls, according to Flatley. In the long term the district hopes to use future bond money to fund the building of a girls team room, Flatley said. It isn’t clear if that solution is enough to avoid the Title IX violation.
Block scheduling may be an MHS reality BY BROOKE TRAN
Images of the roof leakages can be accessed via QR code or can be found online at mhstheunion.com.
shocked to see the results, according to P.E. Teacher Celina Reyes. Reyes first saw the renovated boys’ athletic rooms on the second day of school Reyes continued. “I think it looks better than some community colleges,” Reyes said via email. “I felt like it was kept a secret, and I was wondering where was the girls’ team room?” According to Director of Facilities and Modernization Joe Flatley, P.E. teachers along with staff on the athletic department were invited to attend meetings regarding the design of locker rooms. The P.E. teachers were never invited to any meetings regarding locker room design renovation meetings, according to Wyness. The only meetings they were invited to were about the new swimming pool, Wyness said. There is a glaring inequality between the two sides of the locker rooms, according to P.E. teacher Kristina Edwards. The renovations are a clear violation of Title IX, Edwards continued. “I’m not sure that they realized that there was an inequity, that they knew necessarily what they were signing off on,” Edwards said. “Still, our female athletes deserve the same treatment, facilities, and support as our male athletes.” The issues led to a meeting between school board members and staff who were interested about the inequality, according to English Teacher Kathleen Conradson. The meeting covered several concerns like what would be done to make it equal, Conradson continued. “I want to make clear that my concerns about this issue have nothing to do with a specific athletic program on campus,” Conradson said. “My concern stems entirely from the issue of gender equity. Our MHS female athletes were not taken into consideration during the remodel, and that needs to be remedied.” One of the main questions asked during the meeting was who was responsible for the oversight, according to Edwards. Another question was if anyone was ever aware of the potential Title IX violation, Edwards said. “Cheryl Jordan, who was the representative of the district office, took responsibility in the sense of saying ‘yes it was wrong,’ it shouldn’t have happened and now we are ready to move
New bell schedule systems are currently being considered for implementation next school year at MHS, according to Principal Cheryl Lawton. The change stems from a need to accommodate increased enrollment and minimize student stress, Lawton explained. Committee Member Renee Roche said that one of the main models they are looking at is a seven-period day schedule. It would allow for a staggered schedule where some students would start earlier and others would
end later. “[Taking seven classes] would allow them to fit into the school day everything that they want,” Roche explained. Another system the committee is considering is the modified block schedule, where three days would have seven periods and the other two days would follow a block schedule consisting of only half of the regular classes a day, Roche said. However, the implementation of a new schedule model does not seem too likely, History Teacher Paul Harrison said. According to Harrison, it does not seem that anyone is really
excited about changing. “My gut feeling is that there’s not enough people behind the change,” Harrison said. “There’s no overwhelming push that I can see.” According to Math Teacher Annie Nguyen, her vote depends on what they offer on January 6th for the schedule system. Teachers would be allowed to do more hands-on activities with the modified block schedule system, Nguyen said, but it’s not certain which model would be chosen. “There’s definitely a lot of questions,” Nguyen continued. “It’s hard to answer things before we know what pathway to go forward.”