The Union - Milpitas High School - June 2018

Seniors given scholarships; multiple awards nights held

THE UNION MHS responds to Band Director’s arrest

Rojas looks forward to second year

The class of 2018 had the largest number of seniors who were award ed scholarships and recognized for their achievements, according to Principal Francis Rojas.

Band Director Christopher Kaldy was arrested for inappropriately touching a 22-year old female teacher in 2017, according to the Milpitas Po lice Department press release, issued on May 22. Kaldy turned himself in on May 16 to the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office after detectives issued a sexual battery arrest warrant that same day, according to the press re lease.The investigation was sparked by a former school student who came for ward in March, the San Jose Mercury News reported. However, the statute of limitations on that accusation had already passed, The Mercury contin ued. During that investigation, the Milpitas Police identified an adult staff-member that was also inappro priately contacted by Kaldy, the Mer curyAlthoughsaid. the school is not at liber ty to discuss Kaldy’s case, the Union asked Principal Francis Rojas if a teacher in Kaldy’s situation would re turn to teach if he is found not guilty. He said that the decision is up to the superintendent, the school board, and the Milpitas Teachers Associa tion, whose legal advisors would also aid in settling the decision. However, Rojas said he only has influence over the decision, but not direct power. While the district is not actively in vestigating more behavior of similar nature among staff and students, Su perintendent Cheryl Jordan said that the district requests “people to come forward if they know of anything or have experienced anything.” There will be no further research on the school’s behalf to find out if there have been more situations in which either staff or students feel as though they have been a victim of sexual battery, according to Rojas. However, Rojas is considering imple menting a non-evaluative system in which students could anonymously write down a concern they have about a teacher or staff member and turn it in to admin, Rojas said. The music program is doing well right now, and while it is a lot of work, the school, district, some student teachers, and the band students have stepped up to help run everything, AP testing runs smoothly, still needs improvement

The Art Show features paintings, photographs, and sculptures made by students taking year-long art classes, such as the sculpture by Lesleigh Macabinta (right). Students were able to go to the Art Show during class from May 22 to May 24. Hope Do | THE UNION

U N I O N T HE JUNE 2018 Volume XXIX Issue VI MHSTHEUNION.COM For the latest updates STUDENT VOICE OF MILPITAS HIGH SCHOOL NEWS 1,2 OP-ED 4,5 FEATURES 6,7 SENIOR MOSTS 8,9 SENIOR WILLS 12,13 COLLEGE DECISIONS 10,11 LIFESTYLE 14,15 ENTERTAINMENT 16,17 SPORTS 18,19

Roughly 400 MHS seniors were scheduled to be honored for their high school accomplishments at Senior Awards Night held on May 23, according to College and Career Counselor Marissa Canez. Addition ally, seniors were recognized during the Athletic Awards Night and the Latino Awards, both of which were also held during May, she said. Some of the largest scholarships awarded on the night were given to Seniors Brianna Williams and Augie De Luna, according to Canez. Wil liams received the $20,000 Minnis Scholarship, only awarded to MHS students, while De Luna received the $10,000 Minnis Scholarship and a $500 scholarship from the Milpitas Teachers Association. “I was ecstatic when I found out I won the scholarships,” Williams said. “I plan to use part of the schol arships to help pay for tuition as well as some of it to help pay for expenses college requires.”

AP exam administration has been consistently successful for the past two years, despite the usual un forseen glitches, Assistant Principal Jennifer Hutchison said. Although minor accidents such as bloody nos es have occurred, everything was handled well, Hutchison, who is also the Advanced Placement Coordina tor,Whileadded.the AP exam experience may be more or less the same, AP exam prices are overpriced, Senior Rachel Chiang declared. Students who are not eligible for reduced exam prices are forced to pay un reasonable amounts of money each year, nearing $100 for each exam, Chiang said. “I think some kind of fundrais ing event could be helpful, even if it’s just to lower the price for the

BY THEODORE DO MAANSI MASKAI BY ASHLEY CHEN VIVIAN TSANG

Music Teacher Emily Moore said. The program on the whole will grow next year, and is looking to improve, Moore“We’veadded.been doing the best we can. It is hard being down a person, so we’ve just been kind of plugging along the best we can trying to keep every thing moving,” Moore said. “[Next year], choir’s going to be enormous, the glee club is probably coming un der our umbrella of the music depart ment. I’ll be helping with that too.” The band program is currently functional, but the loss of Kaldy to the program will be detrimental, Se nior Neil Sadhukhan said. Sadhukhan does not believe that Kaldy is guilty of the charges, he said. “I think personally that Kaldy would not do something like that,” Sadhukhan said. “I think the current super accusatory mood is extremely dangerous for males right now. “

Eye on Campus: Art Show featured various works BY LOAN-ANH PHAM BY SHREEYA KATHERINEARANAKEHUBENY

general school populous just a lit tle,” Chiang suggested, “I’m not sure how that may work out legally for the administration, but it’s an idea.”The process for AP Exam pay ment could also be more efficient, Junior Samantha Dvorochkin said.

A solution to the long lines may be teachers taking their students to pay for exams during class time, Hutchison said. This change was initiated by several teachers and will be highly encouraged next year, Hutchison added. “It’s still a centralized location because I don’t like cash being all around the campus; it’s a large amount of money,” Hutchison com mented, “I appreciate that several teachers have already done that this year.”Awider variety of AP exams should be a change made to MHS, Junior Lisa Yan said. Students who are interested in taking AP Chinese exams, or any other exam not of fered at MHS, must go through the tedious process of emailing other schools that have a limited amount of extra spots, Yan added. “This is extremely painstaking be cause many schools do not offer AP exams to students not from their school. I took the [AP Chinese] exam at Lowell in San Francisco; it was pretty inconvenient,” Yan ex plained, “I had to drive there and back in traffic.”

The number of students taking the exams makes for a congested line to pay at the student bank, especial ly with only one payment location, Dvorochkin added. “The line gets really long which can be a pain,” Dvorochkin said, “I wish there were a couple of other places to spread the lines, but staff ing is a factor.”

The news of Kaldy’s arrest should not have been received so publically, Junior Anna Kaenjak said. For her, Kaldy has been very helpful, and knowing him in person gives her a ve different perspective, Kaenjak added.

Maansi Maskai |

Senior Yen-Vy Ngo poses with Principal Rojas, Councilmember Bob Nuñez, May or Rich Tran, and Planning Commisioner Hon Lien (left to right) for a photo. During the Athletic Awards Night, roughly 330 athletes from all class es were recognized for different awards, according to Athletic Sports Director Jeff Lamb. The main and most prestigious award, the Leo B. Murphy Award, was given to the top senior athletes of each gender who had accumulated the most points for everything they had done throughout their four years of high school, Lamb said. The recipients of the award this year were Tariq Bra cy and Brooke Indihar-Loo. “We attempt to make sure that we recognize good athletes, but we also stress to strive that we have student athletes, since we’re educationally based athletics, going to school and doing well in school also is part of it,” Lamb said. “We really strive that we, hopefully, through athletics, are helping create better adults, because of what we expect of them.”

Principal Francis Rojas, who for mally began his position on July 1, 2017, will be continuing as MHS principal for the 2018-2019 school year, he said. Reflecting on his ini tiatives this year, Rojas aims to start the new school year successfully by establishing clear expectations, ex panding the administration team, and continuing to reinforce strong relationships with the students and staff, he said. The major goal he set out for himself this year as the principal was to improve the school’s mo rale, according to Rojas. He took note of the community’s enduring negative perception about MHS, de spite students’ high test scores and achievements for the last couple of years, and wanted to change that, he“I’vecontinued.beenmaking sure [to] de velop a culture where the school trusts [each other],” Rojas said. “I don’t know if every teacher trusts me on this campus or if they feel comfortable talking, but I’m making theGettingeffort.” back the Western Asso ciation of Schools and Colleges (WASC) report from their visit that occurred during April 30 and May 1, was the highlight of his career, Rojas explained. It supports the movement that he would like to direct the school in, he continued. “To really come into a school that I heard so many bad things about, [I’m] not saying it was bad, but that people were talking down Milpitas High School, to receiving that is of ficial from an accreditation group that says ‘Keep up the good work,’ I would say that was one of the most positive things, not only this year, but in my entire career,” Rojas said.

During the senior rally, the Top 10 were driven to the football field to be recog nized for their academic achievements, while waving to their fellow studenrs.

The team placed higher than they ever did before, Science Olympiad Captain Kelly Lue said. Addition ally, Lue also placed second in her favorite event, astronomy, she said. “Overall, we placed 8th, mov ing up three places from the year before,” Lue said. “I’m extremely impressed and proud of our per formance, especially since States is a brutal fight between top teams trying to make it to Nationals.”

T HE U NION2 NEWSJUNE 2018

Eye on Campus: Senior Rally

The WASC Committee recognized Rojas’ motto and commended MHS for setting the foundation for equi ty in access to rigorous academic classes. Given the short-term nature of the past few principals, the com mittee also recognized the prelimi nary success Rojas has in heighten ing staff morale and creating trust between faculty and leadership. However, the report suggested that, “to increase college/career readiness, MHS should look at ways to improve student access to coun selors and guidance department resources. The district and school should also continue to promote school site level participation in decisions regarding technology pur chases, staffing levels, and training.”

courtesy of Britney Weng

13 points out of sixth place, so it was really, really close.”

BY

er.,” Keith said. “I really like it. I real ize what I’d missed all those years.”

BY HOPE DO BY ASHLEY CHEN ment Gregory Barnes and middle and high school teachers, Gross said. They wanted to find the best way to ensure that middle school students were ready to take Math I in high school, Gross continued. “[We asked], ‘how can we be supportive of our students and how can we make sure that when students have taken this summer class are appropriate to go in to the next level?’” Gross explained. “What we were finding was [stu dents] take the summer class, they go in to the next level, and then halfway through the school year their grades weren’t good.” Once students are placed into their respective math classes, the school hopes to analyze data, such as the grades of students who ac celerated, Tseng said. Math acceler ation will benefit students overall, she said.

BY KATHERINE HUBENY piece of theater,” Schwartz. “That’s a lot cheaper because then I don’t have to pay for performance royalties and rights, I can also use minimal set pieces, and I don’t have to really wor ry a whole lot about costuming and things like that.” Theater is a passion for Junior Marel Vazquez, and she would very much like to accompany the group and perform, she said. Vazquez was one of the students who provided a video testimonial for the application to perform in the festival, she added. “I wrote my testimonial; it was a paragraph long, and it was about my experience doing theater here for the past three years,” Vazquez said. “It was mostly about my experience here and how it’s unique.”

To assess the progress of MHS’s educational objectives, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) visited campus on April 30 and May 1, Principal Francis Rojas said. The visit was an audit in which the WASC Committee observed classes and held multiple meetings with admin, faculty, and students.

WASC sees growth in MHS; committee reviewed

Five teachers will be leaving MHS after this school year

The WASC Committee devel oped the 2018 Mid-Cycle Visiting Committee Report, providing eight major commendations and four rec ommendations for the school. The report stated observations the com mittee made as it pertains to the “Action Plan” laid out in the school’s Mid-Cycle Progress Report. “[The committee] definitely saw growth in many areas on campus: the school is very student-focused and is definitely interested in im proving the quality of instruction,” WASC Chairperson Paul Demsher said. “There’s been a lot of work in particular on college and career readiness. Our committee felt so welcomed by all of the students.” Moreover, Rojas pushed for the idea of “Equity through Engagement,” which is built on the belief that to engage students, teachers should take a personalized approach to help each student reach his or her goals, Rojas said. The school provided teachers with additional training to manage the increasing diversity of each classroom, he added. “We strive for more equitable op portunities for how we engage as a community. It really helped form a cohesive theme for the last three years,” Rojas said. “I think why the WASC was so successful was be cause we could tell a single story.”

Foods Teacher Rosemary Keith, English Teacher Paula Chenoweth, E-Tech Teacher Bob Smith, and Naval Science Teacher Ivan Ezell are among the group of staff members who are retiring and not returning to MHS for the 2018-2019 school year, accord ing to Principal’s Secretary Jackie Roy. Social Studies Teacher Jennifer Loomis will also not be returning to MHS after the current school year ends, Roy said. In her 43 years of teaching, Keith has watched MHS change from a nondescript school with a dirt park ing lot to a vibrant, diverse commu nity, Keith said. From working as the Work Experience Coordinator to establishing the three partnership academies on campus, she has spent her entire teaching career at MHS, Keith“Whensaid.I retired, I was bored. I re ally retired too young and I wasn’t ready, so I came back three years lat

Theater Director Kaila Schwartz will be bringing a group of students to Scotland to perform a piece four times in the Summer of 2019 with the American High School Theater Festival, which is also the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, she explained. After completing the ap plication process, she found out that MHS had won, and was granted a performance slot, she added. “When I found out that we got in, I was like shocked to say the very least,” Schwartz said. “The panel of judges for the application is com prised of university theater pro grams’ program leads and profes sors, so to think that our little high school program is that highly regard ed by university professors from all over the country, probably, well it’s pretty awesome.” No one is confirmed to attend the festival, as the registration for schools does not even begin until July, Schwartz explained. Currently, she is looking for participants who can commit to fundraising, practic ing, and paying to go, she added. “What I’m thinking I might do is just have whatever ensemble of ac tors I pull together create their own

The Science Olympiad team re cently competed at the NorCal State Competition and earned 8th place, Chemistry Teacher Letta Meyer said. The MHS team went to California State University Stanis laus on April 14th for the competi tion, Meyer, also Science Olympiad Head Coach, added. The team competed against 28 other teams from around the region, Meyer said. The schools that they competed against were very com petitive and similar to the MHS team, Meyer added. “It’s amazing how much is going on there and how competitive it is,” Meyer said. “We were actually only Sophomore Johnny Huang and Freshman Matthew Song (left to right) watch their Rube Goldberg Machine complete its ac tions while competing in the event Mission Possible. The two received second place with their machine at this competition.

Students take math diagnostic tests to accelerate BY DEVYN NGUYEN LUKE REN classes

The group attending the festival is currently limited to current theater students or cast members from re cent productions, Schwartz said. De pending on how many students she has confirmed from that pool, she will later open up the trip to the rest of the student body, she added. “I’ll deal with recruitment next fall,” Schwartz explained. “I’m prob ably going to have a separate audition specifically for this trip. Particularly if it’s going to be a piece that we’re go ing to develop ourselves, I want to put together the right ensemble.” Tsang UNION

Science Olympiad successful at recent competition

| THE

Theater to perform in Scotland

Chenoweth has been in the district for 39 years and teaching at MHS for 20 years, Chenoweth said. She also established a finishing and modeling school in Walnut Creek, CA, as well as a theatre, Chenoweth said. Following her departure from MHS, she plans to enjoy the cooler weather by the beach and do some part-time teaching, Che noweth explained. “[I’ll miss] everything,” Chenoweth said. “The students, my wonderful colleagues, the campus, the hills, the great literature that I teach.” Retiring after four decades of teach ing and six years at MHS, Smith is leaving with good memories, he said. The thing that he enjoys the most about MHS is working with the kids and just coming to school every day, Smith said. He plans to spend some quality time on the beach on a chair with an adult beverage, Smith said. “I had a great time here and I thank everybody that has supported me,” Smith said. “I’ll watch a sunset for them.”Over the course of his sixteen years of teaching at MHS, Ezell has been able to watch his students grow from freshmen into young adults, Ezell said. The time that he has spent here at MHS has been life-changing and irreplaceable, he said. “Just seeing the metamorphosis, because when they come in you see them as freshmen and they’re frail and fragile, and just to see them change, to become young adults, I can’t imagine a better experience than to see that,” Ezell said. “No amount of money that the school pays can ever replace that.” With her fifteen years of teaching at MHS, her status as an MHS alum nus, and her experience as both a swim and water polo coach for MHS, Loomis has many memories of MHS as both a student, teacher, and coach, Loomis said. The strong sense of com munity and the camaraderie at MHS drew her to come back and work here after graduating, she said. She is really going to miss MHS, Loomis said.

Vivian

Students will be given the op portunity to accelerate in math by taking the Mathematics Diagnostic Testing Project (MDTP) on July 30, July 31, and Aug. 1, according to Assistant Principal Amanda Gross. Every student who is interested in skipping one math level must take the test, regardless of whether or not the student has taken a math class over the summer or at com munity college, she said. Students will only be able to accelerate over one math level as agreed upon by the district, Gross said. The district is taking the stu dents’ mental health into consider ation, she continued. “We will accept the [math class] transcript, however everybody has to take the diagnostic test,” Gross said. “One of the big reasons is just because you took a class over the summer doesn’t necessarily mean you are ready to take the next level class.”Math acceleration was designed to ensure equality for all students, Math Department Lead Mei-Hsiang Tseng said. If students cannot af ford to take a class over the sum mer, they can take the diagnostic test and accelerate, she continued. “[The math department] actual ly went through several different meetings and [constructed] ru brics,” Tseng said. “We have a step by step on how to do that for the kids who want to accelerate their math class.” The math acceleration pathway, a chart listing options for math ac celeration based on grade, was in troduced after discussion between Director of Learning and Develop

The Science Olympiad competi tions took many hours to prepare for and run, Science Olympiad Member Christian Emmanuel San tos said. Because the competition is split into many events, each in dividual worked hard to do well in their specific event, Santos added. “During the competition, the team split up into their own blocks and events,” Santos said. “[We were] constantly busy running around and competing for 3-4 hours and trying our best to medal in ourre spective events.” Lue hopes that the team takes better care of themselves next year, she said. Although Lue is moved by the effort the team puts in, she hopes that the team will care more about their health, she said. “I really hope my teammates learn to take care of themselves next year,” Lue said. “They spend so much time and effort preparing for SciOly, I see some of them get ting sick and overexerting them selves, so that’s not good.”

HA

ANDREW

ADVERTISEMENT 3JUNE 2018 THE UNION

The Advanced Placement (AP) program is one that is quite pop ular at MHS, and is continually expanding and developing. Many students at MHS take part in this program, taking AP exams in the spring to receive credit for col lege level classes. The AP class es offered at school reflect this, with specific content and subject matter designed to prepare stu dents enrolled in them for tak ing the associated AP exam. As a result of the college level curriculum that is taught in these class es, they possess added difficulty compared to standard high school classes. In part due to this difficulty, many AP teachers offer to raise students’ grades in the class based on how they scored on the AP exam, as a counterbalance to the increased work as sociated in taking the class. For example, a student who receives a 5 on AP exam but got a B in the class might have their grade boosted up to an A. A policy where teachers raise grades based on AP scores car ries numerous benefits for those enrolled in AP classes. First, such a policy would motivate students to work harder and to focus on thoroughly learning the material, as it would provide a way for students of AP classes to raise their grades based on their knowledge and understanding of the curriculum. Imagine this, a student is in a rigorous class like AP Chemistry, and while they aren’t failing the class, they ar en’t excelling either. Having the incentive of the grade boost from such a policy would motivate students to avoid slacking off and thus lead to the teacher be ing able to teach a class of eager learners.Anargument against a policy of raising grades based on AP scores is that in doing so, students don’t have to worry about the class and they can just study for the AP exam itself. How ever, when one looks at the data, it is clear that AP tests aren’t a walk in the park. This can be seen when look ing at data released by the College Board re garding AP test score distributions during 2017. For example, AP Physics 1, English Lit erature, World History, and Statistics, all have a 5 score rates low er than 15%. Considering how in most of the current methods used by teachers to raise grades based on AP scores require a 5 to receive an A, or sometimes just a small percent boost (around 4%, for example), this isn’t a surefire nor easy method to get a good grade.Atthe end of the day, students throughout MHS put in a ton of effort and time for their AP class es. Considering this, raising stu dents’ grades as compensation for strong performance on AP exams would seem logical, con sidering the benefits that would come with such a policy.

ISHRAK RAMZAN KEVIN DAI ANANYA DONAPATI

With the growing popularity of the Advanced Placement (AP) pro gram over the past years, many stu dents are turning to AP exams to gain credit for college-level cours es. College Board claims that AP exams assess student proficiency in college level material, however, these exams are not reflective of the cumulative student per formance in the course. Still, many AP teachers encourage students to take the corresponding exam for the course by offering a grade bump and the possibility of at taining college credit as incentive. If a student achieves a 4 or 5 on the AP exam for the course, the teacher offers to raise the stu dent’s semester grade from a C to a B or from a B to an A. Students may have chosen to slack off in the course by not at tempting to do any of the work as signed by the teacher or may have passed the class with a C- simply by doing the bare minimum. But if those students receive a 4 or 5 on the AP exam, with the grade bump, they may end up with B- on their transcript. Since the AP course is weighted when counted in their GPA, that boosted B- qualifies as an A- in their GPA. By doing this, teachers are choosing to be unfair to those students who acchose to put forth the effort in the class by completing all tasks and assign ments, given throughout the year. Additionally, some students are unable to afford the significant cost of AP exams, that are priced at $94 each. While programs such as reduced lunch do allow the stu dent to receive discounted exams at the cost of $50 or $5, these prices may still be exorbitant for some. To them, it may still involve making a choice between having another meal or receiving a higher GPA. Due to their financial circumstanc es, these students are unable to benefit . Essen tially, this promotes in equity in the classroom where only select, finan cially stable students, are able to benefit from the course teacher’s appeal ing, grade boost policy. Moreover, AP exams are graded using a curve, which is dependent on student exam perfor mance during that year. According to scoring worksheets released by the College Board in 2010, 2014, and 2015, ex ams such as the Calculus AB, Biol ogy, and US History exam required a minimum accuracy of 62%, 76%, and 74% to achieve the highest pos sible score on the AP exam, a 5. With such large curves, these exams are not accurate representations of the true course difficulty. By relying on the curves provided by these ex ams, students are essentially taking the easy route to achieving a desir able semester grade in the college level course. AP teachers should be consider ate of all possible factors that may impact students’ ability to take the AP exam and their AP exam performance, before providing a attractive grade boost policy. Such policies may possibly undermine a students’ learning and effort in the AP class due to the easy route given to achieve a desirable grade.

MHS misrepresents itself for WASC inspections Students should be more aware of plastic usage

I understand that the school wants to put their best foot for ward when it comes to the WASC inspection, but it doesn’t act as an accurate representation of the school if we are re minded how to act be forehand.Thefact that we even have to be reminded or told how to act says something about reg ular campus life. If we held ourselves to higher standards and expect ed more to begin with, WASC’s visit would not be as big of an issue. Putting on a facade for WASC is not bene ficial to the school as a whole. In order to receive proper feedback and for WASC to have an idea of what our school needs, we should to act how we would as if it was an ordinary day so they can have the most accurate assessment of the school and its needs.

Hiding behind a facade of at tractive labeling and catchy slo gans, they endow us with conve nience. The enemies sound their battle calls with the crumpling of a potato chip bag during class, or the crunch of an empty water bottle in the unsuspect ing victim’s hand. The convenient but sly mal ice that fabricates it self into all these items is plastic. Items like plastic bottles, straws, and wrappers have so strongly incorporat ed themselves into the modern lifestyle that even the younger gen erations are becoming unaware of the stagger ing amount of pollution caused by plastic that goesLookingunrecycled.atthe average teenag er’s trash can is enough to infer that too much plastic is being thrown away on top of a large consumption of plastic to begin with. There are landfills that are being bombarded with heaps of plastic bottles that may never get recycled, likely wasting away on earth for centuries after our deaths. Shouldn’t protecting the world we live in be a priority? Sure, it’s challenging to envision the long-term effects of current plastic consumption, but I think that more ongoing education re garding the environment would help.For children, part of the educa tion is composed of en vironmental awareness and the importance of recycling, but in high school, there is a seri ous lack of such educa tion. As an adolescent or young adult, there is more opportunity to become involved with efforts to eliminate plastic waste through volunteer work and clubs. But the lack of en vironmental education throughout the years leaves students with knowledge that disappears eventually. If the current generation is not more involved in doing their part to protect the environment then who will protect it? The absence of awareness to the onset of in creasing plastic waste is causing this false sense of security. There must be more interaction with nature and a greater emphasis on recycling. By teaching high school students with this meth od, we can better understand the importance of reducing plastic waste and do our part. It is true that environmental clubs at MHS have made great strides in implementing recy cling of bottles at our school. Particularly, the recycling bins for bottles that were initiated by an environmental club does a great service to the environment, but the fact that our school could not provide recycling bins in the first place is reason for disap pointment.Itisalso worth mentioning that the popularity of the trendy, reusable water bottles are real ly helping to reduce the use of plastic water bottles. But despite this, even small pieces of plastic like straws have staggering im pacts on the environment. Ac cording to the Plastic Pollution Coalition, Americans use nearly 500,000,000 plastic straws each day. The majority of this plastic ends up in the landfills or in the oceans.Pollution is rapidly increasing as plastic waste is found all over the world. Without proper educa tion, even the future generations will not be motivated to act to prevent the overaccumulation of the plastic before it is too late.

SBAC Testing provides no benefits to students

The Western Association of Schools and Colleges comes by and observes the school every six years in order to know how the school is doing and what it needs. With a panel of advisors walking around to determine MHS’ sta tus, it’s no wonder the school feels a certain sense of obligation to make a good impression when theyHowever,come. the need to make a reputable impression can lead to misleading observations, which is not fair to the school or WASC. The extent to which the staff and students adjust their usual routine is laughable in some in stances.Insome classes, there is not a strict rule on phones or food during class, but, in the days leading to WASC’s arrival, the teachers start to remind stu dents to keep their phones away and to keep their heads up when WASC is on campus. There are also some instances in which teachers offered incentives to students to behave, like food or “freeTeachersdays.” also adjust their les son plans to make sure the class is doing something interactive if WASC comes into their room. In some cases, students don’t have much work to do and spend the majority of the period on their phone, sleeping, or walking around cam pus. It’s unfortunate that some students don’t really get a struc tured class until some one important visits theEvenschool.for the most in consequential actions, adjust ments were made when WASC is on campus. For example, teach ers dress up a bit more, students spend less time in classes that weren’t theirs during passing period, and everyone seems on higher alert when a classroom door opened.

Grade boosts for AP scores beneficial; rewards hardwork put in during year

Grade boosts incentivize slacking; curves poor measure of proficiency

PRO JUNE 2018OPINIONSTHE UNION4 CON

MAANSI MASKAI KRYSTAL QUIOCHO

The SBAC test, or Smarter Balanced Assessment Consor tium test, is a test that assesses a student’s mastery of the re cently implemented Common Core State Standards for Math and English. The SBAC test re sults are set to show a measure of student knowledge of the sub ject, including skills of critical thinking, analytical writing, and problem-solving that are suppos edly required to prepare students for the real world. The test also provides information that helps track whether the student is on track to pursue a further educa tion in college or a career after they graduate from high school. The SBAC differs from the previ ous standardized tests because it is taken on a computer, has many free-response questions, and is suppose to focus more on adap tive thinking rather than content knowledge.Whilethe SBAC test indicates that it tests students on how well they are able to use their critical thinking and deep an alytical skills, it does not mean that students are able to apply their knowledge to real life. The SBAC test also does not test what is covered in school, and teach ers, from my experience, usually dedicate a week or so to learning content that the SBAC will cover. With only a week or so of learn ing the content that the SBAC will cover, results may not be ac curate due to lack of knowledge of the subject even if the test is not supposed to be focused on how much a student knows the content. A student must always have a suf ficient level of knowl edge of a subject in or der to solve problems and cannot always use critical or analytical thinking skills to find the answer. On the free-response portions, I think it is very easy for students to try to answer by filling up the boxes with words, but fail to demonstrate actual knowledge of the subject. But be sides the low content validity the test has, the SBAC test results do not feel like they would improve or change a student’s life in any way whether the student chooses to take it or not. How does SBAC supposedly help students in the real world or in college? By taking the SBAC and scoring high, you may be able to use your SBAC testing score to bypass some placement tests at some CSUs and other colleges in California, but not all. So what is the point of taking the SBAC test if you do not plan to go to a college where your SBAC test score can be utilized? It looks like taking the SBAC test is just for the benefit of the school and not the students rather than an actual test that is for the students’ benefit. Not all schools re quire students to take the SBAC. Some schools will actually let stu dents take a more use ful test that benefits their future and ability to obtain a higher education by letting them take the SAT or ACT. In this case, the school pays all costs for these tests so students do not have to pay, unlike the many stu dents that do at our school. If our school allowed students to have the option to take the SAT or ACT instead of the SBAC, more students would benefit from the testing and be able to qualify for college.

rocate and give you a platform.” One KKK member even said, “I respect this black man more than some white n*****s.” Let’s get something crystal clear here: I find white supremacism just as distasteful and disgusting as the next person (and probably even more because I understand why their ideology is fundamentally flawed). But my point is, if a white supremacit group is more tolerant than progressive groups devoted to “equality,” something is wrong. The last thing I want to do is polarize the political climate even more, but Davis’ view on freedom of speech is conservative. The leftist majority bullies those who stand in the way with their agenda into eventual si lence....Ofcourse, the leftist media focus es on an incident where two black men aren’t allowed use a Starbucks’ restaurant and completely ignores countless incidents when white supremacists are denied service at stores or even expelled from univer sities for simply having the wrong beliefs. Again I am not defending white supremacists (I think I should mention I’m Asian); I’m defending the constitutional right of holding any beliefs you want to without dis crimination....Notonlyare ideologies discrim inated against, but also facts. Let me explain: there are some issues where the facts of the matter only correlate to one side. That side is not usually leftism. One such issue is the supposed discriminatory wage gap. There is no evidence that men get paid more than women for the same amount of work. There is an unfortunate mis leading statistic spread that women get paid 77 cents for every dollar a man gets paid. This is a common tac tic of the left: they tout a superficial fact that proves absolutely nothing. Due to the biological and psycholog ical composition of men and wom en, both of the sexes have different habits. Men tend to take more risks and seek higher job positions while women tend to take more morally fulfilling, lower-paying jobs. And differences in pay can be attributed to biological differences. [..] Not to mention that men take more dan gerous jobs, thus getting higher pay would be justified. In fact, 92% of all workplace fatalities are men. I don’t see leftists arguing for safer working conditions for men. And yet they still have the audacity to claim to be the side of “gender equality.” Let’s suppose for a moment that the dis criminatory wage gap did exist. Why then, would businesses have any reason for hiring men? If women can do the same work as men, why don’t they exclusively hire women to make more money (as leftists claim that the greedy bourgeois only seeks to exploit the working class for a profit)? The answer is, there is factually no wage gap. The list of cherry-picked statistics goes on with rape statistics. Suppos edly 1 in 5 women get raped accord ing to the CDC. How this statistic was obtained is never mentioned by leftists though. The CDC asked people questions such as “Have you had pity sex?” and if they answered yes, that counted as sexual assault. A much more accurate statistics of actual rapes from the FBI puts rapes at about 25.2 individuals at everyThis100,000.isjustscratching the surface of leftist Leftismhypocrisies.isanideology based in purely feelings. Our youth has been unfortunately indoctrinated in left ist teachings. I don’t expect to con vince many people with a splurge of facts, but my point still stands. If leftists chose to keep their feel ing-based opinions, that’s fine. However, we need to acknowledge that leftism is no better than the ig norant, religious traditionalists that they condemn. If any of you are still hesitant about researching about conser vatism, I don’t blame you. The tra ditionalist aspect of conservatism is usually a deal-breaker for most. However, I strongly suggest most people look into an ideology called Libertarianism. It is essentially the modern equivalent of classical lib eralism. Good objective right-wing sources are Prager University, Ben Shapiro, Steven Crowder, and Jor danClassPeterson....of2020 Edited for length. To see the whole letter, visit nhstheunion.com

Graduation needs to make long overdue revamp

Dear Editor, A spectre is haunting America. We live in an age of tolerated discrimi nation; an age where regressive ideas are deemed progressive; an age where opinions are valued for not being based on facts or logic but feelings.No,I’m not referring to the ig norant conservatives that popular culture loves to scapegoat. I’m re ferring to progressive liberals. Let’s get something straight first: progressive liberalism, or “leftism”, is not actually liberalism; at least, not something that adheres to the original definition and fundamen tals liberalism. The core tenets of the original ideology actually align closer with that of conservatism: the belief in small government, egalitarianism, and the protection of constitutional rights for all.... America was built on such values— values that are disappearing thanks to supposed thattelligently.violently.youplatform.antomanagedlyblackriestoagainstLiveslookactuallystrawmans.withouttoinglogictionalthatnomiccontradictoryrightfullysubscribeInenceism:turalunfortunatelyhenceconservatives“progressives”—whichseekto“conserve,”thename.Conservatismisassociatedwithculconservatism,ortraditionalthe“religiousnuts”and“scideniers”astheleftcallsthem.reality,mostconservativesdon’ttotraditionalismandso.Itisfundamentallytopoliticalandecoconservatism....Doingmoreresearch,Irealizedbeingaleftistandhavingaraopinionbasedonfactsandareincompatible.Especiallyinthecurrentpolarizpoliticalclimate,it’simportantobjectivelyunderstandbothsidesconformingtostigmasorSurprisingly,leftismisaveryviolentideology.JustatgroupslikeAntiFaandBlackMatter:theyuseviolencegroupsthatdon’tsubscribetheir“progressive”agenda....OneofthemostintriguingstooutthereisofDarylDavis,abluesmusician,thatregularattendsKKKmeetings.Hehastoget200KKKmembersrenouncetheirmembership.Ininterview,hesays,“GivethemaYouchallengethem.Butdon’tchallengethemrudelyorYoudoitpolitelyandinAndwhenyoudothingswaychancesaretheywillrecip

5THE UNIONEDITORIALJUNE 2018 STAFF Yearly subscriptions to The Union are available for $25. Contact the Business Manager for more infor mation. SUBSCRIPTIONS Those who would like to adver tise in The Union can contact the Ad Manager at (408) 908-9367. Ads are available in full page, half page, quarter page, and business card sizes. Inserts are also accept ed. Upon request, The Union staff will customize and design your ad vertisement. ADVERTISEMENTS Business Manager: (408) 896-8986 Ad Manager: (408) 908-9367 General Info: (408) 635-2800 Fax: (408) 635-2848 1285 Escuela Pkwy, Room E-17 Milpitas, CA 95035 Email: mhstheunion18@gmail.com CONTACT US Jeff Colburn U NIO N KatherineAnanyaJeraldAshleyHubenychenMendozaKevinDaiDonapati Clara Marisol Dela Cruz kirk tran Anthony KrystalGraceNguyenChangQuiochoKellyLueMiliBhatnagarloan-anhphamKellyNguyenAndrewDinhErinUtterishrakRamzanSuhasShekarVivianTsangDevynNguyenJonathanTranMorganLeiLukeRenTheodoreDoAndrewHaEricDeGuzmanArianaKhateebRoshniShethMaansiMaskai STUDENT VOICE OF MILPITAS HIGH 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. The Union is published by the Journalism class of Milpitas High School. HAVE AN OPINION? HAVE A GRIPE WITH THE SCHOOL? WANT TO PRAISE THE SCHOOL? WANT YOUR VOICE TO BE HEARD? THE UNION PUBLISHES LETTERS TO THE EDITOR EVERY ISSUE SUBMIT ALL LETTERS TO E17 DO NOT FORGET TO WRITE DOWN YOUR NAME AND GRADE FOR MORE STORIES, VISIT US AT MHSTHEUNION.COM TheEDITORIAL: The Opinion of The Union News e ditor A sst . News e ditor o p e d e ditor A sst o p e d e ditor F e A tures e ditor A sst . F e A tures e ditor s ports e ditor A sst . s ports e ditor L i F esty L e e ditor A sst . L i F esty L e e ditor e N tertA i N me N t e ditor A sst e N tertA i N me N t e ditor s pre A d e ditor A sst . s pre A d e ditor C o -C opy e ditor C o -C opy e ditor A sst . C opy e ditor C o web e ditor C o web e ditor A sst web e ditor p hoto e ditor A sst p hoto e ditor b usi N ess m ANAger A sst b usi N ess m ANAger A d m ANAger A sst . A d m ANAger r eporter r eporter r eporter Jour NAL ism A dvisor e ditor i N -C hie F e ditor i N -C hie F Shreeya AranakeHopeDo LETTER TO THE EDITOR

With graduation soon approach ing, the school must once again undertake the logistical nightmare that is the graduation ceremony. It is the opinion of The Union that graduation has a number of issues to be addressed: from the limited amount of space for guests and the subsequent ticket scalping, to the lack of student engagement, the graduation ceremony seems more tedious than celebratory. To be perfectly frank, graduation is not as enjoyable for students as it could be. For many students, gradu ation is a formality, the last barrier between high school and freedom. Granted, it is a heartwarming event for graduates that will be remem bered fondly in the future. But in the moment, graduation is one more assembly where they must sit and wait. It’s a ceremony more for the parents, not for the students. Also, the length of time graduation takes is simply too long; however, it is true that this cannot be helped, especial ly given the number of students graduating. Because of this, gradua tion should start earlier, so students can get home earlier. And if students have to suffer through graduation, then it might as well be entertaining for them as well. Improvements like having food at the ceremony, adding decorative backdrops for students and families to take pictures in, and allowing the band to play like other Bay Area schools do could liven up theWithevent.class sizes increasing seem ingly every year, it has come to a point where a different venue for graduation should be considered. Because of the rising population of students at MHS, graduation is of ten crowded, and family members can’t sit comfortably in the bleach ers. In addition, the cap on the num ber of tickets one is allowed to get means that students are often left in a situation where not all of their family members can attend their graduation, or they have to find oth er students with extra tickets and pay them for the tickets, at times for outrageous prices. Holding gradua tion at a larger venue means stu dents don’t have to resort to drastic measures in order to acquire tick ets for their family. And although renting out a venue for graduation would cost money, class fundrais ers would help alleviate the cost, as well as charging a small amount for tickets. This may seem counterintu itive, but many students already pay more than they should for tickets, so it would be more equitable for fami lies to pay a small amount so larger families don’t have to scramble for overpriced tickets. Furthermore, if families are certain to have enough tickets, the scalping problem would be solved as there would not be de mand for extra tickets. A school culture issue about graduation is how the vale dictorian is picked. The definition of valedictorian is the student appointed to give the valedicto ry speech during graduation. The fact that they’re selected by GPA only exemplifies the cutthroat, ac ademically obsessed culture of the Bay Area. Furthermore, having the highest GPA doesn’t make you the best writer or orator in the class. To assume that were the case only glo rifies GPA in an already hypercom petitive environment. To remedy this, the school should hold a speech writing competition and select the best submitted speech to be read at graduation. This policy would ensure that the best speech will be read at graduation, and would give recognition to another outstanding student who may not necessarily have the highest GPA. Graduation is supposed to be a day to celebrate the achievements of the collective class, a joyous cer emony symbolic of the transition between high school and adult life, whether students go on to receive a higher education or go directly into the workforce. It’s a time to move forward, a time to reminisce on when looking back. But unfor tunately, graduation the way it is now may only end up as another forgettable moment in the minds of many MHS seniors. Therefore, it is only fair that we make a change, and make graduation a night to remem ber, as it is meant to be.

BY MORGAN LEI

MokhtarzadMokhtarzadsaid.has used his passion for mathematics to help lead the MHS Math Club Mokhtarzad said. The purpose of Math Club is to promote a greater sense of community amongst MHS math fanatics, Mokhtarzad said. Math Club also offers peer tutoring for those interested, Mokhtarzad continued.“Thepurpose of Math Club is to foster a greater math com munity at our school in any way we can. Students can get involved by showing up to L10 after school or during lunch to get help with their math or just talk about math and spread ing the word about our club” MokhtarzadMokhtarzadsaid.aims to carry his passion with him in the future, by studying mathematics in col lege and eventually becoming a math professor, Mokhtarzad said.“Ideally, I’d hope to have a PhD in Pure Mathematics and becomea professor at some uni versity or at least a math teach er in some way—I will not budge on the PhD,” Mokhtarzad said.

Student playwrights celebrate recent success

TheatreWorks is a profession al theatre company that helps to develop new work, TheatreWorks Education Associate Meghan C. Hakes said. MHS and Theatre Works have worked together in previous years, but this was the first year they have done the de vised work unit, Hakes added. “We started with doing var ious exercises, not only acting exercises, but also writing exer cise,” Hakes commented. “Then we started pulling those writing prompts together into some of the pieces that you see.” One of the works from “My Own,” “Open Up,” won first place at TheatreWorks’ 1440 Countdown: Make a Play in 24 Hours, Schwartz said. As the grand prize, the eight students that wrote and performed “Open Up” get to perform the play at the summer TheatreWorks Sili con Valley New Works Festival, Schwartz continued. “Open Up” is a play about gun violence, according to Tsegenet Awoke, who is one of the eight students involved with the play. Winning first place was huge because many of the schools in the competition have a lot of funding, she explained. “We decided on that topic because the weekend we per formed it, it was the 19th an niversary of the Columbine High School shooting,” Awoke added. “We also have seen a lot of school shootings in the news lately so we decided that this was a topic we cared about.”

It has been quite a success ful year for Theatre. Between the Theatre Workshop class’s performance final, “My Own,” and two different awards won for student-written plays, it is safe to say that MHS Theatre students have a lot of reasons to“Mycelebrate.Own” is devised theatre work all written by students, Performing Arts Teacher Kai la Schwartz said via email. “My Own” was made possible by grants from ArtsEdConnect and Donors Choose, Schwartz added. “They’ve been working on this piece with Meghan Hakes, the education associate and performing artist from Theatre Works Silicon Valley,” Schwartz explained. “The work is com pletely student-written and is comprised of scenes, mono logues, vignettes, music, move ment, poetry, and prose.”

Mokhtarzad explains a mathematical concept to a peer in a classroom. His dedication shows because he is often found in various classrooms teaching. Mathematics usually appears at the bottom of students’ list of favorite subjects. However, to Junior Mealaud Mokhtarzad, math represents an infinite realm of possibility and crea tivity.Mokhtarzad recalls his hum ble beginnings with mathemat ics when he first began to be come attracted to math in ninth grade, Mokhtarzad said. He first began pursuing his passion in mathematics after he was puz zled by geometry, which eventu ally led him to start self-study ing, Mokhtarzad continued. “From this I dove headfirst into why things were the way they were in math, at least at more a computational level (finding the areas, volumes, for mulas, etc.),” Mokhtarzad said. “Through the tedious act ofnow answering and having answered these questions, I became fa miliar with the process and began to recognize the struc ture, beauty,and elegance found throughout all of math, with the things we take for grant ed introducing and totally new world of things to be discov ered,” Mokhtarzad said. Mokhtarzad’s interest for mathematics quickly developed into a passion as he continued to study the subject, Mokhtarzad said. The interrelationship and unification between topics truly intrigued him, Mokhtarzad con tinued.“What interests me most about math is the intercon nectedness throughout all the topics; things that are so seem ingly on the other side of this world come into one another and show shed light on so many different interpretations of the same ideas. This interconnect edness lets for a greater possi bilities for understanding and, most importantly, creativity,” Mokhtarzad said. Although many students dis like mathematics, Mokhtarzad believes that with a new point of view on the subject, students can learn to develop a passion for it, Mokhtarzad said. “My advice to students who struggle or dislike math is to try look at it from a new point of view; stop looking at the problems as something you do tediously and mechanically, and try develop the underlying concepts underlying the entire process you try to replicate,”

JUNE 2018THE UNION FEATURES

Another achievement this year was winning third place at the NorCalThespian Play Festival, Schwartz said. The play was written and directed by Delaney Gomez Jackson, she added. The play performed at the NorCal Thespian Play Festival, “Scenes From a Cafe,” was made up of two separate plays: “Loved You Once, Love You... Still?” written by a former student and “Operation: IRL” written by Jackson, Jackson said. The two were combined as a way to show originality, she added. “‘Scenes From a Cafe’ empha sizes the importance of learning how to recognize and accept the fact that life is unpredictable and that this unpredictabili ty allows individuals to grow,” Jackson said. In addition to this year’s ac complishments, there are plans for a performance trip in sum mer 2019 to the American High School Theatre Festival in Edin burgh, Scotland, Schwartz noted. Next year there will also be a new UC-approved course called Theatre Design and Technology, Schwartz added.

6

Math scholar shares passion

BY ANTHONY NGUYEN ANTHONY NGUYEN | THE UNION

BY KEVIN DAI

BY MAANSI MASKAI “Music is something that re quires a lot of discipline and ef fort. It is a form of expression and it is a stress reliever,” she stated. “[I have] grown to like it like Moreover,that.”

Valedictorian Ivan Chan poses for a photo. Chan reminisced over enjoyable moments and discussed his academic and extracurricular lifestyle at MHS. Clubs, sports, and rigorous academics encompass some of his many accomplishments.

Valedictorian talks about his MHS experiences

3.What do you plan to do on your trip? SO: I’ll probably go on some tours and just relax before col lege.RC: I’m probably just going to help my grandparents around their home, visit my various family members, and hang out with my old friends! Oh, and hopefully get to eat all of my favorite food again. MG: After months of piles of homework and stress, I feel I deserve a vacation that is re laxing. I would be touring the area, go zip lining, eating lots of good food, and just enjoying theHN:sights.We plan to visit Disney World and Universal Orlando. CL: I plan to hang out with my family members and my middle school friends, pre-study for my college courses, and keep doing exercise there. I may also take some trips in China with my grandparents.BW:I’mgoing to visit my rel atives and also eat food. 4.What else are you plan ning to do over the summer? SO: Probably just preparing myself for college and trying to findRC:roommates.I’mplanning on finally learning how to drive! MG: I’m planning on being a personal assistant for a profes sor at a summer program that is taking place at Stanford. I found out about the Stanford program from my family members, who are teachers and participate in the program as well. What I aim to accomplish with the program is to get a bit of work experience as well as familiarizing myself with how campus life is before starting college in the fall. HN: I plan to move all of my belongings from my house to the college dorm to get ready for the upcoming school year after coming back from vaca tion. I also plan to visit the city around the college that I will be attending.CL:Iam planning to learn swimming, because my college will require a swim test at the beginning of the semester. BW: I’m planning to work over the summer. Milpitas Elementary Science Olympiad, or MESO, is a fun and brain stimulating event for children who aspire to pursue their interest in science by par ticipating in a Science Olympi ad (SciOly) event hosted by our very own Milpitas SciOly team. Of course, instead of the nor mally difficult tests and events that the Milpitas SciOly does, MESO provides tests and events more accommodating for the el ementary level. These tests and events are more kid-friendly and fun and are to encourage the kids to keep pursuing their scientific interest. A couple of events that MESO held were the can race, egg drop, pentathlon, and mystery archi tecture. In the can race, chil dren built a contraption with a can base that moved the can without any external force such as pushing or blowing across a distance. Children competed to see which of their designs was the fastest to cross the finish line. The event encouraged stu dents to think outside the box and think about the mechanics of how to propel a can without external sources or motors. In the egg drop event, children constructed a stand out of var ious materials like toilet paper or plastic bottles before hand. The egg needed to survive the drop from a two story building, A participant prepares to roll his can in the can race among the spectators. Science Olympiad hosted the event to spark interest in science for children.

RC: I’m going back to Beijing for two months, and Tokyo for a MG:week!I will be going to Nue vo Vallarta in Mexico for about twoHN:weeks.Iplan to take a vacation to Florida for two weeks. CL: I am going back to China this summer for two months. BW: I’m going to Taiwan for around two to three weeks. 2.Why are you taking this trip? SO: My mom just decided to have the trip to Vietnam this year because it is the same time as her 30 year graduation, so I guess everything just ties in to gether. I’m pretty sure I’m just going on some tours around Vi etnam, probably around Thai land as well. I’ll probably come back in August.

BY MILI BHATNAGAR kyo just because I’ve never gone before. Tokyo has always been on my bucket list. MG: I feel like I needed to go to Mexico once before going off to college. My family and I picked the beautiful area of Nuevo, a place filled with mem ories where my grandmother loved to go. HN: Florida is a place that my family has always wanted to visit but never have the time to do sosince it’s far away. Now that I’m graduating high school, my parents decided to take a long break off from work to go on this vacation as a way to cel ebrate.CL:I picked this activity be cause I did not spend my sum mer in my homeland the last two years. This summer will be the best time for me to spend time with my family and old friends there.

VIVIAN TSANG Seniors plan

BW: I picked this activity since I haven’t gone back in two years, and I won’t have much time when college starts.

SciOly hosts event for KEVINchildrenDAI|THEUNION in this case the second floor of the L building. Children had to consider how to soften the im pact of the egg while building their contraptions. The pentathlon is a five per son event in which there are five stations where at each sta tionthere are questions relating to biology, chemistry, and phys ics. It is similar to a relay race as children complete an obsta cle before they are able to an swer their set of science ques tions and allow the next person to move onto the next station. This unique event combines physical and mental tasks and makes a fun competition for children.Mystery architecture is an event where children are given a bag of materials and construc ta tower to hold an egg without having the tower collapse. Chil dren had to think about how to support the tower and as well as how to hold the tennis ball. The event tested the wits and quick thinking ability of the children as the children had to come up with a way to keep the tennis ball from falling from the tower and the tower from collapsing. Overall, MESO is a great way for children to use their heads and break out of their mind sets and really think outside of the box. By focusing on critical thinking and science focused topics, the children become more educated, but also have fun while doing it.

trips

Senior Preeti Tamhankar has found her outlet for expression and creativity in vocal music. Having been exposed to music from an early age, Tamhankar started singing in the Indian Classical style when she was only two and a half years old. Since then, she has diligently learned and practiced under the guidance of her parents, who are trained Indian classical mu sicEventeachers.though she started at a very early age, she has contin ued to practice and polish her skills, finding it to be the per fect stress reliever and means to momentarily escape. Cur rently, she practices two hours a day.

COURTESY OF IVAN CHAN

THE UNIONJUNE 2018 7FEATURES Summer starts in less than six days! We talked to Seniors Ste ven Ong, Rachel Chiang, Mar icarmen Garcia, Hien Nguyen, Chunlu Li, and Benjamin Wu about their relaxing summer plans and thoughts before going to college. 1.Where are you going this summer and for how long? SO: I’m planning on going to Vietnam in July and I’m proba bly going back to visit, because I haven’t been there for a while since I was four years old so it’s been a while.

Tamhankar uses her musical talent to help those in need. She is often contacted by local charities in the area to perform at charity concerts. She hopes to make a positive impact in her community by doing so. “There isn’t a better way to use music,” Tamhankar said. “If my music can help other people, that is the best thing I can ask for,” she Tamhankaradded.hopes to enhance her musical knowledge by pur suing a music major at UCLA. Along with her music major, she is planning to major in Psychol ogy/Cognitive Science as well.

RC: I’m going back to Beijing because my mom’s side of the family is all over there, and I haven’t visited them since freshman year. I’m going to To BY ASHLEY CHEN exciting post-graduation

Q: What are your future plans?A:At Yale, I want to do cog nitive science and really dig deeper into human brain func tions, workwith MRIs and brain mapping. Just really try to fig ure out how the conscious mind is produced by all these neural connections. I also really want to join the club tennis team at Yale. I don’t know if I’m go ing to make it but I’m going to practice anyways. I also want to do acapella, because Yale has an acapella group that has interna tional tours every year. I have a couple friends who are in it and they really enjoy. Q: How have you prepared for college?A:You look at me and you think that I don’t study, but I do study. I study a lot, actually. I also try to sleep enough. Eight hours a day is a good idea. Usu ally when I study, I try to make it productive and limit my dis tractions. Aside from that, I’ve also tried to immerse myself into things that I really like to do. It’s how you stay energized and focused on really becoming better rather than just concen trating completely on academ ics. It’s good to be balanced. Q: What is your favorite mem ory at MHS? A: My favorite memory at MHS is when I fell asleep in AP Chemistry and Ms. Meyer opened up a water bottle and poured water over my head to wake me up--in front of the whole class. That was very memorable.Q:How does it feel to be awarded valedictorian? A: It’s good! I’m happy. But at the same time, it’s not a real ly big accomplishment, because everyone is so close. I’m more proud of what I’ve done outside of school than just academically. Q: What are you involved with offA:campus?I’mreally involved with Project 6, which is a community service program that my friends and I worked to have found. It’s a district program now that has been adopted by a lot of schools. It helps kids create their own individual community service projects and at the end of the year, they can showcase those at the service fair held at the Milpitas Library. It’s fulfilling to see their accomplishments and it really makes me happy to see all of these kids being proud of what they can do themselves. Q: What about on campus? A: I used to participate in wrestling, and I really liked it, but it didn’t really mesh with my academic goals. But besides wrestling, I’ve also been playing tennis for the past four years. I really enjoy being able to travel to other schools with my friends every season; revelling in the wins and keeping our heads high when we do lose. Q: What is one piece of advice you would give to the under classmen?A:Don’t be afraid to try new things, even if you’re unsure or have no experience. That’s what high school is for. You’re trying to do everything you can, so just figure out what you really want to do later in life because high school is the perfect place for that.

Tamhankar pursues singing

wMost SENIOR MOSTS8 JUNE 2018T HE U NION w Most likely to die in Infinity War: Most likely to trip at graduation: Most likely to own a farm and raise alpacas: Most likely to live off of cup noodles in college: Most likely to be a famousBrandonvlogger:NguyenAngelaEstebarErvhan Vicedo Ciera Nguyen Phan Tran Jana Suico Chris CatherineBuiMa Danny Nguyen Preeti Tamankhar

9T HE U NIONSENIOR MOSTSJUNE 2018 w w Most likely to be a vegan for only two days: Most likely to be found studying through an earthquake: Most likely to pour milk before their cereal: Most likely to Freshman-15:avoid Most likely to cry atKrystalgraduation:AndrewHaQuiocho Kevin SamanthaQuachLevy Darryl Remulla Avani Karkare SaketMeganMetraniLam Albert Thai Jessie Chang

COLLEGE DECISIONS JUNE 201810 THE UNION California AcademyofArtUniversity ChesterSantiago RiverAmericanCollege IsiahCotton CommunityBakersfieldCollege CromelEcura CabrilloCollege NataliePenrose Cal State Chico SydneyLeslieAbarcaSerranoSerenaWang Cal DominguezStateHills AnahiMartinez Cal State Stanislaus TanjotSandhu CalStateEastBay LesleighElizabethJenniferNicoDelgadoGallegoGuitronWilliamLieuAnnMacabintaMikaylaMouaXavierNguyenNeilahPekuRamonPlascenciaAtulSinghMirabelleSubaBenjaminWuPaytonYamada CalStateLongBeach JomarVivianDinhMendozaGretnaTruong Cal SacramentoState AngelinaBalderasJustinSyJohnYin Cal State FranciscoSan JessicaArianBasiliaTiffanieDanielAbilaChauEspinozaHarrisonFongGolbakhshSalvadorGomezMarieIslaArianaKhateebAlanaLeongAnjaliLisingAlecNagalNalinaNavarroHienNguyenJessicaNguyenThanhNguyenMichellePhanAiraRocaEmilyWong Cal State, San Luis Obispo(CalPoly) AlejandraAkimmiAlyssaBennettBryanChauNavarroJoshuaThanAaronTranKevinTranChabotCollegeCeceliaFischerAdrianGaryLanaziaGreeneHollyLegginDonovenMooreTaiNguyenOntiverosBriannaSmileyPJVai CityCollegeofSanFrancisco JeromeKristylBustosCogswellPardenilla CollegeofSanMateo MarianoRobles RiverConsumnesCollege SumeetNand CosmetologySchool LaurenTatyanaCarterMacBay DeAnzaCollege LindenAly OxalieAmezcuaTrenadoSottoArrianaAmnaAsifRachelBaeAlejandroBaesArmaanBainsVivianaBarbaNathanBenavidezChristopherBuiAllysonCaliwagGirishCheguIsaacClarkWilfredoConcepcionRaymundCortezCalvinDangDerekDangJonathanDangKatherineDangJonathanDavisNourDesoukiChesterDoAnanyaDonapatiAileenEdoraJustinFlanaganAbelGarciaJoshuaGilEmeraldGilanaJunellaGonzalesJackieGonzalezAgniGopireddyKimberlyGrundstromJustinHoQuocHungHongMichealHuaKyleHulogAaronHungRenzKyleJoseSooJeongKimStephenLambNathanLauretaMeganLeRebeccaLiAlexandriaLiuJakeLongTristanLorenzoDenyseLuzonEricMaiThereseMalangIsraelMedinaIsobelleMeilyAbelMendoza-MartinezAristeoMoraTenedoraAndrewNguyenBrandonNguyenCieraNguyenDaisyNguyenDannyNguyenHungNguyenJenniferNguyenKevinNguyenVincentNguyenFloridaPacanoJosephPalaciosJianchaoPanJustinPangAmandaParkAlexPerniaThuy-AnhPhamVivianPhamRyanPhanConnorPietrasikCallaPunsalangYuehanQiKrystalQuiochoAdrianQuirozMaryRaymundoAbdullahRehmanLillianRosasMathewSantillanRebeccaSchulzJennahShaganJordynSmith MarinaSofiaMikaellaSpencerThorstensenAlexTiengAnhTonAlexanderTranAllisonTranAndrewTranAndyTranLuciaTranTylerTranTrevino-VasquezMaliaTrevino-VasquezKevinTruongLarryTruongMichelleTruongJohnUmaliLuisVasquezBaoVoXingyiWangNeilXiaHanXuYanhaoXuQuentinYagoShermanYauXiaoheYiFeliciaYipTimothyYueShaoYuYueHaochengZhangKarenZhao UniversityDominicanofCalifornia JennyYang EvergreenValleyCollege SamanthaAlyssandraJermaineKarylDestineeAvalosRyanBanBernardoJoseCastroCaturaDajanoNatashaDizonDominguezJustinDonatoVereniceGomezAiraGumbanDJGunabeDestinyLucateroMariahMartinezJoselinneMoronesHoaNguyenPedroPadillaAaronQuachArianaReyesJacobSalazarOritaSu’aMeilingTanJonathanValdez CommunityFoothillCollege TiffanyChristianNichelleShanezzaJenicaSangilAvilaSydneyDoEchanisSheanFidelHernandezLillianHuynhVeronicaJimenezVivianLe(Anh-Thu)NguyenThuylinhPhanChristopherRoblesJean-RyuSantianoAngelicaMaeSantosBrandonTaniJordeanaThomasGabrielTiceEricTieuSelenaTranViviTranAliseaValdez CommunityFresnoCityCollege DayannaMartinez LasPositasCollege AaronEmeEspinozaSanchez LongBeachCityCollege FrancisCastilloNamHuynhKareemBarry MenloCollege VictoriaIafetaMeganLam MissionCollege Esmeralda Aguilar JacquelineAnnaliseAlesnaBledsawDarrenAquisapChristianAxalanVladimirBaliliSarahBarronChrisBuiGabrielCabralEricaCallantaYulissaChavezJoshuaChenBrandeisCoddeAnahiCoriaJoseDelgadilloCharlesDescanzoBryantDuongJazmenEdwardsJaredFerarenNicoleFinuliarMichaelaFinuliarDanielaGarciaAlejandroGonzalezMichaelGutierrezMaritzaHaroAlexanderHavensHunterHavensBrianHoangAlessandraHobsonLaurenIngersollBritneyJaculinaJavierJimenezLeenaKimWilsonLamDianeGraceLopezNealDominicLuceroKaitlinMartinezDafneMendezAlfonMercadoChristianMerinElizabethMirabal-WilliamsAlexMoralesLeslieMorenoAlanNguyenBryanNguyenDylanNguyenTiffanyNguyenNikkiOidemAjPattersonClaryssaPerezMartinPinedaChristopherPinneyMichaelReyesMiriamSanchezPonceAahanaSandhuCharlizeSemanaClareSernRealSimonPhuongTranBrandonTreiuTiffanyTrinhAdrianTuringanAryannaValenciaGordonVanMeilinVanCeziaYohanesJohnZarate ModestoCollegeJunior MarcianaChristianGarciaAbuan MountSt.Mary’sUniversity FatimaPadilla CommunityOhloneCollege TeiaMa.JoshuaAlimpiaBenAllenReginaAquinoMekdelawitAwokeCheyenneBarbosaDarienBorilloVictoriaBraceStacyCaturaQianyunChenKatelynChpwKennethChuMichelleChuongLienDaoAngelaMarieEstebarErinEstolasHermieGonzalesKiarraGonzalesMariusHeldMelissaJohnsonBryanJose JosetteMarieMalonzoBriannaMartinezLisaMontiniDanielNguyenNgocNhinVandanPandavDanielPatinoChristianQueriTarunRameshJescelynReyesAngelaRoqueAngelikaRoqueAlianaRovertoBlancaSalazarFranciscoSanchezRishikaSharmaJuliaSteeleArsalanSyedMaryTeweldeMinnaThomasAlissaTorresAlanTranBrandonTranLeelaTroungFernandoVelazquezEhrvanVicedoDestinyVillarrealHangZhang PasadenaCityCollege AndrewLam SAE Institute NathanielPintor SanDiegoStateUniversity LyshiaChrisAzpeitiaTyReeBracyKylieCacaoJenniferLiuMangulabnanCat-TuongTu SanJoseCityCollege PrinceJohnPaulAgustinBeatrizCrisatoMakaylaDiazPatriciaDiazIqraFarooqRabiaIqbalAlfonsoFrankieMontanoBenjaminNguyenLesliePonceBrandonReyesKatherineShroyerShivanjalliSinghFrankSolorioMateoTorresSharonVien San Jose UniversityState ClaraNatalieSebastianAlvarezChristianAspirasMayaAvilaBreannaBanhArianneBanlaoChrisseBelenMaerskBenitezAnvayBhanapShuvangiBharGurpriyaBhelaVanessaChauZeJiaChenJohnChoeGraceChonChiTingHelenCuiDrake(Kaida)DangMarisolDelaCruzAugustinDeLunaRajveerDhaliwalAnthonyDoBrianDoMeganEdquidKiaraLynnFickBrianFloresBenjaminGarciaNamanGhummanSimrenGillAyessaGomezGuadalupeGomezZacharyHalleraEmilyHardyBriandaHernandezTahaHussainSimonHuynhAmandaJimenezKameronJordanRyanKatayama

UC Irvine MelaniePhi-LongBuiJessieChangChenKevinDai KatherineEricMiliDesaiHoangHubenyEllieJanKellyLueVivianLuuKhaiNguyenPamelaNguyenTaniaNixonMartinTangConanTruongJohnYu UCLA PreetiSachinAmandaChenKulkarniAlanKwokSallySeokAllanShenTamhankarPhanTran UC Merced TatianaSidharthBabuAmreenGillHollyHoangMartinez UC Riverside ChristopherKameronParthBriannaArayaBhargavaBoldenErikChanMadisonCorpuzTiffanyDinhJacinthFangLisaNguyenRyanNguyenPhamJustinQuachAnujaSamantNargisSrejanAliceTranConstanceTran UCSanDiego JohnBrianCalvinIsaacChangChenHopeDoAndrewHaLeonKuoLeungNguyenStevenOngAnnaTe UCBarbaraSanta JasmineRachelRamisAbdoChiangKristyLeNguyenLisaNguyenMimiNguyenSheenaPhamLawrenceSu UC Santa Cruz DelaneySeeumFaruqueGomez-JacksonAvaniKarkareJeremyKwanCatherineMaIshanPahiranaSuhasShekarMichaelTruongAmyVuNiraliVyas UnitekCollege VivialeeneHernandezRicaIbanez UniversityofSanDiego TinaTran UniversityofSanFrancisco TimTran UniversityofSouthernCalifornia KaitoHashimotoJeraldMendozaDarrylRemulla UniversityofthePacific FranklinVirginiaLienTranRyanWang WestValleyCollege ZacharyThomasFlesnerGarmanyAnthonyNguyenWendyRiddle YearUpBayArea MyLeNgo OutofState Arizona StateArizonaUniversity ToriChu MesaCommunityCollege ConnecticutAlexiHyde YaleUniversity DistrictKevinIvanChanQuachofColumbia WashingtonGeorgeUniversity ShreeyaAranakeTsegenetAwokeFlorida InternationalFloridaUniversity IncharaAlaghattaGeorgia ClarkUniversityAtlanta BriannaWilliamsHawaii UniversityofHawaiiatManoa GiselleConstantakisVanessaPerezIllinois IllinoisUniversityOfatUrbanaChampaign NathanHadi UniversityofNotreDame TariqBracyKansas TaborCollege GabrielEricksonMichigan UniversityofMichigan AnishPavaskarNewYork UniversityCornell ChunluLi SamikShrotriya New UniversityYork JenniferErinUtterZhangOhio Ohio UniversityState AnshumanPendsePratimaPrabalaOklahoma OklahomaUniversityState OregonBrianaSua UniversityofOregon IsaacKalinaAragonJayaDasSantillan UniversityofPortland’ RoshniShethTexas UniversityBaylor SonalMehta Prairie View UniversityA&M WashingtonSamaraBrown SeattleUniversityPacific RobertJenniferSmithTempleton UniversitySeattle NicholasNguyen UniversityofPugetSound TinaNguyen ofUniversityWashington TobyYu-PeiHoWong WashingtonStateUniversity NaomiVillaruz International Canada UniversityWaterlooof AlexandreaNavaltaItaly UniversityBocconi AndreaAnellucciMexico VizcayaUniversidaddelasAméricas CamilaBurciaga OFCLASSCONGRATULATIONS2018!

SVCTE

Santa UniversityClara KhaiThai

TimothyMarkChristopherRegineMeganHoiYanKwanJosephLaceyLasquteKevinLeKienLeKristineLeNgocLeVanessaLeeMorganLeiHarrisonLokJessicaLontocJonathanLuVivianLuongIvanMaciasMallorcaIsaacMcDonaldMerinSaketMetraniAlanNguyenAshtonNguyenCelineNguyenJeffreyNguyenMichaelNguyenNaomiNguyenTiffanyNguyenVivianNguyenMichelleNguyenShivamPatelDannyQuachRanielQuesadaDevinRamosNikolausRobillosKarenSahotaAnthonySilvaDiljotSinghLauraStefankoKennyTangJonathanTapawanSallyThaiChristopherThanDillonTranRyanTranAustinTruongRyanTsengAlejoValleLauraVasquezVillanuevaMichaelVuMichelleWangJasonWongCatherineYangEthanYuEricZhang

LesleyMylesAbabaLopez Davis

THE UNIONCOLLEGE DECISIONSJUNE 2018 11

JanaHuiRiddhiBarbhaiyaMiliBhatnagarChrisBuiTuanBuiMadelineCacaoWenLislChewWinnieDiepBrianHoangKarinaHuynhBiancaJiangJasmineKimSamanthaLevyMichelleLiAndyLimJoshuaLyuGloriaMaJonasMendozaAnnieNgoYen-VyNgoCeciliaNguyenJulianNguyenMarleneNguyenStevenNguyenCharisseSuicoHuiShanTanSaraVienReeshaYadav

UCBerkeley TueBrandonChoVincentLeZiyuanLeiVedantPatelAlbertThai UC

I, Brian Do, do hereby leave all of my money, belongings, and wasted Supreme Court case flashcards to MR. Cao I, Pedro, do hereby leave all the drama and toxic people in HS *Not all submissions could be entered due to lack of space. Wills were randomly selected.

THE UNION JUNE 201812 SENIOR WILL (SMITHS)

I, Vincent Le, do hereby pass the loyal tree to a new group of students opresed by the tacky table #StopTableWarstussle.

I, Andrew Ha, do hereby, leave my polos to my friends. Please divide equally.

hereby leave my fun to the juniors I, Frank Solorio, do hereby leave high school I, Flynn, give River 17 pennies, Darryl 13 pennies, and my sister 10 pennies. All the rest of my friends and classmates will receive 11 pennies!

I, Brandon, do hereby leave my textbook fines to my brother and sister, and Israel I, Abdullah, do hereby leave all my cares given...oh wait I don’t have any left. Also I leave my treausure in one place, find it. Also leave my soul to Satan for a cookie I, Kylie, do hereby leave my photographs of feet to Steph I, Madison Corpuz, do hereby give all my love and prayers to Southcoast and Baysid. L$G- Godspeed I, Calla, do hereby leave my xbox to my group. I, Alexandria, do hereby leave my school spirit with the next year’s seniors I, Bryle Evlysis R. Can las, do hereby leave 5 million dollars in cash somewhere buried in the green. Happy Digging. I, Regina Aquino, do hereby leave my grades and stress to the juniors, sophomores, and freshman.

I, Chris Than, do hereby leave Kirk Tran my sweats to cut weight, Scotty Gomez my Aux, Brian Delinela a ride, and Vivek madelines.Chotai

I, Vivian N., do hereby leave behind what’s left of my smile and optimism I, Darrtl, do hereby leave my Muji pens to Tsegenet, my madelines to Robert, my quinoa to Andrew, and my gym membership to Kevin.

I, Jana Suico, leave the MHS music program to any flute babies and demon spawn. Keep the legacy going. Demon Mom loves you.

I, Kalina Aragon, do hereby leave this school with zero re grets, one diploma, two decent AP scores and a whole lot of friends.

I, Victoria Lafeta, do hereby leave my love for everyone who is great #BEGREAT I, Leslie, do hereby leave my Lunch spot to the ugly juniors I, Sebastian, do hereby leave all my homework to all the freshmanincoming I, Mondesi Abair, do here by leave my friends to Julian Abair

(SMITHS)SeniorWillI,Brooke,do

I, Samara B, do hereby leave my jokes to all my young followers I, Lanren Macbay, do hereby leave a scaven ger hunt to the future students of MHS. DM for details @lanrenmacbaeonIG I, Jordyn Smith, do hereby leave all of my laughter and sarcasm I, Nicholas Nguyen, do hereby leave the money I buried behind the L-building to whomever finds it first I, Angela, with all my attitude, sarcasm, and kindess, will not be leaving all of my talents behind underclassmento

I, Breanna Banh, do hereby leave my happy memories and friends I have made these past four years. Goodbye MHS! I, Christopher Pham, leave my AP Answers to my sister and Melanie. Have fun!

I, Drake Dang, do hereby leave what’s left of my dignity to Joslynn Dang.

I, Jennifer Smith, leave my single fry per dog to Richard Dang. I, Eric, do hereby leave all my pet bird to my friend and curse all who crossed my path to 1000 years of misfortune. I, Erin Lin, do hereby give my love and best wishes to my Glee club sprout children. Thank you guys so much for sticking by me this year and I’ll always be cheering you on! I, Bryon Huynh, do here by gift the condition of unnecessary hardship and procrastination to all young and faithful students for next year I, Leonard Lucero do hereby leave behind my anxiety, headaches, and oppression to my cousin Fritzjon Lucero I, Andion, do hereby leave my ROTC spirit with the plebe, Jamie Edrosolo! < 3

I, Rachel Chiang, do hereby leave my WIDI boxes to my prodigies, my secret can#FlameTestSquad,documentsForensicstomyandmysoultowhoeverfindwhereIhidit(Iforgotwhere)

I, CJ Aspiras, do hereby leave my knowledge to Bryce Loria I, Bryan, do hereby need to go to the Thanks.bathroom. I, Michelle, do hereby leave all my CSF responsibilities to Theo dore Do. I have faith in you!

I, Michael Nguyen, do hereby leave my milktea stamp card to my best friend Laura Stefanko I, Angelika, do hereby leave my sister behind... nevermind she’s coming with me I, Ariana Khateeb, do hereby leave my car (parkiing spot 138) to Harris Khateeb and my undying love to Sabrina Martinez

I, Kevin Le, do hereby leave my manga to my cousin Julie.

I, Ehrvan Vicedo, do hereby leave my sass to Ryan Ho and the rest of KDT to use for every performance next year.

I, Jasmine Nguyen, do hereby leave Jerzon and Vu my snacks and my 10 lbs AP Bio notebook.

I, Erin Estolas, do hereby leave my poetry journals to CasupananAbby I, Alexander, do hereby leave my Oculus Rift to my ghost: No one gets it!

I, Dillon Tran, do hereby leave $100 under the senior overhang on June 10th 2018 I, Helen Cui, do hereby leave my love with the Roys. I, Megan Lam, do hereby leave my miniature hand collection to Mr. Cummins

I, Aaron Sanchez, do hereby leave all my bad grades and hopes and dreams to the freshmen. I, John, tried my best at MHS and will be successful in college. I, Ngoc Le, do hereby, give all my property to my little brother, John I, Makayla, do hereby leave my spotify mu sical theater playlist to my friend Julia and my Fall Out Boy stuff to River.

I, Daisy Nguyen, do here by leave my dog, Callie, to my younger brother aong with her pet food and toys.

I, Israel Abas, do hereby, leave my belongings to my little Jaxsonbrother I, Jerahuara, do hereby leave my belongings to my mother I, Angela, do hereby leave my Cherry Bomb album to LanAnh Nguyen and my new berets to Maggie Ly.

I, Anna Te, do hereby leave my Ayana babies with a van full of Chi nese club stuff so have fun! (I’ll be back next year for Lunar Show) I, Lisl, do hereby leave my heart to AranakeShreeyA I, Kyle Hulog, do hereby leave my young friends BYE! ILY ALL! I, Khai, do hereby leave Ms. yan to live the rest of her life without her prince < /3 I, Constance, do hereby leave my friends and family my dimples I, Andy Tran, do hereby leave my hopes and dreams, as I move on with my life, or lack of one I, Jose “Randy” Mendoza, do hereby, leave all my name mix-ups at MHS I, Wattanac, do hereby leave all my tardies to Aaron Tumber I, Josette Malonzo, do hereby leave five million dollars under the green. Go for it.

I, Phuong Tran, do hereby leave all of my responsibilities and problems in PANDA DLC to Cynthia Nguyen along with my senior itis and stash of dank memes I, Natalie Penrose, do hereby wish everyone luck with all that life brings. xoxo I, Jose Bermudez, will follow my dreams and become rich one day. Mark my words.

I, Kevin Le, do hereby leave my mania to my cousin Julie I, Chris Bui, do hereby leave Lisa “Yiting” Yan my chinese manga I, Jessie do hereby leave my will to live and my soul to the L building. Because my life is one big L. I, Ziyuan Lei, do hereby leave my twenty boxes of unnecessary Key Club decorations and paperwork to Harpreet Lally. I’m confident that you wil take the club to new heights this term. < 3 I, Alexander, do hereby leave my Oculus Rift to my ghost: No one gets it!

THE UNIONJUNE 2018 13SENIOR WILL (SMITHS)

I, Tiffany N., do hereby leave my rally tech planter folder to Kimberly Tran and Julianne Dang I, Jenny Yang, do hereby leave you my spirit as I know I will be missed.

shoes from Off Broad way Sweater from Costa Rica

College campuses differ from high school campuses in a “big” way--literally. While there are many “typical” ways of making friends with people like your roommates, here are some un orthodox know-hows I’ve picked up over the years that can be used when trying to make friends in all sorts of situations. These do not only have to be used in college but can also be used in any other environment!Thefirstthing to keep in mind is to step out of your comfort zone, especially if you are not the type of person to strike up a conversa tion. Little things you do make a huge difference. Every person has their own unique knowledge and experiences. I like to think that a person not talked to is like a closed door that is never opened-a lost opportunity. Opening even one door creates the possibility of opening an endless amount of doors.An example of befriending someone in class would be saying “hi” and striking up a conversa tion with the person next to you before class. Sometimes even ask ing a small favor like borrowing a pen can act as leeway to opening up a conversation. “Could I bor row a pen? Thanks, oh by the way I really like your shoes.” Be honest and don’t pretend you like something when you really ARIANA KHATEEB

Necklaces

ASB shorts Forever 21

BY

How to make friends when going to college

BY

Joshua Than lesleigh Macabinta

Find

With climate change making the upcoming summer months hotter and UV indexes high er, sunscreen’s vital role in the essential summer package is heightened. If you scroll to the bottom of the weather app you will find a number displayed next to the phrase, UV index. This number shows how harm ful the sun’s rays are to unpro tected sun exposure, with an index of six or seven being con sidered high risk. The SPF level displayed on your handy dandy sunscreen bottle, stick, or spray explains how long the sunscreen will protect you from UV rays, with 100 SPF being one of the highest. Different sunscreen protection brands try their best to perfect the perfect ratio be tween thickness, greasiness, and smell. This review will critique the popular sunscreen brands in those three categories.

don’t. Honesty is a virtue. If you’re lying, it can be obvious at times and you really don’t want to start off a potential friendship like this. Another unorthodox way of be coming friends with someone is asking for directions---a great way to find friends outside of classes. In my opinion, I think being frank and asking the person if they want to be friends is the best way to go. No matter where you go, finding a person or a group of people and honestly asking something like, “Hey, I’m new here and I don’t really have anyone to hang out with. Can I join your group?” is a great way to start. Sure, there may be people who may reject your of fer, but learning to embrace rejec tion allows you to grow stronger as a person, making it easier to approach people if you’re more of a shy person. Regardless of what type of personality you have, if you want to make friends, then take the opportunity to open yourself up to people and share what you have to offer. Similarly, making friends with people like roommates just requires under standing and kindness. Another great way to reach out to people is joining clubs! Clubs are made to provide students with a community to feel comfortable in and make new friends. A pleth ora of clubs exist at any school so finding a club of interest should be no challenge. Once you join, interacting and participating in events should be all it takes to find newSomefriends.more tips: -A great way to win the other person’s interest is asking them about what they are passionate about.-You’ll likely be sharing your “story” with a lot of people. This story will likely be a short in troduction of who you are and what defines you. Think of it as a mini-college application but short ened down to the things that mean the most to you. -Be yourself, but don’t be afraid to try new things and explore yourself as an individual. As a col lege student, you are going in with a blank slate. This means that if you’re typically shy and afraid to do things like dance or be a lead er, then take this opportunity to go for -Youit.come first. While it is great to make new friends, be careful of joining circles that are negative or prevent you from expressing who you are as a person. Think twice before doing something you are unsure of, and make sure to take care of yourself mentally and phys ically. Take time to go on walks alone or go to the library and en joy time for yourself. Regardless of what your focus is in college or in any environment, having a friend is a great asset to your life. Being open about your self and trying new things will fos ter growth and attract new friends.

SeniorSenior out which sunscreen is best you

for

THE UNION JUNE 201814 LIFESTYLE BY KATHERINE HUBENY Shorts from H&M Converse from Converse Cap from Chance the Rapper shirt Marshalls Her Fashion Inspiration: “Five minutes late to school.” His Fashion Inspiration: “Batman.”

BY ANANYA DONAPATI

Neutrogena Ultra- Sheer Dry Touch Sunscreen SPF 55 (4/5) This brand does not disappoint when it comes to sunscreens. The thickness of the lotion does not make your body or face feel heavy when first applying it, however the smell does be come overbearing when applied continuously and exposed to the sun. The name lives up to how non greasy it is to the skin, and it does not become greas ier as the day progresses. Any variation of stick or spray does increase the likelihood that it becomes greasy when applying.

Hawaiian Tropic Island Sport Ultra Light SPF 50 (4.5/5) This sunscreen brand will make you smell wonderful be cause of the delightful coconut aroma. The coconut smell is a nice change compared to the traditional sunscreen smell. Since it is directed toward the

A “Wonder-pho”or a “Pho-ny” Experience? athletic type, the sunscreen does last long and provide high performance. The SPF for this brand does not go very high, so if you are extra sensitive to UV rays, be careful. The lotion is not greasy and very light when ap plied. Banana Boat Sport Performance SPF 50 (2/5) Banana Boat sunscreen is also designed to work under the con ditions of an active person, so it works perfectly for the average couch potato. The sunscreen is water resistant, which is perfect for the pool or the beach. The application is a bit sheer, and it does not protect the skin for long, so repeated and frequent reapplications are necessary. The smell is mildly tropical, some where in between Neutrogena and Hawaiian Tropic Island’s smell. The greasiness is tolera ble, but slightly sticker than com pared to the other sunscreens.

Loan-Anh’s Rating (4/5 stars) Despite the unnoticeable exerior of the Pho 90* restaurant, the food at Pho 90* is a different story. I tried two dishes: the “pho đăc biet” (the Pho special), “bún tôm thit nuong cha giò,” (vermicelli with grilled pork, grilled shrimp, and egg rolls), and the “café sua đá” (Vietnamese coffee). The “pho” came out steaming and sent puffs of scent that hinted at the flavorful broth; while the initial sip of broth had a deep flavor for just a sip, the flavor is nothing unique and can be found at many other Vietnamese restau rants. The noodles were also not very special, but the beef, dipped in hoisin sauce and sriracha pro vided a tasty bite that highlighted the quality of the beef well. The “café sua đá” was an al together different experience: it packs a punch that gets coffee-lov ers (or haters) hooked. The cof fee is satisfyingly strong, but not overpowering, leaving drinkers to taste hints of the condensed milk mixed in. It’s amazing and can only be described as sensual. Lastly, the “bún tôm thit nuong cha giò” was quite surprising with its high quality and aesthetically pleasing presentation. This Pho 90* dish was one of the best I have ever tried. The grilled pork had a nice char and was both sweet and savory with the addition of peanut bits, and the shrimp was simulta neously crunchy and soft with a taste that only fresh seafood can have.All in all, I left Pho 90* feeling full and happy. I must say, Pho 90* was “pho-nomenal.” Ishrak’s Rating (3/5 stars) Pho 90* is a restaurant that can most accurately be summarized by the phrase, “Style over sub stance.” At Pho 90*, I sampled a handful of different dishes: the “pho áp chao ga” (pan-fried noo dles with chicken and vegetables) and the “com chiên hai san” (a seafood fried rice). The “pho áp chao ga” was prob ably my favorite dish of the night. .The pan-frying of the noodles meant that some of them re mained soft while others stayed crunchy, providing for a nice tex ture contrast. Additionally, the noodles were flavorful, and the sauce they were cooked in accom panied the chicken and the vege tables well. In contrast, I did not have such a pleasant experience with the oth er dish that I decided to try. The “com chiên hai san”, suffered on two fronts, the first of which be ing the size of the dish. Despite the price of the dish, there was an extremely small portion of rice provided, with a significant portion of space on the serving plate being filled with frivolous garnishes. Ad ditionally, the fried rice itself was extremely light and bland, espe cially compared to the variety of other fried rice dishes that can be found throughout Milpitas. While features like the uphol stery, decor, and the presentation of the dishes themselves were quite nice, those are all tangential fac tors. Given all of this, I left the restaurant feeling not particular ly sad or anything, merely disap pointed; the experience was rather “pho-rgettable.” LOAN-ANH PHAM ISHRAK RAMZAN from

Cinnaholic, a gourmet buildyour-own cinnamon roll shop fea tured on “Shark Tank,” opened in Downtown San Jose on April 27. If you truly love cinnamon rolls and consider yourself a “cinnaholic”, the shop’s target audience, then make a trip to this bakery. Forget Cinnabon.Everycustomer begins their or der with a vegan cinnamon roll base, at $5.25, and has the op tion to make the roll truly unique by customizing various seasonal frosting flavors, for $0.25 each, and toppings, for $0.50 each. There gic scent of fresh cinnamon rolls wafting through the air. Instantly, my mind prepared itself for the delightful pastry experience just waiting to happen. The variety of choices for toppings and frostings was quite intimidating.

7. The mint green layer should be painted over the green lay er and cover half of it up. Once that is done, let the mint green layer dry.

THE UNIONJUNE 2018 15LIFESTYLE

6. Let the green paint dry, and using another brush, mix the white and green paint until an ideal mint green is reached (I started out with white and add ed a dab of green paint in).

photos by andrew dihn

BY SHREEYA ARANAKE KELLY LUE BY KELLY LUE the wait time in line was long, the food preparation was quite quick. I ordered a cinnamon roll with cream cheese frosting, strawber ries, and almonds, which cost $6.50. The shop’s ingredients are entirely The fresh cinnamon roll itself was warm and soft with a nice chew to it. The bun acted as the perfect vehicle for the cream cheese frosting that coated the entirety of the roll. The cream cheese frosting was light and delicious, but not so sugary that it overpowered the flavor of the gooey cinnamon roll. The fresh strawberries and nutty almonds complemented the sweetness of the frosted cinnamon roll. I highly recommend making a visit to Cinnaholic to treat your in ner sweet tooth. Next time I visit, I would like to try the fruit frost ings, like orange or strawberry, in order to add more dimensions to the flavor. The fresh cinnamon BY ANDREW DINH Create cool cinnamon buns; Invest in some nice statio nery and pens! It’s not absolute ly necessary for bullet journaling, but having things like colorful highlighters and cute sticky notes really can contribute to a bullet journal characterized by your own personality. This can also make your bullet journal very aesthet ically pleasing! Be consistent and organize your content in a way that makes sense to you! Before I started my bullet journal, I made a key that told me which bul lets stood for certain items. For example, circular bullets would stand for tasks, and square bullets would represent events. A key will be really helpful for keeping things consistent, and making your bul let journaling easier to manage in general. Create your monthly and weekly spreads! After you’ve set up your key, you’re ready to draw out your monthly calendar and your weekly pages! There’s no right way to do this, but I like to set up a theme and a central color for each month. This is the main part of your bullet journal — and I truly agree this has made me a more disciplined, organized student.Thisis only one way out of many to begin bullet journaling. There is a plethora of inspiration online, with tons of blogs and You Tube channels dedicated to bullet journaling. If all else fails, just pick up a notebook, and a pencil, and let your creativity flow. Summer is nearing, and a sun hat will be a great way to com bat every ray of sunshine. This watermelon sun hat is both fun and functional and will become the go-to accessory for a day at the beach or a picnic at the Materialspark! needed: -Sun hat (can be found at Dol lar Tree or any other clothing store)-Acrylic paint (green, red, black, and -Paintwhite)brushes/ paint palette -Washi Procedure:-Newspapertape1.Layyour newspaper on a flat surface; put washi tape around the base of the hat to prevent smudging.2.Takea look at your hat and estimate how far you need to paint your red layer. My hat had eight rings, so I allowed myself to paint red until the fourth ring, which is about halfway to the edge of the hat.

3. For those of you that want an ombre effect, use water and white paint to “dust” onto the red paint and spread the white paint until the red layer blends from pale pink to red-pink to scarlet.4.While the red paint dries, rinse your brush, and get ready to paint the green layer.

8. Time to paint the “watermel on seeds!” Use a smaller paint brush and paint black raindrop shapes. I would suggest painting a seed on one end and painting the next one on the correspond ing end to ensure that the seeds are evenly spaced. 9. If any mistakes are made during the painting process (such as accidentally dabbing paint on the top part of the hat), just paint over the spot with a little bit of white paint. Once it dries, the mistake will be unno ticeable.10.Voila! Time to have fun in the sun!

Are you looking for a way to get organized and keep track of your busy life? Are you obsessed with calligraphy and cute stationery? If you are, maybe you could try something new: bullet journaling. Bullet journaling takes tradition al journaling and transforms it into something much quicker and way more artsy. With a bullet journal, you can keep track of your hab its, plan events, record lists, and much more — all with the free dom to personalize your journal pages however you want. If you look up bullet journals on Pinter est, you’ll be met with an endless array of creative, colorful bullet journal pages, and although this may seem daunting at first, start ing a bullet journal doesn’t have to be complicated, nor do you need to be artistically inclined. Here’s how you can get started with your own bullet journal: First, get yourself a nice notebook! Most bullet journals are A5 dotted notebooks, the dots being used for organizing and for matting your pages. Depending on what you want to do with your bullet journal, you should consid er things like paper durability and size. For example, if you’re looking to experiment with watercolor and calligraphy, weighted paper would be a good choice, but if you’re planning on keeping things simple, heavy paper wouldn’t be a large factor. Personally, I like cream-col ored, thick paper!

Get Fried Fry Cafe features a menu true to the name of the restaurant—full of a variety of fries topped with many kinds of condiments, seasonings, and oth er unconventional additions. The concept of “loaded” fries, although interesting, was also somewhat disappointing, as we expected high-quality, well-made fries, but instead, got something medio cre at best. The fries themselves weren’t special, and rather than focusing on the quality of fries, the restaurant seemed to dedicate more effort to the toppings. We decided to try to representa tive menu items: one simple dish and one full of toppings. The first item we tried was called “Truffle become a Cinnaholic fanatic

Get Fried Fry Cafe brings variety to fries Love,” and was one of the simpler items on the menu. In addition to the base of regular fries, toppings included truffle oil, parmesan, and cilantro. We also tried avoca do-and-cheese-topped fries, whose base was made of “coated straight cut” fries, and topped with avo cado, nacho cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, and cilantro. This was the vegetarian version; there is also an option to add a meat to top of this dish. “Truffle Love” was harder to enjoy, because of the lack luster quality of the fries, and almost no toppings to makeup for the bland base. These fries were closer to the taste of bread, rather than a soft on the inside, crispy on the outside fry. In the case of avocado-and-cheese-topped fries, the fry quality was no different, however the dish on the whole was a lot more pleasurable, be cause there were ample toppings to distract one from the taste of theThefries.restaurant felt like a mid dle-aged parent hangout spot, try ing too hard to be hip. The mu sic was mediocre, and the overall vibewas one of a lazy afternoon. It wasn’t a spot to eat and enjoy the surroundings for long periods of time; rather, it was a place where one took their food and left. Overall, the restaurant was un derwhelming in comparison with the exciting prospect of a place dedicated to fries and only fries. The fries themselves fell flat, and if Get Fried wants to be a serious contender in the business of serv ing food in a manner that pleases customers they must first go back to the UNION

Loan-anhbasics. Pham| THE

Do It Yourself: Watermelon Sunshade Hat

Though BY LOAN-ANH PHAM Kelly Lue| THE UNION Guide to bullet journaling

5. Paint the remaining area of the hat’s edge green; make sure to avoid painting over the red!

Jermaine Cole, an American rapper better known as J. Cole, released “KOD,” his fifth studio album, on April 20. The album’s title, an acronym for “Kids On Drugs,” foreshadows themes of drug abuse and addiction inter spersed in Cole’s lyrics. Cole’s storytelling and production abil ities shine in the album, free of features from other artists. The album appropriately begins with “Intro,” a short jazz beat with introspective lyrics questioning how to deal with pain, setting the stage for Cole to dive deep into the vices of fame, love, and drugs. Immediately following the open ing song, the album’s title track, “KOD,” features Cole gliding over 808’s, snares, and bass. Cole also begins to discuss the unhealthy glorification of drug culture. The first half of the album consists of repetitive choruses and slight ly sanctimonious verses over minimalist beats. The second half of the album shifts away from criticizing the choices of others to revealing Cole’s personal conflicts with ad diction. “Once an Addict” tells Cole’s childhood story of dealing with his alcoholic mother, which paints a bigger picture of the throes associated with substance abuse. The final track, “1985,” reflects on how Cole has learned from his past mistakes. Demonstrating his lyrical ability, Cole turns his expe riences into a warning for up-andcoming rappers to not clout chase. Though “KOD” consists of a powerful message woven through out several different stories, the overall record falls flat due to a lack of ambition. Even though Cole’s storytelling is as intricate and powerful as ever, barebones production, lack of features, and weak hooks undermine the al bum’s strength and replay value.

HOW TO: FRIEND, LOVE, FREEFALL by Rainbow Kitten Surprise Genre: Indie Childish Gambino Infinity Gauntlet Jerald’s Music Taste BeingAllergiesRescinded Music RATINGReviewsKEY RATING (Out of 5 infinity stones): Courtesy of 20th Century Fox In this high-stakes scene, X-Force members Domino (Zazie Beetz), Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgard), Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds), Shat terstar (Lewis Tan), and Bedlam (Terry Crews) are about to jump off a plane in order to infiltrate a prison transport vehicle.

‘Deadpool 2’ features gore and is not a bore

BY DEVYN JONATHANNGUYENTRAN

Indie band Rainbow Kitten Sur prise released their third album, “How to: Friend, Love, Freefall,” on April 6. The new album marks an evolution in the sound of the band, expanding on vocalist Sam Melo’s swiss army knife voice and moving outside of genre barri ers and infused the album with sounds inspired by rock, pop, and bluegrass among other genres. The album is impressive in the sheer range of genres it crosses. “Mission to Mars”’ lyrics are quick paced and sort of chanted, like some sort of slam poetry-infused folk rock, and constantly paced by Jess Haney’s rhythmic drums. “Fever Pitch” contrasts with its more traditionally rock, with blue grass influence; however it abrupt ly breaks into a short rap before returning to the song’s chorus. These quick, abrupt, raps actually felt fitting, appearing in sections of strong emotion and incorporating Sam Melo’s husky voice seamlessly. Beyond their daring excursions outside of genres, RKS demon strated that they still have that sound that makes them so unique. Sam Melo’s husky, smooth vocals are complemented by the band’s instrumentals, allowing the band’s vocal strength to carry listeners through a journey of an album. And H:FLF is just that: a jour ney—from melancholy lamenta tions to hypnotic omens to quick and upbeat, the album takes you through an emotional and mu sical ride few other albums can replicate. Every song in the album is a hit, including its intro, “Pacif ic Love,” which actually is worth a listen as it helps set the tone of the entire album. It’s a good listen to just leave in the background while you work, or lay down and be immersed in, and you won’t be disappointed by any song. RKS has definitely outdone itself. Mili Bhatnagar Union

“Deadpool 2” is a glorious, hi larious, gory ride from start to finish. It more than lives up to its nigh-legendary marketing tools and is a more than worthy se quel to the original. Deadpool 2 really improves on the mis takes its predecessor made while introducing some new and exciting team members. It has a budget nearly dou ble that of the original, and is well-utilized to augment the fan tastic performances of the actors. There are some actors meant to play a character, some actors born to play a character, and a role you can’t imagine anyone else playing. We can’t imagine a world where Ryan Reynolds isn’t playing Deadpool. He does a great job of cracking inappropriate, childish jokes throughout most of the movie while still convey ing seriousness and grief during the few scenes where the movie calls for it. It truly is difficult to tell where Ryan Reynolds ends and where Deadpool begins, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Also commendable is Zazie Beetz’s charismatic portrayal of Domino and Shiori Kutsuna’s adorable Yukio. Despite being a new character on the scene of the “Deadpool” franchise, we feel that Beetz did a good job estab lishing her own identity and putting her own spin on Dom ino. It’s admittedly more diffi cult to say the same for Yukio, but because she isn’t given as many lines in the movie, we’ll give her a pass. Similar to the first movie, Stefan Kapicic as Colossus and Brianna Hildebrand as Teen age Negasonic Warhead give great performances of their own, Colos sus with his passionate penchant for heroism and Teenage Negason ic Warhead’s sharp wit and smartmouthed responses to Deadpool. Josh Brolin plays the main an tagonist in this movie, Cable. Al though he does an amazing job at being a villain, we feel that his role in this movie isn’t as big and impactful as compared to his role as Thanos in “Avengers: Infinity War.” He simply isn’t as important and doesn’t mean as much. While Thanos’s goal is to kill half of the universe, Cable just wants to kill a kid. This isn’t necessarily Brolin’s fault, but we still want him to have a bigger impact than what he has. Every movie has its bad parts, and “Deadpool 2” is no excep tion. The first thirty minutes of the movie throw a lot of plot at the audience, potentially over whelming the viewers. Several references to the first movie are thrown in as well, maybe a bit too many. The second and third acts are much stronger than the first, but the beginning of “Deadpool 2” ultimately hurts the movie. The movie’s genre falls into both comedy and action, and for good reason. It’s a seriously great mov ie, and one we would recommend to any curious viewer wanting to get their toes wet in the mov ie scene. Just remember that it can be gory. Really, really gory.

RATING (Out of 5 infinity stones):

MOVIE REVIEW 

| The

BY JERALD MENDOZABY ANDREW DINH KOD by J. Cole Genre: Hip Hop RATING (Out of 5 infinity stones):

THE UNION16 ENTERTAINMENT JUNE 2018

Political commentary behind ‘This is America’

BY KELLY LUE 0.13

Binge worthy shows for summer; shows to see before college starts GAME REVIEW Ä BY ISHRAK RAMZAN

3. Timeless A science fiction drama that revolves around time travel, Timeless follows three main characters: history professor Lucy Preston (Abigail Spencer), scientist and programmer Rufus Carlin, and soldier Wyatt Logan (Matt Lanter). The trio travel through time and space as they attempt to stop the mysterious Rittenhouse organization from changing history to achieve their malicious goals.

5. Black Mirror

An anthology series with a scifi twist, “Black Mirror” is truly something new and unique on television. The show tackles the unforeseen consequences evolving technologies could have on society in the near future. Each episode stands alone, featuring a new potential scenario, either by being set in an alternative present or shortly in the future with new societal advancements. The series features satire and wit, while also creating unique dark atmospheres in each episode. “Black Mirror” gives a chilling but intellectual approach at situations that could very well come true in a few decades.

‘Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery’ gives mysteriously bad gameplay On April 25, Jam City released “Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery,” set in the school of Hogwarts in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World. I delved deep into the heart of this game and this is what I have found: this game is not “Outstanding,” nor does it “Exceed Expectations.” The game begins with the player designing their own character, who is about to begin their first year at Hogwarts. The player is allowed to explore Diagon Alley and the Hogwarts grounds, as well as make friends and go on adventures. Admittedly, the game is not entirely bad; the graphics are beautiful and the game allows for the player to fully immerse themselves in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. In addition, the plot line is intriguing. Despite the blatant disregard that Hogwarts has for any kind of safety regulations, the plot itself is quite fun to follow. The player’s character and friends are paralleled to Harry Potter and his friends from the books. However, the game’s overbearing use of microtransactions ultimately proves to be its downfall. The game, sadly enough, relies on the use of energy, of which the player only has a limited amount. When the player uses up this energy in quests, they must then wait for hours while the energy recharges. It takes four minutes to regain a single energy point, forcing players to shut off the game and wait in the middle of quests and important plot points. At this point, if one is tired of waiting hours to complete actions that can range anywhere from “breathe fire” to “take a break,” then the player must pay money to buy gems to buy energy. Why, in God’s name, does one need energy to “take a break?” This is capitalism at itsTheworst.waiting period in this game overshadows the storytelling. While “Hogwarts Mystery” may be about the magical world of J.K. Rowling, it is not a very magical game.

Mili Bhatnagar | The Union (Out of 5 infinity stones): BY ERIN UTTER

Central heroes Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), and the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) line up with the warriors of Wakanda in order to protect Earth against Thanos’ forces. Courtesy of Disney

MOVIE

2.14 A man in the background jumps off a railing. The jump itself is hard to catch, due to the amount of chaos around him, as well as Gambino’s dancing. The subtle ty of the man’s suicide represents the pain in colored communities that is going unnoticed because of the distractions in the country.

BY SHREEYA ARANAKE “Dread it. Run from it. Destiny still arrives.” Along with Marvel’s much-anticipated “Avengers: In finity War,” destiny definitely arrived. The nineteenth fran chise film of Marvel’s Cine matic Universe (MCU) oblite rated box office records—and rightfully so, as the film sets itself up for greatness and delivers in full force. Ever since the first Aveng ers film concluded Phase One of the MCU, Marvel’s movie world has grown incredibly. All films leading up to “Infinity War” suc cessfully prepare audiences for the ride that is watching Thanos (Josh Brolin) attempt to obtain all Infinity Stones—and nearly all of Marvel’s heroes trying to stop him. From Earth’s mighti est heroes to the Guardians of the Galaxy, “Infinity War” is a fan tastic culmination of everything that the MCU has to offer. Once the film’s plot begins, it never really slows down. Open ing with Thanos’ high-priced and somewhat maniacal vision from the very beginning sets viewers up for the grand-scale teamwork that Marvel’s heroes will have to unite for. With so many charac ters and so much action happening all at once, the film is strategical ly set up so that audiences aren’t overwhelmed—there are multiple settings and many scene cuts, but a protagonist in “Infinity War,” elicits sympathy, as he truly be lieves he’s correcting the universe for the better. After so many short snippets and teases of Thanos in previous MCU films, it’s nice to see Thanos finally take center stage, especially as a villain with so much emotional background.

RATING (Out of 5 infinity stones):

2.29 Children are sitting on a rail ing, filming the happenings around them. This represents the racism that is being filmed on a mass scale in the country, skewing every one’s opinion on race relations. A hooded man, dressed similarly to the attire of an ISIS assailant, is riding on the white horse. The man gets away amongst the chaos. This could be a refer ence to anti-refugee sentiment, and the government’s innate com placency toward the ISIS regime’s reign over innocent Muslims by virtue of its refusal to allow ref ugees to come into the country. 17 seconds of silence for each victim killed in the Stone man Douglas shooting this year. The man killed at the begin ning is back, head still covered, now playing guitar. This revival high lights the cyclical nature of the un necessary killing of black men. The fact that the man’s head is still cov ered symbolizes the notion that the next man who will be killed is blind to the danger that he is in, and con tinues to mind his own business.

2. Grey’s Anatomy “Grey’s Anatomy” centers around the titular protagonist, Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), and her journey developing from a surgical intern to an experienced doctor at Seattle Grace hospital. The show features a diverse ensemble cast that allows for a wide variety of characters to be highlighted throughout the series’ ongoing long run. The array of characters is one of the strongest pieces of the show.

THE UNION 17ENTERTAINMENTJUNE 2018 TV-SERIES REVIEW 

culture dancing, while others run in the background. He sings the lyrics “this is selling,” after refer encing pop culture such as Cardi B’s Kodak Black, as if he is ex pressing disappointment in pop culture artists for neglecting to speak the truth about social issues.

1. Blindspot “Blindspot” begins with the FBI finding an unclaimed bag in the middle of Times Square that has a mysterious tattooed woman inside it. This woman, called “Jane Doe” has amnesia, knowing nothing of both her identity and of past events. By working with the FBI, it’s discovered that her tattoos all provide clues to various crimes, and Jane works with the FBI to solve crime and uncover her past.

3.16 Gambino is dancing on an old car, surrounded by oth er old cars. The old cars serve to represent an America still stuck in an antiquated mindset.

Despite Thanos’ relatively dark genocidal plans to obtain “univer sal balance,” there is still plenty of Marvel’s signature humor to make “Infinity War” enjoyable and some times even relatable. References and nods to previous Marvel films also make “Infinity War” especially fantastic. In addition to truly fun ny moments, “Infinity War” has its fair share of emotionally touching scenes as well—from the bantering between characters, to the unlike ly relationships between others. Supplementing the story is im pressive CGI and a soundtrack epic enough for Marvel’s best he roes. Marvel definitely made up for previous depictions of Thanos, and shots of planets like Titan and countries like Wakanda are actual ly breathtaking. The music stayed true to past films as well, evoking a sense of nostalgia from invest ed Marvel moviegoers—Aveng ers fight scenes were paired with Alan Silvestri’s original Aveng ers’ theme, and the Guardians, of course, were associated with The Spinners’ “Rubberband Man.” So is “Infinity War” truly worth all the hype that it’s been get ting? I believe the answer is yes. Even as a standalone film, “In finity War” merges worlds and does it extremely well, creat ing something truly beautiful.

A black man wearing sim ple clothes, barefoot, begins to walk in the picture. The simplic ity of his attire introduces the idea of innocence, particularly of the man himself. His lack of footwear also plays into the idea that he is of a lower social stature. 0.52 The murder of this man, who was playing his guitar and minding his own business just seconds earlier, capitalizes the culture of unnecessary police brutality against black men spe cifically. The simplicity and lower social stature represented in the man’s clothing could translate into the critique of mass incarcer ation and police brutality toward black men of a lower social stature who do not deserve the punish ments they receive for the crime, or the lack of crime, they commit. Gambino posing as a Jim Crow caricature, symbolizes the cer tain attitude toward black men in America, specifically, that is killing them. Right at the moment Gam bino kills the man, another man, runs into the screen, is handed the gun, and carefully wraps it up and runs out, symbolizing the amount of care given to guns in the United States. The black man, on the other hand, is dragged off screen, juxta posing the care given to the gun. 1.10 Black students join Gambino on screen, and begin dancing with him. The dances are at the forefront of the video, while chaos ensues in the background. The dances serve to represent pop culture, and the pretense of a happy America, while all hell breaks loose on the inside. It should be noted that almost all the people in the background are black, further underscoring the idea that it is colored America that suffers beyond the cosmet ic surface of the United States.

RATING

Earth’s mightiest heroes return in ‘Infinity War’ REVIEW 

4. Game of Thrones

This high-budget fantasy epic from HBO blew up around the world, and one could argue that it’s currently the most popular show on TV. This isn’t unjustified either, with the show having won countless awards and accolades thus far, including 38 Emmy Awards. Set in the fictitious medieval setting of Westeros, the show utilizes a large ensemble cast to great effect, allowing for complex and interwoven plot lines. The large budget lends itself to spectacular visual effects, creating a complex immersive world that is always a treat for the eyes.

18 SPORTSTHE UNION JUNE 2018 JONATHAN TRAN THE UNION

Students should stay in shape; opportunities abound over break

19SPORTS THE UNIONJUNE 2018

An alumnus of MHS was drafted into the National Football League (NFL), Head Football Coach Kelly King said. Eight MHS alumni have been drafted into the NFL prior to this year’s draft, King added. The alumnus, Vita Vea, was a student at MHS during the 20132014 school year and was drafted into the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, King said. The NFL draft is highly competitive, with many senior football players declaring themselves for the draft, King “They scout and rate players in college across the nation. then the teams are slotted by their records and they go through a process round by round and they pick players,” King said. This was the first time he had been invited to the NFL draft, King also said. “This is my first time being invited, since they didn’t have this before,” King said. “I ended up just being there and seeing them go through the processes, being part of it and seeing how they put on the draft.” College coaches were similarly invited to the drafting event, King said. The college coaches were about as involved as King was, King continued. “Yes, they had some college coaches there,” King stated. “They walked down the red carpet and waved.”

Paddlers of Mountain View Dragon Boat begin to race after the an nouncer’s call. Their steersman (back) Paolo Casapao begins to direct. Dragon Boat accepting of all; family experience can be had

COURTESY OF ALEX TRAN

On the other hand, this season has been more challenging due to the amount of seniors that made up the team last year, Te said. Having fewer experienced members makes achieving what had been done before a bit tougher, Te continued. “We were left with a lot of re cruitments which is fine, which is cool because we get to train them from start to wherever and however long we can, but at the same time, that comes with a smaller amount of people that have had more extensive train ing,” Te Practiceexplained.onthe boats hap pens once a week and the team also trains together at the gym, Phuong Tran said. However, there could be improvements in consistency by making it to as many practices as possible since time on the water is limited, she explained.“Wewent against San Fran cisco teams where they prac tice everyday. We only practice so limited since we don’t have access to water easily, but we did really well and we stayed up with the big competition,” Phuong Tran commented. “I have full faith in this team to improve.”Those interested in joining should not feel intimidated, Te noted. Anyone is allowed to go and try it out during open pad dle practices, Te continued. “I think there’s this precon ceived notion that you have to be fit in order to join the team because I talked to some people and they said they didn’t join because they were intimidated by us during Clog Rush,” Ta commented. “I’d just say that if anyone is interested at all at joining to just join because it has been a big part of my high school career and I’m really thankful for the experience.” Dragon Boat is a great way to meet new people, according to Phuong Tran who has been on the team for four years. The closeness to other members is something she enjoys. “I hon estly really like the family envi ronment of Dragon Boat where on the boat, we kind of all work as a unit, as one to make the boat move and we have really good chemistry with otherpad dlers,” Phuong Tran noted. “I think what’s best is that Dragon Boat, it’s not just like a closed sport, it’s open to everyone and you meet tons of people in it.” Just as many students find in terests in athletic activities out side of school, Junior Parshva Jain finds enjoyment through his practice of martial arts. Jain is currently a third degree black belt martial artist at the West Coast World Martial Arts Ber ryessa.Jain has participated in the sport for about nine years, and plans to continue as he advances through his high school and col lege years. Jain originally started with traditional taekwondo, but he transitioned into general mar tial arts when he moved. “As a child, I always wanted to learn how to fight, and my parents, wanting me to partici pate in an athletic activity, were very supportive of me,” Jain explained. “As high school gets more and more time consuming, it becomes harder to consistently train every single day, but I still try to squeeze in training when ever I am able to.” As a vegetarian, Jain has to reg ulate his diet to be able to actively participate in the sport. While it may help him stay healthy, eating greens does not always adequate ly suffice the energy needed to fight in competitions. “The preferred diet of a martial arts is generally a balanced diet with a slight increase in protein and slight decrease in carbs,” Jain said. “Being vegetarian is a double edged sword because al though I intake a decent amount of greens which gives me needed vitamins, I am not able to eat as much protein as I need.” Being active in the sport has al lowed Jain to learn new lessons and teachings that are carried with him through everyday life, he said. “I have become a much more disciplined person who can re main calm and think with a clear head even through stress ful times,” Jain said. “I have also learned to truly appreciate friendships and have gained a sense of camaraderie with all my peers, both in my martial arts class and at school.” In Jain’s perspective, martial arts is not simply just an activity to boost his competitiveness and athletic skill, he said. Although it is only a hobby that he enjoys, its values encompass his life through other physical and academic ac tivities.“Martial arts is more a way of life than it is a sport,” Jain said. “Martial arts can be a truly eye-opening experience for ev eryone, and can demonstrate to them the importance of striving to accomplish more everyday.”

THEODORE DO Jain learns lessons from martial arts

MORGAN

There are a variety of sports for MHS students to choose from, but the one that students may not be as familiar with is Dragon Boat, a paddling sport that often takes place during the summer. The team that MHS is a part of is the Moun tain View Dragon Boat Team. Dragon Boat consists of a long boat with 10 to 20 people paddling in it together, Captain Phuong Tran explained. Like a track race, teams from oth er schools or organizations all compete to see who is the fast est, she continued. Races are often during the second semester of school and summer, Captain Alex Tran said. Usually, there are only three to four competitions a year due to practice time on the water being limited, he added. “[Competitions] take place in various places. We have races in Long Beach, down in San Fran cisco, Lake Merced,” Alex Tran noted. “Sometimes there is the option to travel all the way to Canada to paddle.” When it comes to determin ing who participates in competi tions, there are an A boat and a B boat, which can be compared to varsity and junior varsity respectively, Captain Anna Te said. To be on A boat, members must meet certain requirements but can still be moved back down to B boat, Te added. “There’s definitely a chance for people on B boat to move up to A boat and vice versa if you go down and you don’t meet the requirements,” Te commented. “So basically if there aren’t a huge amount of people signed up for the race, you can almost be guaranteed that you’ll be racing.”Themost recent race took place on April 22, and the team was able to place in second and third for their divisions out of five or six other schools, Alex Tran said. The team is see ing an improvement this year thanks to the new coach, Pat rick Ayhow, Alex Tran contin ued.“This year we have a new coach helping for us to learn more stuff about paddling and our coach currently is one of the most iconic paddlers of the team,” Alex Tran explained. “Everyone on the team knows about him because of where he came from and how he knows everything he knows.”

MHS graduate

KIRK TRAN OPINION

JONATHAN TRAN Sports are absolutely amazing. They open you up to a whole new world of friends, experiences, and life lessons. Unfortunately, all of that has to come to an end sooner or later- with the close of a season. Sports at MHS are always confined by the season they take place in, whether it be fall, winter, or spring. So, what should you be doing in the off-season? Training! Training ensures that once your sport’s season rolls around the following year, your abilities will be not only fresh, but even improved from the previous season.Running is great in the freedom it offers you to practice. Water and a pair of running shoes are all you really need, in addition to a place to run. But you can run almost anywhere! That being said, a couple great places around the area to run include Coyote Creek (Hellyer Park to Anderson Lake), Hidden Lake, and Cardoza Park.Coyote Creek is a place we’ve chosen for its picturesque landscapes and expansive trail. If you want to run for the whole day, this is the location for you. It’s a short drive out, but its miles of trail overlooking Anderson lake, diverse flora and fauna, and beautiful sunsets render it a topnotch location to run. Its only real downside is the location, which will require you to drive there. Hidden Lake isn’t as beautiful or broad as Coyote Creek, but it more than makes up for this problem in its accessibility. Less than a mile from MHS, Hidden Lake represents an incredibly simple and basic running location. It’s simply a trail circling a small, man-made lake. There aren’t very many animals or flowers surrounding said lake, but if you’re a person who doesn’t care much for what they see, and doesn’t mind a repetitive running experience, Hidden Lake might be the one for you. Cardoza Park represents an interesting in-between experience of Hidden Lake and Coyote Creek. It’s smaller than Hidden Lake, but nowhere near as large as Coyote Creek. It’s still in Milpitas, but definitely not as close as Hidden Lake is to MHS. We believe it’s a beautiful park, with an abundance of greenery and trees flanking the trail at certain parts. It represents a diversified and all-around interesting running experience. Swimming, wrestling, and football are, like all sports, heavily reliant on muscle and overall fitness. So what’s the best way to target the vitality and gains you’ll need to make for a better experience in that sport overall? You should probably hit the gym. It might not be as fun as the aforementioned sports, but its advantage lies in the fact that you can target certain muscle groups that you know you need to develop. Your legs feeling a little skimpy? Hit those leg machines to work out those hamstrings and calves. There are several gyms in Milpitas that are great options for you.24 Hour Fitness is probably the gym you think of first when it comes to working out. Located only a stone’s throw from MHS, this location is already frequented by many MHS students and experienced athletes. It’s pretty convenient to hit after school because its peak hours usually don’t roll around until about 5 or 6, when many adults are coming home from work to attend the evening classes there. 24 Hour is certainly a bit cramped, but has a great variety of machines for an aspiring gym rat and a friendly staff. Pricing starts at $29.99 a month with no initiation fee. It’s worth mentioning that a new branch called 24 Hour Super Sport opened recently in the same plaza as Safeway and Big 5. It includes extra amenities that the 24 Hour near MHS doesn’t, including a pool, sauna, and much more spacious interior, but comes at an increased cost. In my experience, the staff are pretty friendly, and I wouldn’t discourage anyone from joining it if they have the money. If you have an extremelypacked schedule, don’t have the money for running shoes or a gym, or simply hate the light of day, calisthenics are a great alternative to the training methods described above. They literally require no equipment at all - you can even do them in the nude if you so desire, although preferably not in public. Calisthenics include push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, the exercises that we took so for granted in our physical education classes are actually a great way to get in shape for free, and without needing to travel from the comforts of your own home. Regimens are entirely up to each user, and can be used in conjunction with the gym or running to specifically target the muscle groups you want to develop. Push-ups are great for developing your chest, chin ups are best for biceps, while squats help train your quads and glutes. Being fit, whether for your own benefit or to improve your athletic performance off-season, is an essential part of the human experience and a facet not to be ignored. Thus, if you so desire, hit the gym, hit the running trail, hit your bedroom floor and begin the path to a better, healthier you. LEI

joins NFL

ADVERTISEMENT20 THE UNION JUNE 2018