A note from our editors-in-chief

This second semester has been a rollercoaster. The record-breaking weather created chaos, disrupting the junior classwide testing, safety on campus, and even our ability to step on campus. However, with the confusion came the talented reporting of Raven Report staff. Reporters stepped up to the plate to cover the events not for a grade but out of curiosity and commitment to the Sequoia community.

This issue has been all about prioritizing community. The first change inflicted on the unsuspecting staffers was our goal of highlighting news stories on and off campus. Our news section has always been barren, and we knew that people were shying away from the topic because they didn’t know how to write a news article in a timely and accurate way.

Obviously, our first solution was to make our reporters as uncomfortable as possible. Each reporter was pushed harder to come up with news ideas, researching and thinking deeply about the impact of their writing before pitching their ideas to the editor team. With the uptick in news articles and genuine excitement for writing this issue, the resentment was definitely worth the results.

The next change was the “pods”. With a long list of accepted story ideas, it was our job to create small groups of similar articles (pods) to make a more visually cohesive

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magazine. This was not a popular assignment. It was hard to convince the new reporters that their voices were just as important as those with more experience. Although it took some work, the pods started to make cohesive looking layouts.

We were so impressed with the flexibility of the staff reporters that we felt it was time to announce update number three: leadership changes. This year has gone by so fast, it doesn’t feel very long ago that we welcomed the new reporters and now, those same reporters were sending in editor applications for next year. This was not a responsibility that we took lightly. There were more applicants than years prior and, for the first time, there wouldn’t be enough positions for everyone.

As we were brainstorming the characteristics of next years editorial board, we were forced to reflect on our current roster.

With the hard truths faced, we took the steps and made the changes. The loss of a teammate was confusing, but we knew that we were promoting the very thing we pounded into the brains of the poor staff reporters: cohesion and community.

The Raven Report is its own community, but it also works tirelessly to participate in and represent the community built on Sequoia students, staff, family and many more. The reporters’ work does not go unnoticed by us and we hope you can see the weeks of work that went into creating the pages waiting for you.

THE RAVEN REPORT IS A Sequoia High School student publication produced in the journalism class through the efforts and decisions of the staff and the publication’s editors and adviser. The Raven Report is a public forum for students, staff, parents and community members.

THE RAVEN REPORT STRIVES TO provide Sequoia High School with informative, engaging and relevant news. The staff will exercise integrity and adaptability while promoting justice and transparency through professional reporting about the school, the community and the world.

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THE RAVEN REPORT STAFF welcomes signed letters to the editor so that readers might share in the opportunities of the scholastic free press in open forum. The written views of students, parents or community members must be responsible, in good taste and free from libel, slander or obscenity. Letters may be edited for grammar or content if necessary; furthermore, editors will not guarantee that letters will be published.

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Living in Silicon Valley, a region that is constantly evolving with new innovations and technology, it can be hard to remember or bring to light the rich history of the past. One close-to-home example of this is the San Carlos Circle Star Theater.

Opened in the early 1960s and situated in between Redwood City and San Carlos, the Circle Star Theater was a unique and intimate venue that attracted visitors from all over the Bay Area and beyond.

For locals, it’s hard to imagine that a theater existing in our suburban community was able to draw in large crowds and celebrities. The venue provided a wide array of entertainment, including live music, comedy, and plays, and had the honor of hosting iconic music legends like Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, The Jackson 5, The Beach Boys and more. The theater suffered from a decline in popularity in its last few decades, leading to it being demolished in 1997 and turned into a series of office buildings.

Today, all that’s left of Circle Star is its street sign and the memories held among older generations of Bay Area residents.

Stories from Sequoia Alumni

Students who attend Sequoia today may not grasp how significant the theater was at its time to the community. Many alumni were eager to share their stories on the various ways Circle Star impacted their lives. Some went to the theater on first dates, birthday parties, or worked there as an usher.

One Sequoia alum, Beverly Morgan, highlighted her most notable experience, which was going on a first date with her future husband.

“Back in ‘79, George Carlin was coming to town, and I got a single ticket in the Star aisle in the front row to see [him]. The night before, I met the man who would become my husband, and we hit it off. We had a great time. And he said, ‘So what are you doing tomorrow?’ I said, ‘Well, I have tickets to see George Carlin.’ and he says, ‘Well, why don’t you trade them in and get two tickets and we’ll see him together.’ And so I probably wouldn’t have gone home with George Carlin that night anyway, but Tom Morgan and I had a good time. And in fact, we’ve been married 41 years,” Morgan said.

Another Sequoia alumn, Cindy Johnson, shared her experience working as an usher and seeing shows for free.

“I ushered almost every single weekend on a Saturday afternoon. You would just get there before the show started and would seat everybody and then once the show started after, you would wait for the stragglers to come in. We got to see every single thing that was played there because all you did was spend a few minutes seating people and then you got to see the play for free. You didn’t get paid for being an usher, your payment was watching the show,” Johnson said.

Concerts today

With the removal of Circle Star and theaters like it, today’s concert goers are missing out on intimate experiences with big stars in small venues. Having seats no further than 50 feet away from its rotating stage, Circle Star brought this unique small concert experience to the backyards of San Carlos and Redwood City locals.

Melissa Uchet, another Sequoia alumni, describes how the personal nature of the theater made her feel closer to performers.

“I mean, they were right there. There was no big stage separating us from them. There was no separation of any kind, which is a big difference than what concerts are like now,” Uchet said.