March 2016 by Sage Hill School

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Volume 16, Issue 6 www.facebook.com/sagehillschool

A Visionary Student Experience By Kristin Saroyan

16saroyank.publications@gmail.com By the first day of the 2016-17 school year, Sage Hill School will have launched Sage Center, an administrative vision with the potential to revolutionize student experience and preconceived perceptions of education. “Sage Center is an incredibly exciting strategic initiative,” Patricia Merz, head of school, said. “What is it that impacts the student experience where great teachers come to thrive? How are diversity, inclusivity, equity and justice woven through all that we do in our curriculum, our programs and our experiences?” Until now, cornerstone programs including Service Learning, Spring at Sage, the Sage Hill Internship Program, the Par-

ent Education Series and Sage Connected have evolved independently. Implementation of the Sage Center would inextricably integrate these programs with the Sage Hill mission, core values and the “six Cs,” namely critical thinking, character, cross-cultural competencies, collaboration, communication and creativity. “We are doing some amazing things with our programs. How can we bring them together and enhance and embed in those experiences our mission, our core values and the six Cs?” Merz said. “These programs have existed on their own, but no one has looked at them in their entirety, together through one collective lens.” Currently, the Dean of Academic Technology Chris Irwin, Coordinator of Community Engagement Mary Robinson and Wellness Coordinator Merja Connolly make up the enthusiastic Sage Center

team. These experienced faculty members will assist in the interview process of candidates for three freshly minted administrative positions, including Sage Center Director, Assistant Director of Sage Center for Global Outreach and Assistant Director of Sage Center for Inclusion and Outreach. “Clearly Service Learning has been a founding part of everything we do. Spring at Sage has risen to that place. SHIP has now evolved to that place,” Merz said. “We need to make sure that we’re developing curriculum that not only supports these programs but also is consistent throughout these programs and connects back to our classrooms.” According to Merz, a Sage Center Director can establish consistency across the Sage Hill curriculum and programs by working on the administrative team in partnership with the Dean of Faculty and

the Dean of Student Life. Meanwhile, the Assistant Sage Center Director for Inclusion and Outreach can oversee Service Learning and function as a diversity practitioner and co-director of SAME, and the Assistant Sage Center Director for Global Outreach can oversee Spring at Sage and SHIP. Candidates who may fulfill these positions would take over the responsibilities of Drew Ishii, John Paulsen and Mindy Aguirre, who respectively coordinate Spring at Sage, Service Learning and diversity education this year. “What we found is that it is a challenge to teach and dedicate the time needed to the work of Service Learning and Spring at Sage,” Merz said. “We’re excited to see how this will all work out because we’re looking at both internal and external candidates of the Sage Center Director and assistant directors, and we

Sahar Emtiaz Fostering faculty-student connections. Head of School Patricia Merz poses earlier this year with members of her freshmen advisory. Her spring semester project has been to finalize the details of the Sage Center, which will be implemented to improve student experience before the beginning of the next school year. hope to be able to make appointments for those positions by the time we get back from spring break.” The new Sage Center team members, who will be carefully selected on the basis of their creativity and ability to engage and inspire, will begin July 1. The possibility of improving the Sage Hill student experience continually drives the Sage Center vision to fruition. “We can continue to be better and to invest in the student experience by giving every student the tools to apply their knowledge,” Merz said. “It’s not necessar-

ily a change, but more of an extension of what we already have done. The evolution is that we’re looking at one curriculum. If you think about it, Service Learning is woven into the tenth grade English curriculum. The common thread should be our mission, our core values and the six Cs.” Some students, while appreciative of the vision of a consistent curriculum focused on core values, expressed concern regarding the logistics of Sage Center idealism. “I think that the Sage Center will be somewhat difficult to implement given

the already time-strained nature of many classes, namely AP classes with our overall fewer hours of class time,” junior Dillon Kanne, resident STEM enthusiast, said. “However, helping promote the six Cs is very good,” he said. “Many students are numb to school as a product of homework and stress, and miss out on the important life lessons brought by working with other people at school on difficult material. Many students find school to be an absolute chore, and I feel that we need to promote the type of thinking that is relevant to general life outside of high

school and to help students engage with their learning more productively,” Kanne believes. “Access to technology has changed teaching because education is no longer about depth of knowledge. It’s about what you do with knowledge and information,” Merz said. “How do you communicate? How do you think through a problem? How do you ensure that you have the skills for life and beyond? That’s how students are going to be leaders and effect change. That’s what’s going to differentiate Sage.”

STAFF EDITORIAL

Uncharted Digital Terrain How Should We Navigate Privacy in the Complex Digital Age? To unlock or not to unlock the San Bernardino gunman’s iPhone, a potential Pandora’s box with contents capable of changing 21st century privacy as we know it? Federal Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym granted the Justice Department’s motion to postpone the hearing originally set to make this fateful decision Tuesday, hopefully giving Apple more time to leverage a legal argument against the exploitation of the sanctity of privileged encryption. Sure, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has in their possession a little gold mine, a thin apparatus containing a wealth of information—sandwiched between sleek metal and glass plates—that may have the power to shield American citizens from future terrorist attacks. However, they founded their court order against Apple on the All Writs Act of 1789, attempting to regulate the most modern technology on the market with an ancient 227-year-old law. The All Writs Act states that “the Supreme Court and all courts established by Act of Congress may issue all writs necessary or appropriate in aid of their respective jurisdictions and agreeable to the usages and principles of law.” President Barack Obama and federal agencies agree that this legislation sufficiently constitutes a legal basis to force Apple to design new software to access and share the

shooter’s information. Meanwhile, Google, Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft and other technology companies righteously align themselves with Apple against what they see as a violation of their First Amendment right to write code freely. More important-

Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple, expresses earnest concern in his consideration of the impending legal slip n’ slide, beginning with decryption of the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone and ending who knows where in terms of American privacy.

ly, successful extraction of private information by the government in this case would lead to a corrupt “back door” in which the government can easily access any information on private mobile devices in the future.

“We built the iPhone for our customers, and we know that it is a deeply personal device. For many of us, the iphone is an extension of ourselves,” he said. “We need to decide as a nation how much power the government should have over

16saroyank.publications@gmail.com

•

our data and over our privacy. We did not expect to be in this position, at odds with our own government, but we believe we have a responsibility to protect your data and protect your privacy. This is an issue that affects all of us.” Perhaps the most qualified citizens to speak on this delicate political dilemma, whose solution requires both technological acumen and particular cultural competencies, are not Baby Boomers in the House and Senate with respective average ages between 57 and 61 years old. Instead, perhaps the most qualified people to decide who has what right over what virtual territory are young citizens who best understand the impact of information widespread by social media. Who strive to see past the opinion of the majority by listening to the lesser heard voices of society. Who rank technology as integral to life as air and water. Indeed, perhaps the most qualified people to decide are members of the youthful, idealistic, innovative Generation Z. We, those of us between the ages of 4 and 21, must unite our efforts toward new legislation to govern privacy and other social implications of cutting-edge technology, as the youngest able citizens should have jurisdiction over the brand new, high-impact, uncharted digital terrain.

16prakashn.publications@gmail.com

publications staff EICs: Namita Prakash, Kristin Saroyan Adviser: Konnie Krislock Executive Editors: Stephanie Min, Claire Lin, Celine Wang,Vale Lewis, Tommy Lee, Amanda Ong Commentary and Opinion Editor: Claire Dwyer Associate Commentary and Opinion Editor: Julia Dupuis Design Editor: Jackie Nam Associate Design Editor: Lynn Fong Executive Video Editor: Jo Farkas Associate Video Editor: Ava LeWinter Underclass Editor: Christina Acevedo

Assignment Editors: Catharine Malzahn, Lauren Fishman Lifestyle Editor: Jaime Dailey Photo Editor: Kandis McGee Aassociate Photo Editor: Sahar Emtiaz Assistant-to-the-Adviser: Genesis Gonsalez Sports Editors: Steven Du, Brett Super Senior Editor: Tess Hezlep Copy Writers: Jenny Wang, Niva Razin, Madison Harris-Weiner, Farooq Ansari, Sarah Kim Designers: Dana Shan, Emma Ruck Online Bloggers: Luc Levine, Jake Eckel Photographers: Sahar Emtiaz, Lauren Hausman, Dillon Graveline, Madison Nadelman

OPINION

Beware the Friendzone By Julia Dupuis

17dupuisj.publications@gmail.com

Friendship. A word that is meant to evoke positive sentiments— things like feeling loved, being supported, making happy memories with the people you care about. Yet the way our culture views relationships seems to revolve around a term that has just surfaced over the past 15 years: the friendzone. The friendzone references a platonic relationship where one party has unrequited romantic feelings for the other. Figuring out how to get out of the friendzone has become a popular topic, especially on Internet forums, and forms the basis of a lucrative market for pickup artists and dating experts such as the 2013 book How To Get Out of the Friend Zone: Turn Your Friendship into a Relationship. When the friendzone was first gaining popularity, it seemed generally harmless. But now it has evolved to include some problematic implications, mostly because it has become the talking point for heterosexual men voicing their frustrations against women who are not attracted to them. Even though the term is technically genderneutral, it is used most often to describe relationships between men and women where the man is in the friendzone and the woman is the object of his affections. Examples of the opposite, especially in pop culture, are much harder to find. This is not to say that women are friendzoned less frequently than men are, but simply that women are conditioned to be less vocal about romantic desires. The truth of the friendzone is that it devalues the very thing that it references: friendship. It makes platonic friendship seem like some sort of a penalty, rather than a relationship that one should feel thankful and excited for. It leads individuals, especially men, to consider friendship as an exchange of favors. You do everything a boyfriend or girlfriend might do, but without the benefits, as if the only reason to be a good friend or a decent human is if

you get something in exchange. That ideal places blame upon the person who doesn’t return the affections, making it seem like they owe something to someone simply because that someone has been nice to them. Junior Krishan Arora agrees. “I think it’s a valid term, but I think it’s overused in terms of how people apply it to situations. It’s implied that there’s some innate right to a relationship with a woman.” When individuals places themselves in the friendzone, they rob themselves of all autonomy and refuse to take responsibility for their own actions. It does not often occur to those in the friendzone that there might be a viable reason why they’re in there—for example, the fact that they’re the kind of person who complains about being in the friendzone. The friendzone does not exist. There are people who want you and people who don’t. Get over it. Stop shoving this label on a concept so that you can victimize yourself and vilify women. Stop using the friendzone as a coping mechanism to blame the person who rejected you or come up with a justification as

to why people aren’t attracted to you. By complaining that you are in the friendzone, you are telling the object of your affections that you don’t value their

“Stop using the friendzone as a coping mechanism to blame the person who rejected you” friendship, that you only desire them for romantic purposes, and being their friend is an insult to you. If you’re looking for a reason why girls aren’t into you, that might be it. Even if you have harmless intentions and are using the

term by its definition alone, you are contributing to a culture in which women are assumed to exist for the consumption of others. You are contributing to a culture where women are expected to return basic human decency with romantic affections and are blamed for the actions of the person pursuing them. “I don’t think people should use it, even if it’s meant in a different way,” junior Robert Lynn-Green says. “The friendzone is a misogynistic way of dealing with relationships. It creates a sense of entitlement for men, that women somehow owe men more than friendship.” So before you play the victim and complain about a girl putting you in the friendzone, put yourself in her shoes. Imagine being a girl who thought that she had made a lifelong friend, only to find out that he only wanted her for sex or a relationship. A girl who was nothing but a prize to win, an object to be acquired. A girl whose trust you’ve just shattered. Maybe she friendzoned you, but you girlfriendzoned her first.

Lynn Fong

SPORTS

CIF Makes Playoff Changes By Jamie Dailey

17daileyj.publications@gmail.com The CIF-Southern Section Council recently approved a new system for redesigning playoff divisions, a change that will greatly affect Sage Hill’s athletic teams. Currently, teams from the same league go on to compete within the same division during CIF playoffs. However, starting next fall, CIF will create brackets based on new team profiles, which will reflect the team’s success in CIF playoffs over the previous two years, its regular season record and the toughness of the its schedule. “I think this change in the CIF Playoff structure will ultimately be a positive one. If it all goes according to plan, Sage Hill should be in a better position for success,” Director of Athletics Megan Cid said. “In sports that we have seen much success like volleyball and tennis, we could be placed in higher divisions and in sports where we have not seen as much success, we should be placed in more appropriate divisions that would allow more competitive equity.” Although 74 CIF-Southern Section Council members voted in favor of the new system and only 10 voted against it, there is still a lot of uncertainty about how “fair” it will prove to be. For example, looking at a team’s success in the previous two seasons may be an unfair judgement of some teams, especially if the graduating seniors carried the team to CIF victories. “In high school sports, teams are constantly changing as freshmen come and seniors leave. As the players change, so does the level of the team and because of this, [CIF] should not determine if we go to the playoffs based on previous year’s statistics,” sophomore varsity tennis player Maya Byrd said. The hope is that the new system will result in more opportunities for success in CIF, especially for schools with lower level athletics, since they will now face more equal competition in the post-season. “Overall, I like the change and it should make for more fair placement of teams in CIF. It is difficult to say whether it will affect the girls’ volleyball team, but if we are placed in a higher division, our girls will be ready for the challenge,” girls varsity volleyball head coach Dan Thomassen

“

If it all goes according to plan, Sage Hill should be in a better position for success.

said. Come the 2016-2017 school year, Sage Hill athletic teams will hopefully be set up for more chances at long CIF playoff runs, yet only time will tell whether this system proves to be a success. “At this point, I believe we are at the ‘wait and see’ point. We have not been given any indication as to where we will be placed for each sport yet which causes a bit of uncertainty. But ultimately, I think the change will be a positive one and will allow our student athletes to have a better experience especially in the initial rounds of CIF playoffs,” Cid said.

Rick Davitt

A New Beginning. Varsity tennis coach Mike Watkins, Director of Athletics Megan Cid, Head of School Patricia Merz, former varsity tennis coach A.G. Longoria and President of Sage Hill Gordon McNeil watch as the Chair of the Board of Trustees Christy Marlin cuts the ceremonial ribbon.

Bringing Tennis Home By Lauren Fishman

17fishmanl.publications@gmail.com The Sage Hill community has been excited about the new Tennis Center since the first shovel broke ground back in June. Playing on campus has always been a dream for student-athletes, one that was unattainable until March 4. “A lot of us have been waiting for these courts for a long time, and being able to play for a larger part of the Sage Hill community will really fire up the team,” junior co-captain of the boys’ varsity tennis team Adam Langevin said. “I also hope in the future they will get more people interested in the tennis program, since [the courts] are right on campus.” Any athlete knows just how critical support is in obtaining success; the ability to play on true home courts will help the players realize that all their hard work has truly paid off in the end. The new courts will help the players realize that people want to be there for them, constantly cheering them on and hoping for victory. “The new courts will enable the Sage Hill community to get more involved in the tennis program, whether it be by physically watching our matches or even simply by playing on campus. We will be able to gather much more support for our team, and that is really important for overall team spirit,” junior Michele Chen said. Chen has played on the girls’ tennis team all three years, and she is especially looking forward to playing on the new courts next fall for her senior year. While she is certainly excited for the convenience of playing on campus, she is also hopeful for the positive impacts the state-of-the-art Tennis Center will have on future generations of players. “Before, very few people were able to attend our matches because they were so far away. But now that the courts are on campus, we will be able to get more people to come out and support us. This will greatly improve the overall experience players have in the tennis program, as we

will gain confidence on courts that actually feel like ours,” Chen said. The tennis courts were part of a $13-million campaign to help bring student-athletes back to campus. A recent $1.5-million donation will help kickstart the construction for a highly anticipated aquatics center to join the Ube Gymnasium, Ramer football/soccer field, Hague baseball diamond and now Tennis Center on Sage’s 30-acre lot. Mr. McNeill and Ms. Merz predict that development will begin in June. “[The tennis courts] feel like a new chapter for us, not only for our team, but for the entire tennis program; they will push us to fight harder,” Langevin said. It is certainly clear that the players are determined to succeed. With both girls’ and boys’ programs participating in Division II, they have proven that they are willing to put in the time and effort to make the community proud. Last fall, the girls’ varsity tennis team finished first in the Academy League, ending their season undefeated against teams like St. Margaret’s, Crean Lutheran, Oxford Academy and Whitney. “With a little support, we can do whatever we set our mind to,” Chen said. “ I am really excited for the future of the entire tennis program; with these new courts, we will feel more confident to push the limits and really excel.” The CIF-Southern Section Council recently approved a new system for redesigning playoff divisions, a change that will greatly affect Sage Hill’s athletic teams. Currently, teams from the same league go on to compete within the same division during CIF playoffs. However, starting next fall, CIF will create brackets based on new team profiles, which will reflect the team’s success in CIF playoffs over the previous two years, its regular season record and the toughness of the its schedule. “I think this change in the CIF Playoff structure will ultimately be a positive one. If it all goes according to plan, Sage Hill should be in a better position for success,”

Athletic Director Megan Cid said. “In sports that we have seen much success like volleyball and tennis, we could be placed in higher divisions and in sports where we have not seen as much success, we should be placed in more appropriate divisions that would allow more competitive equity. Although 74 CIF-Southern Section Council members voted in favor of the new system and only 10 voted against it, there is still a lot of uncertainty about how “fair” it will prove to be. For example, looking at a team’s success in the previous two seasons may be an unfair judgement of some teams, especially if the graduating seniors carried the team to CIF victories. “In high school sports, teams are constantly changing as freshmen come and seniors leave. As the players change, so does the level of the team and because of this, [CIF] should not determine if we go to the playoffs based on previous year’s statistics,” sophomore varsity tennis player Maya Byrd said. The hope is that the new system will result in more opportunities for success in CIF, especially for schools with lower level athletics, since they will now face more equal competition in the post-season. “Overall, I like the change and it should make for more fair placement of teams in CIF. It is difficult to say whether it will affect the girls’ volleyball team, but if we are placed in a higher division, our girls will be ready for the challenge,” volleyball head coach Dan Thomassen said. Come the 2016-2017 school year, Sage Hill athletic teams will hopefully be set up for more chances at long CIF playoff runs, yet only time will tell whether this system proves to be a success. “At this point, I believe we are at the ‘wait and see’ point. We have not been given any indication as to where we will be placed for each sport yet which causes a bit of uncertainty. But ultimately, I think the change will be a positive one and will allow our student athletes to have a better experience especially in the initial rounds of CIF playoffs,” Cid said.

SPORTS

Behind

the

Ball

Vale Lewis

Parents Push for 11-Man Football. A parent support group convenes to promote the continuation of an 11-man football team at Sage after the resignation of Coach Abram Booty.

By Vale Lewis

17lewisv.publications@gmail.com Football players and their parents received a call from the Athletic Department on March 7 telling them that Coach Abram Booty had resigned the previous Friday and that the decision had been made to change to an 8-man football team instead of 11-man. “Sage Hill School is pursuing an 8-man football program for the coming athletic season,” an email, from Director of Athletics Megan Cid, said. “This will offer our student athletes the opportunity to continue to participate in a Lightning football program. Accordingly, the school will begin a search for a qualified 8-man football coaching staff immediately.” Booty’s resignation came after the announcement that many of the athletes he had been hoping to recruit for the 2016 football season were not admitted to Sage. According to junior Caden Sheetz, quarterback for the boys’ varsity football team, Booty had been hoping to gain 20 new players, but only 9 were admitted. “He wanted to recruit a lot of players from Los Angeles, but they didn’t meet the educational standards, so they didn’t get in,” Sheetz said, “They wouldn’t have had a good high school experience

because they wouldn’t have been able to keep up with the academics here.” Currently, the Athletics Department is concerned there is not enough interest in football to field the 11-man team, with only about 12 students originally expressing interest in the sport. Trying to field an 11-man team, with only one substitute, could also be potentially dangerous for athletes, something the Athletics Department has taken into consideration while making this decision. “They’re doing their job. They’re trying to make our experience better,” Sheetz said. “I’m disappointed about the decision, but I understand. It’s our job to get people to play.” If the football team is reduced to 8-man, not only does this change the number of players and the size of the field, but it also changes the teams Sage is able to play. “We wouldn’t be able to play St. Margaret’s, Brethren, Crean or anyone in our league. We’d lose all those teams and we’d be playing teams you’ve never heard of,” Sheetz said. “We’d have to drive all the way up to LA to play day games against small schools where sports aren’t a priority.” After talking to his teammates, Sheetz decided to push for an 11-man team. He talked to Cid, who told him that if he could recruit enough students to play,

they could possibly keep the 11-man team. Sheetz set out to get at least 27 students to commit in order to field an 11-man team, and has gotten 35 so far. “We had an 11-man team in the first year of Sage, and they only had two grades, so why can’t we do it now?” Sheetz thought. Especially for players who are hoping to pursue football in college, this decision would affect them drastically. “[The college recruitment process] is competitive,” Sheetz said. “They don’t look at you the same way. It’s about who has the edge, and if you don’t play the same type of game as other applicants, it would be harder.” Both students and parents in the Sage community are worried that a part of the high school experience will be lost if the team is reduced to 8-man football. “It’s a part of the culture. It’s fun to get together on Friday nights and have the food trucks and sit on the hill and watch the game,” Sheetz said. “A lot of kids look forward to having the opportunity to play football as a part of their high school experience.” Parents of football players who were upset by the announcement held a pep rally at Town Meeting on Tuesday, Mar. 15, led by Cherry Dickinson, mother of junior defensive end Jack Dickinson. “The parent pep rally at Town Meet-

ing was intended to show support on behalf of the football families and fans at Sage for the players’ effort to recruit football players from within our community of athletes,” Dickinson said. “Many similar size independent schools like Sage encourage their athletes to play multiple team sports and this is a prime opportunity for that.” However, parents want to be clear that they are not protesting, but rather supporting the 11-man team. “I’m not protesting. I’m supporting the 11-man team, not protesting at all. I couldn’t be more supportive of Sage Hill School and its athletic program,” Darryl Sheetz, Caden’s father, said. “8-man football is not a bad thing; however, eleven man football is more appropriate and traditional and will also bring out more people to root on the team.” In order to ensure that there will be enough athletes to play football next year, Cid is asking all potential players so sign a Letter of Commitment by today. Last week, Sheetz held two interest meetings and is optimistic that Sage will be able to continue the 11-man program. “I think we can do this if everyone signs their forms,” Sheetz said. “If everyone who’s interested plays, we’d have the most participation since I’ve been here because people really want to save it.”

LIFESTYLE

FUTURE GENERATION Making People Think By Amanda Ong

16onga.publications@gmail.com

In the moments before I walked on stage to speak at TEDxSageHillSchool, a lot of things had been running through my mind. That I shouldn’t be nervous because I’ve performed on that same stage before numerous times, that if I messed up no one would know, that I should relax because I know I know this. But no matter how you put it, 18 minutes alone on stage with a microphone feels daunting, especially when you are speaking alongside some highly accomplished people. I was speaking on racial representation in the media, a topic I have been interested in for a long time.

Despite how present media is in our lives, many people’s understandings of the truths of race and media are uninformed. That was why I had wanted to do the TED talk in the first place—I wanted people to know the reality. I needed someone to care, and then nothing else would really matter. And so this is what became my singular, preeminent thought as I walked on stage, my purpose for the night. Just make one person care. I don’t think it’s a stretch to imagine many of my fellow speakers felt the same. In the end, we all speak in hopes that someone will re-

ally listen. No matter the topic, one-way or another, we are just trying to make people think. Speaking at TEDxSageHillSchool was a privilege because it gave me the opportunity to do just that. And nothing felt more rewarding than hearing from people, friends and strangers alike, that what I had to say truly altered their perspective. A little girl wanted to meet me. A man said I put words to an idea he could never quite put his finger on. One woman simply said I made her think— and I don’t believe I could ever ask for more than that.

A Notable Evening. Top Left: Senior Jacob Fish presents a talk on music. Center: Senior Amelia Tanner poses for a photograph. Bottom Left: Sage alumnus and wildlife photographer Stuart Palley talks about specialization. Bottom Center: The crowd anticipates another great talk. Bottom Right: A camera records the event for the TEDx archives. Bottom Far Right: Senior Amanda Ong discusses the inequitable representation in modern media.

LIFESTYLE

INSPIRING A

By Christiana Avecedo

17avecedochristina@sagehillschool.org The first TEDx event to be hosted by a Service Learning group at Sage Hill School Feb. 24 featured nine speakers, three of whom were seniors. The event was themed “The Big Picture.” “We hoped to leave people thinking about the things they heard, not to simply come and hear but to listen and think even after the audience had left. Our speakers had some really compelling and captivating topics to talk about,” junior group member Jafeth Orozco said. Some of those who spoke included wildfire photographer Stuart Palley ’07, Sage Hill founder Karina Hamilton and former Olympian Dr. Mark Crear as well as students Jacob Fish, Amanda Ong and Amelia Tanner. “I really enjoyed the diversity of speakers at the show. While they all shared a similar message, all speakers conveyed it in their own unique manner,” junior Alexander Toubia said. The subjects of each talk differed significantly, ranging from ancient Greek music and cases of aortic stenosis to media representation and the impact of sexism in women’s sports. All, however, ultimately connected back to the central theme, which emphasized viewing life from a greater perspective. “We wanted to bring

attention to the big picture because we’ve noticed that people get fixated and only focus on the small details in life,” Orozco said. The TEDx service learning group, comprising three seniors and five juniors, was started by seniors Kate Kim and Cindy Choi and emerged from Choi’s desire to inspire her community and make a difference. “I started this group because during my summer junior year I felt that I really learned a lot from Service Learning and for my senior project I wanted to really provide a ‘service’ for the school as a gift [and] leave a legacy so I decided to bring TEDx to Sage!” Choi said. According to Choi, preparation for the event began during the summer of 2015. It took three attempts for the group to finally receive a license that would allow them to hold it. “We were rejected from the TED committee twice before being granted the license. And then we brainstormed for adult speakers and held auditions for student speakers,” Choi said. Overall, the event turned out to be a success, both in regards to how it ran as well as the effect it had on the community. “The event went great, especially technically with audio and visual. All the

speakers were great and we filled up the theater,” junior and group member Max Nanula said. Orozco agreed, adding that it went well especially considering the rush that occurred as the group worked to finalize and put everything together. “I actually thought the event went way better than expected considering the lack of preparation beforehand. We rehearsed everyone the week of the event and one of our speakers didn’t get to the event until a bit after it started. It was a really stressful process,”

Orozco said. Despite such difficulties, feedback from the community has also been good. It’s evident that many were moved by what the speakers had to say. “I thought the TEDx event was a really creative way for a group of students to inspire the community,” junior Zayn Biviji said. “The event was really well-run, the speakers were great and I think that everyone who attended was able to take a few meaningful lessons away from it.”

ARTS

One Acts Wow

Audience Moved From Laughter to Tears in Student-directed Performances By Catharine Malzahn

16malzahnc.publications@gmail.com

The Black Box is always filled with activity, from dance performances to theater shows and much more in between. This season has been no exception. The Dance Ensemble, also known as Synergy, is currently hard at work preparing a beautiful piece for the spring. Their upcoming performance is coming to the Black Box on April 15 and 16. “Right now we’re working on Dancing through the Ages. We each get to choose an event or time period in history and create a piece that’s an interpretation of that event. It starts with the discovery of fire, then goes to Ancient Egypt, then to others like the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, the French Revolution and the Wild West. My piece is on the Great Depression, but a different aspect of it than most people would think,” Theologides-Rodriguez said. However, they performed their first show in November in their show Dance for a Cause. “First semester this year our show was Dance for a Cause, so we all got to raise awareness for causes and organizations that meant something to us. We danced for the It Can Wait Foundation, Stand Up to Cancer, Stomp Out Bullying and a lot more. For my piece I chose to dance for the National Eating Disorders Association, or NEDA,” said senior Eliana TheologidesRodriguez. Synergy is looking forward to the upcoming show and the creative way each choreographer portrays the era. “I am looking forward to watching the storytelling of our dance pieces. The show takes you through history and each dance has its own message and story behind it so I’m excited to see all of the unique takes on historical events,” junior Rebecca Roque said. The upcoming show is definitely something the Sage community should look forward to. “There’s a surprise at the end of the show with Boys’ Dance, so people should look forward to that,” TheologidesRodriguez said. Although the upcoming dance production is not to be missed, it should not steal the spotlight away from the studentdirected annual One Acts Festival. The One Acts performances took place March 18 and 19. “Working with the actors was definitely a great experience. And on top of that, the creative process as a whole was pretty great,” junior Daniel Levy said. Levy decided to work on the other side of theater performances and assistant directed one of the One Acts rather than taking his usual role onstage. “I am essentially working as a second director for Griffin to bounce ideas off of and consult during the creative process. I wanted some experience on the other side of the table so that I can make the most of future directing opportunities,” Levy said. As usual, the One Acts Festival was a great success. Other arts events to look forward to include the Sage Story Slam on April 8, the Mostly Secular Spring Concert on April 29, the instrumental Spring Concert on May 6, and the Theater Ensemble performance on May 13.

Aaron Huniu

ACADEMICS

Set-Up Gurus Needed New Lab Tech Elective Offers Students the Chance to Help Run Labs in the Next School Year. said. Dillon Kanne, a junior cur16prakashn.publications@gmail.com rently enrolled in the Scientific Research course, also expressed In the Fall, the science dea similar sentiment towards the partment will offer a Science benefits of an applied course. Laboratory Technician elec“Research has taught me tive designed for students who how science is really more want to take their passion for about discovery than doing science outside the classroom. equations and integrals and “This course offers students balancing chemical equations. I another opportunity to engage like how [the technician course] in the scientific process. The is an accessible way of seeing earlier the students can get this how science is really performed exposure, the more informed a beyond just the book work,” decision they’re going to make Kanne explained. if they do decide they want to In addition to benefitting the go to college and pursue science students, the course is designed as a career,” Tyler Zarubin, a to give the faculty an opportuscience teacher instrumental in nity to strengthen the school’s the course’s creation, said. laboratory program. Students, or technicians, will “I never feel like I have be trained in both safety and enough time in the day to do technique to set up, take down all the things that I want to do, and troubleshoot laboratory and I think that [the technician experiments. is] going to help in alleviat“Ideally, the student would ing some of that time with the be working the same time a sec- setup and takedown,” Zarubin tion of biology is happening, so said. they would be working hand“It’s also going to be great in-hand with the teacher,” Zaru- to have another person in the bin explained. “When students room who students can ask are in the lab, the technician is questions to, who I can rely on.” also in the lab. They may have The next school year will an opportunity to teach some serve as a trial-run for the part of the lab, instruct students program. Two students picked in a particular technique and through an extensive applicaalso go around the lab to help tion process will be given the with the troubleshooting.” opportunity to work under the Although faculty are also three biology teachers. considering the benefits of “Our hope is that at the end holding the technician course of next year, we are going to during a preparatory period, re-open this again for two more it has been decided that the biology [students] and also technicians will rotate with the add two chemistry [students] biology teachers Zarubin, Lauinto this process,” Zarubin exren Fieberg and Todd Haney to plained. ensure that the technicians gain Kerry Langdale, the Science a full understanding of what a Dept. chair, reiterated the twoscientific career entails. pronged benefits of the course. “I never really looked at “We can help people who science as a process, I always want to learn, who want to gain thought of it as just an acquisisome laboratory skills, and for tion of knowledge, and once us, we can have someone helpI began to look at science for ing us set up labs, break them what it truly is, i began to down,” Langdale said. “It’s become more intrigued with it really going to let us expand the as a discipline I want to pursue laboratory part of our curricuand have a career in,” Zarubin lum.”

By Namita Prakash

krystal gallegos

Discovering a new sequence. Top: Seniors William Pavine III and Ashwin Dharne work on the GAPDH DNA-sequencing lab for their Accelerated Biology class. Bottom: Juniors Max Liu and Tommy Lee also work on the same lab. In the experiment, students extract and sequence the DNA of a plant whose GAPDH gene sequence is currently unknown. The sequence is then uploaded to a gene database for use by other scientific researchers.

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Multicultural Fair

BACKPAGE

How Sapphire Feeds Its Students

Krystal Gallegos

Sahar Emtiaz

Exploring Sapphire at Sage. Clockwise: Juniors Emma Ruck and Jamie Dailey examine the chips rack. A group of students eat their Sapphirebought meals on Town Square. A student selects a cookie from the dessert display for an afternoon snack.

By Jenny Wang

17wangj.publications@gmail.com Sapphire chefs arrive at the kitchen at 5 a.m. everyday to prepare food. They scramble and wrap egg burritos, put ham inside sandwiches and open the registers when students arrive. “I occasionally buy stuff in the morning (like their breakfast items) and then I’ll usually buy something at lunch and after school,” sophomore Sierra Wild said. She noted that the total money she spends on a typical day usually easily adds up to over $10. After all, the gummy snacks and Tate’s cookies at the register are too hard to resist.

“I understand that they have to make a profit,” Wild said. “The [quality of food] that they buy [compared with] the amount that they give us—I think they overcharge.” Azmin Ghahreman, owner and head chef of Sapphire Laguna, said that Sapphire at Sage buys food in bulk from SISCO Products. “We try to use fresh products as much as possible, organic products when we can, [it’s] expensive, but we always use antibiotic-free meat,” Ghahreman said. Ghahreman justified the price of items such as sliced fruit and edamame by citing the “labor going into it.” “You see [pre-sliced fruits] sitting on the shelf [of grocery stores] for three or

four days,” Ghahreman said. “You see our stuff sitting for just a few days.” Sapphire has always advertised that students’ health and nutrition are on top of the kitchen’s list. Last year, the brand Naked Juice was discontinued because one bottle exceeded the total daily recommended sugar intake. However, strangely enough, it was restocked shortly after. “We talked to one of the coaches, [who] recommended [that] a lot of you guys do a lot of exercise and need sugar, so [Naked Juices are] back,” Sapphire chef Jaime Guando said. “There are different types of kids: if you want to get strong, you eat more fat, more protein, more stuff and if you’re on a diet, you eat less.” “Cookies are another thing that maybe

isn’t too great to offer, but kids like them and ask for them,” Chef Ghahreman said, “so we’re trying to balance [a value] that is part of our program and giving the kids what they want.” So what exactly is the difference between the supposedly health-centric, nourishing Sapphire kitchen and off-campus fast food? What are students getting when they pay the extra bucks for their boxed lunches? “Well, I guess you can go to McDonald’s and get a couple of cheeseburgers—is that good food, is that what you want your kids to eat?” Ghahreman said. “I don’t even know what it costs to go to this school, so spending $5.50 for a lunch isn’t that expensive, you know.”