The Bolt april 2024

The BOLT

Dancing Through The Disco DecaDe

By Katelyn Yeh

Hill School Dance students celebrate a breakdance routine at a dress rehearsal for the 2024 Spring Dance Showcase in March. we wanted to include and that inspired a lot of the choreography for the show.”

Sage Hill’s dance program recently presented the 2024 Spring Dance Showcase, “Dance Fever,” bringing over 75 students to dazzle audiences in the Kazu Fukuda Black Box Theatre.

Through the choreography, music and costumes, the dance show highlighted defining moments of the 1970s, such as Roe v. Wade, Watergate, Apollo 11 and other historical events. The event was partially choreographed by students in partnership with Dance teachers Sydney Smith and Taleen Shrikian.

“Ms. Smith and I had a lot of fun dreaming up this whole Dance Fever 1970s theme, and it was actually a theme we decided on all the way back in August 2023,” Shrikian said. “We started brainstorming what types of music and cultural events and historical moments

A fan-favorite performance was “Watergate,” which was choreographed by Shirikian and performed by Dance III, the second highest level of dance after Synergy. Dressed in blazers and dress pants, the dancers captured the audience’s attention the second they marched on stage with their briefcases. At first, the stage seemed like a jumble of business suits, but the dancers separated, revealing their roles as either part of President Richard Nixon’s team of aides or law enforcement. Their choreography reflected the conflict, ending with the government handcuffing Nixon’s aides.

The seniors performed the last dance of the night and their last dance with Sage to music by the “Queen of Disco,” Donna Summer. This dance was inspired by the disco phenomenon Summer, one

of the most admired singers during the disco era. With the joyful music, upbeat choreography and the unbeatable emotion that exuded from the stage, this final dance was one of the most memorable ones of the night.

Throughout the past four years, the team bonded and improved together, forming unbreakable bonds.

“Dancing at Sage has truly been an incredible experience. I have made some of my best friends through the dance program, and it has been the privilege of a lifetime to share the stage with such talented and wonderful people,” said Sophia Sun, senior dancer and teacher assistant of Dance I.

“This dance show was so much fun. Opening ritual fully allowed me to experience a different dance culture,” sophomore Isaac Alegria said.

DirecTor

TappeD To open MiDDle school

By Phoebe Pan

Sage Hill School has revealed the next step toward making its middle school project a reality. In anticipation of the middle school’s tentative 2026 opening, Dr. Joseph Moody was recently named as Director of Middle School after a nationwide search.

Dr. Moody currently serves as Head of Middle School at the Lovett School in Atlanta, Ga., and is slated to join Sage’s leadership team in July. He was inspired to take on the position because he was excited to have the chance to “build something from the ground up.”

“It is a once in a lifetime opportunity to develop curriculum, watch a building being constructed, [hire] teachers and recruit students,” Dr. Moody said.

Dr. Moody’s extensive career in education and 14 years of experience in a middle school setting made him the right fit for the position, Head of School Patricia Merz said.

“He has experience working directly with this age range of students, and he knows what it takes to build a middle school program that will succeed,” Ms. Merz said. “To him, an exceptional middle school education will focus not only on curriculum, but also on social-emotional and character development.”

Dr. Moody joined Lovett as an eighth grade science teacher in 2010. He then served as Dean of Student Life and Assistant Head of Middle School for Student Life before becoming Head of Middle School. Dr. Moody has also coached wrestling, football and track. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Biology at Presbyterian College and a master’s degree in Psychology and doctorate in Educational Psychology from Walden University.

Though the current high school and middle schools will be mostly separate, both Ms. Merz and Dr. Moody emphasize that the schools will be unified under a single “Sage” culture. According to Dr. Moody, this culture will include the “Six Cs,” which are a main part of Sage’s curriculum and high school experience.

“The core value of community will play a key role. A sense of belonging and interconnectedness among students, faculty, staff and families will be fostered. We will be one Sage Hill 7-12,” Dr. Moody said.

Sage Hill’s administration already cleared a major hurdle when the Newport Beach Planning Commission approved its middle school application last December.

For the time being, Dr. Moody will work alongside Sage’s current senior administrative team to develop the middle school curriculum, while also serving as one of the main representatives in upcoming fundraising and outreach campaigns. He will play a key role in gaining support for the school and in bringing new families into the Sage community, Ms. Merz said.

“Our team is very excited to get to know him better in the coming weeks and cannot wait to welcome him officially this July,” Ms. Merz said.

Courtesy of Sage

By Anne Chen

Senior(itis) Spring

From trickling in and out of the College Counseling office to in and out of class, seniors have stumbled into their last quarter of high school. But beyond our extensive bathroom breaks, frequent visits to Mrs. Willet and accumulating tardies, there’s a certain energy in the air that can only be seen in the brightening under eyes and returning smiles of the Class of 2024.

Town Square in a snapshot: seniors laying under a UV index of 8, donning tank tops and board shorts after a taxing first semester of sweats and slippers. Balls bounce off the spikeball net as a student yells “heads up!” to the dodging circle of friends on the turf. The best part? Not an AP Government textbook or Calculus worksheet in sight.

Senioritis is developing like our tans and film pictures from spring break. Sometime between October and April, anxiety about that AP Statistics test turned into a comforting reassurance that at the end of the day, everything is well. Each day, our notes and annotations (or lack thereof) further resemble the trademark chicken scratch writing on our class t-shirts—at least it’s fitting.

I present to you three types of Sage Hill second semester seniors— whether these are comedic caricatures or accurate depictions will be left up to you. First, the hamsters. Hamsters are the seniors that never got back off the wheel. After all, four consecutive years of constant grind on those Chemistry pre-labs and History notecards make it hard to return to a life untainted by academic

and social pressure. Our advice to you? Say goodbye to titrations and the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire.

Second, the online daters. Online daters are the seniors messaging fifteen potential college roommates all at once. Online daters are counting down the days until graduation and are eager to connect with any future classmate that says they’re down for “a night in or a night out.” They’re most looking forward to paper toss day and taking pictures in everyone’s college sweatshirts. It’s a safe bet that they already have “The Spins” and “Where’d All the Time Go” queued up on Spotify for the last day of high school.

Third and most common, the part-timers. Part-timers run on their own schedule. They skip class to catch up on a week’s worth of miss-

Class seleCtion 2024

ing assignments—it’s a perpetual cycle but they swear it’s a valid tradeoff, a concept they almost understood in the AP Economics class they sporadically drop into. You can find them reading Litcharts in between classes and walking into class late with a coffee and bagel in hand.

Maybe you see yourself in one of these characters, maybe you see yourself as a triad of them all. I happen to fall towards the latter, but whichever you may be, we were all once playing icebreakers on Zoom, balancing our English portfolio visuals down the stairs and hovering next to each other at Big Bear retreat as marshmallows caught on fire. So, if you’ve got a bad case of Senioritis, just know that it took me over three months to get to writing this article.

And on that note, I’m signing off.

Illustration by Jesse Lew

CORRECTION:

The Bolt is a student newspaper and serves the public forum at Sage Hill School. Its content - news, editorial, opinion, and feature - is protected by Education Code 48907, the state student rights law and the California Constitution which guarantees all citizens the right of freedom of speech and of the press. Opinions expressed do not represent the views or beliefs of Sage Hill School and its administration. The Bolt accepts signed letters to the editors from members of the Sage Hill community which may be posted as comments at lightningboltonline. com,

THE BOLT

Due to an editing error, the grade level for Zabelle Martin and Carter Klein was misstated in a photo caption on page 6 of the March 2024 edition of The Bolt. Zabelle and Carter are juniors. The Bolt regrets the error.

gEn Z’S FavoritE a pp FacES poSSiblE ban

By Alia Sajjadian & Isabella Palacio

Whether watching a 60-second version of someone’s 2 a.m. night routine or discovering a podcast led by C-list celebs and former Disney channel stars, TikTok seems to have something for everyone.

However, the recent passage of bipartisan legislation would force the social media platform’s Chinese parent company to sell its trove of content created by 150 million monthly Americans to U.S. based companies or risk a nationwide ban.

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives 352 to 65. Senators hinted at another vote coming soon, and President Biden has already backed the idea, saying he would sign the bill once Congress sends it to his desk.

In response, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has launched counter-efforts, advocating for TikTok online. The Singaporean businessman is frequently heard proudly sharing TikTok’s ability to bring people together by providing a platform for users to

share their stories and passions with the world. greeted people with a genuine smile, and is always prepared to share another success story of people finding their voices on Tiktok.

Despite his personable nature, Chew did not enter the public eye when he stepped into the CEO role in 2021. The Harvard Business School alumnus rose to popularity quickly after broadcasts of senate hearings regarding the TikTok ban went viral in March last year. Reasons for banning include fear of China’s potential access to user data and its ability to influence American values and ideals through its algorithm. By forcing the platform to abandon its ties to China, legislators hope to curb China’s ability to control and spy on its users’ feeds and ensure fair availability of diverse content.

This issue uniquely affects younger generations – with over 60% of TikTok users identifying as Gen-Z or Millenial. With higher levels of educational attainment and increased digital awareness, Gen-Z fuels the flame behind TikTok’s popularity. Just like millennials flocked to

Facebook and Instagram upon their releases, Gen-Z searches for avenues to represent themselves and the intersection of their identities and passions.

Students on campus, such

as senior Sophia Sun, believe that the ban is pointless. She does not recognize the concerns of potential data leaks and remarks “that we are in a surveillance society regardless of who

Exploring Ethnic StudiES

is collecting our data.”

Senior Kamran Ansari said the ban will have little effect as he believes whenever a platform gets banned a new “technology will soon replace it.”

By Courtney Tetteh-Martey

Persistent youth voices bounced off university walls, potent and yearning for confrontation. A communal resilience toward creating a more diverse academic environment hung low in the air. In 1968, The Third World Liberation Front, an organization of students from various ethnic groups, initiated a strike to push for a departure from a Eurocentric curriculum and to advocate for the creation of classes that include the histories of non-white American ethnic groups. In similar fashion to the leaders of the preceding American Civil Rights Movement, students transformed San Francisco State University and the University of California, Berkeley, into amphitheaters of vibrant discourse. Ethnic Studies was born from the rubble of a humble struggle familiar to minority peoples everywhere — the struggle to be seen and to be heard.

In 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 101 designating Ethnic Studies as a California public school graduation requirement, transforming many students’ educational journeys. With a central goal of helping California’s majority non-white student population see themselves within the curriculum, many schools have since adopted the course. Sage Hill has been ahead of the game by offering the class for many years prior to the bill’s passing. Not only does the course provide individuals with

a foundational understanding of African American, Asian American, Native American, and Latinx communities, but it also improves educational outcomes within high-risk communities. In 2010, the San Francisco Unified School District required all students with a GPA of 2.0 or less to take Ethnic Studies (90% of whom were Black, Asian, or Hispanic). A Stanford study found that those who took the course had higher attendance rates and were 15% more likely to enroll in a university than their peers who did not take the class. It is clear: students are more likely to invest in a school that they believe invests in them. Ethnic Studies is empowering. So, then, why aren’t many Sage students interested in it?

The struggle of the 1968 trailblazers parallels Sage Hill’s difficulties in helping Ethnic Studies gain a permanent place within the selection of yearly-running classes. A lack of awareness about the course may be at fault. Because Ethnic Studies is not a core class and instead focuses on a subset of the global population, many students are unaware and thus skeptical about what the study entails. People are often cautious toward what they do not know. The remedy to this situation is to facilitate more discussions regarding the class. Any curious students can talk to a variety of adults on campus!

Dr. Nisha Kunte, who teaches Ethnic Studies, expertly defines the course as “the study of race,

ethnicity, and indigeneity.” Additionally, there are a plethora of online resources available to help one gain a better understanding of Ethnic Studies.

If you are looking to add another course to your schedule next year or are interested in delving into the histories of Asian American, Latinx, Native American, and African American peoples, this is the course for

you! Dr. Kunte remarks that the class helps students “develop a vocabulary and language to talk about race and ethnicity based on history, economics, politics, and culture.”

Indeed, the course provides a transformative educational opportunity to examine how individuals’ identities as Americans have fused with their ethnic identities to produce their unique

stories. Exploring others’ lived experiences is a key component of developing empathy and understanding. As the student activists of the 60’s would likely agree, change often begins with lessons learned within the classroom.

Courtney is a junior and member of Sage Advocates for Multicultural Education (S.A.M.E.)

Photo courtesy of Nordskov Media | Creative Commons TikTok reportedly has over 150 million American users. Photo courtesy of Sydney Abel | Creative Commons San Francisco State students protested administrators’ proposal to close the College of Ethnic Studies in 2016.

Athletics

BASEBALL STRIKES AGAIN

By Madeleine Carroll

The baseball team vigorously practiced every X Block during the winter in preparation for their upcoming spring season. With an abundance of freshman talent, the team introduced the new members to their various plays and strategies. They were ready to make it their best season yet.

However, the baseball team had a rough start to the season. Being in one of the most competitive leagues in California, the team had their work cut out for them. Their first game was against Cerritos High School. It was a long game with tough competition throughout, in which the Lightning lost 5-7.

After losing their next three games against Oxford Academy, St. Anthony and Costa Mesa High School, the team knew they needed to change things up. They made practices longer in order to get the most practice possible before games.

Their newfound dedication helped secure their first win against Woodbridge High School with a score of 6-5. Their next game was against University High School, a team that they had never won against. It was a battle with each team scoring after the other.

“It was a really tough game. In the fifth inning, I hit a double, which helped our team fill up the bases,” sophomore Justin Glassar said.

Lightning Baseball ended up winning against University 8-4. It was a huge win that not only ended the losing streak, but lifted the team’s morale. The coaches were exceptionally proud of their players for giving it their all in a game that wasn’t in their favor.

“We got off to a slow start this season, but have continually improved, winning league games and a tough non-league matchup [on Friday, May 5],” Head Coach Scott Sovern said.

The baseball team has numerous

ambitions, the biggest one being making the 2024 CIF-SS playoffs. The team is working to win as many league and non-league games as possible in order to have a record of .500 or above, which qualifies them for CIFs.

“Our primary goal is to qualify for CIF playoffs, where we would have a great shot at further success… We have been striving to achieve this goal by getting the reps in during practice and playing smarter baseball during games,” junior Dylan Dolotta said.

The baseball team has ten games left to accomplish their goal of qualifying for the CIF playoffs. If they do, they have a good chance of winning and even going on to state, as their division is less competitive than the Pacific Coast League. The team is set to play Northwood on Friday, April 19.

As of publication time, Lightning Baseball held a season record of 5-17.

CoLLEGE-BouNd AThLETES SIGN FoR FuTuRES

By Arya Rawal

Students, parents, and coaches crowded Wilkins Town Square for Athletic Signing Day to celebrate Sage Hill seniors committed to playing their sport in college on April 16. Decorated with green and white balloons, a table was set up for athletes to sign their intent to play their sport in college. Many families brought flowers, balloons, and other decorations to the table when taking photos with the students.

These seniors included Nicholas Aghaian for soccer at the University of California, San Diego, Danyel Khan for football at Washington University in St. Louis, Emily Eadie for basketball at Princ-

eton University, Annabelle Spotts for basketball at the University of Chicago, Kat Righeimer for basketball at Northwestern University, Aurora Elder for basketball at Idaho State University, Brandon Lee for swim and dive at Dartmouth College, Johnny Mayhew for basketball at Lake Forest College, and Ryann Langdale for cross country and track at Marion Military Institute.

Aurora was enthusiastic about sharing the stage with fellow seniors pursuing athletics in college

“I’m really excited to see where our sports take all of us and to see what we’ll do in the next few years,” she said.

“We’re really proud of our student

athletes who put in so much time and dedication into these sports. It’s been a joy to watch them get to that next level,” Director of Athletics Megan Cid said. “It’s always great to see them achieve their hopes and dreams, especially after seeing how we’ve supported them in reaching those goals.”

Many seniors, even those who do not plan to play sports in college, feel that the Sage Hill community has helped motivate them to achieve athletic goals.

From the students who cheer them on during games to the members of dance teams that perform at halftime, having the support of other students has not only helped foster school spirit, but also

encouraged many athletes during difficult games.

“Over the past few years, we’ve had a great support system at Sage Hill,” Emily said. “This year, during the Mater Dei game, I felt really supported by the Sage Hill community. Everyone came out to support us, even though it was an away game.”

Despite their many achievements, the athletic journey of these seniors has only just begun.

“My main goal for the future is to come into my college program and make an impact. I hope to be a great teammate and help lead my team through the NCWA championship,” Annabelle said.

Freshman Oliver Cheng up to bat against Pacifica Christian High School on April 2 at Hague Field.

Jenny Li | The Bolt

Jenny Li | The Bolt

Senior Jack Pheasant up to bat against Pacifica Christian on April 2.

GIRLS’ LACROSSE SHOOTS FOR SUCCESS

By Cedya Shamsai

The Girls’ Varsity Lacrosse Team was filled with energy and excitement as the players ran onto the field during their first game of the season against Chadwick High School. To prepare for this moment, the team practiced everyday during the offseason, working to refine their skills and endurance. The program welcomed Head Coach Larkin McDermott, who prepared an organized preseason and regular season schedule with new strategies and gameplans.

The team has a number of seniors participating this season, adding to the wide variety of strengths within the team. Not only do these seniors contribute their athletic talents, they also provide the team with guidance and constant support.

“I think that the seniors have definitely made the sport a more enjoyable experience. Even though we aren’t in the same grade level, the seniors on my team have always made me feel comfortable being myself around them. It’s nice to know that if I need Sage-related advice, I have people to ask who have been in my shoes before,” sophomore Caroline McKeen said.

Girls’ Lacrosse started the season with the goal to win games and focus on the controllables. McDermott brought a fresh perspective and under her leadership, the team has displayed resilience and discipline.

“Our goal for the season is to see how much we can develop and get better. As a program, we are really focusing on ourselves and how we can be the best lacrosse players we can be. From the beginning of season until now, there has been a huge leap in skill levels and lacrosse IQ as a whole,” McDermott said.

So far, the team has faced tough competition against non-league opponents. A standout match has been against Segerstrom High School. The Lightning finished with a close total score of 14-19.

“This was the first home game of the season, and we were all eager to perform our best. Throughout the game, we communicated well and supported each other, ” junior Katelyn Gan said.

Another exciting matchup was against Beckman High School. The first time the Lightning played Beckman, the team finished with a score of 4-19. However, during their most recent matchup, Girls’ Lacrosse demonstrated the hard work and commitment put in throughout the season and finished with a score of 9-13.

“I can tell that we have improved so much, and every game we continue to get better and better,” Gan said.

With several games left to go, Girls’ Lacrosse continues to refine their skills and grow as a team.

“The highlight of my season so far has been getting to bond with my team-

mates and grow together as a team,” junior Haley Li said.

The Lightning are anticipating their upcoming games against University

High School on April 22 and Irvine High School on April 25.

BOYS’ GOLF UNFAZED AFTER MIXED RESULTS

By Mika He

The Boys’ Varsity Golf team is going through a mixed season in the competitive Pacific Coast League (PCL) with a handful of losses by only a few strokes. The Lightning held a 3-7 season record as of The Bolt’s print deadline.

After picking up a motivating win against Woodbridge on April 15, the team is determined to use the momentum to finish the season strong and qualify as many players as possible for the league finals with a chance to advance to the CIF Championship.

“The team mindset is to continue to do what [the players] are doing, playing every shot individually, focus on the next one, and don’t worry about the results,” Head Coach Bruce Loman said.

During this adversity-filled season, two players have stood out and took on the role of leaders.

“The players are both seniors as it should be: Brady Green and Jett Ohlmeyer,” Loman said.

Coach Loman emphasized how these individuals had helped the team pull for each other and try to help everyone improve, and most importantly they made the team have fun. Loman believes these qualities make them move forward no matter the outcome.

The freshmen were also an exciting addition to the team this season. Aiden Dinani has achieved outstanding results in many junior tournaments throughout the country before high school golf.

“Aiden Dinani has been a great addition to our team and has played solidly…

Aiden obviously has fantastic potential and team golf will help give him another perspective that will help his game as he progresses further playing competitive golf,” Loman said.

Freshman Eric Zhao was also a surprise mid-season addition, moving up to

Varsity from JV.

Ultimately, Coach Loman is confident about the program’s future with a deep roster.

“The long-term goal is as always to continue to develop quality players as we move forward with our golf program and

give them an opportunity to continue to play in college,” Loman said. “With excellent players like Nick Ashgar, Andy Yuan, and others continuing to be a big part of our program, we should be in a good position to continue the successful program we have developed over the past years.”

Amy Choi | The Bolt Sophomore Ava Khan playing offense against a University High School player.

Carson Ellis | The Bolt

Senior Jett Ohlmeyer takes a swing while playing against Woodbridge at Strawberry Farms on April 15.

New StudeNt CouNCil leaderS eleC ted for 2024-2025 SChool Year

By Mirabelle Jiang

The Sage Hill student body recently elected junior Fiori Lee and sophomore Ella Wong as Student Council President and Vice President respectively for the 2024-2025 school year. The pair were elected from a group of candidates after presenting their speeches at Town Meeting, in which both Fiori and Ella outlined their plans and promises for the new school year.

As Vice President of Student Council this year, Fiori said she’s extremely grateful to be elected to the top job and hopes to expand Student Council’s impact on the student body.

“In my speech, I promised to give students more accessibility to StuCo so people feel comfortable coming up to us and giving us feedback. That’s what we run off—feedback from the student body,” Fiori said.

For the past two years, Ella has served on Student Council as her grade’s co-chair. She’s excited to take on a more senior role and bring new ideas to encourage school spirit at Sage.

“I’ve been looking at other schools’ social media pages, and I think we could really amp up our social media presence to bring awareness to different athletic events and art performances to make

sure everyone knows what’s going on,” Ella said.

Student Council members are responsible for planning some of Sage’s most important activities, from Town Meeting games to school dances. As leaders of Student Council next year, Fiori and Ella have already broken ground on plans for new ideas and activities they would like to implement.

“I’ve learned that pre-planning is very important because it takes a while to get different things approved,” Ella said.

“Next year, I want to organize schoolwide games during lunch, such as spike ball games and potentially even a March Madness tournament, so it’s important to start planning early.”

As the new school year draws closer, Fiori and Ella said they hope their fellow students will share the same excitement for the ideas they hope to implement and involve themselves more in school-wide activities.

“We only have four years of high school in total, so don’t be afraid to take risks and put yourself out there, whether it be trying new activities or volunteering for town meeting games,” Fiori said. “Next year will be my senior year as well, so I want to make it the best year that it can be and go out with a bang.”

SeNior aSSaSSiNS: a Game of water GuNS, BetraYal a Nd eSCape pla

By Ava Eimani

Chloe Lee, with a water gun in hand, crouched down in the shrubs, waiting for her moment to strike. It was 7 a.m. on the first day of Senior Assassins: the first day of staking out, betrayal and assassinations. Evan Zhang, her target, was inside his house and already fully strapped with water guns. For 40 minutes, she used the bushes as cover as she waited for Evan to appear.

Spoiler alert: he didn’t. Right when Lee drove off, Evan sprinted out of his house, certain no one would get him. Lee started planning her second attempt. At 10 p.m., she saw her chance. Snapchat showed Evan was at the gym. Lee burst through the gym doors, spotted Evan at a bench, and started blasting her water gun before he could blink.

Sage Hill seniors are following the nationwide social media trend called Senior Assassins, a non-school sponsored game that requires dousing an unsuspecting target on camera for an exciting Instagram post.

“It was so fun trying to find a way to get my target out,” Senior Sabrina Lee said.

At least one Orange County school district banned the activity from campuses, claiming it could pose danger and has disrupted the learning environment.

Senior Assassins is a game in which the main objective is to shoot your assigned target with a water gun without being “shot” yourself. Each senior is given a target and they must “assassi-

nate” them by a certain day once a round begins. Once someone is “assassinated”, the video proof must be sent to the official Instagram account and include the date, time, location, “weapon” used and the target’s name. Water has to be visible on the target to certify a “kill.”

As Lee discovered, the game’s more complicated than some newcomers expect.

In one attempted ambush on her target, Lee saw the unimaginable: his safety item around his shoulder, which gave Evan immunity from the water guns. For her third attempt, Lee knew it was going to take more than just her to take out a target like Evan. She recruited senior Mikhail Vasilevskii to carry out her master plan.

The second day of senior assassins was Purge Day, the one day no one could wear a safety item. This was the one day that Lee could finally take Evan out. At 7 a.m., Lee and Vasilevskii raced to park their cars on Evan’s cul-de-sac, barricading his one form of escape. Evan drove out of his house, drove around the cul-de-sac a few times, and formulated his plan of escape. Driving quickly, Evan

through a narrow space

the cars to get past their barricade and successfully escaped. Lee’s third attempt was also her last one.

At the end of a round, all of the remaining players will move to the next round and get assigned a new target. The allowed weapons are water guns, water bottles, hoses and water buckets. No one can be assassinated at Sage Hill and, if someone is wearing a safety item,

they cannot be killed. On Purge Days, the safety items do not work and anyone can be eliminated. If you fail to eliminate your target within one round, and are not taken out yourself, then you are placed on the Bounty List for the next round. The

“Mark my words: Evan Zhang is going to win Senior Assassins. He’s the one target that no one can take out,” Lee said.

drove

beside

Amy Choi | The Bolt

2024-2025 StuCo Vice President Ella Wong and President Fiori Lee.

Ava Eimani | The Bolt Senior Johnny Mayhew celebrates after eliminating his target, Senior Sabrina Lee, in Senior Assassins.

Bounty List is a publicly available list of bountied individuals who may be assassinated by any player.

Spring At SAge 2024 Set to l Aunch new tr Avel groupS, SeminA rS

By Linda (Qianhao) Liu

As the school year nears its end, many are worried about finals and AP exams. However, Sage Hill students can look forward to Spring At Sage 2024. Spring at Sage includes an international travel program running up to 10 days for travel and 6 days for seminars. The aim is for students to explore their passion, learn more about global issues and various cultures providing a learning experience away from the standard classrooms.

This year, Sage Hill also has added many new seminars for students to explore new or longtime interests on campus.

Marine Life Inventory will be led by science teacher Todd Haney. Students will tour nearby coasts, tide pools and marine docks to collect samples of different marine organisms, mainly invertebrate organisms. Eventually, these samples will be taken into labs and students will engage in “DNA barcoding.” They will extract DNA from their organism and use polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify “genes of interest.”

DNA sequences of the organisms that students collect will contribute to the international DNA barcode database, which is similar to a fingerprint database, but used to identify species. Haney hopes that this seminar will allow students to enjoy themselves while gaining marine science knowledge and common lab experience that is useful in biology research.

Aside from new seminars, there are new travel destinations this year. Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada is one of the few travel sites for freshmen. Science teacher Justin Johnson will lead the group. The Pacific Northwest island is well known for its beautiful landscape. Its mild climate is perfect for rainforests, which the freshmen will get to visit as one of their learning experiences. There will also be chances for canoeing, having fun in the water and other surprises yet to come.

“These activities will be centered around sustainability, marine science, social justice issues and it’ll kind of have that intersection between science and society,” Johnson said.

said she’s excited to visit Vancouver Island for the first time and learn about wildlife.

“I’m looking forward to bonding, rooming with my friends and eating together!” Elisa said.

Other new travel destinations also include Japan for cultural preservation, New Zealand for exploring the free market economy, the Mediterranean island of Corsica and many others.

Sara Graham, Sage Cen-

ter assistant director of global education and inclusion, offers a piece of advice to students for the upcoming Spring at Sage activities: “Keep an open mindset and be ready to broaden your perspectives as you learn new information.”

StudentS explore Finding Joy through purpoSe , Service

By Grace Yan

Students gathered in the Peter V. Ueberroth Gymnasium on April 17 for the start of the Multicultural Symposium. The annual event organized by Sage Advocates for Multicultural Education (S.A.M.E.), featured the new theme “Ikigai,” a Japanese phrase meaning “finding joy through purpose.”

Judge Carly Edelstein, an alumna from the class of 2004, delivered the keynote speech about her journey of service. From handing out quarters to unhoused people as a young child to presiding as an elected judge with the Ohio 10th District Court of Appeals, Edelstein emphasized how she found joy through serving her community and country.

After graduating from Brown University, Edelstein joined Teach for America working in an underfunded school in Watts, Calif. where she encountered the limitations on teachers’ ability to improve students’ quality of life and education. She decided to attend UC Irvine School of Law and become an attorney to advocate for underprivileged children. After a stint clerking for a federal judge, she went on to protect students’ civil rights in the U.S. Department of Education and countering discrimination and injustice in criminal cases as a public defender.

“Law has the power to make meaningful systemic change,” she said. “I wanted to use the skill and privilege I had to make an impact in my community.”

After the keynote, students split off into their separate

Students attend the seminar, Feminism

workshops they chose a month prior. There were over 40 unique workshops and seminars, both student and faculty run, covering a range of topics from k-pop dance to alienation in modern society to sustainable fashion.

Junior Daana (Danny) Al-Ali

worked with Sophomore Aisha Muhsin to create the seminar, “The Search for a Homeland,” focusing on Middle Eastern and North African refugees. When asked about her main takeaway from the experience, she said, “There’s a lot I hadn’t taken into

consideration about a topic I thought I knew a lot about. I’ve been reading about this topic all my life, and ended up coming out of this experience with pretty different perspectives.”

Sophomore Sophia Montgomery attended a sustainable fashion workshop and was excit-

ed to see how many of her peers shared this interest.

“I think the Multicultural Symposium is a great opportunity to learn about things that we normally wouldn’t get to learn about and see what my fellow students are passionate about.” Sophia said.

Photo Courtesy of Maëlick | Creative Commons

A Vancouver Island lighthouse.

Freshman Elisa Xu

Nancy Xu | The Bolt

in Art: Objectification of Women Throughout Art History presnted by Junior Aava Ghorbanian.

Student Life

Trailblazers of Today: The Girls empowermenT movemenT

By Maya Desai

Sage Hill students may have recently noticed the bright and encouraging posters around Town Square, the collection of gift bags and the color purple covering campus. The Girls Empowerment Movement festival (GEMfest) returned to Sage Hill on March 16.

As an independent Service Learning group for Sage Hill juniors and seniors, the Girls Empowerment Movement (GEM) group contains students passionate about equipping middle school girls with independence and self-esteem. Throughout the year, they spend countless hours dedicated to organizing GEMfest, the main focus of the Service Learning group.

“The process to create GEMfest starts almost as soon as we return to school from summer break,” said Lauren Popkowski, Associate Director of Sage Hill College Counseling and an adviser of the Service Learning group.

From sponsorship and speaker outreach to inviting middle school students, the GEMfest team creates a daylong event that contains unique workshops such as Photo Printing or Intro to Coding and invites a group of inspiring and powerful women who create change in present society.

“The mission of the Girls Empowerment Movement aligns with my own interests of encouraging and empowering young women to be confident, creative, and independent leaders,” Popkowski said.

This year, the GEM group had speakers such as Georgetta Foreman, the Supervising Producer at Allen Media, and Kate Huckelbridge, Chair of California Coastal Commission. Jelena Aleksich, founder of the Confetti Project, talked about promoting girls’ self-love and self-expression through play and making a mess with confetti. At GEMfest, the Confetti Project hosted a workshop and acted as the culminating event of the conference.

“In a world of disconnection, loneliness and stress— today’s youth need [the Confetti Project] as they navigate growing up so they don’t feel so alone,” Aleksich said. “Events like [GEMfest] are important today because we need the next generations of girls learning how to love and trust themselves and know that everything they need is already within them—even in a world that tells them otherwise.”

The leadership team behind GEMfest worked tirelessly to create a conference that fostered a safe and positive community for these middle school girls.

GEM co-presidents Anne Chen and Riley Robinson 4 attended the National Service-Learning Conference, and GEMfest received the Youth Leadership for Service-Learning Excellence Award on April 4.

The students in Sage Hill’s Girls Empowerment Movement group are “thoughtful, innovative, and encouraging self-starters. I am inspired by the work of the GEM team and who they are as individuals,” Popkowski said.

a pril Crossword

Crossword by Grant Franey

r eview: “KunG fu panda 4” fails freshness

By Yasmin Dennis

Audiences are lining up yet again to watch one dumpling-obsessed panda clumsily defeat another villain with his kung fu prowess in “Kung Fu Panda 4.”

With this new film in the “Kung Fu Panda” franchise, Po, voiced by Jack Black, relinquishes his title as the Dragon Warrior to become the more meditative Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace, all the while teaming up with a cunning corsac fox to stop the shape-shifting Chameleon.

Although this film is underlined by family-friendly comedic cracks and the enticing animation style of the past three films, “Kung Fu Panda 4” is lacking in its ability to capture audiences with a sense of originality. The themes are repetitive, the jokes often fall short and the character development feels forced. While the first three films in the “Kung Fu Panda” franchise are quick to capture the attention of all viewers, this latest installment is lackluster. Franchise fatigue runs rampant, and any depth or underlying meaning is absent from the screen.

Unfortunately, the soundtrack remains one of the only aspects of “Kung Fu Panda 4” reminiscent of the imagination of the other “Kung Fu Panda” films.

Grace Yan |The Bolt Seniors Anne Chen and Riley Robinson, co-presidents of service learning group GEM, give opening speeches in the Kazu Fukuda Black Box Theater on March 16.

Courtesy of Universal Pictures