REMARKER
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Thursday, April 14, 2022 • St. Mark’s School of Texas • Dallas, TX • Volume 68, Issue 7
UKRAINE | The fate of Europe
PUTIN’S WAR Tales from those affected. See coverage, pages 4, 5.
ILLUSTRATION Jonathan Yin
Nationally-renowned speaker Travia gives students presentation on alcohol use; replaces FCD group by Nikhil Dattatreya he Counseling Office invited known speaker on alcohol use Ryan Travia to speak to students about alcohol addiction April 4. The invitation followed its decision to cut ties with Freedom from Chemical Dependency (FCD), a nonprofit organization that formerly educated students on campus about drug addiction. Director of Counseling Dr. Gabby Reed explained the change came after a noticeable decline in program and content quality over the past year. “When COVID hit, we didn’t have the option to do FCD for that year,” Reed said. “When we were back in school, we had them do virtual assemblies, but we weren’t
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super impressed with the content.” Reed decided to talk with counselors from other schools to assess their situation, finding that the impetus to find new speakers allowed her to adjust the current health and wellness curriculum. “I reached out to some of the directors of psychological services at other schools, and they had similar feedback about the FCD programming that year in particular,” Reed said. “We couldn’t really guarantee the quality of the program, so we thought this was an opportunity to find other outlets for drug and alcohol use prevention.” Although Travia is the first in a future series of speakers, he represents a small
news & issues 2 discovery & stem 7 life & 10600 10 indepth 14 arts & culture 16 ratings & reviews 19 editorials & opinions 20 health & sports 23
part of the updated addiction curriculum. “Ryan is just one small part of what we’re trying to do around alcohol and drug prevention,” Reed said. “But my vision for alcohol and drug prevention and addiction education for the future is comprehensive,” she added. “It involves working it into science classrooms, learning about the chemistry of addiction, working it into health and wellness. We want to build all of that into the curriculum, so it’s not just one threeday event once a year.” As for how they chose Travia, Reed says Upper School Head Colin Igoe first noticed him when Travia spoke at another school. “Igoe has worked at a couple of schools
11timothy hicks Remembering the school’s talented and devoted band director.
14trans alumnus Hear from Olive Maurstad, who was known as Aidan while a student here.
before, and Ryan has actually spoken at both of those schools,” Reed said. “Igoe felt like he was amazing, and his message was incredible. He talks about the brain science behind alcohol, and our guys always enjoy the science side of these things.” Reed says she wants to provide different perspectives on substance abuse so students can more easily relate to each individual speaker. “We want to come at this from a couple different angles,” Reed said. “One is the personal angle, and the other is the scientific angle. It’s important to hear both because one will resonate with some, and one will resonate with others.”
24trip neil ‘03 An alum makes his mark on the national deaf soccer team.
2 The most wonderful time of the year
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o you remember when you had “the talk” with your parents? Before it, you were young and naive. Now, your life has changed. That’s right, the youneed-to-stop-screwingaround-and-think-aboutapplying-to-college talk. We’re at that time of junior year I’ve heard so much about! It’s a strange world out there. It used to be you could just go to Trump University or Krusty’s Clown College and you’d turn MYLES out fine. LOWENBERG Issues Editor
But now? You need to be one with the college. You need to speak their language. So, I can be your translator for now. Here’s a few helpful terms: “We have a holistic approach to admissions.” Translation: We fairly consider every aspect of your grades, test scores and extracurricular activities. Unless your dad donated a library. “We have a great relationship with our area’s Native American community.” Translation: Good thing there’s no native tribes left in Boston to object to our new billion-dollar building! “Our tuition is very affordable.” Translation: You might not like those crippling prices, but where else can you delay adulthood by four years in a socially acceptable way? “This essay is not required.” Translation: This essay is required. “Test scores are optional.” Translation: You really fell for that one? You’re going straight to the reject pile. Remember — you need to get your ACT together, too. I heard some people talking about how 35 was such a great score. They need to dream higher. My SAT score is 400 points higher than that. And, of course, don’t forget college webinars. You don’t need to go to them, as every college says the same thing. Big surprise, your college of choice wants yet another “enthusiastic learner” who can fit into their “diverse community!” So simply remember to be holistic. Be diverse. Don’t get kicked out of St. Mark’s. And one day you, too, just might be able to become that one jerk who always brags about the college they went to 30 years ago.
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news &
Library books
A blast from the past The Cecil and Ida Green Library, home to thousands of books, provides students with some of the best resources in the nation. Additionally, the library also houses some of the greats works in the nation — and some of the rarest. We sat down with Director of Library and Information Services Tinsley Silcox to discuss some of these works. Tinsley Silcox: I started collecting rare books when our former head of the history department, Byron Lawson, started teaching a class on comparative world religions. He said it would be great if we could get some real world examples of some very rare and collectible items. This goes back to my personal philosophy that we need to maintain a love for the printed word. In the modern world, you read and listen to pretty much anything you want from your iPhone, but starting with the Lower School Library, with Ms. Kinkaid [Barbara, Lower School librarian], we try to teach taking good care of books. One of the rewards of that is we get to purchase unique items for our collection.
> This book is a Quran, and it’s special because we went to a great deal of trouble to find one that did not have the English translation next to it, so it’s a more accurate depiction. This Quran is in the original Arabic, and we have some boys on campus that can read this, which is wonderful.
> This is the ancient Egyptian book of the
dead. In the late 19th century, the British museum took a lot of antiquities from Egypt and printed this book to preserve the hieroglyphs, but right now it’s not in amazing condition as the acid has started to leak from this paper. I believe this book was published in 1891, and I bought this in 2012 from an antiquated book seller. It’s one of the truly rare books we have in the library.
> This is the most valuable book we own. It is a 13th century Haggadah, which is a book of Jewish prayers, from Spain. I bought this in England in 2013 for over 7000 pounds, and it is a replica.
news in brief QUIZ BOWL TOURNAMENT The Quiz Bowl varsity A team, consisting of seniors Miki Ghosh and Tomek Marczewski and sophomores Ethan Bosita and Aditya Shivaswamy, finished in second place at an online tournament on March 26. Members of the varsity B team, senior Isaac Song and sophomores Vardhan Agnihotri, Arnav Lahoti and Will Bowers, placed in fourth, finishing the tournament with a record of six wins and three loses. Juniors Arjun Badi and Ishaan Devalla, sophomore Thomas Whitehurst and freshman Jeremy Mau, comprising the C team in the JV division, won the championship and finished with a record of nine wins and one loss. Members of the D team in the JV division, junior Matthias Canon, sophomore AJ Ball, and freshmen Neil Yepuri and Matthew Bybee finished the tournament with a record of three wins, four draws and one loss. The varsity squad will face off
members of the faculty on April 14 in an Upper School Assembly in the faculty versus student exhibition and afterwards will compete at the Quiz Bowl State Championship and the Small School National Championship Tournament in Rosemont, IL, April 22–24. PHYSICS OLYMPIAD Senior Matthew Fan and freshman Surya Dinesh made it to the semifinals of the U.S. Physics Olympiad, two of only 350 students across to have done so. Fan and Dinesh had to place highly among top students on the “F=ma Exam” to reach the semifinal stage of the competition. The two will compete in the finals in late April, and the top finalists will attend the national training camp, where the top five will represent the United States. EIGHTH GRADE CAMPOUT The eighth grade campout was rescheduled to yesterday, April
inside 03ERBS DISCONTINUED
These standardized tests for lower grades will not be administered this year.
04WAR RAGES ON
As fighting continues in Ukraine, Marksmen past and present continue to be affected.
06ZONING IN DALLAS
A look into the unseen side of construction that defines what can and can’t be built.
The reason it’s so expensive, although it’s a replica, is because there is only one original copy in the world. This is an example of incunabula, which literally means from the cradle in Latin. This book was made before the invention of the printing press, so someone had to obtain all of the sheep skin and write and draw everything by hand very meticulously.
> Similar to the
Quran, we went through a great deal of trouble to find this copy of the New Testament that is purely in Greek. A lot of times, if you purchase a book in a foreign language in this country, especially religious texts, there will often be an English translation right beside it. This book was printed in Massachusetts, and it took some digging to find. STORY Zack Goforth PHOTOS Courtesy Tinsley Silcox
for your information 13, with the duration shortened from two nights to one. The trip, following an extensive gear check, took place on the Cross Timbers Trail, which encircles Lake Texoma and contains many campsites. Previously scheduled to begin on February 1, the trip was postponed to due to an extreme weather warning. Regardless of the shortened duration, the group had good weather and an overall good campout. STUDENT COUNCIL Speeches for Student Council class officer positions will take place April 18-21 at 3:30 p.m. in the Science Lecture Hall. Following the speeches, each student will vote through Blackbaud for his choice of president, vice president, secretary, and representative. Speeches will take place April 18 for rising sophomores, April 19 for rising juniors and April 21 for rising seniors.
last month March 30 Texas receives additional Medicaid funding to provide healthcare to those without insurance. This isn’t a permanent fix, as 17.3% of Texas’ population is uninsured, the highest rate in the nation. March 31 Maine Senator Susan Collins publicly declares support for Supreme Court Justice Nominee Kentaji Brown Jackson. Collins is then joined by Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mit Romney of Utah. March 31 President Biden announces the release of oil from U.S. reserves, in order to force oil companies into lowering gas prices. Over 180 million barrels of oil will be drawn from stockpiles, in an attempt to offset the record gas prices reached early March.
April 4 Attorney General Ken Paxton announces he will prioritize a bill similar to Florida’s controversial“Don’t Say Gay” bill in the next session. The bill prohibits all lessons on gender identity below fourth grade and other instruction not “age appropriate” for older grades. April 4 Gov. Greg Abbott calls special election for June 14 to fill the seat of former Congressman Filemon Vela of Brownsville, who stepped down March 31. April 6 President Biden nominates Admiral Linda L Fagan to lead the U. S. Coast Gaurd. If the nomination goes through, Fagan will be the first ever female leader of any branch in the United States military.
in the news... An online SAT? The ‘WHAT’ The SAT will be fully digital in the U.S. by 2024, with changes to the format to accommodate the change in medium. The new SAT will be shorter, lasting two hours instead of three, with the same amount of questions. Tests will still be conducted at testing centers, and students will be monitored by proctors as normal. In a similar vein, the PSAT/NMSQT and PSAT 8/9 will be delivered digitally in 2023, with the digital PSAT 10 to be released in 2024. The ‘WHY’ Following a November 2021 test-run of the digital SAT experience, the College Board found the vast majority of students and proctors reported positive experiences with the new format. The College Board says a shorter, digital SAT helps keep students focused on questions that matter, all the while reducing material and shipping costs for booklets and test materials and supplies.
SOURCE College Board
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ERBS TESTS DISCONTINUED
SAYING GOODBYE For the first time in over 20 years, the ERBs will not be taking place this year.
Testing the waters: no more ERBs Following the mass exodus away from standardized testing as a result of the pandemic, the school has decided to cancel the ERB test administration for the near future after careful consideration.
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ith all the unknowns in life, only three things are certain to come every spring: rain, taxes — and ERBs. That is, until now. The ERBs, standardized tests taken by students in grades two through eight, have been canceled indefinitely: among other causes, yet another casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic. These tests, with a longer tenure on campus than the majority of faculty members, provided Middle and Lower schoolers essential test-taking experience and acted as another important tool in evaluating students’ progress. So, what happened to the once-unavoidable ERBs? At first, the purpose of the test was to familiarize students with the format of assessments they would take in the future. “The purpose historically was to provide opportunities for boys to take a standardized test,” Coordinator of Academic Support Julie Pechersky said. “We aligned our administration of the test with higher stakes testing like
the PSAT and the ACT so that those boys can have some of that experience taking a standardized test, which is very different from the type of assessments that they take in the classroom.” The ERBs also provided valuable data to follow a student’s progress. The test was given to all students from second to eighth grade, giving the administration an easy visualization of a student’s
development over the years. “We could also track a student’s achievement over time, particularly because we don’t give number grades through sixth grade,” Pechersky said. “So, it allowed us one more piece of data when we needed to look at a boy’s overall achievement.” Although they proved to be effective in accomplishing this goal for many years, even the ERBs could not survive the pandemic. As classes went online, there was no chance for students to take the tests. “Around two years ago, COVID hit everyone,” Director of Counseling Dr. Gabriela Reedsaid. “Our school, obviously, chose to forgo ERBs, since we weren’t in session and we were doing a lot of remote learning.” Other schools also had no chance of taking the test, which led to a significant hit to the testing data’s reliability. Now, even after most COVID restrictions have been lifted, the test’s usefulness is still questionable since nobody has tested in the past two years, which has left data that relied on recency and consistency in shambles. “Standardized data is valuable because of the norms,” Pechersky said. “A norm group is determined when a certain group of students of the same age or grade around the country take the same test around the same time of year for about three or four years, and that’s when you get really solid comparable data. COVID has really thrown off the norm groups because many schools didn’t administer it, and that made the data less reliable.” The year away did have one benefit, though: it gave the school the chance to re-evaluate the usefulness of standardized tests in general. One of the biggest benefits came in the form of a guide for course placements, specifically for mathematics. “We sat down and thought, ‘Okay, how are we really using this information?” Dr. Reed said. “‘How necessary or helpful is it?’ Through our investigations, we found that the data can be helpful in informing math placements. In years to come, we’ll be incorporating a math component, but it won’t be an ERB.” However, even if the test helps teachers figure out a student’s placement, the test is still, ultimately, only a test. Data, being numbers on a stat sheet, can only tell half the story. “Our teachers are excellent, of course, and we trust them to make the correct decisions,” Dr. Reed said. “Having an ERB is basically telling them information they already know, since they know firsthand how strong your reading fluency and math skills are, for example. They can tell us so much better when students have issues with certain
subjects.” After considering much of the benefits and disadvantages of administering the test, Pechersky and her team conversed with the administration, deciding that it was best to not have students take the ERBs. As a result, the responsibility of evaluating students will fall solely into the teachers’ hands. “Ultimately, we communicated with a lot of people in the school, Mr. Dini, Mr. Ashton and the department chairs, and decided that, at least for the foreseeable future, we’re not going to give that test,” Pechersky said. “We felt like the data and the information that we get from the teachers and watching the progress of the boys within our institution is enough for us to identify if somebody is struggling and if we need to provide them with additional support,” Pecherky continued.
The ERBs in brief • The ERBs are a set of standardized tests which examine students over many subjects, including reading comprehension, writing mechanics and mathematics. • Over 1,600 public and independent schools nationwide take the ERBs • The tests are yet another method of evaluating students, as well as an easy way to identify trends in performance. • Most schools stopped testing recently due to COVID, which has thrown off the valuable norms used.
The process of weighing the pros and cons of the test, as well as brainstorming alternatives, is still ongoing and will continue for the foreseeable future. But as far as the future of standardized testing in lower grades is concerned, all bets are off. “It’s definitely still a conversation that we are having,” Pechersky said. “It’s going to take a couple of years for ERB to get their norms back aligned, so we were considering different options. But right now, we’re not planning on doing anything this year, and maybe not even next year. It could get to a point where we do academic specific standardized tests if a department feels like they’re missing that data. So, we’re definitely not closing the door on it.” STORY Grayson Redmond, Dawson Yao PHOTO Alex Barrett
Lower school changes Leadership Wall selection process to emphasize character education
George Washington Abraham Lincoln Martin Luther King Jr. Harriet Tubman John F. Kennedy Mahatma Gandhi Nelson Mandela Norman Borlaug Mother Teresa Malala Yousafzai Jackie Robinson Rosa Parks Alexander Hamilton Barack Obama Neil Armstrong As selected by Lower School students through the years.
by Dawson Yao he process for Leadership Wall selection has changed to allow for more learning opportunities for Lower School students. Prior to 2020, leaders were selected by a simple vote involving all of the Lower School, with each grade putting forth its own nominee for the wall. However, through years of this, the administration realized the fourth-grade nominee would frequently receive win due to their having more students and even recruiting voters with candy. Realizing this, the administration changed the process entirely, trying to teach the boys more about leadership than crafty business tactics. “First, we show the boys who previous leaders were,” Lower School Head Sherri Darver said. “We talk about
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who everyone is, and what they did to warrant them being on the wall. Next, we encourage the boys to talk about what a leader is both at home and here at school ” Similar to the previous method, boys nominate their own figures and vote for who will be on the wall. After the winner is selected, the boys learn as much as possible about the person ultimately selected. “Each grade chooses one boy to represent them,” Darver said. “Then, we give them a book about that person which they read over spring break. After that, we talk about what kind of traits that person had as a child which allowed them to be the leader they would eventually become.” The boys then hold an assembly to teach their peers more about their
selected leader. “Each representative then presents a part of the leader’s life, while a slideshow is being played,” Darver said. “Finally, we order a portrait and hold a big unveiling ceremony.” For teachers, this new process helps to clear up a lot of their free periods, as much of the work is transferred onto Darver and Assistant Director of Library and Information Services Barbara Kinkaid. For the students, they get to learn a lot more about the elected leader. “The boys get to know so much more about Neil Armstrong than they would have if they had just been bribed,” Darver said. “This new process makes the boys think, ‘Wow I learned so many new things about the person than I did prior,’ and hopefully it continues to help them in their futures.”
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UKRAINE | The fate of Europe, continued from page one. SPEAKING Price, a former editor of the Marksmen yearbook, gives a talk to seniors at the school in 2018.
The
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of the world.
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine has consumed the world’s attention, Ned Price ‘01 has become a public voice for the United States’ stance through his job as Spokesman for the State Department. Here, he speaks about the war and measures that the U.S. is taking in response.
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or Ned Price, it’s been brewing for six months. Even before the war in Ukraine began to rage, the battle for information sphere had begun. As the spokesman for the U.S. State Department, he has been tasked with a pivotal role in relaying the facts from the war to the world. With a front-row seat to the debates and diplomacy of the conflict, Price has seen both the West’s initiative and the world’s reaction. In the prelude to the war, the U.S. tried something new — leaking Russia’s plans for the invasion and potential ideas for a Russian false-flag attack that would let Vladimir Putin give the world a reason for his invasion. “It was really a novel approach,” Price said. “Before I worked at the State Department, I worked in the CIA, and never before had I seen intelligence used in that way and to such good effect.” The first goal was to try to prevent the invasion in the first place, despite U.S. intelligence showing Putin’s clear intent for an invasion. Although many in America and the world did not believe Putin would start a fullscale invasion, Price’s goal was to prepare the world for the unthinkable. “The other goal was that under the assumption President Putin would go forward, the world would have its eyes wide open to what was unfolding,” Price said. “We had every reason to believe based on intelligence that the Russians would try to claim that they were provoked and responding to Ukrainian aggression as a false pretext for President Putin’s determination to go to war in the first place.” Eventually, Russia did invade without a false flag attack, simply stating their intent of recognizing the Russian-backed seperatist states and supposedly protecting ethnic and linguistic Russians in Ukraine. “That was very consistent with precisely what we said would happen, and Secretary Blinken a week or two before the invasion started went to the UN Security Council and laid out our expectations,” Price said. “I think NED price because of that, the world was ready. You immediately saw different countries around the world condemn Russia’s action and a vote in the UN General Assembly, where 141 counties — the vast majority of the world — came together to denounce this aggression.” There was a strong financial and material response from the West to this conflict even before the war started. Over the course of the Biden Administration, the U.S. has given over $2 billion in security aid to Ukraine, with $1.7 billion being given the past months alone, contributing the Ukraine’s defense efforts. “Unlike other situations where there’s a degree of strategic or even tactical surprise, there wasn’t much here,” Price said. “In some ways, we had spent the past four months or so preparing for that moment. We started talking about the potential for Russian aggression against Ukraine in November of last year. We started delivering massive amounts of security assistance to Ukraine last summer.” In the West and especially the North Atlantic
Treaty Association (NATO) especially, there has been a new level of cooperation and solidarity between the democracies. “We just got back from Brussels last week,” Price said. “We’ve spent more time there, and every time we go, we hear this remarkable degree of unity and purpose, probably more so than any time since the end of the Cold War. Putin has, in many ways, been personally responsible for strengthening the alliance. NATO will emerge stronger, and Russia will emerge weaker.” This is a campaign Putin wanted to wage to brutalize the people of Ukraine and take the country quickly. He’s been able to brutalize the people of Ukraine, but it’s now clear he won’t be able to take the country and never will. ned price U.S. State Department Spokesman
After over a month of trying to take the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, and many cities in its north, Russia has repositioned its forces to the south and east of the country, especially near the Donetsk and Luhansk Republics, Russian-backed mini-states of seperatists in Ukraine’s east. “At the very beginning, the aim was to take Kyiv within 24 or 48 hours, and I think there was every expectation on the part of the Russian Federation that they’d be able to take the country in short order,” Price said. “What we’ve seen is that they’ve retreated from Kyiv and areas in the north. What they’re doing now is restaging and repositioning, and they may well be changing their aims.” Russian officials have claimed that the goal of their war is now to secure the full claimed territory of the Donetsk and Luhansk separatists, constituting a sizable chunk of Ukraine’s east, including large cities like Mariupol. However, Price doubts the truthfulness of these statements. “I don’t think we can take any of them at face value,” Price said. What we can do is know that their initial plans to take the entire country in short order have been thwarted. Putin now understands that he was fundamentally wrong if he thought the Ukrainian people wouldn’t stand up and valiantly fight for their country. So I think it’s too early to tell whether now they are focused east, or their forces will eventually come back and have a renewed campaign. But it’s certainly the case that the war has not gone how the Kremlin thought it would.” Russia’s army have now almost fully made their retreat from much of Ukraine’s northern cities. In the wake of that retreat, however, new evidence of atrocities by the invading army has created calls for even greater U.S. action in order to punish the perpetrators of these actions. “We’ve assessed that Russian forces have committed war crimes, and we’re committed to accountability,” Price said. “We’re assisting with the effort to collect, maintain, preserve and share evidence of atrocities and potential war crimes with the appropriate bodies. We’re working with the Ukrainian Prosecutor General, who
has a criminal case that she has launched with her team.” To Price, the damage the U.S. has been able to inflict on Russia’s economy has been a massive deterrence for Putin. Russia’s economy is forecasted to contract by about 15 by the percent, and over 600 international numbers companies have left the country. “We have a tremendous amount of leverage when we act together,” Price said. “What days since has distinguished this campaign the invasion is the way in which we have began galvanized action on the part of the international world, not just the United States responding. You see that in the effective amount of million assistance Ukraine has gotten and Ukranians the way in which they’ve been able displaced to employ that, actually causing the Russians to retreat.” More cooperation in the international community has also countries been caused by the amount of voted to media coverage and publicity given condemn to the war. Russia in the U.N. “This is probably the most welldocumented war we’ve ever seen,” Price said. “What we’ve seen on social media and from reporters and journalists on the ground — the images, the stories — it’s devastating. But it has helped to keep the world’s attention on Ukraine, which is a good thing. It’s important that we not let what the Russians are doing have the appearance of being something that’s routine. It’s important that we not become numb to this.” In the future, Price says that the U.S. and Ukraine will continue to cooperate for however long the war drags on and try to hold Russia accountable for its actions. “We’ll continue with the set of accountability measures that we’ve levied against Moscow, and we will continue to escalate our measures as long as Moscow continues to escalate its campaign against Ukraine,” Price said. “That’s not going to change. We’re in constant dialogue with our Ukrainian partners about how they can best defend themselves. We’ll continue to work with them to advise on what’s most effective, but that broad strategy will remain intact.” The war’s worldwide effect does not end at Ukraine’s borders. International diplomacy will be changed forever, perhaps in ways Russia did not expect at the start of the war. “One of the remarkable ironies of this is that Putin has precipitated everything he has sought to prevent,” Price said. “He sought to take Ukraine. Ukraine is now receiving billions of dollars in security assistance from countries around the world. He sought to divide the West. The international community has become more united, more purposeful and more determined. That includes NATO, which is now reinforced in ways it was not before Putin’s aggression.”
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STORY Myles Lowenberg PHOTO St. Mark’s School of Texas
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IN THE COMMUNITY
Invasion effects go beyond Europe A war in Eastern Europe may not have any immediate consequences across the Atlantic, but through family connections and efforts to aid a country across the world, many in the school community in Dallas have found ways in which the Russian invasion has changed them.
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cross Ukraine, bombs fall. Buildings crumble. People hide in their homes and pray their lives be spared. Just across its western border, millions of immigrants are fleeing to neighboring countries. And, while residents of other states have remained safe from military action, they are far from unaffected. The influx of refugees and far-reaching economic and political consequences have hit other Eastern European countries like Poland hard.
Agencies providing assistance With many wanting to find ways to aid the victims of a warzone like Ukraine, it is important to make sure any donations go to credible organizations that will truly help the situation on the ground. Here’s a look at three organizations actively helping.
• International Committee of the Red Cross
This worldwide organization is neutral and has been providing medical equipment for Ukranian hospitals since 2014, along with supporting civilians and victims in other wars around the world.
Senior Tomek Marczewski, whose family is entirely Polish, says the war could significantly change Polish politics. “I think the West is going to become a whole lot more interested in Poland,” Tomek said. “Realistically, Putin doesn’t want Poland, as it never has been part of Russia or the Soviet Union like Ukraine was. But, if Poland becomes the boundary between Russia and the West, the border becomes a demarcation line with actual troops on it. More is going to have to be done to shore up the Poland border because it’s just not that strong of a nation by itself.” Tomek’s father, Piotr Marczewski, also sees Poland connecting more with the West in its newfound prominence at the border of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a defense pact between Western democracies in America and Europe. “The trends are NATO getting more consolidated and Poland looking more towards the European Union as an entity to feel more protected and part of the broader international world,” Piotr said. However, this comes with consequences for the country. The threat of more war, even if it sounds distant, will have long-lasting effects on how businesses and investors view nations close to Russia. “The currency will weaken in Poland because the Polish risk profile will increase,” Piotr said. “Being the Eastern flank of NATO with an aggressive Russia across the border will have deep TOMEK MARCZEWSKI ramifications for all the basic ingredients of the economy.” Poland is a prime example of the war’s international effects. It will now have to face a new lack of investment that comes with the perceived danger of being at the edge of NATO. “The companies will stop coming to Poland to set up their regional distribution centers because they’ll be afraid that something might happen,” Piotr said. “So, jobs will be gone. The currency and real estate prices will suffer. We’ve already seen some of that in the last several weeks. The economy is not as resilient as you might want, especially as those historic trends of Russia’s influence in this territory are being repeated now.” Piotr is not sure about how these trends will play out in Ukraine either, but he doesn’t think it looks positive. “I would love to be optimistic, but I struggle to because historically, we’ve seen that Russia, Putin in particular, doesn’t easily change its course of action,” Piotr said.“I can see this becoming some sort
• Doctors Without Borders
A humanitarian organization helping people access health care in over 70 countries, Doctors Without Borders is operating in Ukraine right now.
• The Kyiv Independent
In this war, information has been utilized as a way of warfare, meaning a free press on the ground has become even more important. Many with the Kyiv Independent are risking their lives to give truthful news, and the newspaper set up a GoFundMe called “Keep the Kyiv Independent Going.” of hibernated conflict situation where it essentially continues as it is for another several weeks and months.” Tomek worries that a conflict that long will not end well for Ukraine. “I hope that he’s forced to pull out,” Tomek said. “But, if you look at it in the long run, there is no way that Ukraine can stand up to the might of Russia. If this drags into even a year-long conflict, no matter how much support the West sends, unless the West descends into a violent conflict or Russia pulls out, Russia wins.”
continue to bring discomfort. “It’s very disappointing that the time of peace has come to an end for so many,” Piotr said. “The difficult thing to imagine is there are young men just like Tomek, who are now being called into the army and who are sent to war, which is just heartbreaking.” STORY Ian Dalrymple, Myles Lowenberg, Will Pechersky PHOTO Creative Commons, Myles Lowenberg
I’m worried that some of the narratives in the media say Ukraine is very heroic, and Russia will retreat. It feels like naive optimism that this will amount to nothing, and we can continue our lives like nothing happened. Piotr MARCZEWKI Senior Tomek Marczewski’s father
The fall of Ukraine does not bode well for the future, Tomek says. He believes that if Russia takes Ukraine, it may not be the end. “Crimea was looked at very poorly by the rest of the world,” Tomek said. “There were protests, yet he got away with it. And I’m worried that the same might happen here. When Hitler was given Czechoslovakia, that was meant to secure peace in our time. But it didn’t because he felt that if he could get away with that, he could get away with anything. There are many differences between that situation and this one, but if Russia can invade Ukraine without any consequences for it, I think that puts the world in a dangerous position and potentially sets the stage for another large-scale conflict.” Still, Tomek believes that Ukraine will not totally assimilate into Russia. “Even though Poland was partitioned for over 100 years, it came into being as a country again because people kept speaking Polish and kept their identity,” Tomek said. “The Ukrainian people feel Ukrainian. If you give people their own country that they can live and reasonably prosper in for 30 years or so, they’ll feel like they belong there.” Still, hearing the news from overseas will likely
DONATION DESTINATION Ukie Style is a Ukranian shop in Dallas where Santosuosso has been donating items. Right now, all of the store’s profits and tips are going toward aid for Ukraine.
History instructor Santosuosso helps Ukraine through donating supplies in local shop by Will Pechersky istory and social sciences instructor Michele Santosuosso has recently found herself spending time giving aid to Ukraine amidst the current conflicts. One way Santosuosso has given support comes through an Ukrainian clothing store in North Dallas, Ukie Style. How to help “I went into the store, and they Santosuosso were collecting has donated to Ukie Style in items to send, North Dallas: like medical supplies and • 12817 Preston canned goods,” Road, Suite 124 Santosuosso • Ukiestyle.com said. “I went out • 469-567-0234 and just bought • Facebook: Ukiestyle medical supplies,
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like Band-Aids. Fast forward to last week, now they’re just collecting money. One hundred percent of the proceeds go to Ukraine, so that’s basically my line of connection.” Santosuosso’s background motivates her to do her own part in assisting the conflicts underway overseas. “From just my own personal intrigue and interest, I’m Belarusian,” Santosuosso said. “Not that I’ve ever been, but that personal tie is interesting to me.” In addition to her personal connection, Santosuosso sees importance in staying updated on the news of the conflicts. “I think what’s happening is going to be in history books forever,” Santosuosso said. “It’s something, particularly with my SpecOps class, that we’ve talked about almost daily.”
Santosuosso’s brother, a former Navy SEAL, is also spending time giving support to Ukraine as a civilian, inspiring Santosuosso to aid the cause herself. “He just spent two weeks in Ukraine, and he’s starting his own company,” Santosuosso said. “It’s very MICHELE SANTOSUOSSO rudimentary right now, but it’s basically meant to help on the ground, particularly in regions that are either war torn or even have had a natural disaster.” After noticing a problem in coordination and organization within supporting efforts in Ukraine, Santosuosso’s brother decided
to take action. “All of the different NGOs that are there are having a really hard time connecting,” Santosuosso said. “They’re really having a hard time disseminating. His main goal over there was to help, because with being a SEAL, he has all these different connections, so he can attempt to help make these improvements.” Through all of the hostility, Santosuosso emphasizes the responsibility our community members have to stay updated on the situation. “Be a well informed citizen, whether you’re listening to the news, watching the news or reading the news,” Santosuosso said, “I think it’s so important to know where you’re getting your information from and to get multiple different points of view.”
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news &
The city’s invisible force
the remarker april 14, 2022
Over 1.3 million people live in Dallas, the largest metropolitan area in Texas. But it takes a lot more than just residents to make a functioning place to live. What planning creates a true city out of all these people? Here’s a look behind the scenes.
THE SKYLINE Some of the most passionate and impactful debates in Dallas and other cities take place over how a city will be planned. Dense places like downtown Dallas exist because of these laws, which can become incredibly impactful when someone wants to build or add to a new house or business. Small at first, zoning laws over many years can greatly affect how fast a city can grow.
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very single piece of land in Dallas has a purpose — at least, it’s supposed to. Reality is much more complicated. The difference between an empty lot and a thriving business center or a packed city and an orderly suburb all relies on little-known laws and commissions. This system is called zoning, and it affects where and how every single building in the city will be built. But what even is it? Jaynie Schultz, who currently serves on the Dallas City Council, has had plenty of experience as someone with an urban planning degree who has helped out in the city’s zoning process before her election. “Every parcel of land in Dallas is zoned as something,” Schultz said. “It’s already listed as certain
things that are allowed to be there, both in the way a building is used as well as the building itself. If you want to build within those parameters that are already set, then you don’t have to get anything other than building permits.” But in some cases, like the Winn Science Center at the school, something besides the land’s intended purpose needed to be built. In that case, the school had to go through a different process in order to get the building approved. “If you want to change what the rules are for a piece of land, then you have to go through a zoning change process,” Schultz said. “So, in the Jaynie Schultz case of the Science Building, that wasn’t a permitted use at that time. St. Mark’s had to go through that process in order to get it built.” With a rule system like this, ideas for reform and change are inevitable. Enrique MacGregor was appointed to the Dallas City Plan Commission two terms in a row to aid the city — and potential builders — in deciding what can and can’t be placed on city grounds. This responibility comes with extensive experience in deciding what can be built. He has observed a lack of housing in Dallas and suggested ways that can be fixed through changing these regulations. “We’re struggling with the fact that there’s not enough housing, and so many people who are young professionals, in technical jobs or even more so, in service jobs, oftentimes can’t afford a townhouse in the city,” MacGregor said. “They have to drive from cheaper suburbs like Allen, and, many times, it’s an hour to get to work and back.” The problems caused by more expensive housing in the city can stop the growth of Dallas in favor of cheaper suburbs. These moves out of Dallas can effect the economy and finances of the entire city. “If I have to drive from Allen, eventually a job will open up there
and say, ‘We’ll pay you the same money that you’re making in Dallas if you work here,’” MacGregor said. “So, of course I would. It’s a very big issue because it’s not just the shortage of housing, but especially the shortage of housing that’s affordable.” MacGregor looks to Minneapolis as an example of how a city is experimenting to stop this affordability crisis. They have tried to loosen ENRIQUE MACGREGOR regulations in order to allow more housing to be and built in the city. “Minneapolis made a very bold decision,” MacGregor said. “What usually limits the ability to provide townhouses or smaller homes is that if you’re zoned in a place designated for single-family housing only, you can’t build those. But Minneapolis said, ‘No one is allowed to say that there must be a singlefamily house. If you own one, you are able to break it down into a duplex or triplex.’” With those large changes, the small zoning commissions could create a greatly increased supply of housing in the city, lowering the value of a singlefamily home but making housing more affordable for those who want to move into the city—those who previously had long drives to work from the suburbs. For another impact of zoning, Schultz is also aware of a sinister history in many cities around the country and especially in the Deep South during the Jim Crow era. “Racist zoning practices were used to keep black people and other people of color down in history,” Schultz said. “There was a practice called redlining, which kept not just people of color, but also Jews, from living in certain neighborhoods all around the country, and those were all done through zoning.” Throughout her time on the City Commissions and Council, Schultz has seen and studied the results of both good and bad zoning practices. These laws have given cities immense power to control the affordability and use of all their land, and they will remain relevant into the future. “I’m very interested in using zoning to look at our challenges with the lack of housing in Dallas,” Schultz said. “And, I’m very interested in seeing whether or not in single-family neighborhoods we could make some changes.” STORY Myles Lowenberg, Aaron Augustine PHOTO Creative Commons
the remarker april 14, 2022
theGreen Corner
Allergies around campus seem to bloom with the flowers. Most allergic reactions are caused by plants releasing pollen, which is an essential part of plant reproduction. This pollen is released by all plants and can be seen through campus.
Ragweed: Tough and durable, these soft-stemmed weeds thrive in places of disturbed soil. They are most common in rural areas and produce pollen, which can travel over 400 miles. Ragweed plants only last one season, but they can release over a billion pollen grains.
stem
discovery & Plastic treaty in effect by 2024 by Nikhil Dattatreya
lthough nations have agreed to hundreds of treaties regarding emissions targets and temperature levels, the United Nations Plastic Waste Agreement, endorsed by 175 countries in early March, represents a monumental
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beginning for waste-based global climate treaties. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) plans to call together member states to draft the treaty later this year with legally binding changes going into effect by the end of 2024.
Biology Olymipad Senior Sampath Rapuri and junior Svanik Jaikumar were two of only 400 students worldwide who qualified for the semifinals for the United States of America Biology Olympiad, which took place March 31. The results will be available May 5, where the top 20 contestants will compete for national finalists and a spot in the International Biology Olympiad in Yerevan, Armenia. The test was administered by Upper School biology instructor Mark Adame. The test serves to allow students a chance to compete on a global scale about a topic they are passionate about. COMPUTER BRAINS Michael Gilliland ‘13, an engineer at SpaceX, began working at Neurolink which is a brain research start-up by Elon Musk. Gilliland is helping Neurolink create an implant that connects a human brain to a mobile device or computer.
COMPILATION Aaron Augustine PHOTO Aaron Augustine
together to solve the problems, but the competition also has an individual portion. The winners of the competitions are awarded the Harry and Ruth Ruderman Award along with cash prizes.
BREATHING MONITORS Sophomore Vivek Patel, junior Rishab Siddamshetty and senior James Singhal have spent several months helping construct a breathing monitor. This monitor would track a patient’s nasal cycle and could be used to detect diseases such as Parkinson’s and cystic fibrosis. The monitor would use pressure sensors attached to a custommade circuit board to make measurements.
COVID-19 UPDATE The school has recorded zero cases of COVID-19 since Feb. 22. Since an increase in cases, especially those of the omicron variant, in the weeks after winter break, there has been a large drop in the number of confirmed cases in the community. This follows a national trend and can be owed to a large vaccination rate along with immunity being built within the general population. Nurse Julie Doerge is optimistic that this downward trend will continue to lower the number of COVID-19 cases. As COVID-19 cases continue to decrease, restrictions placed during 2020 to quarantine the virus will contine to be lessened.
ARML COMPEITITION The Math Team will compete in the American Regions Mathematics League (ARML) April 23. The ARML is a biannual, team-based mathematics competition. Math teams are allowed to work
07Plastic Waste
An analysis of the recent United Nations plastic waste agreement set to begin 2024.
inside 08Drug Costs
Exploring the rising cost of medical supplies and how that affects patients.
09Earth day
for the tech geek
The science behind the implant involves inserting micron-scale threads into areas of the brain that control movement, then transport electrodes that read areas of the brain to a computer.
this page Live Oak: The live oak is perhaps the most pain-inducing plant for springtime allergy sufferers. Coating everything from your car to the sidewalk, its pollen can cause hay fever, which causes nasal congestion, eye irration, and wheezing. The tree makes up over 80 percent of combined pollen for the year.
The Programme’s executive director Inger Andersen called the treaty “the most significant environmental multilateral deal since the Paris Accord, an insurance policy for this generation and future ones.” The goal of the plan is to slow plastic production and to clean effected areas.
DRASTIC PLASTIC Plastic production worldwide causes over 15 percent of the total amount of pollution, and plastic has an inclination to not end up in proper disposal areas (above). Plastic is commonly found in lakes, rivers and oceans, and it negatively affects over 800 marine and costal speices primarily through ingestion and entanglement. Plastic also has the ability to break down into small harmful particles that can accidently be consumed and will lead to health complications.
STEM in brief
Cedar Tree: Another prevalent cause of springtime allergies, the cedar tree blossoms with a pollen explosion. The pollen effects the whole body, sparking a respiratory allergy called Sinusitis. In severe cases, difficulty breathing is a symptom.
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Across campus, student leaders celebrate and cherish planet earth.
last month
UPCOMING
April 5 Elon Musk purchased a 9.2 percent share of Twitter stock. This purchase was worth nearly $3 billion and will lead to a shift in Twitter privacy policy.
April 18 Amazon begins Project Kuiper, which seeks to establish global broadband internet connection by utilizing over 3000 satellites. Kuiper will compete with Elon Musks’s Starlink, which already has almost 2500 satellites in orbit.
March 13 Social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, have blacklisted servies in Russia, with Snapchat blocking out the SnapMap citing security reasons. March 14 The Perot Museum of Nature and Science’s Spring Discovery Camps began. These three day camps are intended to inspire children to pursue STEM education and careers. The camps will have topics ranging from astromy to geology for students to explore.
April 19 The Open Data Science Conference will take place in Boston. The conference is one of the largest data science conventions. Its goal is to help educate, innovate and develop the data science community. October 14 The Georgia Technology Summit serves to teach people how technological innovation can change industries. It focuses on the impacts of innovation on businesses.
what the tech? space probe accelerator What does it do?
A new method of propelling small space probes through the usage of laser beams is being developed. It works by having the probe catch laser beams to propel the vessel onward, continuously increasing in speed until it nearly reaches light speed. The Breakthrough Starshot Initiative predicts a trip to Proxima B would only take 20 years.
What’s the problem? An object reaching the speeds needed to reach Proxima B would undergo much heat and strain. Most materials would burn, but silicon and boron nitride show promise. There are two ways that small probes get to high speeds over time. You either have a constant acceleration, or, you have a laser sail probe that uses photons to accelerate. Doug Rummel
Issues
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Drug prices
NEVER ALONE Many organizations and shelters throughout the city offer aroundthe-clock resources for the homeless.
The price to live, one pill at a time
With national conversations on the price of healthcare, the cost of medicine remains sky-high. Members of the community discuss their experience with the price of medicine, the underlying economic reasons behind the high costs and efforts to provide Americans with affordable drugs.
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is blood thickens, his head starts spinning. He can’t overcome this fatigue. Even if it’s a couple of hours since his last dose, he starts feeling… down. Sophomore Hayden Meyers needs insulin, a medicine for diabetes, to live his life. And sometimes, he wonders – if he needs this medicine to live, then why’s it so expensive? Since being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of two, insulin has been a constant presence in Meyers’ life. “It’s become almost second nature to me,” Meyers said. “It’s become routine, having it with meals every so often.” Meyers currently uses the Humalog brand of insulin, and while switching to a different producer might reduce the cost, it may also interfere with his health. “If I use an unbranded form of insulin, I’ve found that I need to use more of it to get the same effect,” Meyers said. “So it costs about the same, it’s just quantity over quality.” The long-term nature of his condition has taken a toll on his family’s finances. “Paying for insulin is something my parents always have to account for while budgetting,” Meyers said. “And while we are by by the the fortunate enough to have good insurance now, when I numbers was younger, we had to pay a lot more out-of-pocket. At first, I used to feel guilty about it – I felt like I was times the average drug a burden on my parents. cost in the United Now, though, I realize it’s States is compared to something out of control.” other countries
2.56 84
percent of drugs sold nationally that are unbranded
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dollar cost of one vial of insulin
Economics instructor and history teacher David Fisher believes that the U.S.’s astronomical drug prices can be attributed to a combination of multiple factors, one of which being the nation’s capitalist market. “Drug prices typically reflect either oligopolistic
market structures, or sometimes monopoly market structures,” Fisher said. “Even if the price is high, consumers will still buy the same amount of that drug, because they need it. And that’s typically why most drugs — no matter what the time period — are pretty high in value.” In addition, the nation’s unique health insurance system adds to this. Because over 90 percent of Americans have some form of health insurance, companies are targeting the insurers — not the patients themselves — with their prices. “Because companies know that the insurers will pay, they jack up the price as high as the insurer is willing to pay,” Fisher said. “And because there’s relatively few insurers and the insurers have kind of a lock on their markets, companies can just charge whatever they want.” So why doesn’t the government just step in? Well, research and development is expensive. By allowing companies to have exclusive rights to the drugs that they develop, companies now have an incentive to help push medical advancements. “If there weren’t such a thing as patents and protection of intellectual property, would a company necessarily make a new drug?” Fisher asked. “The United States protects intellectual property for something like 20 years before the drug can pass off into the general population and be made by anybody else as a generic drug.“ Hayden Meyers And lastly, coming out of the pandemic, supply chain shortages still wreak havoc across the economy. Coupled with greater spending power from the average consumer, prices are driven up even further. “The final product is going to reflect the increased costs of bringing it to market,” Fisher said. “And there’s also a demand side problem as well. So we are living through inflationary times that reflect a problem in the economy — trouble of getting those goods to market — and actually something that’s kind of good in the economy — we’ve got money to spend.”
to provide easily accessible and affordable medicine to customers across the country. “Our mission is very simple,” Cuban said. “Our goal is to be the low cost provider of drugs in the America. And with my involvement, I hope to get us there. People can go to our website and look for their medications, and we hope they share the website with their parents, grandparents and more. By taking the simple business approach of cutting out the middleman, Cuban hopes to serve as a disruptor in healthcare. “The entire drug industry has been distorted and manipulated by large, vertically integrated companies,” Cuban said. “They have the power to distort pricing. If Cost Plus can get the momentum we think we can get, then they will have to adapt to us and lower their pricing.” Further, Cuban believes it’s up to the private sector to bring about change. “Governmental action on the cost of medicine has been ineffective,” Cuban said. “They focus on the headline rather than on how the industry works. This makes it almost impossible for there to be any real impact.” To reach a wider swath of customers, Cuban hopes to provide more medicines to customers. “Expanding inventory is critically important to the company’s future,” Cuban said. “We want to help all that we can help. We recent added 50 low-cost drugs to the Mark Cuban product list, and we hope to add at least another thousand before the end of the year.” Meyers will be monitoring any developments in the cost of insulin closely. “We’re always on the look out for cheaper alternatives,” Meyers said. “For me, it’s something that needs to be cheap. The original patent was sold for a dollar – this was supposed to be widely accessible. If someone needs a medicine to survive, they should be able to afford it.”
With Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company, businessman and Marksman parent Mark Cuban aims
STORY Keshav Krishna, Johnny Yin GRAPHIC Morgan Chow
Inflation prices over 70 years 1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
2008
2013
2018
2021
$0.18
$0.25
$0.36
$1.19
$1.34
$1.26
$2.05
$3.80
$2.82
$2.87
New car
$1510
$2600
$3450
$7200
$16,950
$21,850
$27,958
$31,352
$35,742
$37,672
loaf of bread
$0.12
$0.22
$0.25
$0.50
$0.70
$1.26
$2.79
$3.80
$1.98
$2.12
GALLON OF GAS
Source: The People History Home
stem
EARTH DAY
For what it’s Earth
Amid conversations about the start of World War III and the insanely high prices of gasoline, the nation is still suffering from record temperatures each and every year. Thankfully, the world has a saving grace: Earth Day. We sat down with some of the school’s environmentalists to discuss the importance of the holiday.
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ight now, it seems only one topic has remained a steady, recurring problem: climate change. Ever since the pandemic began, things have cycled out quickly. Everything from killer wasps to wildfires all seem like a thing of the past, making headlines one day and disappearing the next. Even COVID-19 itself, the virus that put the world on life support, has recently been countered with a plethora of different vaccines. However, climate change refuses to yield to the test of time. Like an evasive bug, it drains the life force out of the planet, while simultaneously evading everything the human species tries to throw at it. Fortunately, at least there is a dedicated day to take care of the planet: Earth Day, April 22. The Green Marks Club is a club made solely for the purpose of trying to clean up the Earth. Co-founded by juniors Shreyan Daulat and Sam Adams, the club is calling an assembly for the special day. “This year, we’re doing a special assembly for Earth Day,” Green Marks Club Vice-President Sam Adams said. “We want to raise awareness, so we’re hoping we can have sam adams alumnus Victor Vescovo come back and answer questions about human impact.” Vescovo has traveled the world,
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having participated in many expeditions involving the bottom of the ocean. Given his adventures, the club hopes that he can help shed light on some of the more pressing issues of human impact. “There’s no one that I know that’s had more experience from all over the world, whether it’s the top of Everest or the bottom of the Mariana Trench,” Adams said. “He’s seen just about everything you can see, and there’s nobody else as qualified to speak on the human effect.” The event will take place April 19 during community time. It will be similar to the STEM Festival, where Vescovo will speak about climate change and answer questions after. The celebration for Earth Day is also no outlier, since there also have been various types of organized events each year. “Some years, we’ve had tree plantings and community service events,” Director of Environmental Studies Dan Northcut said. “Usually, we also have an electronic waste drive, where students can bring in stuff such as old computers for recycling.” Northcut also tries to raise awareness within his own classroom. Being an environmental science teacher, he always tries to better the world around him and bring attention to its issues. “In my classroom, I like to say that everyday is Earth Day,” Northcut said. “For my AP Environmental Science class, every topic we cover is all about trying to figure out how we can try to clean up the earth.” Northcut’s efforts to promote the events are also contributing to a bigger
picture. He believes that the world needs to be fixed, and that it can only be accomplished through educating the public about climate change. “More and more people tend not to think about how we only have one Earth,” Northcut said. “They ignore problems and practices that are environmentally destructive. By saying that every day should be Earth Day, I try to make dan northcut people realize that humans are destroying the one thing we depend on the most.” Northcut also believes that the public relies too much on other forms of saving humanity. For example: Mars. “There really is no ‘Planet B’,” Northcut said. “We haven’t figured out how to get past much of the sun’s radiation, so there’s no way we’ll have enough time to leave before the planet collapses.” With things already as bad as they are, Northcut insists that humanity needs to act quickly, and that Earth Day is a great place to start. “It’s important for people to realize that this is it,” Northcut said. “The Earth is like a self-sustaining backyard garden, and we eat out of it. We’ve got to take care of that backyard, or else there won’t be any backyard to support us at all.” STORY Dawson Yao, Axel Icazbalceta PHOTOS Axel Icazbalceta
Places to visit on Earth Day Get out to nature this Earth Day! To the right are three nature trails, and below are fauna from the Dallas Arboretum. Full review on page 19.
NORTHAVEN TRAIL North Dallas
FRASIER DAM 9300 Stemmons Freeway
WHITE ROCK LAKE Northeast Dallas
Pollinator gardens planted along Northaven Trail by Nikhil Dattatreya unior Akash Munshi has planted several pollinator gardens across the Northaven Trail over the past year, and he plans to keep expanding their plant diversity and size for the future. At the start of the school year, Munshi worked with the Northaven Trail to incorporate various Blackland Prairie plants into the gardens already in the area. “What I had planned to do in late summer or early fall, was to plant more of these pollinator gardens,” Munshi said. “The Northaven Trail wanted to do Blackland Prairie, which captures the second most carbon out of any ecological area, besides bogs.” While the Blackland Prairie already offers benefits through its efficient carbon capture and natural span throughout Dallas, Munshi wanted to go a different direction with the plants they chose to grow, going away from store bought seeds and transfering to their own produce. “We wanted to grow all our own plants from seed, which saved us so much money,” Munshi said. “We did a volunteer event where we collected a lot of seed, approximately two or three thousand dollars in value.” After making sure irrigation systems are in place for Blackland Prairie and the area is set up for planting, Munshi plans to have volunteer groups plant the seeds that will be able to germinate over the next couple of months. He hopes to generate a large turnout to these events to plant as much as possible. “I believe we’re going to start planting everything on Memorial Day,” Munshi said. “I will do a huge volunteer event, and hopefully a lot of people can turn out to that. Only about half of the plants will go in, and we will be constantly germinating plants throughout the summer. We can then keep filling up the site because it’s so big that we’re not going to be able to fill it up in one planting. There will also be a lot of pollinators in the area because we’re trying to get as much diversity as possible in this space.” The planting area will showcase a variety of Blackland Prairie plants, from the more mundane plants to the many showy, blossoming flowers, which often require more resources to maintain. Munshi hopes that the variety will draw in visitors who can learn more about his conservation efforts and will be encouraged to join his cause. “It’ll look pretty nice in the summer, but it’ll take two or three years for it to be fully developed,” Munshi said. “It’ll be interactive, almost like a hiking trail. Our hope is that people will see that area and want to walk through it, and then they will want to be involved in our effort.”
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10 Hangin’ Out With
Luke ‘Money’ Martin With a dagger of a 3-point shot, senior Luke Martin has taken on the nickname “Money,” because he’s always cash from beyond the arc. We sat down with him to find out how he got these skills and what other hobbies he enjoys.
So, Money, you’re famed for 3-point contests. How did you hone your shot? LM: To be honest, I didn’t quite hone my shot to its peak this year. I think it’s because I lost my Supreme arm-sleeve — it’s been my go-to for the last few years, and I think it’s what gave me such a hot hand. You’re also a known freestyler — how do you come up with your bars? LM: My bars have yet to make a big wave, but we’ve made a splash in the lake. I like to think of myself as somewhat of a Lil Dicky-esque character. They come straight from the heart — it’s really just poetry in motion. Top five foods? LM: At five, we’ll start with New York-style pizza. Fourth place goes to Chipotle/Tex-Mex. Number three, I’m gonna have to go with In-N-Out Burger. Number two, Dave’s hot chicken. And number one? A breakfast sandwich from Shug’s. What’s your spirit animal? LM: I’d have to say a black bear. It’s ferocious and versatile in both physical and mental ability. It’s a skilled hunter, a skilled climber. It loves to nap, it hibernates, it loves to eat. It’s a very tame, yet violent animal — I think it accurately represents the duality I see within myself. Finally, you’re known for your fun facts. Are there any on your mind right now? LM: I’ve got one right now. Kung Fu Panda is widely considered to have the most culturally accurate animation style to traditional Chinese culture.
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life & Students take on Spring Fling Students from here and Hockaday sport animal costumes during the zoo themed Spring Fling dance April 2. This was the first Spring Fling dance in two years due to COVID-19 protocols. Students were encouraged to dress as animals.
WILDING OUT AT SPRING FLING Hockaday students (above)show off their zebra and pig costumes. Marksman and Hockaday students from the Upper School gather (top right) in the Great Hall, where snacks and drinks were also served . Junior Jacob Weinstein and sophomore Aditya Munshi — both wearing panda outfits (right)— throw up peace signs. They were just two of over 15 people wearing panda costumes that night.
10600 in brief MATH EXAMS Sophomore Kevin Lu, freshman Surya Dinesh and seventh-grader Tony Lu qualified for the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAJMO) after passing prerequisite exams of the American Mathematics Competitions (AMC) and American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME). The four-and-a-halfhour test was taken over a two-day period March 22-23. If their scores are high enough, the competitors could be invited to Mathematical Olympiad Program (MOSP), whose date is yet to be determined. MS MATH TEAM The Middle School Math Team placed third overall at the TMSCA State competition which took place in San Antonio the weekend of April 2-3. Many students also placed highly in the individual competitions, including sixthgraders Daniel Tang, Bryan
Li and Nathan Peng, who finished second, ninth and tenth respectively in the mathematics section. Seventh-grader Michael Chang finished fifth in this section and eighth-grader Kevin Hong placed third for their respective grade levels. Additionally, seventh-grader Christopher Huang finished seventh in the science section and sixth-grader Hamzah Salman finished tenth in the calculator section. WILDERNESS COURSE The biannual Wilderness Program First Aid Course took place the weekend of April 2-3. The program taught, among other skills, the patient assessment system, which teaches faculty to identify various ailments such as hypothermia, shock, and broken bones in order to more accurately treat them. The course is mandatory for all group leaders of the Pecos trip and attended by many leaders of Middle School campouts.
for the Marksman CUM LAUDE SOCIETY This year’s induction will take place in the chapel April 20, with 20 members of the senior class chosen to be a part of the selective organization. This year’s speaker is Jennifer Sampson, president and chief executive officer of United Way Dallas and parent of freshman Hilton Sampson. DEBATE UPDATE Debaters attended the NDCA (National Coaches Debate Association) national tournament April 9-11, their final debate tournament of the year. The teams who competed comprised of seniors Zayn Bhimani and Maxwell Chuang, juniors Tommy Zheng and Brendan Kelly, sophomores Howard Zhang, Justin Tong, Harry Wang, Liam Seaward, Vivek Patel, Siddarth Bidare and Anish Guddati and freshmen Andrew Jin, Samuel Posten and Shyam Maddukuri. Results were not available at press time.
A commemoration of the school’s longstanding band instructor.
12ALUMNI WEEKEND
An inside peek into the weekend’s events and award-winning alumni. 13IPPF CLUB
The IPPF club became international contendors, competing against teams from around the world.
UPCOMING
Today Last day of eighth grade campout
April 20 10 a.m. virtual admission coffee Grade 2 Fine Arts Evening
Friday Good Friday; no school
April 21 Alumni Weekend begins 2:45-4:15 p.m. Lions’ Closet
Saturday National Orchid Day Sunday Easter International bat appreciation day Monday 5:30-7 p.m. Middle and Upper School New Family Social Tuesday 5-6:30 p.m. Lower School New Family Ice Cream Social Upper School orchestra concert
April 24 7 p.m. Evensong April 25 9:45 a.m. Lower School chapel for April birthdays April 28 Lower School conference; no school for LS students Spring SPC tournament begins May 2 Community service hours due for President’s Service Awards
say what?
inside 11TIMOTHY HICKS
this week
comments overheard around campus “I have lots of party experience.” HARRY WANG Sophomore
“Do we really need to shower?” Howard Zhang Sophomore
“You know, they call me a baller where I’m from.” Michael gao Junior
"Milk tastes really good; it’s one of my favorite drinks.” Tommy zheng Junior
"They call me ‘hand sanitizer’ the way I’m clean with it.” Abhi jain Senior
“If Silas is 6’0, then I must be 6’2.” Murphy Paul Junior
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REMEMBERING TIMOTHY HICKS
Never forgotten
LEADER In a December rehersal for the annual Winter Concert, Hicks leads the band in an ensemble of various types of holiday music.
On March 4, band director Timothy Hicks passed away from complications from surgery. As a longstanding pillar of the school community, Hicks will be remembered for his sense of humor, passion for music and devotion to his students, a legacy carried on by the people he influenced daily. How would you describe Mr. Hicks in a few words? Associate Headmaster John Ashton: He was a generous soul who really loved all forms of music including jazz, marching bands and concert bands. His knowledge of music and passion for teaching really comes to mind when I think of Mr. Hicks. Junior band student Will Grable: He was very compassionate, he cared a lot about my fellow classmates and me. He was a calm presence every day in what could sometimes be a stressful and busy week. He was super funny too which allowed people to loosen up and play their best. Fine Arts Department Head Marion Glorioso: He had a big WILL GRABLE heart. He was passionate about music. He was somebody that you looked up to, and when you shared time with him, you really appreciated his warmth and care. Math Instructor Janis Oprea: It didn’t matter what you were doing; it was just always fun to be around him. He was the best guy to be around all the time. Can you express his passion for music and what he did day in and day out? Will Grable: He was a really skilled conductor, he always knew how to get to the source of a problem when we were playing. He told us about his ‘music’ routine which entailed listening to music on the way to school, in his office and throughout the day. His passion for music reflected in his teaching. Hicks’ son Chris ‘13: He loved music. He could do all of it. I would say that he was proficient at every instrument that you can play in band except for the bassoon and the oboe because double-reed instruments are pretty hard. But what he loved more than music was seeing people learn. I think that’s the essence of what it is to be a teacher. Fine Arts Department Head Marion Glorioso: He loved
THE RIGHT WAY Instruments blaring, Hicks instructs the brass section in the band room in preparation for a concert. The only way to get better is through realizing your mistakes, he said.
rock and roll, but he loved jazz the most. We would talk about bands like The Who and the Red Hot Chili Peppers and jazz musicians like Louis Armstrong. At his memorial service, it was incredible to see the amount of other band directors, horn players, drummers and other people that he had worked with over the last 30 years, who all spoke to how good he MARION GLORIOSO was as a musician. Math Instructor Janis Oprea: Music for Tim was more like air to breathe. It wasn’t something he did, it’s more like something he was. Tim was music. What will be most missed about Mr. Hicks? John Ashton: Beyond the traditional classroom, he was someone boys would go to if they just wanted to play any instrument between classes or after school. He would always welcome them to do that, and he would be there to help them with what they were working on. Chris Hicks ‘13: His sense of humor. He made everybody around him feel at ease. At least for me, St. Mark’s wasn’t easy, but when I was in the band room with him, that was when I knew that everything would be okay and where I felt that I knew what I was doing. Fine Arts Department Head Marion Glorioso: The thing I’m going to miss the most is how he has made me laugh over the years and how he was always able to turn a joke.
What is your favorite memory of Mr. Hicks? John Ashton: I think during COVID-19 we all got the wonderful opportunity to see and listen to Mr. Hicks’ teaching outside of Nearburg Hall. He would movingly direct the band and would always stop to help a boy correct a note here and there. Will Grable: Being able to play under his instruction at public events such as concerts, football games, assemblies and convocations was a fantastic experience. Chris Hicks ‘13: I remember that when I got my first bass guitar, plugged it into an amplifier and started playing it, his face lit up. He was so worried that I wasn’t gonna like it because he turned me on to playing bass. Over the next couple of weeks, he would listen to me practice and just be really happy about it. Fine Arts Department Head Marion Glorioso: At one of the ISAS fine arts festivals, we were in Austin, and we brought Chris Hicks with us. Mr. Hicks started having heart issues, so we had to call an ambulance so that they could make sure he was okay. Mr. Hicks called from the hospital to say that he wasn’t going to get out in time to direct the band, so JOHN ASHTON he asked Chris to fill in. Chris was a nervous wreck, but, when he got on stage, he stepped into the role just like his dad. At that moment, I saw just how close he was to his family and how they stick together, stand up for each other and care for one another. Math Instructor Janis Oprea: We played in brass quintets. Ever since he got here, for 20 years, we did a recital together over here. I‘ve done gigs with him every Christmas and at graduations, and we played at gigs out of school. STORY Shreyan Daulat, Will Spencer PHOTOS Courtesy Mary Ann Livengood and Scott Moore, Development Office
FESTIVE FUN During the annual Christmas Eve tuba caroling concert concert held at Thanksgiving Square in Dallas, Hicks (back right) and three St. Mark’s students strike a pose.
HAND TO HAND Hicks presents the Scott Alan Hubbard Award for Excellence in Band to Chirag Gokani ‘17 at the 2017 Upper School Final Assembly.
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ALUMNI WEEKEND PREVIEW
New semester English course available for seniors by Grayson Redmond he latest installment in the series of semester-long English classes available for seniors, Gothic Horror, will be offered for the first time next year. The new senior English course offerings were made possible after AP English Language and Literature were combined into one class, leaving senior year open for students to choose English courses according to their interests. It was this switch that motivated Master Teaching Chair Lynne Schwartz to create the Gothic Horror course. “In that process, we lost a book that I really love to teach, which is Frankenstein,” Schwartz said. “It’s been a student favorite for years, so I thought about what we can do to get it back in the curriculum. Then, I realized if I taught a class in Gothic Horror, we could study Frankenstein, Dracula and a bunch of other texts that I personally think are wonderful.”
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Other works Schwartz plans
to include in the curriculum include Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, short stories by Stephen King, poetry by Robert Browning and potentially Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. “A lot of classic works of literature meet this genre as well, and it’s going to include lots of scary ruined abbeys, mad women hidden in the attic, deranged monks and all kinds of fantastic, odd concepts like that,” Schwartz said. “The writers of the 19th century were seeking an experience of the sublime, which is the art and terror of the grandeur of the universe. While some of them sought it through nature and fun things, others sought it through horror. Those are called the Dark Romantics, and those are the ones that we’re going to look at.” Schwartz hopes this unique style of writing draws students to the class and also helps distinguish it from the many other English electives. “I don’t think another senior elective is going to address those themes that the 19th century writers addressed, like exploring the dark side of human nature,” Schwartz said. “All of literature is about being a human being, and part of being a human being is that dark streak of melancholy that runs through all of human nature. Also, I think studying the fear of the unknown, the fear of the dark side, as well as the consciousness of the monster within that we have to keep under control will be illuminating for students.”
SWEET VICTORY Clark Hunt ‘83 (left) and his son Knobel Hunt ‘21 (right) hoist the Lombardi trophy after the Kansas City Chiefs won their first Superbowl in 50 years in 2020. Hunt will be honored as the school’s 19th Distinguished Alumnus April 22.
One for the history books Former Board President Clark Hunt ‘83 has been named 2022 Distinguished Alumnus. He will be honored at Alumni Weekend, which will be in-person for the first time in nearly three years.
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aising his helmet in celebration, a young athlete marvels at his achievement. Undefeated. As captain of the varsity football team, he has guided his group of young men to an achievement that few members of the school’s history have ever been able to claim. Clark Hunt ’83 has moved himself and his squad into an exclusive club – a club of exceptional achievement and endless fame, old and ever new. The recipient of the school’s 19th Distinguished Alumnus Award, Hunt looks back on inspiring moments like this as something that helped him achieve success all throughout his life. “I would draw a parallel to when I was a student at St. Mark’s on the athletic teams and to my business in the professional sports world,” Hunt said. “I learned a lot about what it means to be a good teammate, and I learned a lot of important lessons about life.” Hunt recalls the moment Headmaster David Dini notified him of his achievement as a special one. “I was greatly honored, especially in light of the incredible alumni base that St. Mark’s has,” Hunt said. “There are so many men who have gone on to do great things, and to be recognized as a distinguished alumnus, along with some of the other past winners was really a tremendous honor for me.” As Alumni Weekend draws nearer, Hunt highly anticipates a few experiences over the weekend. “It’s always a great time to see old friends and get to interact with faculty, staff and fellow alums,” Hunt said. “I’m really looking forward to that time together.” Along with Hunt, seven other alumni honorees will be recognized at the Spring Alumni Dinner, the first in-person ceremony held since the pandemic. “For us, the Distinguished Alumnus Award is a way of being able to point to certain people in the community and say, ‘this is what we hope that a lifetime of striving can achieve,” Director of Alumni Relations Alex Eshelbrenner ‘04 said. “The main idea is that you’re excelling at what you put your mind and heart into.” In contrast to most alumni weekend awards, the Distinguished Alumnus
Award is given out every two years. “The award is typically given out every other year because it’s the most coveted award here,” Eshelbrenner said. “It is meant to only be distributed somewhat sparingly, and that makes it that much more meaningful for those who do ultimately receive it.” In addition to ALEX ESHELBRENNER the Distinguished Alumnus Award, one other Distinguished Alumnus will be recognized, Victor Vescovo ‘84, who, because of the pandemic, was not honored two years ago. Additionally, two other awards will be presented, the Young Alumni Service Citation and the Alumni Service Medal. “Those are people that are giving back to the St. Mark’s community, in contrast to the Distinguished Alumnus Award, which isn’t necessarily focused on that,” Eshelbrenner said. Receiving these awards are Luke Kline ‘07, who will receive the Young Alumni Service Citation, and David Campbell ‘86, who will receive the Alumni Service Medal. For the Young Alumni Service Citation, the focus is on recognizing younger alumni in the community. “The Young Alumni Service Citation recognizes what a great, young alum looks like,” Eshelbrenner said. “It’s not necessarily about just giving resources, but rather giving time and energy, along with sharing what you learn from your time in university or in your first couple jobs.” In a similar vein, the Alumni Service Medal looks at community contributions through a longer period of time. “The Alumni Service Medal is almost like a ‘lifetime achievement award’ for volunteerism,” Eshelbrenner said. “Oftentimes, the awardees have served on the Board or have been involved in headmaster searches and on-campus projects. The main criteria is that they’ve had a significant impact on the school.” All events, except for the golf tournament and reunion class dinners, will be held on campus. STORY Zack Goforth, Aaron Liu PHOTO Courtesy Clark Hunt
EVENT
the
Here’s a look at the spring 2022 Alumni Weekend schedule. April 21 • Alumni Golf Tournament at Brookhaven Country Club
April 22 • Alumni Chapel • Alumni classes with Dr. Martin Stege- moeller, Doug Rummel and Stewart Meyer • Golden Lion Luncheon • Alumni Discussion • Alumni Dinner April 23 • Family cookout • Reunion class dinners
Lee Smith ‘65 Courage and Honor Award • This initial award is named for the school’s first Black graduate. • Preserving Smith’s legacy, the award is the school’s first new award since 1998. • The honor will be bestowed at the Spring Alumni Dinner.
LEE SMITH ‘65
Distinguished Alumnus Award Recipients 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1998 2002 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2018 2020 2022
P.O'B. Montgomery, Jr. ’38 Samuel W. Papert, Jr. ’37 Ray L. Hunt ’61 Tommy Lee Jones ’65 Carl Sewell ’61 Robert K. Hoffman ’65 Michael R. Levy ’64 William Clarkson IV ’66 Robert Decherd ’69 H. Ross Perot, Jr. ’77 Stephen T. Jurvetson ’85 Steve Miller ’61 S. Alan Stern ’75 Robert M. Edsel ’75 Kurt Eichenwald ’79 Kenneth Hersh ’81 John J. Nance ’64 Victor L. Vescovo ’84 Clark K. Hunt ’83
For complete Alumni Weekend coverage https://www.smtexas.org/alumni/ alumni-weekend-2022
the remarker april 14, 2022
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International Competition
Worldwide discourse Each year, students all around the globe take part in a research-and-debate-focused contest centered around a chosen topic of discussion. Here on campus, students involved in the club exerted a worthy effort in striving for first place.
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ith the press of a button, 9700 miles is circumvented in seconds. Nine thousand seven hundred miles. That’s the distance between Singapore and Dallas — the distance between the Singapore Ministry of Education and 10600 Preston Road. And that button press is the culmination of many long hours spent after school perfecting a craft — researching, writing and discussing. It’s a group of students’ magnum opus, a chance to truly compete on the global stage. And as the curtains fly aside, coming face-toface with schools such as The Singapore Ministry of Education was just one of the challenges members of the International Public Policy Foundation (IPPF) Club faced in a worldwide competition. Founded in 2001, the IPPF competition is an excellent opportunity for students to learn about topics that affect people all over the world, according to Director of Admission and Financial Aid and club sponsor David Baker, who has been affiliated with the club since its inception. “The idea is to have an international debate on a subject of importance that engages students from any place you can think of for nothing— it’s absolutely free,” Baker said. “In the past, we’ve debated things like climate change adaptation, global refugees, space exploration and many other things that kids from all over the world would be interested in.” Roughly 300 schools from 30 countries submit qualifying essays in November on the global topic determined by the foundation, according to Baker. “These essays are then distributed to judges all over the United States who read and grade them,” Baker said. “Once all the grades are submitted to the foundation, the best 64 are selected and are entered into the bracket. And then, once the teams are in the bracket, they are assigned an opponent and it’s them versus the other team.” In the head-to-head competition, each team is assigned either an affirmative or negative stance on the topic at hand assigned randomly by the foundation. “The affirmative defends the resolution and the negative negates it,” Baker said. “The affirmative then writes a rebuttal paper and then the negative writes a rebuttal paper. Once those four papers are in hand, two from each, all four papers go to three different judges, who read them and decide who they think did a better
LOOKING BACK Aakash Pattabi ‘15, Ammar Plumber ‘16, and Darwin Yang ‘15, took home the first place prize in the 2014-2015 IPPF competition, earning the $10,000 grand prize. Winning teams over the years compete from locations all around the globe.
job. Whoever wins the majority of the panel advances to the next round.” Eventually Team B, consisting of junior captain Noah Asmerom, junior captain Roome Becker, junior Myles Lowenberg, sophomore Sid Bidare and sophomore Bennett Applbaum advanced to the round of 16. “We each spent seven or eight hours on each paper either researching or writing, so we spent about 35 hours in total,” Baker said. “When you take into account that we wrote six total papers, you can see how our success is owed to the amount of time we put in it.” Additionally, working together and communicating was an instrumental part of the process, according to club captain Zayn Bhimani. “We started having meetings regularly, and we talked a lot about what arguments are most impactful and what arguments convey the ideas the best,” Bhimani said. “We spent a lot of time at the whiteboard drawing out arguments, considering what pluses and minuses they may have and how strategic they were.” However, despite their best efforts, the team fell in the round of 16. Nevertheless, Bhimani holds that the competition was an incredible experience and is almost a must-have for the future. Zayn Bhimani “The things I’ve learned researching these issues have been really impactful, irrespective of any specific career path,” Bhimani said. “You can go along with your life understanding a little more about what’s happening and the implications of things that happen in the real world. So it’s really a life skill that you gain, not just a debate skill.” Similarly, Becker believes the loss is only a testament to the IPPF competition’s alluring prospect. “I don’t see it as a negative thing,” Becker said. “Losing to a team from Singapore just shows how special this competition is. We had the chance to compete against teams from Mongolia and other teams from the States, and it was a really cool experience that I’d recommend all underclassmen try.” STORY Zack Goforth, Aaron Augustine PHOTO Courtesy ippfdebate.com
Past Decade’s IPPF Champions 2020-21 Slovak National Team, Bratislava, Slovakia 2018-19
Notre Dame High School, Sherman Oaks, CA
2017-18 LEAF Academy, Bratislava, Slovakia 2016-17
Westfield Academy, West Hartford, CT
2015-16 Plano Senior High School, Plano, TX 2014-15 St. Mark’s School of Texas 2013-14: Hamilton High School, Chandler, AZ 2012-13 Shanley High School, Fargo, ND 2011-12
Team Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic
2010-11 Plano Senior High School, Plano, TX
FORMER CHAMPS In 2015, this trio (below) won it all. Current Marksmen chase their legacy as they compete in the IPPF competition every year.
i O LVe CALL ME
Here’s Olive Maurstad’s story — from Marksman to proud female teacher, she has perservered through both internal and external struggles. In light of Governor Abbott’s letter, community members share their initial reactions.
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live Marustad ‘16 doesn’t have a lot of memories from her time at St. Mark’s. She doesn’t have a lot of memories from her eight years here. Or her four years in the Classics Club. Or her four years on The ReMarker. There’s something going on inside of me. I don’t know what it is. I don’t know if anyone else feels this way. Olive, formerly known as Aidan, is a transgender woman. “I kind of just … checked out … of being a person for a while,” Maurstad said. “From my recollection, it was unthinkable that there would be a trans student walking through the halls.”
RECIPE FOR SUCCESS Olive Maurstad tutors one of her students on how to write a five-paragraph analytical essay at Fusion Academy Dallas.
The blank spots ended for Maurstad when she got to Pomona College, a small liberal arts school in southern California. “Not to disparage St. Mark’s in any way, but it
TAKING NOTES Former student Olive Maurstad ‘16 now teaches English at Fusion Academy individual student. The school’s educational philosophy has three main pillars: love, motivate a
was a lot different,” Maurstad said. “When I was there, I met other transgender people. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head — I could do that, too.” During her sophomore year of college, Maurstad slowly began to transition into a woman: identifying as female around certain groups of people before expanding those groups and eventually moving to more physical changes. “I wanted to take my time to make sure I knew what I was doing,” Maurstad said. “But there were also so many hoops I had to jump through to get started. I began taking hormones four years ago in August.” Hormone replacement therapy, i.e. taking estrogen and anti-androgens (medication that suppresses testosterone), is one of the many ways that transgender people move forward in their transition process, alongside choices like surgery or legally changing their name. Maurstad remembers how difficult it was to initially receive her prescription. “The whole process is an endless humiliation,” Maurstad said. “You have to stand before all these different people and ask them, ‘Can I have this medication that will save my life?’ And they’ll say, ‘I don’t know. Tell me the most vulnerable things about you.’” When asked about coming out, Maurstad described it as a “really weird process.” “It’s terrifying, even when you know the person will react well,” Maurstad said. “Because you can never know if they actually will. Also, we act like coming out is ‘one and done’ because of how it’s phrased. But, the more I go through life, the more I realize that you never stop coming out. There are always people who you’ll have to share this vulnerable part of yourself with.” When she first approached her parents, she had
indepth
imagined writing a letter detailing all of her feelings and motives. “What ended up happening is my mom said, ‘You should get a haircut, your hair is really long.’ I was like, ‘Oh, actually, I can’t do that. Because I want to grow it out. Because I’m trans. Bye!’” Maurstad said. “Afterwards, we all sat down to have a long conversation about it, and continued to process for six more months.” Looking back on it now, Maurstad finds it difficult to remember what her actual transition was like. Having lived as a woman for so long, she recognizes how strange the process is. “When you’re in the early stages of transitioning, you’re so constantly aware of like, ‘I’m saying I’m a girl, but I look like a boy. People must think I’m a lunatic,’” Maurstad said. “At least for me, the person who was most doubtful of my transition was myself.” As far as adversity goes, Maurstad feels that she’s been lucky. She hasn’t lost any friends, and even the particularly religious side of her family has been accepting. On a larger scale, however, she finds it scary to live in Texas as a trans person. “I don’t want to sound like I’m catastrophizing, but every time I see something trans-related in the news, I get a little closer to leaving the state,” Maurstad said. “With every measure that passes I think, what next?” Most recently, Governor Greg Abbott ordered investigations into parents and licensed facilities that provide gender-affirming care to transgender minors. Abbott’s order was based on Attorney General Ken Paxton’s recent non-binding interpretation of the law, which classified puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgical care as child abuse. “I had been teaching a class, and when class ended I found the news alert on my phone,”
by the
numbers Source: LGBT Movement Advancement Project, U.S. Trans Survey
2
percent of high school students identify as transgender
1.3
million transgen people age 17 younger
pubescence.” She also emphasized how inaccurate she feels the narrative around hormone therapy is. “People talk about how hormone therapy will create irreversible, lifelong changes,” Maurstad said. “It actually takes a long time to do anything. When I started it, it took six months for physical changes to even begin. There’s almost this trial period built into the medication, where you have months to figure out whether it makes you feel more comfortable psychologically.” Maurstad doubled down on her thought that it isn’t neutral to not medically intervene. “If a child who is expressing that they are trans is forced to wait, they’ll go through a very traumatizing time,” Maurstad said. “Imagine if you, as a man, started growing breasts and menstruating. You’d be telling the people around you, ‘This stuff is happening with my body that I don’t want to happen,’ and they’d respond ‘Just wait. It’s fine.’” One specific part of y Dallas, an institution that prides itself on its one-on-one personalized education for each Abbott’s letter stood out to and teach. Olive enjoys working there because of the personalized focus and accepting culture. Marustad as particularly dangerous. Maurstad said. “I was reading through the letter, and “The letter requires I froze. My first thought was ‘Oh my god. What am I teachers and caregivers to let the parents know if their going to do about my trans students?’” child expresses that they’re trans,” Maurstad said. “I Speaking to impressions she’s seen following don’t have the statistics in front of me, but trans youth Abbott’s directive, Maurstad emphasized that are far overrepresented in the homeless population “doctors aren’t handing out hormones like candy.” because their parents kick them out. It feels like “In Texas, that couldn’t be farther from the truth,” intentional cruelty because if a kid is talking to a Maurstad said. “There’s all this fear-mongering, teacher about being trans, there’s a good chance it’s claiming that the trans agenda wants to give because they know their family won’t be accepting.” estrogen to five-year-olds. No — there is no medical intervention until the age where puberty might onset, Stephanie Anderson, mother of former St. Mark’s and even then, the intervention is only delaying and current Harvard-Westlake student Sylvee
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nder 7 or
FRoM LetteR to LaW
Talking with District Attorney John Creuzot about Abbott’s letter surrounding trans youth.
What does the letter mean? It directs the Department of Family and Protective Services to investigate the families and care providers of transgender children, citing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s opinion of what constitutes child abuse. Further, he calls for “licensed professionals” and “members of the general public” to report suspected cases of parents assisting transgender minors seeking gender-affirming treatment and procedures. “Anything related to gender issues could potentially be child abuse,” Dallas District Attorney John Creuzot said. “And that included counseling, medication… it didn’t seem to exclude anything.”
We’re talking about doctor-patient relationships and parent-child relationships, and criminalizing these relationships when someone is seeking help.
What are the legal ramifications of this declaration? Absolutely none. No court in the U.S. has said that gender-affirming care constitutes as child abuse. “[The letter] doesn’t impact the courts,” Creuzot said. “Their announcement is void, since it doesn’t really mean anything as far as the law is concerned.
What now? A Texas Third Court of Appeals, presided by Judge Amy Clark Meachum, has reinstated a temporary injunction, prohibiting the state from investigating parents providing gender-affirming care. Any further enforcement of Abbott’s directive is blocked until the litigation is resolved.
52
percent decrease in suicidal thoughts seen in trans youth with supportive families
27
percent of trans youth say their families are very supportive
So what are the effects of the letter? “It impacts the relationships between the person and therapist, because therapists can be accused of child abuse by just meeting and by guiding and giving therapeutic advice,” Creuzot said. “It doesn’t necessarily have to have an impact in the courtroom to affect someone’s life. Just the mere statement that it’s illegal can cause other people to stop assisting.” After the letter was sent out, UT Southwestern closed the only youth transgender clinic in the region.
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percent of trans Americans experienced homlessness in 2020
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Anderson, made the decision to move her family out of Texas to keep her transgender child safe. “When we started hearing about the possibility of prosecution for parents and caregivers, it really bothered us,” Anderson said. “We didn’t think those bills would pass, which they didn’t, but it’s hard enough to be a teenager. And to be a teenager under that much political pressure? It would’ve been really difficult for Sylvee.” As the Andersons began conversations with the school about their plans to leave, Stephanie felt very appreciative of the support they These healthcare practices are life-saving received. for a lot of trans individuals. Their suicide rate is already so high –– why criminalize “As she another aspect of their lives?” began her transition, we ANNiE HURLEY felt that St. Hockaday Queer Student Union co-chair Mark’s wasn’t going to be the best place for Sylvee,” Anderson said. “Society as a whole hasn’t really figured out what to do with transgender children who go to single-sex schools. What was nice for us is that we never felt rejected — we were having very respectful, caring conversations with them, but just decided that it would be better for Sylvee to find another place to go to school.” With the implications of Abbott’s letter, Hockaday junior Annie Hurley, co-chair of policy awareness for her school’s Queer Student Union, feels horrified for her brother Julian, who used to attend Hockaday, and other trans individuals in the state of Texas. “If you can’t come out at home, and you can’t come out to your family, then Annie hurley you’re going to try to find communities at school or with people that are going to accept you,” Hurley said. “But if your teachers and doctors are going to have to contact CPS [Child Protective Services] and tell your parents, it creates a feeling of absolute isolation and distrust because there’s no one to reach out to.” Hurley’s co-chair Hockaday junior Aubrey Burns, a transgender male himself, hopes to be able to receive gender-affirming surgery before he leaves for college. Following the news, he has noticed a lot of fear among his trans friends. “I know this can be very, very scary for the trans community –– I’m feeling that fear myself,” Burns said. “But, I just want to remind the readers, allies and supporters that we are stronger than this. We have survived much aubrey burns worse than this. These new policies and letters coming out surrounding trans individuals may be extremely harmful, but it’s no use backing down. This is just fuel to keep fighting back and standing together. Now is not the time to feel disheartened.” Acknowledging that Abbott’s letter is not law, Maurstad still fears for how much more restrictive Texas laws will get — what is the path forward for transgender Texans? “We will get through this how our community has gotten through everything — together,” Maurstad said. “The one thing that really keeps me here in Dallas is how consistently inspired I am by the solidarity between queer people. Everyone just wants to keep each other safe.” STORY Austin Williams, Peter Orsak, Jonathan Yin, Toby Barrett, Keshav Krishna PHOTOS Sal Hussain
percent of trans Americans have been homeless at some point
70
percent of trans in a shelter reported harassment, sexual or phyical assault due to their identity
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culture
the remarker april 14, 2022
arts &
STudent Videography
Camera man
my instagram
Ever since the idea of taking sports videos first popped into his head, freshman Sam Light has been improving his craft. We sat down with him and asked him about what keeps him going.
A look at freshman Matthew Freeman’s photography from his Instagram account, @mathewfreemanphoto, In his own words:
How did you first get started as a videographer? Sam Light: In 2020, I saw a tiktok about someone who filmed for the NFL. I had previously had a passion for photography, so I thought it would be an interesting thing to try out. A few weeks later, I found an old family camera and went to one of the St. Mark’s pre-season basketball games. Who’s one of your big inspirations? SL: Definitely [junior] Sal Hussain. I remember he reached out to me when he first saw one of my first edits. He told me to stay consistent and taught me the basics. What’s your favorite project that you’ve done? SL: One of my favorite experiences being a videographer was when I got reached out by a sports media company to cover a big basketball tournament in Atlanta, Georgia. I got to fly out to Atlanta for the first time and filmed a tournament with around 10,000 people in attendance and got to meet over 20 videographers and photographers.
I drove to downtown Plano for this photo. I was walking and I saw the bush and the train, and I tried to use the bush as a framing element for the train. I didn’t really have much inspiration. I thought it was cool and different.
Who are some of the people you’ve gotten to know as a result of this? SL: I’ve gotten to be around a lot of famous basketball players including Lebron James Jr. I’ve also gotten to talk to Mikey Williams and the YouTuber Deestroying. STORY Dawson Yao PHOTOS Courtesy Sam Light
culture in brief
This flower is my dad’s, so I decided to take a picture of it. The assignment was “close-up nature.” I put a black background behind it because it made the pink petals pop out more.
CHOIR CONCERT The annual spring choir concert was held in Decherd Performance Hall April 12 at 7 p.m. The Upper School choir, led by choirmaster Glenn Stroh, performed their ISAS program, featuring songs from a variety of genres, ranging from southern folk songs, to country songs and to religious hymns. The concert, unlike their typical Evensong program, allows the choir to showcase a variety of secular pieces outside of their normal repertoire.
LOWER SCHOOL ADMISSION Incoming Lower School Students will be welcomed with the Ice Cream Social April 19 at the Lower School playground. The Ice Cream Social will be an opportunity for the 51 incoming Lower School students to get to know their peers before the 20222023 school year. This is the first time this event has taken place in person since April 2019, as the past two Ice Cream Socials were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
BAND CONCERT The spring band concert will occur April 26 at 6:30 p.m. in Decherd Performance Hall. The concert will be held in memory of the late band director Timothy Hicks, who passed away earlier last month. During the concert, the band will be directed by interim band director Darrington White, who is currently leading band classes.
LANGUAGE EXAMS Language proficiency exams were taken in the past two months. All levels of the NSE, the National Spanish Exam, were taken March 28-April 1. Results for the NSE will be sent out early May. 40 students took levels three, four or five of the HSK, or the Chinese Proficiency Test, in December. 37 Chinese language students obtained an HSK certificate. All levels of the
for the arts enthusiast NLE, the National Latin Exam, were taken March 10-11 by nearly every student in Latin classes. Results for this year’s NLE will return by April 20, 2023. Last year, 30/78 Latin students who took the NLE received a gold medal, and seven of those 38 received a perfect score. This year is the second year in which the NLE was taken online. MOTHER SON PICNICS The Parents’ Association will host mother/son picnic events for the Junior and Senior Classes April 14 and April 20, respectively. At lunchtime, mothers are invited to bring their sons a homemade or store-bought meal. Both events will take place in the amphitheater outside of Decherd Auditorium. The picnic, a longstanding Junior Class tradition, was unable to take place last year due to COVID-19 protocols, which is why both classes are taking part this year.
inside
This week Today Dallas Symphony Orchestra: Jun Markl - Dvorak’s New World Symphony at the Meyerson Symphy Center Jesus Christ Superstar showing at Fair Park’s music hall
What students were up to at and photos from the ISAS (Independent Association of the Southwest) Arts Festival.
Seventh grader Noah Dolle on how he got into ballet dancing and his plans for continuing ballet in the future.
April 22 Fort Worth Opera: La Traviata at Bass Performance Hall Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles at the Majestic Theatre
Friday The Music of Laurel Canyon at the Casa Mañana Monday Animals as Leaders concert at the House of Blues
April 24 TexasFest Dallas at Simpson Plaza
Tuesday Beth Hart concert at the Majestic Theatre
April 26 Summer: The Donna Summer Musical at Winspear Opera House
Wednesday Joe Rogan concert at Dickies Arena Poetry Smash at the Clarence Muse Cafe Theater
April 29 The Great Divide showing at Billy Bob’s Texas
headliners
17ISAS ARTS FESTIVAL
18NOAH DOLLE
UPCOMING
April 23 Ubbi Dubbi Arts Festival at the Panther Island Pavilion Disney’s Descendants showing at Casa Mañana
videogames This photo was for an emulation assignment. The Freshman Class gets an assignment where we have to emulate a photographer of our choice. I emulated Edward Weston, who specialized in manipulating light. With that, I tried to shine light specifically on the chair so that it got cool shadows and cool highlights against the black background.
PHOTO READY Sports videography has allowed freshman Sam Light to combine his love of sports and his love of photography into one hobby.
movies Nintendo Switch Sports
April 29
Brigandine
May 11
Deliver us the Moon
May 19
concerts
albums David Sedaris
April 26
Coldplay
May 6
T-Pain
May 18
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
April 15
Father Stu
April 15
The Northman
April 22
Giving the World Away, Hatchie
April 22
Official Release April 29 Series Vol 4, Neil Young So Far So Good, The Chainsmokers
May 13
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ISAS
Marksmen display their art talent As part of the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest, the school sent students from all fine art programs to showcase their year-long work at Parish Episcopal School and the Greenhill School April 8. From photography to ceramics to orchestra, students got to see it all. STRING SUPREMACY Upper School orchestra members prepare for their performance.
DRAWN TO THE IMAGE Senior Evan Lai, after exhibiting his own photography work, takes a look at other student art.
LION GALLERY A collection of Marksmen photography exhibited at the festival.
FRESH AIR Senior Marksmen take a break outside in between events.
CRITIQUE Senior Marksmen inspect fellow classmates’ ceramics pieces.
PHOTOS Ekansh Tambe, Evan Lai COMPILATION Shreyan Daulat, Dillon Wyatt, Arjun Khatti
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the remarker april 14, 2022
BALLEt dANCER
Putting his best foot forward Seventh-grader Noah Dolle started ballet lessons at the age of six and has continued to practice and perfect this unique talent. Practicing weekly and performing often, ballet has a huge part in his life. Here’s his story of how he got involved with ballet and his experience pursuing a passion unfamiliar to most Marksmen.
right. Because when he’s on the ballet stage — or even just practicing with his instructor — he feels like he could do it all day. That’s why he is so grateful his parents signed him up for ballet lessons at the age of six in London, his birthplace. That’s why he was so disheartened when the African city his family moved to for a couple years didn’t have a dance studio nearby; so he was overjoyed when his family moved to Dallas, where he quickly began lessons with a dance company. That’s why to this day, and for the foreseeable future, Dolle is proud to call himself a ballet dancer — a talent unfamiliar to almost all Marksmen. Dolle and his family came to Dallas when he was 11 years old, and he immediately started taking weekly group lessons at the Dallas Ballet Company. “I take group lessons for one and a half hours every Friday,” Dolle said. “They consist mainly of dance workouts. My instructor is Mr. Brent, and he teaches pretty much every boys’ dance class. He is a retired ballet performer and the owner of the company.” Even beyond a dance coach, Mr. Brent has become a mentor for Dolle as he continues to mature. “He’s a lot of fun to learn from and a good mentor,” Dolle said. “He’s really easy to talk to, and I enjoy his company. If two people have a strong passion for something, they are automatically connected in some way, so Mr. Brent and I got along really well from the start.” In addition to lessons with his instructor, Dolle participates in the occasional performance in front of a crowd. He is sometimes nervous about a couple things, though. “We do performances every couple months, and it’s a lot of fun,” Dolle said. “Like any performance, there are some nerves when going on stage. But part of ballet is being fluid with your
body, so it’s important that I relax. It usually isn’t a problem for me, and once I get on stage, I tend to forget about everything else going on. We do a variety of performances including Nutcracker every year in the month of December.” In addition to being relaxed on stage, Dolle also consistently works on his balance and flexibility off the stage to be the best performer possible. “A good range of motion is crucial for all ballet dancers, and a lot of the motions we do require you to be on one foot,” Dolle said. “So you must have good balance as well. I do a lot of exercises with my coach to improve these two things.” Dolle sees many benefits to ballet, and he has formed meaningful relationships because of it. “My favorite part of ballet is a combination of getting to perform in front of people and getting to know the people I’m performing and practicing with,” Dolle said. “Most of the people I perform and practice with are from lessons I take, so I know them pretty well.” He doesn’t know what the future holds in terms of his ballet career, but he is certainly hopeful. “Ballet is a really good hobby of mine. It’s something I enjoy doing, and I’d say if I had the opportunity I’d definitely want to pursue it through high school and college.” Dolle would certainly recommend that any interested Marksman gives ballet a try. For him, there are many benefits. “I don’t want to force this hobby of mine onto anyone, but if you have a dance background, ballet is a unique niche that you might love,” Dolle said. “But if you have no experience, it might be tougher to pick up. However, don’t let the fear of uncertainty stop you, because you could miss out on an amazing hobby like it is for me.” STORY Shreyan Daulat PHOTOS Courtesy Noah Dolle
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wirling with his weight on one toe. Elegantly completing a series of agile jumps. Performing in front of sizable audiences. For seventh-grader Noah Dolle, this feels just
Seventh-grader Noah Dolle
TWIRLING TOGETHER Noah Dolle (second from left) swings his three partners around in this ballet move. The group is performing at Northpark Mall, where a large audience gathers and cheers them on.
AP ceramics course to be offered to seniors starting in 2022-2023 school year by Aaron Liu new ceramics course, AP ceramics, will be offered for seniors starting in the 2022-2023 school year, as a continuation course for students who have already taken three years of Upper School ceramics courses. Ceramics instructor Scott Ziegler hopes that the class will act as another way for students to share their work. “AP ceramics has been an idea of mine for the last few years,” Ziegler said. “This would ideally be students that have been working in the ceramics studio for the last three years.” The portfolio consists of two parts, with each part focusing on a different skill. “The first section is breadth, where students show a variety of techniques—
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for example, hand building, throwing or a combination of the two,” Ziegler said. “It shows a variety of different abilities within that student. The second section is their focus, and that shows students building up content through a series of work.” At the end of the course, students are offered an opportunity to have their work evaluated for AP credit. “Instead of an exam, like most AP classes, students submit a portfolio of work at the end of April,” Ziegler said, “and a panel of experts in New York will view the work and then score using the AP scale, with five being the top score.” The course will serve as an alternative to ceramics III honors, the
course currently taken by both juniors and seniors. “Right now, there’s ceramics I, which any Upper Schooler can take, and after that is ceramics II, or Advanced ceramics,” Ziegler said. “Ceramics III is the advanced honors class, and in the past, fourth-year students would repeat that course again senior year. Now that we’ve changed it, seniors have the option of taking AP ceramics instead.” Ziegler recommends the course for students looking for another opportunity to share their work. “If they want to build up that portfolio and get that feedback, or just to get AP credit for whatever school they’re going to, that would be a good
reason to take the AP class,” Ziegler said. In addition to the AP ceramics course, ceramics students will also be offered other opportunities to share their work and get feedback. “I think it’s incredibly important for students to be able to show their work, and ever since I first started here, I’ve been working with students to build up content and express their ideas,” Ziegler said. “For my ceramic students, there’s a couple shows that students like to exhibit their work at, like Young American Talent and the ISAS Arts Festival. This course is just another opportunity for students to exhibit their work and get feedback from experts within that field.”
the remarker april 14, 2022
reviews
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Nature Centers
A step in nature
Whether it’s for a quick break from schoolwork or a weekend family outing, nature centers are a great way to take a step back and enjoy the natural world around us. Here are our favorite nature centers in the Dallas area.
The Dallas Arboretum: a reliable choice
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he Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden is a beautiful spot right along White Rock Lake. Around this time of the year, the arboretum’s world-renowned tulip collection garners thousands of visitors each day. The extensive flower beds and landscaping make the arboretum a great place to have a stroll and just relax. It’s a huge complex, and it’d definitely take a couple of hours to walk the entire thing. The only drawback of the arboretum — in comparison to other nature centers — is that it’s a bit too commercialized for my liking. Nature combined with occasional weddings,
state-of-the-art buildings and outdoor cooking classes creates an odd feeling while walking around, but that’s how most arboretums are, anyway. But if you’re looking for a place to enjoy what nature has to offer without putting on bug spray or having to walk on unpaved trails, the arboretum should be your go-to spot. On top of that, from April 11 to July 31, there are discounted admission tickets, so I would definitely recommend you go check it out. But don’t be looking for deer, wild boars or any notable wildlife, because you won’t find any — you might spot a squirrel and some insects.
The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden 8525 Garland Rd, Dallas, TX 75218 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun-Sat $12 for children under 12 $20 for adult admission
Cedar Ridge Preserve: a true wilderness experience
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hen you’re at Cedar Ridge Preserve, you’d think you were hiking in Colorado. I mean, hills? In Dallas? Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit, but that’s still pretty cool. Definitely give this location a try if you’re feeling adventurous or up for a challenging hike. There are tons of trails to choose from, and they’ll lead you to a variety of places, including a bluebonnet field, the top of a hill and a fish pond. I will say that the majority of people who come to Cedar Ridge are
Cedar Ridge Preserve 7171 Mountain Creek Pkwy, Dallas, TX 75249 Closed Mondays 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Tue-Sun Free admission, but donations encouraged
people that have been coming here for a while. Almost everyone I saw had their routine — they were either beginning their three mile jog through the woods or leashing up their dog for a morning walk. Oh, speaking of dogs, the smell of dog poop will follow you through parts of the trail — I guess the dogs can really connect with themselves out here. Jokes aside, this is my favorite nature center in Dallas. It’s authentic, has its own flair and you’ll really feel like you’re in the wilderness.
John F. Burke Nature Preserve: a pick close to home
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he single biggest drawback about any of these places is always going to be the distance they are from the local area. The fact of the matter is that the school is in an area without much nature, so driving upwards of 30 minutes to get to a nature preserve is more or less unavoidable. The John F. Burke Nature Preserve, however, is one of the closest to St. Mark’s, and the travel time is reduced even more by its proximity to a highway. This proximity to a highway, however, is both a blessing and a curse, as, depending on the time of day, the sound of cars rushing by has the potential to shatter any natural peace you may have
been seeking by going to the reserve. The marshy environment is tranquil and pretty but certainly not anything breathtaking. The marshiness was a nice change of pace from other nature reserves in the area, but it also meant that certain parts of the trail were pretty water-logged, so definitely don’t wear any nice shoes here — you might want to consider wearing boots. Overall, the John F. Burke Nature Preserve might not be as eye-catching as similar nature preserves, but the convenience of the short travel time from Preston Hollow is enough to trump any other shortcomings it might have.
John F. Burke Nature Preserve 1111 Valley View Ln, Farmers Branch, TX 75234 Open daily from dawn to dusk Free admission and parking
STORY Shreyan Daulat, Will Spencer
Elden Ring: a video game masterpiece by Will Spencer ans of video games have an extremely bad habit of hyping up a new title for months, only for that title to totally drop the ball and disappoint everybody. It seems that gamers have an uncannily consistent ability to pick exactly the worst titles to support, to the point where mainstream pre-release hype seems to be an accurate predictor for which titles not to buy. So, when I began to see news articles and forum discussion popping up anticipating the release of Elden Ring, it goes without saying that the precedent of hype over the last few years made me a little anxious about the fate of the game. Elden Ring, however, did not disappoint. The game had an unimaginable wave of hype behind it — so much so that it seemed
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Release Date: Feb. 25, 2022 Developer: FromSoftware Inc. Popular Platforms: PlayStation, Xbox, Microsoft Windows
impossible for the game to live up to those expectations. Elden Ring not only met those expectations; but exceeded them. The game’s scale is massive; but, unlike the vast majority of open-world titles, it’s also chockfull of unique things to do. Like other games made by From Software, the story is not the selling point of the game; but the developers have nevertheless put their full effort into crafting a compelling atmosphere and texture for the game to take place in. The fantasy novelist George R. R. Martin of Game of Thrones fame was personally involved in Elden Ring’s development and provided material for the game’s setting. For those worried about the legendary difficulty of the games by From Software, most known for the Dark Souls franchise,
you should be assured that the game is, in some ways, quite a bit more accessible than other titles by the same developer. The game still presents a serious challenge, but, if you’re having trouble, there are definitely certain playstyles and game mechanics intended to lower the difficulty curve. Overall, Elden Ring was From Software’s most ambitious game yet, and every single aspect of the title — from music, to visuals, to game mechanics, to character design and to story and atmosphere — is near perfection. It’s hard to think of a single criticism for the game, except for its performance issues on certain personal computers. For once, I’m glad that a highly anticipated game was finally able to live up to the hype, and I can’t wait for what From Software has to offer us in the future.
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editorials &
MAIN EDITORIAL
Gov. Abbott, AG Paxton — show decency for Texan trans kids Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton’s directive and opinion are dangerous and cruel. They must repeal it.
the remarker april 14, 2022
student newspaper of st. mark’s school of texas 10600 preston road dallas, texas 75230 214.346.8000 Editorial Board editor in chief AUSTIN WILLIAMS assignments editor WILL PECHERSKY editorials & opinions editor AXEL ICAZBALCETA graphics director COOPER COLE head photographer EVAN LAI indepth editor JONATHAN YIN managing editors TOBY BARRETT PETER ORSAK publications photo editor EKANSH TAMBE Section Editors arts & culture, life & 10600 SHREYAN DAULAT WILL SPENCER health & sports ARJUN KHATTI DILLON WYATT discovery & stem, news & issues KESHAV KRISHNA MYLES LOWENBERG Focus Magazine editors MORGAN CHOW IAN DALRYMPLE Advertising business manager IAN MIZE
PHOTO Ted Eytan/Creative Commons
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n late February, a combination of an opinion from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and a directive from Texas Governor Greg Abbott stated that parents who provide gender-affirming care to their transgender children could be investigated and have their kids taken away from them on charges of child abuse. These actions have sparked national outrage and statewide panic as parents began to worry they may lose their children for providing them the care they need. However, these initial reactions may prove to not be necessary, as details of the true effect of these actions come to light. The legality of this directive is highly questionable. Concerning Paxton’s issued opinion, it is just that: an opinion. Legally, opinions only constitute an interpretation of existing laws, but do not serve as laws themselves. This means the law surrounding what constitutes child abuse has not been changed, only how it is enforced. Paxton had to resort to this legal strategy after the Texas legislature did not pass a law making gender affirming care for minors a felony. Concerning Abbott’s directive, no court in all of the United States has ever ruled that providing gender affirming care to a minor constitutes child abuse. Not one. In fact, Judge Amy Clark Meachum in Travis County issued an injunction on this directive last month, citing a violation of the Texas Constitution. As with Paxton’s opinion, Abbott’s directive arose out of a desire to circumvent the legislative branch after this part of the Texas government failed to deliver them the legislation they wanted. This means Texan courts are very unlikely to actually prosecute
families for providing gender affirming care to their children. This political maneuver and scare tactic employed by Abbott and Paxton will not bring nightmarish consequences to transgender kids and their families in Texas. What the two actions have in common, however, is belonging to the trend of Texas politicians scrambling to pass radical, unpopular legislation ahead of election season, after their primary opponents decried them as “not conservative enough.” As with SB 8 — the highly restrictive abortion bill that came into effect September of last year — these policy decisions do not come from a genuine desire to do Texans’ political will, but as political tools to appease an increasingly radical part of the Texas electorate. While we understand there are people who consider children to be too young to know they are transgender and thus support these actions, the facts point towards the opposite being true. These kids know who they are. To deny them the ability to express themselves as who they truly are is cruel and dangerous. In an interview, Melissa Holt, an associate professor in counseling psychology at Boston University, says children as young as three years old begin to have an awareness of gender and their own gender. As early as ages three to five, children are able to sense their assigned gender does not match with their self-perceived gender. The argument of “they’re too young to know” falls apart when viewed from a scientific lens. Professor Holt goes on to say the reason gender dysphoria — “psychological distress that results from an incongruence between
one’s sex assigned at birth and one’s gender identity,” according to the American Psychiatry Association (APA) — is much more commonly seen in teenagers is because of external pressures from one’s family or society at large to suppress such feelings. Furthermore, the decision to go forward with gender-affirming care is not a light one. Current regulations from the APA require the manifestation of gender dysphoria in at least two major forms — such as “a strong desire to be treated as the other gender” and “a strong conviction that one has the typical feelings and reactions of the other gender” — for a period of at least six months. These decisions aren’t made on a whim. These are serious, medical procedures that take time and conviction. To say “it’s just a phase” is dismissive and ignorant, not to mention hateful. And the necessity to provide gender-affirming care can be a matter of life and death. Fifty-six percent of transgender youth in the United States have attempted suicide, according to a study published in the National Library of Medicine. Fifty-six percent. These numbers are a result of hostile environments, from the way society treats transgender individuals to the laws surrounding their mere existence. Preventing transgender kids from getting gender affirming care will only make their suicide rate go up in Texas. If Texan state officials, specifically Governor Abbott and Attorney General Paxton, want to reclaim legitimacy in their role as doers of Texans’ will, they must repeal this opinion and directive.
RESOURCES The Trevor Project
The world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people. Website: https://www. thetrevorproject.org Crisis helpline: 866-488-7386, or text START to 678678
Equality Texas
Equality Texas works to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Texans through political action, education, community organizing and collaboration. Website: https:// www.equalitytexas. org
Texas Transgender Alliance Resource Guide An interactive map with transgenderfriendly healthcare centers and other LGBTQ centers around Texas. Website: https:// nrg.e-compas.com/ TXTA
TxTransKids
A compilation of different legal resources for LGBTQ families, including ACLU Texas, Lambda Legal, Texas Freedom Network and more. Website: https://www. txtranskids.org
Writers BEN ADAMS AARON AUGUSTINE NIKHIL DATTATREYA ZACK GOFORTH GRANT JACKSON AARON LIU NOLAN MARCUS GRAYSON REDMOND DARREN XI DAWSON YAO Photographers ZACHARY BASHOUR HUDSON BROWN CHARLIE ESTESS PATRICK FLANAGAN WARNER HARTNETT SAL HUSSAIN AKASH MUNSHI LARS OCHS OWEN SIMON NEIL SONG TIGER YANG Adviser RAY WESTBROOK Headmaster DAVID W. DINI audience The ReMarker is intended for the students, faculty, staff and alumni community of St. Mark’s School of Texas. Press run is 4,000 copies, with more than 2,600 of those mailed out to alumni, courtesy of the school’s offices of External Affairs, Development and Alumni divisions. opinions and editorials Editorials represent the views of the Editorial Board and are not necessarily those of the Board of Trustees, administration, faculty or staff. All personal opinion columns, bylined with the writer’s name and photo, represent the views of that writer only and not necessarily those of The ReMarker, Board of Trustees, administration, faculty or staff. online viewing www.smtexas.org/remarker podcast @focalpointpodcast instagram @remarkernewspaper reader involvement The ReMarker encourages reader input through guest columns and story ideas. Contact the appropriate editor for suggestions. letters to the editor Letters to the editor are welcome and encouraged. They must be typed, signed and not exceed 300 words. E-mail submissions are not accepted. advertising Contact the business staff at 214.346.8145. We reserve the right to refuse any advertisement. Inclusion of an ad does not represent an endorsement by the school’s administration, faculty, or staff or ReMarker staff members. membership The ReMarker maintains membership in the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, New York City, NY; National Scholastic Press Association, Minneapolis, MN; and the Interscholastic League Press Conference, Austin.
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EDITORIAL
It’s time to stop making excuses: start cooking
Formalizing the Senior-Freshman Buddy Program will bring greater inter-class relationships, a benefit for all
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h, I could burn water. Everyone I’ve talked to seems to have their own reason for not cooking for themselves. Whether it’s “too hard”, “too expensive” or even “too messy,” there always seems to be some kind of barrier that renders the idea of nutritious, home-cooked meals out of reach. Why? Cooking isn’t hard. I know how that sounds, but it’s the honest truth. It’s a basic life skill necessary for our survival. I can see where the misconceptions about its looking up cooking on YouTube yields either too-intense Gordon Ramsay videos or basic-looking recipes that contain ingredients no one actually has in their fridge (where on earth does one buy a daikon radish, anyway?). Given of culinary media we receive that’s designed to entertain, with slo-mo shots MARCZEWSKi methods, and TOMEK Guest columnist kitchens full of expensive equipment and outlandish ingredients, the average person can be forgiven for thinking that cooking is something reserved for those born with “the gift.” And indeed, that kind of cooking is! Gourmet and professional cooking is hard, and those who do it are known
work ethics and self-destructive tendencies. But cooking at home doesn’t require knowing how to deconstruct an onion or remove Nor does it require the use of knives. All you need to cook a a recipe, a good knife and a 10inch skillet. That covers literally three-fourths of human cuisine. Leave the recipe-making and fancy plating to those who get steak and saut some veggies, and you’re well on your way to being able to feed yourself well for the next nuclear winter. And it’s not like I say this out of a desire to drag others into my hobby. Society simply needs people to be more knowledgeable about the food it eats. The pandemic proved that perhaps we won’t always be able to order takeout whenever we’re hungry, and the ongoing worldwide obesity crisis is primarily a result of people lacking awareness of what constitutes a healthy diet or lacking the means to stick to one. “Health foods” and “superfoods” are an upper class thing — no one living from to buy Whole Foods quinoa. knew a few essential weeknight recipes, we’d be less reliant on pre-packaged and takeaway meals, and in better health because of it.
fairly new program as compared to most other senior year programming, the Senior-Freshman Buddies program was started in the mid-2010s as a way for seniors to share the knowledge and wisdom they’ve accumulated over their four years in the Upper School with the freshmen. This program has since fostered inter-grade relationships and cooperation between the seniors and freshmen, bringing them more closely together. However, as this program is not as established as other senior programming, such as the Senior-Lower School buddies program or the Holiday Decorations committee, the strength of the program and its impact is not what it could be. This program usually comes by the individual initiative of a few seniors in the senior class, outside of all other senior planning committees, with less formal structure than other programming. By making the Senior-Freshman Buddy program a formal committee and part of senior planning, the strength and impact of the program would be greatly
increased. We would envision this program to take much the same form as the current Senior-Lower School Buddy program, with there being sporadic events during Community Time mixed in throughout the year. With our current two semester, four quarter format, we believe two meetings per quarter — which would equate to about one meeting per month — would be a good amount of interaction that could prove impactful to the freshmen. During this time, seniors could come in with a list of topics or one main topic to discuss with their freshman buddy and pass on advice. While the conversation may start with this predetermined topic, the discussion can and should evolve under time as the freshman starts asking the senior questions more pertinent to his We believe this model would foster a close relationship between seniors and freshmen, bringing together the two grades.
Important, meaningful relationships form naturally between classmates at this school, generally in classes as this is when students interact with each other most. However, this does mean that students have much fewer relationships with students in other grades, as most classes have people of only one grade level. While sports are a great and common way friends, we think creating another avenue for these relationships to form can only While we understand solidifying the Senior-Freshman Buddies program will of a core of seniors each year, a well-run to the Upper School community and bring at least the seniors and freshmen together, hopefully starting a trend that spills out into other grades. A strong sense of community makes this school the special place that it is, and goal.
CARD
report repo rt Senior Lounge
No Homework Weekend
The destruction of the Senior Lounge was embarrasing and regretful. Nonetheless, after a two week period, we believe lessons have been learned and it’s time to return the lounge.
While most teachers kept the no homework weekend policy at the end of the quarter, we were saddened to see a handful still assign work during this time.
@stmarksseniors22 The senior Instagram account has been a great way for the school community to keep up with seniors’ college commitments and celebrate their accomplishments.
Community Service hours Upper schoolers have once again Community Service requirement. April 4 deadline. This is out of line.
around the quad
STUDENTS AND FACULTY ANSWER OUR QUESTIONS
Spring Fling behavior There were too many behavioral issues at Spring Fling for students attending the dance to merit anything more than a failing grade. Our condolences to the organizers.
Alcohol use assemblies Dr. Ryan Travia’s talk to the Upper of alcohol on the mind and body was informative and well-delivered. We appreciate the time he took to speak to us.
Q: Seniors, what advice do you have for underclassmen as you leave the school?
Try new things, and don’t be afraid to take risks. Consequently, life will surprise you and reward your efforts.
Right now, you are an inferior version of yourself. Improvement comes at a cost, so make your future self proud.
JEFFREY CHEN Senior
SPENCER BURKE Senior
Take every opportunity possible, and try to be as friendly as possible. Eat breakfast.
Find your niche, and stick with it no matter what. Always stay close to your passion.
SAMUEL ELUEMUNOH Senior
DANIEL UGLUNTS Senior
Learn to find a balance in life. Grades are important, but also make sure you leave with a good memory of your time here.
Life goes on, you’ll end up where you need to be. Don’t stress over it too much.
DRAKE ELLIOTT Senior
MAXWELL CHUANG Senior
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OPiNiON
editorials &
My brothers and the table: how I learned to be an older brother
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window in our walk-in closet, flanked by a pair of folding plastic chairs. Hidden behind a curtain of haphazardly organized clothes, its wooden surface is scratched and stained, scarred by countless temper tantrums and accidental spills. It’s where I used to do battle — long afternoons spent daydreaming while I was supposed to be memorizing stroke orders and vocabulary for the tenth circle of hell known as Chinese after-school, even longer evenings crying over long division while my dad looked on, frustration emanating from his very being as he tried his hardest to stay patient. “Just think about it like this,” he’d say, stabbing his finger into the offending problem. “What do you need to carry over?” “The… two?” It was, in fact, not the two. Sadly, I was — and still am not — very good at math. If I were, then we wouldn’t have been in those situations, would we? But despite my unfailing incompetency, this table still holds a special place in my heart. And even though I moved my homework into my room long ago, I’ve learned far more at this table than any class could ever teach me. Throughout the years, it’s been my closest companion, my steadiest mentor. Coming home in the dark after a soul-crushing practice, barely able to muster the energy to get out of the car, I’m greeted enthusiastically at the door by my twin brothers. And all of my worries and responsibilities fade into the background, melted away by their beaming smiles. My bags are suddenly weightless, and I can’t help but smile myself. older brother, their caretaker, their advocate. Although they are 15 years old, they still have trouble formulating complete sentences. They still need help to properly hold a pencil. But I wouldn’t have it any other way — caring for my twin brothers has taught me the most important lessons in life. And it’s been an absolute blast. I’ll be the first to admit it — I’m probably not a very good brother. Between the raging tsunami of never-ending work in classes I can barely comprehend — why did I sign
up for physics C again? — and the constant cycle of water polo practices and games, I hardly have any time to spend with them. But when we do have time together, I often find myself at this table again, overlooking the cohort of Italian cypresses standing vigil in our backyard. Except instead of doodling absentmindedly in the margins of my PACE homework, now, eight years later, I’m holding Jessey’s hand as he fills out a seemingly indecipherable addition worksheet, reminding him to use his JONATHAN YiN fingers. I’m InDepth Editor looking into Jeffery’s beaming grin, and I can’t help but smile as I try to get him to tell me about his day — this time using complete sentences. I will forever cherish these moments, no matter how frustrating they can get. When Jeffery and Jessey were first diagnosed with autism, I was seven years old. I thought I knew exactly what it meant — that they would take all of my parents’ attention, that I would never have the relationships that my classmates had with their siblings. That they were different. And I hated them for it, no longer cared about my drawings, families. How wrong I was. As we’ve grown up together, we’ve grown closer together than I ever thought possible — something I will eternally be grateful for. So, thanks. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to be your big brother. You guys have taught me far more than you could ever realize — to walk a mile in others’ shoes. To love unconditionally. To always offer a helping hand. Although I will no longer be able to take care of my little brothers in person while I’m at college, I’ll always try to be the older brother, to everyone around me — the goofy mentor, the voice of reason. And, most importantly, an ever-present source of love. Maybe I’ll even bring the table.
Follow The ReMarker on Instagram at @remarkernewspaper Also follow Focal Point at @focalpointpodcast and listen on most major podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts Go to linktr.ee/theremarker for these links and more
CARTOON Cooper Cole
the remarker april 14, 2022
Mitski, the greatest artist I know: listen to her music
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have read thousands upon thousands of pages of English prose and poetry in my life, but none of it has surpassed the elegance and artistic essence of the lyrics sung by Japanese-American singersongwriter Mitski Miyawaki. The spoken word may move thousands to arms, but the sung word will move thousands to tears, and I believe the latter to be a more extraordinary feat. Here are a few of my favorite Mitski lyrics and the reasons why I realized I had not seen true art until I went to a Mitski concert in February of this year, surrounded by hundreds of little, Toss your dirty shoes in my washing machine heart / Baby, bang it up inside… / Baby, though I’ve closed my eyes / I know who you pretend I am “Washing Machine Heart” There are few worse feelings than mean to someone. Few worse feelings than thinking you hold a special place in someone’s heart, to think you’re placeholder. Personal growth is a long, arduous sad. You will make other people angry and sad. Feelings will be hurt, hearts will be broken, relationships will end. The best I can say about this process is that, if you are conscious of what you’re doing—you’re self-critical about yourself and willing to accept you’re not perfect—there will be a light at the end of the tunnel. There will be a better version of you whom you’ll eventually grow into. And this better, more mature, more compassionate version of you happiness and a million more good AXEL ICAZBALCETA things into your life Opinions Editor and the life of those around you. This developed version of you will, in a sense, make up for all the hurt feelings, broken hearts, and failed relationships, so long as you really do change the person you are. But if you’re not conscious of what you’re doing, you’re not self-critical, and learning, never growing, never realizing the damage you’ve done to others…. The light at the end of your tunnel will be a train barrelling towards you. This is what I learned from “Washing Machine Heart.” I don’t need the world to see / That I’ve been the best I can be, but / I don’t think I could stand to be / Where you don’t see me “Francis Forever” Not being seen sucks, but not being seen by that one person? Writhing in emotional pain. get over ourselves. Usually, this is the case when you’re crushing on someone. Your crush barely knows you, they don’t care what you’re doing. You may think you’re in love, but you’re not. You know maybe ten percent of the type of person they are. You made up the other ninety. Get over them. But when you really know someone, when you really love someone, and you start to feel invisible to them… Horrible. I don’t know what this feels like, and I don’t wanna find out. Nor do I want to be on the other side. I wouldn’t wish this pain onto my worst enemy, and if I put someone I love through this, I couldn’t live with myself. So my suggestion would be, if you’re starting to feel invisible, communicate. Let the person know you don’t feel as important to them as they say you are, and start a conversation for the both of you. It won’t be easy, it needs to be a twosided conversation, but you’ll save a lot of emotional troubles for both of you. And if you’re on the other side, either
do something to make them feel special again or let them go. Put in the effort to communicate if they really mean anything to you. There can be no in-between, for your and your loved one’s sake. This is what I learned from “Francis Forever.” Mom, I’m tired / Can I sleep in your house tonight?... / And I’ll leave once I figure out / How to pay for my own life too… / I’ll leave what I’m chasing / For the other girls to pursue / Mom, am I still young? / Can I dream for a few months more? “Class of 2013” Oh boy. Ever since I was accepted into college and practically “finished” the “important part” of my high school career (this is a horrible way to view high school, by the way), “Class of 2013” has been rattling around in my mind on loop. I’m terrified. I don’t exactly know what to do from now on. College won’t be too different from high school, so I won’t be completely lost there, but still. I don’t exactly know what to do from now on. The time to dream has come to an end. The time to make those dreams come true has come. The pressure is on, the expectations are high. All the work I’ve done for the past twelve years is, in a way, coming to a head. Time to do what I’ve dreamed of doing, for the rest of my life. And I am terrified. This is what I learned from “Class of 2013”. So, I don’t blame you / If you want to bury me in your memory / I’m not the girl I ought to be, but / Maybe when you tell your friends / You can tell them what you saw in me /And not how I turned out to be “Goodbye, My Danish Sweetheart” This is the first Mitski song I ever listened to, so I think that’s why I decided to include it last. As I’ve thought about the past four years of my high school experience, I cringe a lot. I was a very different, much more embarrassing person as a freshman, as a sophomore. The main reason for this was my immaturity, which, granted, can’t be changed, but it doesn’t make senioryear Axel not wince when he remembers the many stupid thing freshman-year Axel did. “Goodbye, My Danish Sweetheart” puts into music the sheer power of a lack of growth, one way or another, in personal relationships. For most of your relationships, you won’t be the mature, polished final product of a person you will leave the world as. For some people, they will never mature and grow up. And when this intersects with romance, the results are devastating. Too often, we fall in love with the perfect image we have of a person, not the person themself. And when that person doesn’t live up to our expectations, we are disappointed to horrible proportions. Sometimes, it’s the person with the image’s fault, sometimes it’s the person who didn’t live up to the image’s fault. Either way, people get hurt, and the result isn’t pretty. So don’t beat yourself up for not living up to the perfect image someone has of you; you’re not perfect. And try to love the genuine, imperfect person you’re with; it’ll be better for both of you. This is what I learned from “Goodbye, My Danish Sweetheart”. I think everyone who goes to this school for more than two years should listen to Mitski, lyrics on. We could all learn much from her. She sings to a deeper emotion that we tend to either ignore or suppress. It would be more useful to embrace these often more troublesome emotions. And of course, I would be remiss and regretful if I did not mention who got me into Mitski, who showed me the true meaning and artistry of her lyrics, and whose Mitski playlist I listen to: Chaelin, thank you, I love you.
Sports
Hangin’ Out With
Amogh Naganand
Many professional athletes have stood by odd superstitions throughout their playing careers. The ReMarker sits down with sophomore tennis player Amogh Naganand.
ATV DRIVER
Dominating the trails
Avid ATV driver Aditya Goel shares how he discovered the pastime, his favorite riding locations and why he enjoys it. How did you start your passion for ATVs? For the past 10 years or so, I’ve always been interested in them. I started when I was maybe three or four years old with a little electric one. And then eventually as I got older, I just kept upgrading and getting bigger and more powerful ones. Usually what I do is just go to ATV off-road parks and hills and jumps and whatnot.
What was your most memorable experience? Last summer, I went to El Paso with my dad on a road trip. It was about a 10-hour drive, and we took my ATV with us. The sand dunes in El Paso are amazing, and you get to just ride all over them. I had just gotten my license then, so I was also able to do some off-roading in an actual pickup, which was pretty cool.
What model are you currently sporting? I’ve owned about five of them in my lifetime, but right now I have a 2018 Honda Recon. I own it mostly for having fun in the dirt and such, but it’s also very useful to use around the house when doing yard work. It’s definitely helpful to have at home. And because I use ATVs so much, I think it makes sense that I actually own one compared to renting one every time.
What exactly is your superstition? The superstition is that I can’t ever say the score if I’m leading in the match; it doesn’t matter if it’s the game score or set score. If I’m winning, and I say the score to anyone, I believe I’ll end up losing the match. Why do you stick by this thinking? It stems from my belief that being overconfident leads to failure, and not saying the score when I am up is my own weird way of being humble, which sets me up for success. My superstition has never been wrong either. When did this superstition begin? When I was 12, there were several instances where I had been one point away from winning the set, and I would say the score before playing that point, then proceeded to lose. How do your teammates feel when you refuse to say the score? My teammates think I’m goofy, and they don’t believe in it. Sometimes they mess with me and ask me what the score is knowing I’m not going to say it. Have you had any other superstitions? The first one was when I was nine. I wore this new shirt to one of my bigger tournaments and won with it, and then I wore the same shirt to my next big tournament. It was just because I liked the shirt, but I actually ended up winning that tournament too. After that, I realized I was winning because of the shirt, so I wore it to the next one, which I also ended up winning.
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What are your go-to driving spots? There’s one toward the west side of Dallas that’s called Lonestar ATV Park. I like it because it’s casual and there’s always people there. And another one that’s really more catered toward dirt bikes but has a lot more jumps and courses is Trophy Club, which is about an hour north of where I live. Dirt bikes are something I’d like to try out maybe over the summer.
Who do you share your passion with? Definitely my dad. We love to hang out, and it’s honestly just a good time to bond when we’re out there. I’ve always had a thing for cars and driving, so ATVs were one of the earliest mediums that could get me exposed to that sort of thing, and we’ve been able to continue enjoying that passion ever since.
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Aditya Goel
Have you done anything competitive? There’s leagues you can join for different age levels, at least in Middle School and Upper School. I considered joining one, but the time commitment was just a lot. I mostly do it as a hobby and just for recreational purposes.
sports in brief SENIOR COMMITMENTS Two senior athletes recently announced that they will continue their respective sports at the collegiate level. Varsity track and field senior captain Samuel Eluemunoh, who has personal records of 160’8” in the discus and 47’1” in the shot put, will continue to compete in both events next spring at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH. During the fall, he will also play for the football team. The Kenyon Lords currently compete at the Division III level for track and field and football. Varsity basketball senior captain Corvin Oprea committed to the University of Rochester April 1 to continue playing on the hardwood. Oprea averaged 19.3 points and 6.4 rebounds a game this past season and helped the Lions reach the SPC semifinal game. JUNIORS AT NATIONALS Juniors Zane Wallace and Jack Jackson competed at the Nike
Indoor Nationals in Staten Island March 11-13. In his two events, Wallace placed sixth in long jump with a 22’1.75” mark and tenth in triple jump with a 44’11” mark. Jackson kicked off his competition in the 200-meter dash preliminaries, placing eighth with a time of 22.42 seconds, which qualified him for the championship the following day. In the 200-meter dash championship, he took 7th, recording a time of 22.52 seconds. Jackson finished his competition with the 60-meter and 55-meter emerging elite races, in which he ran 7.30 and 6.81 seconds respectively. SCHOOL RECORDS IN TRACK Just over a month into the spring season, seniors Sahil Dodda and Fisayo Omonije etched their names into the track and field record books. Dodda, who already held the 3200-meter and cross country 5000-meter school records, ran
9:10.29 in the 2-mile race at the Texas Relays March 26, breaking his previous time by just decimal points. Additionally, Dodda set two completely new school records, running 4:17.63 in the 1600-meter race at the BVU Invitational March 12 and 14:33.20 in the 5000-meter race at the Texas Distance Festival March 19. Omonije, primarily a 400 and 800-meter runner, set a new 800-meter record with a time of 1:54.87 at the Texas Distance Festival March 19. He ran in the fastest of 13 heats and placed 11th overall out of over 150 runners.
Today Varsity tennis vs. Casady at home at 4:45 p.m. Varsity baseball vs. Casady at home at 5 p.m. Varsity lacrosse at ESD at 7:30 p.m. Friday Varsity water polo Keller Invitational begins at Keller ISD Varsity track & field Nick Finnegan Invitational begins at St. John’s Saturday Texas Rangers vs. Los Angeles Angels at home at 6:05 p.m. Tuesday Varsity tennis vs. Cistercian at home at 4:45 p.m. Varsity Baseball vs. Cistercian at home at 5 p.m. Varsity lacrosse at Highland Park at 7:30 p.m.
THIS MONTH April 22 Varsity lacrosse SPC tournament begins at St. Andrew’s Varsity track & field SPC North Zone championship begins at Greenhill Varsity water polo North Region championship begins at Flower Mound Varsity tennis at Ft. Worth Country Day at 5 p.m. Varsity baseball at Ft. Worth Country Day at 6 p.m. April 23 Varsity crew Texas State Rowing championships begin at White Rock Lake April 25 Varsity golf SPC championships begin in Fort Worth April 28 Varsity tennis SPC tournament begins in Houston
snapshot
24USA Deaf Soccer
How Trip Neil ‘03 became a player and past president for the national association.
25Supplement use
Breaking down the policies and uses of creatine and other similar products.
A look at the legendary coach’s love for sports, particularly basketball.
STORY Arjun Khatti PHOTO Courtesy Aditya Goel
Next week
INGRAM TO THE DRAFT Harrison Ingram ‘21, who recently earned the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year award while playing for the Stanford Cardinal, accounced March 30 that he will be entering the NBA draft. Ingram is one of just three Marksmen in college basketball this past year, and he could become the first to join an NBA franchise this June.
inside
27Dwight Phillips
Why ATVs? There’s a lot of elements that go into it. You can explore new places — places that hardly anybody goes to. You’re out there by yourself or with a buddy, and you just get to have a fun time. You can either push yourself, or you can go out there and relax, especially for people who like to be outdoors. It’s a great way to spend a Saturday.
for the sports fan
Silas Hosler
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the remarker april 14, 2022
BASE HIT Junior Silas Hosler hits a line drive and gets on base in the Lions 4-9 loss at home vs. Bishop Lynch April 6. Through 13 games, Hosler has made an impact on the mound and at the plate. In 19 innings pitched, he has thrown 27 strikeouts with a 1.105 earned runs average. In 29 at bats, he has a .310 batting average, a .488 on base percentage, 8 runs batted in and 5 stolen bases. The Lions are 4-8-1 so far, recently losing to tough SPC competition such as Trinity Valley and Oakridge. With the season quickly coming to a close, the Lions are still fighting for a spot in the SPC championship. Information updated as of April 10.
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health &
the remarker april 14, 2022
TRIP NEIL ‘03
Change for the deaf community
Trip Neil ‘03, current player and past president of the USA Deaf Soccer Association, has dedicated much of his time to serving a greater cause.
RED WHITE AND BLUE Neil and his teammates (left) prepare to face off against Mexico in the 2019 Deaf Pan American Championships. The 10-day tournament was held in Chile and featured other top competitors such as Argentina and Brazil. Neil celebrates (right) winning first place in that same tournament, marking the team’s first time medaling at the event, let alone winning the entire competition.
J
ust like many other kids, Trip Neil ‘03 grew up loving sports — baseball and soccer were his main two. But complications early in his life made pursuing this passion all the more unlikely. At one and a half years old, Neil caught bacterial meningitis. Just like that, he couldn’t hear anything in one ear. His other ear wasn’t much better. At first, Neil attended deaf school while also receiving speech therapy. But when he eventually made the transition to 10600 Preston Rd., circumstances still proved difficult. In class, he couldn’t understand what teachers were saying when they turned to write something on the board. On the soccer pitch, he sometimes had no clue if a teammate was calling for the ball, or if his coach was trying to warn him of an oncoming defender. Yet, despite these difficulties, Neil continued to play the sport that he loves — and he never stopped. He’s not just a former high school athlete, nor is he just a former collegiate athlete. He’s a member of the USA Deaf Soccer Men’s National Team. As the organization’s past president and one of its longest-tenured players, Neil has dedicated nearly the last 20 years of his life to giving back to the deaf community. Neil first heard about the opportunity to be a part of the USA Deaf Soccer Association in his sophomore year of college, where he played for Johns Hopkins University for four years. “My coach told me that there was another deaf player who played for the team a year before I had gotten to college,” Neil said. “He got us in contact, and that’s when this other player introduced me to deaf soccer at the national level. I tried out for the team right away in the fall of 2004, and that same year in January, we were competing in the Deaflympics. “All of a sudden, it was just like, ‘Wow, I’m on the national team. This is awesome.’ There I am in Australia competing in the Deaflympics, going through opening ceremonies, wearing red, white and blue during the national anthem and playing against international teams. It was a whole new world that was just unbelievable to be a part of.” At 37-years-old, Neil still plays for the team. But he first got involved on the board when several board
members came up to him asking for his assistance. At the time, he was studying at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. “Initially, they needed some help on the board, so I subbed in as a treasurer,” Neil said. “Soon after that, the president had turned out and said, ‘We need someone to carry the torch, you should do it.’ It wasn’t even a contested position, so I took the role of president for four years, and I’ve stayed on the board ever since. “My title now is called ‘past president’ because nonprofit organizations are set up so that there is a natural progression from one president to the next,” he continued. “That way, we can keep the benefits of all the relationships that the past president has built over those four years instead of starting from scratch.” Although Neil has faced adversity to get to this point in his life, he still considers himself more fortunate than others on the team. “I’m basically one of the least deaf players eligible to compete in deaf international sports,” Neil said. “Essentially, if you’re more deaf than me, you’re eligible. If you’re less deaf than me, you’re not eligible. For perspective, only about 10% of the people on the team can even talk on the phone. So, I felt very lucky.” With this sentiment in mind, Neil was compelled to move the organization forward in ways that most other players couldn’t. “I wanted to become president because I didn’t think it was fair that I got dealt this hand,” Neil said. “The players deserve a better voice, a louder voice. I’m by no means ‘better’ than anybody, but I was just given the tools to be able to talk on the phone and go to mainstream school to get a good education. To that I told myself, ‘This is my passion. I need to provide a louder voice for these people.’” As a player, Neil has experienced some exciting and special memories while competing on a global stage. “Our best team ever was our 2008 Deaf World Cup team,” Neil said. “It was an instant classic — a Miracle on Ice type of story. We were up against a loaded Italy team in the quarterfinals.
BACK HOME Neil was a four-year varsity soccer player (far left) and won a Division II SPC title during his time on the team. Neil returned to campus (left) to compete in an alumni game against varsity players.
They had professional players, guys who played for Serie B, which is the second-highest division in Italian professional soccer. We went to overtime and eventually won in penalty kicks to advance to the semifinals. I just remember seeing my mom and my youngest sister in the stands, and that was a really special memory. No U.S. men’s national soccer team of any kind has ever been that close to being in a World Cup final.” Neil recognizes the constant support that the USA Deaf Soccer Association receives so it can continue to be a strong influence within the deaf community. In addition, he’s proud to represent his home country through that outlet. “That’s the greatest honor,” Neil said. “Getting a chance to wear red, white and blue is an immense feeling of pride — not just for me individually, but for my family, friends, supporters and everyone on our team. So, during training camps, we carve out some time to give back. Just one of the ways we do that is by writing letters to US service members. That’s sort of a touch point in terms of how honored we are to represent this country and how appreciative we are for being given that opportunity.” STORY Arjun Khatti, Dillon Wyatt PHOTOS Courtesy Trip Neil
Sports
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the remarker april 14, 2022
Effects of supplements
Supplementing the gains The rise of supplements such as creatine, protein powder and pre-workout have taken campus by storm. Many varsity athletes now use them as a way to improve their athletic performance in the weight room and on the playing fields.
CREATINE
WHEY
WHEY
PROTEIN
PROTEIN
CREATINE
MOVING IRON Whey protein and creatine are the two most popular supplements among teen athletes, often taken as a powder mixed in a drink or shake. Whey serves to supplement protein intake, and creatine increases water retention in your muscles and is often used as a pre-workout.
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reatine. Whey protein. Preworkout. You know the names. You’ve seen them around campus. You may have even tried them yourself. For those who don’t know, creatine is an amino acid thought to increase strength and muscle mass, help athletes produce quick bursts of energy during strenuous workouts and improve recovery time. While the supplement is wildly popular, the long-term effects have yet to be seen. For this reason, some health professionals caution teens of the potential unknown side effects. But still, many members of our community continue to supplement their muscle growth with similar pre and postworkout products. For senior three-sport varsity athlete and football and wrestling captain Elijah Ellis, moderation and awareness come first when talking about supplement usage. “I started consistently working out in seventh grade,” Ellis said. “I talked to Coach Dilworth about supplements, and I actually did a lot of research online myself to see what is the best out there. I would say talk to a parent or Coach Dilworth if you have any questions about workout nutrition.” Ellis is one of the more decorated athletes on campus, winning multiple state championships in wrestling and earning All-SPC honors in all three of his varsity sports. Because of all the hard work and dedication he puts in in the weight room, on the field, on the mat and on the track, Ellis uses creatine as a way to supplement muscle recovery. “I use a brand called C4 Creatine, for pre-workout,” Ellis said. “It really gets you warmed up, energized, and ready to go. For post-workout, it’s always whey
protein. I would say these supplements speed up your gains, but the main thing is they help your recovery.” Similar to Ellis, sophomore Baker Long has experimented with creatine, commonly used as a pre-workout. While he has seen some results over the offseason, he’s unsure of the true benefits of using supplements. “I’m not completely against preworkout, but I don’t see any reason really to do it on a regular basis,” Long said. “I could see using pre-workout for days that you want to be better than your usual, like say you’re going for a max or you have a game. But if you feel like that every day, it’s not going to make that much of a difference after a while, and eventually, it won’t do anything for you at all.” The use of any illegal performance-enhancing substance is forbidden. Any student-athlete found in violation of this policy will be ruled ineligible for SPC athletics for one calendar year, and his or her member school may also be subject to disciplinary action or sanctions. SPC Policy
SPC Commissioner Bob Windham remembers when the conference first installed its policy surrounding banned substances over a decade ago. While it does not currently have a comprehensive list of the substances banned, Windham said the conference would likely reference a reputable source, such as the International Olympic Committee or the World Anti-Doping Agency, need be. Neither of these organizations bans creatine or the vast majority of over-thecounter, legal supplements. “I’ve been in the conference for 20 years, and to my knowledge, I have never
products
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C4 Creatine pre-workout
Whey Protein protein powder
seen us ever have to use this policy,” Windham said. “I don’t know of anyone even being accused of using illegal substances. This came up probably 15 years ago when steroids were a big thing in baseball –– we had guys like Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. I think it was created more as a deterrent for athletes.” Strength and conditioning coach Kevin Dilworth believes that supplements can quickly become a slippery slope toward dependency. “When you start seeing results, you want more, and then you start abusing it,” Dilworth said. “Don’t be so dependent on supplements and truly be dependent on your food intake. Food has the same recovery properties, same energy properties as some of the supplements, and you have to be really careful with that stuff, especially pre-workout.” For Athletic Director and former Cowboys and Chargers defensive linemen Sean Lissemore, the biggest concern with supplements is the uncertainty of the long-term effects. When asked about his opinion on legal supplements, Lissemore referenced studies that showed the use of pre-workout poses health risks to athletes who otherwise are healthy people, and they can be especially dangerous to those with preexisting health problems. “We do not encourage the use of any supplement unless it has been recommended by a medical professional,” Lissemore said. “There might be the perception that certain supplements are safe and healthy, and then, a year, two years, sometimes ten years down the road, they start seeing the effects of these things. That’s why I always say it’s better to err on the side of caution when it comes to supplements.” STORY Peter Orsak, Nolan Marcus PHOTO ILLUSTRATION Jonathan Yin
Five of the most popular sports supplements at 10600 Preston Rd. Athletes use these legal substances to gain energy and muscle.
Bucked Up pre-workout
Gatorade Chews energy chewables
Athletic Greens 1 all-in-one supplement
Adam Lai wins bronze at international tournament by Ben Adams enior fencer Adam Lai traveled to Lima, Peru and won a bronze medal in the Men’s Junior Sabre Individual division of the 2022 Junior Pan-American Zone Championships. Lai also competed with his American teammates in the Men’s Junior Sabre Team division, where he helped them place second. Twenty-one different nations were represented at the tournament, all of whom competed in round-robin games before playing in matches in a bracket format. “The fencers are divided into groups of six or seven, and then you face everyone in your group,” Lai said. “Then, you get ranked by how you did in your group. For example, if you have six wins, you get ranked pretty high. Then, they use the ranking to determine the tournament bracket, which consists of single-elimination matches.” Lai qualified for the junior section of the tournament, in which every participant is under 20 years old, based on his national ranking among all junior American fencers. “Only four American fencers can go to the tournament, so the top four fencers in the U.S under-20 rankings go,” Lai said. “I was ranked third when I applied, so I qualified.”
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Lai started fencing, a rather uncommon sport, at the age of six, when his mother signed him up for a fencing class at a nearby sports club. “My mom had just signed me up for fencing because there was a local club and she wanted me to try out a lot of sports, basically every single sport you can imagine,” Lai said. “Year after year, I stopped doing sports one by one until, finally, I decided to stick with fencing because I liked it the most, probably because I was best at it.” Lai’s fencing prowess has led him to tournaments all over the world, allowing him to meet all kinds of people from different places through fencing. “There’s one fencer from Cuba who said he watched my videos on YouTube through a fencing YouTuber who posts a lot of national competitions,” Lai said. “He told me he recognized me from a video, and that was really cool. We’re friends now and still communicate with one another.” As Lai heads off to Princeton University to continue his fencing career, he’s hopeful he can continue to improve and make a name for his self on the international level. Princeton fencing placed fourth in the Ivy League during the 2022 season and is ranked in the top ten in all three U.S. Fencing Coaches Association national polls. “There are really big shoes to fill at Princeton, with members being on the Olympic team, but I hope to uphold the standards of the team and add my own contributions to it,” Lai said. “As for beyond college, I’m excited to see where Princeton will take me. The Olympics are not crossed off for my future.”
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the remarker april 14, 2022
Crossing over: Player to coach
Living the dream
P.E. coach Dwight Phillips has been around basketball since he was kid. Now, he recounts his journey from Levelland, Texas to 10600 Preston Road. Dillon Wyatt: What sparked your interest in playing basketball when you were a kid? Dwight Phillips: Growing up in Levelland, Texas, there were lots of seasonal sports that I could play. But there was one guy who brought this organization called Little Dribblers’ into our town when I was in the second grade, and that right there started my passion for basketball. DW: With basketball being your favorite sport, was playing in college a goal you always had? DP: Playing with Little Dribblers’, we always had a chance to play during halftime at Texas Tech basketball games. As a young kid, playing at the Lubbock Coliseum, I knew I wanted to play basketball there. Plus, there were older guys from Levelland like Grant Dukes who played for Tech in the 70s who inspired me as well. I was recruited to at least 50 major Division I colleges across the nation, but I always stayed with Texas Tech. DW: What was it like playing at the Division I level?
DP: I would play some of the best teams in the country. Many times, I would play against players that are now in the Hall of Fame. When we went to Hawaii with the team, I went up against Michael Jordan, Dell Curry and Byron Scott. The University of Houston was in our conference, and they had Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon and were always the powerhouse. No matter the opponent, we never backed down from anybody and played them tough. Winning the Southwest Conference in the tournament championship in 1985 was the highlight of my college career because we became the sixth seed in the NCAA Tournament. Even though we lost the first round, we got to play in the big dance and that was the goal for us every year. DW: What came next in your basketball career after playing for the Red Raiders? DP: I went and played for teams over in Europe for two years. Then, I got the opportunity to try out for an NBA team, but I decided to start coaching girls basketball at All Saints Episcopal School in Lubbock. For me, taking that coaching job was one of the best decisions that I have made.
CHAMPIONS Phillips holds the net after beating Arkansas 67-64 in the Southwest Conference championship game. Winning the tournament championship along with having the best conference record earned the Red Raiders the sixth seed in the NCAA Tournament.
DW: What about coaching made you realize it was the right path for you? DP: It was the fact that I could teach boys and girls something about my passion that was given to me from my coaches. I got to pay it forward to those students and give them the knowledge I had about basketball. Coaching became my thumbprint on how I can make a difference in a kid’s life. You not only teach them about skills, but you teach them about life. Sports is the biggest life teacher that I can think of, and it is something that I took pride in. Getting to share with them my personal story about my life and helping them become model citizens and good spirited people was the epitome of coaching for me. DW: After coaching for All Saints, how did you end up coaching here?
GAME TIME At 6’9”, Phillips played center for Texas Tech all four years of college. Playing 83 games and starting 22 of those for the Red Raiders, Phillips racked up 270 points, 249 rebounds and 68 assists.
LOOK LOOK
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hat started with an idea from the Class of 2022 has become an Upper School wide craze. The 3v3 basketball leagues have been thriving on campus as Marksmen crowd the courts during lunch and watch their classmates take each other on in games to 21. Not only has each grade created a league, they all have put their own twist on the idea to make the league unique to their grade. Freshmen have implemented team spirit with each squad getting to sport jerseys during games. Sophomores came up with an Instagram account that keeps fans updated with games. Juniors have created their own March Madness bracket.
DENIED Junior George Genender blocks the shot.
DP: After eight years with All Saints, my wife and I moved to the Dallas area. My wife got a job in Mesquite, and I applied for a job at Greenhill. From there, I coached girls basketball for five years. After Greenhill, I got a call from [Green Master Teaching Chair] Scott Gonzalez, and he made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. When I came to this
WE’VE BEEN having regular season
games since the league started, and everyone has tried their best to make every game. All of the juniors have a lot going on these next few weeks, and we didn’t want to have our league crossing paths with finals. So we decided to make our league into a March Madness style bracket to fit everyones schedule while also making our league unique and fun for everyone. Junior > commissioner Adam Alfalahi [SENIOR] ALEX Nadalini and I were
both on Student Council together and wanted to bring the whole grade together. Being big sports fans, we thought that creating something that had to do with athletics was a good way to get people to rally behind each other because being part of a team is something you can get fired up about. The 3v3 league also allowed us to mix people from different friend groups.
IN THE PAINT Senior Caleb Vanzant eyes defender.
Senior > commissioner Camden Reeves
school, I had an initial goal of coaching boys basketball, and then trying my luck and coaching at the college level. I said I was going to give St. Mark’s two or three years, but here I am 22 years later. St. Mark’s is a place where I grew professionally and personally with colleagues, families and students. The school gave me the opportunity to do good things, so I decided to stay. DW: What’s a memorable moment you have had coaching here over the past two decades? DP: Coaching is just one hat I have to exchange during the day. Teaching PE is something that I love doing. I’ve taught all levels so far with lower, middle and upper school students. Some of the best moments were when I used to coach the floor hockey unit. I used to love when kids would come up with the names of their teams because they were so funny. Although I have great memories coaching floor hockey, nothing stands out as the most memorable moment. When I retire from St. Mark’s, whenever that is, I will have made a whole plethora of memories to take with me. STORY Dillon Wyatt, Arjun Khatti PHOTOS Courtesy Dwight Phillips
SEEING ALL the other leagues work
really well, we wanted to create our own but add more people and have team spirit. One unique thing about our league is our organized jerseys. During the opening games, one team wore black tanktops and others wore jerseys from their favorite basketball teams.
Freshman > commissioner Matthew DRIVE Freshman Henry Estes dribbles. Hoffman
WE GOT our idea to create the
league from the seniors. We wanted our league to be as official as possible, so we got a group of guys together and created an Instagram page that would let everyone know scores and recaps of games. We wanted everyone to be included, so we came up with a free agency so that no one would be left out while also having eight teams. Sophomore > commissioner 3 BALL Sophomore Alex Barrett shoots. Bryan Graham
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health &
RHETT O’REAR
Driving his way to the top tier J ust a freshman, Rhett O’Rear is already one of the leading scorers on the varsity golf team. Starting at the age of five, he has put hundreds of hours into the game he loves, allowing him to compete on both national and global levels. O’Rear’s passion for golf started at a young age, and both his love for the game and his golfing skills have progressed over the past decaded “I started playing with my grandpa because he’s really into golf. He got me started with swinging the club when I was five,” O’Rear said. “I played my first tournament when I was five and a half, and I’ve loved golf ever since I started playing.” O’Rear’s work ethic is praised by both his teammates and coaches, and he sees the benefits of his hard work, knowing each repetition improves him as a golfer. “When I practice, I love to go out there and not necessarily put a set time on drills, but rather just go out there and play until I feel like I can replicate that training on the course,” O’Rear said. “When I’m working on a technique, I just keep going until I really can’t get it wrong, not just until I can get it right once or twice.” Varsity golf head coach Greg Guiler attributes O’Rear’s success to his diligence and his ability to receive advice from anyone and apply it to his game. “Rhett is humble and always willing to receive advice, not just from coaches, but also from teammates,” Guiler said. “Even though he’s one of the strongest scorers on the team, he still leans into the veterans and is a team player.” While O’Rear’s coaches admire his effort and talent, but his new varsity teammates have also taken him under their wing and continue to push him to
Freshman Rhett O’Rear has become the No. 30 ranked golfer for the Class of 2025 by the American Junior Golf Association. With countless national and global tournaments under his belt, he has now found himself at the top of the Lions’ program, hoping to soon bring home an SPC title.
be better. “I give him a hard time, but that’s just because I really like Rhett,” senior golf captain Mac McKenzie said. “He has a ton of potential. He works harder than anybody I’ve ever seen on his game. I think his work ethic and his mental game have really set him apart from everybody else.” In addition to gaining support from his school teams, O’Rear has also had the privilege of working with two outside coaches for over three years. “I have a putting coach, a swing coach and a fitness trainer that I work with,” O’Rear said. “It’s pretty common for a lot of golfers to have fitness trainers specifically for golf. I train my fitness three or four times a week, and I try every day to work on different things like my putting game, or driving the ball further down the course.” But just like everything else, O’Rear’s golfing career is not perfect. He gets frustrated, he can get angry and he can struggle, but he never quits and always pushes himself to chase greatness. “It can get frustrating, I’ve had weeks where I’m working on something and don’t get it. It just keeps bugging me, but I have to keep pushing through it to eventually get it,” O’Rear said. O’Rear’s golfing prowess has allowed him to play in tournaments all over the world, and he has placed very well in them, earning a No. 25 global ranking last year. The American Junior Golf Association currently has him ranked No. 30 in the world in the class of 2025. “I compete in the Texas Tour every year with 15 through 18-year-olds and then I play world tournaments and international tournaments all the time,” O’Rear said. “I won the [Boys 14 & Under] Player of the Year last year and
the year before for Texas, and I placed 25th last year in worlds.” Guiler has known O’Rear through the golf program from an early age and has always admired his ambitions. He truly believes O’Rear can make his dreams a reality. “Although some may think you need to be a certain size to play golf at a high level, he’s working hard and has extended his range a lot just this year,” Guiler said. “But his short game and his ability to navigate the course is so advanced for a guy his age. I genuinely believe he could be a pro.”
< Rhett O’Rear
STORY Ben Adams, Nolan Marcus PHOTO Hudson Brown, courtesy Rhett O’Rear
O’Rear by the
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ON PAR O’Rear holds his second Texas Legends Junior Tour Player of the Year award (far right). O’Rear lines up a shot on the fairway while competing in a tournament (right).
American Junior Golf Association global rank for Class of 2025
2
Junior state championship titles won
5
American Junior Golf Association Texas rank for Class of 2025
66
Best score on a par-72 course
2
Legends Junior Tour Player of the Year awards
2
Times qualifying for Texas Junior Byron Nelson Tournament
Seniors pick up lacrosse in their final year of sports after last playing in Middle School by Zack Goforth or the 2022 spring season, the varsity lacrosse team welcomes two new seniors, Xander Bowles and Zack Stone, both of whom have never played high school lacrosse before. While many athletes have years of experience in their sport, for these two seniors this just isn’t the case. “I was a little apprehensive going into it [the season],” Bowles said. “I had not planned on playing lacrosse at the beginning of the year, but after a conversation with Coach [head varsity lacrosse coach Jason Leneau] during football season, I realized that I wasn’t going to be doing anything after school in the spring, and I had
F
time for it.” For Stone, the decision was made further in advance. Coming into his senior year, he had his eyes set on joining the team. “A bunch of my friends were on the team and have been asking me to come try it out for a year or two now,” Stone said. “Up until my senior year, I wanted to focus on preparing for finals and schoolwork in the spring, along with preparing for the next football season. But this year I decided that I wanted to end my St. Mark’s career playing lacrosse.” Although both Bowles and Stone are suiting up for lacrosse for the first time in their high school careers, they
each have previous experience with the sport, Bowles having played in eighth grade and Stone in seventh. “What I do on the team right now,” Bowles said, “is faceoff, which is what I preferred to do in eighth grade and what I focused a lot of my time and energy on. Faceoffs are a very small part of the game, so there was definitely a shallower learning curve in terms of coming back to the sport for me.” Ultimately for Stone, joining the team was the right move. “I’m enjoying playing the sport a lot more than I thought I would,” Stone said, “even though I obviously thought that I would enjoy playing on
a team with a bunch of my friends. It helps that everyone has been super helpful.” In Bowles’ case, playing high school lacrosse for the first time has presented him with the opportunity to extend his outreach and meet new people. “One of my favorite things about sports teams is getting to hang out with guys you otherwise might not get to know,” Bowles said. “I don’t really see this in anything else except for the fine arts. Being a part of a team is a really helpful thing to have in high school, whether it’s a sports team or any other community of people.”
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ST. MARK’S SCHOOL OF TEXAS 10600 PRESTON RD. DALLAS, TX 75230
SEEING PATTERNS Senior photographer Owen Simon travelled to downtown Dallas and took note of geometric figures around the city that often go unnoticed by the untrained eye. He used contrast and composition to convey both the simplicity and complexity of the scene.
Photography
Photography students explore Dallas Marksmen photography students took to the streets recently to conduct a photographic exploration of street life in Dallas. Their images proved to be deeply thought-provoking, as the photographers studied and took inspiration from Henri Cartier-Bresson, Mary Ellen Mark and Andre Kertesz. BICYCLIST Senior Anashay Monga combined architectural street photography with the human element.
ONE WAY Senior Ekansh Tambe captured a downtown scene highlighted by irony.
GRIFFIN ST. Senior Ekansh Tambe used flat postproduction and shallow depth of field.
COMPILATION Ekansh Tambe PHOTOS Ekansh Tambe, Owen Simon, Anashay Monga
PEOPLE Senior Owen Simon utilized soft light and punchiness to document the homeless in downtown Dallas.
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Thursday, April 14, 2022 • St. Mark’s School of Texas • Dallas, TX • Volume 68, Issue 7
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Lounge I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you actually left them. – Andy Bernard
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION Jonathan Yin, Evan Lai
inside
2former students
We talked to former members of the Senior Class who left over the years.
3dynamic duos 4faculty forecast A look at three iconic twosomes from the Class of 2022.
Faculty members predict what seniors will do with their lives after they graduate.
8destinations Where each senior plans on attending next fall.
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senior or A look back at life as a Lower Schooler by Will Pechersky hen I walked into Mrs. Carrio’s classroom on the first day of school almost 12 years ago, I had no expectations. The blue shirts of the seniors seemed too far away to even think about when I was having the time of my life as a lower schooler. It doesn’t feel like it’s been more than a few weeks since Peter and I met Cole Beasley at an SMU football game in first grade. Even today, I still owe Henry $5 for a bet we made on the playground at school — unless I make it to the NFL. And my eyes still light up when I hear someone talk about Doc’s cookies. Whether it was sprinting away from the infamous “poison” ball or learning how to properly shake someone’s hand, the experiences and memories gained in Doc’s P.E. classes will stick with me. Those are just a few of the countless moments ingrained in my head as a Marksman — and that’s just Lower School. Trying to capture all of the highlights from the last 12 years into one column of writing is simply not doable. But as I think back upon these memories and consider why they’ve stuck with me for so long, I’ve realized that these are the moments that have made St. Mark’s such a special place Will Pechersky Assignments editor in my life. Not the math homework, not the English papers, not the physics labs. While all undoubtedly important in getting me to where I am today, the lifelong memories were made when my classmates and I were thrown into our own world. Whether it’s P.E. mattball or playground football, those were the moments when the lasting lessons and experiences were formed at a foundational stage in our lives. Those trivial, seemingly insignificant settings host some of my most memorable experiences. But none of this hit me until the Friday leading into my last winter break — classmates I’ve known for over a decade all gathered outside with our Lower School buddies. Walking into the crowd of hundreds in the Great Hall with my first-grader on my shoulders was when it all clicked. With vivid memories of me on my senior buddy’s shoulders back in 2010 still fresh in my mind, this past allschool Christmas party was not one of the 12 that I’ll forget. I can’t even try to imagine the wave of emotions that will hit during Commencement. But until then, I can’t say thank you enough. To the Marksmen soon to be in my position, all I can say is to enjoy it while it lasts because, like always, the end will feel too soon. And Henry, I’ll get you that $5 sometime soon. Maybe…
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the remarker april 14, 2022
Former students
What’s new with
We checked back in with members of the Class of 2022 who parted ways. What have they been up to? What do they miss? Where are they now?
Old friends? LEFT AFTER NINTH GRADE
Chase martin
After I left I started playing water polo. I still someetimes come across St. Mark’s when they’re dominating in the pool. Also, I still miss chicken masala days to this day.
Recently I went through the endeavor of picking a college. My old classmates would be shocked that I even made it to this point considering I was in study hall everyday with a bunch of fifth graders and finished the year with a C- in geometry (shout-out my guy Mr. Hale). With my hard work in the classroom I will be attending the University of Miami where I will be majoring in business and sports management.
LEFT AFTER SEVENTH GRADE
Erik lopez
LEFT AFTER NINTH GRADE
jack burdette
When I left St. Mark’s after seventh grade, it was due to health issues, but I’m happy to say that after three years I was able to recover fully. I’m going to be graduating from First Baptist Academy and will be attending Baylor in the fall.
LEFT AFTER NINTH GRADE
Hayden stager
LEFT AFTER EIGHTH GRADE
Jack bickel
LEFT AFTER EIGHTH GRADE
Mr. Parker’s humanities class was a highlight of my time at St. Mark’s. From watching March Madness to debating if water polo is a ‘real sport,’ he always found a way to make class fun. We had a great group of guys that year and almost all of us got along well. A few highlights were: having my mom compared to Margot Robbie, being lectured on good and bad fashion, and the overall collection of hot takes he would throw out every class.
Pecos is hands down my favorite memory of St. Mark’s. Without the distraction of modern conveniences, I forged close ties with many of my classmates. My favorite nights were the simplest ones, sitting around the fire talking about our lives. I will always remember and appreciate the connections I made there.
LEFT AFTER SEVENTH GRADE
Ethan kazunga
Since I left St. Mark’s I’ve had the chance to live in places like Utah, Maine and Idaho. I have been able to see and experience the world outside of the bubble I felt I was in during my time at St. Mark’s, resulting in the discovery of new hobbies, beliefs and skills. I developed a serious passion for rock climbing which I pursue daily at various gyms around Dallas. I am now going to school up north in McKinney where I plan on graduating and going to college in California.
LEFT AFTER SEVENTH GRADE
lucas guevara
LEFT AFTER EIGHTH GRADE
ryan rahimizadeh
opinion
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Q: What’s your favorite memory with the class? “I really enjoyed the competitive campaign for StuCo last year, not just my campaign, but the other campaigns for rep and for president and everything else.” Shane Sweet Eight-year Marksman
“My best memory was winning SPC this fall, getting to see all the hard work that we’ve put in come to fruition as the champions of SPC boys volleyball.”
hugh bonnette
I really miss the brotherhood that comes with St. Mark’s. Every time I see any of y’all, there’s an instant connection and I feel very welcomed. That’s something I can really appreciate from a big school like Highland Park, where the class size of 500 makes it difficult to make connections.
I switched to a boarding school in Massachusetts called Deerfield Academy where I have had an awesome time, met some great new friends and had fun keeping up with people from St. Mark’s. I’m going to CWRU next year and I am currently planing on majoring in computer science. I’m also really interested in foreign policy in Asia, specifically China.
INTERVIEWS Will Pechersky, Austin Williams, Peter Orsak
Samir Mamtani Ten-year Marksman
Basically I’m at Christchurch School and I play lacrosse. I recently committed to play club lax at the University of Arizona.
“Meeting the little buddies for the first time. It was great to see the class forming connections with their buddies and showing the playful sides of their personalities.” Ian Lin Four-year Marksman
“Pecos. I got a lot closer with a lot of people who I really didn’t know before the trip. It was nice to see everybody bond over just getting through the ordeal that is Pecos.” Nicholas Koch Twelve-year Marksman
LEFT AFTER EIGHTH GRADE
will newton
What up, bro, I’ve been active in the Texas High School Bass Association (THSBA) fishing tournaments for the Plano Senior Bass Team for the duration of high school. I picked up personal sponsors in the midst of the tournaments and my solo outings, but now I’m mostly focused on things related to cars and trucks. No college commitments yet, but Baylor and OU are fighting for the top spot on my list.
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special connections
Dynamic Duos A peek at the most potent twosomes from the Class of 2022.
Jedidiah Kim and Sal Abbasi Austin Williams: Tell me about how y’all first met. Jedidiah Kim: I don’t remember. Probably wrestling? Sal Abbasi: Nah, it was in the Commons. I saw you and [senior] Blake Molthan, and I thought you were terrifying. I thought you were a jock, and that you’d be really rude to me, so I just never talked to you. JK: I don’t remember that encounter… But in eighth grade, I did kind of have a jock-ish facade. AW: Do y’all have a favorite moment together? SA: Probably prep-slams this year. We went to Waffle House as a wrestling team at like one in the morning. Had a ton of waffles and chocolate milk. JK: Yeah, that chocolate milk was heavenly. AW: Right now, who’s the alpha? JK: The alpha doesn’t have to express his power. SA: Sure. JK: He just is [the alpha]. SA: The alpha is the dominant force, and the alpha would not be afraid to say he’s the alpha. JK: No, the alpha knows, he doesn’t need to volunteer his alpha-ism.
AW: Do you guys have any pre-wrestling rituals? JK: Yeah, I slap the crap out of his hands. SA: He slaps me really hard. JK: I’m always the slapper. SA: A real alpha knows that you have to let the beta be slappin’. AW: Are there any hobbies y’all share outside of wrestling? SA: We both eat a lot of meats. JK: That’s not a hobby. SA: I think that’s fair. We like wrestling and eating meats. AW: What do you dislike most about your friend? SA: This guy? He’s noisy. I love it though. But you’re really noisy. JK: This guy thinks that he’s really smart. SA: I am smart. JK: Yeah, which you are, but you also think that.
MUSCLE UP Senior Jedidiah Kim carries Sal Abbassi in his arms after a day in the wrestling room.
Cal Graham and Fisayo Omonije Toby Barrett: When did you guys meet, and what were your first impressions of one another? Fisayo Omonije: We first met in sixth grade, right? Cal Graham: Yeah. FO: Cal had that thing — everything he wore, everything he owned was University of California Berkeley, short for Cal. It was all Cal, it was funny. The Cal sweatshirt. The Cal backpack. CG: I still have the Cal shorts, the Cal shirt. I don’t remember meeting Fisayo, but we became friends after we hung out upstairs in the library for two hours.
FAMILY PORTRAIT Senior Cal Graham rests his arms on senior Fisayo Omonije.
TB: If you guys had to do a buddy movie that describes your friendship, what would it be? CG: What’s a buddy movie? FO: I would be Will Smith. “Men in Black” [interview conducted before Oscars]. CG: Oh. I could do that. Be really serious. FO: You’re literally smiling. CG: You looked at me. FO: Or “Rush Hour.” CG: What’s that? FO: It’s Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan.
CG: Am I Jackie? FO: Yeah, you’re Jackie. TB: Red or blue, and why? CG: The pill, or the color? What? FO: Blue, because…I don’t mess with red. CG: I’d say red. I had a red iPhone. I got made fun of, but I loved it. I broke it in a pool, though. But I love red. FO: It’s hard to style red. It’s very easy to style blue. TB: If you had to compare the other to a superhero, who would you compare them to and why? CG: I’m going to say Iron Man, because I think you have the same personality as Tony Stark. Confident, funny. FO: I would call Cal…probably Spider-Man. CG: Yes! Let’s go. FO: I could envision him swinging around the city. Just staying to himself. CG: Nobody would ever know. FO: Yeah, nobody would ever know. Honestly, he could be Spider-Man right now because of how low-key he is.
Conor Duffy and Alex Nadalini Peter Orsak: How did y’all first meet? Alex Nadalini: I think we first met at the fifth-grade orientation at the amphitheater before Sky Ranch. Conor Duffy: I played your team at Sportsplex, and you were talking crazy. We also played on that football team with [senior] Zack [Stone]. AN: Yeah, we were terrible. PO: Who has the better flow? AN: Me. CD: It’s obviously me. Like right now? AN: I have the flow coming in right now. But, I don’t know, probably Conor. Conor has better lettuce than I do. CD: Yeah, flow is kind of different. I definitely have better lettuce than you. PO: What’s your favorite place to get food together? AN: Currently, it’s probably Dave’s Hot Chicken. CD: I was at Dave’s tonight, and I’d agree. At first, I thought it was mid, but now I’m just obsessed with it –– especially since I’ve switched to their hot flavor. Panda Express is also gas. AN: I knew you would say that. STORY Toby Barrett, Austin Williams, Peter Orsak
PO: In the locker room before a football game, what song are y’all blasting? CD: Probably “Pray For Em.” AN: Yeah, Meek Mill. PO: Who’s better at Madden? AN: Me. CD: Bro, pull up the score. I know you remember that time I went to your house. AN: Chill, chill. I don’t play that much Madden. CD: I haven’t played in a minute. Our grade’s Franchise league died, man. AN: I’m also better than you, Peter. PO: What’s one thing you’ll miss about each other? AN: I guess just our friendship. He’s fun to be around, and we feed off each other really well. And we have chemistry on and off the field. CD: Alex and I have the same sense of humor –– we kind of think the same way. If someone said something, we’d immediately look at each other. Just stuff like that from years of hanging out with someone. And I’ll miss our two-man missions. PHOTOS Toby Barrett, Courtesy Alex Nadalini
SUITED UP Seniors Conor Duffy (left) and Alex Nadalini (right) touch a metal bulldog at a Yale football camp.
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CLASS PHOTOS
Twelve years in the making
Starting off with 32 boys in August of 2010, the Class of 2022, now boasting 99, has stuck together through the journey lasting over a decade. Follow along for a flashback of just a few moments and memories endured by the class as they quickly approach the finish line in May.
UNIFORM CHANGE The Class of 2022 came together May 28 for the annual Blue Shirt Day to swap out the long-worn white shirts for the envied blue shirts as they finished their junior year.
2011: 2nd grade play Led by Fine Arts Department Chair Marion Glorioso-Kirby, 2013: Lions flag football One of the two Lower School flag football the boys rehearsed and performed a grade-wide dramatic performance relating to a focus on Greek mythology in the D. Gordon Rupe Amphitheater — one of other Lower School class performances.
teams, the Gold Lions competed together for four years as a tightly-knit squad of athletes.
2013: 4th grade class With familiar faces that no longer remain in the class, the grade gathered for a group photo in the chapel as the student body grew leading into 5th grade.
2014: Wyoming trip Prior to entering Middle School, members of the class
adventured to Yellowstone National Park on former teacher Frank Jordan’s long-held summer trip.
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Senior moments
A quick glimpse at some 2021-2022 highlights
2015: Community service The 5th
grade class made their way to North Texas Food Bank for a grade-wide service event, where students spent time making sandwhiches, boxing food items and organizing the shelves.
2017: Eclipse When a total solar eclipse occurred
above our heads August 21, students gathered outside to catch a glimpse of the rare event with protective glasses handy.
Sept. 2021: Senior auction
Students, parents, and community members gathered Sept. 26 to raise money for the annual class event. This year’s auctions raised a record amount of $113,992.
2018: Pecos adventures During the summer leading up to 9th grade, all incoming freshmen tested their perseverance when taking on the Pecos wildnerness in the annual experience that’s rooted in the Path to Manhood.
2020: Soccer champions Winning the SPC championship in three sports — one being soccer — the 2019-2020 winter athletic season was not one to forget.
Oct. 2021: Hoco kings Seniors Cal Graham, Fisayo Omonije, Luke Martin, Zubin Mehta and Jonathan Yin were nominated for Homecoming King. Omonije took the title after students voted.
2020: McDonald’s Week During the
annual student-led fundraising event, science instructor Ken Owens ‘89 performed his annual experiment for an audience.
Nov. 2021: Decoration On the
last day of Thanksgiving Break, seniors returned to campus early to help decorate the campus with lights, inflatables and more to prepare for the holiday season.
2021: Junior fundraising Led by McDonald’s Week co-chairs Sal Abbasi, Ashvin Nair and Alex Nadalini, the event benefitted Austin Street Centre.
2021: Fan support After a longlasting time away from watching sports in person due to the pandemic, students returned to campus to cheer on their classmates in the cold.
Dec. 2021: Holidays Before leaving
for break, the community gathered for the annual allschool Christmas party, where seniors and their Lower School buddies took part in the cherished tradition.
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TEACHER PREDICTIONS ACTING BUDS Fine Arts Department Chair Marion GloriosoKirby flexes on a skateboard as senior Cooper Cole holds his water jug he takes with him everywhere.
IN THE LAB Rev. Stephen Arbogast and senior Abhi Jane conduct research in the science lab in the Winn Science Center.
What’s next?
ARMY SALUTE Former West Point attendee wrestling coach Reyno Arredondo and future West Point attendee senior Elijah Ellis stand face to face on the backfield.
HISTORY PRODIGIES Master Teaching Chair and history instructor Bruce Westrate and senior Shane Sweet forward their studies of the past and the political present.
Faculty members make their bets on what graduating seniors will do with their lives.
THE WILDERNESS Science instructor and Master Teaching Chair Mark Adame and senior Ethan Borge hike up to a waterfall together.
Master Teaching Chair Mark Adame on science whiz Ethan Borge: Donkeys, yoga and climate change. e will obviously stay in touch, only when his dad asks him to babysit his younger brother, Mason, and to do the chores around the house. He’ll try to get away from him, but he’ll always come back because he’s a good kid. He’s dedicated to his family. He will own a pet –– it’ll be a donkey. In the “Winnie the Pooh” story, there’s Eeyore. It’ll be a donkey just like Eeyore. He’ll call his pet donkey Eeyore, and they’ll walk around, moaning and groaning about stuff. He’ll also continue watching YouTube videos of other people playing games he likes. I think he’ll open a secret Pilates studio to rival his parents’ yoga studio, and he’s going to try to siphon clients off of them to go into Pilates. He, [seniors] Sam [Wu] and Zubin [Mehta] will still hang out. He’ll go to Zubin for financial insight and stocks and stuff, and he’ll have coffee with Sam on a regular basis. Ethan completed his Eagle Scout project but didn’t actually do the other things to reach his rank. So the news story would be about him going back to the Boy Scouts and actually get his Eagle Scout rank. He’s gonna go to college, and he’s not going to decide what he wants to get his major in. It’s gonna either be ecology or some other thing, and he’ll end up getting his art history degree and work at McDonald’s for a while, but then he’ll go back, and he’ll figure out how to slow and reverse climate change.
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Fine Arts Department Chair Marion GloriosoKirby on creative mastermind Cooper Cole: Water crisis, X-Games and international business. ooper will parlay his Chinese language skills, his international business skills and his love for water to solve the international water crisis. But he doesn’t like plastic — he doesn’t want to send a bunch of water out there in plastic jugs. He’ll decide to repurpose the plastic to make skateboards. And then, he’ll hand-paint the skateboards so that they sell for a lot of money, thus funding international water crisis relief. So, he gets a little momentum with this, and he starts a commercial series. In these commercials, he promotes his skateboards through Chinese slam poetry. His slam poetry will be so powerful and so impactful that the Chinese government will restructure their entire government and economy, solving the conflict between China and the rest of the world. They’ll be so moved by the artistic nature of his
C
skateboards and his love of humanity. In his free time, he’ll skateboard –– so much so, he’ll qualify for the X-Games. Which then furthers his platform to talk about his recycled skateboards. At first thought, I think [senior] Daniel Uglunts would definitely be a part of this. As he’s on his international opera tours, he, too, will be sporting the jug and the skateboard. Daniel will take the European countries under his wing, and Cooper will kind of stay in Asia. Maybe there’ll even be a second set of commercials with Daniel singing.
Head varsity wrestling coach Reyno Arredondo on star athlete Elijah Ellis: Hitsticks and hand grenades. e has an incredible future. If he stays in the army after West Point, I believe he will be a general officer. General Ellis. I will say he’ll get two stars. I think he’ll eventually get tired and want to get into sports stuff, so he’ll go into the NFL or whatever. Or, when he gets out of the army after his requisite time then I think he will be Senator Ellis. Senator Ellis for Texas. He will have three to four kids. Three boys, one girl. He’ll also have one dog. A big one. A Doberman. Or a pitbull. He will hang out with his brother, [senior Enoch Ellis]. Enoch is going to be a doctor. But I think Enoch is not gonna be like a practicing doctor, he’s going to be more like a research doctor. I think he might start as a surgeon of some kind, but then he’ll transfer over to just straight-up research because he doesn’t want anybody to bother him. I think he’ll also be a minister. Or like an executive coach. Executive coach, like somebody who trains leaders. I’d like to see him and [senior] Jedidiah Kim link up in conjunction with Enoch — that would be a really cool triumvirate. They would save the world with some kind of research on some brain stem cell that opens up everybody’s ability to think somehow, or something.
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Master Teaching Chair Dr. Bruce Westrate on political enthusiast Shane Sweet: Pulitzer Prizewinning columnist.
I
t’s hard for me to pick a particular job, simply because Shane, to me, is an intellectual force of nature. In terms of temperament, he’s kind of like Elon Musk, in the sense of he’s a free thinker. I think if I were to predict a job for Shane — if you forced me to — I would say a
writer. But I don’t think he would be a reporter. He’s too smart for that. I’ve never spoken to him about this, but he strikes me as a possible cat person. A house cat that’s a friendly enough cat. But that’s low maintenance. And who’s very much like him. In terms of independence, I mean –– trying to contain Shane would be a lot like herding cats, which is impossible. When he’s done with college, I think I’ll see him on the news as a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist. I also think he’s going to team up with [senior] Tomek Marczewski and [junior] Ishaan Devalla for some sort of political movement. Although Ishaan is kind of the odd man out there because he is sort of a monarchist. Ishaan aspires to a political career, I think. Shane is what we call sui generis. I mean, he’s an original. I don’t think I’ve ever met a student like Shane. If I had to compare him to a anybody, it would be George Orwell.
Reverend Stephen Arbogast on genius philosopher Abhi Jane: Redefining the ethics of medicine. think Abhi will work with medical ethics through a multi-religious lens. Here’s why — the work he’s done with Chapel Council has shown that he’s really interested in both interfaith and intercultural approaches towards things. When we’ve talked about his interest in science and engineering and medicine, he’s really expressed an interest in their ethics. Typically, when people talk about ethics in research or science they look at it exclusively through a European, secular, humanistic, philosophical lens. Abhi is so good at looking at things through a wide, multicultural, multireligious lens. He’s very easy-going. He gets along with almost everybody. I bet we’d be surprised at the variety of friendships he will develop in the future. How will he enlighten himself on all of the different religions? Oh, he’s already done that. He was one of the speakers at the Jewish Federation of Greater Dallas’s interfaith seder. He’s someone who’s kind of a quiet leader in all of these things. He has personally explored the religious variety in Dallas. Pets? He’ll be busy — maybe a robot dog. They’re easy to take care of, and you can turn them off when you’re away.
I
STORY Austin Williams, Toby Barrett, Axel Icazbalceta PHOTOS Austin Williams, Toby Barrett, Axel Icazbalceta
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Final ReMarks Austin Williams Editor-in-Chief
Toby Barrett Managing Editor
Evan Lai Head Photographer
Austin Williams
Position: Editor-in-Chief From the staff: The engine of our operation, powered by inordinate amounts of caffeine, Tootsie Rolls and Joe Rogan. Your beautiful, soul-snatching squeals in drama are the high points of all our days. We appreciate your wonderfully aesthetic troll face drawings on the white board. Of course, we’re all completely and utterly devastated that we will not get to see your once-ina-millenium cannon showcased at the Ice Bowl this year. Given your undying sweet tooth (shout-out Ms. Finnegan), dentists everywhere are rejoicing, knowing they have hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of medical attention to give to you in the years to come. And although we’ll miss you, we’re grateful to our creators that we never have to hear you or Shreyan talk about Clash Royale ever, ever again. You manage to spearhead our entire production, skipping football games to print pages, patiently sitting through all our ideas and making sure that everything goes according to plan. Best of luck, Larry. Godspeed. Response: Thanks, guys. I’ve done my best to keep things rolling around here. I’ll certainly miss trolling around the pub suite with the boys, and I hope we’ve left some kind of legacy as a staff. I promise you all that I’ll continue to eat candy, play Clash and make hilarious noises.
Toby Barrett
Position: Managing Editor From the staff: Tobias. While you might be a little cotton-headed at times, surprisingly, you rarely pussyfoot around during production week. Additionally, the quality of your issue-driven pitches never fails to impress and often shapes the landscape of our newspaper. Your pristine interview abilities remind us of a younger Skip Bayless, and it shows up in your work as Host of the Focal Point Podcast. Despite your early-onset male-pattern baldness, we know Addison Rae would be lucky to have you. As a sure-handed first baseman and deadly relief pitcher, it’s no surprise you’ve taken on the duties of Endzone co-editor-in-chief. You’re easy-going, always patient and have a geat taste in music as permanent aux on work Saturdays. Medill is lucky to have you. Response: I feel beyond honored to be compared to Skip Bayless, but, as many people know, I genuinely believe LeBron James should be the king of America, so I don’t think Skip and I would get along. I’ll miss throwing various objects at Shreyan and Dillon for stressing me out until my hair loss reaches a Callioulike stage. Arjun, you’re on aux. And I can’t believe it’s been three whole years — wouldn’t have wanted to do anything different. A big thanks to Ray and all the kids who’ve rolled through pubs and made it what it is.
Peter Orsak
Position: Managing Editor From the staff: Peter — if we ask you to do something, we never have to worry about complaints or whining. Although you put up frequent roadblocks, your ideas are among those on staff. Thanks for your unwavering patience. Even though your mom doesn’t think it, you have a great radio voice. We appreciate you for always being so thorough in your editing of our podcast. To
GOODBYES
In their final cycle on The ReMarker, the seniors on staff say their farewells, to each other and to the program. Memories and inside jokes abound. Prepare the tissues.
Peter Orsak Managing Editor
Cooper Cole Graphics Director
Will Pechersky Assignments Editor
Ekansh Tambe Publications Photo Editor
this day, we wish you would have been on that Zoom call with Jenny. After a long day, we can always rely on you to say something out of pocket. Our October cover — which will go down with the greats of ReMarker history — is a testament to your consistent, unmatched willpower and your ability to just get things done — plain and simple. Hopefully you can continue to listen to rap music wherever you end up. Best to you, Diablo. Response: Such kind words, gentlemen. I’m not exactly sure where you got the rap music bit from. I’ll stick to my Tyler Childers. While I may have designed the October cover, I can’t take credit for its success — it was the burnt orange spot color that truly brought it home. I’ve loved my time on staff, from sports coverage to columns to cover stories to design to the podcast (no matter what my mom said) to Endzone and Focus. I’ll miss you boys, and I’m proud of all the work we got done. Diablo out.
Will Pechersky
Position: Assignments Editor From the staff: Chersk. Clanky. Big Willy. Your outspoken nature and aggressive style of leadership has served you well as assignments editor. We’re all terrified of you. Every story deadline day, we admire your patience to pull out the cleaver. Of any member on staff, you stand out as the most mature individual. Well, by mature, we mean oldest. Your blonde locks and blue eyes are hypnotizing — guess that’s how you landed your double-date. While you might not make the NFL like you promised Henry Piccagli, we’re looking forward to seeing you walk-on as a star tight-end on the Forty Acres. Hook ‘em. Go Longhorns. Response: Well, I hope my daily moments of rage and anger have finally put the staff into shape. Maybe there will be a cycle next year where everyone finally turns their stories into the correct file on the rack for the first time. Peter and I’s double-date story from J-1 will definitely stick with me as I continue researching the ins and outs of the beloved AP Stylebook in my future. I’ll be sure to make y’all proud on the turf next year in place of the Ice Bowl. It’s been a blast joking around with y’all in the pub suite the last four years. Thanks, guys.
Jonathan Yin
Position: InDepth Editor From the staff: Jolly ol’ Jonathan. Joj. Wherever would we be without you? Probably graphicless. Sorry for all those last-minute requests, by the way. Not really, but thanks for pulling through. :) Also thank you for keeping up the Luke Piazza tradition of always having centerspread ready to go on work Saturday and giving Ray absolutely zero headaches!! Really though, the spreads you eventually turn in have been quite beautiful. What would we do without the best designer on staff? Thank you for getting us another gold crown, Joj, and for all the other work you’ve done for us, the Adobe Illustrator illiterate. Response: Probably in a better place, if I’m being completely honest. My sincerest condolences to Morgan next year — have fun dealing with these phillistines. But what can I say? My work ethic is unparalleled. Y’all are just jealous. As long as it’s done, it’s done, right? I look forward to seeing if the next
Jonathan Yin InDepth Editor
Grant Jackson Staff Writer
redhead will be equally responsible next year — I sure hope so. But in all seriousness, thanks, guys. Lemon Peen reigns eternal, and I’ll miss y’all.
Axel Icazbalceta
Position: Editorials & Opinions Editor From the staff: Axel — the sussiest baka. POG champion of the staff, and most MLG opinions editor in the country. Of course, you are also the drippiest member of staff, consistently showing up to acting class in what we can only describe as Gucci-ed out Sherlock Holmes. You were selected because your opinions are superior to ours, and the wrath of your often very filtered language can be felt through print. Your greatest journalistic achievement through three long years, countless hours and endless numbers of late nights is getting the Around the Quad done in one day. You deserve all the V-Bucks in New York City next year. Response: God forbid the terms “MLG” and “V-Bucks” make their way onto a ReMarker page ever again. I cannot believe my Final ReMark was tainted by the presence of Fortnite. Horrible. Anyways, I’d like to think my opinions have been the best in the history of The ReMarker — and the world. I hope I made Alam proud. Also, you try to do Around the Quad. Have fun talking to double the number of people you need to. Whatever. Seriously though, this newspaper has been the best part of my time at this place. Design nights and work Saturdays have been the highlights of my high school years. Y’all have been great, thanks for everything.
Evan Lai
Position: Head Photographer From the staff: Our head photographer, and head contrarian. We really appreciate your countless last-minute photos (okay smurf!), but we most of all appreciate your contributions to our Editorial Board meetings. We’d like to extend our utmost gratitude for the very interesting — let’s say diverse — viewpoints that you bring to our meetings every five weeks. It is truly heartening to know that you have taken Enoch’s TIB talk to heart. Thanks for all your contributions. We hope you fulfill much the same role in Austin next fall… or possibly, in New York City. Response: I am proud that I have contributed to the St. Mark’s tradition of completing assignments last minute but still with the highest degree of quality. During Editorial Board meetings, I loved bringing my unique perspective, which has created many impactful and insightful stories. I will most definitely spread my ideas to my future college acquaintances. Been a good ride –– greendog21.
Ekansh Tambe
Position: Publications Photo Editor From the staff: EK — you border between fantastic photographer and superb backpage designer. You’ve taught us all that it is, despite all odds, possible to complete backpage before work Saturday after starting Friday night. Thanks for always having at least one pitch for editorial board meetings. We’re looking forward to what you produced for The Marque, since it stole you from us last cycle. Your dedicated special section was nothing short of spectacular, showcasing borders across the globe. We hope you send us a postcard from that
Axel Icazbalceta Editorials & Opinions Editor
Ian Mize Business Manager small liberal arts school in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Response: I mean, what am I if not a breaker of borders? Thanks for all your support, guys. I’m glad I (mostly) finally figured out how the server works by this last cycle. If you look carefully, you might be able to see my camera peeking out from behind a tree if you ever end up vaulting over a fence as a shortcut to get to practice. I hope I left some kind of legacy as the first photographer to be Backpage Editor. You can bet I won’t forget y’all from my small liberal arts school just outside Boston.
Cooper Cole
Position: Graphics Director From the staff: Cooper — it may take seven texts to convince you to create artwork for our newspaper, but you consistently make masterpieces in 15 minutes. Thank you for only missing three of our seven editorial board meetings, and for providing our newspaper with award-winning artwork for these past years. Hopefully opinions sections of the future will be blessed with a cartoon-drawer as adept as you. Response: It has been an absolute pleasure to work with y’all. I know I never took a class of journalism, but I thank you guys so much for letting me be a part of the program. Sorry for the consistently late graphics and comics. Much love.
Grant Jackson
Position: Staff Writer From the staff: Grant, we’ll keep this brief — you have the most detailed and organized emails by far, no matter the occasion. We appreciate your continued dedication to clear and effective communication. Your adorable giggle always lights up the rest of the publications suite. Our section introduction pages will sorely miss you next year. Response: Keeping this brief will be a challenge, but I won’t go past 75 words. But on a real note, even though I joined you all my sophomore year, you guys made me feel like family from day one. I’ll definitely miss my unique conversations with everyone around the Harkness table (especially with Peter and Nolan), Mr. Westbrook’s rants about J1 and Will being the most punctual, disciplined person on earth when it comes to turning in stories. The best is yet to come. To infinity and beyond, Grant. P.S. I definitely went past the requested 75 words.
Ian Mize
Position: Business Manager From the staff: Ian, thank you for bringing home the big bucks when we needed it most. I don’t think the school could financially survive without your Fortune500-CEO-caliber business skills. And your bright smile always brings the best out of us every morning and afternoon. Good luck to you and your Spanish major next year! Response: You’re welcome. Shout out to Paxton Scott for his untiring support and mentorship as I strove to be among the greatest of all time at what I do. It nearly brings me to tears that this is goodbye, but all good things come to an end. To put my Spanish to use, extrañaré trabajar para el periódico, y extrañaré especialmente a Toby. ¡Gracias!
11 and three-quarters years: memories from my time as a shy kid all the way to a blue shirt
M
y dad got a call. Without hesitation, I immediately put on my favorite pair of cowboy boots, some blue jeans and a Texas flag button-down shirt –– drip. After tossing a neon orange Nerf football into the trunk, we headed off to a place I didn’t know much about but would soon learn was my home for the next dozen years. Well, 11 and three-quarters years, but we’ll get to that in a second. Just three months later, my dad was dragging me into Spencer Gym for the first-grade lockout against my will. Luckily, this painfully shy and socially awkward little kid wasn’t alone. There were 31 other boys sitting on the baseline of the basketball court –– and Doc Browning greeting us with a welcoming grin on his face.
It was here, at 10600 Preston Road, that I learned PEMDAS, parts of speech and the half-life of carbon-14. It was here that I scored my first touchdown in tackle football. And most of all, it was here that I created friendships and memories that will last me a lifetime. But it’s easy for people to imagine their future was always guaranteed –– that it was always in the cards. And for me, it felt like it was, until my parents sat me down one May afternoon in 2012 for “a talk.” They told me we were to be leaving our life in Dallas for Tulsa, OK –– forever. Judging from my reaction, you might have guessed they had informed me that Santa wasn’t real (he is) or that Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki died or that Spongebob would be taken off cable television. But no,
seven-year-old Peter just couldn’t bear the fact he may never see his friends again. Fortunately, this forgettable stint across the Red River didn’t last, and I joined Mr. Jordan’s homeroom as if nothing had happened. I was back to collecting baseball cards, chowing down at Purple Cow and Peter Orsak Managing Editor sitting through chapel twice a week. And now, as I write this column, all I can think about are the stories I would have missed out on if we never came back. Like the time a herd of horses
stampeded through our camp during the third-grade campout. Or the time we shaved coach Hale’s head after beating ESD. Or the time Cole Norman received his iconic nickname “Terry.” When we ran through the streets after rolling the Hockadaises. When we fought over weak calls in the three-on-three basketball league. When we walked down the Great Hall with our little buddies on our shoulders. I could truly go on and on about what this place means to me, how it has prepared me for the future and why, if I could go back, I’d do it all again. But, for me, it’s really not all that complicated. What makes this place so special is the relationships I’ve forged over the past 12 years. Well, 11 and three-quarters years.
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College destinations
Movin’ on
OUT
Here’s where the Class of 2022 will end up next year. Coast to coast, Marksmen had success and are moving on to the next chapter.
VT (1) NH (3) WI (1)
NY (11)
MI (1)
RI (3) PA (7)
IL (12) CA (10)
CO (2)
MA (9) CT (1)
OH (3)
MD (3)
IN (5)
DC (3)
VA (3)
MO (1)
NC (1)
TN (1)
SC (2) AL (1)
GA (6)
EUROPE (2)
TX (40) LA (1)
Sal Abbasi Arjun Agarwal Sam Alfalahi
Georgetown Texas A&M U of San Diego Syracuse Elijah Baker SMU Toby Barrett Northwestern Zayn Bhimani Georgetown Ethan Borge Drexel LUC Xander Bowles Middlebury Spencer Burke UT Austin Baylor Jeffrey Chen Harvard Caltech Yale Maxwell Chuang Northwestern Cooper Cole William & Mary Sahil Dodda UPenn Dylan Dropkin Indiana ACC Conor Duffy Georgia Lafayette Union Drake Elliott MIT Elijah Ellis West Point Enoch Ellis MIT Samuel Eluemunoh Kenyon Matthew Fan UT Austin UCLA William Fitzpatrick Fordham James Fults SMU TCU Auburn Alex Geng Harvard Stanford
Miki Ghosh Nicolas Gomez Cal Graham Benjamin Gravel
UChicago WashU Texas A&M Case Western SMU Rahul Gunukula RPI Niles Harvey [no response] Brett Honaker UCLA Axel Icazbalceta Columbia Grant Jackson [undecided] Abhi Jain UC Berkeley Rice USC Jedidiah Kim Brown Northwestern Nicholas Koch NYU Tate Laczkowski WMA AOF Adam Lai Princeton Evan Lai UT Austin Dartmouth Zach Lightfoot Case Western Georgia Tech CU Boulder Ian Lin Rice Jackson Lutz SMU CSM Samir Mamtani Wisconsin Tomek Marczewski Purdue Georgia Tech U of Bristol Luke Martin Villanova Evan McGowan Cornell Mac McKenzie UT Austin Shaan Mehta SMU
Zubin Mehta Ian Mize Blake Molthan Anashay Monga Stefan Moreno Henry Morgan Alex Nadalini Ashvin Nair Bryce Nivet Cole Norman Lars Ochs Fisayo Omonije Corvin Oprea Peter Orsak Raj Papineni Will Pechersky Colin Peck Thomas Philip Henry Piccagli Sampath Rapuri Camden Reeves Sam Reitich
UT Austin Princeton UT Austin Colgate Tulane Michigan Boston College Emory American ACC Brown Cornell Rice Northwestern USC Rice Texas A&M Indiana W&L Trinity Purdue Johns Hopkins U of Rochester Northwestern UVA Notre Dame UT Austin UT Austin Santa Clara UT Austin ACC Johns Hopkins Rice Duke LMU
Jake Robinowitz Alex Ryan
Georgia Texas A&M Princeton Henry Schechter UT Austin Matthew Shen UPenn Will Shoup UT Austin Owen Simon UT Austin Colgate James Singhal UT Austin Pranay Sinkre Northwestern Noah Soliz ACC Isaac Song Georgia Tech Ralph Steele UT Austin Zack Stone Johns Hopkins Shane Sweet Gettysburg Ekansh Tambe Harvard Rana Thakkar Dartmouth James Then Baylor Jodie Thompson SMU Miller Trubey LUC Daniel Uglunts Northwestern Max Vafa Villanova Paul Valois SMU Caleb Vanzant Baylor Soham Verma UT Austin Adam Wang Harvard George Warren Texas A&M Austin Williams Brown Northwestern Samuel Wu USC UT Austin Darren Xi Cambridge Dartmouth Jonathan Yin UChicago Jeremy Yu MIT
*List subject to change. Waitlist decisions not included. Key abbreviations: SMU: Southern Methodist University UT Austin: University of Texas at Austin ACC: Austin Community College MIT: Massachusetts Institute of Technology UCLA: University of California, Los Angeles TCU: Texas Christian University WashU: Washington University in St. Louis RPI: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute UC Berkeley: University of California, Berkeley USC: University of Southern California NYU: New York University CU Boulder: University of Colorado Boulder W&L: Washington and Lee University UVA: University of Virginia LMU: Loyola Marymount University CSM: Colorado School of Mines LUC: Loyola University Chicago WMA: Wilbraham & Monson Academy AOF: Avon Old Farms School