A School Divided Teacher Student Bonds Life Is Plastic: It’S Fantastic

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6 EDITORIAL A Thin Line Crossword 8 FEATURES Unstable Structure A Year Without a Leader Natalie Hampton The Forbidden Fruit Dismediation Living What We Stand For Fluent Language Learning

22 NEWS A School Divided Teacher Student Bonds Life is Plastic: It’s Fantastic

33 OP-EDS Community Day Trying Vegan A Meshuggah Calendar New Campus, Who Dis?

across 40 REVIEWS down 4 Tributes to the Seniors Music and Meaning by CHLOE 5 The School was so quiet on this May 3rd from 5:30-8:00 PM 1 day Become a mentor, be vetted ex- 2 44 ARTS AND LETTERS 6 Avenues and Grace Church tensively collaboration School within a library librarian 3 Sylvia Plath and Snapchat NO MORE CLASSES 7 9 Queen of Design Challenges Misery Loves Company Who LOVES maps? 8 The Chronicles of Detention 11 Rice and Beans Junior Prom Locale 10 13 You thought you would fail her Wikipedia, nuff said 12 HUMOR class. You were right Our very own Tiger Woods 13 50 Senior Prom Locale 16 An Honest Response 14 The one club you’ve heard about, Horoscopes but still don’t really know what it Headliners does Crossword 15 Mr. Hudson’s favorite Netflix show 17 Created a Global Journeys Trip Cover by Brandon Bunt 2 55

Managing Board

Editor-in-Chief ...... Isabella Simonetti Senior Managing Editor...... Lucas Horsnby Managing Editors...... Jackson Ehrenworth ...... Sabrina Sternberg ...... Sophia Koock

Editors

Junior Editors...... Eva Hwang ...... Grace Franco Creative Directors...... Clare Maleeny Section Editors...... Caroline Yu ...... Noah Shamu

Staff Writers and Artists

Sydney Judge...... Roxana Gosfield...... Sam Boyce Edwin Shen...... Jaden Schapiro...... Elizabeth Acevedo Brandon Bunt...... Oren Schweitzer...... Jean Li Spencer...... Kavin Chada

3 A Thin Line Between Love and Hate

By ISABELLA SIMONETTI

EDITORIAL

Photo by Elizabeth Acevedo

4 AS STUDENTS NEAR the end of their time in high stretch of high school. Although the work assigned in most school, they will often “play with fire.” It is common for stu- classes is not reflective of this, teachers agree that the work dents to test one or more of their teachers’ limits, as they ask assigned to seniors could have more flexibility. themselves: “why should I continue to do work for you if our In 12th grade English, students have been able to find time is all too soon coming to an end?” After all, it can feel meaning in their final assignment, the senior memoir, which useless to carry on spending hours studying grueling mate- has afforded them the creative space and agency them to re- rial, composing essays, and even conducting science projects flect on meaningful events in their lives. when college decisions have come out and the importance of “[Students have been] more engaged with like personal things grades declines. going on….in English [we are] writing personal memoirs…. Some students choose to answer these questions by casu- most have been really engaged with it because it matters and ally strolling into class late – if they even show up at all – it’s not sort of extra work,” said 11th and 12th grade English taking buzzfeed quizzes and going on Facebook when they teacher Kristen Highland. should be working, and handing in assignments at their earli- Work like the senior memoir offers an opportunity for est convenience rather than when they are due. Others con- students to do something that matters to them. Perhaps the tinue to slog through their work even though it feels mean- answer for seniors is not to lower the expectations, but instead ingless. Many feel that they owe it to those teachers that have engage in a different kind of work than 9-11th graders. been supportive of them, or they are simply too particular, “I think you could make an argument for some sort of perfectionistic, or paranoid about their transcripts. Regard- internship program, but I don’t think it should be any less rig- less, the phenomenon widely referred to as “senioritis,” hit the orous. I think that when students are allowed to fall into pat- 2017 seniors with a blow. terns where a school lower the rigor because students aren’t Numerous teachers of the class of 2017 have reported a willing to work, that sets them up for failure in college,” said recent drop in work ethic. “I’ve seen less energy and motiva- Mr. Widelec. tion in class, more missing homeworks, more missing papers Although senioritis is a contentious topic within the Av- and late papers and less engagement in discussion,” said Av- enues community, it is clear that teachers and students can enues history and senior seminar teacher, Ron Widelec. agree that seniors should have taken part in more meaningful The tension exists most between students who want to work in all subjects. enjoy the ends of their high school careers, and teachers who Senior year is centered around the future. College ap- want to continue challenging students in their classroom. plications and decisions consume most of the year, and the Spanish teacher Carrie Meatto said, “You know, I have a only time students have to enjoy the end of their high school sense that some students are shocked that their teachers have experience is the spring. given them real meaningful, substantial, senior level assign- However, the class of 2017 at Avenues spent much of ments in these last few weeks.” their time frustrated by the type of and quantity of work that Yet, while many teachers feel that the work they are as- was being assigned, while their teachers remained upset by signing is important, students remain frustrated by its volume their lack of enthusiasm and initiative. and substance. In retrospect, it was wrong for students to treat teachers “I think a lot of students are stressed out about the work- and their classes with such explicit disrespect. Teachers have load, and feel that teachers don’t understand. I don’t share that been some of the biggest allies of students throughout their experience as much, but I know a lot of students are strug- time at Avenues. Many even wrote recommendations that gling right now,” said senior Christina Kopecka. helped seniors gain acceptance into colleges of their choice. In a survey sent out to the upper grades, it was reported While the disappointment that teachers felt towards that on average, students have 4.05 projects to complete dur- their senior students may have felt like hatred, it was rooted ing the final two weeks of term four, most of which are related in the love and passion they devoted to the class of 2017. Ul- closely to the wrapping up each class’s respective curriculum. timately, they deserve the attention and compassion they put However, many students want to pursue a different type of into their students. work. What is more, learning should not have stopped when “I was hoping that we would be able to do more of that students were admitted to schools; the sole objective of an mastery type of work or like internships and things like Avenues is not college admission. Sure, the end of the year that….I just thought it would be more time to work on per- could be used to hone some of the practical skills Avenues sonal things and not the same things we’ve been doing for the values through internship or job opportunities. But we are last four years,” said senior Clara Leverenz. educated to be respectful, model citizens, and students who It is difficult for students to be motivated by assignments really care about their education will keep on learning even that are not of much interest to them, particularly in the final when their may not be a tangible reward. •

5 UNSTABLE STRUCTURE

By Jackson Ehrenworth

WHEN ENGINEERS FIND cracks in the foundations of bridges or buildings, they worry. They picture in their minds the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, its initial tremble only visible in minor cracks, until it began to vibrate and pieces broke off. They know to pay attention to small breakages. Sometimes they’ll even x-ray foundations, to make hairline fractures visible. It’s the same way that avalanche scientists dig snow pits to see what’s under the sur- face. Everyone wants to avoid calamity. ¶ In “The Real Data Rev- olution,” Brandon Busteed, an executive director at Gallup, ana- lyzes the classic economic indicators nations have used to measure health, such as GDP. Busteed shows that in the years leading up to the Arab Spring, GDP was rising in Egypt and Tunisia.

6 Features

The percentage of time felt per feeling on a scale of 0-1. E.g. 0.52 = 52% of the time that feeling is felt in school. Error bars represent 90% confidence intervals. These statistics were collected in a survey given to upper school students in March, 2017. This survey was a project created for a statistics class. It bears expanding upon as its sample size was 72 students. Hypothesis testing yielded small p values, however, suggesting signficance.

Yet multiple Gallup polls of well-being showed that well- in Mexico, the most common emotions that students report- being was decreasing in these countries. The Gallup polls ed feeling in their schools were connected, and hopeful. also separated engagement at work from simply employment. It’s not inevitable for teens to feel exhausted and over- Gallup found that people who are emotionally connected to whelmed at school. It is our particular, local, dominant con- their workplace are more productive and healthier. Well- dition. We put a lot of emphasis at Avenues on leadership, being matters. Yet we tend to measure our teens not by their and achievement. It’s time for us to put more emphasis on well-being but by their test scores, acceptances, and grades. empathy and integrity and kindness. Tired, stressed. When asked about the emotions they Of the negative emotions that Avenues students report- feel most often at Avenues, upper school students say that ed, the one felt the least was depression. But kids reported their most common emotion is tired. The second most com- feeling depressed 32% of the time. If this were a preschool mon emotion is stressed. Students say they feel tired 74% of class, we would be horrified. The problem is, that at a meta- the time. Students say they feel stressed 60% of the time (see level, we are conditioned to expect that teens will be vola- bottom figure). This isn’t a healthy emotional climate. tile and unhappy. Brackett warns against this conditioning, If you think that the adolescent condition is inevitably which he notes is a peculiarly American acceptance of teen one of being tired and stressed, then these statistics won’t give unhappiness. you pause. It’s true that the emotional climate at Avenues These cracks in Avenues’ culture might be related. You isn’t markedly different than that at other U.S. high schools. can be tired from physical activity and not enough sleep. But Marc Brackett, of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, you also feel tired when you are anxious, or isolated, or intimi- found that the top three emotions felt by high school stu- dated. Vulnerability is exhausting. dents across the U.S. were tired (90% of the time), stressed It’s worse for the women at our school. In the last is- (80% of the time), and bored (75% of the time). So you could sue of The Highliner, Isabella Simonetti wrote about what say, “Well, this is just about being a teenager. All teens are unit feels like being “interrupted” as a woman at Avenues. She happy.” The thing is, when Brackett surveyed public schools included anecdotes, stories of perceived micro-oppressions

7 and humiliations. In the many conver- you’ll notice that males and females at more tired, more stressed, less respected, sations since that peers and faculty have Avenues live in vastly different emo- less supported, more anxious, less confi- had about her article, one thing was said tional landscapes in our school. When dent, less joyful, less hopeful, and more often. “Well, those were just her feel- you look across the range of positive depressed than their male counterparts. ing.” False. To be female at Avenues is and negative feelings that students re- It’s sobering. Female students feel to feel markedly different than to feel port, almost every single time (“bored” thirty percent more anxious than male male. is the only exception), a negative emo- students. They feel thirty percent less Look at the data on how upper tion is reported more often by females confident. This is in no way acceptable. grade students report their most com- than male. What’s the strongest predictor of a mon emotions (see top figure), and Female students at Avenues feel student experiencing positive or nega-

Figure top: Percentage feelings felt broken up by gender. There were only male and female respondents, though other options were given.

Figure below: A look at the percentages of respondents who feel more negative feelings than positive feelings. E.g. The blue male bar means that 73% of males feel more positive feelings than negative feelings.

8 An ad taken out in The New York Times on May 10th, 2016. Universities in bold are ones into which Avenues students were accepted. Prices vary, but it is estimated it cost $150,000-$100,000 for a full page spread in the times.

tive emotions in our upper school? Their gender. When the school values most. you look at whether each student feels more negative or posi- “Trying to build a community is probably the hardest tive emotions when at school, the frequency is dominated by work we’ll ever do in school. In some respects, focusing on gender. academic success is easier,” notes Mr. Drew Cortese, a dean It’s not all about gender, though. Overall, the emotional at Avenues. climate at Avenues needs our attention. And the truth is, It’s not clear what to do about the fact that in terms of there are teachers who care. There are administrators who emotional lives, the school is failing its female students, or care. Yet overall, or officially, the school seems remarkably that a small subset of kids have racist feelings, or that a large insensitive to the emotional life of its high school students. set of kids expresses feeling depressed, or that virtually all stu- A year ago, Yase Smallens, then a graduating senior, wrote dents’ dominant emotions are tired and stressed. an article for The Highliner in which she accused the school Perhaps we should stop focusing on making good stu- of using the seniors’ acceptances as capital. The school, she dents and focus more on making good people. Good peo- asserted, essentialized the seniors, turning their achievements ple will be good students. They will be engaged, connected, into admissions capital. She was right. caring people, which means they will be engaged, connected, When Avenues put an ad in the New York Times, it and caring with their work. The reverse, on the hand, is not didn’t celebrate the community activism, the social con- necessarily true. science, or the connectivity of Avenues students. It listed What is clear is that it’s not televison series that threaten the schools they got into. That kind of ad didn’t just affect our well-being, it’s not the outside world, some world of par- admissions, it affected the climate within the school. Every ties or concerts, or if those things, or the college application student who read that list thought: how will I contribute to process, do threaten us, then our emotional climate inside the that list? What will my placement be? They also learned what school needs to be more of a haven. •

9 A YEAR WITHOUT A LEADER

By SYDNEY JUDGE

EVER SINCE SEPTEMBER, the members of senior class language teacher for the lower grades,” said Ms. Núñez. She at Avenues have felt grateful to be completing their journeys, teaches third grade, fourth grade, seventh grade, and eighth although graduating would seem incomplete without a nod grade and has a total of 89 students. to Ms. Saybel Núñez. Ms. Núñez announced in August of Ms. Núñez added, “I am not doing the administrative 2016 that she would be leaving Avenues to start a new job at part anymore, which was the Head of Grade side of my job Saint David’s School. that I was doing at Avenues, so the workload feels signifi- Ms. Núñez taught at Avenues since the very first year, cantly less to me.” beginning as a Spanish teacher and adding the role of Head Being able to primarily focus on teaching Spanish has of Grade for the current senior class when they first entered been very rewarding for her: “It has felt very refreshing, going high school in 2013. She now works at Saint David’s School, back to just the classroom, and I can become a better teacher, a Catholic school for boys in grades Pre-K through 8. I can plan my classes better, I can think about strategies. I “I went back into teaching full-time. It is very similar to have time to go through conferences, and in the three years what I did in the first year at Avenues, where I was a foreign that I spent being the Head of Grade at Avenues I think I

10 only had time to go to a conference once. Now I’ve already Seniors at Avenues have felt the impact of not see- been to two.” ing Ms. Núñez each day, but understand that she needed to There are many things Ms. Núñez enjoys about teaching leave.“Prof Nunz was literally like my second mother. She at Saint David’s. “One of my favorite things is actually being gave me a space to be myself. She was always there for me able to leave at four o’clock. I hate to compare, but at Avenues, and I wish she would have stayed, but it was the best thing for that was the time I was beginning to work. I would get to my her and you have to respect that, but I think Avenues needs emails and deal with stuff.” someone like that for every student,” Yvette Lopez said. Dealing with less stress has also had an impact on her. Tallulah Bonay ’17 said, “I miss Ms. Núñez. She’s the Ms. Núñez said, “Last year, I was sick every month. I’m going person who introduced me to the rest of the grade when I to end the school year, and knock on wood, I didn’t get sick, was new, and that helped me a lot. She knew everyone so not even once.” personally.” The religious aspect of teaching in a Catholic school has Junho Kim ’17 had Ms. Núñez as his Spanish teacher been important to Ms. Núñez: “When I was at Avenues, I each year from eighth grade through eleventh grade. “I think didn’t feel like it was proper for me to talk about God or pray, that she was the one person who was understanding my sit- and now I just have that freedom.” uation as an immigrant the most, because she was also an One of the highlights has also been going to the chapel at immigrant. She helped me a lot.” He added, “In the United Saint David’s. “Because it’s a catholic school, we have chapel. States there are certain hidden rules that exist, and she was Students actually go to chapel every day. I don’t have to go to also helping me adjust.” chapel every day, but as a teacher, I do have to be at chapel “She always tried to consider the students’ perspective,” once a week, every Thursday. Once a month, I get to lead the Kim said. chapel. It doesn’t have to be in religion, I can just address the The absence of Ms. Núñez can be seen on many levels at students and speak about any topic that I want to. I really Avenues. “Her desk was the private spot where all of the peo- like that because it is a platform that I have to address other ple gathered.” He added, “[Ms. Núñez] made a little theme things that perhaps I am not free to address to the language park where all the little people could heal themselves some- room.” how from the tired mind and body from the ACTs, and it is Although Ms. Núñez had spent the previous years as the unfortunate that the juniors cannot really have that this time, Head of Grade to an incoming senior class, the opportunity because it was very very helpful when I was a junior and I was to teach at Saint David’s was something that had greatly ap- stressed by the powerful ACT, at least her desk was there, and pealed to her. “[Saint David’s] never has openings, and it was at least I was able to find one other person crying there.” like, either I take it now or never. In fact, I asked around, Ms. Núñez misses the seniors as well: “My heart aches. I teachers in my school have been teaching there for 20 years, miss you guys. I’ve been teaching for 21 years now, and I don’t 25 years, 30 years, and they actually never leave. It’s a good think I have ever become this close with any other group of place to work— it’s very stable, nice and quiet, and stress- students. And I’ve taught all over the world. There was some- free.” thing very special about the class of 2017.” •

11 Natalie Hampton: teenage app designer, activist, entrepreneur

Interviewed by Roxana Gosfield, 6th Grade

IN MIDDLE SCHOOL, Natalie Hampton used to wander her cafeteria every day at lunch, anxiously looking for a place to sit. She was bullied and felt ostracized by her classmates, so she usually ended up sitting alone. Then, at sixteen, decided that no student deserved to sit alone. So Natalie created an app called Sit With Us, which helps students to find tables to sit at lunch. The app is now in hundreds of schools and has made a huge impact in the global issue of bullying. Natalie has been named a global teen leader, and no longer feels like she is a victim of bullying. Natalie lives in Los Angeles, and recently transferred schools.

INTERVIEWER HAMPTON How did you come up with the idea? I guess the growth of it. I thought it’d only be used at my school and maybe a couple of others. But it’s being used all NATALIE HAMPTON the way around the world in tons of different countries: Aus- I was pretty badly bullied at my old school. On top of being tralia, New Zealand, and other places and across this coun- bullied I had to eat lunch on my own every day. I know how try as well. We did not expect how big it would become. It’s awful that feels. When I transferred to a better school, I would amazing to us that’s it’s gone this far. always ask people to come sit at my table. Some of those people are my very best friends, so I wanted to bring that to other INTERVIEWER kids. I created an app to make it possible for them. How long has it the app been out for?

INTERVIEWER HAMPTON What’s been the most unexpected outcome of the app? We released it in the fall in September, 2016.

12 INTERVIEWER able to expand it to other schools as well. How is Natalie before Sit With Us different from Natalie after Sit With Us? INTERVIEWER Was it scary to come up with this idea and make your idea HAMPTON known? Definitely after creating Sit With Us I’ve been able to talk to so many cool people like you. And kids in other schools who HAMPTON are going through the same thing. So I guess the post-Sit Yeah, it was definitely scary because I had to bring it up at my With Us Natalie, now knows that there are so many kids like all-school meeting. Everyone in my entire school was there her in the world who are going through the same things. So and I had to go up in front of them with a microphone and I guess now I know that I wasn’t alone in what I was going tell them what I was doing. I was so scared to do that. People through. And I’ve been able to help a lot of kids and prevent have been really nice about it so I’m happy about that. that from happening to other people INTERVIEWER INTERVIEWER Was there ever a time when you wanted to give up on the What would you say is the main goal of Sit With Us? club?

HAMPTON HAMPTON Even if you don’t use the app, you know that there are kids at Definitely this year has been really hard because I have two your school to help you and be your friend no matter what. AP classes, three honors classes and I have to take the SAT’s So the main goal is to provide kids with a sense of comfort in this year, so I definitely have a lot of work. It’s been hard to do their schools. To let them know that whatever they’re going all this stuff for school and then all this work on the app. But through they’re not alone. once I started getting these messages-I’ve been hearing from kids saying that they’ve met new friends through the app and INTERVIEWER that it’s really helping them, and that’s what keeps me really Can you describe the app in one word? focused on making this app the best that it can be.

HAMPTON INTERVIEWER Inclusion. That’s its goal. Right, so knowing that this app can change people’s lives is the fuel that keeps you going? INTERVIEWER How would you describe lunch before Sit With Us and after HAMPTON it came out? Yes! Definitely!

HAMPTON INTERVIEWER I was always afraid of lunchtime because I never knew where Did you know all things that the app would do for you? to sit or who to sit with or if anyone would talk to me. It was always a really scary place for me in the lunchroom. Now that HAMPTON I’ve transferred schools and I have a group of friends, I feel No. I thought it’d be a small thing or that people wouldn’t a lot safer. But I know a lot of kids don’t. So I want to make really like it. All of this has been a big surprise. lunch a little less scary for kids. INTERVIEWER INTERVIEWER What would the post-Natalie Sit With Us give the be- If you had never come up with the idea for the app, what fore-Natalie Sit With Us? would you have done? HAMPTON HAMPTON I’d love to tell my former self to prepare for how much good is I would have tried to create some club at my new school to going to come out of this. I’ve been meet so many cool people help kids. Because definitely bringing kids together at lunch- through this and see so many cool things. And help a lot of time has been on my mind for a while. If I hadn’t thought people that I never thought I’d be able to connect with. So I of the app, I would have probably created something at my would tell myself that so much good is going to come out of school where kids have open tables. I’m glad that I’ve been this bad experience, you’ll never even believe it! •

13 THE FORBIDDEN FRUIT

By SOPHIE WAZLOWSKI

14 WHENEVER I GO to Whole Foods, I never purchase interviewed said that they did most, or all of their shopping Driscoll’s berries. at Whole Foods, while a few, like Freshman Jaden Schapiro, The first time that I heard about Driscoll’s was during a said that they try to practice more sustainable shopping hab- history class tangent in freshman year. History teachers have its. When asked if a brand name affected his decision when a tendency to go on tangents. One moment the teacher can purchasing fruit, he replied, “It depends what it is, honestly, be discussing why President Reagan had such an influence I mean I try to buy everything non- GMO and organic, and on American politics, and the next, the class is arguing about if I don’t find a brand or label that says that, I probably won’t whether or not the Bee Gees were a good band. buy it. I try to buy locally as much as possible.” The teacher was lecturing about Enlightenment thinkers Other students, such as senior Maddalena Rona weren’t or Russian czars, exactly what the topic was I can’t remember, as concerned with buying fruit that was locally grown or in but somehow we ended up talking about strawberries. And season. When asked how often she bought fruit that was out from strawberries we started talking about Driscoll’s. The of season, she replied “I have no idea. You can quote that.” teacher asked if we were familiar with Driscoll’s berries, and Johann Khoder, the Vice President of Support Services if we knew that they did bad things. It was a small comment, at Flik, the company in charge of the lunch menu at Avenues, but it had a large impact on my life. said that Flik was aware of the allegations against Driscoll’s: From then on, whenever we went to the store, I refused “There’s been discussions around it but there is nothing to put to buy anything from Driscoll’s. If my parents put Driscoll’s out yet.” She also spoke about a partnership the company en- products in our shopping cart, I would keep taking them out tered with Immokalee farm workers in Florida in 2009. She until my parents gave up. When they asked why I was so de- said, “the workers were being paid unfair wages, [had] poor termined to avoid Driscoll’s, I simply replied “Because Mrs. living conditions, [reported] abuse and other things and we... Immediata said they do bad things.” Which I eventually de- gave them as much as a 64% hike in wages, [with a] code of cided wasn’t a good enough reason, so I began researching conduct put in there for wages to eliminate any abuse, and so Driscoll’s and learning more about their berries. on.” Avenues, it seems, is doing a fairly good job of practicing Driscoll’s buys its berries from multiple different farms. sustainable food shopping. One of the farms is Sakuma Bros., a company with farms in The appearance of fruit is a factor that had a large sway Washington and California. Sakuma Bros. had been facing on people’s decisions when buying fruit. When asked what worker strikes and protests due to alleged ‘wage theft’ since her choice would be between two different cartons of straw- 2013. It was now 2016, so around three years had passed. The berries, one with red, ripe berries that was more expensive, workers claimed that they were paid only $6 for around 12 to and the other with less colorful berries, but with a lower price, 15 hours of work; the minimum wage in California is $10.50 sophomore Tallulah Brown said, “I mean, I’d probably buy the an hour and $11.00 in Washington. Part of the problem was more expensive ones then.” the productivity-based system; workers were paid depending Driscoll’s berries usually look full of color and ripe even on how many berries they harvested, so some workers would when they are shipped thousands of miles and are not in sea- earn more than minimum wage, and some much less. son in the area where they are purchased. However, there is Besides the claims of unfair payment, some workers also more to the berries than their convenience and how they look. reported that the housing situations on the farms were un- The decisions that everyday consumers make affect the lives fit and that child-labor laws were violated. One worker, José of farmworkers drastically. It is vital that shoppers make con- Ramírez, said in a Democracy Now! interview that the houses scientious decisions about brand choices when buying pro- had bugs, leaky roofs, exposed nails, and some uninsulated duce, and all types of food. Take Driscoll’s, for instance. All of walls. the protesting and boycotting began to pay off. Despite the ongoing protests against Driscoll’s and its In September 2016, Washington farm workers voted suppliers, corporations such as Whole Foods and Costco to have Familias Unidas por la Justicia (FUJ), a farmworker continued to stock their berries even as protesting continued. union, represent the workers in talks for a union contract. I underestimated how difficult boycotting Driscoll’s would be. Sakuma Bros. agreed to negotiate, which means improved I was accustomed to buying fruit whenever I wanted, wheth- wages and living conditions for the farmworkers. The story er it was in season where I lived or not. During the winter, of the Driscoll’s berry workers is a testament to the effect Driscoll’s was commonly the only type of strawberry, rasp- that awareness when purchasing food can have on immediate berry, or blueberry that Whole Foods carried. Because of this, community, and communities that are as far away as the other for the first time I couldn’t have the fruit that I wanted when side of the country. When buying fruit or any food in general, I wanted it. students and faculty should be conscious of who their choices Many people in the Avenues community and I had a are affecting, and what the consequences of those choices may similar food shopping culture. By far, the majority of people be. •

15 Dismediation and the Media

By JACKSON EHRENWORTH

16 PEOPLE DON’T KNOW what media to trust anymore. CNN and The New York Times are increasingly viewed as partisan and untrustworthy. There have always been problems with the ethics of reporting, with partisanship, with conflicting perspectives. Yet the issues of distortion and distrust that currently undermine any trust in media seem to reflect a more recent timeline. This timeline started with distortion. What George Orwell called “Po- litical Language.” (More on this in a minute.) The next stage might be called submissiveness. The best example of this kind of submissiveness, according to Michael Massing, a writer for The New York Review Of Books, was The New York Time’s reporting of weapons of mass de- struction that prefigured the Iraq War. The next stage we can name dismediation, what Maria Bustillo, a columnist for The Awl, calls a deliberate attempt to misinform and mislead the public – and even more, to make the public distrust any news source, so that all information becomes suspect. The Trump campaign demonstrated how startlingly effective dismediation can be. These stages and uses of language are all connected. In 2012, in Harpers, Ben Lerner wrote how, “the shell of a communicative form is used to foreclose communication.” What Lerner is describing is a form of pseudo communication that exists because words are being said or written, but it’s not actual communication as it stops the travel of information and-even more importantly-it stops thinking. Long before Lerner, in the shadow of the end of World War II, George Orwell described a related problem, or perhaps an earlier form of problem - what he called, political language, or language being used as “the defense of the indefensible.” Or- well’s examples included things like “the continuance of British rule in India, the Russian purges and deportations, the dropping of the atom bombs on Japan.” As Orwell put it, these acts “can indeed be defended, but only by arguments which are too brutal for most people to face, and which do not square with the professed aims of the political parties.” Out of this masking of brutality comes

17 “political language.” gence analyst myself,” Miller claimed. bound to hit the adamantine wall of his Both Lerner and Orwell reveal a According to Miller, her job was “to tell dishonesty and stupidity.” It turned out deliberate use of language to do the op- readers of The New York Times what the that loud and long projection of disme- posite of clarify and reveal: the purpose government thought.” Miller seeming- diation could, in fact, prevail. of this kind of language is to shroud ly saw herself as a mouthpiece for the The answer isn’t to ever read report- and distort. “Defenceless villages are administration, not an investigative re- ing or to abandon journalism. In the bombarded from the air, the inhabi- porter. What’s so dangerous about this midst of these years, after all, also were tants driven out into the countryside, incident is that The New York Times Woodward and Bernstein. They tum- the cattle machine-gunned, the huts bled a corrupt administration. One set on fire with incendiary bullets: suggestion: read more than the front this is called pacification. Millions The shell of a communicative page. Look for the hidden dissent- of peasants are robbed of their farms form is used to foreclose ing stories. And maybe, be suspicious and sent trudging along the roads when any story seems too perfectly with no more than they can carry: communication. aligned with current administration this is called transfer of population or would support an epic, populist, or rectification of frontiers. People are was, then, in fact considered to be fac- and dangerous event. imprisoned for years without trial, or tual. Cheney, Bush, Powell, they all Another suggestion is to abandon shot in the back of the neck or sent to quoted Miller in a kind of vicious cir- neutrality as a goal. die of scurvy in Arctic lumber camps: cle of inept and unqualified passing of The tension between fact and nar- this is called elimination of unreliable misinformation that helped get us into rative is central to this tension of rele- elements,” is how Orwell illuminates a war, ultimately based on false intelli- vancy and transparency. We have more this use of language. One purpose of gence, that radicalized the Middle East. and more access to facts. What we need this kind of political language, accord- That The New York Times could so are writers who can do two things: pro- ing to Orwell, is to refer to or name misreport, and so clearly have aligned vide discernment, and create stories. events, while deliberately avoiding any themselves with a wrong and damaging The responsibility of journalists needs language that would aid in the mental viewpoint, marks the beginning of what to become an ability to weave facts into picturing of these events. Bustillo calls dismediation, where the a narrative that makes us understand Since Orwell wrote his manifes- public begins to not trust any informa- and care about why those facts matter to in 1946, news media has suffered tion. Bustillo looks back at the campaign and what they mean. other stages of distortion. Massing is against Kerry, a war hero with multiple You can see the obsession with fac- most concerned with passivity. In the medals, and how pseudo-forms of me- tuality in the banners for news agen- months leading up to the Iraq War, dia came into being as dismediation cies. CNN’s logo is “bringing you the Massing argues, “US journalists were projects. “Dismediation isn’t discourse,” facts.” BBC’s “the most reliable source far too reliant on sources sympathetic to says Bustillo. “It doesn’t disinform, and of facts.” These logos represent an ethos the administration. Those with dissent- it’s not quite propaganda, as that term that at its heart, feels like a misappre- ing views—and there were more than a has long been understood. Instead, dis- hension of journalism, or at its worst, few—were shut out. Reflecting this, the mediation seeks to break the systems is dismediation. Journalists are always coverage was highly deferential to the of trust without which civilized society choosing which facts to share and which White House.” Massing shows that ar- hasn’t got a chance. Disinformation, to either ignore or bury in a wealth of ticles despicting how high level intelli- once it’s done telling its lie, is finished detail. It’s a misunderstanding to think gence was being questioned by internal with you. Dismediation is looking to of journalism as objective and its dis- sources in the intelligence community, make you never really trust or believe a mediation to present it as neutral. It’s were displaced to back pages, because news story, ever again. Not on Fox, and neither possible, nor is it admirable. they went against the grain. The pre- not on NPR. It’s not that we can’t agree Alain de Botton, an award winning dominant thinking was in support of on what the facts are. It’s that we cannot philosopher and writer, tackles the ide- a popular war, and thus reporting like agree on what counts as fact.” alism of expecting facts to change any- that by Judith Miller, that supported it Bustillo ends her article on dis- thing, when he writes: “The idealistic by revealing sources of nuclear weapon mediation with an optimistic under line on news runs as follows: evil, pas- capacity went on the front page – even estimation of the public’s resistance to sivity and racism are chiefly the result though it turns out to have been ill sup- overt dismediation. Writing shortly be- of ignorance.” If that were true, then ported, and in fact, wrong. fore the election itself, when, by the way, all the news organizations would do, to What’s so dangerous about Miller’s virtually all the media projected Clin- cure ignorance, is provide a stream of precedent is how she defended her lack ton’s victory (they were wrong), Bustillo facts. It’s not ignorance, though, that of verification of her sources. “My job suggested that “the Trump campaign is causes passivity and racism and evil, it’s isn’t to assess the government’s infor- a would-be dismediation project almost a dearth of caring. Narrative gets you to mation and be an independent intelli- certain to fail, simply because it was empathize. Narrative makes you care. •

18 LIVING

WHAT WE STAND FOR by Sam Boyce

AVENUES IS A wonderful place. I know I am not wrong happening is a sign that there is something inherently wrong in saying that many students, including myself, consider our within our community. Is this really how we want others to school to be a second home. Avenues is a safe haven, a place view us? More importantly, is this really how we want to view of refuge, a welcoming and vibrant community of teachers, ourselves? students, and support staff, without which the ecosystem of When I look at Avenues, I see past the majority of af- Avenues would fall apart. fluent, privileged white bodies and recognize that our com- Each individual body of people that congeals to help munity is made up of people with a wide variety of opinions form the larger community of over fifteen hundred people and civilities. But sometimes these differences can conflict living in just two buildings relies on the support and the exis- with each other, a fact that frequently presents itself as both tence of the others. And, though these bodies reside, on paper, a blessing and – let’s say – a challenge. But is it a weakness? in a large and detailed hierarchy, the lines between the groups I sometimes consider the double-edged sword that is a com- of people often become blurred as teachers take a moment to munity diverse in thought and beliefs. crack a quick joke in order to liven up the class, or as students On one hand, a wide difference in opinion on certain share brotherly greetings with FOOD staff while grabbing political and social matters can lead to strong polarization, lunch, chatting naturally. which can then lead to tension throughout the community. However, the Avenues community is made up of peo- On the other hand, a diversity of opinion allows a community ple, and people aren’t perfect beings. Many of us try to do to address problems with a multifaceted perspective, and to the right thing, but we make mistakes. The reality is that approach issues and topics much more objectively with the we all have our own biases, which sometimes clash with the careful consideration of multiple viewpoints. Homogeneous views of others – and these biases can make everything we communities, where everyone shares the same opinions, do do more complicated. While I wouldn’t want to be anywhere not have to deal with a heated school political climate; but other than Avenues, our community still suffers from a lack they also lack the ability to analyze issues from multiple an- of self-control, and more importantly, a deficiency of respect gles. for one another. I like to think that any instances of callous The crucial bit that we forget sometimes is that, re- discourtesy towards the people of the community, from spit- gardless of the type of community we live in, and regard- ting gum into a water fountain to stealing someone’s person- less of one’s own personal beliefs, there needs to be a display al belongings to sending racially- or sexually-offensive hate of self-discipline, of courtesy, and of civility. This is what we messages, are isolated incidents. The reality is that these kinds stand for, and – just like Welcome, Safety, and Respect – they of thoughtless acts are more prevalent than they should be, aren’t just words: they’re a code to live by. Everyone has their both in the real world and online. And, not surprisingly, the own qualms and quirks. Everyone adopts their own world- internet is often the place where the greatest breaches of mor- view and outlook on society, politics, economics, or whatever al code occur. Why? Because of the anonymity one is granted, else interests them. But respect and careful thought, regard- and the apparent lack of repercussions for posting something less of the identities or views of others, definitely needs to hurtful without thinking twice. be more present in our community. Just as one can’t simply Oftentimes, we can say that these incidents occur simply throw themselves into a crowded elevator, there are certain because teenagers are teenagers, and it isn’t fair to assign the lines that cannot be crossed. same responsibilities to an adult and a teen whose frontal lobe But sometimes all it takes to realize that maybe something is not fully developed. At the same time, not everything can isn’t such a good idea after all is a simple second thought. If be forgiven under the umbrella of “Well, I’m just a teenager, you see a piece of trash lying on the floor, pick it up. If you see after all.” Some things, I believe, are simply inexcusable. your friend about to post something hurtful online, remind Aside from the fact that I am generally out of the loop on them that it will last forever. And if you see someone about to recent instances of student misconduct, however, the things do something they might regret, speak up. It might be hard in that usually annoy me the most are the smaller, quotidi- the moment, but you’ll be helping your friend in the long run. en breaches of school code, such as a group of popular kids We all have a collective responsibility to help maintain shoving themselves violently into an already-packed elevator our home and stand for the very values we looked at however or a middle schooler being appallingly dismissive to a lunch many years ago and said, “I want to go there.” Don’t just do it staff member. Unlike the incidents that have been addressed for your peers, and don’t just do it for your teachers – do it for at student-wide assemblies, these everyday annoyances are yourself. This community is yours as much as it is mine, and actually becoming a problem, and the fact that they keep it’s you who makes it worth living. • 19 FLUENT

LANGUAGE BY EDWIN SHEN LEARNING

20 MANY PUBLIC AND private schools high schools in New toward Proficiency in Languages (AAPPL), an online lan- York City offer a variety of languages like French, Italian, guage test, and are placed into one of three categories for each German, Hebrew, Japanese and more. So why does Avenues language skill: novice, intermediate, and advanced. only offer Chinese and Spanish and how does it teach lan- By using the AAPPL test to evaluate students based on guage differently? external, rather than internal, standards, the language depart- Yongling Lu, the curriculum specialist for Mandarin, ment is measuring actual fluency rather than “good student said “the primary concern is that if you offer five different habits.” Based on the test results, teachers can see whether a languages, a student can say ‘okay, I tried Chinese and now student needs work in speaking, listening, and writing. Then, I’m going to switch because now it’s getting hard.’ Then they they can give more practice for those areas and create a more move around all these languages but they ended up not being effective curriculum. able to say a word of any.” An “A language student” at Avenues is one who can use If students constantly jump around languages, once it language in a proficient manner, not only “because they just gets too difficult, they will be unlikely to achieve true fluency do their homework and because they participate and come to in a foreign language. The school would then be undermin- class on time.” as Ms. Lu said. ing its own mission statement, which states: “We will gradu- The school’s value of fluency can be seen in how the lan- ate students who are accomplished in the academic skills... at guage classes are run. Senior Junho Kim said: “In Korea, lan- ease beyond their borders; truly fluent in a second language... ” guage class was more about memorizing grammar and vocab. Even though the school could prevent students from Even the speaking was about memorizing the responses for switching languages, there are many practical advantages for each question.” However, he noted a significant change when only offering Chinese and Spanish. These two languages are he took language at Avenues. the two of the most used languages in the world. Accord- He said “in Spanish class, it was more about conversation ing to the CIA, there are 1.2 billion Chinese native speakers and fluency. Instead of learning only new grammar and vocab, and 400 million Spanish ones. The school simply chose to it was more about how I could use the language confidently.” teach the most used languages besides English. Furthermore, Although he disliked taking the AAPPL test, he acknowl- if the school offered more languages, they would need more edges that it is helpful for teachers to improve the curriculum classrooms, teachers, and resources. This means scheduling all and measure their students’ success. these classes would be a burden. Similarly, a 9th grader said that “language class here is This is why the school only offers two languages. How- much more natural and fun. I can focus on truly becoming ever, the school teaches it in a completely different way: im- fluent rather than just tests on grammar or Chinese charac- mersion. Ms. Lu said “In lower grades [Kindergarten to 5th ters. Even though we do have to take the AAPPL test, it is a grade], we do immersion. In all the NY private schools, Av- good measurement of where I am and what I need to improve enues is the only one that does this. This means you don’t on.” teach language for language sake, but you use the language to Although Avenues is keeping its word on teaching with teach different subjects.” a heavy emphasis on fluency, it is important to realize that In the lower school, language teachers do not speak in learning language should not stop at school. Ivan Cestero, a English to their students every other day. They teach other design thinking teacher at Avenues, said: “Avenues is still just subjects in Chinese or Spanish, and through this immersive a bubble and it’s important to realize that.” environment, the students learn another language in the pro- This means that students shouldn’t just pursue learning cess. Compared to other schools in New York, most teach language in school, but should, as Mr. Cestero said, “go out language to kids as a “second language.” This by essence, and see how the other half lives.” In this way, students can be means not teaching it through immersive environment but in a truly immersive environment that the classroom does not through a regular class environment. offer. Even though Mr. Cestero is not a language teacher, he Of course, immersion is much more difficult for students learned Spanish through a study abroad program and highly in high school. After all, the subjects are much more com- encourages similar experiences, like Global Journeys at Av- plicated to teach in one language, and the ability to acquire enues. language diminishes as people get older. However, this does In short, Avenues teaches language different because of not stop Avenues from focusing on its mission of fluency. its core value of fluency. In lower school, students are put in In high school, students are compared to a national an immersive environment, while in high school students are standard. They have to take the Assessment of Performance compared to a national standard. •

21 A SCHOOL DIVIDED

by Jaden Schapiro

FRESHMEN YEAR MARKS one of the largest transi- younger students sitting awkwardly around the tables. tions, socially and physically, in a teenager’s life, and it requires “Unless you socialize with them [upperclassmen] outside more social interaction than one may think. Here at Avenues, of school… They assume you are stupid,” says one freshmen. the schedule does not enable upperclassmen to interact with This shows two ideas: The silence experienced in discussions grades nine and ten. This leaves the majority of new students is then due to the feelings of being unwelcome in partici- in a weaker position to transition to the high school. pation from some lowerclassmen. In addition, the only time The largest shift in this year’s schedule was not the new interactions between grades are made is in school, but not use of an alternating-day program but the addition of the outside of school. 515 building on West 26th street. The 515 building is just big The next was the Hunger Banquet. The random selection enough to hold two grades at a time, so that all grades will not of a card that determines your wealth and determines your be on the floor at one time. One-hour lunch is one of only lunch of anything from a bowl of beans and rice to a small ta- times during school hours the four grades have a chance to ble including full service. The discussions following the ban- engage. quet were more productive because students had to talk about When asked how she interacts with upperclassmen, the same subject and hunger issues among all classrooms. freshman Sydney McCarter said, “I definitely feel separated The most impactful was Peer Leadership, which connect- from them because we have no classes, so the only time we can ed the oldest and the youngest students in the high school to be with them is during sports or clubs.” talk about each other’s experiences at Avenues. This provided She further explained that “this isn’t okay” because there time every in the schedule in order to speak to leaders about are not many strong relationships across the school that create school situations and policies that recently have been imple- an opportunity for communication other than extracurricular mented. activities. This dramatically increased the familiarity between fresh- Clubs and sports teams are the long-term methods of men and seniors, thus diminishing the communication gap. communicating across grades, but as McCarter said, “I don’t For some freshmen it was what they needed because have any time for clubs because of our schedules.” The school someone that had gone through similar experiences could day ends at 3:45 for most students, while ones who participate help them with challenges in school such as struggling with in sports have their day end at 5:30 on Tuesday, Wednesday, homework or talking to their teachers. One must realize not and occasionally Fridays. Clubs also must take place after all peer leaders are the same person and not all are as under- school ends, which means some athletes must sacrifice their standing as a freshmen intended. Moreover, peer leadership time on the team at least once a week to participate in clubs. only lasted until the week before spring break. This means Most freshmen echoed a similar sentiment to McCarter’s freshmen will not even see seniors at school this term, let on lack of time after school. So when do students have time alone during fifth term. to talk to Avenues’ juniors and seniors in school without com- With no peer leaders in fourth term, the only chance a mitting to clubs or sports? Students need a bond across grades freshmen will interact with seniors in school again is if they not just because of opportunities for guidance and mentor- happen to go on the same Global Journeys trip fifth term ship. selection. Is it okay to say that a freshmen, by the last terms, There have been many attempts to bridge the lack of knows the high school inside and out? communication across the school. The first was Awareness “With peer leadership, seniors got more interaction with Day, where all students chose a topic and each room held an freshmen this year, but not at all with juniors,” said junior Luc assortment of students from all grades while everyone dis- Cea-Sanson. cussed issues of economic privilege, however, most discussions He believes that this year’s junior class was also disre- were led by upperclassmen and teachers, which left the a lot of garded in terms of interaction with freshmen. “I signed up 22 AvenNEWS

for it next year; I think it makes a difference for them. I didn’t the grades, communication from class to class may be one of have the program, so I want to make it matter to the new the most challenging obstacles to overcome in the next few freshmen.” years. It can be easy to overcome, but only if the high school He continued explaining the importance of this program: creates and more solid and social community for all grades. “The only bridge between the two [freshmen and seniors] is Breakthroughs socially across the grades need to appear peer leadership,” Cea-Sanson reiterated. From a junior’s per- more often in a schedule that allows for this flexibility, but spective the concept of no communication is still apparent in students have to show that they want more attention from their world, similar to freshmen. upperclassmen. This year it seems as if it was the assortment There is not just a want of interaction from the young- of alternating days, a larger campus, and busy high schoolers. er grades, but the upperclassmen too. Connecting with older Students should take the opportunity to communicate their students is not always easy for freshmen, but can be difficult ideas this year in 9-12 assemblies or other school events like for juniors and seniors as well. Awareness Day. We cannot move forward and do nothing at Between limited scheduling and social stigmas between the same time, it takes more than effort to connect all of us. •

23 Photo by Elizabeth Acevedo NEW CAMPUS, WHO DIS? by Lucas Hornsby

A rendering of the Avenues Sao Paulo Campus from Avenues’ website

IN SEPTEMBER 2012, Avenues unveiled its first cam- worked to bring the campus to fruition. pus in a former turkey slaughterhouse in West Chelsea. Since One such key figure has been Hamilton Clark. Mr. Clark then, the school has graduated its first class, and now, it pre- joined Avenues in 2016 as head of school and will be assum- pares to graduate its second. While we celebrate the rapid ing the first such role in the São Paulo campus come 2018. growth of our New York campus, Avenues is reaching new Before coming to Avenues, Mr. Clark was the headmaster milestones, almost five thousand miles away. In August of of Episcopal Academy, an independent K-12 school in Phil- 2018, São Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, will welcome Avenues’ adelphia. There, he oversaw Episcopal’s transition to a new second campus. campus. More recently, he has also served as head of school An expansive, sleek white building is quickly mate- at American schools in Lebanon and Switzerland. Clark is rializing along the shore of São Paulo’s Pinheiros River to moving to São Paulo right after the graduation ceremony for house the 600 students that the school expects to welcome the class of 2017, and he will be overseeing the final year of in about 14 months. This time, the 300,000 square foot cam- construction of the campus before opening its doors next Au- pus (about 40% larger than the New York campus) is adapted gust. not from a slaughterhouse but from the former offices of an But before Mr. Clark came John Ciallelo, who joined Av- insurance company. Behind the building’s impressive archi- enues in 2013 specifically to spearhead the establishment of tecture, led by the firm Aflalo & Gasperini, and the repeated the São Paulo campus. Due to delays in the construction of Avenues-blue ads in São Paulo’s largest daily newspaper sits the campus, Mr. Ciallelo settled in New York temporarily to a team of Americans and Brazilians alike who have, for years, help with accreditation and recruitment, and to tour Brazil-

24 ly in the education sector. Despite these difficulties, Mr. Ciallelo also spoke about his successes, his proudest being the response of families in São Paulo: “I already started talking to families and students, and I am very impressed with the students who are applying and their families…they are successful in their schools, yet the students were the ones who found out about the school [Avenues] and went home begging their parents… It’s hard to change schools as a teenager, but these are kids who are really excited about coming.” Students at the New York campus have displayed similar enthusiasm for the opening of Avenues São Paulo. In a survey sent to all Upper School students, 50% of the 56 respondents indicated that they would be interested in studying at the São Paulo campus, with about another quarter of respondents an- swering “not sure.” Students cited different reasons for their interest in the new campus. For instance, Student Council president and junior Bran- don Bunt said that “São Paulo would be an opportunity to set standards at a new school. This is something we do at Av- enues here all the time, and I feel it would be interesting to do this at a completely new school first. I feel the São Paulo campus could directly benefit from the culture of the city, and rather than making all Avenues campuses identical, I see a potential benefit in making each school have defining charac- teristics that exemplify the reason why the campus is located where it is.” A rendering of the Avenues Sao Paulo Campus from Avenues’ website Sophomore Harper van Doorn responded that “it would be a great opportunity to learn in a different country while studying the same material as at [Avenues New York], so I wouldn’t fall behind.” ian families and visitors. Mr. Ciallelo brought with him more According to Mr. Clark, the new campus will meet the than two decades of experience in Brazilian education. He hopes and expectations expressed by Bunt and van Doorn, began as a teacher at the Chapel School, an IB American striking a balance between campus-specific individuality and school in São Paulo, in 1987 and eventually became the head Avenues-wide universality. Mr. Ciallelo explained that upon of school, a position he held for 10 years. its founding, Avenues created GET, or the Global Education Though Mr. Ciallelo has taken great pleasure in this Team. This team is headed by Ty Tingley, Avenues’ Chief Ac- endeavor, his regular trips to Brazil have not been devoid of ademic Officer, and is composed of “education leaders” in the challenges. institution (Mr. Ciallelo, Gardner Dunnan, Isil Celimli, and His biggest frustration, he said, has been navigating the several others). government bureaucracy in Brazil: “I knew from living in On its website, GET summarizes its mission as “One Brazil that it would be a problem, but didn’t have to deal with school, many countries” and aims to ensure the same quality it before since I worked at an established school. Yet with across future campuses as well as curricula that are connected Avenues, I have been involved in a lot of the hoops, meetings enough to allow a student from one campus to transition to with lawyers, and such.” another without any trouble. In alignment with GET’s mis- Mr. Ciallelo attributed the delayed opening of the cam- sion, Avenues São Paulo’s curriculum will be as similar as pos- pus (which was originally slated for several years ago) to this sible to our campus’, with only a few modifications to meet “government bureaucracy,” a fair justification in a country Brazilian standards and accommodate cultural norms. whose economy is plagued by hurdles big and small, especial- Fortunately, according to Mr. Ciallelo, Brazilian educa

25 tion is “open” and free of censorship, allowing Avenues considerable freedom in its curriculum. Brazil does, however, have rigorous standards for Brazilian social studies and geog- raphy, which Mr. Ciallelo said “will be integrated into world course.” The student body, Mr. Clark predicted, will comprise of “about 70% Brazilian and 30% expats,” ensuring a mix of Bra-

zilian and foreign influences in the campus’ day-to-day life. Hornsby Lucas by Photo Similarly, students will be prepared to pursue higher education at Brazilian universities as well as American ones. At the start of eleventh grade, students at Avenues São Paulo will have to choose one of two “tracks.” The first will continue to develop their English and prepare them to apply to universities in the United States and in other places outside Brazil. Alternatively, students can choose to pursue a track that will qualify them for the “vestibular,” the Brazilian university entrance exam, by focusing on Portuguese classes and targeted test preparation. Portuguese and English will both be taught, and students will be expected to be fluent in both by the time of graduation. Through first grade, students at the São Paulo campus will be immersed in English, and in second grade Portuguese will be introduced. From then on, students will have Portu- guese grammar, writing, and literature classes, as well as social studies in Portuguese; math, science, and other subjects will be taught in English. Spanish will likely be offered eventually, with no concrete plans to offer Mandarin yet. Students entering above first grade will be required to write and speak comfortably in English. With this new campus, students from both New York and São Paulo will encounter new opportunities right away. As early as the 2018 school year, students from both campuses will be able to attend Global Journeys trips together during school breaks and 5th term. Students from New York interested in studying in São Paulo, like Bunt and van Doorn, could also pursue that option. If a student would like to move to São Paulo, Mr. Cial- lelo said, they “logistically could move here for 6 months and do homestay with a family of an Avenues São Paulo student.” Though homestay would be the only option to start, Avenues is “always looking at dorm options, because the purpose is to have some sort of housing situation” to accommodate more An advertisement for Avenues São Paulo in “O Estado De São Paulo”, a Brazilian students in the future, as cross-campus programs grow. Also, newspaper.

26 students at the New York campus whose families move to São and culturally rich student body. In a city where elite, and Paulo will be able to seamlessly transfer to that campus, and especially bilingual, private schools tend to be economically vice versa. homogenous, Avenues is faced with the challenge and re- Mr. Ciallelo said that Avenues will implement systems sponsibility to provide to its students a distinct experience. to ensure a seamless transition and rewarding experience for Mr. Ciallelo said that the administration is acutely aware of students from New York studying in São Paulo. One of Cial- these concerns and of their importance. lelo and his team’s biggest goals now is to establish a culture Lisa Peixoto, Avenues São Paulo’s director of admissions of “welcome, safety, and respect” as soon as the São Paulo will likely take charge in these efforts. Ms. Peixoto is an en- campus opens, much like we have in New York, to provide a ergetic American whose accent in Portuguese just barely re- structure that would be receptive to Avenues São Paulo stu- veals her foreignness. She previously worked at Graded–The dents as well as visiting students from New York. American School of São Paulo, where she ran what Mr. Cial- Additionally, Avenues will provide “buddy programs” to lelo describes as “an incredible program.” pair visiting students with local ones, as well as provide lan- With money from Lemann Foundation, a Brazilian non- guage and academic support throughout the students’ stay. profit, Graded provides full scholarships to several students Academically, Mr. Ciallelo said, Avenues São Paulo from nearby favelas, Brazilian slums. While at Graded, Ms. would not offer an “exact fit,” but its curriculum will be suffi- Peixoto visited favelas and met with families to recruit chil- ciently aligned with that of Avenues New York to ensure that dren to apply to the school. “the student can do well from the first day.” Such matters will Those who were admitted through the program received be administered by GET. not only a full tuition scholarship but also support in other ar- At Avenues New York, students are fortunate to have eas essential to their success. For example, they were provided convenient access to invaluable institutions and landmarks to with appropriate school clothes, and two laptops -- one to be enrich their education. For instance, many art classes regu- left at school, and one for home -- since carrying a laptop to larly visit galleries in Chelsea, and science teachers often lead and from school would render the students targets of robbery. trips to special exhibits and university labs. Avenues São Pau- Avenues São Paulo plans to institute a similar program in its lo will also avail itself of the resources of the surrounding city, second or third year, which, in Mr. Ciallelo’s words, will be though in different ways. “carefully designed… to really change lives.” Due to the city’s size, traffic, and safety concerns, students Avenues São Paulo is faced with unparalleled resourc- will not have as easy access to opportunities, like students at es, a cross-continental support network, a highly competent Avenues New York do. Avenues São Paulo will, however, leadership team, and a pool of qualified and eager applicants, follow in its sister campus’ suit and hire an ACE (Avenues both Brazilian and from abroad. Yet it is also presented with Community Engagement) director to facilitate meaningful unique challenges. The Avenues São Paulo team -- and the connections with communities neighboring the school and Avenues organization at large -- must balance concerns of around São Paulo. cross-campus cultural and academic harmony, financial and The campus’ engagement with the community will extend logistical sustainability, and socioeconomic diversity in ways to its financial aid program as well. The details of the program new to itself and to the educational world. are still “under development,” Mr. Clark said. The state of São Students, faculty, and administrators in New York have Paulo requires that private schools offer full scholarships to shaped a former turkey-slaughterhouse into a welcoming up to two of the children of each teacher they employ, which home, a cutting-edge academic institution, and a dynamic so- has added challenges to financial aid plans. cial environment. Now, it is our turn to cheer for and support At an event hosted in São Paulo in March to commem- those spearheading and populating our second campus. And orate the imminent opening of the campus and to mark the just as importantly, it is our responsibility to hold Avenues start of the application process, many parents expressed curi- São Paulo accountable for the success its potential promises, osity over Avenues’ efforts to create an economically diverse and to hope for good weather in August 2018. •

27 Teacher-Student Bonds

By NOAH SHAMUS

IN MY DAILY EXPERIENCE at Avenues, I find myself the main aspects they attribute to being able to share. talking and interacting with teachers in ways I did not at my Similarly, one aspect that helps build student-teacher previous school. At my old high school, a student would need relationships, is teachers reaching out to students. Freshman to find time after school to meet with a teacher, not during Jaden Shapiro shared that his “science teacher approached lunch or throughout the day. I find it to be a real privilege to [him] about doing more advanced work. In other schools be able to eat in the same room with my teachers, let alone you have the drive to join an extracurricular club to explore.” develop personal relationships. Last month, Mercer Pipa and Every teacher who I interviewed explained how they make I joined Mr. Ryan Martin, our former advisor and current themselves available. Ms. Sager said “I’ll drop everything if a mentor, for our weekly hour lunch on The Highline. In the student needs to meet with me. Unless I have a faculty meet- reunion we filled Mr. Martin in on our lives. ing or class I will meet with you. And I’ll remind [my stu- Many students and faculty members felt the same way dents] about that all of the time.” about how lucky we are to have such great relationships with Other teachers try to foster communities where their students our teachers. when I sat down and discussed with them. Ms. feel safe. Ms. Teixeira explained that she tries to “demonstrate Teixeira, a spanish teacher in the Upper School, said: “Com- and foster the idea that most certainly any student can reach pared to other schools I have worked at, Avenues encourages out to [her] if they want to talk to [her].” This continuous teacher student relationship on deeper level.” One of the ways reaching out to students by teachers in order to make sure the school does this, said Ms. Sager, a 9-10 English teacher, they feel safe contributes to some of the great relations be- is by “giving students and teachers the free time to communi- tween students and teachers. cate with one another.” When the school gives students free Talking with more students throughout the school, there time to meet with their teachers it allows for more open and were some mixed emotions about student-teacher relation- longer dialogues to occur. ships. Freshman Rachel Hymes said that she “[does] not One aspect that students found to be helpful from the think that Avenues has a great relationship between teachers teachers was their openness to engage in conversations with and students, at least compared to other schools.” She couldn’t them. Tallulah Brown, a sophomore, said “[Mr. Cortese] tells expand on this feeling, but knew that she “sensed it.” When us about his life and that makes us feel comfortable around she said this, two thoughts came to my mind: what are stu- him.” The comfort students feel around the teachers is one of dent teacher relations like at other schools, and how does age

28 Junior Antonio Rivoli poses for a selfie with Ms. Teixeira

play a factor? that she turns to her dean when she needs help: “I’ve known I used to go to a public school in the suburbs of New Jer- her since avenues started, she’s been my teacher before; I’m sey. After I moved to the city, I kept in contact with many of familiar with her and she’s familiar with me so she is up to my old friends. My best friend, Matt, and I would talk every speed on where I am.” Brown accounted for her closeness month or so. He was telling me about how he had a large with Mr. Cortese as a factor of their time together, as well: essay due in three days and he hasn’t met with his teacher “I’ve known him since sixth grade. A lot of people in our yet. He explained to me that the teacher’s after school hours grade feel comfortable around him because he has known us were booked with meetings with other students and faculty for a while.” meetings so he would be able to meet with him. After hearing While many students and teachers in their interviews that, I casually responded: “Why don’t you just meet during pushed for a smaller advisory system, time and relationships lunch?” Matt resisted— the idea was foreign to him. He clari- with advisors were issues. Many students were not fond of fied that at his school the teachers ate in a separate room and their advisors, and some faculty members felt overwhelmed no one would meet with their teachers during lunch. I was with the program as well. With the deans system, you are in awe. The concept of lunch meetings or just sitting with a placed with a dean and they stick with you for highschool teacher during lunch was so familiar to me, yet so distant to (this did not hold true for advisory); they are your go to per- Matt. son for your highschool experience. One of the issues, that Ms. Sager expanded on this idea. At her old school she was reiterated by many, was that the deans groups are too big, would teach six classes a day, everyday, with no study periods, as opposed to advisory. It may be tough for students to build so meetings would need to happen after school. This capabil- close relationships with their deans if the average dean group ity for students and teachers to even sit together, let alone contains twenty people. meet during lunch may also contribute to our community of Overall, both students and teachers seem to be happy and close teachers and students. impressed with the deep bonds that have developed between The other idea I thought of when Hymes was speaking teachers and students. The main factors for this seem to be was that she was a freshman, new to the highschool, and deep the openness of teachers to talk and share, having spaces to relationships take time to form. But this sentiment was not interact with faculty outside of classes, and the amount of shared by other freshmen. Freshman Madison Wright said time students spend with a faculty advisor. •

29 Photos by Clare Maleeny

LIFE IS PLASTIC, IT'S FANTASTIC!

BY SOPHIA KOOCK

30 ONE STUDY HALL, freshman Madison Wright extended humorous updates about it. her hand and felt the greenery. Her hand, however, did not Junior and plant sponsor Kyla Windley remembers only brush a plant as she thought it would; she had touched plastic. getting one email from the living wall team: “I only got one “I was disappointed to see [that the plants were fake],” email update about [my plant] Gilgamesh, which is upsetting Wright said. [...]. " As Wright found out, the living wall is no longer quite Lopez said that she was the only person sending out so alive. email updates. The living wall project began as a fifth term class in 2015. “[The emails stopped] because I was creating a story for Students in the class from grades nine through eleven were each plant,” said Lopez. “It was fun but I ended up having to tasked with building a vertical garden from a gray tiled wall keep up these plant storylines for 60+ people. It got to be too on the ninth floor studio. much work, especially with the college process approaching.” “We were divided into three teams. There was the struc- tural team, which I was a member of,” said junior Matt Lev- **** ine. “There was a team that was in charge of the design of the On the day of the showcase, there was an opening cer- plants and the actual ordering of the plants, and then there emony to celebrate the completion of the wall. Gardner Dun- was a team that worked on the sensors, and the code that nan, head of school in 2015, even cut a ceremonial ribbon to would allow this living wall to be self sufficient and to feed inaugurate the wall into the ninth floor studio. and to water itself.” The most memorable part of the ceremony, however, was Though the wall was completed by the fifth term show- not the unveiling of the wall. For her, it was the ribbon cut- case, during which students present their projects, the stu- ting. dents working on the wall encountered some challenges “I’m pretty sure that Mr. Dunnan cut a leaf along with along the way. the ribbon during the opening ceremony. That’s about all I “During the project we had a major snag with getting the remember [from the ceremony],” said Windley. plants that we were ordering to New York in time to actually At its opening, the living wall was a sprawling vertical install them. I mean, looking back on it, it was a mess, a lit- garden, filled with boisterous green ferns and healthy purple tle bit,” said associate division head and living wall teacher tinged leaves. However, that health was short lived. A few Steven Carpenter. “We didn’t know that it was going to take months later, the leaves began to dry and droop. three weeks to get plants in, but the team that was in charge “It was a brown wall, at one point...and it wasn’t lush in of that made all of the calls, did what they could do to get any way,” said junior Luc Cea-Sanson. He added that as a expedited shipping, talk to the trucking company, talk to the member of the Avenues community, he was disappointed to shipping company, orchestrated everything.” see the wall in disrepair. However, that was not the only issue the living wall team There is disagreement about the cause of the wall’s de- encountered. Senior Yvette Lopez had to do most of the cod- mise. Mr. Carpenter said that the plants died because stu- ing herself. dents had unplugged the arduino, a small computer which “Coding the arduino was a lot of work,” Lopez said. “I controlled the watering of the plants, to presumably charge was the only one who ‘knew how to code’ on the team, so it their computer. This, he said, effectively lead to a drought for ended up being kind of stressful.” the plants, and the death of many of their numbers. To code the arduino, Lopez had to learn a new coding Senior Edward Shen, who was a part of the living wall language, java script, in addition to her email responsibilities fifth term, cited a different reason for the drought. He attrib- for the plant sponsoring program. uted the death of the wall to a different student kicking the Plant sponsorship was a program put into place when the arduino, which deprived the plants from water. $5,500 budget for the wall had been exceeded. Students could However, Lopez said that the arduino never functioned in pay a fee of a few dollars to name a plant and receive regular the first place: “Honestly, the watering system never worked...

31 We got the arduino to detect how much wall and add new features to it, so that water was available in the soil but we others did not have to assume responsi- never connected it to the actual water- bility for its survival. ing system.” Ms. Muldowney echoed similar Currently, the living wall is a mix sentiments: “I definitely think stu- of new real, leafy, green plants (some of dents, and or teachers- it would be nice which, however, are potted plants that if they’d taken that on to keep it alive. are stuck in the pockets designed for the Especially the students, probably, who hydroponic plants), and fake plants. were originally in that project. They “It’s a little silly that it’s just fab- spent a lot of time getting that up and ricated now with fake green plants, going […] it would be nice if somebody and not real green plants,” said science could take charge of that,” she said. teacher Michelle Muldowney. However, after the ceremonial rib- According to Mr. Carpenter, the bon cutting, students or other teachers fake plants were installed by the main- were not involved in the upkeep of the tenance team at Avenues. wall. The living wall, though still in- “I’m thankful that the maintenance stalled in the ninth floor, Student coun- people were willing to pick it up and cil vice president and senior Nikaila take care of it[…]I think they are pri- Saunders was not surprised that stu- marily interested in making sure that dents did not participate in supporting aesthetically, when you walk by that the wall’s life. place, it looks like there aren’t a bunch “They created the living wall and of dead plants. And if that means that it just happened. There wasn’t a second they need to make some fake plants in living wall fifth term or a club ‘Let’s there, because they can’t keep up with keep the living wall up’. That’s why it the maintenance, then that’s just how died in like the couple months after,” it's going to have to be,” said Mr. Car- said Saunders. “So I just think the idea penter. of maintaining stuff-- Avenues is big on However, maintenance has only change. You know, we change stuff eve- been involved with the wall when it ry year...They like changing stuff up, so has malfunctioned and flooded the 9th I’m not surprised that student involve- floor studio. Floreal, a gardening comment did not stay around.” pany, takes care of the wall and manu- Avenues students are used to ally waters it once a week. change. They have witnessed the ap- The founder of Floreal, Marie pearance and disappearance of things Weilman, said that she began maintain- like the CCC, community service re- ing the wall after it withered last year. quirements, and student council eleva- She introduced artificial plants to the tor policies. The addition of fake plants wall because, “it’s just too difficult and was just another change. expensive to keep it all living.” Windley, however, only had one re- Mr. Carpenter wished that students quest. “I just kinda wish that they let me would have stayed involved, and per- know when Gilgamesh died and was haps had started a club to maintain the replaced with a piece of plastic." •

32 Op-eds Community Day

By BRANDON BUNT

ONE OF OUR primary objectives in Student Council this year, us, and convince ourselves that we are amazing stewards of the to do meaningful work beyond organizing a few small, in-school community. Avenues could create required community service events throughout the year, culminated in the idea of the council hours. We can continue the mentality of “going out of our way to organizing Community Day. serve” those who need our help. We began by having each member of the council do research This does not seem to align with the standard we hold our- into organizations or opportunities they were personally passion- selves to with any other extracurricular endeavor. ate about. Then, we contacted these organizations in order to fig- If we feel that community engagement is another item on ure out the logistics around how many students could participate, a long checklist of things to get done for high school, we are and what the activity would be. approaching this from the wrong angle. What do all our suc- Unfortunately, due to lack of cohesion in our efforts to plan cessful community-related activities and events have in com- the day, we were not prepared in time for the event. While many mon? Each time, the students involved in organizing the event activities were planned and scheduled, we were not able to ac- were passionate about what they were doing. The Salsa Party’s count for every student adequately ahead of Community Day. success depended upon students of Spanish who enjoyed con- As a result, the administration and Student Council decided to versing with the folks at Hudson Guild. Our relationship with cancel the day this year. Holy Apostles really began with a few students heavily invested There were numerous factors that led to the disorganization in musical performance. The social work D4i has done has always and lack of preparation for Community Day, but ultimately, as stemmed from some aspect of students’ passions— our Refugee President, and leader of Student Council, I am accountable first Design Challenge only happened because the team had found for the outcome. I am responsible for ensuring that the plan- organizations they were personally interested in. The group of ning and execution of the day are in line with the vision and students who built a bookshelf at St. Clement’s love the iLab and goes smoothly. This is something I did not do with Community woodworking. Day and it is my first priority in terms of improvement next year. When Avenues does Community Engagement, we start Ultimately, rather than identifying individual logistical issues, I from what we are passionate about. would rather reexamine our approach and identify changes and So what can we do? Let us begin by doing what we love. improvements to make to ensure this does not happen again. Bring your talents to the table. Community engagement is not Following the cancellation of Community Day, it was time about seeing how many students are willing to bag food on a to ask ourselves what Community Day would have meant, and Saturday morning for credit. It is about how many students can why we have ACE. find a way to make their passion fit into the larger community’s ACE, as everyone knows, is Avenues Community Engage- goal. If you love photography, find a way to document the work ment. The naming of the program, community “engagement” re- we are doing in a way that is not solely focused around showcas- flects our intentions; we are not interested in “serving” people. ing Avenues students. If you love playing a sport, find a way to Our goals align with engaging with the people and larger com- play with students in our neighborhood. munities around us; treating people like humans. Before the end of this year, there will be numerous oppor- ACE directly correlates with the issue of Avenues’ percep- tunities to engage. However, I invite everyone to first reflect on tion. It is ironic because while we want our community engage- what they enjoy doing, where their passions lie— perhaps what ment work to be free of underlying motives such as improving you do on a Saturday morning. Let us come back in Septem- our image in the community, at the same time, we are very aware ber with a super clear vision of what we want to do, and unify of how the work we do outside of our building can positively af- around that in our efforts to engage with the community. Student fect our image. Council is merely a way for us to organize ourselves and get the We could easily approach community service from a tradi- logistics out of the way so as a student body, we can focus on tional lens. We could simply all go to whatever soup kitchen will what interests us the most, and where our passions intersect with take a certain number of students at a time that is convenient for meaningful work. • 33 TRYING VEGAN: ABSURDISM

Art by Clare Maleeny TRYING VEGAN: ABSURDISM

BY SABRINA STERNBERG

A COUPLE OF years ago, the Upper School announced it but passionate community of vegans, most noticeably senior would be taking part in Meatless Mondays, a common prac- Parker Jay-Pachirat. tice at schools and workplaces in which cafeterias serve meals “I decided to become vegan when I was 14 after visit- that have no meat-based products on Mondays. What fol- ing Farm Sanctuary,” said Pachirat. “Farm Sanctuary is in lowed can only be described as Avenues’s first mass hysteria: upstate NY, where rescued slaughterhouse animals live out a 14 email long chain in protest was sent out, whispers flowed their lives in natural conditions. Interacting with farm ani- throughout the school, and the event still comes up as one of mals that have suffered from human-induced trauma was an the funniest and most divisive moments of our time at Av- experience completely different from seeing these animals at enues. I too remember being angry—I loved eating meat, and petting zoos.” I didn’t find it fair that I should be forced to eat a meatless Since that moment, Pachirat has become an outspoken meal. Although my opinions on the right of students to eat proponent of adopting a plant-based diet and giving a voice what they want has not changed, my opinions on meat cer- to animals. Whether it be in the classroom or on social media, tainly have. veganism has become a part of her life beyond food: “My hap- I never thought veganism would be an ideology I would piness, confidence, drive, integrity, message, and relationships consider, let alone practice. Most of my favorite foods involve have all benefited greatly. In working every day for something copious amounts of animal-based products; I genuinely want- I’m passionate about, I’ve learned to give my energy to the ed to be a cheese connoisseur as a child. However, through all right places in my life, rather than listening and looking to the stress of college admissions and extra-curriculars, I began others for what to believe in.” to notice that what I ate directly affected my mood. On the The first great challenge of my two weeks as a vegan came days where I drank four plus cups of coffee, I felt as if I was during The Highliner’s trip to Washington DC. Traveling to suffering from an ulcer. Once everything began to calm down an unknown place can be a difficult roadblock for a vegan. and I did not have as much to focus on, what I ate emerged However, I was fortunate enough to have well-seasoned ve- as the root of much of my stress and pain. Out of nowhere, gan Lucas Hornsby on the trip with me. The first evening, the vlog of a vegan YouTuber popped up as a recommended several of us got together to decide on a restaurant for din- video on YouTube, and I decided to watch for fun. Now that ner. Someone else happened to mention Busboys and Poets, high school has almost come to an end, I had the time and a restaurant well-known for having amazing vegan options. inspiration to try something new, so I thought ‘Why not try I practically demanded we go there. This was my first expe- being vegan’? rience with ‘vegan’ versions of normal foods: a cobb salad, To begin with, I decided I would only go vegan for two coconut fried bites, cheesecake, and a brownie. Although I weeks. Leading up to my first day, I was positive that I would expected there would be a decrease in quality, the food was fail— there was no way I could go even a day without meat- spectacular. The next day, when we went to Pi Pizzeria, I was based products. However, almost immediately, it became shocked to eat one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten. Over- relatively natural. This helped me to come to my first conclu- all, the trip was a success and I stayed completely vegan, easily. sion about veganism: I am very lucky to not only live in New Throughout the two weeks, I did much research into the York, but specifically in Chelsea. Within a one block radius online vegan community. I found it to be a very supportive of my house, there are three separate vegan restaurants. It was and positive place, especially in comparison to the vast ma- easy to stop at Blossom or By Chloe and pick up a sandwich jority of internet communities. Most vegans don’t have the to take with me for lunch. Had I lived in a different neigh- advantage of knowing others who are also following a plant- borhood, let alone in a suburban area, I cannot imagine how based diet, so friendships and relationships have blossomed much more difficult being vegan would have been. through Instagram and YouTube, making veganism a new I also realized that I was not alone. Avenues has a small social media trend.

35 "ULTIMATELY, VEGANISM, TO “I’m all for it.” remarked Pachirat. my parents that I wanted to try being ME, WAS A PRIVILEGE. TO “Some people don’t like it because they vegan, they were completely on board, HAVE THE RESOURCES TO BE think people aren’t in it for ‘the right which leads me to my second conclu- ABLE TO SUSTAIN A PLANT- reasons,’ but I think it’s a great way to sion about veganism: you need your BASED DIET WITH ANY SORT expose people to the diet without all family’s support. My mom immediately OF VARIETY IS A PRIVILEGE." the stigmatization. A lot of my friends helped me to learn how to cook vegan hopped on the vegan trend and ended recipes, buy vegan snacks, and learn up loving it so much that they’re vegan more about what it means to be vegan. now!” We got up early Easter Sunday and Videos of people from across the put together one of our most decadent globe connecting over their veganism Easter dinners yet—it just happened to have been both inspiring and comfort- be completely vegan. ing. It made me feel like I was never Without the support of my parents, alone in this journey. it would have been nearly impossible to Conversely, in my real life, I felt commit to the vegan diet. Pachirat ech- very alone. The majority of my friends oed this sentiment, saying she was so both in and out of school don’t follow lucky that “My dad and younger sister anything close to a vegan diet, so go- were already vegan, and my mom is not ing out to eat became nearly impossible. vegan but happy to cook for vegans.” Additionally, I was so nervous that I There was one final verdict I came would follow a craving for meat or dairy to throughout my time as a vegan: it that I would ruin the whole experiment, is expensive. Now, before vegans jump I stopped going out with people. I have on me, let me clarify. Sure, many cheap not stepped foot in Food in the past two things can be vegan. Eating a diet of rice, weeks, other than to walk downstairs to beans, and frozen vegetables is totally the lobby. I found it impossible to eat as vegan and easy to do. However, if you a newbie vegan. want to eat a more varied diet that in- I know many vegans at Avenues cludes ‘vegan’ versions of normal foods, feel comfortable in Food, but as I was it is going to be expensive. Restaurants learning the ropes of veganism, Food such as By Chloe or Cinnamon Snail was not an inclusive place for me. I ate are significantly more expensive than lunch alone every day. Pachirat reflected their non-vegan counterparts, plant- this idea, stating “I feel that there could based milk is an extra at Starbucks, and be more accommodation for vegans, but buying fresh produce constantly gets generally Avenues is respectful and ac- expensive fast. cepting of them.” Ultimately, veganism, to me, was If I ever went out with my friends, a privilege. To have the resources to it was difficult to not feel tempted to try be able to sustain a plant-based diet their food, and it ultimately made me with any sort of variety is a privilege. moody. However, as the two weeks went Although I am not totally committed on and I became more confident, I felt to remaining vegan, the benefits that I better about going out with friends and have experienced over these two weeks eating what I could. My fear of eating are too good to let go. In order to have animal-based food subsided, and I felt time to make breakfast in the morning, more at ease with my decisions. I am waking up earlier. In general, I am The last challenge of my two weeks eating more whole foods and my energy vegan was Easter. Although my fam- levels have risen dramatically. Maybe ily is not religious, it has become a once in awhile I will have some yogurt tradition to have a large meal with my or cheese, but why would I give up all grandmother to celebrate. When I told these rewards for a type of food? •

36 A Meshuggah Calendar

By OREN SCHWEITZER

37 MONDAY, APRIL 10TH was the gible proportion of the population, to pendent Schools of New York City in- first night and Tuesday, April 11th was not give Passover off. Lacking exposure sofar as reasonable with some variations, the first day of Passover, the founding to Judaism, most people there likely of course. In the past, the first two days Jewish holiday celebrating the Exodus don’t even realize the significance of of Passover aligned with other calendars from Egypt and the Hebrew liberation that day. But for a school like Avenues, and we were able to give them off and from slavery. On this holiday, friends where nearly 40% of students are Jewish still retain the number of instructional and family gather together for a large (though this poll cannot be considered days we wanted” she said. Mr. Hamil- Seder (a huge meal), in which the story truly representative of the larger student ton Clark, the head of the New York of Passover is told and, different aspects body due to the sample size, it gives an City branch of Avenues confirmed Av- of the story are represented by different indication of the large Jewish popula- enues’ use of the Guild of Independent foods. Usually we would have either the tion), it makes no sense to not give stu- Schools of NYC’s schedule. first or second (or both) day off to allow dents Passover off. There are two issues with this. First, students to participate in and help pre- Coupled with the fact that Good Trinity, Horace Mann, and Dalton were pare these Seders. But for some reason, Friday, a Christian holiday, was given all given the Tuesday of Passover off (all school wasn’t given off this year. off, it seems like Jewish students were schools Mr. Clark cited as being part According to a poll of 58 Avenues overlooked or seen as unimportant in of this guild), as well as almost all New students, about 38% self identified as this scenario. This was either an issue of York City non-parochial independ- Jewish. In comparison, Jews comprise ignorance, or unintentional disdain. ent schools. This indicates that either 12% of the New York City population, When asked why Passover was not the Student Leadership Team didn’t and only 1.8% of the United States’. It given off, Judy Fox, head of the Upper find it “reasonable” to oblige with the makes sense for a school in South Da- Division, said, “We try to align our cal- Guild of Independent Schools of New kota, where Jews account for a negli- endar with that of the Guild of Inde- York City’s calendar, or it wasn’t on the

38 Figure Left: Percent- age Jewish Population by State

calendar, but most other schools found For reference, most Jews are in though? According to the same poll it “reasonable” to diverge from the cal- services for much of the day for Rosh of 58 students, 58.6% were assigned endar in this instance. Second, Good Hashanah and Yom Kippur, with Yom homework and 81% had a test planned Friday was a holiday, meaning it was Kippur being the most important and for Wednesday or Thursday. factored into the academic calendar, but sacred Jewish Holiday for which many Luckily, due to student complaints, Passover was not. Christians were pri- Jews fast. many of those tests were moved to the oritized in this situation. “I sent an email to Chris Whit- next week. One other explanation for how tle and copied a bunch of people and “Before class, myself and some oth- certain scheduling decisions were made told them that unless they changed the er Jewish students spoke to our teacher was given by Mr. Clark. dates before the school year started they to explain we had no time to study for “One thing we look at is what’s the would not believe the response they the test and he moved the test to the likelihood we are going to lose many would receive from Jewish families.” next week,” said 12th grader Bowen kids that day in anycase,” said Mr. Clark. Luckily they immediately changed Walder. That is a completely legitimate ar- this and in the first year of Avenues, the Despite the change in many tests, gument as Seders occur at night and do Jewish New Year was given off. overall, most students were assigned not necessarily interfere with the school Rabbi Schweitzer attributes this homework, which they weren’t sup- day. But many Jewish students the next issue that first year to the fact that posed to do. morning complained of exhaustion and the people designing the schedule had Did this have a negative effect? Ac- one anonymous 10th grader explained, come from other states and were una- cording to that same poll, 95% of all “I had to leave early on Monday to help ware of the New York City dynamic. A Jews who responded (this means all, prepare my Seder.” So although most lack of understanding of the New York but one) attended or hosted Seders, Jewish students did come to school that City private school demographics is with 50% hosting or attending Seders day, it still affected them. a perfectly reasonable answer, but did on both Monday and Tuesday night, But is this a one time occurrence they not study other school’s schedules meaning that if these students were or a recurring theme? My father, Rabbi and see this fairly obvious recurring assigned any homework it would have Peter Schweitzer, receives the annual theme of giving Rosh Hashanah and been very difficult to complete. Accord- academic calendar before other families Yom Kippur off? Maybe it slipped their ing to an anonymous 9th grader, “we in order to plan his congressional cal- mind to check. In any case, it seems had Spanish homework over Passover endar around it. He was even sent one there was no purposeful and conscious when I was trying to spend quality time months prior to the first academic year, decision to not give these holidays off. with my family.” since I have been at Avenues since the Speaking of which, back to Passo- Obviously having school over Pass- beginning. ver. About one and a half weeks before over affected Jewish students negatively. “I was shocked to see that the Passover, it was brought to Dr. Fox’s at- This issue is clear proof that in future, school was not closed on Rosh Hashan- tention that there maybe should not be the Avenues administration has to ah and Yom Kippur when all New York any homework for the Upper School have an awareness of the needs of large City schools, public and private, give on those days, which she saw as a rea- swaths of the Avenues population when those days off,” he recalls. sonable request. Did this pan through making important calendar decisions. •

39 REVIEWS

Music and Meaning

Suicide, death, and loss underline the music on Thirteen Reasons Why

By JACKSON EHRENWORTH

THE NOVEL THIRTEEN Reasons Why tells the tale of a they would say that as if Curtiss’s lyrics shouldn’t be taken teen, Hannah, who commits suicide, arranging for cassette seriously. Yet later it turned out that he was pouring out his tapes of her reasons to be delivered to each of the students soul. He really meant it when he wrote that love would tear she wants to know her story. The show has generated a lot him apart. This song was one of the last songs Ian Curtis sang of controversy about whether or not it glorifies suicide. This when he was alive. Joy Division only really released two al- article isn’t about that controversy. It’s about the sub-texts bums. This song is at the end of the second album. In fact, it’s of alternative music, tragedy, and the outsider that operate not even on the original album, it was added as a live version through the score of the show. to the collectors’ edition after Curtis killed himself. Hannah, There are musical references throughout the novel. The it turns out, was moody, and no one took her words seriously, narrator, Clay, is interested in music, in a way that sets him no one was even able to listen to her words, until after she apart from other characters. But it’s in the Netflix series that died. music emerges as a force in the narrative, weaving thematic In episode eight, we see Hannah learning to value her parallels, symbolic allusions, and a sub-text of the outsider. words from Ryan. Ryan is gay, he’s into poetry, and he runs In episode one, Clay gets into a car with his friend Tony. the school newspaper. In the scene, Ryan is introducing Han- Tony, who isn’t featured on Hannah’s tapes, has been left the nah to poetry. Hannah is kind of resisting it, afraid of what tapes by Hannah – he is the distributor of her words. Tony people will say if they see what she writes. Ryan talks about offers to play Clay a cassette tape. It’s not Hannah. It has a how you have to tell the truth when you write, and that it will penciled name on it. Joy Division. As Clay and Tony pull be terrifying and embarrassing. That’s what Ian Curtis did, into the street, the sounds of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” fills and people mocked him, and he killed himself. You’d never the car. At first, it seems like the choice of the late seventies know about Ian Curtis from the overt storyline of Thirteen band Joy Division signals that Clay and Tony are different. Reasons Why. Yet his story is woven through the beginning, They’re nostalgic, they’re into sub-culture. and it weaves a dark foreshadowing into the narrative. But the music is playing an entirely other role. It has a The narrative in this show operates at a lot of different sub-text to it. Joy Division was a band in the late seventies. levels, and at the symbolic level, it is often carried by music. They were headed by Ian Curtis, a fantastically talented song- Another character marked as an outsider by allusions to Joy writer and singer. He was also a tortured figure who killed Division is Alex, with his dyed hair, his interest in music, his himself when he was twenty-three. Curtis suffered from de- alternative fashion, his poster of the cover of Joy Division’s pression, from epilepsy at concerts, from a sense that his life first album, Disorder. was fragmenting around him. He poured that into his music. In episode three, Alex drops into a pool. The Chromatics’ People loved to say that Joy Division were ‘moody,’ and cover of Neil Young’s “Into the Black” plays while Alex falls

40 into the water. Only it’s not actually “Into the nah ran off, after trying to get her friend away Black,” whose lyrics were: from a creep. It also plays a role in creating an- Hey hey, my my other layer of young suicide. Elliott Smith, who Rock and roll can never die committed suicide, plays the cover. There’s more to the picture There’s yet another level. Big Star originally Than meets the eye. wrote “Thirteen”. Big Star was an unbelievably Hey hey, my my. talented seventies band that never quite made Instead, the version of Young’s song that the it. They released their first album and Rolling Chromatics cover is the acoustic version, “My Stone raved about it. Later, REM’s lead singer, My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue),” whose lyrics Micheal Stipe, would say, “we’re just trying to begin: make an album as good as Big Star’s first al- My my, hey hey bum.” But Big Star’s record label didn’t promote Rock and roll is here to stay their first album, then wasn’t able to distribute It’s better to burn out their first album, and when they sold it to an- Than to fade away other label, they not only decided to not pursue My my, hey hey a marketing campaign, but also took the records The important line substitute here is ‘It’s better off the shelves of stores. to burn out than to fade away.” That line plays Big Star almost got going again, but some- behind Alex as he floats upside down in the pool. how, they didn’t quite get the commercial trac- Alex comes up for air, but others who knew that tion they needed to make it. Then they fell line haven’t. Kurt Cobain quoted “It’s better to apart. Just like Hannah. Not given the support burn out than to fade away,” in his suicide note. they need, almost making it anyway, almost be- There’s something else important. Critics of the ing heard and seen, but then…not. Then having show fear that it will inspire teen suicide – glam- enormous influence after death. Big Star wrote orize it, romanticize it. Neil Young himself was the line “Rock and Roll is hear to stay” that Neil haunted by Cobain’s use of his lyric in his suicide Young later quotes in “Out of the Blue,” the note. He wrote and dedicated his 1994 album, song that Kurt Cobain references in his suicide Sleeps with Angels to Cobain, and inspired a gen- note. eration of new punk bands, perhaps in the way There’s more. In episode ten, Sheri hits that Hannah’s tapes inspire her listeners. a stop sign, knocking it down, leaving only a Farther into the show, in episode five, we see wooden spar on the corner. While Hannah Clay in the shower, crying, tears streaming down runs to a drug store and tries to call the police, his already wet face. It’s another scene, like the Jeff, the athlete, the popular kid, and, unusu- one with Alex, at the end of the episode, and ally, a genuinely nice guy, who has been drink- there is no dialogue, only a song. It’s a cover of ing only Coca-Cola, goes on a beer run and is Big Star’s “Thirteen.” “Thirteen” is a teenage la- killed by someone who runs through the miss- ment. It begins: ing stop sign. Everyone thinks Jeff must have Joy Joy Won’t you let me walk you home from been drunk because the car was full of beer. The by by school thing is, it wasn’t Jeff ’s fault. The stop sign was Won’t you let me meet you at the pool already down. Maybe Friday I can Chris Bell, one of the lead singers and song- Get tickets for the dance writers of Big Star, died in a car crash at twenty- And I’ll take you seven. He struck a wooden light pole on the side of the road. At first everyone thought he Won’t you tell your dad, get off my back must have been drunk, too. He wasn’t drunk.

Love Will Tear Us Apart Tear Will Love Tell him what we said ‘bout ‘Paint It Layers upon layers. The score is almost al- Black’ ways not the original artist, but is a cover, con- Rock ‘n Roll is here to stay tinuing the theme of layers – layers of protection, Come inside where it’s okay of subterfuge, of near truths, that run through And I’ll shake you the novel and the show. Always, you are imbued “Thirteen” fits thematically because we just saw with the sense that there is more, and that if you Sheet music for Sheet music for Division a flashback of Clay at a dance, from which Han- listened hard enough, you might hear a secret. •

41 by CHLOE Vegan with a twist

$$ / vegan, fast food / ✳✳✳✳

by Lucas Hornsby

BORN IN THE summer of 2015, by CHLOE is a colorful (and a projected increase) — it is likely that such restaurants eatery bringing universally appealing, convenient, and filling will multiply, not only in vegan hubs like New York and San vegan food to New York City. In only a year and a half, it Francisco, but across the country. has launched veganism into the mainstream like no other The chain has found a pocket within the growing vegan restaurant in town. Beyond the charming black and white restaurant community that is largely underexplored. Where- awning that surrounds this corner shop on Bleecker Street, as many vegan restaurants distinguish themselves by linking wood, exposed brick, and patterned tiles cover most surfaces their mission to a “hippie,” environmentally conscious, and at the restaurant. even left-of-center political image, by CHLOE serves com- As you enter, leave any prejudice about vegan food at the fort food in locations with a clean, modern atmosphere. door and prepare for explosive taste. The menu, found on the That’s not to say that the restaurant distances itself from wall and on white paper brochures, boasts a handful of salads, the movement entirely: its mission statement speaks of pur- sandwiches and burgers, pastas, brunch delicacies, sides, bev- pose, mindfulness, and environmental-consciousness without erages, and desserts. overselling these tenets, making the restaurant’s image — and If you’re feeling particularly hungry, pair the simulta- consequently its food — more digestible for all crowds while neously creamy and crunchy mac and cheese with the pesto quietly promoting a plant-based diet. meatball sub. Alternatively, accompany either of the two with By CHLOE sprouted out of chef Chloe Coscarelli’s new a kale caesar salad, an unforgiving twist on an unforgettable year’s resolution to open a restaurant several years ago. Cos- classic. The dressing does well for itself without the mayon- carelli, a native of Los Angeles, has received training from The naise and anchovies that the traditional recipe calls for. The Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City and Cornell’s mac and cheese sauce achieves its texture through a well-sea- nutrition program and has years of experience working at the soned sweet potato and cashew concoction, topped with nation’s top vegan restaurants. Her commitment to bringing crispy shiitake “bacon.” vegan food to a diverse audience precedes the founding of by The faux cheese and bacon won’t leave you wishing for CHLOE. As an undergraduate student at Berkeley, she snuck their conventional counterparts. Similarly, the juicy meatballs baked goods into the library for her friends, and, in 2010, she are born from a mix of vegetables, starring portobello, and sat- became the first vegan chef to win a culinary competition on isfy with confidence and without shortcuts. For dessert, you national television, the Food Network’s “Cupcake Wars.” can’t go wrong with the old-fashioned chocolate chip cookie After deciding to pursue her resolution, Coscarelli con- or the dairy-free kale cookies + cream ice cream, an unlikely nected with Samantha Wasser, Creative-Director at ES- combination that’ll satiate your sweet tooth. These creations quared Hospitality, which includes restaurants such as the successfully cater to omnivorous palettes while swaying them BLT group, the Wayfarer, and Horchata. Wasser created a de- to venture into veganism. sign and brand to match Coscarelli’s food, and brought with By CHLOE, however, is not alone; it is yet another ad- her the influence, managerial expertise, and financial support dition to New York City’s vast network of vegan restaurants, of ESquared. Together, the two have flourished. which range from high-end sit-ins to grungy diners. As meat Coscarelli and Wasser’s enterprise does not take reser- consumption declines and plant-based diets gain populari- vations and only offers counter service. The West Village -lo ty — with an estimated 5% of Americans being vegetarian cation, the chain’s first, is home to a long communal table, a

42 Photos by Lucas Hornsby by Photos dozen or so small square and round tables, and two hanging (and, so far, thinner crowds). Additionally, the West Village wicker chairs that look more comfortable than they feel. For outpost has as its next-door neighbor a pink dessert shop (by the most part, however, by CHLOE’s environmentally-con- CHLOE Sweets) and a counterpart in Los Angeles’ Silver scious (recycled timber tabletops) and cruelty-free (hemp in Lake neighborhood, not to mention two forthcoming loca- lieu of wool) decor is sunny and comfortable, despite the in- tions in Boston and New York. evitable limited room afforded by New York City real estate. Though some of the staff appears bored or impatient In addition to the vast options on the menu, a hanging in the tight space behind the counter, most are friendly and blackboard advertises seasonal offerings like eggless eggnog helpful, and the perpetually long lines move with gratifying and a thick hot chocolate so rich you’ll have to split it. The speed. Several months ago, on a visit there that coincided meatball sub goes for $8.95 and a bottle of pressed juice for with a rare ebb in the crowd, I overheard a young woman, almost $10 — within the range for the neighborhood and not who appeared to be the manager, training two employees. exorbitant if a customer resists the temptation to order more She patiently reviewed each item on the menu and instructed than one item. Regardless, the prices don’t keep the customers the pair of recent hires on how to answer questions about away. Lines of equal parts flashy tourists, NYU students, and dietary restrictions and offer options for customers who re- executives in suits often reach the door during peak lunch and ported allergies when ordering. This interaction underscored dinner hours. the restaurant’s combined character of professionalism and The West Village restaurant feels especially cramped friendliness. during these hours, with the entrance to the bathroom stall, By CHLOE invites diners anywhere on the dietary spec- the food pickup counter, and the station with water, condi- trum to give vegan food a try in a space devoid of judgement ments (delicious house-made chipotle aioli and beet ketch- and abundant in taste and convenience. By diluting the polit- up!), and cutlery occupying the same corner of the restaurant. ical nature of veganism and by serving food that is friendly to Still, the tight fit is worth it, and the Flatiron and recently photos and omnivores, by CHLOE is carving for veganism a inaugurated SoHo locations feature more spacious layouts promising spot in the mainstream, and it’s only multiplying. •

NYC Locations

W e s t V i l l a g e Flatiron 185 Bleecker Street 60 West 22nd Street New York, NY 10012 New York, NY 10010

Sweets SoHo 185 B Bleecker Street 240 Lafayette Street New York, NY, 10012 New York, NY 10012

43 SNAPCHAT Sylvia Plath & By CLARE MALEENY

U.S. CITIZENS SENT one billion tweets relating to the a level of development and drafting that just isn’t required in presidential election since the start of the debates, most of social media. which were “crafted” in a matter of seconds. On average, When talking to Mr. Jernigan on the matter, he said, a total of six thousand tweets are published on twitter per “what distinguishes poetry from most other forms of com- second. Any writing enthusiast reading this, please take a munication is the poet’s deliberate and careful attention to minute to think about this statistic. When you finish reading the choice and organization of words.” He went on to dis- this sentence, more than six thousand tweets will have been cuss how poetry and poets can be found everywhere and in published. This instant form of expression has been adopted every profession. He described how William Carlos Williams by so many that it’s almost overwhelming. spoke of the vitality of poetry in his poem Asphodel, That By contrast, as a platform, poetry is responsible for great Greeny Flower: “It is difficult to get the news from poems yet societal change. Revolutionaries like Sylvia Plath, Emily men die miserably every day for lack of what is found there.” Dickinson, William Wordsworth, and E.E. Cummings have Mr. Jernigan responded, “Here, Williams suggests that while shaped countless hearts and minds. As we have seen over cen- the ‘news’ serves the purpose of conveying information, po- turies, poetry not only influences the literary world but all etry serves a range of more intimate and vitalizing purposes. aspects of our world. Poetry contributes to our lives by sharpening our attentions, During the 19th and 20th centuries, the spread of infor- enlivening our senses, and helping us live more deeply and mation was different from how it is today, and poetry played fully. What could be more important? Williams makes poetry a major role in the expression of ideas. Romanticism, the sound like a vital necessity on par with clean air, fresh water, prominent English poetry movement during the Industrial and enlivening company. What would we be without it?” Revolution, contributed to the public’s perspective on the We have become so used to broadcasting our opinions to consequences of industrialization. Activists uncertain about the world that we rarely take the time to formulate our ideas the trajectory of their country spoke out through poetry. completely. Because of this, a lack of tolerance has rooted Of course, Facebook messages, snapchats, tweets, and itself in our society. Put down this magazine and pull up the YouTube comments weren’t at the disposal of Industrial age twitter hashtag: politics. Scrolling through, you will be bom- thinkers, so their ideas were conveyed through alternate me- barded by hateful speech from all political stances. As a com- diums. These alternate forms of writing and expression argua- munity we have become desensitized to casual cruelty. bly contain more precise language than most epithets blasted This angry speech often triggers chain reactions. As an in a tweet. With the age of social media came an impulsive example, let’s say John Doe is upset by a political decision need to post constantly. As if after every experience there is or idea. In his fury he immediately posts his opinion. Like an irresistible need to write about it, yet most posts are purely thousands of others, his post was formulated in a matter of reactionary and often aren’t well thought out. Poetry requires seconds and involves very harsh language. The post is now 44 Arts + Letters Photo by Elizabeth Acevedo by Photo

public to a community of around one hundred million users. usual about our fellow citizens. Even though most of them More often than not, posts like this trigger intense responses seem really quite nice and very polite when we meet them, from other users. We are bound together in a perpetual cycle to judge by the comments, other people are in fact, when it of social media rage. comes down to it, in privacy, something very different: jeal- This is not to say that disagreements are wrong—debates ous, furious, vindictive, heartless, obsessive, unforgiving — in are necessary for the improvement of any society. However, a word, little short of insane.” disagreeing with something is not an excuse for the hostile This alternate, online persona that so many have been behavior intrinsic to social media sites today. Additionally, quick to adopt when posting on social media is eroding our these negative expressions haven’t contributed anything posi- humanity. This is why, especially now, poetry is such a signifi- tive to our culture, our structure of government, and so on. cant art form. It allows for the profound expression of strong Throughout history, writing has inspired change only with opinions and feelings without the impulsive immediacy, but precision in language and actionable ideas. with consideration, deliberation, and conscience. A few years ago, Alain de Botton, the Swiss-born author Avenues continually strives to create a positive school and philosopher, participated in a project to create an alter- environment with community activities and emphasizes the nate version of The Daily Mail called The Philosopher’s Mail. importance of respectful communication by utilizing the The publication’s goal was to take topics that magazines like Harkness method. The mission statement states that stu- Daily Mail would choose (celebrities, etc.) and write about dents should be “…aware that their behavior makes a differ- them in a more productive, philosophical light. The editorial ence in our ecosystem…” And yet today a lack of awareness team of The Philosopher’s Mail argues: “Good media is cru- has become rooted in communities everywhere. As Avenues cial to a good society. Yet, in modern society, the media often students, reflecting and realizing that a post, message, or com- plays a hugely detrimental role by stoking anger and fear. It ment could be harmful and unnecessary is a step we need to generates false and unhelpful pictures of the lives of others take in order to strengthen our community. and of the world we inhabit. It distorts our sense of what is Avenues students should look to poetry as a guide for normal.” better communication with one another. Social media pro- To prevent their publication from morphing into but vokes a less conscious, less thoughtful, and less honest part of another outlet for negative media, the heads of The Philoso- ourselves. It is a space to misbehave or let out base anxieties pher’s Mail also banned comments from their site. We’ve all or desires. Poetry forces us to sit with an emotion or problem seen, lurking below karaoke videos and cat fails on Youtube, and find the perfect words to express our feelings. It asks us the unnecessary, rude, and sometimes threatening comments. to examine ourselves deeply whereas social media asks us to The Philosopher’s Mail states, “The ability to post comments merely judge. Poetry asks us to learn more about ourselves at the end of online news stories has revealed something un- and in doing learn more about each other.• 45 MISERY LOVES COMPANY: LESSONS FROM THE ROAD By JEAN LI SPENCER

Art by Maddalena Rona

Have you ever sat in the driver’s seat of a car, sweaty-palmed and desperate, as a middle-aged man impatiently tells you to put the car in reverse? Did you screw up and shift the gear to park instead? No? Well, don’t worry, your time will come. The Highliner asked fellow Upperclassmen for their most embarrassing and outrageous driving stories, from screw-ups to road rage and everything in between. The lesson here is, if you’re going to be bad driver, you might as well do it with style!

46 WHEN I WAS in driver’s ed. on my ing turns with three other kids) and first day, I had this older guy, and it was started to drive, I was doing good and snowing as I was going around a corner. everything was fine. And my instruc- I thought my wheels had gotten stuck tor tells me to turn right, so I do. Then so I pushed on the accelerator, and my from the back we hear: “Um. Isn’t this instructor was saying, “You’re not listen- the Lincoln tunnel?”And we all go into ing to me, you’re not listening to me.” panicked-laughing mode as we’re driv- And I was like, it’s because I’m stuck! So ing down this ramp, and my instructor I kept pushing my foot on the accelera- is going: “Oh crap oh crap oh crap. No tor, and my car was just standing there wait! There’s the exit to get back, just blocking traffic, but it turns out he had turn right here.” his foot on the break the entire time! The exit was not to the right. I sat at this intersection for two So we drove to the mouth of the lights cutting off a lot of people, and it Lincoln tunnel and my instructor gets was simply because he had his foot on me to pull into the thin blocked off area the break, and I thought I was trapped in the middle by the cones, and she’s in ice. about to try and switch with me when - Eliana Ben-Dov, 12th grade the cop parked in the shoulder honks and says we have to move. Keep in mind I was driving around, there were three is it illegal for me to practice driving on of us in the car, we didn’t know where any toll roads. So my instructor says: we were going, and somehow I hit “Okay, Isabelle, you’re just going to have something. There was a metal piece at to do this.” the bottom of the car, and it started And we waited for a good moment to drag on the road. My instructor got to pull out, but of course there wasn’t out of the car, and literally went under- one because it was the freaking entrance neath to see what was going on. Then to the Lincoln tunnel. So then we hear he said, “Okay you’re done driving,” and the cop’s sirens going and we think climbed into the driver’s seat. she’s going to pull us over, but instead I guess he thought the way to get she blocks the traffic and let’s me go rid of the piece was to drive super fast, through. After which I spent my first so we started going 50 mph on West driving lesson going 75 in the Lincoln 23rd street, but nobody knew what was tunnel. going on, and nobody was wearing seat- - Isabelle D’Arcy, 12th grade belts. Little did we know, there was a speed bump, and so we flew up into the It was the first time I had ever gone air super fast, everybody was clinging to racing on a track. It was for something the seats, and the metal piece was still called a “track day.” Now, as a novice, stuck. Meanwhile, this guy had a sand- they said to me, “Hey, we’re gonna take wich in one hand! things easy for you.” It was early in the - Tunji Williams, 12th grade morning and we were just warming up. All of a sudden, I see this motorcycle We thought our instructor was a drug next to me go off into a ditch, and I’m dealer. You think I’m joking, but I’m so noticing as I’m riding along that peo- serious. We had driving once a week, ple - people plural - are spinning off the and without fail, our instructor would track. It was crazy! We kept losing them always ask us to drop him off at the one by one. After the whole experience, same place at the same time, and he my instructor gathers our entire group would leave for exactly ten minutes. together, and the only thing he can say And every time he would come back to us in a kind of stunned way is, “That with a brown paper bag and a wad of was highly unusual.” cash. Finally, on our last day, we asked - Mr. Gutkowski, Teacher him about it and he revealed...he likes bathing oils. Wow. Lanes are just suggestions. - Antonio Rivoli, 11th grade - Kavin Chada, 11th grade • So I got in the driver’s seat (I was tak-

47 The Chronicles of Detention By EVA HWANG & GRACE FRANCO

48 IT CAME WITHOUT notice. One day, there existed cial tensions with peers. He was forced to spend one period in peace; the next, chaos. Students who had once roamed freely an isolated space, monitored by a proctor. Although this time among the halls were suddenly arriving more than punctu- was effective in punishing Aries, he found no benefit to that ally. Weary high schoolers grew more tired and arrived more specific space. Instead, he was able to reflect in a period of early, an inherently disastrous combination. In other words, independent solitude to learn from his actions. However, he Avenues had fallen victim to ‘the man.’ As we watched our suggested, “a better punishment would be to have a conversa- comrades fall left and right, we exercised our First Amend- tion with the student in question.” As such, it appears he too ment rights to investigate this mysterious plague. did not learn the intended lesson and would have prefered a An email. It was simply an email which unveiled the true better-suited penalty. faceless nature of our adversary. We self-motivated yet naive Freshman Ivan Plokhikh was subject to a new system journalists requested a front row seat to the punitive show, as of tardy punishment that Avenues implemented this school we went undercover despite our limited interviewing experi- year. This system involves the offender having to arrive early ence: we wanted to sit in on a detention. None were sure just by an amount equivalent to the time they missed the previous what to expect, nor if we would prevail through the passing day. Furthermore, the minutes would accumulate with subse- minutes, yet we saw this as a necessary, rational sacrifice. quent late arrivals. Plokhikh is readily aware of his frequent Our request was promptly denied. lateness and has a large estimate for the quantity, but regu- Another email. Our prospective interview would gather larly arrived late to school because of prior breakfast and sleep dire, previously undisclosed information about punitive deci- commitments. As the tardiness piled up, he was approached sions and the method behind the madness of the Avenues by his dean with the punitive verdict: Early Arrival. This administration. These truths would unearth the imperative new method requires late students to attend the next day 15 elements of detention’s mysterious mask. minutes earlier. The punishment increases, depending on how Once again, our needs were left unmet, our request waitlisted. many days they offend. Polkhikh reflects, “All it did was give A third email. We were forgotten. us a consequence for being late. It’s not effective nor applies One final email. Are you noticing a pattern? Yes, eve- change, but is a pure punishment, not setting up students for ryone has things going on but no one really wanted to talk improvement.” about detention. After 3 repetitive missings, the offender must arrive at Okay, maybe there were a couple more emails. Yet we 7:30, with their parents. Not only does this take 30 extra min- were able to gather no substantial information from the ad- utes from the student, but is also detrimental to the relation- ministration about the school’s policies. Therefore, we turned ship and dynamic between parent and student. The guilty part to the students--the only people we could get hold of--and is both responsible for losing sleep and making their parent have wholly based the perception of detention and such sys- late for work, which is unacceptable. tems upon case-by-case experience. For Finn Droga, another sophomore, this method seems Yvette Lopez, a senior, was sentenced with detention for relatively effective. Droga attended school late multiple times not finishing an English paper. Although the gravity seemed and was given a detention. This forced him to come to school worrisome, she discovered a revolutionary insight: that deten- 15 minutes earlier the following day to atone. However Dro- tion was just another study hall where students could delight ga shrugged that the experience was, “Not that bad.” In fact, in whatever pastime they saw fit. In this way, it was a choice he saw the punishment as fitting to his action and graciously whether to be productive or roam the internet. As Lopez con- completed his assignment. The 15 extra minutes taught him cluded, “You get what you put into it.” Perhaps the punitive to not repeat the offense and become more punctual. He has measure should be specifically suited to the offense and the since regularly arrived in a timely manner during third term. time could have been spent specifically completing said pa- Detention appears more as a concept than a true teach- per. Nonetheless, Lopez found that receiving the bad grade ing measure. From seniors relaxing in yet another free period, was punishment enough and acted as the main motivation to adapting freshmen increasingly losing sleep to meet fabri- to avoid a recurrence. Detention itself, it seems, provided no cated startimes, the cases vary even as policies vary between further incentive to change. grades. Perhaps detention is another expression of Avenues’ Sophomore Sasha Aries received a detention due to so- corporate roots or maybe its outcome is as elusive as Narnia. •

49 SPECIAL FEATURE: STUDENT GIVES HONEST FEEDBACK On a recent survey sent out by CollegeBoard, a student shocked the customer service rep who read his feedback.

By KAVIN CHADA

50 HUMOR 75 51 GEMINI CANCER LEO MAY 21 – JUNE 20 JUNE 21 – JULY 22 JULY 23 – AUGUST 22

This month, will make a long- This month, is a time for you This month, take time to do term commitment. Make sure to be close to your family. You some self-reflection. As a natu- to weigh your options, and ask might feel as if you have strong ral leader, you are often gener- your trusted friends and loved emotional connections that ous to the point where you for- ones to give you advice. You have gone long overlooked. Be get about your own well being. will also be looking for sub- confident in your abilities, rela- Make sure that you take care of stantial source of curiosity, take tionships, and environment this yourself and balance your time risks! month. devoted to others.

Famous Gemini: Famous Cancers: Famous Leos: Tupac, Carmelo Anthony, Nao- Cheryl Cole, Diane Kruger, Tom Daniel Radcliffe, Amy Adams, mi Campbell, Johnny Depp, Hanks, Tobey Maguire, Olivia Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Lopez, Lucy Hale, Mary-Kate Olsen. Munn, Tom Cruise. Matt LeBlanc, Joe Jonas.

VIRGO LIBRA SCORPIO AUGUST 23 – SEPTEMBER 22 – OCTOBER 23 – SEPTEMBER 22 OCTOBER 22 NOVEMBER 21

This month, take your time This month, will open opportu- This month, you should let and slow down. You are always nities that will let you and your your curiosity take you on new rushing around due to the dif- passions soar. Have confidence adventures. Embrace this time ferent tasks in your life. Be sure in the decisions you make, and and it will open new opportu- that you put in the extra effort be sure to lean on your support nities for your future. Engage and time to do your work to system throughout this month. in open conversations with the quality that you expect. your mentors and family.

Famous Virgos: Famous Libras: Famous Scorpios: Pippa Middleton, Liam Payne, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Zach Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAd- Cameron Diaz, Keanu Reeves, Galifianakis, Hugh Jackman, ams, Matthew McConaughey, Adam Sandler, Pink, Tim Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Scarlett Johansson, Gerard Burton Naomi Watts. Butler, Emma Stone.

52 HOROSCOPES By CAROLINE YU

SAGITTARIUS CAPRICORN AQUARIUS NOVEMBER 22 – DECEMBER 22 – JANUARY 12 – DECEMBER 21 JANUARY 19 FEBRURARY 18

This month, make sure to let This month, allow your desire to This month, believe in yourself your family and friends know take over. You should take this and your abilities to take you to how much you appreciate month to dive into your pas- the next levels in your life. Do them. Keep yourself grounded sions and explore potential that not be scared of taking risks, in your support system and let has been buried deep inside of they will pay off and benefit your curiosity and adventurous you. Your deepest fears will be others as well. spirit open a new page in your tested this month, stay strong book. and do not let go of your goals.

Famous Sagittariuses: Famous Capricorns: Famous Aquarii: Vanessa Hudgens, Amanda Louis Tomlinson, Liam Hems- Alicia Keys, Michael Jordan, Seyfried, Nicki Minaj, Jake Gyl- worth, Bradley Cooper, Zooey Chris Rock, Ed Sheeran, lenhaal, Brad Pitt, Ben Stiller. Deschanel, Kate Bosworth.

PISCES ARIES TAURUS FEBRUARY 19 – MARCH 21 – APRIL19 APRIL 20 – MAY 20 MARCH 20

This month, plan carefully for This month, important opportu- This month, take care of your- the future and prepare yourself nities will be revealed. Embrace self, and your health. Make sure for big changes in your life. Be these new experiences. You will to allow yourself to embrace new opportunities, and be confi- confident in your control of your be able to reconcile with some of life, and do not be deterred by dent in your abilities. Remember the mistakes you have made in small missteps. the people who have helped you the past, and your character will in the past, and take a moment shine brightly this month. to appreciate them.

Famous Pisces: Famous Aries: Famous Tauruses: Jessica Biel, Adam Levine, Dan- Seth Rogen, Mandy Moore, Leona Robert Pattinson, George iel Craig, Bruce Willis, Drew Bar- Lewis, Quentin Tarantino, Tommy Clooney, Bono, Megan Fox, Cate rymore, Eva Longoria Hilfiger, Celine Dion. Blanchett, Jessica Alba.

ASTROLOGY

53 After doing God-knows-what since September, Student Council finally to “begin work.” BON APPÉTIT: “3 new varieties” of brown-mush-in-a-cup dessert coming this spring. Advanced Chemistry students discover new element causing their downfall. Its symbol: C+ “Concerns with Recommendations” to be renamed “Let me tell you my political views.” Waffle truck arrives, students now have way to legally bring waffles to school. Student takes “wrong turn” between buildings, arrives late with sushi platter. Mr. Lu: “Triangles are circles, and circles are triangles.” Class: (ʘ_ʘ) Volunteers needed to begin planning for next year’s highly anticipated “Minute of Code!” “Avenues Students for Trump” Facebook group adds new member, roster now up to 6. Famous musician dies, Mr. Misler HEADLINERScancels class curriculum for the rest of the week. Freshmen: New summer program announced, called “Learn how to speak at assembly.” Sophomores: Honey, you'ev got a big storm comin'. Juniors: Renew gym memberships for EC sheets. Seniors: Finally figure out how to speak at assembly, forget how to pass classes. Alumni: Enjoy second “six month reunion” this June. Teachers: There’s a homework policy? Deans: There’s an attendance policy? Parents: It’s a new school of thought! Waffle Truck: Mmmhm. After doing God-knows-what since Moment of Irony: Dean admonishes people September, Student Coun- cil finally to “begin work.” who skip assembly at assembly. BON APPÉTIT: “3 new varieties” of brown-mush- in-a-cup dessert coming this spring. Advanced Chemistry students discover new element caus- Breaking: Assembly still exists ing their downfall. Its symbol: C+ “Concerns with Recommendations” to be renamed “Let me tell you New prom accessory: spoon my political views.” Waffle truck arrives, students now have way to legally bring waffles to school. -Stu dent takes “wrong turn” between buildings, arrives Senior skips 5th term: floods college laundry late with sushi platter. Mr. Lu: “Triangles are circles, and circles are triangles.” Class: (ʘ_ʘ) Volunteers room needed to begin planning for next year’s highly anticipated “Minute of Code!” “Avenues Students for Tear slides down teacher’s cheek as student Trump” Facebook group adds new member, roster now up to 6. Famous musician dies, Mr. Misler walks by wearing all denim cancels class curriculum for the rest of the week. Freshmen: New summer program announced, Freshmen to begin filling out Common App called “Learn how to speak at assembly.” Sophomores: Honey, you'ev got a big storm comin'. Juniors: Re- this June new gym memberships for EC sheets. Seniors: Final- ly figure out how to speak at assembly, forget how to pass classes. Alumni: Enjoy second “six month Record time! 52 days of seniors accomplished reunion” this June. Teach- ers: There’s a homework in 20 days policy? Deans: There’s an attendance policy? Par- ents: It’s a new school of thought! Waffle Truck: Mmmhm. After doing God- knows-what since Sep- Senior FAQ: WHERE’S OUR BOUNCY CASTLE? tember, Student Council finally to “begin work.” BON APPÉTIT: “3 new varieties” of brown-mush-in- a-cup dessert coming this spring. Advanced Chem- Juniors officially remove “free time” from their istry students discover new element causing their vocabulary due to low usage. downfall. Its symbol: C+ “Concerns with Recom- mendations” to be renamed “Let me tell you my political views.” Waffle truck arrives, students now Homework policy vs. Chemistry lab report. It have way to legally bring waffles to school. -Stu wasn’t even close, and we all know who won. dent takes “wrong turn” between buildings, arrives late with sushi platter. Mr. Lu: “Triangles are circles, and circles are triangles.” Class: (ʘ_ʘ) Volunteers Students that cut HIP Math complain about not needed to begin planning for next year’s highly an- having enough exposure to math. ticipated “Minute of Code!” “Avenues Students for Trump” Facebook group adds new member, roster now up to 6. Famous musician dies, Mr. Misler Deans: “We will now begin our unit on sex ed.” cancels class curriculum for the rest of the week. Students: “What about college?” Freshmen: New summer program announced, called “Learn how to speak at assembly.” Soph- omores: Honey, you'ev got a big storm comin'. Juniors: Renew gym memberships for EC sheets. Seniors: Finally figure out how to speak at assembly, forget how to pass classes. Alumni: Enjoy second “six month reunion” this June. Teachers: There’s a homework policy? Deans: There’s an attendance policy? Parents: It’s a new school of thought! Waffle Truck: Mmmhm. and circles are- tri angles.” Class: (ʘ_ʘ) Volunteers needed to begin planning for next year’s highly anticipated “Minute of Code!” “Avenues Students for Trump” Facebook group adds new member, roster now up to 6. Famous musician dies, Mr. Misler cancels class curriculum for the rest of the week. Freshmen: New summer program announced, called “Learn how to speak at assembly.” Sophomores: They still go to school here? Juniors: Renew gym memberships for EC sheets. Seniors: Finally figure out how to speak at assembly, forget how to pass classes. Alumni: Enjoy second “six month reunion” this June. Teachers: There’s a homework policy? Deans: There’s an attendance policy? Parents: It’s a new school of thought! Waffle Truck: Mmmhm.

6 EDITORIAL A Thin Line Crossword 8 FEATURES Unstable Structure A Year Without a Leader Natalie Hampton The Forbidden Fruit Dismediation Living What We Stand For Fluent Language Learning

22 NEWS A School Divided Teacher Student Bonds Life is Plastic: It’s Fantastic

33 OP-EDS Community Day Trying Vegan A Meshuggah Calendar New Campus, Who Dis?

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