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PAGE 6 PAGE 3 PAGE 9 STUDENTS CYCLEBAR CHS STAFF PREP FOR TRANSFER TO HOSTS COLLEGE BIG SUR CVHS EDUCATION PROCESS COLLEGE FUNDRAISER COMMUNITY the Carmel Sandpip a Carmel HigH SCHool Student publiCation er VOLUME XXXVII SEPTEMBER 2017 www.thesandpiper.org CAMPUS NEWS SOMETHING RIDICULOUS! AP Human Geography section add- ed to reduce ballooning class sizes BY ALEX POLETTI exclusive also entered into Lopez’s deci- sion to push for a new section. Because Carmel Unifed School District of the importance of a ninth grader’s as- administration approved funding for a similation into the high school system, third section of AP Human Geography creating a less overwhelming class size on Aug. 24, reducing the average section is more of a priority for freshmen than it size of the course to below 30 students. is for upperclassmen, the principal says. This change occurred unusually late Although most decisions of this sort in the school year, with most changes are made during the spring of the prior in the academic master calendar taking school year, according to Lopez, the fux place before the high school’s Aug. 8 of enrollment from the 2017 spring term start date. to the start of the 2017-18 school year “In a perfect world, we wouldn’t was cause for concern; over the course be making changes that affected student of the summer, AP Human Geography schedules in the third week of school, sizes ballooned from two sections of 27 but it’s certainly better than the fourth to two sections of 33. week of school,” CHS principal Rick Larger class numbers can cause Lopez says. problems for AP teachers, especially Lopez credits the change’s neces- when seminar-based learning is integral sity to the increase in AP Human Geog- to the curriculum, as is the case with the raphy’s enrollment; the freshman course freshmen geography class. has been gaining popularity since its in- “It’s hard to give students indi- ception four years ago, reaching a total vidual, personal attention,” AP Human of 64 students last year across two class Geography teacher Bill Schrier says of photo by LUKE DEPALATIS periods. Averaging 32 students per sec- classes over 30 students. CHS junior Robert Brown teams up with Something Ridiculous, a unicycling tion, AP Human Geography surpassed the goal of 29 students per class. CLASSROOM SIZE basketball duo, to ring in the school year in a slamdunk of fun on Aug. 8. The fact that the class is freshman- CONT. ON 2 DISTRICT NEWS THE DOCTOR IS IN Superintendent Dill-Varga ready to make her mark on Carmel Unifed School District BY ALEX POLETTI perintendent says of her mother. “She passed that onto me.” More than a month before the frst pealings of the Somewhat ironically, given her grandparents bell marked the offcial start of another school year, could not speak the language, Dill-Varga frst started in new CUSD superintendent, Dr. Barbara Dill-Varga, education as an English teacher. After spending a few was already hard at work. Bringing in over a decade of years as a teacher, the Northwestern graduate served as experience in public education, she aims to honor and the English department chair for Glenbard District 87, build upon Carmel’s tradition of excellence. the third-largest school district in the state of Illinois. Dill-Varga comes to the Monterey area after an Her love for English extends beyond the class- eight-year tenure as the assistant superintendent for in- room; in her free time—wherever she can fnd it, the struction and curriculum of the Maine Township High superintendent jokes—she works on a novel she began School District in Park Ridge, Illinois, a school district two years ago. named by “Tech Insider” as one of the 14 most innova- “I have a draft of a James Patterson-like thriller,” tive in the country. the part-time author says. “It’s very rough and needs The Illinois native comes from more humble be- work. I hope to get back to it some day!” ginnings; the daughter of a Greek immigrant, Dill-Var- A keen observer may fnd scattered traces of the ga grew up around teachers and librarians. She notes United Kingdom throughout the former English teach- these professionals proved to be some of the most in- er’s offce, most notably the “Keep Calm and Carry fuential in her mother’s life, and by proxy, hers as well. On” mug from which she drinks her daily joe. “Certain female adult role models she had were teachers and librarians, and they gave her a safe haven DILL-VARGA and gave her a vision of what she could be,” the su- CONT. ON 8 Meet CHS New Staf Members pages 4 & 5 2 NEWS www.thesandpiper.org SEPTEMBER 2017 EDUCATION THE SANDPIPER In-class political bias leads to some STAFF Editors-in-chief: TBD disagreement over its appropriateness BY KYLIE YEATMAN litical conversations with their students, but at the same Layout editors: Joyce Doherty, Becca time, we ask teachers to let go of their implicit biases Goren On Nov. 10, 2016, Mountain View history teacher during these discussions.” Frank Navarro found himself being asked to leave the Meanwhile, teachers at CHS note their coverage of Online Editor: TBD school after a parent sent the school an email expressing both sides of the political spectrum during class time, their concerns over Navarro comparing President Don- rather than focusing on specifc party or candidate. ald Trump to Adolf Hitler. Navarro, a Holocaust expert “I think that political opinions will be there, it’s just Copy Editors: Becca Goren, Alex Poletti with more than 40 years of teaching experience, says human nature,” AP World History teacher Brent Silva that the school refused to read the contents of the email says. “You have to take out the bias and cover both sides Staff Reporters: Joyce Doherty, Ellah to him, ABC News reported. equally. As a teacher, you have to present all of the con- Foster, Becca Goren, Asha Johnston, This incident, however, was not the only incident clusions, and let students go from there.” Archer Michaels, Alex Poletti, Julia within the Bay Area of school faculty members be- Silva, who discusses current events with his classes Sudol, Kylie Yeatman ing put on leave after expressing anti-Trump remarks. weekly, notes the Charlottesville white nationalist riot ABC also reports that Milpitas High School Principal as an example of a situation in which some students Phil Morales was excused from the school after using may not have all the facts before speaking. Faculty Adviser: Mike Palshaw profanity when referring to the president during an on- “There’s the basic facts that people have, namely campus student protest. that a car drove through the crowd,” Silva says. “But When it comes to teaching politics, it can be dif- it’s the little things, like what the rally was for, what two The views expressed in The Carmel Sandpiper are solely those of authors fcult for teachers to leave their own political biases out groups were there, whether it was a rally or protest. Was and are not intended to be viewed as of the conversation. While teachers adding their own there a permit gained? When you can learn all of the those of the Carmel Unifed School Dis- political opinions to a classroom discussion—particu- facts, you’re able to learn clearer and form a stronger trict administration, the Carmel High larly those widely held by students—may not be in the opinion.” School administration or the adviser. front of a teacher’s mind, do these biases have an effect Some students note their concerns over expressing on students? their own political opinions in the classroom. WANT TO SEND US A According to the Political Activities of Employees “I know I’m personally sometimes afraid to express section of the Carmel Unifed School District Code of my political opinions in the classroom,” sophomore LETTER? Conduct, teachers and faculty are prohibited from en- says sophomore Brian Porter, who identifes as right- dorsing specifc political parties or candidates in the leaning. Porter cites California’s liberal voting history The Sandpiper staff welcomes contribu- classroom or on school grounds. The CUSD code states, as a reason for this, with most students identifying as tions from the student body in the form of “District employees shall not use district funds, servic- liberal. letters to the editor to sandpiper@carmel es, supplies or equipment to urge the passage or defeat “I’m glad that we all have free speech,” sophomore unifed.org. The Carmel Sandpiper staff reserves the right to edit all letters for of any ballot measure or candidate, including any candi- Marcus Lo says. “I hope to keep it so that we can have clarity, length, libel and taste. date for election to the Board of Education.” civil discussions, which isn’t always possible.” CHS Principal Rick Lopez notes that CUSD policy Lopez also notes that the concern for political con- also states that teachers are not permitted to endorse versations often stems from the parents of students as Carmel High School, P.O. Box 222780 their own political parties or candidates in the class- opposed to the students themselves. Carmel, CA 93922 room. However, Lopez adds that CHS is a public high “I have been involved in parents being uncomfort- 831-624-1821, ext. 3723 school, and therefore a part of the government. With able with classroom discussions,” Lopez mentions. [email protected] this in mind, he says, schools should allow free speech “There are some parents who don’t like what we have for teachers and students alike.

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