The longest-running newspaper in historic The Reserve Record Hudson, Ohio VOL. CI....No. 6 WESTERN RESERVE ACADEMY, HUDSON, OHIO. JANUARY 2015 Winter ECHOs Take Off Ong: Korra a Killer Cartoon School Spirit at Student Sections Coin: Debate Over Downloads Students speak their mind on the subject Simon Ong ’15 lauds Legend of Korra Themes bring throngs and make for Simon Ong ’15 can’t pardon piracy, but matter and methods of the modules. and finds the finale fabulous. boisterous Boys Basketball games. Colin Horgan ’15 finds no fault. PAGE 3| COMMUNITY PAGE 7 | ENTERTAINMENT PAGE 8 | SPORTS PAGE 10 | THE COIN Culture Night Offers Reserve a Tour Around the World vided an exciting opportunity for By HELENA AHN ’15 students to try exotic dishes that Western Reserve Academy takes they may have never tasted. pride in its culturally diverse com- Culture Night augmented cul- munity, which boasts an eighteen tural awareness in the community percent international student popu- in other ways, too. Zhang enjoyed lation hailing from fifteen differ- talking to the parents who helped ent countries. On the evening of out with the preparation of the food Jan. 18, students gathered in the as they patiently waited for the pre- Bicknell Memorial Gym for the an- sentations to finish. “Talking to the nual Culture Night, sponsored by parents gave me an insight about the club Students for Intercultural their lives and their cultural heri- Understanding (SICU). They cel- tage,” explained Zhang. ebrated the various cultures repre- Many students reported that this sented on WRA’s campus through year’s Culture Night was a bigger eye-catching presentations and en- success than last year’s. Overall, joying delicious cuisine. there was a much bigger audience In previous years, students at- and many more contributors who tended the night primarily for the made the event possible. “Most of delicious food prepared by faculty, the videos were entertaining and students and parents. SICU’s goal even superbly edited,” said Bor- this year was to shift the focus to the rmann. “But in the end, the voices, presentations. Modern and Clas- expressions and yes, the accents of sical Language Department Chair ALAN DOE the presenters in front of their peers Dr. Ralf Borrmann, serves as the Ryan Hassell (left) and Sam Haseltine emceed the annual Culture Night, sponsored by SICU. bring the event to life and make it club’s advisor. He explained, “[The memorable. There is shared laugh- presentations] make for memorable avoids repetition for the future,” Rich Hoffman’s daughter Libby, remarked Anna McMurchy ’15. “I ter and emotion, which brings us moments of which we speak even added Borrmann. “There are many Erin Adams ’19, Julia King ’19 and liked how the leaders ordered the together as a community.” years later.” topics to choose from in the future, her brother David. It ended in In- presentations so that it felt like we Lee wants to see Culture Night SICU leaders Helena Ahn ’15, MJ and even if there were presenters dia with a video from Indian Club were going on a circular trip around continue to be successful in the fu- Lee ‘15 and Ida Zhang ‘15 selected who have repeated appearances that parodied Slumdog Millionaire. the globe.” ture and suggests “adding in ‘first- a theme of tourism for the presenta- they will give variety and be just as In about two hours, the audience After the presentations, the audi- hand experiences’ where attendees tions because they believed having interesting and entertaining.” took a tour around the top attrac- ence rushed to the Murdough Ath- get to partake in activities that are “a trip around the world” would The “tour guides,” emcees Sam tions in France, China, Aramco letic Center foyer to eat traditional best representative of their respec- make the presentations informative Haseltine ’15 and Ryan Hassell ’15, in Saudi Arabia and Syria, just to cuisine prepared by faculty, students tive cultures.” As Aeri Hong ‘18 yet lively. “The theme helped the took the audience on a “trip around name a few. and parents. Students could have remarked, Culture Night was “in- presenters to focus on an aspect of the world” starting in Ireland with “There was a nice range of pre- Indian burfi and a French crepe on teresting and entertaining for both their culture and the country and an Irish dance from English teacher senters from all different places,” the same plate. Culture Night pro- the eyes and the taste buds.” Action Station Gives Lunch Flavor Sturgis Focuses on By TARHULE ’15 Writing for English II In the last few months, the din- take. Sturgis experiences plenty of ing hall has offered a highly popular By DARCY KUANG ’17 silence in these conferences, but option at buffet lunches known as English teacher Roman Stur- he believes that the silence demon- the Action Station. At every meal gis has taken an experimental ap- strates that the students are think- it’s offered, it draws an eager crowd proach with the writing process of ing strenuously to find solutions to of teachers and students alike and one section of his English II class. their errors. for good reason; it may very well Throughout each marking period, Although the tactic might seem be the best idea the dining hall staff every student from his class par- unorthodox, Sturgis approaches has ever had. ticipates in a writing conference, each conference in a methodical The Action Station’s success stems usually fifteen to forty minutes in manner. He starts by brainstorm- from a variety of reasons, the prima- length, in which he or she receives ing ideas and opinions on a certain ry one being simply the improved direct feedback and suggestions topic and then begins to organize quality of the food. Rarely does from Sturgis. the ideas in a logical order. the default meal get better recep- MAX FORSYTH After receiving the comment, When it comes to the conclusion, tion than what the Action Station The action station recently served “Pastalaya,” their take on jambalaya. students will start to revise and re- he emphasizes the ability of con- makes, which not only tastes better think their essay. “I encourage my necting a personal essay to a more but tends to be much healthier as of hot chocolate availability. (As the and the salad bar. students to revise their essays after universal issue that the readers can well. author of a somewhat inflammato- Moving the Action Station to the each writing conference,” Sturgis relate to. “The conclusion should Although the wait is typically ry opinion about the dining hall in south end of the dining hall, or sim- explained, “because revision is the open up an interesting new discus- longer, since the food is often cus- the November issue of the Reserve ply turning it around so that people most important process to identify sion rather than repeat the topic tomizable à la Chipotle, dining hall Record, I welcome this trend!) line up in the south side instead of and repair the flaws of the essay.” sentence,” he said. And this makes visitors have demonstrated that No progress can be flawless, the lobby, would be a great step to- Adjoa Tettey-Fio ‘17, one of the the essays more powerful and more they will gladly wait for this option. though. Along with the more mun- wards alleviating this problem. students in the section, appreciates relatable.” Students, faculty and staff love dane problems (such as the unfor- The small staff of the Action Sta- this innovative process because it al- Sturgis also keeps detailed pro- watching the preparation of their tunate temporary mislabeling/dis- tion creates another problem, since lows her to develop better writing files for each of his students, “I dish; the precise motions and the appearance of the hot chocolate), the cooks there, as energetic as they habits. “[Writing conferences] take keep photocopies of my students’ flashes of fire as the chefs toss the the Action Station itself has a vari- are, cannot adequately address the up more time than I would like,” essays in these profiles to observe entree makes it all rather entertain- ety of issues. huge numbers of people that flock she explained, “But they force me how much they have progressed ing and highlight the clear talent of On a petty level, the Action Sta- to the station as soon as lunc starts. to realize where the problem is so throughout the year.” the FLIK Independent School Din- tion closes too soon during many Setting up a second station or ex- that I won’t make the same mistake When asked what inspired him to ing staff. meals, due to its popularity. More panding the current one would be next time.” make such a change in his class, he Other Ellsworth Hall develop- seriously, the line disrupts the entire a wise choice. Come what may, the He also stresses the importance replied humorously, “Well, I want ments include a new diverse choice lobby and blocks access to all fea- Western Reserve Academy com- of thinking independently. During to see my students producing better of fresh (or, at least, fresh enough) tures of the dining hall, including munity loves the action station and a conference he will never give out essays. If we can write well, we can apples and an improved frequency the default food, the coffee/tea area hopes it stays an Ellsworh fixture. the answer or point out the mis- save the world.” 2 RESERVE RECORD NEWS JANUARY 2015 Corrections Established in 1925 The Reserve Record December Issue Community Service Editor-in-Chief Max Forsyth The Reserve Record is the student- For the crossword on page 7: Editor-in-Chief Trevor Levin run, monthly newspaper of Western Day Makes a Difference Reserve Academy and the voice of 24 across should have been “Ce- Managing Editor Kevin Yang and for the student body.