PAGE 5 • ARTS PAGE 9 • SPORTS PAGE 11 • FEATURES Displayed at the National P.E. teacher Dan Dyra To some students, Museum of Mexican Art says being a basketball astrology is a valued part in Pilsen neighborhood, referee is a hobby that of their daily or weekly the exhibition “Woven” pays. He’s been training routines. Through apps shows art by five Mexican junior Kennedy Coats like Co-Star and the news, and Mexican American for the past six weeks to this once-niche art has women. become a ref. become more mainstream. University of Chicago Laboratory High School 1362 East 59th Street, Chicago,U-HIGH Illinois 60637 MIDWAY Volume 96, Number 7 MARCH 12, 2020 School deals with effects of virus the schools, and signs have been placed to Administration drafts remind people about washing hands. contingency plan in University takes precautions and imposes travel guidlines case of school closure The University of Chicago has also tak- en precautions and set guidelines against by PETER PU COVID-19. An email sent Jan. 24 from ARTS CO-EDITOR then-Provost Daniel Diermeier and Dean Originating in Wuhan, China, the coro- Kenneth Polonsky explained that Student navirus COVID-19 has impacted people all Health Service and University of Chicago around the world and forced the Universi- Medicine began screening patients for the ty of Chicago and Laboratory Schools stu- coronavirus and asking whether they have dents, administration and faculty to re- recently traveled to Wuhan or are associated spond. with anyone infected with COVID-19. The university’s current outbound trav- Planning begins for possibility el guidelines strongly discourage travel to of extended school closure any country with a Level 3 travel health no- Faculty and administrators have been tice from the Centers for Disease Control meeting since Feb. 25 to plan for school op- and Prevention. The university return travel erations and expectations for students and guidelines state travelers should not attend MIDWAY PHOTO BY MARIA SHAUGHNESSY faculty in case of school closure. Learning school or work for two weeks afterward. SANITIZING SCHOOL. Teachers, students and faculty alike wipe down tables management systems would play a signifi- In addition to travel, the university has and use hand sanitizer in hopes of not contracting and spreading the coronavirus. cant role if classes could not meet in person. changed programs in countries with a high According to an email sent by Laboratory risk for COVID-19, set up an informational the junior retreat scheduled for April 1-3. China to learn about Chinese education and Schools Director Charlie Abelmann March website, and cleaning staff are disinfecting “If we get quarantined in our houses, our culture, and technology coordinator Lou- 7, students from nursery to fifth grade will surfaces more frequently according to a Feb. parents would also have to be quarantined is Coronel and lower school assistant prin- use SeeSaw to communicate with teach- 28 email from Provost Ka Yee Lee. in our houses, which is too much of a sac- cipal Uzma Panjwani prepared to present ers while parents will use Schoology. Tools rifice for us to go to France for four weeks,” at a conference about design thinking and like Google Hangouts will facilitate teach- International trips canceled; Andrada said. STEM education. ing during school closure. Assignments will seniors revise May Project plans Similarly, on March 4 the French ex- The coronavirus COVID-19 has also continue starting the third day of school clo- Selected for the Eliad Scholarship Pro- change trip to La Martinique scheduled for forced some seniors to change their May sure after a two-day transition. gram, a French exchange financed by Lab, March 14-28 was postponed. Projects. Senior Emily Zhang’s original pro- Families may seek access and assistance juniors Izzy Kaufman-Sites and Andrada According to The New York Times coro- posal involved traveling to Changsha, Chi- with technology and internet from Director Nicolae were scheduled to leave for La Ro- navirus map, Italy has confirmed more than na, to study how the relationship between of Innovation and Technology Brian Hew- chelle March 1 and return March 28 until 3,000 cases. people and technology differs between Chi- lett. Parents can find tutorials, tips and the the trip was postponed on Feb. 28 due con- As a result, the RoboMed competition na and the United States. Although the orig- Parent HelpDesk under the Parent webpage. cerns of the coronavirus. at the American School of Milan was post- inal proposal deadline was Feb. 28, May U-High French teacher Catherine Col- poned, and the trip for 12 selected members project coordinator Mariah Bender grant- Lab prioritizes keeping let-Jarard said, “The concern was that when of Lab’s middle school robotics team origi- ed Emily an extension for March 6. Her new surfaces clean they come back to the U.S., they might be nally scheduled to depart Feb. 26 and return proposal involves visiting gardens around According to an email sent by Director of confined for two weeks.” March 3 was canceled on Feb. 23. Chicago and studying how artificial intelli- Operations Joe Wachowski March 5, more According to Ms. Collet-Jarard, the stu- According to middle school robotics team gence can recognize plants. staff was added to the ABM cleaning pro- dents’ families made the decision to post- coach Jeremy Schwartz, parents will receive As the president of Prom Committee and gram to keep surfaces clean and disinfect- pone the trip after learning about the risks refunds, and similar to the Eliad Scholarship a member of the Graduation Committee, ed. Every classroom from nursery to fifth and concerns. She added Lab can use the Program trip, Lab can use the plane tickets Emily said if she continued her original May grade has access to cleaning spray and pa- plane tickets within a year without penalty within a year without fees. Project, she would risk missing both events. per towels, and classrooms will be provided fees. In addition, two mid-March faculty trips “I think it’s just in my best interest to be with spray and wipes upon request. In ad- In addition to two weeks of school, the to China were canceled. Ten teachers and as safe as possible and in the best interest of dition, tissues have been placed throughout potential quarantine period would include administrators were scheduled to leave for those around me,” Emily said. With dwindling numbers, JSA future uncertain See Editorial on Page 10 “ In a year when Jews have but really it takes work and com- After 26 years, mitment to the basic purpose of increasingly become the club,” Ms. Shapiro said. club considers out, Ms. Shapiro sent an email to targets of anti-Zionist The Feb. 28 meeting highlighted all JSA-registered students detail- and anti-Semitic violence, the fact that there are still at least reorganization ing the risk of JSA not running next a handful of students who feel the year and inviting members to a it is sad to think that same passion about the existence by LUCIA KOURI meeting Feb. 28. our mission is no longer of the club as the founding stu- MIDWAY REPORTER “In a year when Jews have in- meaningful to the Jewish dents. Ten students were nominated to creasingly become targets of an- community at the Lab “I could come here, and I was the Jewish Students’ Association ti-Zionist and anti-Semitic vio- welcomed by all of you and the board March 6. However, low turn- lence, it is sad to think that our Schools.” people sitting next to me and be- out originally raised the question mission is no longer meaningful to — SUSAN SHAPIRO hind me,” junior Elena Stern as to whether the 20-year-old club the Jewish community at the Lab said at the meeting. “It felt like it still has the student drive it needs Schools,” Ms. Shapiro wrote in her ish students don’t find the drive to didn’t matter what everybody else to continue running next year. email. show up to weekly meetings. While thought — it just mattered that I present on Feb. 28, numbers were The JSA, known for running The JSA was created in 1994 by a several Jewish and non-Jewish stu- had that connection,.” more promising than prior meet- the biannual Holocaust Remem- group of seniors in the Class of ‘95 dents claim they find support and Sophomore Noa Appelbaum, ings. However, given that the email brance Assembly as well as year- who came to Ms. Shapiro in hopes comfort in the work and existence the only non-senior board mem- was sent to 48 students, the ques- ly celebrations of Rosh Hashanah of creating a club that would cel- of the JSA, however, many lack an ber, expressed similar apprecia- tion still exists as to whether the and Hannukah, recently hosted ebrate Jewish culture. At the time, understanding of the student drive tion and hope for the future of JSA club can foster the consistent drive board nominations for the 2020- according to Ms. Shapiro, the Jew- necessary to support the club, she in the Feb. 28 meeting. it needs to survive next year. 21 school year. According to ad- ish population at Lab hovered said. “We really need people. I mean, “It was the students who de- viser Susan Shapiro, 10 students at just under 20% of the student “Kids think ‘Oh, the JSA, they’re obviously we can’t force you, but manded it come into being, to be- showed up. Of those people, six body, roughly twice as large. gonna be there.