   Having a tutor does not guarantee success. That is the mistake too many students make. The assumption goes like this: if you are struggling in a class, hiring a tutor will fix everything. A tutor will reteach the material, clarify confusion, and help you complete assignments. If you sit through lessons, understanding will come eventually. But that is not how learning works.


Students who rely on tutors as a safety net — thinking they can check out during class because they will “just relearn it later” — are setting themselves up for failure. A tutor is not a replacement for active engagement. They are not an alternative to thinking for yourself.


PHS students know this pattern too well. You can walk into the IDEAS Center on any given afternoon and see tutoring sessions happening at nearly every table. Some students are asking questions, engaging in discussion, and working through problems themselves. Others sit back, listen passively, and nod as if absorption was automatic. Then, they go home, take the test a few days later, and are surprised when their grade does not reflect all those hours with their tutor.


The reality is that success depends on active learning. That means asking questions in the moment, staying engaged with the material, and making an effort before seeking outside help. It means attempting the homework before assuming you need a tutor to walk you through it.


Tutors are not a shortcut. They should be a supplement: a way to refine understanding, clarify difficult concepts, and receive guidance on problem areas. The students who see real results from tutoring are the ones who already engage in class, who struggle first before seeking help, and who come to their tutor with specific questions instead of waiting to be spoon-fed the material. PHS offers plenty of resources for students: teachers who hold office hours, peer tutoring programs, and the IDEAS Center. However, none of it matters if students refuse to take the initiative themselves. The bottom line? If you are zoning out in class, thinking your tutor will handle it later, you are wasting time — yours, your tutor’s, and your teacher’s. The real work happens in the classroom. Tutors can help, but only if you are willing to help yourself first.

Photo: Charley Hu
Stellan Song ’28 and Vinay Lele ’28 study together in the IDEAS Center.

Tutors are not shortcuts to success

  Throughout history, women have played a significant role in challenging societal norms in the sports world. Efforts to bring attention to women's sports and close the gender pay gap were made possible by women who persevered to create a better future for female athletes.   

As the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, Kathrine Switzer completed the entire course despite efforts by the race director to remove her. With no rules against women competing, Switzer signed up simply because she was a running enthusiast. While running the course, men tried to rip her running bib off and push her off the path, captured in an iconic photo by The Boston Globe. Shaken but determined, she resolved to help other women deprived of opportunities in running. In 1977, she created the Avon International Running Circuit, which paved the way for the women's marathon in the Olympic Games.   

Tennis player Billie Jean King first brought attention to the gender pay gap after she noticed that her prize earnings in the Pacific Southwest Tennis Tournament were only fifteen percent of what her male counterparts earned. Despite the womens’ finals selling more than double the tickets as the mens, the tournament director refused to award the same amount of prize money, leading to King to organize a walk-out.  

This was only the beginning of King’s fight for equal prize money in tennis, which culminated in the famous tennis match, Battle of the Sexes. Bobby Riggs, declaring women’s tennis inferior to men’s, challenged King after he defeated top-ranked women’s player Margaret Court. Knowing the symbolism and weight the match would carry, King accepted and beat Riggs in straight sets with ninety million people watching worldwide.   

Her win inspired the U.S. Open to offer equal prize money for the first time for any major sporting event. Thanks to King’s persistent advocacy, tennis is one of the only sports today that offer the same amount of money to both male and female competitors across all four grand slams. 

Despite these advancements in tennis and Title IX, the landmark legislation preventing sex-based discrimination in sports in an educational setting, the gender pay gap still remains at large for other sports. Yet in 2024, none of the top ten most paid female athletes were included in Sportico’s list of top 100 highest paid athletes. 
However, in team sports, the gap is especially noticeable because of the difference between individual salary compared to the revenue generated as a team. Caitlin Clark, a rising basketball star, signed with Indiana Fever. However, her salary of $338,056 was only a fraction of Victor Wembanyama’s contract of $55 million. Despite generating more revenue than the men’s team, the U.S. women’s soccer team’s maximum salary was $99,000 versus the men’s maximum salary of $263,320. In comparison, the men’s team has never made it to a World Cup finals while the women’s team consistently ranks among the best in the world. 

While the advancements made by iconic women athletes have considerably shaped the sports world for the better, there is more work that needs to be done. Women representation in sports in itself showcases the broader need for change in women’s rights. 


Women's impact on sports

From reading Shakespeare and watching plays to playing the lead role in high
school productions, Peter Niforatos ’25 has developed a passion for acting through
years of dedication and hard work. His love began acting in middle school when
he and his sister frequently put on productions at home. This led Niforatos to
pursue theater throughout high school, most recently playing Phil Connors, the
lead role in “Groundhog Day.” With every musical production, he continues
to gain valuable experiences and develop a better understanding of acting,
which he intends to pursue at New York University.

**What was your favorite moment and role in high school acting?**

The most fun I’ve had is between two [different plays]. I really enjoyed
playing Lenny in “Rumors” because he’s a very high energetic character and
... I ended with this massive monologue, and he was such an intense character
to play. [In contrast], I think the exact opposite when I played Nick Carraway
back in “The Great Gatsby.” I remember that was such a meticulous character
and one that I really had to focus on every single detail. [Lenny] was the exact
opposite experience and it was fun to play and really [interesting] to figure
out how I was going to do that.

**What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced as an actor?**

The most challenging one is “Groundhog Day” because I’ve always been
more of an actor than a singer and dancer ... “Groundhog Day” in particular
is a show about a change in a person. A lot of the characters change from the
beginning [to the end], and that’s one of the most important things. I think
to have somebody completely go from a depressed and pessimistic character
and change to somebody who is more positive and an optimistic person is
really hard to nail, especially because in a lot of shows you change with other
characters. But in “Groundhog Day,” because everybody is repeating the
exact same day, except for Phil, it’s really important to find that change
within yourself, instead of from outside forces.

**What lessons have you learn about acting?**

The biggest thing I’ve learned is to think of less specific elements. I used to always
think about how every single word could mean a specific thing ... and while
that can be useful, I think what I really learned to do is to [bring the right
amount] of energy into a scene based on how I feel. So every single time I
do things now, it’s always different. I think letting yourself be that vulnerable
and convince yourself that you’re the character in that moment, that I think
is really what acting is.

**What advice would you give to someone who wants or plans to become a
lead role in a play, or someone who wants to go into acting in the future?**

The number one thing is dedication. You have to be ready to embrace it
all. It’s a big commitment and it’s similar to people who do sports and want
to be captain. I would say you have to be prepared to put a lot of your time
and effort into it. You have to be able to memorize your lines, your blocking,
and you really have to be able to commit yourself to not just practice when
you’re in school, but make sure you understand things when you’re out of
school ... but maybe if you love it, then I think it’s just gonna come naturally if
you keep doing it.

**What do you do if you ever feel nervous before a performance and how do
you overcome that feeling?**

I always feel nervous before a performance, but it has calmed over the years ...
the problem with those feelings are probably exacerbated, but I think you just have
to learn to embrace them. I think trying to make them go away really will mess
you up. I remember I used to try to push them out and not feel nervous anymore,
but then they would just show up anyway. The biggest thing with nervous energy
is the fact that there’s energy there. You need to use that energy and apply it to
everything, and then it quickly turns into excitement. But, once you start doing
everything and start feeling it and then all of sudden things start happening.

Peter Niforatos ’25 performs from the heart

Conversations at PHS are often embedded with strings of expletives, which occasionally result in teachers warning students about their language. This seemingly normal occurrence demonstrates that although profanity has become desensitized for younger generations, it still carries weight for the older population and in professional environments. According to a paper from the International Journal of Literature, Language, and Linguistics (IJLLL), a survey comparing Generations X, Y, and Z reported that only 4 percent of Generation Z respondents reported no use of profanity, contrasting with a larger 43 percent of Generation X participants. Despite this disconnect between profanity and past generations, most popular curse words have deep historic roots and come directly from the Middle Ages.


According to the Saturday Evening Post, profanity in medieval times mostly revolved around religion and eventually became associated with immodesty. These examples allude to a greater trend in profanity — historically, profanity matches the needs and desires of its users and the society it exists in. For example, general profanity revolved around racial slurs in societies where racial discrimination was a norm. Today, what we define as profanity is once again changing, and it will likely cause a rift between Generation Z and older generations such as Generation X. For example, the word “damn” was considered a serious profanity in the 16th century. However, in the modern era, its profane nature has more or less dissipated. For instance, The New York Times and other major print publications have loose regulations surrounding the printing of  “damn” in article titles, but will only include the word “f—” in “highly contentious quotations and interview transcripts”. The IJLLL paper found that Generation Z is more likely to use profanity light-heartedly or in casual conversation. Words currently still generally considered profane, such as “f—” or “s—,” may join “damn” and quickly lose that designation if they continue to be used in normal contexts.


   In contrast to “damn,” certain words have had their profane statuses elevated. The r-slur, which began as a professional medical term for neurodivergent people, quickly became common profane vocabulary. After various social movements pointed out the r-slur’s derogatory nature towards neurodivergency, it began to be considered as a slur. Its slur status was then solidified in 2010 when President Barack Obama signed “Rosa’s Law,” which changed “mental retardation” to “intellectual disability.” It’s likely that the next wave of profanity will not be any new, strange words, but rather a revival of what is currently considered unacceptable. For example, most PHS students have likely heard at least one slur in the hallways. Offensive slurs such as the f-slur and the r-slur that have been phased out of popular vocabulary seem to be making a worrying comeback. Interestingly, this coincides with the rise of conservatism among U.S. youth alongside racism, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia, etc. These ideas and associated slang spread quickly in the fast-paced digital age, contributing to the loss of meaning for otherwise offensive words.


It is important to recall, though, that these changes in profanity are generally concentrated in younger generations. Older generations are less likely to change their perception of words they have always known as profane. This results in a generational language gap — when younger generations casually use words older generations may still perceive as highly hurtful, it can cause conflict. In the workplace, which many PHS students are only years away from entering, this dissonance could have particularly negative effects. Although curse words being used more casually isn’t inherently negative, it is important for younger people to remember that language does not change at the same rate for everyone.


As we, the younger half of Gen Z, begin to enter the professional sphere and transition into a world where we are not always mostly surrounded by our peers, we should start to be more mindful of our words — we will need to communicate effectively with other people, and profane language, although more casual for young people, is intrinsically divisive.


Traditional curse words are losing their meaning for younger people as they use them as casual terms, not as expressions of significant emotion. These developments should be taken seriously, as they will not only create far-reaching professional and interpersonal consequences, but could also accelerate the use of bigoted slurs in common conversation. Although these linguistic developments seem out of our hands, by consciously making an effort to remove profanity from our vocabularies, we can still make a difference.

The evolution of profanity

PHS French teacher Sova Fisher’s journey
to PHS spans multiple continents, cultures,
and careers. Fisher spent her childhood
in England, France, Taiwan, along with
several short periods in Cambodia. After
Cambodia’s collapse to the
Khmer Rouge, Fisher’s family,
who were stranded in Taiwan,
decided to move to the United
States.


Fisher’s relationship with
language and culture has been
important throughout her
journey. She spent much of her
education in French international schools,
though she also spoke English and a bit of
Mandarin.


“I went to French schools until 8th grade,
then to an American high school, and then
to [Dartmouth]. [Though] my parents …
wanted to keep the [Cambodian] culture
and the tradition alive in the house, we
weren’t living in Cambodia most of the
time, so it was very difficult,” said Fisher.


At Dartmouth, Fisher enrolled as a premed student but later switched to a double
major in biology and French. After a brief
stint in sports publishing, she decided to
pursue a PhD in French at her husband’s
recommendation. Fisher was accepted into
a PhD program at Princeton University,
where she worked as a precept for
undergraduate French classes in addition
to her research.


“I was a little intellectually demanding,
[which] was sort of a challenge, and I
learned [after] one of the comments from
an undergrad to try [and] sort ease into the
discussion, rather than [start] with a big
question,” said Fisher.


However, after a while,
Fisher realized that she wasn’t
very excited about the job
prospects in academia if she
were to complete her PhD.


“I wrote one chapter of my
dissertation, and I thought,
‘you know what, I want to
stay here. I don’t really want to, you know,
go teach in Arkansas or Alabama.’ At a
university level, you have to go where the
job is, because there are not that many
posts,” said Fisher.


Fisher decided to apply as a French teacher
to the local Princeton Charter School, where
one of her daughters attended.
“I got hired at the Charter School …
and from the Charter School, I came to
[PHS],” said Fisher. “This is what I think is
my calling: with all this other stuff that I’ve
done in my life, it just never really sort of felt
like I made a difference or that I have the
passion for it, whereas with teaching French
… I love it. I love the culture, the language.
I love teaching it, and I love the students.”


In the classroom, Fisher strives to create
an environment where students feel engaged
with each other and with the language.


“Whenever we do presentations, she
gives us different partners and switches it
up every time, so I know everyone in that
class, and I have a really close bond with
them all,” said Penelope Cardona-Fox ’26,
a student in Fisher’s AP French class.


Fisher’s passion for language and teaching
has been noticed by students and colleagues
alike.


“In her classroom, students are expected
to participate actively. There is a lot of group
work, and the expectation is that everyone
stays in the language throughout the class,”
said Priscilla Russel, PHS’s world language
supervisor. “[Fisher] is a very passionate
teacher, and her enthusiasm is contagious.
She loves teaching French, and this comes
through in her classes.”

Photo: Charley Hu

Sova Fischer analyzes the text of “Le Géant de Zéralda,” a French children’s story,
with her 8th period French IV A class.

PHS Profile: Sova Fisher

The Interfaith Iftar at PHS, led by the
Muslim Student Union (MSU) on March
17, brought together students, staff, and
the local community to celebrate Ramadan
and build connections among people of
all faiths. The Iftar included both Muslim
and non-Muslim students, community
members, and several speakers.


“The Interfaith Iftar is an event for
everyone to come and learn about the
month of Ramadan and how Muslims break
fast. Additionally, it’s for all of us to come
together to embrace [our] similarities and
differences so that we can all connect and
become closer together,” said Asma Qureshi
’25, a leader of the Interfaith Iftar and the
PHS MSU. “I want this to be a glimmer of
hope and light in our very own Princeton.
And I hope that after tonight, our hearts
stay kind and pure to ourselves and to one
another.”


The event began with a land
acknowledgement, followed by several
presenters from the local community.
These speakers included Muslim imams
and members of the Jewish and Christian
communities, who all emphasized the
common beliefs of peace throughout
different religions and cultures.


“This particular time in 2025 is a beautiful
convergence of blessed days, as the month
of Ramadan coincides with Lent, Passover,
and the holiday of Easter and Good Friday,”
said Levon Brown, an imam and one of the
speakers at the Iftar. “It is a time of reflection
and unity amongst our multicultural and
diverse family, and we are in a country of
diversity and multiculturalism. This is the
land of freedom of religion and freedom
of thought, and this is what we celebrate
tonight at this blessed 4th annual Iftar
event.”


The Iftar also had the first-ever crescent
lighting at PHS. An Eid Committee
brought a metal crescent to PHS, which
had previously been lit in over 50 other
communities throughout New Jersey, as a
symbol of unity.


The event comes at a time of considerable
tension in the Muslim community, especially
after college campus protests over Palestine
and divestment from Israel. On March
18, the Trump administration ordered the
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) to seize Mahmoud Khalil for his role
in Columbia’s Palestine protests last year.
Though he is not accused of any charges,
he faces potential deportation.


“[It’s easy] to come to a celebration and be
with people who are of like minds, [but] for
me, allyship means standing up for people
when it’s not easy,” said Linda Oppenheim,
a member of Not in Our Town Princeton.
“To some degree these days, it’s within my
own community. This past Saturday, in my
synagogue, when they asked people to stand
to give names of people who are suffering
physically or spiritually, I [said] the names
of Khalil Mahmood and [his wife] Noor
Abdullah.”


Malachi Wood, a French teacher at PHS
and the advisor for the Muslim Union,
noted the two goals of the Interfaith Iftar.
“I hope that non-Muslim students will
have a better insight into Islam and the
Muslim community, and see that it’s a
warm, welcoming community. I hope that
Muslim students will [be able to] feel valued
as members of the community and see that
there’s a place for them here — that they’re
included,” said Wood.


Though students of all backgrounds were
encouraged to attend, the Iftar included
religious ceremonies that celebrate the end
of the daily Muslim fast during the holy
month of Ramadan — one of the five pillars
of Islam, designed to strengthen Muslims’
relationship with God.


“Once everyone [broke] their fast, we
[had] an imam come to lead the prayer,
and whoever needed to pray pray[ed].
Otherwise, people [got] their dinner or
observed if they want to. In the past years,
we’ve usually had a final remark, called a
Dua, which is basically a prayer for … hope
[and] peace in the world,” said Qureshi.


PHS began the tradition of the Iftar in
2017, though did not host it for several
years. Qureshi and Wood began reviving the
Iftar two years ago — this year, around 40
PHS students, administrators, faculty, and
Princeton community members attended
the event.


“I came [in part] to support the students,
and also to learn more about Ramadan and
Iftar,” said Valerie Henry, an administrative
assistant at PHS. “I was happy to see my
very first crescent lighting.” 

Photo: Charley Hu

Interfaith Iftar attendees Khaja Khateeb, Imam Levon Brown, Malachi Wood, Zainab Qureshi, Asma Qureshi ’25, Eman El-Badawi, and Naba Sharif gather for a crescent lighting, a symbol of unity.

Muslim Student Union hosts Interfaith Iftar

On March 27, PHS students gathered
in the new gym for a celebration of
Hispanic culture and history. Following
the administration’s postponement of the
assembly, which was originally schedule
for October, students from clubs such as
Latinos Unidos and Generation 1 came
together in January to begin the planning
process. This year’s assembly included
numerous performances, including those
that showcased the many perspectives of
Hispanic people throughout the Princeton
community.


In order to address PHS administration’s
concerns about the event’s educational
value, new performances focused on
teaching various aspects of Hispanic
culture, such as mariachi music and
quinceañera dances, a tradition that
celebrates a girl’s 15th birthday common
in many Latin American countries.
“A new event that we tried out that we
hadn’t done previous years for the assembly
is a quinceañera: we [had] a bunch of
quinceañeras with big dresses, and we [had]
teachers to do a waltz with them,” said Aimy
Solares ’26, one of the board members of
Latinos Unidos.


Latinos Unidos led the preperation for
assembly. As a completely student-led club,
the planning board coordinated with several
outside community groups, as well as club
members from the organization Gen 1, to
ensure all events and rehearsals happened
smoothly.


“[The preparation is] chaotic … we have
to talk to everyone who’s part of it to make
sure they’re up to date with everything,
especially with our other events making sure
everyone’s doing their part,” said Osbaldo
Morales ’25, co-president of Latinos Unidos.
This year’s Hispanic Heritage celebration
was the first to include several other PHS
clubs in its performances. This added an
extra challenge for the organizers, as they
had to schedule rehearsal times that would
work for all the students involved.


“For our assembly, usually we kind of just
plan it out among ourselves, but this year we
tried to get other clubs like PULSE involved
and the PHS Step Team,” said Solares. “We
[also tried] to get other people outside of
Latinos [Unidos] to come in and volunteer
and help with the assembly.”


Though the assembly was intended to
celebrate Hispanic culture, students of all
cultural backgrounds are encouraged to
participate in future events.


“Can you dance? Can you sing? Can
you move furniture around? I could. You
can. Everyone’s invited. Whoever wants to
participate — even the administration — is
invited. The community outside of the PHS
community is also invited,” said Idiana
Mejia-Rodriguez, a Spanish teacher at PHS
and the advisor of Latinos Unidos.


The organizers hope that the assembly
not only succesfully educated others on
Hispanic culture and heritage, but also
brought representation to Princeton’s
large, but often-underrepresented Hispanic
community. The assembly was intended to
serve as a public platform for their voices
and ideas to showcase their diverse culture
and form a sense of community.


“I think we just want them to feel seen
and know that there’s other kids just like
them and just to [provide] representation.
Hopefully [even] if they don’t feel like they
belong somewhere [else] in the school,
they know that they belong in our club,”
said Solares.

Photo: Charley Hu  

Camila Del Castillo, Mona Mobin-Uddin ’26, and Cecilia Reynolds ’25 adjust their garments in preparation for the assembly.


Hispanic heritage assembly showcases diversity and culture

With each precise stroke, Ellie Kovalick ’25 brings her team closer to the finish line. Guided by the rhythmic splash of the oars against the water, the boat inches past the others. In a succinct, combined effort, Kovalick and her teammates secure 15th place out of a total of 90 competitors in the 2024 USRowing National Championships.

Despite doing track in middle school, Kovalick began focusing on rowing as her main sport starting freshman year. She specializes in rowing eights, the largest, fastest, and most competitive type of boat.

“I started rowing the summer before my freshman year, and I kind of just knew that I loved it,” said Kovalick. “And the thing about rowing is that it’s year-round, so it’s hard to do multiple sports at once. So once I discovered that I loved rowing, I looked back. I never really looked back. I’ve never considered doing another sport since I started.”

This commitment has propelled her to find success at the highest level. Kovalick has gone to Nationals during her sophomore and junior year. In addition, her team, Mercer Juniors, was the 13th fastest in the nation last year with this year’s national championships yet to take place. However, the achievement comes with challenges.

Throughout her high school career, Kovalick has seen three changes in coaching, turning what can be a very chaotic, fast-evolving sport into a test of resilience.

“Our team has gone through a lot so there have been rebuilding years in a way, for sure. But one of the athletes has to step up and take a more active role in how we want the team culture around how we want the dynamic of our team to be,” said Kovalick. “But overall, I think we’re a resilient group, and we managed all right, even through coaching changes.”

Despite the stress, Kovalick and her team are still very competitive. Rowers have to row nonstop for races that can be up to three miles long, such as the Head of the Charles in Boston that Kovalick’s team will participate in this fall.

Kovalick’s impact isn’t limited to her contributions on the water. Yita Moss-Wang ’25, Kovalick’s teammate and long-time friend, explained what helps Kovalick set herself apart from the rest.

“What’s really unique about Ellie is … [her] consistency, every day at practice, every day on the water; and you can see that when she rows, she’s very decisive with her stroke,” said Moss-Wang.

Sam Atter, Kovalick’s coach on the girls rowing team, confirmed her dedication.

“I think that’s been a consistent theme for Kovalick from 2023 to now: her ability to be in these hard situations, these hard races, and [being] this kind of a leader, demonstrating and acting on this is just great. If you get the job done, don’t talk under pressure kind of success,” said Atter.

Here at PHS, Kovalick has taken the initiative to expand the sport of rowing to a wider audience, founding the PHS Crew Club from its few year hiatus.

“I’ve definitely been trying to get more PHS kids involved in the sport, because it’s not too good in Princeton right now. And it’s just such an awesome opportunity … I have nothing but good things to say about [Mercer Rowing],” said Kovalick.

Kovalick is now committed to continue rowing at the Division I school of Wisconsin, in addition to serving as the Collegiate Rowing Commitments Intern. As she embarks on the next chapter of her rowing career at the collegiate level, Kovalick reflects on her choice to row.

“There’s people that discover this sport their year and immediately quit [rowing], and then there’s people that stick with it. And I think I [have] just found a passion, and it’s not something I ever want to give up,” said Kovalick.

Photo: Charley Hu

Kovalick, who has commited to the University of Wisconsin, continues her senior rowing season while looking forward to competing at the collegiate level.

Ellie Kovalick '25: rowing

Many students roam PHS’s halls without even realizing that just over two decades ago, Damien Chazelle ’03 did the same. 

A director and screenwriter known for his movies “Whiplash”and “La La Land,” Chazelle is the youngest person to win the Academy and Golden Globe Awards for Best Director at age 32. He was born and raised in Princeton, and joined the PHS Studio Band as
a freshman, which at the time was directed by its founder Anthony Biancosino.

“Ironically, movies were ... my main passion, but [Biancosino’s] overwhelming presence ... motivated
me to make drumming my life,” said Chazelle. 

Drumming became so important to Chazelle that he even considered pursuing it as a career. However, he ultimately decided to stick with filmmaking, his first love. Despite the pivot, Biancosino’s teachings still had a heavy influence on Chazelle’s
approach as a filmmaker.

“Looking back, I think [my experiences] wound up creating [a] way of thinking about cinema through rhythm ... and getting into a mode where making art ... was not just a hobby [but was] all consuming,” said Chazelle. “Obviously [when] pushed to its extreme [this] can be very unhealthy, but that sort of intensity of art can be important in your life. I think I kind of owe that all to him.”

Premiering in 2014, the psychological drama “Whiplash” was Chazelle’s breakout film. He drew inspiration from his own experiences in Studio Band and interactions with Biancosino, although the events in “Whiplash” are greatly exaggerated. Chazelle saw the movie as an opportunity to push boundaries and explore the value of trying to attain a costly goal.

“I pushed the narrative of Whiplash ... far beyond what, for instance, I personally went through [as] a student ... I wanted to kind of see if you push this sort of thing into really dark terrain, at what point [do] the ends justify the means,” said Chazelle. “I think, in a way, the moral answer is an easy one ... it’s not worth it ... And yet I keep grappling with it, because it’s hard to imagine ...
rewriting history to exclude all of those things, or all those accomplishments, and thinking ‘what does that mean?’”

Despite this dilemma, Chazelle emphasized that when creating movies, he doesn’t think about messaging since it can be too abstract. Rather, he prefers to focus on emotional expression and tries to share a piece of his own world with others.

“In the case of ‘Whiplash,’ it was both the emotion I felt when I was drumming, but also that specific world I was in as a ... young, competitive jazz drummer ... that I hadn’t seen very often in films.
[I] felt like I could shine a light on [it] in some way,” said Chazelle. 

Chazelle’s experiences at PHS led him to discover his passion for film and have inspired his movie-making process. He has found that everyone has unique experiences that allow them to create distinctive artistic works.

“We all have our influences, and you should be honest about it and ... learn what you can from the past, because that’s what it’s there to do,” said Chazelle. “In following those influences, at some point ... you [will] stumble on to what it is that you bring to the table — that is yours and yours alone.

Damien Chazelle ’03 reflects on his artistic journey

TikTok is more than just an app; it’s become a cultural force, shaping how millions communicate through online content. With more than a billion users worldwide and 170 million users in America at its peak, TikTok’s future in America seems bleak. On January 19, 2025, Congress passed a landmark bill banning TikTok in a landslide 352 to 65 vote. While TikTok did receive an extension, it currently has less than 70 days to conclude its affairs.

So why are lawmakers so adamant about banning TikTok?  The first concern is data privacy. TikTok’s algorithm gathers data based on the videos a user skips and the videos a user lingers on. Because those videos are so short, TikTok can quickly accumulate a hoard of information on its users. TikTok can access information on device type, location, IP address, search history, and message content. TikTok can then use this information to infer other factors such as age range, gender, and interests.

The Chinese government could exert control over TikTok to collect this information through ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, which is headquartered in Beijing. Under China’s National Intelligence Law, companies are required to assist with government intelligence work—meaning ByteDance could be legally compelled to share data. If the Chinese government asks TikTok to turn over information, executives and investors would almost certainly be unwilling to risk asset seizure, imprisonment, and legal action.

But it’s not just that TikTok collects a lot of information. Anything like TikTok would do almost nothing to ensure data privacy. Nearly all social media companies in the United States sell private data on a market so unregulated that, according to journalist Karl Bode, “Chinese, Russian, and U.S. governments can all just buy data from … poorly regulated data broker [markets].” The “private” data market is so unregulated that a New Hampshire stalker was able to locate and kill a former classmate with $45 worth of information bought from an online data broker.

In 2024, online data broker company Epsilon admitted to selling the data of over 30 million consumers to clients that they knew were carrying out scams. Since data brokers clearly don’t care about who clients are and what they’ll do with bought data, why would China need TikTok specifically to spy on Americans?

Lawmakers have also expressed concern over Chinese influence on TikTok’s content. More than 20 legislators justified their support for banning TikTok by citing risks of foreign propaganda, as well as other concerns about the content carried on TikTok, such as the content available to minors and the alleged suppression of pro-Ukraine videos.

It’s true that TikTok has manipulated content in the past. In 2019, leaked documents showed that TikTok had instructed moderators to ban content on high-profile political topics, citing mentions of Tiananmen Square, Tibetan independence, or the banned religious group Falun Gong. Additionally, in 2020, The Intercept reported that its moderators were told to suppress videos by “users who are too ugly, poor, or disabled” for the platform.

In addition to limiting the visibility of topics sensitive to China, some researchers also believe that TikTok promotes narratives reflecting official Chinese stances on global affairs.

However, the government can’t simply ban speech outlets it dislikes, even if those outlets contain propaganda. In 1965, the court struck down a law that required the postmaster general to detain “communist political propaganda,” which could be delivered to recipients only after they specifically requested it from the U.S. post office. In its decision, the court reasoned that even this “mere burden” was an unconstitutional effort to “control the flow of ideas to the public.” Also, banning TikTok would still fail to stop the spread of Chinese propaganda. Propaganda accounts thrive on a diverse spread of social media sites, websites, and content distribution systems that extend far beyond TikTok’s reach. Platforms that have recently axed their content moderation teams, such as Facebook and X, are especially vulnerable to Chinese and Russian propaganda accounts.

Ultimately, the TikTok ban is a publicity stunt that fails to accomplish what it promises and ignores deeper issues about American data privacy. If lawmakers genuinely cared about data privacy and misinformation, they wouldn’t single out TikTok while ignoring more significant issues such as unregulated data markets and the proliferation of propaganda across major social media platforms. Instead of performative bans, the U.S. should follow Europe’s lead in passing stronger data protection laws, like the General Data Protection Regulation, to regulate how all American companies collect, use, and sell data. If Congress wants real reform, PHS students should know the inherent risks of using online platforms, educate themselves on how to recognize propaganda and ads, and adjust privacy settings to reduce data collection. If lawmakers are serious about protecting our data, they should act like it.

Photo: Charley Hu
Soha Jameel ’26 uses TikTok on her phone.

The TikTok ban changes nothing

Fasting is the main tradition observed during the month of Ramadan. During the daylight, Muslims refrain from food and drink while going about their normal activities. Before dawn they eat light breakfast called suhur, and at sunset they break their fast with a special meal called iftar that traditionally consists of just a few dates and water. Finally, after performing the sunset prayers, the
family sits down to eat dinner, the first substantial amount of food they’ve had for the entire day. However, not everyone is expected to fast. Young children, pregnant women, the sick, and the elderly are all exempt from taking part in fasting.

Although forgoing food and water for an entire month seems counterintuitive, fasting has many spiritual meanings for Muslims. Ramadan, the ninth month of the Muslim calendar, is considered the holiest month of the year for Muslims because it is believed that the Holy Quran (the central religious text of Islam) was sent down from heaven as a guidance for all. Therefore, Muslims fast
during Ramadan as a form of spiritual discipline, bringing themselves closer to God, as well as empathizing with the less fortunate. Since Ramadan is a time for charity, mosques also hold food drives and or fundraisers for the less fortunate. During Ramadan, Muslims gather for five daily prayers to God. In addition to these, they also gather in mosques for a special nightly prayer
called Taraweeh, in which the Quran is recited.

This year, Ramadan begins on February 28 and ends on March 29. After Ramadan ends, Muslims celebrate with a day of festivities, known as Eid al-Fitr. During Eid, children traditionally receive many gifts, including new clothes or money from parents and relatives. On the morning of Eid, a special prayer and sermon is held, followed by a large community celebration. Families spend the day socializing, reuniting with old acquaintances, not to mention eating. Though Ramadan is the month of fasting, Eid is the day of celebrations and eating. Many different types of dishes are served during the community gathering, ending the month with a huge feast.

 After a long day, many often look forward to the delicious and traditional Pakistani dish chaat: a dish that consists of a mix of chickpeas, tangy tomatoes, onions, and tamarind, and a variety of spices to add flavor. It’s nourishing, full of protein, warm, just a little spicy, and really hits the spot when you’re hungry. 

Ingredients:  
1 tablespoon of ghee (clarified butter)  
4 cans of chickpeas (drain out preservatives before using)   
1 can of tomato sauce  
2 raw tomatoes, diced  
2 green chilies, diced  
10 fresh curry leaves  
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped  
1 chopped onion  
1 ½ teaspoon turmeric  
1 teaspoon red chili powder  
1 ½ teaspoon salt  
1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin powder  
1 ½ garam masala powder  
¼ cup tamarind paste, dissolved in water  
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped  
½ onion, finely chopped  
2 green chilies, chopped   

Instructions:  
1.Take a medium sized pot or deep frying pan and let it sit over a medium-heat
flame.  
2. Add in the ghee and let it simmer for 30 seconds.  
3. Add in the onions and curry leaves, and let simmer for three to four minutes.  
4. Add raw tomatoes and fresh garlic, and stir for two minutes.  
5. Add all the spices.  
6. Sautee everything for one minute.  
7. Add tomato sauce and chickpeas, stirring until evenly mixed with the sauce.  
8. Close the lid and let it simmer for around 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas are soft and the sauce is darker.  
9. Garnish with fresh cilantro, onions, and green chilies.  

Ramadan recipe: chickpea chaat

After months of debate and community discussions, all three parts of Princeton Public School’s $89.1 million referendum were officially approved by Princeton voters on January 28, 2025. The first two parts of the referendum, which will fund infrastructure and educational improvements at PHS and PMS, were passed by a margin of 2,075–1,317 and 1,973–1,410 respectively, while the third part, which will fund expansions at Littlebrook Elementary, passed by a slightly closer margin of 1,890–1,491.

With the referendum approved, the district must now decide how to execute the projects. The money will go towards facility upgrades, including HVAC overhauls, technology improvements, and enhanced security throughout the school district.

“The most important [things] that we’re doing with this referendum [are] adding 23 classrooms and five small group instruction rooms, and we’re going to fix the HVAC at Princeton High School,” said Dafna Kendal, president of the Princeton Board of Education.

PPS has not yet released the details of the contract process, in which the district hires private companies to execute specific projects. PPS Business Administrator Matthew Bouldin noted that while the district aims to keep the public informed, some details can’t be shared immediately.

“We will give periodic financial reports, but we don’t want to be so transparent that we stifle competitive bidding on our projects by telling [contractors] what we think it will cost, or have budgeted,” said Bouldin. “With multiple projects happening at once, we have to leverage our professional consultants — architects, engineers, and construction managers — to keep everything on track.”

Inflation and logistical challenges could affect the construction timeline, with some projects expected to begin this summer and others that may take years to complete. Bouldin emphasized that managing costs will be key as inflation and tariffs impact material prices.

“We have built-in cushions but may have to do value engineering, which [could mean] scope changes and alternate bids,” said Bouldin. “A referendum cannot use interest earnings to expand the dollars spent, [but] the district can augment [costs] through capital reserves.”

That means any interest earned on the referendum’s funds can’t be added to the project budget. However, the district can use its capital reserves, which are funds set aside for long-term projects, to cover unexpected costs or supplement spending if needed.

Despite concerns over inflation and potential high spending, Kendal believes the referendum was the right financial choice for the district.

“Years of planning went into this, and I think that these three questions are the most cost-effective [options] that were available,” said Kendal. “I think that dollar for dollar, we’re going to get the most bang out of our buck, and also the $19.9 million of state aid, which will help to lower the tax burden.”

With the assistance provided through state debt service funding, it is estimated that the three questions passed in the referendum will result in an annual property tax increase of $532 for the average household in Princeton. This has caused some household residents, especially those without children currently in the school district, to speak out against the referendum.

“I am one of those many people whose taxes ballooned more than once in order to support what by now feels like a black hole of need,” said Princeton resident Daniella Bittman in a letter to local newspaper *Town Topics*.

PHS principal Cecilia Birge has a different metaphor to describe the passed referendum.

“For the referendum, it’s like our own house, right? For us at the high school level, we live in a 96-year-old building, and things through wear and tear need updating. Every 10 to 15 years, a lot of these machines need to be replaced. New technology comes in, and they need to be replaced,” said Birge. “As a taxpayer, I may not be here in five years, so it’s more equitable for me to pay my portion over time rather than all up front. It allows the burden to be shared by those who are still here when the improvements last.”


Graphics: Charley Hu

Proposed renovations for PHS under the referendum, including the conversion of the current technology department area into instructional spaces.

Voters approve all three parts of PPS’s $89.1 million referendum

On January 8, 2025, Benjamin Gitai ’25, Amy Lin ’25, and Yurai Morales ’25 were named Regeneron Science Talent Search Scholars, each winning $2,000, with an additional $2,000 going to PHS. Morales was further selected as a top 40 finalist, entitling her to an award of at least $10,000. The Regeneron Science Talent Search, one of the largest research programs for high school students, selects 300 scholars annually among 2,500 applicants, with the center of the application being a 20-page research paper.

### Benjamin Gitai


Benjamin Gitai’s  ’25 research focuses on improving the success rate of ankle replacement surgeries. 


“We can [build] a model to essentially ... try to predict if [failure] will occur and then be able to help stop that from happening,” said Gitai.


Gitai was inspired to begin the project after attending Princeton University’s Laboratory Summer Learning Program, a free program for high school research students. At Princeton, Gitai was part of a group that focused on ankle imaging led by professors Dmitri Kosenkov and Olga Troyanskaya. He saw that the orthopedics, doctors dealing with deformities of bones and muscles, measured the ankle by hand.


“[An] orthopedic surgeon [was] telling us about how they take all these measurements, and it just struck me that with all this technology that they still have to [measure by using] these little points [on] this X-ray machine. I thought I could solve that issue and help them with that. From there, I was able to expand that [idea] into the prediction algorithm,” said Gitai. 


Because the idea of using AI to measure ankles is relatively unexplored, Gitai started off his project by studying on websites like Stack Overflow, a question-and-answer site for programmers, and Github, a platform for storing code.


“I did lots of research into what [code] libraries and various tools I should be using. I’ve [had] a lot of experience coding, but I didn’t have experience using any of this computer vision material. I had to learn and teach myself all of that from scratch,” said Gitai.  


However, despite his success at Regeneron, Gitai still considers himself at the beginning of a longer journey. Gitai is planning on attending Princeton University next year, and hopes to further his research by using the university’s resources.  


“I think that’s one thing that makes this project a little bit special is the fact that it has so much room to grow. We’ve created the bone detection model, and right now, we’re waiting on getting data to be able to further expand the failure prediction. But the truth is that the pipeline that I created applies for literally any bone in any kind of bone deformation. Potentially, this [project] could be expanded indefinitely,” said Gitai.



### Amy Lin


Amy Lin ’25  didn’t expect to be named a Regeneron scholar. 


“It was a very pleasant surprise because I went in there thinking, ‘oh there are some pretty cool projects that they always select, year after year.”


But in early January, Lin was notified that her project, titled “Predicting Compound Melting Temperatures From Computationally Derived Properties Using Machine Learning,” had been selected. Her research focused on using AI to predict the melting temperatures of different materials by analyzing their material properties.


“The problem I was trying to tackle was that, right now, there are a lot of methods [for] experimentally measuring melting temperature [of] different chemical compounds. And those [methods] are pretty dangerous and pretty costly. And existing simulations for computing melting [points] are also pretty time-consuming and computationally expensive,” said Lin. 


Inspiration for this project came from The Coding School’s data science summer research program. 


“I learned about this topic, which is predicting melting temperatures. I wanted to actually continue this project because I fell in love with machine learning and data science. I wanted to make some contributions to the area and perhaps develop a toolkit to predict melting temperatures and other such material properties,” said Lin. 


After a bit of trial and error, Lin settled on the Random Forest Regression prediction model, which predicts melting points by anaylizing  other properties with the high correlation to melting point. 


Throughout the process, Lin relied on PHS research teacher Mark Eastburn and science supervisor Jacqueline Katz.


“They really created a great environment for [me] to explore [my] project. They offered a lot of guidance in terms of what [are] good research practices? Or, how do you annotate and read papers properly? Or, how [can we] write our own reports? So that was really helpful,” said Lin.
Lin emphasized that the Regeneron competition was an honor that has helped develop her appreciation for AI and computer science.


“I think the project definitely bolstered  my interest in these areas [computer science], because it showed me the power of what machine learning and AI can do to help us learn about the world around us. It’s really an amazing tool,” said Lin.


### Yurai Morales

Yurai Morales ’25 has had an unconventional journey to the highest level of high school research. Morales was born in the United States, then moved to Guatemala at age seven, then to Mexico at age 14, and finally back to the United States at 17, when she enrolled at PHS.
At PHS, research teacher Mark Eastburn encouraged Morales to develop the work she began in Mexico into a research article.


Her final project, titled “How the Lion Becomes a Lamb: Transfer of Bacterial Symbionts From Ant Larvae to Vegetarian Spiders Through Selective Predation​​​​​​,” was announced as one of the  top 40 finalists on January 23th, the highest award a PHS student has received in the competition. As a finalist, Morales will be going to Washington, D.C. on March 11 to showcase her research to the United States’ leading scientists for the chance to win a top 10 prize.


In her research, Morales discovered that the species Bagheera kiplingi, which is the only spider known to be a herbivore, is able to maintain its plant-based diet because it eats the larvae of ants. Morales also investigated the bacteria that allows the spiders to extract nutrients from the larvae.


“I was wondering why these curious spiders could be vegetarian when their bodies were designed to be carnivores. I was doing this research to understand how their body works and how they can eat plants without having a carnivorous life,” said Morales.


One of the biggest challenges for Morales throughout the project was not just the research component , but learning English.


“English is not my first language. Some of the articles I read [are] in Spanish, but I have to translate [into] English, so it’s very hard for me. I’m still learning,” said Morales.


Morales hopes to continue her project at The College of New Jersey, where she is enfrolled for this fall. But for now, Morales is proud of the work she has already accomplished.

 
“I’m feeling very excited. It was very surprising for me; It’s such an amazing opportunity for me because I’m learning new skills and doing research. English is my second language, but I’m still here, and I’m very proud,” said Morales.

Three PHS students named Regeneron Scholars

Dance has become a powerful, universal way to express culture, history, and personal emotions. Throughout history, varying styles of dance have arisen, each with its own distinct meanings and traditions. Some forms of dance, such as ballet and salsa, have become extremely well known across the world. Other forms, such as the seungmu and dabke, though less known, are still powerful expressions of culture and identity. Despite their differences in technique and meaning, all dances share a common role in storytelling, celebration, and community. 

One of the most renowned forms of dance, ballet started in the courts of Italy in the Renaissance period, where it was performed in courts as a form of entertainment. It was then brought to the French courts following the marriage of Catherine de Médici, an Italian noblewoman, to King Henry II of France, where it evolved into a more formalized style of dance. King Louis XIV of France, a ballet dancer himself, helped promote the dance as an art with the establishment of the Académie Royale de Danse, the first formal ballet school. 

During the 19th century, opera-ballets evolved in Russia, where the combination of dance and classical music tells a story such as “Swan Lake” and “The Nutcracker”. One of the defining characteristics of ballet is pointe work, a technique where dancers perform elaborate movements on the tips of their toes. The complex sequences of turns, jumps, and steps of ballet require years of practice and dedication to achieve full mastery. 
Amanda Lee ’25 has been dancing ballet alongside traditional Chinese dance since she was around five years old. One of her favorite skills is jumping, which is emphasized in the Gamzatti Variation: ballerinas have to leap at just the right moment to capture the burst of bright music.

“I really like the Gamzatti Variation ... it’s really hard but really elegant,” said Lee. 

Seungmu, or the Monk’s Dance, a traditional Korean dance, is said to reflect the philosophy of Korean Buddhism. Many scholars believe that the five main sections of the seungmu dance are representative of the Buddhist understanding of life, overcoming the three evils to achieve the state of nirvana. The dance begins slowly, with a steady rhythm, to represent birth and the start of life’s struggles. As it progresses, the energy of the dancer’s movements increases, to show the challenge of overcoming the three evils. Then, in an extended drumming section, the dance reaches its climax, representing the triumph over these struggles and the achievement of the state of nirvana.
 
Although its exact origins are debated, the dance is said to date back to the seventh century, where it was traditionally performed by monks during temple rituals. During the Japanese colonial period, the dance was stripped of its religious roots and modernized into a strictly secular dance. In 1969, the South Korean government designated the dance as an Intangible Cultural Property, showing its importance to Korean culture and people. 

The name “salsa” is derived from the Spanish word for “sauce,” which symbolizes how its origin comes from a fusion of cultures and dance styles. The dance, whose origins can be traced back to the 1920s, is highly energetic and lively, with upbeat music and rapid dance movements. The salsa dance is meant to bring people together, through its elaborate partner work and dancer lines. It is typically performed in a four-beat rhythm, where dancers only move to three of the four beats in a measure. Dancers usually keep their upper bodies still, and focus on movements involving their hips. In Latin America, dancers engage in group-oriented styles, where they form circles and are led by a caller, who tells them which movements to perform. Due to its fast-paced movements and ability to bring people together, salsa has become one of the most popular forms of dance across the world. 

The dabke is a highly energetic dance that started in the mountains of the Levantine region. The word “dabke” comes from the Arabic word “dabaka,” meaning “to make noise” or “stamping of the feet.” It used to be a work dance, where people in the community would come together and stomp their feet to repair roofs made out of tree branches and mud. From there, it was passed down generations, reminding Arabic people of the importance of family and community. 

The dance is accompanied by songs that have a slow introduction, then gradually speed up. The leader of the dance, or lawweeh, sets the rhythm and keeps up the energy of the dance. Often, they will break out of the dance line to improvise and perform more skilled movements. Today, the dabke is seen as a way of preserving the traditions that were passed down through generations.

   Beyond a form of artistic expression, dance is a way for people to express their culture, connect with others, share their experiences, and express themselves in a way that words cannot. Whether it’s through the refined and graceful movements of ballet, the energetic and dynamic steps of the salsa, the bold and synchronized stomps of dabke, or the graceful and spirited gestures of seungmu, each dance is a unique representation of the various cultures and traditions worldwide. 

Dances throughout the world

The annual Black History Month Assembly took place during a 60-minute homeroom on February 27, where students experienced a snapshot into Black culture. Student leaders from the Minority Student Achievement Network (MSAN) and Pride, Unity, Leadership, Sisterhood, and Esteem (PULSE) were heavily involved in the planning for this event, after various concerns about the assembly were brought up to the PHS administration by these students.

“In terms of actually planning for this year, it’s been since the beginning of the school year. The students met with Ms. Birge and had to advocate for it to happen during the school day and we got approval for that in October,” said Bethany Siddiqu, the advisor of PULSE.

The discussion centered around concerns from the administration that previous assemblies had limited educational value and created issues with student attendance. In a response to an email from *The Tower*, Princeton Parents for Black Children (PPBC), a group aiming to advance equity for Black students, criticized PHS administration’s comments about the assembly.

“The administration made unfortunate and inaccurate comments about the relationship of the cultural assemblies to student absences and academic performances,” said the organization. “The comments seemed to be excuses to validate eliminating or diminishing the assemblies... It simply perpetuated the difficult environment students have complained about for years.”

Following negotiations with various student groups, including PULSE and MSAN, PPBC acknowledges the administration’s willingness to work with students.

“We understand that the planning has gone through many ideations and iterations as the PHS administration has become more aware of its importance. We believe PPBC’s meeting with Ms. Birge and vocal student advocacy has helped the administration gain some perspective,” PPBC said in a statement.

As a student organizer of the assembly, Will Ponder ’25 has overseen several changes aimed to make it more interactive.

“[We will add more] scripts and more acting and we’re also adding a little bit of a fashion show, so we’re gonna be able to incorporate more things than last year [because] we have more time,” said Ponder.

President of PULSE, Lena Hamilton ’25, emphasized that continuing to have vibrant cultural assemblies is critical in ensuring students, especially minority students, feel more seen.

“It’s really important that schools have assemblies like the Black History assembly, because especially in our current political climate, it’s important to celebrate our differences and our various cultural values and share that we’re not all the same, [which is] kind of a good thing. [We] can celebrate how we’re different and how we each contribute to the foundation of society,” said Hamilton.

Patricia Manhart, a racial literacy and social studies teacher at PHS, agreed that while the Black History Month assembly celebrates and represents Black history, teachers need to continue to do work within their curriculum to be representative and inclusive.

“There’s way too much history for it to just to be one day, right? It is the job of teachers to make sure that our curriculum is representative, inclusive, and covers all of U.S. history, and it doesn’t just sort of cherry-pick or take a white, Eurocentric approach,” said Manhart.

Siddiqu echoed Manhart’s sentiments for continued and increased representation of Black history in school curricula.

“I think the ... ultimate goal would be for Black history, and any other cultural history, to just be embedded in everything that we do here at the school. I think that’s the long-term goal,” said Siddiqu.


Photo: Charley Hu

Arianna Malave ’26 and Marissa Moreno ’26 rehearse a dance to “Wade in the Water” by Ramsey Lewis.

PHS hosts Black History Month Assembly

PHS students’ favorite rom-coms

In an effort to ensure the passage of
the largest referendum Princeton Public
Schools has proposed in over two decades,
PPS officials have begun several initiatives
to share information with voters and
address any resulting concerns. These
include virtual forums, a website devoted
to the referendum, and in-person tours
of issues with school facilities.

The referendum is divided into three
parts called “questions.” The first part, with
an estimated cost of $37.9 million, would
fund improvements to the PHS HVAC
system and an expansion of Community
Park Elementary school. The second part,
with an estimated cost of $38.3 million,
which can only be approved if the first
part is passed, would cover expansions to
PHS and Princeton Middle School. The
final part, contingent on the passage of the
first two parts, would fund expansions to
Littlebrook Elementary School.

In total, the referendum — if passed —
would have an annual tax burden of $532
on the average Princeton home assessed
at $850,000. Thus, PPS officials have been
keen to explain the critical importance
of the referendum and consequences the
district would face if the referendum were
to fail. Business administrator Matthew
Bouldin highlighted the importance of
the referendum’s first section.

“If [question] one doesn’t pass, it’s
definitely going to be an issue. We’re going
to have to really look at our programs and
possibly have to do redistricting more
often,” said Bouldin. “If it’s overcrowded
at one [elementary] school, we would have
to make shifts, and it’s really disruptive
and difficult to do that.”

Kathie Foster, PPS’s Interim
Superintendent, elaborated on the
consequences PPS would face if the overall
referendum were to fail, including larger
class sizes, overcrowded schools, and
reduced programming.

“We would need to repurpose existing
spaces for regular classrooms, making it
harder to provide all the programming
we believe is important in key areas, such
as art and science. [Further], modular
classrooms, or trailers, may be needed,
straining the operating budget,” Foster
wrote in an email to The Tower.

PPS teacher and union leader Renee
Szporn noted that in some instances, the
challenges Foster warns of are already
being faced by teachers.

“In our seventh and eighth period class,
we have 24 to 25 students and we can’t fit
those kids in that room. It is tight, and it
impacts teaching,” said Szporn. “It’s very
difficult to do cooperative teaching.”

However, Szporn believes that the
frequent use of referendums is not the best
way to solve long term district issues. Last
year, the Princeton community passed a
$13 million bond referendum for security
and major maintenance upgrades. Moreover, a referendum in December
2018 helped fund security vestibules at
the middle and elementary schools, as
well as HVAC upgrades.

“I think you always have to plan for
growth ... you just can’t keep asking the
taxpayers to keep paying for things.” said
Szporn. “I think taxpayers are tired. And
I think to keep asking and drawing from
the same well is a little tough.”

To address community concerns
and highlight necessary improvements
to the district buildings, elementary,
middle, and high school tours will be
offered through December and January.
In a December 8 tour to community
members, PHS Principal Cecilia Birge
emphasized the importance of updating
the school’s HVAC, which is the oldest in
the district. Birge also cited the school’s
increasing population as a reason to
support the referendum, which at around
1500 students sits well above the 1200
she believes the school can perfectly
accommodate. PPS officials have also
sought to inform community members
about the importance of the referendum
through more accessible methods.

“We have written letters to the editor
of all local publications explaining the
facilities referendum questions and
offering opportunities to learn more
about our plans,” said Foster. “Members
of the public who attend events at the
schools, such as the fall plays and concerts
at [PHS] and [PMS], will hear brief
announcements about the… referendum
and how to learn more.”

 Beyond advertising the referendum,
PPS officials are also arguing that even
Princeton voters without children in the
district, who, as taxpayers, should also
vote in the district referendum.

“The property values of homes are
definitely related to the quality of the
schools. In that sense, somewhat directly,
people that own properties in Princeton
benefit from the improvement of schools
overall,” said Bouldin.

Foster believes that given the many
efforts of the PPS administration in
promoting the referendum, Princeton
voters will vote to approve it.

“We feel confident that if we effectively
make the case for the referendum,
community members will see that they
are sensible, cost-effective investments in
sustaining the quality of the education we
provide and the experience our students
enjoy,” said Foster.

PPS officials push 2025 referendum approval

In April 1988, Margaret McIntyre, a citizen of Westerville,
Ohio, was handed a $100 fine for distributing a leaflet that
opposed a local school tax. The small fine, equivalent to
around $250 today, was appealed, unappealed, and nearly
seven years later made it all the way up to the Supreme
Court. The reason for the controversy wasn’t the amount
of the fine, or what the leaflet said. It was simply that the
opinion expressed on the leaflet distributed by McIntyre was
anonymous. In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court struck
down the fine, and in its ruling decreed that “anonymity
... exemplifies the purpose behind the First Amendment in
particular: to protect unpopular individuals from
retaliation ... at the hand of an intolerant society.”

The decision was written in 1995, well before
the rise of social media. In the 25 years that have
elapsed since, there have been many attempts
to ban our right to anonymity — especially
online. In 2021, a proposal seeking to require
IDs on social media platforms received nearly
700,000 signatures in the UK, making it the
fourth largest petition in the past five years to
be debated in the United Kingdom Parliament.
In the Republican primary last year, former
U.S. ambassador to the United Nations
Nikki Haley referred to anonymous
accounts on social media as “a national
security threat.”

The petition, a response to
anonymous accounts involved in
cyberbullying, expresses a common
belief: that banning anonymity on
social media, for example by requiring people to verify themselves with an ID, would lead to a more
civil, less misinformed internet. And in theory, it makes
sense — according to Pew Research, almost 60 percent of
teens have experienced abuse online, often at the hands of
a user with a mysterious pseudonym.

But while it’s possible that the amount of cyberbullying
from anonymous accounts would be slightly reduced if
anonymity were banned, cyberbullying as a whole would
remain. In 2015, a research study published by Dr. Emily
Nagel and Dr. Jonathan Frith showed that many accounts
that spread misinformation and cyberbullying are not
anonymous. This is why BBC journalist Hussein
Kesvani noted that even on sites like Parler,
where users have to prove their identity with
documentation, there are high levels of abuse.
And every act of cyberbullying that does
still occur would be much more dangerous.
Anyone with internet access, armed with
just the knowledge of a person’s real name,
can determine that person’s address, place of
work, and other personal details.

Furthermore, out of fear of stalking and
more intense cyberbullying, the posting
of controversial beliefs or ideas would
be virtually impossible without the
right to anonymity. Thus a ban on
online anonymity would spell the end
to a free internet that, while flawed,
continues to provide invaluable
benefits to society. Every year,
anonymous internet forums allow
millions of people to seek medical advice, answer sensitive questions, and have important
conversations. To minorities and other at-risk groups, online
support can mean the difference between life and death.
After Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022 and abortion
became banned for women in 13 states, many anonymous
Reddit and Facebook accounts provided transportation and
housing resources for women seeking to have an abortion.

Internet anonymity, through ensuring free speech, has
also given regular people the confidence and ability to join
movements such as #MeToo, which exposed cases of sexual
harassment among high profile celebrities. Forcing users to
disclose their identity would silence calls for justice, as victims
would fear for their job security, social reputation, or safety. 

In authoritarian regimes, the risks of a global platform
like Twitter or Instagram cracking down on the use of
pseudonyms or other tactics that create anonymity would
be even more severe. While whistleblowers and dissidents
in democracies like the United States have avenues of
expression aside from social media, in many autocracies,
anonymous posts on social media are a powerful form of
protest and dissent.

Finally, in less extreme daily situations, internet anonymity
is also important in allowing people to express their true
selves. A study published in the Journal of Social Issues
showed that when shielded by anonymity, people are more
honest and thus “more likely to form close relationships with
people they met on the Internet.”

Online anonymity is central to so many of the rights we
should all be able to enjoy — freedom of speech, freedom
of the press, privacy, and self expression. It’s time that tech
companies, governments, and angry internet users should
start to treat it that way.

You have a right to remain anonymous

**February**: Chappell
Roan’s “HOT TO
GO!” dance went
viral on social media
thanks to the song’s
catchy beats and
Roan’s musical riffs.

**April**: Jojo Siwa’s new song
“Karma” blew up on the
internet. Her silly costumes
and dances pushed her
up to number one on the
internet’s hate list.

**April**: A video
of teenage boys
dancing at a party
to “Carnival” by
Kanye West brought
an insane amount of
psychological analysis
 to their friend
group

**May**: The feud
between Drake and
Kendrick Lamar
came to a head,
leading to the
release of multiple
diss tracks such as
Lamar’s “euphoria”
and Drake’s
“Family Matters.”

**June**: The release of
Charli XCX’s album
“Brat” took the world
by storm, giving rise
to new TikTok trends
such as the “Apple”
dance.

**August**: The “very
mindful, very
demure” TikTok
trend quickly went
viral. Was it used in
the wrong context
half the time? Yes,
but it was very catchy
nonetheless.

**August**: The
2024 Olympics
featured a variety
of pop culture
moments: the
cardboard beds,
the gymnastics
“superman”
Stephen
Nedoroscik, and
the Australian
breakdancer.

**September**: Season 33
of “Dancing with the
Stars” had some iconic
moments, from the
controversy over Anna
Delvey’s placement
to the showmance
between Brooks and
Gleb.

Recapping 2024: best pop culture moments of the year

PHS Choir performed this year’s holiday POPS! concert.
In collaboration with Broadway singer Andrea Ross and
the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, allowing audiences
to enjoy repertoire from various ensembles.

Since 2003, PHS Choir has been performing at the annual
POPS! concert with the Princeton Symphony Orchestra,
giving generations of choir students the opportunity to
perform with a professional orchestra. Previous vocalists
included Morgan James, Janet Dacal, and Laquita Mitchell,
as well as the New Jersey Tap Ensemble, a non-profit
professional tap dance group.

“[The concert was] so popular that it was sold out
with standing room only. So now they’ve added a second
performance in the last three years,” said Sarah Pelletier,
a choir teacher at PHS.

Assembled by Princeton Symphony Orchestra, this year’s
program deviates from their usual classical repertoire,
featuring lighter, longtime holiday favorites such as “Santa
Claus is Coming to Town.”

 “[The program] is a combination of holiday songs, festive
songs, mostly pop and jazz and traditional carols with
cool arrangements,” said PHS Choir director
Vincent Metallo.

In addition to classic holiday tunes, the
song selection featured iconic Christmas
soundtracks, such as “Believe” from “The Polar
Express” and “Somewhere in My Memory”
from “Home Alone”.

“I really like “Somewhere in My Memory,”
said Raima Srivastava ’25, a member of the
PHS Choir. “In the movie [there are] a bunch
of children singing, and it’s kind of like us. It
sounds really cute [and] beautiful, and I really like the way
the conductor conducts it.”

A tradition of the concert is for the audience to singalong at the end. Not only do the choir students get the opportunity to lead, the audience is also able to feel truly
engaged.

“I hope that the audience enjoys the music, and [that]
it’s an experience,” said Marcus Strum ’27, who’s a member
of PHS Choir.

The event joined the singers together in holiday spirit,
and provided learning experiences for the choir students.

“[It’s an] absolutely great experience for our kids to sing
with a professional orchestra. Most schools don’t ever. [It’s]
been really great [and it] teaches them a little bit more
about performance etiquette, what it’s like to collaborate
with professionals,” said Metallo.

The different interpretations of the music between the
choir and orchestra allowed them to collaborate, building
off of each other.

“It’s really cool to just kind of go off of the
orchestra because they do the pieces a little
differently than how we rehearse them in
choir,” said Srivastava. “Sometimes I watch the
orchestra perform and I’m so encapsulated by
how they perform that I just forget to actually
try when I sing, but they’re really good every
year that we perform with them.”

In coming together with Princeton
Symphony Orchestra and Andrea Ross, the performance
allowed for a blending of various vocal ranges and
instruments.

“We’ve worked really hard on it,” said Jenna Stucky ’25,
a member of PHS Choir. “We often rehearse [as just]
sopranos [and] altos. More recently, we’ve been coming
together … and it’s just super cool to see all those voices
coming together and [the] people in choir this year. So I
love hearing everyone’s voices together.”

PHS Choir performs Holiday POPS! concert with Broadway singer Andrea Ross

At the November 19 board meeting,
Princeton Public Schools (PPS) passed
a resolution to join around 200 other
districts nationwide in suing several
of the largest social media platforms:
Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok, Snapchat,
and YouTube. The lawsuit cites the
growth of social media use as a cause for
increasing costs related to “staff time,
disciplinary proceedings, emotional and
social counseling, medical services, and
other costs.”

Although it started with only the
Seattle public school district, the lawsuit
eventually spread nationwide. It comes
as a class action lawsuit: when a group
of people or organizations with a similar
claim sue a defendant (in this case social
media companies) together, represented
by only a few individuals.

“I hope that [we can] make some
positive effects on society,” said PHS
Principal Cecilia Birge. “That’s really
the reason I think we should join, not
particularly ... for dollars with class action
lawsuits [because] law firms keep usually
about a third of the proceeds ... but if we
did get dollars, we could use them to help.”

According to a 2019 study cited by the
lawsuit, social media is strongly linked to
self-image issues. This comes particularly
with the exposure of teenage students to
unrealistic or ideal body presentations,
fostering adverse comparisons.

“This study also showed that ‘adolescents
who engage in high levels of social media
use may experience poorer quality sleep’
and that increased social media use
could be associated with an increased
risk of ‘cyberbullying, which has a strong
association with depressive symptoms.’
Further, the study noted ‘negative body
image’ ... as connected to social media
use,” the lawsuit reads, quoting the study.

According to the psychiatric non-profit
Compass Health Center, U.S. teens
spent an average of 7 hours 22
minutes on a screen per day
in 2024, representing an
increase of nearly two hours
since 2015. Moreover,
one in five teenagers
report depression, and
nearly 32 percent are
estimated to have an
anxiety disorder.

“Younger
generations [are]
switching from
websites to social
media, and you
see the impact
on their mental
health crisis and significant uptick of ...
suicidal thoughts, or negative feelings or
low [self] esteem ... all of these things that
are critical in us being healthy,” said Birge.

PHS administration has taken measures
to tackle rising disciplinary and mental
health issues in students. Assistant
principals and counselors are meeting
more frequently with students to check
in with them emotionally, and PHS has
established a new tier of counseling to
address students’ mental health.

“Each student has a Tier 1 [counselor]
— they deal with schedules. Say you
have a bad day, you need somebody to
help you process things: they’re
there,” said Birge. “Then Tier
2 is for when you start to
have chronic absences or
feel blue for a significant
period of time. We have
three Tier 2 counselors
who manage those kinds
of things.”

In addition,
administrators have
recognized the role
that social media
plays in facilitating
incidents of
harassment,
intimidation,
or bullying.
In response, administrators emphasize
promoting an inclusive school culture
through counselors, assistant principals,
and staff being more accessible to
students.

“[Countering] the negative impact
that social media brings ... needs lots
of education, lots of communication. It
needs students to build self regulation and
resilience. It needs parents’ involvement,
and it definitely needs school intervention,”
said Birge. “So, I think, regardless of the
outcome of the lawsuit, it’s pretty evident
that cell phones [and] social media ...
[will] bring a much bigger negative impact
in all of our lives.”

By participating in the lawsuit, the
Princeton district hopes to seek justice
and reparations from these companies
without resorting to impractical or overly
restrictive measures like banning social
media. This new approach focuses on
accountability rather than elimination,
creating a healthier digital environment
without disrupting students’ access to
technology.

“With all these new technologies ...
there are many companies that just want
to monetize and create dollars from it, and
don’t think about some of the harmful side
effects,” said Bouldin. “I’m hopeful that
something like this [lawsuit] can help lead
to better use of the technology.” 

PPS sues social media giants

### StuCocoa day

*January 9, 2025 at Tiger Time*

A long day at school can wear down
even the toughest of students. On
January 9 at Tiger Time, you can stop
by at the main intersection for a sweet
pick-me-up! At Student Coucil’s annual
StuCocao fundraiser for PHS’s spring
events, you can buy a delicious cup of
hot chocolate for only $1 each! You can
also add marshmallows and whipped
cream to level up the perfect, limited-edition after-school comfort drink.

### A Cappella Night

*January 10, 2025*

Like singing, harmonies, and catchy
tunes? Attend A Cappella Night
hosted by the Princeton Student
Board on January 10 in the Princeton
Public Library! Featuring a handful
of PHS a cappella groups including
Around 8, Cat’s Meow, and Cloud
Nine, the musical event will leave you
saying “encore!”

### PHS building tours

*January 15 6:15 p.m., January 24 5:30 p.m., January 26 10:00 a.m.*

In one month, Princeton voters will
vote on a $90 million referendum that
would support renovations at PHS.
These tours might be your last chance
to get a sneak-peak at all PHS’s quirks,
including a 20 year old HVAC system!
You will also have the chance to ask Ms.
Birge any of your burning questions
on our heating, air conditioning, and
modular classrooms.

### Planetary alignment

*January 18, 2025*

Join the six planets in a once-in-100-
year event that will dazzle both the
eye and the night sky! On January 18,
Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus
and Neptune will look as if they’re
gathered in a small area, appearing
like a bright cluster across the night
sky. Visible anywhere in the Northern
Hemisphere, this celestial gathering
is not something Princeton residents
would want to miss. 

### Big Band Dance

*January 31, 2025 at 7 p.m.–10 p.m.*

Do you feel like dancing when you
hear jazz? Unleash your funk at the Big
Band Dance in the PHS Cafeteria on
January 31. Under bright disco lights,
Studio Band and Jazz Ensemble will
play popular jazz tunes that will get
your feet moving. Bring a friend, your
favorite dancing shoes, and be ready for
a night of nonstop, swinging fun!

January 2025: Save the dates

### Jane Sajan '25

**What were you most surprised about your Spotify Wrapped?**

 I was in the top 0.005 percent for my top artist so I felt like it was so cool
that I was part of that. I never thought I would be, so [this is] definitely
[giving me] bragging rights.

**Who were your top artist and song this year?**

 Yeat and “500 lbs."

### Erin Pilicer '26

**How often do you think about your Spotify Wrapped
year-round?**

 A few times a month. I have earbuds, so that keeps me thinking
about it.

**Who was your top artist and song this year?**

 Clairo and “Birds of a Feather."

### Kanishk Mogha ’28

**What is your favorite part about Spotify Wrapped?**

 Probably just the fact that it recaps it and I’m shocked that it is even able
to determine what my top song is because god knows how many times I’ve
listened to some of these songs.

**Do you think your Spotify Wrapped this year was accurate?**

 Yes, very much so. I’m a big fan of psychedelic rock and that was very
accurately reflected.

### Sonya Allee ’27

**What’s your favorite part about Spotify Wrapped?**

 [My favorite part is] seeing my [different] moods each month.

**Who were your top artist and song this year?**

 Florence and the Machine and “Motion Sickness."

### Hayah Mian ’25

**What’s your favorite part about Spotify Wrapped?**

 I have Apple Music replay, [and] my favorite part is being surprised by my
top artist, because every year I try to vary it, and every year at least three of my
artists are the same. It’s always kind of fun to see what accumulated over time.
Harry Styles was my fifth favorite artist, and I didn’t know I listened to him
that much, but [it] turns out in February I got sad and listened to his album
over and over again. It makes you reflect [on] your year.

**What do you use your Spotify Wrapped for?**

 I usually post it on my story so people can know my top artist, because I
really think that gives a good indicator of what I like to listen to and the type
of person I am. [I like] to compare with my family and friends, and also [to
realize] what a year I’ve had.

**Who were your top artist and song this year?**

 Taylor Swift and “Not Strong Enough."

### Iaroslav Baicev '25

**Who were your top artist and song
this year?**

 Oasis and “Don’t Look Back In Anger."

### Eve Kavookjin ’27

**Who were your top artist and song
this year?**

Adrianne Lenker and “Acolyte."

### Christina Metaxas ’25

**Do you think Spotify Wrapped is an
important part of the platform?**

 I think it’s fun, and you get to see
[what you listened to]. But is it going
to change who I listen to next year?
Not really.

Our soundtracks of the year

The campus of Westminster Choir College, which sits
adjacent to PHS, is set to be acquired by the Princeton
Town Council following the passage of a $50 million
bond ordinance. The status of the property, which is
currently owned by Rider University, had been uncertain
ever since the university decided to move its well-known
music program from Princeton to their Lawrenceville
campus. The only active organization that remains on the
Princeton campus is the Westminster Conservatory of
Music, which offers music lessons and other programs to
local residents; the remaining 28 acres are largely unused.

In 2018, a Chinese company attempted to purchase the
property, but the deal fell through. According to Princeton
mayor Mark Freda, the town is acquiring the property
in part to prevent the property from being purchased by
similar large developers.

“I don’t think there’s very many people that live in
town that would like to suddenly see 1000 housing units
on that property. I think people hope that there’s some
way to maintain some of what’s there — it’s a beautiful
property,” said Freda.

Because of the campus’s proximity to PHS and Princeton
Middle School, Freda and other town officials also
hope that the property could be used by the Board of
Education in future expansion efforts. However, all plans
are tentative, and the town has not yet had an official
meeting with the full BOE.

“The schools need to determine how they use it,” said
Freda. “Do you put another school there? Do you close
part of Franklin Avenue and put an addition on the middle
school? Do you need more fields?”

The current $50 million ordinance only covers the
acquisition of the property and minor repairs to the
buildings. Any significant capital improvements would
require additional funding from the BOE’s budget. Even
still, the current bond puts an estimated $329 annual tax
burden, over 30 years, on the average Princeton household.
To help lower this cost, the town is planning on potentially
renting out the space to local organizations.

While Freda said that he has not personally heard any
resistance to the plans, he understands that the purchase
could jeopardize the only existing program on site —
Westminster Conservatory. Dr. Ruth Ochs, the current
director of the Westminster Conservatory’s community
orchestra, believes that special care must be taken to
ensure the institution can continue in Princeton.

“The Westminster conservatory is the strongest and
largest musical asset that the Princeton community owns,”
said Ochs. “It is a unique and special opportunity for
accomplished individuals from different backgrounds
[and] generations to come together and unite and learn
from each other.”

The curriculum development and programming
has become challenging due to lack of clarity of the
convseratory’s future, even in the near term, according to
Ochs. She also described the uncertainty that conservatory
faculty have felt because of unclear messaging from the
various parties involved in the acquisition process.

“We have no idea what comes on January 1,” said Ochs.
“We’re hoping that things will just continue through the
end of the year. Beyond that, it’s quite hard to imagine.”

In the long term, Ochs hopes that the conservatory
could potentially partner with existing arts organizations.

“I would hope, if there comes a point when — and this
is 100 percent hypothetical — that if the Westminster
Conservatory somehow needed to find independent
partnership that there are arts organizations in the area
that we might find fruitful partnership with,” said Ochs.

Rider University has said that the
Conservatory will continue to operate
through the end of this academic year.
Beyond that, however, plans are still
uncertain, according to Kristine Brown,
Rider University’s Vice President of
External Affairs.

“The municipality has recognized the
value of the Westminster Conservatory
for the community, and at this time, we
expect the Conservatory will continue to
operate in Princeton through June 2025,”
said Brown. “As the municipality’s process
to acquire the property continues, and any
future decisions regarding operations on
that property are made, we will certainly
keep the community informed as we go
forward.”

Even if the Conservatory stays under
the administration of Rider University,
Ochs has expressed concerns regarding
the business-focused approach the
university has to the music education the
Conservatory offers. The Conservatory is
ostensibly a non-profit, according to Ochs,
which doesn’t align with the way Rider
University views the program.

“There’s a very fundamental conflict at
play ... it’s business versus the cultivation
and the teaching of music, which is in
itself, not a sustainable endeavor,” said
Ochs. “I would love Rider University to
find a way to continue the relationship
with the Conservatory because I really
like continuing to have a relationship with
Westminster Choir College.”

Robert Loughran, the director of the
PHS orchestra program, believes that if
the deal goes through and Rider University
sells the conservatory, the conservatory
could potentially return to its old level
of activity.

“It would be great to see it return to its
vibrancy,” said Loughran. “[The orchestra
performs] there every spring, so I’m all for
[the purchase].”

One of the major barriers to the
acquisition of the land remains the
outstanding legal challenges between
Rider and the Princeton Theological
Seminary. Because the trust that initially
founded Westminster Choir College in the
1930s stipulates that the property must be
used “for the purpose of training ministers
of music for Evangelical churches,” a group
of Westminster Choir College affiliates
are contending that the town cannot use
the land for recreation or building public
schools.

However, the town is planning on
fighting this lawsuit through the concept
known as eminent domain — the power
the government has to seize private
land and convert it for public use. This
power, historically used to facilitate
transportation and create public buildings,
is being considered in this case to facilitate
the potential expansion of the public
schools.

“We assume that the legal hurdles will
be resolved which will allow us to move
forward. But you know, while we’re pretty
confident of that, nothing’s for certain until
it happens,” said Freda.

Princeton Town Council to purchase Westminster campus

### Connecting through cultures

By Asma Frough

Thanksgiving, the heart and joy of November, is celebrated in the United
States and Canada every fall, when people gather with their families to ap-
preciate the blessings of the past year. The holiday holds a special place in
many people’s hearts, as it is a time for family reunions, celebration,
gratitude, and delicious food. It’s a joyful time of year that symbolizes
the transition from fall to winter, marking the cold weather. For me,
however, the joy of celebrating Thanksgiving always felt empty.

I was born in Kabul, Afghanistan. I grew up there as a Muslim girl,
getting to experience other joyful celebrations such as Eid and
Nawroz (the Muslim New Year). Those occasions, especially
Eid, have a special place in my heart. Every morning of Eid,
I would excitedly wake up and put on the new clothes that
I chose for myself. The scent of my mom’s cooking and freshly
baked pastries would fill the entire house as I waited for guests and
family to arrive so we could enjoy the delicious food together. Getting to
see my cousins and receive gifts from the adults made the celebration
all the more special.

When I moved to the United States in August of 2022, I was introduced
to a whole new culture and society that I was previously unfamiliar with;
I had never celebrated Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas. Although
I knew a little about how people celebrated Halloween and Christmas,
Thanksgiving was completely new to me. What was this celebration that
took up two whole days of school? That year, my family and I were invited
to our first Thanksgiving in a church by some friends. When I went there,
I saw so many people and so many different types of food.
I soon realized the holiday’s true meaning, which led me to dis-
cover that it is actually very similar to what we do during Eid. Even
though Eid is celebrated to end the fasting month of Ramadan for
Muslims, it brings people together, just like Thanksgiving. Since my
first Thanksgiving experience, my family and I have looked forward to this
holiday every year.

On Thanksgiving day, my mom prepares different dishes that mix
our own cultural food with classic Thanksgiving dishes; for instance,
she often serves the Afghan rice dish Qabuli with a turkey. On this day,
we all gather around to enjoy the meal and spend quality time with each
other, appreciating everyone and everything in our lives. My Thanksgiving
celebration connects me back to my country and to the joyful celebrations
of Eid, while helping me create new cherished memories.

### Finding magic in the mess

By Samantha Henderson

A long time ago, my dad and his siblings decided, to keep things fair,
that they would split hosting holidays. My aunt took Easter and my uncle
claimed Christmas Eve, which left arguably the most elaborate holiday,
Thanksgiving, to my family. Every year it sneaks up on us. Only when the
leaves have all fallen to the ground and November has begun are we suddenly
reminded of Thanksgiving.

A week or so into November, my family gathers with a spreadsheet from
the year before, going over all of the things we won’t do again. For example,
we always make way too many sides; every year we say, “This year we won’t
have leftovers for weeks,” and every year we’re still eating stuffing two weeks
after Thanksgiving.

Besides this initial spreadsheet making, for the first few weeks of November,
nobody is really worried about Thanksgiving preparations. As the day creeps
closer, however, this laissez-faire attitude slowly shifts to full-blown panic. I
know the Thanksgiving anxiety has fully set in when my parents struggle to
fit 20 chairs into our dining room. On Thanksgiving morning, the kitchen
quickly becomes a frenzy of activity. My dad and grandma will peer
nervously in the oven at the turkey as my mom stirs the cranberry sauce
on the stove and my brother and I hurriedly set the table.

When people start to arrive, this frenzy soon turns to chaos, as the house
begins to resemble the scene in “Home Alone” when the McCallisters are
leaving for the airport. In my house, football always blares from the den, where
everybody huddles around the TV, yelling at the Giants. I set out the placecards
in the dining room. My uncle uses every spoon in the house to stir canned
cranberry sauce into the pot of homemade sauce that my mom labored over
for hours. My brother and cousin playfully shoot each other with Nerf guns
while my aunt ducks, creamed spinach in hand.

When dinner is finally ready, I breathe a sigh of relief. Everybody drops
what they’re doing and rushes to make themselves plates. Once
we’re all gathered around the table, my grandpa, Big Mac,
begins a toast. “Let’s all go around the table and say what
we’re grateful for,” he’ll say. Every year as I listen to everyone
share what they are thankful for, it hits me all over again what
Thanksgiving is really about: giving thanks. It doesn’t matter if some
spinach got spilled on the floor or if the Giants lost or if there is way too
much cauliflower. Getting to sit around the table with my family is the most
important thing to be thankful for and, ultimately, that’s the reason why Big
Mac has made this same toast every year for as long as I can remember.

Our memories of gathering and appreciation

Fashion trends today are constantly evolving and never
stick around for long. And yet, it seems that the latest
styles often cycle back to old favorites — jorts, chunky
sneakers and bold animal prints, for example— which
keeps history’s styles at the forefront of our minds. While
this endless loop of reinvention makes fashion thrillingly
unpredictable, it also leaves thousands of clothes discarded,
primarily due to fast fashion, as closets adapt to
these changing trends.

Popular clothing styles from past decades are
slowly making their comeback into the lives
of the new generation. Jorts became a trend
during the 1960s counterculture movement as
younger generations embraced the scandalous
nature of cutting their jeans to above the knees.
The lengths and styles of jorts have changed over
the years: people in the 1970s and 1980s opted for
shorter and tighter-fitting styles, while hip hop
artists in the 1990s pushed for lower waistlines
with longer and baggier pant legs.

Another item of clothing that grew in popularity in the
1990s were chunky sneakers, but they fell out of fashion
later on shoes that were more sleek and minimalist replaced
them. However, by the mid to late 2010s, chunky sneakers
were brought back into the fashion realm after the “dad
shoes” trend arose.

While these aesthetic comebacks are being widely
accepted by the newer generations, rapidly changing
fashion styles pose many issues. For one, what
makes fast fashion “fast” is the poor quality of the
clothing, which often results in garments becoming
unwearable after only a few uses. This creates a cycle
for the wearer: buy cheap clothes, wear them a few
times, throw them out, buy more cheap clothes,
wear them a few times, throw them out, etc. As
trends shift shorter, consumers feel compelled to
constantly replace items, perpetuating the loop
and increasing environmental harm.

Moreover, the concept of “fast fashion” has become
more widespread due to these fashion changes.
Teenagers are often the target audience of fast fashion
companies like Shein and Temu, as they’re drawn to buying
large heaps of clothing at once due to the cheap prices. While
there is a wave of excitement when one receives their Shein
package, most are unaware or overlook the underlying
issue of inadequately treated workers. According to
Humanium, an organization focused on children’s rights,
in Asian countries such as India and Bangladesh, many
child laborers are overworked and underpaid to create
clothing for fast-fashion brands following such trends.
Unfortunately, the production of fast-fashion clothes also
creates environmental problems due to the excessive use of
water and the amount of plastic used within the garments.

The concept of fashion trends being cyclical isn’t
inherently bad; the old is brought back as “new.” However,
issues emerge when society is always looking for the
next new thing to popularize, discarding clothes with
the blink of an eye, as many of fast-fashion’s workers and
the environment are left to shoulder the consequences
of our temporary desires.

What goes around comes around: a fashion commentary

Vending machines have long been a
staple in high school, providing students
with easy access to snacks and drinks
during busy school days. At PHS, however,
recent changes to the snack and drink
options in vending machines have caused
varying opinions and discussions among
students and faculty. This shift in snack
choices comes in part as a result of working
with PPS’s new food provider, Pomptonian
Food Services, and a stricter adherence to
state nutrition guidelines.

As administrators strive to balance state
regulations with student preferences, PHS
vending machines have become a testing
ground to find the right mix of health
guidelines, pricing, and taste.

The decisions regarding what goes in the
vending machines are complex, involving
both the school district and third-party
providers who stock the machines.
Pomptonian manages the food in the
cafeteria, but is not directly responsible
for stocking the vending machines.

“It’s just the transition between one
school food service and the next. This
piece of the vending machine has kind
of fallen into a vague area that we are still
trying to figure out,” said Dean of Students
Diana Lygas, one of the main coordinators
between PHS and Pomptonian.

For now, a third party vending machine
company continues to replenish snacks
based on sales trends and overall
availability.

In addition to a change in providers,
state regulations limiting the grams of
sugar in the vending machine products
have resulted in alternative snacks and
drinks such as baked Cheetos, zero-sugar
Gatorade, and reduced-fat Doritos being
stocked in the machines. However, as long
as the food adheres to the regulations, the
school is working to provide what the
students want.

“We are trying to get enough data [for
what] our students’ preferences are,”
said PHS Principal Cecilia Birge. “We
can still bring some of the favorites back
while meeting the guidelines; [those are]
improvements that we’re hoping to make
together with Pomptonian.”

In an effort to gain student input on
the vending machines, Lygas recently
conducted a Canvas survey. In the survey,
many students have expressed that they
would like to see non-diet gatorade, chips,
and fruit snacks back in the machines.
PHS will be working with Pomptonian
Food Services and a third-party vendor
to provide food in the vending machines
that meets everyone’s needs.

“What is popular, what’s not, it takes a
little time for the company to get used to,”
said PPS Business Administrator Matthew
Bouldin. “So we’re definitely listening
to the feedback. We want to hear what
[people] like and what [they] don’t like.”

PHS Investigates: stocking vending machines

“I don’t like math,” said geometry and
AP Statistics teacher Suzanne Stevens.

For Stevens, the motivation to teach
math instead comes from her enjoyment
of helping others. Stevens found her spark
for teaching while helping her peers in
college understand a subject that she
already knew well. This love of helping
others grasp concepts and do well in
subjects they may not enjoy is what led
her to become a teacher.

“I never liked math. I hated math in
high school. I went to college and said,
‘I’m going to take the easiest math I could
possibly take in my whole life so I can get
it over with,’” said Stevens.

Pursuing her passion for teaching,
Stevens taught at many places before
coming to PHS. Beginning her career in
New York, Stevens went on to teach at
Robbinsville High School, South Brunswick
High School, and the Princeton University
Preparatory Program. Ultimately, PHS
drew Stevens’ attention because of the
freedom that both teachers and students
have in teaching and learning.

“The administration lets you run your
classroom the way you want to run your
classroom. Students are held to a high
standard, but also given some freedom,
which is really nice, and it seems to be a
good blend that works,” said Stevens.

Stevens recognizes that many students
struggle with learning math from equations
written on a board.

“I try to do all hands-on stuff ... My
philosophy of teaching is that I give you
an activity or you try something and figure
it out, and then you get to the main idea ...
there’s exploration and discovery which
translates better into recall and processing,
but ... the actual experience helps in recall
later,” said Stevens.

Learning through exploration allows
students to remember concepts through
hands-on application, rather than
terminology they may have a hard time
remembering.

Stevens believes that though students
may not believe in their own ability to
understand something, they can still learn
it. All they need is someone to put in the
effort to make the content accessible to
them.

“I like helping people recognize they
could do something. If someone took the
time to explain something in a way that
was understandable ... they were able to
get it, and it was amazing to help people
do that,” said Stevens.

PHS Profiles: Suzanne Stevens

Student Takes: What is your favorite Halloween costume?

On February 28 of this year, Florida teenager Sewell Setzer committed suicide after months of conversing sexually with an AI chatbot resembling Danaerys Targaryan, a character from the HBO show Game of Thrones, on the platform Character.AI. Eventually, the chatbot encouraged the young man to take his own life. Sewell’s case is all around us; he found himself in the common position of social isolation, causing a spiral of emotional vulnerability that was left unchecked and ultimately resulted in a severe mental health crisis.

```Reliable friends are difficult to come by in a world dominated by shallow interactions. Social anxiety is becoming increasingly common as young people become subject to various forms of societal pressure, driving a fear of inadequacy. As teenagers feel more detached from their support system of friends and mentors, the loneliness epidemic continues to grow. The popularity of conversational AI-driven characters is skyrocketing, and the trend is likely to continue after Google recently acquired Character.AI for 2.5 billion. As AI chatbots continue to proliferate and target socially isolated young people, the loneliness epidemic continues to grow.```


A 2021 Harvard Graduate School of Education survey of 950 Americans found that 61% of young people ages 18–25 reported experiencing profound loneliness compared to only 36% among other age groups. The study’s researchers attribute this trend to factors such as young people lacking close connections and noting that, compared to older adults, they have not yet developed “mature, reciprocal” relationships with others yet.

Unfortunately, the internet has moved to romanticize the correlation between teenage years and lonely behavior, portraying isolation as admirable. Online trends idolize people who are “mysterious,” as though they are more complex or interesting than others. For instance, “nonchalant dreadheads” — perpetually aloof individuals who seem entirely detached from social interactions — have become people to venerate. Phrases like “I Don’t Give A F— (IDGAF) war” reflect a growing culture of apathy and passivity in young people. “Ghosting” — suddenly cutting off communication without warning — has become a glorified solution to control and dispose of others, making pulling away from connections without explanation a normalized and simple act.

This mass phenomenon of individuals disconnecting from society continues to undermine the value of forming long-lasting relationships with others. In an attempt to curb the draining impact of loneliness on mental health, individuals also increasingly prefer the instantaneous rush of dopamine from short-term, low-commitment romantic relationships over the perennial stability of platonic ones. After its surge in popularity over the past year, the word “situationships” even became a contender for Oxford Word of the Year – demonstrating how common these no-strings-attached relationships have become. Romance has become another form of escape for lonely people. However, prioritizing romantic relationships is often coupled with deep dissatisfaction and insufficiency in one’s stable platonic bonds. One who craves romance often seeks two things through it: emotional vulnerability and reliability. Because their friendships lack these qualities, and teenagers are often culturally conditioned to believe that they are guaranteed in romantic relationships, many assume romantic relationships are the instant and all-encompassing solution. In reality, both vulnerability and reliability are present in healthy, functional friendships. True friends are those you can count on to support you in difficult situations, and want to help you.

Having healthy friendships won’t always be easy. In difficult situations, reaching out often feels daunting. We may expect immediate responses or reactions from people, even though it won't be the case — social interactions are not that straightforward. This may explain why Sewell and many others were drawn to an AI chatbot in a time of difficulty — users are guaranteed an immediate and engaged response, although lacking the quality of understanding and personal connection. Likewise, under a romantic relationship, there is some sort of obligation to immediately respond with interest. However, these interactions often lack the value of cultivating a meaningful relationship over time. Although the lack of labels in a platonic friendship can make commitment more fragile than in romantic relationships, perhaps that is a good thing: the fragility encourages us to continually put effort to maintain the friendship, like consistently watering a plant. To actively commit to pursue and sustain a friendship will create purpose in a friendship, build character, and provide valuable relationship skills.

At a time in our lives when we have a lot of pressure and much to process, we should shift our focus towards building and investing in strong friendships with people who will uplift us and provide the support we need. As teens, stability is more important than ever as we experience changes in our lives, whether it be personally, academically, or socially. By nurturing our friendships, we improve our well-being and push ourselves to become the best versions of ourselves. Thus, we urge you to show effort within your relationships; Send them a kind message, wave to them when you see them, initiate a conversation. Give out your love, and you’ll see it return.


The true cure to loneliness

In past years, both the Black
History Month and Hispanic
Heritage Month assemblies
followed a special bell schedule:
on a given day, one club would
give two distinct 75 minute
performances separated by an
approximately 30 minute break
in between.

This year, PHS Principal
Cecilia Birge proposes to have
the celebrations occur during
homeroom in a shorter, hybrid
format, during Tiger Time, or
after school like the annual Asian
Fest. These modifications were
requested by many teachers,
as student performers were
missing a significant amount
of class times for rehearsals
and an additional two-thirds of
school-time instruction on the
assembly day; Birge cited loss of
instructional time as the main
justification for the change
“We want our students to
thrive culturally. We also want
them to learn academically.
When a student is celebrating
their heritage on the stage while
carrying 60 absences in a class,
then we’re not doing our job
right,” said Birge.

Birge proposed these changes
before the summer, reaching
out to the advisors of Hispanic
Heritage Month, Latinos Unidos,
and Black Students Union
to receive their input on the
proposed shifts in assembly
structure.

“The [advisors] expressed that
they understand where we’re
[coming] from,” said Birge.
However, many students are
displeased with the modifications,
including Osbaldo Morales ’25,
a student leader of Latinos
Unidos. The changes mean that
only half of PHS will see the
assembly in person (the other
half on Zoom), which Morales
feels would diminish the impact
of the assembly in highlighting
the culture of underrepresented
students.

“With this going on, I just feel
not heard,” said Morales. “[PHS]
is a predominantly white school.
[The assembly is] a way to show
that [we Latinos] are here. There’s
a lot of us, right, that are in this
school, and [people] don’t know
that we’re here.”

Lena Hamilton ’25, the president
of Pride, Unity, Leadership,
Sisterhood, and Esteem club
(PULSE) is also protesting the
change. The club, which aims
to “promote a safe space for
women of color to excel in our
community,” had previously been
a leader in the Black History
Month Assembly. Hamilton fears
that, if the assembly is moved
after school, fewer people would
attend, resulting in less chance
to foster understanding between
different groups within the PHS
community.

“Assemblies like these foster
communication and open
dialogue across students who
wouldn’t normally talk to each
other”, said Hamilton. “Last year,
after the assembly, I had a lot of
people coming up to me who I
didn’t even know, going, ‘Wow,
that assembly was so good!"

Birge stated that, despite
positive reactions from students
and community members,
cultural assemblies have not
addressed fundamental issues or
created long term change.

“To me, the message is that
the students are feeling good
about the celebration only ... but
then in other aspects students
are not feeling included, and we
must address that ... one day of
celebration [is] not addressing
the issue in a fundamental
manner,” said Birge.

Moreover, additional cultural
clubs have requested their own
celebrations, including the
Muslim Student Union and
several South Asian culture clubs.
In Birge’s view, maintaining past
years’ special assembly schedules
while also creating space for new
assembly requests can make it
difficult for teachers to fully cover
the curriculum.

“[PHS’s schedule has]
extremely limited time [and a]
very rigid school structure by
default at the state level. [We have
to consider] the availability of
[the] PAC as well as the amount
of time required to put up a
really fabulous show like that,”
said Birge. “We want to keep
that highlight for our students.
We want them to walk away
at graduation [and] say, ‘I did
something,’ but we can still do
that in 60 minutes.”

In order to reach a solution,
Birge has asked student leaders to
send a proposal for an assembly
that would address some of the
administration’s concerns.
Hamilton is currently drafting
the Black History Month assembly
proposal along with other leaders
to address the administration’s
concerns.

“We’re making a proposal to
send to Mrs. Birge on how we
would do [the assembly] and
make sure it’s as educational as
possible,” said Hamilton. “I’m
very hopeful that we’ll have a clear
solution to this before February,
so that we can have our assembly,
because I think a lot of people
recognize how important these
assemblies are in promoting
diversity and inclusion within
our school.”

PHS Social Worker for Wellness
and PULSE advisor Bethany
Siddiqu is confident that this
year assembly leaders can address
some of the administration’s
concerns about students skipping
the assemblies as a means to cut
school.

“Mrs. Birge was not pleased
with some of the attendance
issues related to the assembly,
which I think can be resolved
this year in a similar format as
we’ve done with the club fair,
and now even our evacuation
drills,” said Siddiqu. “We can
utilize the scanning system to
scan in students to verify their
attendance.”

Siddiqu believes that with these
issues resolved, Birge will approve
an in-person Black History
Month assembly.

“I think that Ms. Birge was
really receptive to the students
advocating to have an assembly.
I think she wants to see the
students step up in an organized
way to let her know what [they]
want to do, what the mission
is, what the layout and the
format and all that kind of stuff
is going to be, which is totally
understandable,” said Siddiqu.

Will Ponder ’25, leader of
the Multicultural Student
Achievement Network (MSAN),
is similarly confident that the
Black History Month can work
in a shorter time frame, and said
that the administration has been
receptive to possible changes.

“I think a compromise can
occur. Since there is a Tiger
Time every week on Thursday,
it is definitely an option to
incorporate some sort of a
cultural assembly within one of
those days during this year,” said
Ponder.

Siddiqu also emphasized how
impressed she is with the student
leaders who have worked to
reach a compromise with the
administration, while at the same
time not refraining from their
ultimate goal.

“I’m just really proud of the
students that are voicing their
opinions about something,”
said Siddiqu. “It can be really
scary to have a meeting with
your principal or to challenge
authority in any type of way,
but I think that the student
leaders of MSAN, PULSE and
Latinos Unidos have been really
professional, and I’m just really
proud of them."

Assembly format changes spark spirited student response

### Bill Urias

Every day, students who enter PHS through the
Tower entrance are greeted by Bill Urias and asked for
their IDs. However, this quick interaction does not
reveal much about his interesting life before PHS or
his adventurous hobbies outside of his work.
After finishing high school in South Jersey, Urias
joined the military for four years before going to college.
He attended both Rutgers University and The College
of New Jersey, where he studied accounting. He then
traveled to California in hopes of pursuing a master’s
degree in business.

While in California, Urias instead worked for a
private company where he cut trees due to his passion
for adventure and nature. However, after eight years
of living in California, his wife’s parents fell ill and the
couple decided to move back to New Jersey.
Although Urias formerly studied accounting, he
decided to become a foreman for the Township of
Princeton.

“I had a crew of 45 men and women, and every
morning we would make the assignments on what
we were going to do. We had crews that took care
of the trees, took care of the signs around the town,
maintained the parks, [and] cut the grass,” said Urias.

Not long after retiring from his position as a
foreman, Urias was recruited to become a part-time
security guard and building monitor at PHS. He has
been working at PHS for the past five years. His job
includes checking student IDs when they enter the
building, pointing visitors in the right direction, and
filling in for other missing staff.

His passion for the outdoors not only influenced
his career choices but also how he spends his time
outside of work. One of his favorite pastimes is riding
motorcycles.

“I have three motorcycles. We do tours [and] take
people up to Lake George and Lake Placid. I don’t
bring [the motorcycles] to work,” said Urias. 

### Tracy Hart

Keeping students fed is an integral yet complex
process at PHS. As one of several cafeteria workers
who make sure this process runs successfully, Tracy
Hart ensures that all students are well-fed and ready
to learn.

Growing up in Hopewell, Hart has been working
with Pomptonian Food Service, PHS’s new food
service provider, for three years. She has worked all
over New Jersey in multiple school districts with
Pomptonian, but started at PHS this July.

“I know that the community is interested in farmto-tray and locally sourced things like that. My father’s also a farmer in the Hopewell area. I was really excited
when we [started at PHS] because I can incorporate
a lot of things that are locally grown that I’m familiar
with from this area into the menu,” said Hart.

 Prior to Pomptonian, Hart worked for several other
food service providers, but she enjoys working with
Pomptonian as the company focuses on delivering
services exclusively in schools, whether K-12 or
community colleges.

“I went to Rutgers, and I have a degree in nutritional
science, and I was hired by Sodexo, a food service
company, right from class. I was with them for 20 years.
I also did country clubs involved in food service, and
started as Grimace at McDonald’s and got involved in
food service, then I went to Strayer [University] for
my Master’s [in] Business Administration,” said Hart.

Outside of work, Hart enjoys taking her four kids
tent camping, going to Hershey Park, and tending to
her backyard chicken. She is also helping her father
as he opens a brewery in Pennington.

### Nick Cream

Armed with a ten-year tenure as a police officer,
Nick Cream now uses the security skills he gained in
his role as PPS’s attendance officer and PHS’s security
officer. With this year marking his 34th in the district,
some of Cream’s responsibilities include maintaining
building security, monitoring the cafeteria during
lunch, breaking up physical confrontations between
students, conducting wellness checks for chronically
absent students, and conducting residency checks.

“If [PPS] suspects that somebody may be living
outside of Princeton, but attending the schools illegally,
I investigate those maps,” said Cream. “And if a kid’s
missing a lot of school, sometimes … I’ll make a home
visit.”

Cream’s interest in pursuing a career relating to public
security stretches back to college. After he graduated
from Lawrence High School in Lawrence Township,
Cream studied criminal justice at The College of New
Jersey. Following his college graduation, he trained to
become a police officer and ultimately joined the
Trenton Police Department.

“I left the police force after I had a couple back
surgeries. I’ve been with this school ever since,”
said Cream.

Cream’s role in the district started as a part-time
job as an attendance officer conducting occasional
residency checks. As the demand for security in
schools increased, Cream’s position evolved into the
full-time job he currently holds, where he serves as
a security officer for PHS on top of his attendance
officer duties.

“I’m fortunate that the students are great here,
which makes my job a lot easier,” said Cream.

Outside of keeping PHS’s security in shape, Cream
likes bike riding and exercising. As big fans of the
shore, Cream and his wife also enjoy visiting their
beach house in Brigantine. Cream enjoys visiting his
grandchildren in Florida and Pennsylvania as well. 

PHS behind the scenes workers

While Princeton High School sophomores and juniors
took the PSAT this month, they had a significantly better
testing experience compared to last year. As an investment
to improve the school’s testing infrastructure, PHS
replaced over 350 access points and added an additional
50 access points in new locations. However, improvements
to internet networks expanded beyond both PHS and
testing-related infrastructure. The improvements were
a district-wide endeavor, with the PPS technology team
upgrading both wireless and physical infrastructure
in all schools. The team replaced all access points and
old cabling, bringing them to the newest standard.

“We replaced everything to be WiFi six ready, just
[the] latest, greatest technology ... It’s for our general
network for the entire district, which, again, will
help testing,” said Danny Turner, district engineer.

 Not only did the upgrade resolve short-term issues with
testing, it was also an investment towards the ditrict future.
As technology use becomes inceasingly prevalent within
the district, networks need to be upgraded to support
students that are constantly on their school devices.

“Now we have the newest standard for cabling.
The old cabling was 20 years old. The new cabling is
what’s being installed nowadays for everything. So
even in X number of years that we do go to change
this again, we won’t need to change all that cabling,”
said Todd MacDonald, PPS’s chief technology officer.

The changes were prompted by issues during testing last
year, where several students were unable to test in certain
classrooms and others experienced frequent crashes of
the testing infrastructure. Though the technology office
acknowledged most problems were not on the school’s
end, the improvements will ensure confidence in the
network and in determining the source of any issue.

“The issue, from what I’ve heard, was actually
more on the testing company’s end than our
end,” said MacDonald. “We’re confident that ...
there’ll be no issues in our network for this year.”

Overall, this investment positively impacted the
students’ testing experience as students were able to
focus on the actual test rather than ways to resolve
the frequent technical issues. Improvements aim to
guarantee a positive test experience for now while
also ensuring long-term readiness for the future.

“I think part of it is trying to meet the needs
that we have now, but also trying to make sure we
have this in place that’s going to be able to support
future needs as well. And this investment from the
referendum is going to give us many years of network
that we can handle the growth now,” said MacDonald.

Testing infrastructure update

For someone who is just getting into them, there are so many podcasts in the world that it can be
incredibly overwhelming. After all, with so many options, how do you know which podcasts are high
quality and line up with your interests? If you are a new podcast listener, here is our guide to navigating
the podcast world, including how to pick accurate and reliable sources.

As we’re in the middle of election season, podcasts are a great way to have information presented
to you in an understandable and condensed way. However, it’s hard to know where to find unbiased
information about the election, a topic that’s incredibly polarizing. One place to start is seeing if a
news site you trust also creates podcasts. Many newspapers and channels, like The New York Times,
CNN, and The Washington Post produce audio content in addition to written articles. Alternatively,
if you find a news podcast, but are unsure about its reliability, searching up the person or group that
creates it online is a good way to see how they’re likely to approach the subject. Finding the podcast’s
bias rating from listeners is also an effective way to determine its reliability.

Once you’ve found a reliable source, there is a diverse range of podcasts to explore. From investigative
journalism to historical comedy, here are our top picks of reputable podcasts to check out from each
genre. 

### Political Podcasts

One informative political podcast we recommend
is “Left, Right & Center,” which is a discussion of
recent political news with guest speakers from the
three main political perspectives: conservative,
moderate, and liberal. Additionally, “On the Ballot”
is a facts-based, nonpartisan podcast that helps
listeners learn about politics, provides facts, and
allows its audience to establish their own opinion

### True Crime Podcasts

Another classic genre of podcasts is true crime,
which is a favorite among teenagers for its thrilling
and suspenseful content. With over 300 episodes,
“Rotten Mango” is one of the best-known true crime
podcasts, diving into two different cases every week.
Through detailed and illustrative language, podcast
host Stephanie Soo structures her episodes like a
movie, which helps listeners empathize with the
victims and also learn more about cultural nuances
across the world. For example, in Episode 261, which
covered the Sewol Ferry Tragedy in South Korea, Soo
explained the deeply ingrained respect for authority
and Han grieving culture in South Korea, immersing
listeners into the victim’s experiences. Soo does not
simply recount the tragedies, but spreads awareness
on important issues in today’s society. 

### Comedy Podcasts

For those looking for a witty and lighthearted
listen, comedy podcasts offer the perfect way
to cheer you up. One of our favorites is “Mike
Birbiglia’s Working It Out.” In this podcast, Birbiglia,
a renowned comedian and storyteller, interviews
fellow comedians and creatives, giving listeners a
behind the scenes look into creative life and the
entertainment industry. Each episode is filled with
humorous and heartfelt reflections and contains
insightful conversations with featured guests. 

### Educational Podcasts

Of course, we can’t forget about educational and
news podcasts. This genre branches into a variety
of different types, from purely informative to
investigative or storytelling. Among the informative
podcasts, you can learn history lessons on “You’re Dead
to Me,” and random fun facts on “Stuff You Should
Know.” If you’re looking for a podcast that combines
both storytelling and investigations, “This American
Life,” is a thought-provoking choice. Ira Glass, the
host, centers each of the podcast’s 800 episodes around
a spontaneous theme. Split into different “acts,” the
episodes explore each theme through true stories,
interviews, and investigations. Recorded since 1995,
Glass talks to different people each week: Palestinian
exchange students, strangers visiting the Iowa State
Fair, or two girls who were switched at birth. You
never know who or what to expect.

Plug in: a beginner’s guide to podcasts

At the Club Fair this October, we will be bombarded with hundreds of different clubs to join. Our parents, teachers, guidance counselors, and fellow students will tell us that the way to make ourselves more interesting is to join the perfect variety of these clubs, sports, and community service
programs.

This process is deceptively complicated. Of course, we can’t spend all day playing soccer or studying chemistry. That would be too narrow-minded, not well-rounded enough. However, if we join too many activities — a sport, a couple clubs, and volunteering — that’s also not good enough. In that case, our efforts are said to lack focus and direction, and come off as half-hearted.

To “help” us navigate this process, incredibly prescriptive geometric analogies, like “spikey” or “T shaped,” have been developed. Ingenius Prep, a college admissions support group, has articles with titles as ridiculous as “Well-Rounded vs Pointed Students: Is It Better to be Egg-Shaped?”

Clichés are surprisingly accurate in describing the dilemma between doing too much and doing too little. There’s the classic saying of being a “jack of all trades”, which was intended as a compliment until it was combined with “... and master of none” in the late 1700s. Well-rounded people can both be praised as one “who wears many hats” and criticized for being “a mile wide and an inch deep.”

When well-roundedness is defined in this way — solely by the assortment of someone’s interests — the results are horribly superficial. A scientist who enjoys music is considered perfectly well rounded and interesting, but if they join a couple too many activities they are suddenly scattered. Actors who spend most of their time on the stage are shallow, even if the way that they approach their acting varies widely from play to play.

To achieve a more nuanced picture, we should adjust the standards of well-roundedness. Instead of a reflection of the types of activities we do, a true measure of sophistication would be a reflection of the way in which we approach them.

There is little point in forcing someone who naturally enjoys something to spend less time on their passion and join activities they don’t care for as much. Of course, entering new kinds of activities sometimes leads to exploration and self-discovery, but that can just as easily be done in one discipline as in many. Even by only focusing on music, a student at PHS could develop teamwork and leadership in band or orchestra, could use their creativity in discovering their personal interpretation, and could volunteer mentoring younger musicians.

> There is little point in forcing someone who naturally enjoys something to spend less time on their passion.

Moreover, a student who does many things isn’t necessarily developing unique perspectives. They could simply approach two different things they do in a very similar way. It’s certainly easier for high schoolers to let themselves be defined with labels such as “STEM” and “humanities.” It’s not complicated for ourselves, and easy for others to understand. But reframing “wellrounded” from a focus on a variety of activities we do to an emphasis on how we pursue them will release the pressure we feel to find some arbitrary “perfect” combination.

The pursuit of roundness

Sepak takraw
Sepak takraw originates from Southeast Asia and shares many similarities with traditional Southeast Asian sports like chinlone, which is from Myanmar, and sipa, which is from the Philippines. Sepak takraw is similar to volleyball but with one key difference: players can only touch the ball with their feet, knees, chest, and head. This makes for interesting, acrobatic matches as players often do flips and bicycle kicks to hit the ball. Sepak takraw was first standardized in Malaysia in 1960. It can be played indoors or outdoors, and teams consist of two to four members. In recent years, sepak takraw’s dynamism and uniqueness have brought it popularity in Europe, Africa, and the Americas. 

Hurling
Hurling is a traditional Gaelic team sport with origins in Ireland. The sport is currently administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association. It is an exclusively outdoor game, and teams consist of fifteen players with several substitutes. In hurling games, players use a stick called a hurley to hit a ball called a sliotar into a net. The sport is similar to lacrosse and American football, but the only protective padding players are required to wear is a helmet. The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization has labeled hurling as an element of intangible cultural heritage because of its deep connection to  traditional Gaelic values. For example, the sport promotes humility by not letting athletes put their names on their jerseys.  

Bossaball
Bossaball was invented in Brazil. This sport includes elements of volleyball, gynmastics, music, and soccer. The court it is played on is also unconventional — a large inflatable ring with trampolines on either side of a central net. Bossaball is typically an outdoor sport and is usually played on the beach. Teams consist of four players, and each team can touch the ball a maximum of five times before sending it over the net. The most unique part of the sport is its musical aspect. Referees, called “samba referees,” equally serve as DJs and Masters of Ceremony. The word “bossa” is also associated with “bossa nova,” a Brazilian style of music that has become popular worldwide. 

Unconventional sports around the world

Holding the discus, Isabella Posada ’24 spins on one leg, generating power, before releasing and letting it fly far.

Posada was introduced to discus through her friend at Cranbury Middle School. Joining the track and field team with her friend at middle school was very important in Posada’s process of getting accustomed to the track team, and the sport of discus at PHS.

“[I] started off [with] shotput but then I began to move to discus, and [I] just [kept competing in discus from then on],” Posada said.

Posada attributes much of her success to the work she did with her coaches, from their emphasis on intense training to their ability to counsel and mentor.

“Most of my coaches have been very supportive and have treated me as a daughter of their own, making me love the sport and listen to their advice,” said Posada. “I believe a good coach shouldn’t have favorites
and should push their athletes in the right way and get to know them personally in order for them to achieve their full potential.”

Brandon Williams is the coach of the discus team at PHS, and has seen Posada’s progress throughout the
years; her development is a major source of pride for Williams.

“Isabella has been on our team for about four years now,” said Williams. “She’s a senior and she’s gone through everything. She has been a county champion, and that has been a great inspiration to younger throwers to accomplish what she has.”

Transitioning from Cranbury Middle School to PHS, Posada discovered that the community of discus throwers was small in comparison to the sprinters and long distance runners, but soon found herself appreciating this close-knit group.

“My relationship with other discus throwers can be very personal. I feel more connected to some of them because we have grown [together] not just as throwers but as people,” said Posada. “If it was a larger sport [with] more people, it would most likely not feel the same.”

Osbaldo Morales ’25 has been Posada’s teammate for the past couple of years, and has seen how her emphasis on team morale has allowed for stronger unity in the long run.

“When I was a freshman, I was a little scared of my upper classmates,” said Morales. “As time passed on, and as I got to know [Isabella], I realized that she was someone who was easy to communicate [with]; she is a really easy going person.”

Along with being a great person and friend, Posada stresses the significance of team bonding experiences, as she feels that it can help improve results on the field. Morales fondly remembers a moment where Posada sang “Let It Go” in a car ride while the team was bonding over ice cream. Moraless feels that this encompasses Posada’s spirit.

“It was ... just a really fun time and everyone [was] singing along, because that was the vibe,” said Morales. “She was really singing her whole heart out.”

While Posada is committed to making sure that the team environment is friendly and cohesive, she is able to employ a competitive mindset when needed. Posada believes that focusing on winning involves several factors.

“I usually try to mentally prepare myself before throwing, by calming myself down and going through my throwing routine,” said Posada. “I usually like to think of anything but throwing because it helps me not get in my head [too] much.”

Williams feels that Posada’s competitive drive is a perfect example of what his athletes should aspire to have, and that such ambition allows them to impact on the field.

“Having athletes that compete with each other on a day-in-day-out basis helps to push each other to make them better, so they can be at their highest level of competition on meet day,” Williams said.

Now close to graduation, Posada feels that she has a good understanding of the PHS track team, and has some good advice for freshmen who are beginning their high school careers.

“It’s all about mentality and keeping yourself together,” said Posada. “A lot of great athletes can easily get in their [own] heads which negatively impacts their performance, especially when they are throwing a discus.”

Isabella Posada ’24: discus

At the conclusion of the 2022-23 school year, long-standing custodian Gary Harris retired, leaving behind an enduring legacy of hard work and kindness in the PHS community. Harris was devoted to promoting recyling at PHS, a passion that began in a previous career at a paper company.
A majority of recylable waste at PHS ends up in the landfill as a result of PHS students’ general lack of environmental awareness when discarding garbage. These findings were part of an investigation by the Tower prompted by claims made by Harris about the substantial ineffectiveness in the PHS waste management system.
Throughout his tenure, Harris observed a reluctance among students and faculty to recycle; there were often recyclable pieces of trash in bins bound for the landfill and vice versa. 
PHS Custodian Jennifer Gonzalez agrees with Harris, adding that this makes her job significantly harder. 
 “When I look at the trash, it’s mixed,”  said Gonzalez. “Students don’t care and don’t recycle correctly.”
While Gonzalez and other custodians try to separate recyclable material from trash, she admits that often there isn’t enough time to sort through everything, so they are forced to throw out all the contents of the recycling bin.
Matt Bouldin, the Princeton Public Schools Business Administrator and Board Secretary, said that the most common factor that causes recycling to go to the landfill is when students improperly throw food waste in with recyclable material. 
“A container of recyclable products contaminated with as little as one food product becomes landfill waste,” Bouldin said.
PHS AP Environmental Science teacher James Smirk has been a significant figure in collecting data on PHS recycling. He and several students conducted a waste audit concerning the PHS recycling process and came to a similar conclusion. 
“Most of our recycling is contaminated with food waste. This creates a situation where recyclable material will be returned to the general waste stream. Most schools solve this by targeting cafeteria waste, but because of our break system and the number of students who eat in classes, focusing on the cafeteria has a limited impact,” Smirk said.
As a result of waste cross-contamination, very little eventually makes it to the district’s recycling processor, Republic Services Recycling Center. PHS has one recycling dumpster, compared to three landfill dumpsters. 
Given the limited impact of sustainable waste management efforts aimed at the cafeteria, PHS has turned to other solutions. Jenny Ludmer, a program manager at Sustainable Princeton, focuses on educating the PPS community regarding sustainable practices in an effort to make its recycling more efficient.
“Education and outreach for everyone in the building is key to achieve a clean recycling stream,” Ludmer said.
Clear signs specifying which waste items to put in the recycling and which to put in the bin bound for the landfill are helpful in countering food waste contamination, it is not a complete solution; students often throw waste in the larger bin that they see first, regardless of the type of waste. Ultimately direct signs combined with a school-wide recycling education program is necessary to realize true progress in sustainable waste management.
“Consistent and sustained education and outreach for everyone in the building is key to achieve a clean recycling stream,” Smirk said.
Sylven Waldman, an incoming leader of the PHS for Climate Action club for the 2024­­–­­25 school year, acknowledged the importance of further education efforts.
“I definitely think that there’s a good amount of students familiar with the recycling process at PHS, but unfortunately I just don’t think it gets out to enough people,” Waldman said.
PHS students also participate in promoting sustainability through conducting waste audits, cleaning up waste, and performing community advocacy. In particular, the PHS for Climate Action Club has led an effort for more sustainability and an effective waste management system. 
“We [have] recycled old scrap paper into new paper to make cards ... we’ve hosted bake sales, planned protests, made petitions, [and] donated to eco-friendly charities and initiatives,” Waldman said.
Several administrative developments have also been made regarding food waste. Every kitchen and cafeteria in the district is equipped with compost containers. PHS has also installed an energy efficient dishwasher. In 2021, the district began a partnership with Trenton Biogas to convert leftover food scraps into renewable energy. This school year, the partnership has collected over three tons of food waste. 
Next year, Smirk and PHS custodian Leslie Vega hope that PHS will invest in clearer signage and more recycling bins. Moreover, a new class, Environmental Systems and Design, will be introduced next year; it aims to encourage students to improve the school’s  outcomes associated with waste as part of a core project for the class. 
Thanks to such efforts, PHS is certified with the statewide program Sustainable Jersey for Schools. Other actions taken by the high school include establishment of a Green Team to oversee sustainable progress and an Energy Savings Improvement Plan to facilitate improvements in energy efficiency. As a district, PPS has made significant progress regarding sustainability.
“In the summer of 2022, the district transitioned to greener cleaning with six different cleaning products,” explains the PrincetonK12 website. “The floor cleaner, glass cleaner, degreaser, hand soap, paper towels, and toilet paper used within PPS are all certified by Green Seal, indicating that they meet the highest standard for protecting the health of students and staff and the environment.”
PHS continues to make significant efforts in accordance with the Sustainable Jersey for Schools Program. Moving into 2024, progress will continue to build a more modern, efficient, and eco-friendly high school.
 “PHS [sustainability] is renewed again at the Bronze level. Dr. Barnes Johnson [the district science supervisor]  is leading the effort to add more actions to the certification this year, with the plan for Smirk to take it on next year,” Ludmer said.

Tower investigates: Is PHS actually recycling?

In a Board of Education meeting on March 15, the board announced its decision to extend Dr. Kathleen Foster’s employment as interim superintendent to June 30, 2025. 
However, because Foster is retired, she can only be employed by PPS, Princeton Public Schools, for a limited period of time as per New Jersey state law. Therefore, before the decision can be implemented, the district must receive permission from the New Jersey Department of Education in order to allow Foster’s extension of contract.
Regardless, despite Foster’s relatively recent appointment as interim superintendent since November of last year, she has seemingly brought her past experience as both a teacher and administrator in order to fulfill her role as superintendent. 
“[Foster] has really spent many years [in the educational field]. She led [the Robbinsville school] district with a lot of healing power when they went through traumatic events,” said Princeton High School principal Ceclia Birge. “Now post-pandemic, our district and the whole world has experienced so much trauma, and I really don’t think we could’ve found a better leader than she is.”  		In addition, Foster’s approaches and viewpoints as an educator also help her work with the Board of Education when making decisions.
“Foster has the student first approach ... [Foster and the Board] are all aligned and that’s what’s important,” said Dafna Kendal, President of the Board of Education. “She’s decisive when making decisions but she always considers all viewpoints ... I think that’s an excellent quality for a leader to have.”
Even when basing her decisions on the benefits of the students and the district in general, Dr. Foster keeps everyone who constitutes the greater Princeton community in mind. 
“I think a strength of any leader is the ability to listen and learn ... I learned beside many other people. And certainly, I also really want to make sure that we engage the full community of stakeholders ... listening to staff members, listening to administrators, listening to community members, and most importantly, listening to students,” Foster said. 
However, even with  Foster’s experience, she still faces challenges with her job.
“One of the most difficult pieces is looking at making sure that we keep on track with our strategic planning goals and the long term planning ... There are things that get in the way ... and we have to make sure that whatever decision we’re making [is] for the best interest of our students,” Foster said. 
Despite the challenges, Foster loves what she does and is excited to continue her work until the end of next year.
“I’m thrilled to be [a superintendent]. I love this community,” said Foster. “I love the internal community [of] administrators, the Board of Education, staff, and parents who all care so much about our students. And so I’m really excited ... to be [to be employed for] the next year.”

PPS Superintendent Kathleen Foster to stay an additional year

   Freshman year can be stressful — you have more responsibilities, a new social playground to navigate, and much more homework compared to middle school. However, I also find myself worrying a lot about an issue I shouldn’t have at such an early stage of my life: college. At PHS, academic excellence is normalized to the point where any deviation from it might as well mean failure. This increasingly competitive academic landscape calls for a new type of student — someone who can easily fill up their Common Application activities list and summarize each of them under 150 words. It often seems like everyone around me is one of these exemplary students, which in turn incentivizes me to accomplish as much as I can to appear successful. Unfortunately, many students share that mentality, which creates a highly superficial and performative academic culture at PHS.
   In my own experience, this type of environment has compelled me to join courses and student organizations based on how good they would look on my college application. It appears that many others feel the same way: according to an anonymous survey of PHS students who take AP courses, 69.8 percent are taking accelerated or AP classes for the primary purpose of looking good on college applications. However, performative culture goes beyond just taking an advanced class — I often find myself viewing each class period as an opportunity to put on a show. What can I say to sound like a bright student? How little work can I do while still receiving good grades? This is the reason some students read SparkNotes instead of the assigned book, or use ChatGPT for their notes. Students may take these shortcuts and appear competent, but they don’t actually advance their learning from doing so. Your peers don’t know or care if you truly learned from the assignment — they only see the score you received and its associated brilliance. 
   Performative student culture goes beyond just taking advanced classes; it also applies to the extracurricular activities students engage in. At PHS, it’s quite common for students to start clubs as a way to demonstrate their skills. In a survey of PHS students, 49 percent of respondents agreed that their primary purpose in starting or joining a club was to look good on their college application. Having many student organizations is beneficial for the school community, but in many cases, students register them without actually intending to follow through and have productive meetings. 
   When the only objective of one’s academic career is to get into a good college, they lose the purpose of what school is ultimately for: education. College isn’t the end-all-be-all of life, and there are so many skills taught in school that can be beneficial in the future. Filling up our lives with empty promises of intelligence is a recipe for disaster once we escape our bubble of college applications. 
   Realistically, it is difficult to stay completely away from performative culture in PHS’s competitive atmosphere. However, it is possible to work towards your goals in a manner that still benefits your personal development. This starts by being intentional about your activities — yes, you can create a club or non-profit to benefit your college application, but think about how you can learn and evolve from the experience instead of starting it only for the sake of appearing successful. Focus on the impact of your work, such as helping the community or raising awareness about an issue. When it comes to classes, ask plenty of questions and take charge of your own learning; after all, you are the beneficiary of the knowledge you gain. So the next time you consider taking a difficult class or committing to an extracurricular, ask yourself: will this actually help you grow as a person, or is it just another way of trying to outperform everyone else?

Our shallow academic performance

Born and raised in Cranbury, New Jersey, Jennifer Li served as a Peer Group leader, a trumpet player in Studio Band, and participated in various community service activities as a student at PHS. Now, having worked as a math teacher at PHS for six years, Li teaches Pre-Calculus Accelerated, Applications and Modeling of Math, and AP Calculus AB and BC within the classrooms she used to sit in as a student. 
Li credits much of her initial desire to pursue a job in the educational field to the meaningful relationships she built with PHS teachers as a high schooler. Continuing her heavy involvement with PHS’s community and extracurriculars, Li currently serves as Student Council Advisor and has worked as a Music Mentoring program substitute teacher and Speech and Debate coach in the past. Through these activities, Li hopes to serve as a mentor figure for students both in and outside of her math classes.
“The different things I experienced as a student here make me a teacher that is more approachable. [It] gives me [a] unique connection to students in that I went through the same things [they] did,” said Li. “I had a lot of different inspiring teachers [here], and the connections I had here with my teachers made me want to come back and teach here. Mr. Bongiovi actually had a great influence on [me] and made me feel like [teaching] would be a fun career.”
Within the walls of her own classroom, Li strives to create an environment where students are not afraid to ask questions or make mistakes, especially in classes with curriculums that students often feel intimidated by, such as Pre-Calculus Accelerated. To address students’ unfamiliarity with new and complex concepts, Li tries to explore the practical application of them.
“Math is in so many different things in the real world, even if we don’t realize it. Everybody’s using that in their daily lives,” said Li. “In my Applications and Modeling of Math class, we’re working on a project on how to buy a car. That’s [something] people actually experience in real life, so I think that’s important to be able to learn about that now.”
To help maximize student engagement with course material, Li creates colorful in-class presentations and answer keys for study reference, drawing from her long time hobby of bullet journaling and calligraphy. However, throughout her time and experiences as a teacher, Li has learned that maintaining a patient attitude in the classroom is the best way to address student disengagement.
“Being a teacher, you often have to reteach things or be okay with kids who aren’t always paying attention and give them the chance to learn again [at] other times,” Li said. 
Li’s patient approach to teaching is noticed by her students. Carina He ’26, a student in Li’s Pre-Calculus Accelerated class, appreciates Li’s ability to create a learning environment that fits the needs of each student. 
“She puts a lot of effort into the work that she does, and she’s a really kind person,” said He. “In class, she pays a lot of attention to student participation, comprehension, and engagement.” 
Li always planned to have a teaching career. Growing up, Li’s father, an avid tuba player, encouraged her initial dream of being a music teacher, fostering her love for music. Taking after her father’s musicianship, Li began experimenting with instruments, playing piano, then the violin and later the trombone at Cranbury Middle School before ultimately choosing to play trumpet at PHS. Driven by her skills in multiple instruments and her participation in Studio Band, Li applied to various music programs including those of the Berklee College of Music, University of the Arts, UMass Amherst, Penn State, and Duquesne University. 
“I did not get into music school. Auditions were always something I was really bad at,” said Li. “My dad actually wanted me to keep pursuing music school and take a gap year to practice more, just to get more comfortable with that whole process.”
However, Li decided that continuing her education in college the following year was more important, and, drawing from her affinity for math in school, Li decided to major in math and received her bachelor’s degree from UMass Amherst. Li combined her plans to enter an educational career with her college education and taught as a teaching assistant for undergraduate college classes. 
“When I was a teaching assistant, I really liked helping my peers understand the content and being able to have that moment of ‘oh, I get it’,” Li said.
After bumping into her former physics teacher, Mark Higgins, at the gym, Li learned about an open position in PHS’s math department. Seeing it as both an opportunity to fulfill her aspirations for teaching and reconnect with her alma mater, Li ended up applying for and receiving the position of math teacher at PHS. 
“I’m actually super happy with the path I ended up on, because I wouldn’t be able to work here at PHS if I continued pursuing music,” said Li. “The culture at PHS is so different from a lot of typical high schools.” 
In her limited free time, Li enjoys playing at Tuba Christmases, a holiday gathering of tuba players, with her father during the holiday season. Despite her teaching schedule, Li still makes time for maintaining her physical health and frequents the gym, often attending gym classes and initiating workout sessions with other teachers in PHS’s math department. 
“I love the relationships I get to build [here],” said Li. “It’s crazy that I’ve seen a few rounds of students starting as freshmen and then graduating here now, and some of them I’ve still kept in touch with after graduation. I love people and being able to work with people, whether it’s my coworkers, colleagues, or the students that I get to teach.”

PHS Profile: Jennifer Li

“I am excited to wear spring dresses.” - Miyu Kawagoe ’26

“I am excited to wear a crochet shrug that I ma[de].” - Mercy Ebong ’26

“I’m a big fan of jorts.” - Rica Eleches-Lipsitz ’25

“I feel like I really don’t like jeans because they’re kind of uncomfortable, so I am excited to wear some shorts because spring is the perfect weather — summer is far too hot, winter’s OK, but spring’s pretty nice— so I’m excited to wear some shorts and band t-shirts.” - Zack Ware-Huff ’26 

“I’m excited to wear tank tops and shorts, and not to have to wear hoodies anymore.” - Anna Krystofik ’27

“I would say low waisted mini skirts.” - Blake Jung ’24

Fresh picks for your outfits; what PHS students are wearing this spring

In 1884, Paul Nipkow made the first mechanical television scanning system in Germany, using a disk with a winding pattern of holes, and blurred points together to create a full picture.

In 1924, John Logie Baird transmitted the first moving image, based on Nipkow’s mechanical design. Baird later gave a public demonstration of the first mechanical television picture in London.
In September 1927, Philo Taylor Farnsworth introduced the electronic television to the public, using antennas to receive signals and display pictures and sounds. Despite being relatively expensive, with poor image quality, these televisions became widely popular.

The Radio Corporation of America introduced the first electronic color television at the 1939 World’s Fair, officially launching it to the public in 1953.

Music Television (MTV) aired on August 1, 1981 with “Video Killed the Radio Star” by the Buggles. MTV was known for airing music videos of popular songs 24 hours a day, allowing people to watch artists’ music videos.

In September 1996, the first digital video disc (DVD) for the television was released in Japan, expanding to the United States in March 1997.

YouTube became the first streaming service in 2005, gaining popularity day by day. Following this, Netflix transitioned from a rental business in 1998 to a streaming service in 2007.

Marketing strategies for shows have evolved with the rise of social media and digital ads since the 1990s, allowing streaming services and individual TV shows or movies to engage audiences and create anticipation for new releases.

Streaming services such as Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, and Apple TV have grown more well known today. Netflix is the leading streaming service, with 260.28 million subscribers as of 2023. 

TV through time

For this year’s musical, the PHS Spectacle Theater presented a rendition of “Beauty and the Beast,” in collaboration with PHS Orchestra to bring this tale to life. Audiences had the opportunity to experience this production in the auditorium from March 14  to 16. 
In preparation for the musical, the cast practiced singing, multiple choreographies, and acting, which proved to be challenging when combined. 
Alternating between two casts, the Red and Blue casts, each offered its own interpretation of the characters. For Samara Raju ’24, who portrayed Belle in the Red Cast, this marked her first time playing the lead role. 
“[Belle is] a confident woman who is well-read and purposeful, yet elegant,” said Raju. “Maintaining all these characteristics throughout the show [was] difficult ... It’s the ability to prepare for the show and having everything you need that will determine your success!” 
Similar to Raju, Enea Meloni ’24, who played  Gaston in the Red Cast, the arrogant hunter determined to marry Belle, faced his own share of challenges, namely, portraying Gaston’s misogynistic tendencies. 
“Gaston always carries himself in a certain way,” said Meloni. “You always have to pose as if anyone could take a photo of you at any time. You’re supposed to keep your chest really big, never [slouch], and speak with a low voice, which can be tough when singing.”
Other actors in the production were also confronted with difficulties regarding intertwining acting and singing together seamlessly. Edward Cao ’24, who played the Beast in the Red Cast, found modifying his voice to be a challenge, as he also had to convey his character’s growth throughout the musical to the audience. 
“In order to imitate the Beast’s tone, I [had] to completely change my speaking voice by adding grit, which [could] be hard on my voice sometimes,” said Cao. “On the outside, he’s an angry detested Beast, but it’s important for me to show his vulnerable side.”
Julianna Krawiecki, drama teacher at PHS, took on the responsibility of directing the show. 
“Along with getting the costumes and cast ready, the copyright paperwork can take months. Directing a production is a huge responsibility,” said Krawiecki. “The students experience[d] many opportunities to explore their talent and [were] excited to share their hard work.”
The production also featured music from the PHS Orchestra, who performed in the pit under the stage. Since the beginning of January, the orchestra rehearsed the orchestral score by Alan Menken in order to synchronize with the actors’ singing. 
“There [were] a lot of parts where the orchestra [wasn’t] able to just sight read the music on the spot. Those parts require[d] a lot of work, but [we got] through it slowly in class,” said Audrey Kang ’24, one of the principal violinists in PHS Orchestra.  
When it came to coordinating the music with the acting and the singing, the orchestra teacher and conductor, Robert Loughran, played a crucial role. 
“Following the course of action of the drama, I [had] certain cue lines that I refer[ed] to,” said Loughran. “As we [got] nearer to our entrance as an orchestra, my hand [went] up to tell the orchestra that it [was] time to come back into focus. I then [got] the tempo and cue[d] the orchestra. Between the script and the score, it [was] a balanced act.”
Ultimately, the cast was eager to show everyone all the long hours they dedicated, making the musical a memorable experience for everyone involved.    
“We [rehearsed] almost every day since mid-January, and I just [knew] it [was] going to be a really fun and energetic show,” said Meloni.


A tale as old as time: “Beauty and the Beast” musical

"Peter Rabbit"
As spring is right around the corner, many people are adding movies that capture the spirit of the season to their watchlist. “Peter Rabbit,” released in 2018, is a comedy movie  for people of all ages. The movie is set in a neighborhood full of vibrant flowers and charming fields, which conveys the film’s main topics of joy and renewal. The film also has a heartwarming message with its portrayal of an unconventional family and the importance of respecting and understanding each other’s situation.
The main character, Peter, is adventurous, mischievous, and curious. His siblings Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail are similarly playful, and can sometimes  cause trouble. Throughout the film, an animal lover named Bea forms a special relationship with all the rabbits, her  affection towards them making her a fan-favorite character. Despite their love for Bea, Peter and his siblings are always stepping into her neighbor Thomas’ garden to annoy him, creating a rivalry with Thomas, which becomes a big issue in Bea’s relationship with him and one of the primary conflicts in the story. Without any regard for how their actions are annoying for the humans, Peter Rabbit and his siblings relish in the humorous response they get from Thomas, and their energetic behavior brings a sense of life and excitement to the audience. 
Not only is the movie full of humorous and clever characters, but the story also provides the audience with an important message of respecting those who are different from us. The rabbits’ and neighbor’s mindsets change throughout the story, as they realize the importance of respect, kindness, forgiveness, and the consequences of their actions. This sweet conclusion teaches people to treat others with empathy and compassion, while celebrating friendships and the significance of home. 

"The Sound of Music"
Some may go on vacation over spring break, but for those like me, who find themselves bored over the week-long break from school, I recommend watching “The Sound of Music,” directed by Robert Wise, as it is a movie that will leave one mesmerized without a doubt. Released in 1965, “The Sound of Music” is a heartwarming movie based on the story of the Von Trapp family, a singing group originating in Salzburg, Austria during World War II. Maria, played by Julie Andrews, is sent away from her abbey to act as a governess to a family of seven children, so that she is disciplined prior to becoming a nun. The family she stays with are the children of a retired captain, George Von Trapp. The children are extremely well-mannered but sheltered, and Maria teaches them to enjoy their lives more. Though the captain initially disapproves, when he sees how close Maria has gotten to his children, he begins to appreciate her more, and the two fall for each other soon enough.
 In addition to the touching storyline, the movie contains several catchy songs that intertwine  beautifully with the story’s plot. These songs, such as “Do-Re-Mi,” “The Lonely Goatherd,” and “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” narrate the characters’ lives as the plot thickens. One of my favorite songs is “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” featuring the oldest daughter, named Liesl, who sings about entering womanhood. The musical dynamics disclosed in the song capture the nature of Liesl’s relationship with Rolf, a delivery boy who is in love with Liesl. The song starts off soft and mellow, but then the orchestra in the background undergoes a subtle crescendo. After the vocalists stop singing, the orchestra continues, slowly crescendoing and accelerating until the song comes to an awkward halt. This unique song ending perfectly describes  one’s first love: it’s awkward, but also exhilerating and wonderful. Unlike many movies, in which songs are used only as background music, “The Sound of Music” incorporates music into the plot. The scenes are constantly entertaining as the singers are always dancing with the flow of the song. The director does a fantastic job showing the developing relationships between the characters by revealing all their true feelings through song, adding depth to the story. In addition to developing sentimental relationships, the film also includes songs that are humorous, such as “The Lonely Goatherd.” A common aspect shared between all of the songs in the movie is the emphasis on the songs’ buildup. This buildup allows the songs to have a stronger ending and feel more complete. 
Further strengthening the story, the clothing aesthetics of the characters add insight into their personalities. The children in the movie wear matching clothes, demonstrating the strong bond that the family members have with one another. While Maria initially seems to be the odd one out with her dull, gray aprons and flashy dresses, her wedding gown when she marries the children’s father at the end of the movie depicts her fully becoming an official part of the family.
One of the best things about this movie is how relatable it is. Although it was released more than half a century ago, the songs manage to cover endearing interactions between family members, describe cheesy romance, and express happiness and freedom, all while carrying out a touching storyline. No doubt, “The Sound of Music” will leave you craving for more  romance during the remainder of your spring break. 


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