Montgomery Upperclassmen Engage in "Every 15 Minutes"
by Margie He '17
Teens are known for making impulsive decisions, and when they are mixed with alcohol and driving, the results are often tragically disastrous. In the US, someone dies every 15 minutes as a result of careless driving. For years, the Every 15 Minutes program has occurred in many high schools across the US, educating students about the dangers of DUI and texting behind the wheel. The purpose of the program is to simulate a real drunk driving car accident so that high schoolers may learn the consequences of distracted driving without actually having to experience them.
Every 15 Minutes consists of two main portions: a car crash simulation in the parking lot of the school and a mock memorial service the day after. This year’s program began with the guidance counselors nominating students to be involved in carrying out the program. The main role players, who participated in the car crash simulation, were Anika Advant, Nasya Hristov, Daniel Papa, and Matthew Stagnitta. The students who made up the “Walking Dead”, people who were pulled out of class to symbolize a death every fifteen minutes, were Sushil Bhandaru, Breanna Cocuzzo, Christopher Cunniff, Matthew Heebner, Jennifer Lorenzi, Krina Patel, Hannah Reilly, Sophia Sharpless, Megan Yingling, and Michael Yanovitch. The students directly involved had several meetings before the mock car crash to distribute roles and plan. On April 7th, the Grim Reaper began taking students out of class every 15 minutes. Each dead student returned to class wearing black clothes and white makeup to symbolize death, and was not allowed to speak to his/her classmates for the rest of the day. During third block, every junior and senior in MHS was called out of class to witness a two-car crash in front of the school and a typical response to such an event, including police arrival, EMS aid, and the deliverance of the dead body to a funeral home. There was even a helicopter on site to assist in the crash.
On day two of the program, all juniors and seniors once again convened, this time in the MHS auditorium, to attend a memorial service for those who had “died” the day before. The "funeral" consisted of serveral speeches as well as a video depicting the aftermath of the car accident. Afterwards, a keynote speaker, Gabriel Hurley, spoke about his experiences getting hit by a careless teen driver and coping with the loss of his sight, sense of smell, and tasting ability afterwards. He showed graphic pictures of the damage done to his face and even a moving music video for a song he wrote about perseverance, inspired by his trials, which definitely severely impacted the audience. Hurley was full of charisma and amazed MHS with his guitar playing.
Overall, Every 15 Minutes has had a great impact on the performers and all that heard the message. Hannah rated it a 9.5 out of 10 since “this program truly changed [her] views on the issues of drunk/distracted driving and it showed [her] that it isn't just something we see on TV, it's a real life problem that people should be more aware of.”
From Frozen to Fireworks: Senior Class Trip
by Annie Li '18
New Mural Graces the History Hallway
By: Nithya Santhosh '17
Reactions Towards Trump Reveal Intense
Hype of 2016 Race
By: Nathan He '19 and Helen Zhang '17
Building walls and banning Muslims from entering the country are just some of the many proposals that add to the spotlight on Republican frontrunner Donald Trump, who has been quite unavoidable in mainstream media these past months.
Trump's ideas, particularly his foreign policies, have instigated a significant outcry among the general public, including famous celebrities. One individual who has lashed out against Trump's immigration policies is actress America Ferrera. Of Honduran descent, Ferrera is known for her work in trying to empower the Latino community. When Trump suggested in his campaign that Mexico was illegally sending “rapists” and “criminals” to the United States, he sparked a wave of outrage.
Ferrera reacted to Trump's proposal by thanking him for his comments and implying how his words would somehow backfire one day and destroy him. She stated, “I heard what you said about the kind of people you think Latino immigrants are. While your comments are incredibly ignorant and racist, I do not want to spend my time chastising you. Instead, I am writing to say thank you! Thank you for helping us in our work to energize the Latino vote and to usher in our shared future.”
Despite the claims and efforts against Trump, there are also many who have found his ideas and policies to be rather appealing. New Jersey Governor and former presidential candidate Chris Christie initially seemed confident in his support of Trump, saying, “Donald Trump is someone who, when he makes a promise, keeps it. No one is going to get inside this guy's head."
Christie’s approval ratings, however, plummeted several points from 33% to 27%. So why would Christie even bother supporting the real estate mogul?
A source close to Christie claimed that Christie believed Trump was the one who had the best chance of winning against Hillary Clinton, feeling that it was time for the Republican Party to unite in support of one candidate to prepare for the battle against Clinton (assuming that both would become nominees for their respective parties).
Although Donald Trump seems to be charging like a bull in this election, significant figures from multiple industries have spoken out against Trump's proclaimed goal to “make America great again.” His little experience in politics coupled with his faulty policies have called into question his true ability to lead the nation.
With excitement and anticipation, the senior class packed their bags on March 1st and headed to the airport for a memorable trip to Disney in Orlando, Florida. Dressed in bright blue and red t-shirts, the students arrived at their home for the following five days, Disney’s All-Star Music Resort.
Every morning, the students visited a theme park of their choice: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, or the Blizzard Beach Water Park. The clear and sunny weather was perfect for exploring the parks.
Splash Mountain, Expedition Everest, Tower of Terror, and the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster were counted as the most popular and favorite rides among all the parks.
Other popular activities included going on an adventurous Safari ride at Animal Kingdom, visiting Cinderella’s majestic and iconic Castle at Magic Kingdom, and watching a live show of The Beauty and the Beast at Hollywood Studios.
“My favorite memory from the trip was the Frozen sing-along at Hollywood Studios… I am a Disney princess at heart,” reflects Junlan Lu, a senior.
Disney’s acclaimed water park was only open to the students on Wednesday. The students who decided to go enjoyed playing in the water during the hot, sunny day.
At night, the seniors dressed up, took many pictures, and went to a class dinner at the Coral Reef restaurant which is part of The Seas with Nemo & Friends attraction. Located in Epcot, it had a decorative underwater and aquarium theme with live aquatic animals.
Mr. Girvan, the organizer of the trip, delivered a speech during the dinner. Senior class president Matt Heebner also spoke and reflected on the seniors’ past memories throughout each grade, encouraging the Class of 2016 to make its last months in high school the most memorable ones.
Afterwards, the students watched a spectacular fireworks show at Epcot while eating dessert. With upbeat music in the background, the show displayed fireworks of vibrant colors and unique patterns, bright flames, laser lights, and fountains spitting out water.
Epcot not only offered the students a stunning fireworks show, but also a World Showcase which featured different countries from around the world. Senior Michelle Li described her feelings when seeing the mingling of diverse cultures in the showcase, noting, “When my friends and I walked past each country in Epcot, we tried to imitate each country’s accents. It was really fun and memorable.”
On Saturday, the seniors concluded their trip after a day at Hollywood Studios and returned back to the school at night.
The 2015-16 school year is coming to an end with less than a quarter left and the seniors are preparing to graduate. For the Class of 2016, Disney is one of many unforgettable memories from their high school experience.
Walking to history class, you’ve probably noticed the new mural in progress. The bright blue paint immediately catches your eye, as do the five faces. Malala Yousafzai, Marie Curie, Toni Morrison, Chien-Shing Wu, and Sonia Sotomayor are all inspiring women who have achieved so much in both past and present day. These women’s beliefs and perseverance is what moved Megana Sekar, Jessica Meekel, and Sabrina Wu to ask permission to create a mural that would inspire.
The original idea came to Megana after she attended a summer program that influenced her to think about ways she could change her school. She approached Jessica and Sabrina, who she knew were talented artists, and they came up with a proposal for a mural. To their surprise, the principal loved their idea and offered them an entire wall to paint their mural.
They began the project on February 16 and they planned to finish around spring break. However, as she realized the immense task ahead of them, Megana began to recruit other skilled classmates to help her with the mural including Geetha Kannan, Colleen Molnar, and Kathryn Song. It was intentional that the crew consisted entirely of females because they would understand the importance of the mural.
But why choose these women to immortalize on a school wall? To Megana, it is clear that "the mural’s location solidifies these women’s place and importance in history." What is most noticeable about them is that they all come from vastly different backgrounds: Malala Yousafzai is a prominent Pakistani activist; Marie Curie was a groundbreaking Polish chemist; Toni Morrison is a strong African American writer; Chien-Shing Wu was a significant Chinese American scientist; Sonia Sotomayor is the first Hispanic Supreme Court Justice.
Megana's favorite part of creating the mural has been watching people’s responses. History teacher Mr. Mason’s remark struck her the most. She recalls, “This mural will be Montgomery’s Mount Rushmore.”
