Raven ReportVolume IX, Issue 1 1201 Brewster Ave. Redwood City, CA 94062 September 9, 2015

Sequoia High School

The latest update in tech-nology on campus this year is the implementation of a mo-bile app designing class, cre-ated for students of all grade levels with any level of prior coding knowledge. Two dif-ferent periods are taught by technology teacher Cameron Dodge and history teacher Victoria Mitchell, who both have experience teaching technology classes.

Last September, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg en-couraged Sequoia students to explore STEM-related careers in a special assembly. Senior Rosie Valencia’s interview with Zuckerberg highlighted how the company would fund this new class.

“The goal is to capture what is happening currently in technology and to make things that are useful for students,” Mitchell said.“It’s exciting going through some-thing for the first time.”

Equipped with a set of An-droid tablets and computers, students are learning how to build and design their own apps. Watching online tuto-rials is the beginning of app construction. Next, students use a program called App Inventor, which was created by Google, but picked up

App-solutely modern mobile design class just a tap away

by Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2012.

The vitality of the class to Sequoia lies in the pervasive-ness of mobile app design. It is a universal ability.

“Technological literacy is increasingly important, no matter what type of field you go into after Sequoia,” Mitch-ell said. “It’s also relevant for school, personal interests and the way you communicate and interact with the world.”

One of the most distinct fea-tures of Sequoia is the diversity of its student body. In the mo-

bile app designing class, every-one has varying degrees of tech background—some are learn-ing how to use computers for the first time and others already have coding experience—and this only serves to build up our school’s tech department.

“The beauty of this course is that its mission is to make it accessible to anyone at Se-quoia,” Mitchell said. “I have a very wide range of skills in the class right now, and the class is already working as a group to support each other.”

One of the draws to Se-

News: Special: By the numbersWhat’s in your backpack?

Page 4-5Page 2Colleges drop SAT/ACT Price of the statue of

Sequoyah

By PHILIP TYSONCopy Editor

Freshman Hassler Molina and sophomore Ryan Leggett test out their prototype soundboard apps and learn the basics of mobile design.

New statue a reminder of rich Sequoia history

New for this year, students are greeted by a 3-foot statue every morning in the front of the main hall. The statue is of the Cherokee scholar Se-quoyah, the person Sequoia High School is named after.

The statue, created by the award-winning sculptor and Cherokee citizen Daniel HorseChief, was gifted to Se-quoia by the Sequoia Alumni Association. The Alumni As-sociation hopes that the statue, which cost $14,000, will re-mind students of the impor-tant historical significance this school’s name has. Seventy do-nors raised the money in order to commission the statue.

“[Sequoyah] is the only known person in history to have single handedly created a writing system,” said Sequoia Alumni Association President Ken Rolandelli. “He’s a symbol to Sequoians in terms of perse-vering, keeping on and getting an education.”

Sequoyah, who lived during the 18th century, was the first person to develop an alphabet

By ZACK ROSENBLATTPage Editor

quoia, and to this class, is this diversity.

“Creative projects will be what makes the course both interesting and powerful,” Mitchell said. “All types of people use apps, so it makes sense for all types of people to create them.”

Freshman Brayan Lopez Ramos is one student who didn’t have the opportunity to learn what he’s discovering in the class until now. Even

Squinting at his schedule, the fresh-man thinks there must be a mistake: there’s a blank space where his English teacher’s name should be. But it’s not a mistake, it’s simply a symptom of the regional, statewide and even nationwide teacher shortage.

The English Department is still try-ing to fill two positions—one is full time and one is a first-semester posi-tion—and is awaiting the arrival of a teacher who will fill the third opening.

Other positions in the science and math departments were filled less than a week before school.

“When we showed up, we had a sub and we didn’t really know what to do,” said sophomore Jacky Vargas, who has had two English substitutes this year and is unsure of when her permanent teacher will arrive. “I thought we weren’t going to do anything because we didn’t have a permanent teacher, and now there’s nothing in the grade book, so it’s the only class I don’t have a grade for.”

Until the positions are permanently filled, returning teachers will continue

to support substitutes with lesson plans and general guidance.

“We’re in the process of looking for a strong teacher, and in the meantime, [English teacher Jose] Rosario is work-ing very hard to make sure that the stu-dents in the ICAP sections that are not his are getting the best curriculum pos-sible,” English Department Chair Jona-than Hoffman said.

Although this year is somewhat of an anomaly, new classes and teachers often need to be added with short notice, due to regular teacher turnover and the fluc-tuation of student numbers and budget

that occurs leading up to start of the year.

According to The San Francisco Chronicle and National Public Radio, filling positions can be a challenge when teachers are unable to find affordable housing. Data on Zillow shows that the median home price in Redwood City is upwards of $1 million, and the median rent is $4,200 per month, while the first-year annual teacher salary in the Sequoia Union High School District is $59,722. In comparison, the first-year salary for a

National teacher shortage impacts English departmentBy CARMEN VESCIAExecutive Editor

$14,000

Photo By Philip Tyson

See MOBILE, page 2 See STATUE, page 2

See SHORTAGE, page 2

2 Feature September 9, 2015

By MADDIE PEI and PHILIP TYSON Staff Reporter and Copy Editor

Relief for seniors as some colleges eliminate standardized test requirement

SAT and ACT are among the scari-est letters in a high schooler’s vocabulary. This year, however, some Sequoia seniors applying to college can breathe sighs of relief. Over 800 ac-credited colleges, in-cluding the recent addition of George Washington Univer-sity, have eliminated their requirement for standardized tests. Se-nior Cambria Erskine is encouraged by this change to apply to more colleges.

“[The tests] are not the best judge-ment of what a student can do and what a student can accomplish,” Erskine said. “You hear a lot of stories of successful businessmen who drop out [of high school] early and start a multimillion

dollar company. There’s a lot of un-known variables that can affect the final [test] score—it doesn’t really showcase what a student’s full potential is.”

Erskine prepared for the ACT with the school’s BUILD program, who provided her with a study guide and tutor. Al-though she had a positive experience, she still isn’t a big fan of the test itself.

Still, Sequoia will administer the PSAT to all sopho-mores and juniors on Oct. 14 on a special class sched-ule, where fresh-

men and seniors, who don’t have to take the test, arrive in the afternoon. Though the SAT and ACT aren’t graduation re-quirements, Sequoia believes….

“[Researchers] have done studies where they say that overall [the SAT and ACT] are accurate predictors of success

in college,” said College and Career Counselor Terri Ignaitis. “You can be successful without having that test, but it’s just another indicator.”

However, more and more schools are beginning to drop the test.

George Wash-ington University’s Dean of Admissions Karen Stroud Felton said in a Washington Post article from July 2015, “Although we have long employed a holistic application review process, we had concerns that students who could be successful at GW felt discouraged from applying if their scores were not as strong as their high school performance,”

This isn’t a completely brand new idea. Bowdoin College dropped the re-quirements in 1969 and Bates College in 1984.

“I’ve always thought of [the SAT or ACT] as one of the most important

Old SAT New SAT 600-2400

3 hours, 45 minutescritical reading, writing, math, essay

1/4 point penalty for incorrect answersprint

until spring 2016

ScoringTimingSections

Guessing PenaltyFormatIn Use

400-16003 hours (50 minute optional essay)evidence-based reading and writing, mathno penalty for incorrect answersprint or computerafter spring 2016

things for getting into college,” sopho-more Nate Burrill said. “What college you get into can affect your entire future. If this trend continues, colleges will be forced to look more at what the people

have actually done and recommenda-tions, rather than just a test score.”

Ignaitis also pointed out a bigger part of this option-al SAT/ACT trend: college rankings. Colleges gain fund-ing and in general work to get their needs met through a competitive ranking

system that involves GPA and test scores. If they get student applicants who don’t test well to not have to send their scores, the college’s overall average SAT or ACT score can go up.

“It’s not about students [as much as] it’s about rankings,” Ignaitis said. “What it started out to be and what it turned out to be are two different things.”

Experts say... “A student’s high school

academic record, regardless of what school she attended, is a far better predictor of college success than the SAT or ACT.”

—National Public Radio (NPR) study,

February 2014

Experts say... “I have to question why

having less information to make a decision is a good thing. To me, for a good

decision, you want as much information as possible.”

—ACT presidentJon L. Erickson

from STATUE, page 1

for the Cherokee people. The alphabet was based on syllables, called syllabary. This finally cre-ated a way for the Cherokee to communicate with each other through writing.

“He went through a lot of hardship to sell his own people on his idea. He was scorned and he was ridiculed. People thought he was crazy but he persevered,” said Rolandelli, who graduated from Sequoia in 1963.

Sequoyah is presently

from SHORTAGE, page 1

teacher in San Francisco Unified High School District is $47,629, while it is $71,293 in the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District.

There’s also been a nation-wide drop in the number of teacher credentials being issued each year, and while, according to the New York Times, the national drop has been 30 per-cent, the decrease in California has been 55 percent. The state needs to fill 21,500 positions, but only around 15,000 teach-ers get their credentials in Cali-fornia each year.

“Given that teaching cre-dential programs cost be-

from MOBILE, page 1

though he has little experi-ence with tech design, the class for him serves as a means of em-powerment.

“When I was in middle school people said stuff like, ‘You’re too little. You can’t do anything.’ Now I feel like I’m hella smart, and I can do this.”

Senior Mya Castro is another student enrolled in mobile app design. The class resonates with her particular passion for psy-chology.

“When I initially walked into the class, I felt worried. Com-puters and I don’t get along—I knew nothing about coding,” Castro said. “[But] there’s psy-chology that goes into apps. Companies hire psychologists when building an app, so there’s a [career] possibility.”

Castro noted that the class has only started building sim-ple apps, such as soundboards, where a set of a on-screen but-tons can be tapped to make distinct sounds. She, however, is looking forward to creating

more complex ones and apply-ing the coding to the technolo-gy she uses daily.

“I use my phone for every-thing, so its really important for me to have all the things that I need on my phone,” Castro said. “There’s so many apps I use for school; our whole education is based around technology.”

tween $10,000 and $20,000 [or more], that you invest two years of your life (one year you have to teach for free as a stu-dent teacher), you can see that you’re making it hard for some-body to go through a teaching credential program unless they really want to,” said math teach-er Subathra Ramanathan, who came to Sequoia this year and found out that she would be teaching Algebra I and Algebra Support classes the day before school started.

Summer hires are not out of the ordinary, but not all de-partments were hit as hard as English, and according to Sci-ence Department Chair Mitch Weathers, his department had little trouble filling positions this year.

However, it remains to be seen how the teacher shortage will affect the school in years to come.

“This year has been the hard-est,” Hoffman said. “There are fewer candidates at the same time that there are more posi-tions and it’s become harder to find high-quality applicants to fill our positions.”

thought of as a hero by the Cherokee as the written lan-guage he invented is still being taught and used by their people. Though there has been some modifying of the language, 85 out of the original 86 symbols are still in use.

The Alumni Association will put on a dedication ceremony before the JV game on home-coming night, Oct. 23. The ceremony will include a reading of the plaques being placed on the pedestal, information about HorseChief, and some words from Rolandelli as well as Prin-cipal Sean Priest.

The Raven Report is underwritten by the Sequoia

High School Education Foundation

3FeatureSeptember 9, 2015

El Niño, explained What is El Niño?

When will it happen?

So can the drought be fixed?

How does this affect Sequoia and Redwood City?

— GLENN BILLMAN

According to The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), El Niño is a weather pattern that occurs when the Pacific Ocean is abnormally warm near the equator. The elevated temperature alters the usual storm pattern, which causes some southern states and Latin American countries to have stronger winter storms while Australia receives less rain.

The NOAA released images over the summer that showed ocean conditions similar to the 1997 “super” El Niño conditions. The NOAA also reported that trade winds are slowing down, which makes it more likely that El Niño will happen this winter. How-ever, last year meteorologists predicted El Niño would come, and only the Los Angeles area had increased rainfall. Either way, most El Niño years begin to affect Northern California in January and February. In short, lots of rain. Or none at all.

Optimistic climatologists say that an extreme El Niño could bring California to regular water levels. However, NBC reported that there is as only a 50/50 chance of more rain in Northern California this winter. California’s water shortage will most likely not be solved in just a year: Lake Shasta, California’s biggest reservoir, has a 50 percent chance of extra rain, according to the NOAA. NBC reported that other water sources, like un-derground aquifers, might not be restored for up to 100 years. Furthermore, an article in the San Francisco Chronicle stated that the warm weather that creates El Niño can also decrease the size of snowpacks, which California relies on for water in the summer. Thus, water rationing and conservation are still necessary, and the possibility of an El Niño year doesn’t give Californians reason to stop rationing water.

The weather conditions indicate it might be an El Niño year, but nothing is certain. To prepare for the possibility of heavy rain, the drainage system around the Tea Garden is being redone, according to Administrative Vice Principal Gary Gooch. And in the case of another dry winter, Sequoia will continue to ration water by not watering the grounds. Last year, a large storm shut down many local schools, but not Sequoia. For school to close this year, the administration will have to be certain that storm condi-tions would endanger students, Gooch said.

Global Glimpse travelers gain new perspectiveBy CARMEN VESCIAExecutive Editor

Fifteen seniors went to Nicaragua, the

Dominican Repub-lic or Ecuador this

summer. Along with English teachers Jose

Rosario and Justine Rutigliano, they

traveled over 113,240 miles in total.

Fifteen seniors. Two teachers. Three countries. Over 113,240 miles travelled in total. One summer.

These 15 seniors, as well as English teachers Jose Rosario and Justine Ruti-gliano, travelled to Ecuador, Nicaragua or the Dominican Republic, and each spent between two and three weeks do-ing sustainable service work and experi-encing a new way of life with the pro-gram Global Glimpse.

Senior Miguel Gallegos traveled to Bonao in the Dominican Republic.

“Going into it I thought ‘well I’m go-ing to be really rich in experiences and stories,’ and I was very excited to work with the people,” Gallegos said. “It was rewarding because even though we come from different worlds, we’re still the same, we’re all people. It sounds cliché and all that, but the fact that we could share that humanity aspect of it all was really important to me as an individual and I know for a lot of my peers.”

Students participated in a variety of education days that centered around topics including global business, indig-enous cultures, politics and poverty. For the educational day focused on poverty, students visited a local dump and in-teracted with the people who scavenge there for a living.

“They told us ‘We’re about to go and

see people in a place you’d never imag-ine people live, and we don’t want you to dehumanize them, we don’t want you to pity them and we certainly don’t

want you to walk out thinking you’re re-sponsible for this. This isn’t about guilt and this is not about pity. This is about awareness,’ and I thought that was really

really powerful,” said Rosario. “I thought I had an understanding of privilege.”

Participants also taught English class-es and did service projects that ranged from refurbishing a preschool to creat-ing a rabbit sanctuary and garden and were meant to directly address the com-munity’s needs and have a lasting posi-tive impact.

Some seniors plan to apply to become Global Glimpse ambassadors and sup-port the next wave of travelers.

This was Sequoia’s first year partner-ing with Global Glimpse, and Rosario hopes to see the program continue in years to come.

“I want this to be contagious, this feeling of appreciation and this feeling of responsibility to change your habits,” said Rosario. “My hope is that this not only becomes a permanent staple of the Sequoia experience that 11th graders hope to be a part of, but I also want this to be something people talk about.”

The program costs from $500 to $3,500 depending on financial need, and fundraising takes place throughout the school year leading before the trip.

“There’s ways to fundraise if it’s the money that’s holding you back,” Gal-legos said. “Opportunities are out there, and this is a great one. You just got to take advantage of those opportunities because if you don’t they just slip on by and you miss it. Don’t be the person who missed it.”

Photos courtesy of Justine Rutigliano (above) and Jordan Sandoval (below)

“Me gustaría tener a Stephen King como profesor porque me gustan mucho sus libros y sería un muy buen profesor.”

—Victor Frutas,senior

“Me gustaría regresar a la época medieval por Cristóbal Colón. Me gustaría saber

que es lo que hizo y como fue el conquisto a norteamérica. Por eso me

gustaría tener él como profesor. ”—Katerine Rivas,

junior

“Para un profesor yo querría tener Shakespeare porque él es muy famoso y sabe como escribir cosas y yo quieroaprender escribir como él.”

—Joel Bravo,freshman

—Compiled by CARMEN VESCIA

Sequoia Dice:¿Si pudieras tener a alguien

famoso como profesor, quien querrías y por qué?

4 Special Feature

What’s in your backpack? Ready, set, school

Some student suggestions for the new building, like indoor and outdoor hangout spaces, were included in the draft.

Meet the A-QuadThe building is 25 to 50 percent more efficient than the rest of the campus and features tinted windows.

Indigenous, drought tolerant plants will be used in the landscaping.

A new building is coming to Sequoia next year. Construction will start in November, according to Principal Sean Priest. Most of the loud construction is scheduled for before or after school, and a barrier will be built between the site and the portables. If con-

struction noise begins to interrupt class, teachers will be outfitted with microphones. Read more to find out the details.

The quad will include two science laboratories, eight regular classrooms, bathrooms and two collaborative rooms.

New year, new teachersAva Javid

would describe herself as passionate (especially about science), understanding, and sincere.

Subjects: Biology and IB Biology

Enjoys: Indie girl bands like Haim and The Xx

First impression of Sequoia: “It’s exactly what I thought it would be. All the groups can inter-act in a nice way, everyone seems to feel valued here—it’s not like some people think they’re better than others—they all seem to accept ev-eryone. And the staff—all the teachers are really nice. Everyone genuinely, sincerely cares.”

Gregory SchmidHis dream job is to be a musician by night and a dad by

Subjects: Health Academy and Human Biology

What shoe would he be? “As a teacher, you have to be on your feet and you have to be comfort-able. So, there’s that aspect of needing a comfort-able shoe, a supportive shoe. I like to be a little unpredictable so like a polka dot rainboot just to kind of throw it out there, but at the same time relaxed. So could you be one polka dot rain boot and a flip flop or something? You know, how do you balance all that out?”

day, and he has served in the Army.

To meet more of Sequoia’s new teachers, go to www.ravenreport.org

5Special Feature

Ready, set, school

Meet the A-Quad

Indigenous, drought tolerant plants will be used in the landscaping.

A new building is coming to Sequoia next year. Construction will start in November, according to Principal Sean Priest. Most of the loud construction is scheduled for before or after school, and a barrier will be built between the site and the portables. If con-

struction noise begins to interrupt class, teachers will be outfitted with microphones. Read more to find out the details. All classrooms will have heating and air conditioning.

Each classroom will have a 35 chromebooks, a SMART board and an advanced audio system.

The $13 million building is being paid for by a district-wide bond, created to fund expansion

related projects.

— Compiled by GLENN BILLMANDigital renderings courtesy of Gary Gooch

— Compiled by ABIGAIL WANG

Gregory SchmidHis dream job is to be a musician by night and a dad by

Subjects: Health Academy and Human Biology

What shoe would he be? “As a teacher, you have to be on your feet and you have to be comfort-able. So, there’s that aspect of needing a comfort-able shoe, a supportive shoe. I like to be a little unpredictable so like a polka dot rainboot just to kind of throw it out there, but at the same time relaxed. So could you be one polka dot rain boot and a flip flop or something? You know, how do you balance all that out?”

day, and he has served in the Army.

enjoys dancing, cooking and exploring the outdoors.Nancy Ku

Subjects: Geometry and Algebra I

Previous jobs: English teacher in Japan, cruise ship interpreter, Japanese TV producer

Why does she love teaching? “I love meeting new people, so it’s so nice to see all these new faces that I know I will get to know over the year. I love the creativity of designing each lesson, and ‘how do I

design it so it’s engaging and people will understand it.’ Honestly, this job is a really good fit for me.”

— Compiled by CLAIRE BUGOS AND EMILY DUCKER

Pizza Any Way You Like It $16.00Pizza Margherita $18.00Salmon Burger $13.00Prosciutto Benedict $13.50Wedge O’ Salad $11.00Fresh pastries on weekends $3.50

Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.Dinner 5 p.m.-9:30 p.m.

837 Jefferson Ave, Redwood City

Howie’s at a glanceFood AmbiancePriceLocationVariety Service

Feature6 September 9, 2015

If you’re a crust-lover, you will abso-lutely be a Howie’s lover. With its light and elegant pizza creations and array of meal options such as burgers, salads, sandwiches and breakfast items, the newly-opened Howie’s Artisan Pizza is well-equipped to serve a truly quality American meal.

On our latest mission to uncover the best new restaurants in Redwood City, the Raven Report decided to put Howie’s to the test.

The first Howie’s was founded in Palo Alto by Howard Bulka, and the second restaurant was opened on Jefferson Ave., nestled between the post office and a tanning salon in Redwood City. Howie’s seems to be situated in a location par-ticularly vulnerable to noisy traffic and annoying pedestrians. Once we were seated in the outdoor courtyard, however, we noticed that the semi-enclosed feeling of the seating area not only kept the cars out of view but also restricted the noise to whatever was produced by the banter of the many families and friends that filled the restaurant. The decor was clean and simple and the space was softly-lit and well-equipped with space heaters, um-

brellas and an overhang to protect din-ers from the elements while enjoying

the warm California climate.

Because we didn’t think we could possi-bly eat more than one pizza together, we or-

dered a half-Baked Potato and half-Pro-sciutto and Arugula pie. This is a great option if your party is small and you want to try more than one kind.

The Baked Potato Pizza ($19) was topped with a creamy white sauce,

crispy potatoes seasoned with herbs and salt, and garnished with bacon pieces. It was just as visually appealing as it was in taste (feel free to foodgram—we did). The earthy potatoes were just crunchy enough and allowed for the herbs and cheese to come through to create a bal-ance of flavors.

Maybe the heavenly taste of the baked potato pizza simply set the standard too high because the Prosciutto and Arugula Pizza ($23) pizza was not the winner. The arugula had a fresh and zesty taste and there was just enough of it to satisfy each

Is Howie’s dough worth your dough?By CLAIRE BUGOS and ABIGAIL WANG Executive Editor and Opinion Editor

bite, but the pizza lacked something to counter its slightly bitter flavor. The pro-sciutto was delicious but the pieces were huge and had to be eaten more or less in one bite, making eating look slightly barbaric. Definitely not a good choice for date night. However, we still enjoyed this pizza because of the freshness and quality of the ingredients which left us feeling satisfied but not bloated.

The real star of the show in both piz-zas, however, was the crust. If you are the person who feeds the crust to your dog, you must give Howie’s crust a try. It har-moniously balances soft and fresh with satisfyingly crunchy. Crust-shunners, move over.

Overall, our adventure to Howie’s was worth the while. The service was great—the hosts and waiters were friendly and prompt. The biggest complaint of ours came from our wallets. The cheapest pizza option (tomatoes and cheese) costs $16 and most of the sandwiches are priced upwards of $11. As soon as we saw that carrot and celery sticks cost $4, we knew that this is the kind of restau-rant you beg your parents to take you to (and pay for).

Howie’s is a family-oriented restau-rant, and caters to this with family-style seating and simple, well-done food. Whether it’s your weekly pizza run with friends, a family night out, or to quit your crustless life, Howie’s is the place to be, so start saving.

Howie’s Baked Potato and Prosciutto Arugula pizzas were light and fresh. “You should be able to eat half a Howie’s pizza and not feel like a bomb just blew up in your stomach,” said Howard Bulka, owner and chef at Howie’s Pizza.

How did Howie’s end up in Redwood City?

“Even though the menu has grown and expanded here in Redwood City, the heart of the restaurant is still the pizza and we’re good at it. We’ve been [making pizza] for a long time so we kind of worked out the bugs in Palo Alto six years ago and we are able to just bring it forward here without too much commotion.”

What makes Howie’s unique?“What I respect about food

is simple things done impec-cably well. That is kind of the banner I’ve carried into battle all these years when I’ve been a cook and a chef. I’ve lived in the world of more complicated food, more contemporary food, more avant-garde food and I can do that...but my heart and my passion is that simple things are better than more complicat-ed things done well.

Every dish, every plate of food is a meditation on that product so if it’s pizza, a ham-burger, or a martini I begin by asking myself basic questions; ‘What is it that makes a great pizza?’...Pizza is such a loved

Q&A

Photo by Claire Bugos

with Howard Bulka, owner and chef

food...most people eat pizza at least once a week, it’s almost like a hamburger, it’s such a popular American food and the question is why?...It’s freshly baked bread, melted cheese, it’s a fabulous variety of textures There are strong flavors, there are subtle flavors and tart fla-vors and sweet flavors and all of it has to come together in a way that’s really harmonious.”

What is the process to make a pizza?

“We worked on [the pizza dough] for a whole year—it be-gan with a natural sourdough starter on my countertop in my home kitchen. I was making two pounds at a time and now we make dough 300 pounds at a time.”

How did you become involved in the pizza business?

“When I was your age every neighborhood had a pizzeria. The neighborhood pizza is real-ly where artisan pizza was born. It was somebody making pizza from scratch everyday, some-body who really cared about their customers, and cared about the quality of the prod-

uct. Overtime, chain pizza plac-es really took over the world.”

“One thing I discovered is less is more, a pizza is really about balance, it is a delicate thing. You should be able to eat half a Howie’s pizza and not feel like a bomb just blew up in your stomach. Every bite should lead you to the next one.”

What advice do you have for aspiring chefs?

“To be a really good chef, to get into [this] world you really have to spend a decade work-ing. For me it was the best time I ever spent...when I really re-flect on it, everyday I was in whites with a knife in my hand or a sauté pan in my hand, I was happy.”

If you are the person who feeds the crust to your dog, you must give Howie’s crust a try.

Photo by Claire Bugos

Donald Trump

Ben Carson

Ted Cruz

Scott Walker

Carly Fiorina

7FeatureSeptember 9, 2015

Freshman loses $2,000 in stock market turbulence

What is the stock market and what does it do?

What caused the fluctuation?

How does this effect Sequoia and Redwood City?

Businesses who need money to expand can borrow small amounts of money from large numbers of people instead of borrowing from banks and paying interest, ac-cording to How Stuff Works. Nibbi is one of the millions of people invested in the stock market: he has owned Amazon stock since 2011.

Like all investors, when he bought his shares for around $180 each, he was es-sentially buying a small piece of the company. When Amazon did well over the next four years, the price of his shares went up because Amazon stock became more desir-able; the day after a favorable quarter earnings report was released, his shares went up $100 each. If the company’s earnings reports was not favorable, his stocks would have lost their value and he would have lost money.

Essentially, the stock market is “an expensive roller coaster,” according to Nibbi.

economy, has been growing by 7 to 10 percent annually for 25 years (com-pared to the U.S. economy’s 2 to 3 percent each year). As Chinese companies fail

to do as well as expected, stock prices fall. Their crash on Monday shook global confidence in stocks, and the fall spread to other countries. The other piece of the American market crash was caused by a correction, or a fall of more than 10 per-cent in value from a recent high, according to the AP. Around every 18 months,

the market usually has a correction. The US hasn’t had one since 2011, so the correlation with the Chinese turbulence is just unfortunate.

The most recent crash temporarily decreased the value of stocks owned by a number of people on campus, including Nibbi.

“The thing that’s kind of irritating about the stock market is that it’s all over the place; it does what it feels like because people freak out,” Nibbi said.

“But unless you also freak out and sell all your stuff, it doesn’t really matter be-cause it's all paper losses. When you have companies as big as Apple and Amazon, they’re not going to go anywhere, so it doesn’t really matter what they do, they’re

always going to rebound, which is what they did.” Despite the uncertainty, Nibbi would still advise other students to invest.

“For a lot of students it’s an interesting way to make money. I just like observ-ing how people react to things, because it's all based on what else is happening in

the world.

At one point over the summer, fresh-man Andrew Nibbi owned Amazon shares that were worth more than $530 a piece, and he has made thou-

Why has it been in the news? The Associated Press (AP) reported that stock markets around the world fell

Monday August 24. The value of China’s stock market, the Shanghai composite, fell first and lost 8.5 percent. The world market reacted, and the U.S. stock market’s value fell almost 4 percent in one day. The Chinese stock market kept losing value throughout the week, and the world stock market was very turbulent.

Sequoia High School

Raven Report2015-2016

Executive EditorsGlenn BillmanClaire Bugos

Carmen Vescia

Opinion EditorAbigail Wang

Entertainment EditorEmily Ducker

Sports EditorTrevor Crowell

Copy EditorPhilip Tyson

Page EditorsZack Rosenblatt

Mars Svec-Burdick

Staff Reporters Nicholas Abraham

Leigh AlleyMariam Alsugire

Lea BlixXavi Boluna

Beatrice BugosBrighid Bugos

Mackenzie ClarkeMatthew Eisenberg

Zoey FletcherAddison Holman

Benjy JudeMaddie PeiRio PopperAlex Vick

AdviserKim Vinh

The Raven Report strives to provide Sequoia High School with informative,

engaging, and relevant news. The staff will exercise integrity and adaptability while

promoting justice and transparency through professional reporting about the school,

the community and the world.

Vox reported that two separate events have caused stock turbulance: China’s economy and what’s known as a correction. China, the world’s second largest — GLENN BILLMAN

Election 2016

Republican

Democrat

Hillary Clinton

Bernie Sanders

James Webb

Martin O’Malley

Lincoln Chafee

Next Republican debate:

Sept. 16 on CNN

Important Dates

What to know and what to look forward to

Next Democratic debate:

Oct. 13 on CNN

California primary election: June 7

2016

General election for next U.S. President:

Nov. 82016

immigration

Obamacaregun control

abortion choice

As of September 2015, 17 Republicans and five Democrats have announced they are running for their party’s nomination, according to the New York Times. Here we offer a sampling of the most popular candidates at the moment, as well as a hint as to where they stand on hot topics.

sands of dollars in just four years of in-vesting. However, when the market fell the week of Aug 24, he lost $2,000.

“Last week my shares went down

like $2,000, but then they came right back up. This morning I probably lost $500,” Nibbi said.

“There’re always good days and bad

days, but it always evens out. And gen-erally, it ends up going up because our economy is going up.”

Hot topicspro con

—EMILY DUCKER

8 Sports September 9, 2015

Summer workouts and fundraising efforts earn smooth kickoff, football travel game By MARS SVEC-BURDICKPage Editor

The Sequoia Cherokee foot-ball team is headed far away from Terremere Field this fall, going all the way to Washing-ton to play a standalone game against a team from Vancouver. In order to cover plane fare, ho-tel lodgings and food expenses for 50 players in the Pacific Northwest for three days start-ing Sept. 24, the team has been fundraising since March to meet the $10,000 total cost.

Every year, the varsity team plays a travel game. In the past, they’ve been to Utah and San Diego. This time around, they’re flying to the suburbs outside Seattle to meet the Vancouver Prep team at a neutral field the Vancouver team has travelled to in the past.

“We started a tradition six years ago, doing one out-of-area trip for the team, the idea be-ing that 99 percent of kids aren’t going on to college sports, to give them an experience that they wouldn’t normally get,” Coach Rob Poulos said. “This way, the varsity team gets one taste of what college football is like, where they constantly go on these kind of trips.”

Senior James Delgado, who plays receiver and has been on the varsity team for two years,

has fond memories the 2014 trip to San Diego. Even off the field, the Cherokees were in-cluded in the home team’s game day celebrations, contribut-ing to the atmosphere of good sportsmanship.

“Last year, we were there for [the other school’s] homecom-ing, so we went to their pep rally and we ate lunch with the other team,” Delgado said. “That night was the game, and we also went to their homecom-ing dance.”

To pay for this trip, the play-ers have been selling Blitz cards with coupons for local business-es, for $20 each. Everything ex-cept $100 plane fare per player, which the families contribute,

is covered by their fundraising ef-forts.

The team will be accompanied by seven adult chaperones, five of whom are assistant coaches.

“We go around the whole city in different squads [to fundraise],” Delgado said. He explained that every player sells a minimum of five cards, but he’s way over that, already having sold 20.

Once they get there, the team will do a bit of practice to get used to the new surroundings, attempt to beat Vancouver Prep, then head back home.

“When you walk around with your jersey you have a sense of family,” Delgado said. “It feels re-ally good to have that connection with other people.”

By TREVOR CROWELLSports Editor

Lifting weights. Doing squats. Improving agility. Getting in shape. Although summer was a time for relaxation and recuper-ation for some, many football players found themselves working in the gym preparing for the upcoming season long before the first scrimmage Friday, Aug. 28.

“In September, [football is] exciting and it’s right in front of you. But if you were not working out in the summer, then you are not going to gain strength and a player will not be able to perform at [his] highest potential,” varsity head coach Rob Poulos said.

One advantage of beginning practices so early is that all the players, of all ages from freshmen to seniors, are able to develop team chemistry long before the season actually starts.

“You get to know your teammates much quicker, who you can depend on to be there and to constantly work to get better,” junior quarterback Nick De Marco said. “You learn how they act way before you have to play in games.”

How many times a player attends workout sessions can factor into how early a player can play.

Attending workouts during the offseason earns four points per hour. Other ways to earn points include maintaining a cer-tain GPA or doing community service such as tutoring elemen-tary students. Varsity players are expected to reach a goal of 700 points and JV players are expected to reach 600 points.

“You are not only getting better athletically, but you can just hang out with your friends so your points accumulate quickly. It’s not hard to get them,” sophomore junior varsity quarterback Duncan Stewart said.

Players who accumulate the most points in the program re-ceive other benefits, too.

“Whoever has the most points gets first pick on helmets or jerseys. We try to prioritize the people who put the most time and effort into the program,” Poulos said.

Summer practices remain a key aspect of the Sequoia football program.

Sequoia’s first home regular season game will be Friday Sept. 12, against Harbor.

The golden tickets to a travel game and the upcoming season: hard work and fundraising through Blitz cards.

Photo by Xavi Boluña

Ravens take flight for the

summer

—Compiled by CLAIRE BUGOSGraphic made on Piktochart.com

44%participated in programs,

camps or internships 32%

worked

Where we went

76% 29% 21%