THE VIGORNIA Volume 134 Issue 5 Student Newspaper January 28, 2013 Since 1878

By Lucy Ulfelder ’15

By The Board of Monitors With the Board Of Monitor’s success and high student approval ratings, the student body is definitely anticipating more. We are happy to report that the student body will not be disap-pointed in the coming weeks. The BOM has taken into account all of the advice and feedback provided by the student body in the winter survey. The BOM has also been hard at work plan-ning two outstanding sport nights, a basketball night and a hock-ey night. To increase fan presence and excitement at games, a smorgasbord of fan goodies such as face-paint and waving towels will be provided. Also, there will be a list of chants to support our teams and pump them up. We will also be hosting a tailgate before the game with free food so come hungry! Along with these highly energetic events the Board of Monitors have created Winter Sport Spirit T-shirts with the artis-tic help of Mr. McCreight. With growing school spirit, especially this year, the sports nights should be a lot of fun. Looking ahead to Winter Carnival we are also hosting “The Hilltop After Dark” an event composed of two famous game show games, the “Dating Game” and the “Newly Wed Game.” A couple of BOM members are also sitting in on the Winter Carnival Planning Committee where a week packed with different class competi-tions will take place. Also, the now annual Semi-Formal dance will take place Saturday night. The overall theme for the week is the Winter Olympics. All of the student leaders are very excited about planning the week and hope it will be highly anticipated. Bring your friends to the events, hangout, and have a great time because it is going to be a loud and exciting winter!

BOM Brief: School Spirit to Spread

When taking a walk around campus, one might see some unfamiliar furry faces.These faces are of faculty and students alike, so don’t be alarmed, as this happens every year the month of January rolls around campus. The reasoning behind the increase in upperclassmen and faculty facial hair is that they have chosen to not shave for the en-tire month of January, a main aspect of WA’s WoManuary. During WoManuary, students have the choice to buy a bracelet for $15, which allows them to dress down on the four Fridays in January. The $15 goes to cancer research for different types of cancer including breast cancer, young adult associated cancer, and pros-tate cancer. The people behind this amazing month are all part of the Jimmy Fund Club. The club has fundraisers throughout the year such as gift-wrap drives, bike clinics, and other events all raising money for cancer research. With one glance at the boys on campus, it’s clear that the majority of the male population seems to have made the choice to take part in WoManuary. The co-advisor of the Jimmy Fund club, Ms. Kastler, states that she is, “really not surprised about how many kids bought bracelets this year.” She says that there are three main reasons why kids love to buy the bracelets, and that WoManuary continues to be a success. Those reasons are: the four dress down days, the upperclassmen boys’ love of beard growth and competition, and the fact that the student body is always willing to support cancer research in any way they can. This is Ms. Kastler’s third year as the Jimmy Fund club co-advisor, along with Mr. Liller. Mrs. Kastler loves being part of the club for many reasons. She thinks that cancer is a very widespread dis-ease—it affects everyone and anyone—and it is important to sup-port research for a cure. The charities benefiting from WoManuary, the Susan G. Komen foundation and the Livestrong foundation are both extremely important organizations supporting female and male specific cancers. As far as the beards on campus go, there are 6 categories ranging from best mustache to “mountain man” that participants have the potential to win. The winners will be announced at an assembly so stay tuned for that announcement. Then the WA cam-pus will return to its usual clean-shaven image.

Ms. Callis and Daria Cenedella ’14 show students where to purchase their bracelets

Photo Courtesy of Alexandra DelloStritto ’14

Turn to page 8 for a look at the beards on campus!

WoManuary: Shaving The World One Beard at a Time

Let the games begin! Photo Courtesy of Ms. Tirado

Sports 2

The ability for a sports team to come back strong after an abrupt and disappointing end to a previous season is something often underrated. Having a season end earlier than expected can weigh heavily on a team. However returning the next season as an even stronger team takes one word: heart. Take a popular local sports team for example; the Boston Bruins in the 2010 season had a 3-0 game lead on the Philadelphia Flyers in a best of seven game series. In the fourth game of that series, although the Bruins had a 3-0 lead, the Flyers ended up catching the Bru-ins and beating them not only in game four, but in the rest of the series, advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals. However, the very next season, the Bruins went on to sweep the Flyers in the play-offs and eventually win their sixth Stanley Cup. The Bruins were not only heralded for their championship, but the determination and fight showed coming back from a very disappointing end to their previous season. They clearly had heart. The 2011-2012 Worcester Academy Boy’s Varsity Bas-ketball team, much like the Bruins, seemed poised to make a championship run. They had the size, speed, and talent to get there, but so did their first round opponent, Wilbraham Monson Academy. The Hilltoppers entered the playoffs with an overall record of 15 wins to 10 losses and played and beat the W&M Titans earlier in the season. However, the playoffs were a differ-ent story. The Hilltoppers lost to the Titans by a final score of 52-63 and had their season come to an abrupt end. Rising senior Tom Rivard knew that such an outcome next season was simply unacceptable. Heading into the 2012-2013 season, the Hilltoppers were

a new and much different team than they were the previous year. With additions to both the front court and the back court the team, again, looked poised for a championship season. They proved this right out of the gate with two huge victories over Brimmer & May and South Kent. However the truest test for the Hilltoppers thus far was the next game against reigning national champion (yes, national champion) Brewster Academy. When asked about what the mentality was heading into that game, Tom Rivard ’13 stated, “We believed that much of the talent our team possesses went unnoticed by many people throughout New England,” Rivard said. He also felt that this game, as well as the previous one against South Kent, was a way to show everyone what this team was made of. Well, if the Hilltoppers wanted to show that they could run with the nation’s best, they accomplished their goal. The Hilltoppers fought Brewster hard and came up just short, losing by two points. Rivard exclaimed that although they had lost, “knowing that aside from a few small mistakes, we played a great game and left all our energy and heart out on the court.” Rivard also said that co-captain Rene Castro ’13 spoke to the team following the loss and said from that point on they were going to go undefeated. Well, the 11-1 Hilltoppers have done just that, showing just how much heart this team has. With a tough road ahead, the team knows that focus is crucial and a “one game at a time” mentality will take them where they want to go. As one can most likely imagine, for a team as talented as this one, and for a team coming off of a disappointing end to the previous season, it is championship or bust.

Lydia Vital ’14, the point guard for WA’s Girls’ Varsity Basketball team, is a new student this year. After being announced athlete of the week, people are interested to know: just who is Lydia Vital? As she munched on her Sunchips and did back flips for her advisory, she an-swered some questions.

Q: Why did you decide to come to WA? A: I wanted another year of basketball. I also came to further my edu-cation. I felt I could do better than last year.

Q: How do you like playing on the WA team so far? A: I like it a lot. Everyone brings a lot of energy and we all work hard on the court. We work well together and it’s a lot of fun.

Q: PowerAde or Gatorade?A: Gatorade.

Q: Do you have any special rituals/traditions you do before a game? A: I always have to listen to music.

Q: Who is your favorite basketball player? A: I really like Russell Westbrook.

Q: So everyone knows you’re good at basketball. Are you good at anything else? A: I also play softball and I can do back flips.

Q: Can you dunk?A: I wish.

With impressive back flips and impressive basket-ball skills, Lydia has shown the type of athlete she is and what she is capable of. She is definitely someone to look for on the court this winter season.

Boys’ Varsity Basketball: Something to Prove

Lydia Vital: The Woman, The Myth, The LegendBy Elise Gorzela ’14

The basketball player shot the Vig a smile Photo Courtesy of Juliana Bonardi ’15

By Kyle O’Rourke ’13

News 3

The Hobbit tells an adventure from the Shire to Mount Doom, or “there and back again”. Bilbo, the protagonist, is en-listed by an old wizard, Gandalf, to go on an odyssey with thir-teen rowdy, grumbling, mumbling dwarves. Along the way Bilbo discovers three great treasures. First, after stumbling into the den of three man-eating trolls, he re-ceives an elvish sword, which he eventually names “Sting.” Second, after running into a shriveled five hundred year-old hobbit, Gollum, in a cave under the Misty Mountains he finds the “One Ring.” Third, Bilbo is given a shirt of mithril mail worth more than the entire Shire he comes from. Bilbo gives all three of these treasures to his adopted son, Frodo, the star of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The Hobbit is a movie adaptation of a book (also titled The Hobbit) written by J.R.R. Tolkien. I had a chance to watch the movie over break,

and I have many ideas to share.To start, I absolutely loved The Hobbit in book-form, and I was excited to view director, Peter Jackson’s interpretation of the book. Jackson portrayed Tolkien’s

books, The Lord of the Rings (LOR) trilogy, flawlessly, but like anything there are a few excep-tions. The Hobbit is Tolkien’s prequel to LOR, explaining the re-finding of the One Ring. “It was very good, but still you can’t match the original films,” says Matt Turner ’15. To someone who has not read The Hobbit, I can imagine the movie must have been fantastic. However the mov-

ie contained action that was not in the book. Because Jackson decided to extend the book into three movies, he added action scenes that were not mentioned in the text. Although The Hobbit was more action-filled than the book, the movie was great, and I highly reccomend it.

Featured Film: The Hobbit By Jack Chase ’15

...Jackson por-trayed Tolkien’s

books flawlessly...

WA Swim team is too hot to handle By Hannah Barris ’15

Despite the recent freezing cold temperatures, our swim team is hot. This year, Worcester Academy’s swim team is heating up the water with their quick speeds and blazing laps. Alan Phung ’15, who is a strong participant in the backstroke says, “the team has a strong sense of family. Everyone works really hard.” Everyone on the team mentions this tight bond formed between the teammates during their season. This is the type of bond that makes for a successful team. Outward suc-cess is a manifestation of in-ward confidence and ability, and this team sure has it. The swim-mers are very competitive, and always determined to excel with greater strides and vigor. The swim team is one of the ultimate collaborative team sports on campus. The swim-mers are constantly reassuring one another during meets and practices. The motivation of the team is not only brought about by their spectators and fans, but within the group itself. They are forced to work to their maximum capacity, as every practice is filled with strenu-ous exercise and swim activity. No one leaves swim practice without their painful dose of grueling work. Winning comes from training hard; there are no slouches on this team. While practices can be tough, the players feel ac-complished after the sweat, blood, and tears are over. Huixen Chen ’15 explains, “I feel awake and refreshed after every prac-tice.” All of their hard work and concentrated efforts have been proved to pay off. The boys team has lost only one meet. As for the girls team, the season is young and any previous losses

make for future opportunities. When asked how the team was doing this year, Michael Schermerhorn ’14, one of the captains of the Boys’ Varsity team expressed, “this year we have had a lot of new swimmers, and I think that our team has a lot of passion for the sport; we come together as a very strong team to improve.” Michael, the veteran swimmer, has been on swim-

ming on Varsity since 7th grade here at the Academy. He ex-plains that on the team, the ex-perienced swimmers are teach-ing the newer members. Though there is a separation between Varsity and JV, they practice together, which will insure that valuable experience is passed on. Players placed on the JV team who are the beginners, are “starting to become more familiar with the competitive swimming process,” as Michael puts it. According to Rowen Price ’15 a member of the Girls’ Var-sity team, “despite injuries and illness this season, we have

many strong swimmers and lots of people are improving and getting best times. We have great captains: Cat Padgett ’13, Robbie Hansen ’13, and

Mike Schermerhorn, and the team itself is a great community.” The players persevere despite injuries. Though the flu has had a rough spin on almost everyone, it hasn’t taken the power out of their stroke this season. “Also, none of this could be possible without our great coaches: Ms. Gould, Coach Paul, and Coach Lyons,” Price emphasizes. As for the rest of the season, the captains made it clear that the team’s main goals are to im-prove personal times and win for one another.

MJ Duffy ’14 works on her butterfly stroke Photo Courtesy of Meaghan Barry ’15

4 On Campus

Ten Questions: Ms. Tirado

Ms. Tirado is the ringleader for Worcester Academy’s annual Winter Carnival. She puts all the events together,

contacts vendors, runs other student activities, and makes the fun hap-pen! We asked her ten burning questions that were answered with nu-merous laughs.

Q: If you had all the money in the world but still had to have some kind of job, what would you choose to do?A: I would be a chef.

Q: If your life were a novel, what would you title it?A: “The Best Is Yet To Come”…or “Unfinished!”

Q: Describe your favorite food in two words.A: Warm & cheesy!

Q: If you could know everything there is to know about one subject, which would it be and why?A: Human nature so I could understand why people are so stupid. (Sometimes.)

Q: If the world is a stage, where does the audience sit?A: Somewhere in suspended animation.

Q: If you could be a TV show character, who would you be?A: Stewie from Family Guy.

Q: Which famous person would you like to be trapped on an island with?A: Someone like Ryan Gosling!

Q: If you could meet your future self, what would you ask them?A: What were you thinking?

Q: If you could breed a hybrid animal out of any two species, which would you choose?A: A rabbit and a kitty cat…that would be extra soft and snuggly.

Q: Pirates versus Ninjas?A: Pirates! Arrrr!

Ms. Tirado working on the Hilltop HappeningsPhoto Courtesy of Liandra Castro ’15

By Daria Cenedella ’14Columnist

Campus Ice Rink: Days of Work for Hours of Fun

By Nicole Mills ’15

As the winter season continues and the temperatures de-crease, it is only appropriate to hit the ice for some skating with friends. After roughly sixteen hours of running water through a garden hose and five straight days of below freezing tempera-tures, the campus ice rink will be open for business. With the inten-tions to replicate the classic New England Preparatory School look, and provide activity to students both during the academic day and after school, the ice rink is always open to students and their friends. Throughout the winter, many students might walk by the quad ice rink and never give a second thought to how it got there. What students and faculty do not realize are the long hours that Mr. Healy and Mr. Mallet put into providing a campus ice rink. After those sixteen hours of running water out of a hose, it takes about another ten hours to put the ice down to set. Then it requires five straight days of below freezing temperatures to completely freeze the rink, which are hard to come by. That is a total of one hundred forty six hours needed to set up complete rink to be

used by the Worcester Academy community. After the hard work is completed, the rink will be open for anyone, at any point in the day. Whether a person has never

skated before or happens to be a starter on the Varsity Hockey teams, the rink welcomes all. Whatever times during the day, whether it be during a free period or after school, it is available. Do not be surprised, however, if the rink becomes a common place for faculty kids. It has become an accustomed spot for hockey and free skate for the children living on cam-pus. The window for skating lasts from when the ice freezes to roughly the middle of March, so students are advised to take advantage of the opportunity

Mr. Healy and Mr. Mallet created. A sophomore says, “I think it’s a great opportunity for people to get out

and have fun especially with their friends and it gives the fami-lies on campus something to do in the winter.” Look out for Mr. Healy’s email as to when the rink opens and be sure to hit the rink with some friends.

The rink on a cold campus day Photo Courtesy of Kara Banson ’13

Entertainment 5

NARWHALS.

LANCESubmissions due February 14th to

lance@worcesteracademy.org

Poll: Sick Survey*

Who will Taylor Swift date next?

*Results are out of 94 responses

Harry Styles’s cat, Dusty

Top 3 Cures for a Cold: 1. Tea

2. Sleep3. Soup

59.1% of Hilltoppers prefer Tina Fey over Amy Poehler.

47.1% of Vig readers thought “Les Miserables” was the best movie of

the year

Mr. Mull Scott Isbelle

Poems + Short Stories + Photos

News 6

By Kara Banson ’13

Model UN Club: From Students to Diplomatic Lawmakers

Editors-in-ChiefShona Allen ’13Kara Banson ’13

Alexandra DelloStritto ’14

Advisor Christina Webb

WritersKyle O’ Rourke ’13

Daria Cenedella ’14Elise Gorzela ’14Hannah Barris ’15

Jack Chase ’15Nicole Mills ’15

Lucy Ulfelder ’15

PhotographersJuliana Bonardi ’15Liandra Castro ’15Emily Isakson ’15

Katherine Johnson ’15Julia Washabaugh ’15

Vigornia StaffJanuary 28, 2013

Every Friday during clubs period, students gather in Mr. Dagenais’ room to discuss some of the most controversial and interesting topics that the world faces today. Led by Grant Fan ’13, Gabe Kates ’13, and Claire Liebmann ’14 and advised by Mr. Dagenais, the Model UN club brings global issues to fo-cus and challenges members to architect possible resolu-tions. During club meetings, students discuss and debate on a variety of topics ranging from global warming to North Korea’s nuclear prolifera-tion. These activities facilitate discussion and encourage students to view the world in a different light. Liebmann believes that, “Model UN has allowed me to consider some of the most important problems in our world from different viewpoints and cul-tures that make up our global dynamic.” In addition, the meet-ings help prepare the mem-bers for the competitions. The length of the conferences can last from 1 day to the entire weekend. Prior to the competition, the members are given their assignment and conduct research in order to become familiar with their topic. At the conference, the students become delegates, who present their viewpoint, advocate for the plant of

action they created and of course throw some mud at the op-posing delegates. The ‘Chairs’ run the conference and decide whether the resolution passes or not. Composed by students, the ‘Chairs’ also are responsible for distinguishing the delegates who performed well. Recently, Liebmann won the Elizabeth C.

Hanson Award, which acknowledged her as the delegate who best represented her country’s perspective. Despite the time and effort taken to prepare for the conference, this is Fan’s favorite thing. During the conference, he meets different students and explains, “some are semi-awk-ward, who like to make history jokes, which are always nice to listen to.” The Model UN experience helps mo-tivate students to be-come global citizens.

By learning about international affairs, the members are expand-ing their outlook beyond WA. Kates enjoys his experience with the club

because he has a “lively interest in foreign policy” and “struc-tured debate” and is looking forward to continue Model UN in college.

Model UN debating during clubs period Photo Courtesy of Katherine Johnson ’15

7Arts

Artists of the MonthThere are many creative students at WA, so every month the Vigornia will feature a few students for their beautiful creations and hard work.

By Olivia Lo ’14

By Megan Kralj ’15

Photos Courtesy of Emily Isakson ’15

By Sasha Wei ’13

If you would like to be featured in next month’s spotlight, submit

pictures to our email, vigornia@worcesteracademy.

By Gabrielle DiBenedetto ’13

By Caroline Gaudette ’15

8 Features

Beard Battle 2013: A Look AT The Competitors

The Categories Work of Art: Most Creative Facial HairPatches O’Houlihan: Most Patchy BeardSalt n’ Pepa: Best Mixed Coloring I Mustache You a Question:Best MustacheJust Peachy (Peach Fuzz Only) Mountain Man

Señor Butler3 Time Champ

Beard Type: Full BeardCategories: Mountain

Man/Salt n’ Pepa

Peter Dykeman-Bermingham ’14

First Time Participant Beard Type: Muttonchops

Category: Work of Art

Connor Carew ’13Now Accepting Prom

ApplicationsBeard Type: Full Beard

Category: Mountain Man

Mr. MullEnglish Teacher

Beard Type: Full Beard Category: Mountain Man

Vito Capuano ’13PG Wildcard

Beard Type: Full BeardCategories: ?

(Creative Cut Pending)

Photos Courtesy of Alexandra DelloStritto ‘14