Westminster News 05 22 2015

INSI

DE Westminster Bids Farewell Page 2-4

Spring Formal Page 5College Advice & Seniority Page 11Class of 2015 Matriculation Page 12

Class A New England ChampionsSoftball dominates again page 9

Global ForumWar Game & End-of-year Synopsis page 7

Westminster School Simsbury, CT 06070 www.westminster-school.org Friday May 22, 2015 Vol. 104, No. 10

KEVIN CHOI '15 KEVIN CHOI '15

KEVIN CHOI '15

KEVIN CHOI '15

On Monday, May 14th, Westminster students gathered to vote for next year’s Prefect Board. Around forty rising Sixth Formers applied to be prefect, writing an application essay that was available for the Westminster community to read. At the Lawn Ceremony on May 22nd, after their class-mates had been pulled onto the Senior Lawn, the current members of the Prefect Board pulled on their successors for next year. The last two rising Sixth Formers pulled onto the Lawn were new Junior Prefect Ellen Gyasi, followed by new Head Prefect Tim Sanford.

Paige Brackett is a day student from Avon, Connecticut, an editor for the Westminster News, peer counselor, GSA member, and president of the Fifth Form. On the sports field, she plays for both First Girls’ Soccer and First Girls’ Tennis. During the winter and summer months she participates in the WCLP tutoring program in Hartford. Among her favorite activities are reading, writing, and spending time with her friends. As a future prefect, Paige hopes to be a role model for the underform students. She believes that “every indi-vidual contributes to the dynamic of life on Williams Hill.” She will strive to create and preserve a positive environment, through small inclusive acts and kind gestures.

Jacqui Richard is a day student from Southwick, Massachusetts, a member of Black and Gold, a Fifth Form officer, a contributor to the Westminster News, and a participant in Dramat. Next year, she will be captain of both First Girls’ Soccer and First Girls’ Basketball. Off campus, she plays for a club soccer team. As a future prefect, she hopes to foster an environment that inspires collaboration and a willing-ness to innovate and grow.

Eliza Mell is a boarder from Far Hills, NJ. She was a class officer in her Fifth Form year and a member of the First Hield Hockey and Hockey teams. As a prefect, Eliza hopes to make all students feel as if Westminster is their home and is ready to listen to the community’s ideas and questions.

Sam Worcester is a boarder from Lyme, CT, and plays for First Boys’ Squash, Second Boys’ Lacrosse, and Second Boys’ Soccer. In his free time, he enjoys fly fishing, skiing, and playing golf. As a mem-ber of the prefect board, he hopes to encourage values of community and integration here on Williams Hill.

Ted Sirbaugh is a boarder from Jacksonville, Florida. He is a valuable member of the First Golf team. In addition to athletics, Ted is also involved in the John Hay Society and Black & Gold. His classmates have voted him to the Student Council and he is a crucial member of the Peer Counseling program. As a Prefect, Ted would like to make the community more con-nected and productive by creating a uniquely positive atmosphere throughout the entire year.

Katie Simeon is a day student from Simsbury, CT and was a class officer in her Fourth and Fifth form years. She will be a captain of the First Girls’ Soccer team next fall and is a member of the Second Girls’ Hockey dynasty. She is also a member of the First Girls’ Lacrosse team. Katie wants to make sure that every student gests involved at Westminster because she knows that involvement creates a stronger sense of community.

An active member of the Student Council for the past three years, Ellen Gyasi is ready to take on the role of Junior Prefect. Coming from Newark, New Jersey, Ellen participated in all aspects of life at Westminster as soon as she set foot on cam-pus. She demonstrates her involvement on a daily basis by being a member of the John Hay Society and Multicultural Student Union. Ellen also repre-sents Westminster well off-cam-pus as she regularly volunteers at

her church. As a Prefect, Ellen hopes to make the school a more positive and accepting place for everyone and leave a legacy of kindness and mutual respect.

Junior Prefect

KEVIN CHOI '15 KEVIN CHOI '15

KEVIN CHOI '15

Head Prefect

2015-2016 Prefect Board Introduced

Ellen GyasiTim Sanford

Tim Sanford is a boarder from Morristown, New Jersey. In past years, Tim has been a crucial member of First Football, First Ice Hockey, and First Lacrosse. Coming on the Hill as a Fourth Former, Tim immediately showed his superb athletic ability by being a three-season First team athlete. In addition to athletics, he also contributes to the community by being a member of Black and Gold and the John Hay Society. Tim has also lived in Squibb House for two years and has enjoyed the camaraderie of the Squibblies. As the Head Prefect, Tim wants “the Westminster community to be more connected and beatific as a whole.”

KEVIN CHOI '15

COM PI L E D BY H I EU DO '15 A N D DR E W BR A Z E R '15CO-EDITORS-IN-CHIEF 2014-2015

THE WESTMINSTER NEWS, Friday May 22, 20152

Bidding Farewell

BY DR E W BR A Z E R '15CO-EDITOR-IN-CHEIF 2014-2015

Profile: Mr. Shipway '61

T his ye a r Wes tmins ter bids farewell to one of its most beloved faculty members. From the graduating class of 1961, Mr. Shipway has remained a per-petual Williams Hill devotee since his early days as a fledgling Martlet. In 1965, he graduated from Princeton University hav-ing pursued his Bachelor’s degree in English. From there, he went on to achieve a Masters of Arts in Teaching (MAT) from Duke University, and later a Certificate of Advanced Study (CAS) in American Film from Wesleyan.

A s a m e m b e r o f t h e

Westminster faculty for 17 years, Mr. Shipway has taught an assort-ment of classes in English and Film. Over the course of recent years, he has mostly done tutorial work, helping students to refine their skills in reading and writing, in order to prepare them for the SAT and wider literary studies. Often, Mr. Shipway can be found quietly working in the back cor-ner of the Lobdell Reading room, where recently he has been study-ing 17th century Dutch history.

B e f o r e h e c a m e t o Westminster, Mr. Shipway taught at a number of high schools,

including a preparatory school in Richmond, Salisbury School, and Kingswood Oxford. During the early days of his career, Mr. Shipway also worked in film and video production, co-producing a public TV show on Long Island Sound, in addition to various other small projects. For a while he even served as Martha Stuart’s script supervisor!

Over the course of his time here at Westminster, Mr. Shipway has functioned as an invaluable member of the Westminster ath-letic community, serving as coach for both Cross Country and Track and Field Distance. As head coach of Track and Field for ten years, Mr. Shipway assumed (and con-tinues to fulf ill) a plethora of preparatory activities with regard to pre- and post-race organiza-tion, such as arranging hurdles, marking times, and ensuring that the ever-elaborate meets went (and continue to run) as smoothly as possible. In 1998, he began coaching the Second Girls’ Hockey team, whose record improved dramatically during his tenure, securing the first unde-feated Second Girls’ season in school history.

A not-so-secret secret that we Distance runners hold is that

every Friday Mr. Shipway leads us on a two mile run to J Fosters, in order to treat ourselves to deli-cious cones of ridiculously “over-priced ice cream.” Before each of these beloved trips, Mr. Shipway formally announces the winner of the ever-so-prestigious Mary Anderson '14 award – named in honor of a recent alumna and granted to the runner who had demonstrated the highest degree of effort and commitment in the preceding days.

Likewise, Mr. Shipway in renowned for the distribution of his weekly copy of the Distance Gazette, a handwritten newspa-per cataloging the times of each runner in the previous meet, as well as a witty section of post-race commentary. “Competitive run-ning really has to do with time, a particular space, and speed – therefore the success of the sport consists of keeping numbers and records. I’m always interested in the improvements our runners make over the course of the sea-son, no matter their level.”

Among his favorite activities, Mr. Shipway loves filmmaking, sailing, and running competi-tively. “Movies, running, sailing – they’re all about different kinds of movement and how it’s done.”

When asked about his favorite experience at Westminster, Mr. Shipway replied that he really enjoyed being able to see his son, Emmet (class of 2011 and cur-rently a student at Bates study-ing in Paris), go to high school here. “He got a great education, and was able to contribute to the school in a number of ways. He learned lessons here that have aided him in his success in col-lege.”

When asked if he were to leave one piece of advice, what would it be, Mr. Shipway gave the following response: “Try hard. One of the best feelings is after you’ve finished the race.”

It is through these small bits of wisdom, experience, and time-honored traditions that Mr. Shipway will ultimately leave a lasting legacy in the hearts and minds of Westminster students. As a coach, teacher, tutor, and honored faculty member, Mr. Shipway will be truly missed.

Thank you for your 17 years of service to the school Mr. Shipway!

Sailor, runner, lover of literature and film, Westminster bids farewell to a remarkable faculty member

Mrs. Madden is as valuable a resource to Westminster as the books she stocks. In 1997 Mrs. Madden left the Ethel Walker School to work at Westminster through a recommendat ion from Westminster’s then Library Director, Mrs. Miller. Today Mrs. Madden is Westminster’s Director of The Cole Library. Her job entails choosing the journals to

subscribe to, books and DVDs to buy, managing the budget, and overseeing everything. Though she could just sit back and super-vise, Mrs. Madden is highly involved in the library; she is per-petually ready to dispense reading suggestions, and pounces on the new boxes of books as they arrive. Mrs. Madden is always reorganiz-ing misplaced books and cleaning

up our trash (which certainly isn’t a part of the job description).

“ T he j o b ,” s a y s M r s . Madden, “does have some perks;” she receives first “dibs” on books and describes the feeling of open-ing a new box of novels as “child-ishly exciting”. As far as memo-rable Westminster visitors go, Mrs. Madden feels fortunate to have been able to listen to a read-ing by former poet laureate, Billy Collins, and a performance by a capella group, Chanticleer. Mrs. Madden is particularly fond of the library’s displays as a medium to celebrate, remember, or “just have some fun.”

“I will miss everything about the library,” Mrs. Madden told the Westminster News, which can only be expected when leaving a job after just short of two decades. Likewise, she fondly recalls co-librarians, Mrs. Stevens, Mrs. Griffith, Mrs. McDonald, Mrs. Cole, and Mrs. Miller, as stimuli for her most cherished memories

at Westminster. Mrs. Madden attributes their collective bonds to a shared passion for reading.

Mrs. Madden does not have any single favorite book to rec-ommend. When asked to choose, the question seemed to evoke a loss of words that was equated to a mother comparing children, and was inevitably followed by the response of most avid read-ers, “I don’t have one.” After some thought, however, Mrs. Madden was able to distinguish fiction as her favorite genre and “Ulysses” by James Joyce as perhaps the “funniest book ever written.”

In her ret i rement, Mrs. Madden plans to travel more, specif ically to Ireland to visit friends and family, and to San Francisco to visit her son. She and her husband plan to re-immerse themselves in culture by attend-ing more plays, galleries, read-ings, and concerts. Then, there is the obvious mission, “...read, read, and read some more.” This

quest is most likely linked to her mantra, “So many books, so lit-tle time.” And hopefully in her retirement Mrs. Madden can chip away further at her extensive list of reads.

After 18 years of dedicated work to Westminster school, Mrs. Madden has become a wealth of knowledge that will be dearly missed. She has been an invalu-able resource to Westminster and leaves a pair of shoes nearly impossible to fill. Her warmth and kindness will be missed about the library, and her depth of pas-sion for reading is a thing many can only dream of. As a self-pro-claimed research librarian, Mrs. Madden wishes only to leave stu-dents and teachers with the obvi-ous but meaningful advice: to use the library more.

BY N ICOL E FOx '16

Profile: Mrs. MaddenWestminster bids farewell to its beloved librarian

OPINIONS EDITOR 2015-2016

Mrs. Madden looks forward to traveling upon her retirement and to visiting her son in San Francisco.

Mr. Shipway enjoyed coaching Track and Field, especially with his son Emmet. He also enjoys hiking, sailing, running, in fact, anything that can keep him active outdoors.

Coutesy of Emmet Shipway

Coutesy of Edna Madden

THE WESTMINSTER NEWS, Friday May 22, 2015 3

BY A L LY LY NCH '17

After two years of work-ing at Westminster School, Ms. McDonald will be leaving and heading to Deerfield Academy. At Deerfield she will be a full-time Spanish teacher, a dorm parent for freshman girls, and a

field hockey and lacrosse coach. Ms. McDonald is sad to leave Westminster School and she says she will miss the community at Westminster. Ms. McDonald added that she will not miss the 7:30am faculty meetings,

but who can blame her? Her time at Westminster was short but she was a lways involved. She only wishes she could have changed the lack of respect for dress code. Ms. McDonald said that she would not change one thing about her students. “It’s bittersweet to leave. I will miss Cushing and all my students, players, advisees, faculty friends, and the Westy traditions.” Of course the feeling is mutual. Students and teachers alike will miss Ms. McDonald, and the kindness that she has brought to our community. Whoever replac-es her has his work cut out for him! We wish Ms. McDonald the best in her journeys and know that she will be happy working with her boyfriend at Deerfield. We hope that she will remem-ber fondly our community on Williams Hill.

CONTRIBUTOR

Bidding Farewell

As the school year comes to a close, we bid farewell to Cushing 3’s dearest, Ms. Kowal. Upon entering the school in the fall of 2014, Kowal has made a lasting impact on the school as a teacher, coach, dorm parent, and advisor.

Apart from teaching Pre-Calculus & Algebra, Ms. Kowal brings a lot to the table. She coached Third Girls’ Field Hockey in the fall and First Girls’ Lacrosse in the spring. Outside of the classroom and off the field, Kowal devotes her time as a dorm parent to her lovely Cushing girls (and quite likely her favorite girls). Having studied at Andover herself, Kowal is no stranger to the challenges of boarding life. From the feeds and jam sessions to the insightful talks, the Cushing girls can collectively agree that the dorm would not have been the same without her care and guidance. Kowal never ceases to amaze with her relatable youthfulness being of only age twenty-four, whilst maintaining an incredibly mature personality that instills a sense of discipline in us.

Corresponding to the notion that as one door closes another one opens, Kowal is set to take Computer Science Coding classes at the Flatiron school in New York. “I am excited to learn new stuff, have a new start, explore New York City and be a student again,” expressed Ms. Kowal. We can only wish her the very best and that great success be achieved no matter where life takes her. As your faithful advisee and Cushing 3 hall-resident, thank you for everything, Ms. K!

Mrs. Gerges will sadly be leaving the Westminster community this year after 5 years of hard work in admissions. Known as Ms. Swain when she first came to Westminster, Mrs. Gerges is now is married and has a son, Hayes. She cherished every moment with the students at Westminster and is sad that she has to leave. She will miss her advisees, team, hall, community, and faculty most, but she is looking forward to spending more time with Hayes and being together as a family in Fairfield, Connecticut and is taking a few years off. Fairfield is much closer to her husband Brian’s work.

The First Girls’ Soccer team will especially miss Ms. Gerges. Each one of her players over the past 5 years has appreciated and learned from her leadership both on and off of the field. Her dedication to the team and insistance on hard--work and teamwork led the team to 4 New England Tournaments.

The entire Admissions Team will also miss Ms. Gerges next year. Many Westminster students interviewed with Ms. Gerges and speak of her warmth from the second they met her upon their arrival at Westminster. Her smile and relaxed nature puts students at ease the sec-ond they walk through the door.

Mrs. Gerges has had a wonderful experience at Westminster and is grateful to have had the opportunity to work here. The Westminster community will miss her but wish her the best and hope that she will remember everyone here on Williams Hill.

Westminster bids farewell to a beloved English teacher and an Associate Director of Admissions. The Duddys will move to Boston, where Mr. Duddy will be serv-ing as the Assistant Director of Placement and 8th Grade Dean at Fessenden School. “While my position will be largely plac-ing 8th graders in area day schools, I will be heavily vetting those who make the grade for Westminster. These young men will be the embodiment of ‘Grit and Grace’ and should be count-ed on to make a lasting impact on the Hill.” Mrs. Duddy will be teaching upper school English at Buckingham Browne & Nichols

School.The Duddys have chosen

Boston on account of its close proximity to their respective families. Mrs. Duddy grew up in West Newton, MA and will be living in Wellesley. Additionally, Mr. Duddy’s parents and his brotherand family live in South Boston. Mr. and Mrs. Duddy a re “super excited to bring Kieran and Kayla closer to their Noni and Papi, Grandma and Grandad. Also, Kieran’s attend-ing Kindergarten at Fessenden will give him and Mr. Duddy the chance to commute together and give Kieran an amazing educa-tional opportunity.”

M r s . D u d d y c a me t o Westminster straight out of Bates 11 years ago, so she has “really loved growing as a teacher and person here.” During their time at Westminster (Mr. Duddy has worked here for 10 years), Mr. and Mrs. Duddy got Cedar (their dog), were married, and brought K ieran and Kayla home to Andrews. They have “enjoyed the unique and supportive communi-

ty, the comfortable nature of the dorm which allows for interesting conversations, funny moments, and the opportunity to evolve as educators.”

“We’ll miss too many things to list here,” the Duddys report-ed, “but the biggest ones are the people and the convenience. When Mrs. Duddy commutes to Cambridge each morning and battles traffic (and her road rage), she will surely wonder why she decided to leave Westminster where she could walk to school! Though both of us will likely coach at our respective schools, we’ve both been part of some very special teams that other teams will likely never match! Most importantly, we’ll miss the many friends and colleagues who have helped us grow as professionals, been like second parents to our kids, and shared in the many tri-als and tribulations of life at a boarding school.”

Mr. and Mrs. Duddy, you will be dearly missed!.

Ms. Barrett, Westminster’s much loved Art and English teacher, will be moving to Vermont with her husband and two sons, Rowan (2) and Alder, born March 9. Next year, she is looking forward to teaching English at Vermont Academy. Her husband Alex, a forester, had started a job in Vermont back in January, which is the reason they decided to relocate. Over the course of her time here at Westminster, Ms. Barrett has loved the people that she has worked with and the students that she has taught. She has worked diligently to sustain the Westminster garden located next to the Jackson Rink and has taught many students the benefits of growing fresh vegetables. Westminster will always retain a special place in Ms. Barrett’s heart, as the birthplace of both her chil-dren. Farewell Ms. Barrett! We will miss you, but know that you will enjoy Vermont Academy and time with your family.

Profile: Ms. McDonald

BY A SH LY N CH I N '16CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 2015-2016

Profile: Ms. Kowal

BY A L LY LY NCH '17CONTRIBUTOR

Profile: Ms. Gerges

BY DR E W BR A Z E R '15CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 2014-2015

Profile: Mrs. Barret

BY DR E W BR A Z E R '15CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 2014-2015

Profile: Mr & Mrs. Duddy

From left to right: Ms. Neilson, Ms. Kowal, Ms. McDonald, and Ms. Werner. Ms. McDonald has formed significant and meaning-ful relationships at Westminster with both faculty and students alike.

Photo courtesy of Ms. McDonald

Ms. Gerges with baby Hayes. The Gerges family will be sorely missed by the entire Williams Hill community.

Photo Courtesy of Ms. Gerges

Photo courtesy of Ms. Barrett

Photo courtesy of the Duddys

For past editions of The Westminster News

visit www.westminster-school.org/


Bidding Farewell

Sadly, the community wishes farewell to Mss. Walker, Mr. Solis and of course, their lovely daugh-ter Sofía.

Ms. Walker has been a part of or community for four years. Prior to Westminster, she spent two years at the Emma Willard School, and four years at the Gunnery School. During her time at the Gunnery School as an admissions officer, she met her future husband Mr. Solis. Ms. Walker’s position in admissions carried her through Gunnery, and Emma Wil la rd, and to Westminster.

While working in admis-sions, she has been able to recruit and accept students from all over the world. These kids have greatly contributed to the tight, comfort-able, and accepting community that is the hallmark of our school. On August 24th of 2014 Ms. Walker gave birth to her beautiful daughter Sofía. Sofía has been the most important focus in the lives of Ms. Walker, and Mr. Solis dur-ing the past eight months. During her time at Westy, she has also been fortunate enough to build strong relationships with her advi-sees. Being close to so many stu-dents and having the ability to help and guide them throughout their high school careers is some-thing she hasn’t taken for grant-

ed and will greatly miss. These many experiences with all kinds of people have allowed her to see things from different perspectives. Not only has this driven her to grow as an admissions officer, but also a mother. Although she and her family are moving, they’re not disappearing, and she looks for-ward to keeping in touch with the friends she has made over the past four years. Next year, Ms. Walker and her family are moving to Massachusetts, where she will be working at the Meadowbrook School of Weston.

Mr. Solis arrived at Westy one year before his wife. Prior to Westminster he worked at St. Paul ’s, and the Gunnery. Although known as a devout soccer player and coach, Mr. Solis actually coached JV Boys’ Ba sketba l l at pa st school s . Throughout his time here, he has premiered his unorthodox coach-ing style as the head coach of First Boy’s soccer, and his eff icient teaching style within the Spanish program. In addition to teaching Spanish and coaching soccer, he also coaches track in the spring. When Mr. Solis first inter-viewed for a job here at Westy, he was immediately drawn to the small and welcoming community on which we constantly pride our-selves. He knew right away that

the Westy community would feel less like a job, and more like an extended family. Mr. Solis was also inspired by the student’s enthusiasm. When Mr. Solis, his wife, and daughter move to Massachusetts, he will work at the Roxbury Latin school and con-tinue to teach Spanish and coach soccer. Why he is leaving, is a dif-ficult for him to explain. Having a new born daughter at the start of the soccer season made it dif-ficult for Mr. Solis to spend as much time with his family as he wanted. His heart and priorities are drawn toward Sofía and his wife, in his roles as a father and husband. He had to balance this with his other responsibilities as a dorm parent, teacher, and coach. It was a diff icult decision for them to make, but a day school would allow Mr. Solis to spend more quality time with his family.

Throughout his journey, Mr. Solis has built meaningful relationships with many students and faculty. Charlie Grif f ith being one who he regards as one of the most sincere people who have helped him along the way. “I will really miss C Griff. His mentorship really meant a lot to me.” Shouldering the responsibili-ties placed on him, Mr. Solis, has learned the importance of bal-ancing his time between work,

play, and family. This has taught him to engage in any task at hand with a game mentality. The soc-cer program has been an impor-tant part of his time at Westy. His exceptional knowledge of the game shaped his unprecedented style of coaching. The lessons learned in soccer translate directly to those, which are needed in life. One of his main focuses for the program was the relationship the players had with one another, one that quickly became a brother-hood. The soccer aspect of school life is one that he will miss the most. Watching his team never give up on 17-35’s, the energy we all felt when Jackson ripped a shot into the bottom corner at the night game, or when Steve broke the ankles of an All-American to lead the team to a 4-2 victory over Hotchkiss, are experiences he will truly miss.

Throughout the time Mr. Solis has taught and coached at Westy, he has inspired kids to work hard, love what they do, and most importantly, not to take the amazing opportunities at Westminster for granted. Ms. Walker, Mr. Solis and Sofía have been incredible members of our community, and hopefully they bring the memories and connec-tions they have made to their next adventure.

BY A L EC COS TA NZ A '17CONTRIBUTOR

Mr. Reeves, who is a lover of literature and a talented singer and guitarist, has taught English at Westminster for thirty-two years. In addition to teaching, he holds the title of Web Manager, and previously coached Third Tennis.

When asked what his plans for ret irement enta i led, Mr. Reeves replied simply “I’m going to make guitars.” An accom-plished performer, he instruct-ed guitar lessons for ten years before teaching at Westminster, and frequently builds his own. Additionally, he already has plans to come back and visit, as Mr. Reeves and his wife only recently moved off campus for another

home in Simsbury after living at Westminster for nearly the entire-ty of his teaching career. Despite this transition, Mr. Reeves says that he will miss the campus atmosphere, especially his col-leagues and students.

While his fondest memo-ries of Westminster stem from the successes of his students and his ability to help them grow as writers and learners, he has par-ticular reverence for an autumn day when great numbers of stu-dents and faculty members came together to clear the football fields of snow so that a game to be played. He felt that this act repre-sented the integrity of our com-munity and its ability to come

together and provide support.Since his arrival in 1989, Mr.

Reeves says that he has had the opportunity to watch the school evolve into “a better version of itself,” claiming that in addition to the visible improvement in our facilities, the core values of the school have not only prevailed, but strengthened, a trend that he hopes to see continue.

The Westminster community would like to thank Mr. Reeves for his many years dedication, insight, and talent both in and out of the classroom.

BY S A R A H M I N E L L A '17

Profile: Mr. ReevesAfter thirty-two years, Westminster’s beloved English teacher retires

CONTRIBUTOR

Mr. Reeves’ passion not only for English literaure, but also for life beyond the Hill has made him a favorite for over three decades.

photo courtessy of the Reeves family

Profile : Mr. Solís & Ms.Walker

Come the end of the 2014-15 school year, the marathon-runnin’, biology-lovin’, always smilin’ Ms. Boylan is leaving the Westminster community. Following her departure from Williams Hill, Ms. Boylan will work at St Paul’s School in New Hampshire. At St Paul’s, Ms Boylan intends to teach molec-ular biology. Ms. Boylan loves that she is able to work with high schoolers.

Ms. Boylan, who at one point wanted to attend medi-cal school, now can’t imagine her life without stepping on the softball field every day. When asked if she wanted anything particular in her write up, Ms. Boylan mentioned her love for the Second Girls’ Basketball team.When asked about her year at Westminster Ms. Boylan said, “I am so grateful to the Westminster community for wel-coming me with open arms this year. I have truly enjoyed getting to know the students on campus and am excited to follow many of them as they grow on and off Williams Hill.”

Whether it be the softball team missing a great coach, or the GSA suffering the loss of a senior member, Ms. Boylan will be missed.

BY JE R E M Y M A SON '16ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Profile: Ms. Boylan

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WESTMINSTER COMMUNITY

Spring Formal 2015


Student Life

John Hay 2014-2015 Donations

John Hay Offertory Donations2014 – 2015

20141. September 12 Foodshare of Greater Hartford $ 2052. October Doctors Without Borders $197 3. November United Service Organization $2984. December Heifer International $35020155. January Connecticut Fair Housing Authority $1226. February Feeding Children Everywhere $100

20157. March _______________________________8. April WCLP (Dance Marathon) $12009. May Shred Kids Cancer $150

TOTAL $2622

Westminster Community Enjoys New BenchesPrior to Reunion Weekend 2015, the campus received many new benches as a gift from the Class of 1955, spearheaded by Joe Gitterman '55. The school also received a gift of more than 60 from the Class of 1959, to be planted through-out campus.

Enjoying the benches are clockwise from top left: Katie Deveaux '16 and Brecky Huth '16; Ms. Joncas and Ms. Neilson; Elisabeth Morin '18, Max Torres '18 and Stacia McBreen '18; Fraser Allen '17, Brinley Cuddeback '17, Madie Bologa '17, MacKenzie Griffith '17, Kendall Brown '17, Merlin Ennis '17, Jake Szykowny '17, Anne Ogden '17, Max Powers '17, Joel Groves '17.

SARA DEVEAUx

This year members of the John Hay society organized four offertories during a chapel and four different fundrais-ers over the course of the year to support a wide array of charitable organizations. Highlights of the year included a Chipotle fundraiser in December; the goal was to raise enough money for a water buffalo, yet because the fund-raiser was so popular, John Hay was able to send enough funding to cover a school year for a girl. In March, the 60’s and 70’s themed Dance Marathon helped raise over $1,000 for Westminster Crossroads Learning Program. And finally, a fun spring night playing Dodge ball under the lights of the Hovey turf field raised funds for Third Former Teagan Stedman’s own charity, Shred Kids Cancer.

ANNOUNCING:

March 9-21, 2016 3 days in Paris

3 days in Provence 6 day family stay in Paris

For itinerary and pricing: www.westminster-‐school.org and look under “News and Events”

Contact Sara Deveaux for further details: sdeveaux@westminster-‐school.org or (860) 408-‐3071


Student Life

One of the most enjoyable afternoons that I have spent at Westminster required nothing more than a room full of students, a f low chart, and a table full of snacks. Mix those components with a little touch conf lict and what you get is Project Athena: a war simulator that Duncan Kellogg '15 has been putting together for quite some time. It was a fantastic opportunity for some of the Global Forum mem-bers to experience holding posi-tions in government during a cri-sis.

The game is perhaps best descr ibed a s Dungeons and

Dragons for the politically mind-ed. Every player is assigned a posi-tion in the American government and given a list of personal objec-tives they must achieve in order to receive points while a crisis unfolds. The government must deal with this crisis as a ‘cohesive’ group while simultaneously try-ing to win. The developing events are plotted on a gargantuan flow chart. It had so many variables that events could go any way and interactively the path of the crisis would be affected by our deci-sions. Moreover, the realism was magnified by events frequently being supplemented by footage

being projected for us all to see and the messaging system that was created for the players to communicate. The whole proj-ect was extremely ambitious and vastly successful.

Perhaps the game is not so much Dungeons and Dragons, but more like Model United Nations on steroids. We had not been playing for thirty seconds when we were informed that Israel had launched a pre-emptive nuclear strike on Iran. The game continued in equally dramatic fashion in a gripping plot that was complex and thought through, leaving the players with so many

different factors to concentrate on that sometimes it was impos-sible to deal with them all. It was genuinely stressful and scarily realistic. By the end of the game we had assassinated the leaders of Hezbolah, broken into factions leading to certain members hav-ing their powers limited or even being removed from their posi-tion, orchestrated a coup against the Iranian Supreme Leader, awakened a new terrorist organ-isation and caused a nuclear fall-out in the Middle East. Not bad for three and a half hours work.

Overall, the experience was riveting and helped everyone in

the room to understand the dif-ficulties that are faced when mak-ing decisions. I have a new found sympathy for those in positions of power during times of crisis as we saw how hard it can be to do the ‘right’ thing when everything has fallen into chaos. It was very good fun, but also had serious aspects. No one could help but realise that these events could conceivably happen in our world which was a very scary thought indeed. It was as sobering an experience as an enjoyable one and I would thor-oughly recommend it to anyone with an interest in international relations.

Global Forum War GameBY JA K E SOLOMON '15

STAFF WRITER

On May 5, 2015, Eunice Lee '16, opened her video exhibit “Flipped” with great success. Students and faculty all showed support for the opening night of the first single-student exhibit at Westminster. Eunice worked on this exhibit diligently as her afternoon commitment in this spring, along with other film projects.

Eunice worked as an intern in “Asia Media Culture Factory,” a non-profit organization in South Korea, over the summer. The Asia Media Culture Factory worked closely with immigrants and focused on the issue of prejudice by spreading the word through media. Eunice co-directed the film “Hello, Roni” and contributed to the movie “Shadow” last summer. Her experience with the organization inspires her to focus on racism and discrimination in her exhibit. In “Flipped,” Eunice wish-es to provide a second-hand experience living as a social minority.

“I was impressed with Eunice’s ability to conceptualize, collect footage, and assemble it with translations for the exhibit,” said A-men Rasheed, Director of Theater and Eunice’s advisor, “I knew it all took a great effort on her part. I’ve never seen an exhibit quite like that, so it was nice to experience something different. Her collaboration with Mr. Sandoval as the first single-student exhibit was very rewarding to her. I am very proud of Eunice for accomplishing such a feat.”

The Chapel Gallery looks forwards for another successful student exhibit in the future.

Successful Gallery Show

BY JOYCE CH E NG '16ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENTS EDITOR 2015-2016

2014 was a year of triumph, tragedy, and unforgettable mile-stones. As we near the end of the school term, let us not forget the most remarkable, amazing, earth-shattering, ground-shaking, super-awesome, life-changing, most-important-event-in-the-history-of-all -time: the founda-tion of the Westminster Global Forum.

Students of history often note the amazing coincidence that such great men as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and Alexander Hamilton were a ll a live for the founding of American independence and the onset of the Revolutionary War. Likewise, one might also inquire as to the peculiar fate that would land such individuals as Duncan Kellogg, Austin Pope, Derin Ozturk, and Jake Solomon in the same graduating class of 2015, from which they could spear-head the birth of Global Forum and wage the Battle of the North Korean Flag.

Global Forum ultimately began as a way for individuals such as these charismatic rab-ble-rousers to inspire discussion with regard to the world’s most pressing contemporary issues. Under the leadership of History Department Chair Ms. Betsy Heckman, Global Forum rapidly grew into one of Westminster’s most respected and vibrant orga-nizations.

Throughout the course of the year, I have written a num-

ber of articles in a column titled “Westy Weighs In,” in which I have reported upon the vari-ous topics of debate brought forth in this year’s impassioned Global Forum meetings. These topics included, but were not limited to: “The Rise of the Islamic State,” “America: World Police,” “The Next Great War,” “The Surveillance State,” “Boko Haram,” “Pol ice Bruta l it y,” “Social Media and Terrorism,” “The Rise of Right Wing Parties in Europe,” “The Ebola Crisis,” “Military Industrial Complexes,” and “Vladimir Putin: The Man, The Myth, The Legend.”

At least once a week, the walls of Hinman Reading Room could be heard reverberating with the melodious clamor of a dan-gerously heated Global Forum debate. These sessions – which usually began at 6 or 7 pm – would often last for hours, fueled by the zealous opinions of the group’s more outspoken mem-bers. Gatherings would generally average at about 20 to 30 students – who were drawn, more often than not, by the enticing allure of free pizza.

Recently, members of the

Global Forum were able to pur-chase custom-made t-shirts with a few of the year’s more humor-ous quotes. Among these more ridiculous statements were: “ISIS versus Putin? Everybody wins!,” “Get rid of the guns, get rid of the bears,” “But really, who cares about Iran?,” “Is what you said even English?,” and “There’s no pizza, I lied.”

Over the course of this year, I felt truly lucky to have been able to witness the growth and achievement of the Westminster Global Forum. My congratula-tions go out to Duncan and Ms. Heckman for their successful work in leading this group. Not only was Global Forum a place where students could gather to hold an intelligent conversation about the affairs of the contem-porary world, it was a place where individuals could express their opinions freely and openly, and as controversially as they pleased.

In closing, I wanted to express my gratitude to all those involved in making this year’s Global Forum such a remarkable success. We learned, we talked, we listened, and we laughed. All in all, it was truly a pleasure.

Long Live Westminster GLOBAL FORUM!!.

Long Live Westminster Global ForumBY DR E W BR A Z E R '15

CO-EDITOR- IN CHIEF 2014-2015

Duncan Kellogg '15 premiers his war game “Project Athena”

A recap on the success of a beloved student-run discussion club Eunice Lee opens her exhibit: Flipped

RICHARD BERGENEunice Lee premiers her remarkable exhibit featuring stoires of immigrants from Asia.

“Global Forum ulti-mately began as a way for individuals such as these charismatic rabble-rousers to inspire discus-sion with regard to the world’s most pressing contemporary issues.”


In 2007, Westminster School was one of the f ive boarding schools selected to participate in the Davis Scholars Program cre-ated to diversify the international student population of American independent schools. This year, the community is bidding fare-well to Hieu Do '15 and Gustavs Gerkens '15, two eminent Davis Scholars who have enjoyed their time on the Hill and are now ready to embark on their new journeys.

Hieu came a s a Fourth Former from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. As soon as he set foot on campus, Hieu seized all opportunities to participate in student life by being involved in the Student Council as the Vice President of the Fourth Form and an Officer of Fifth Form. He was also the Layout Editor for the Newspaper and then Co-Editor-in-Chief in his Sixth Form year, the Vice President of International Students Organization, and a member of John Hay Society and Math Club.

In addition, Hieu also stayed active outside of school by run-ning Cross Country and Track. Interestingly, he had never played sports before because he went to a typical Vietnamese public school where students would go to school at 7 a.m. and return home at 8

p.m. Therefore, Cross Country and Track seasons were challeng-ing, yet he overcame all diff i-culty to finish them strong. Hieu still remembers his f irst Cross Country meet in which, although finishing last, he was still proud of himself for having demonstrat-ed the true spirit of Grit & Grace.

Next year, Hieu wil l be a freshman at the New York University Polytechnic School of Engineering where he will study Computer Engineering. Being in a city next year, Hieu will certain-ly miss the close-knit community at Westminster where everyone cares for one another.

Gustavs came as a Fif th Former f rom R itga, Lat v ia . Coming on the Hill, he excelled in class and on the court, as evident through his two-year a l l Summus and being the Captain of First Boys’ Tennis. A good friend of Hieu, Gustavs wa s a l so wel l- l i ked in the dorms. In fact, both Hieu and Gustavs were the corridor pre-fects on Mr. Nwachuku’s hall in Miliken, serving as the role mod-els for the underformers. Even though he only had two years at Westminster, Gustavs made the most out of those by partic-ipating in Math Club and The Westminster News as a Sports Editor.

Next year, he wil l go to Bristol University in England. From Latvia to US and now UK, Gustavs will miss his friends, the friendliness of the American people and the liberal arts cur-r icu lum. Upon a r r iv ing to Bristol, he will study Mechanical Engineering, a curriculum includ-ing strictly math and engineering-related courses; however, Gustavs would like to continue to delve into Spanish and Economics as well.

In general, no matter where Hieu and Gustavs might go from now, they certainly cherish every moment on the Hill where they have had a memorable life-chang-ing experience.

Bon Voyage, Bo & Kristina!

BY H I EU DO '15

Westy bids farewell to Davis scholars

CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 2014-2015

I n t h e f a l l o f 2 015 , Westminster welcomed Thai scholar Bo Jumrustanasan '15 and ASSIST scholar Kristina Jezkova '16, from the Czech Republic. Within the short academic year, the two have made a positive impact on the school’s commu-nity.

Kristina Jezkova came in as a Fifth former, leaving her fam-ily and friends back home for an entire year. Given the vast sup-ply of opportunities here, Kristina decided to involve herself in the community by trying new things; she played Third Field Hockey for the first time and performed in the Winter musical “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels”. She expressed, “I will always be grateful for having the opportunity to come to America. I feel like I have never learnt as much as I did here.” As the school year comes to a close, Kristina is faced with a bittersweet end-ing to her exchange year. While she is incredibly excited to finally return to her family in her beau-tiful hometown Prague, she will truly miss the Westy commu-nity. “I can’t believe the year is over. Although I can’t wait to see

my family and friends, leaving Westy will be really hard”, added Kristina, “I made some awesome friends here and I can’t imagine having to say goodbye in fifteen days!”

Bo Jumrustanasan, from Thailand, entered the school as a Sixth Former, right at the apex of what is commonly known as “senior fall”. Faced with the chal-lenge of overcoming both home-sickness and the language barrier, Bo expressed, “I want to thank the people here who are very wel-coming and supportive. It really means a lot to me when you say hi and try to include me.” As a pro-active Martlet, Bo ran Cross Country in the fall, played Third Girls’ Basketball in the winter, and Third Tennis in the spring. Like Kristina, Bo also performed in the Winter musical. This fall, she will embark on yet another great journey, as she moves on to Williams College.

Khob khun ka and děkuji for your contributions here on the Hill. Westminster will miss you dearly and we wish you all the best in your future endeavors!

Adios, Hieu and Gustavs!

BY A SH Y L N CH I N '16

Westy bids farewell to Thai and ASSIST scholars

CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 2015-2016

Staff Writers

Contact Us:The Westminster News © 2014

Westminster School995 Hopmeadow St.

Simsbury, CT 06070-1880

The Westminster News prints between 250 to 500 copies, issued eight to ten times per school year. The News is offered for free to students (65 Third Formers, 110 Fourth Formers, 110 Fifth Formers, and 110 Sixth Formers), faculty and staff (150), and is also available online. The opinions expressed represent those of the authors, not necessar-ily those of The Westminster News or West-minster School. We invite all members of the community to share their opinions in these

pages. Articles are published at the discretion of The News which reserves the right to edit all submissions for length, clarity, or factual accuracy. Anyone interested in contributing to The Westminster News should contact Hieu Do'15 or Drew Brazer '15, or any mem-ber of the Editorial Board for information on how to submit writing, photographs, etc.

The Westminster News is associated with the Co-lumbia Scholastic Press Association.

ContributorsSarah Minella '17 Ally Lynch '18

Editorial BoardCo-Editors-in-Chief

Hieu Do '15 & Drew Brazer '15

Student Life

Joyce Cheng '16Jackson Andrews '17

Mike Riberdy '18Jeremy Mason '16

Jack Horrigan '16Josh Cosentino '18Matt Cosentino '18

Hallie Feibel '16

Lexi Organ '16Shelby Gamble '15Stone Brown '17

Katherine Berry '16

INTERNATIONAL

WE

OUR

STUDENTS

News Nadrina Ebrahimi '15 Alaina Bisson '15

Cover Madeleine Percival '15

Sports David Swenson '15 Gustavs Gerkens '15

Opinion Rebecca Ryan '16

Features CC Lynch '15 Katie O’Connor '15

Layout Grace Brentano '16 Hyeonjo Jeong '17

Student Paige Brackett '16

Arts Aubrey Moulton '15

Photo Rebecca Ryan '16 Kevin Choi '15

Faculty Advisor Sara Deveaux

News Teagan Stedman '18 Mike Riverdy '18

Sports Declan Horrigan '16

Opinion Nicole Fox '16 Jackson Andrews '17

Features Jack Horrigan '16 Hallie Feibel '16

Arts Joyce Cheng '16 Jeremy Mason '16

Layout Hyeonjo Jeong '17

Assistant Layout Nornia xu '17 Ryan Lee '18

Eunice Lee '16 Connor Sealy '18

Student Paige Brackett '16 Sarah Poling '16

Photo Rebecca Ryan '16 Lexi Organ '16

Faculty Advisor Sara Deveaux

2015-2016 Editorial BoardCo-Editors-in-Chief

Grace Brentano '16 & Ashlyn Chin '16

Thank you!The entire Westminster community would like to thank

the editorial board of the 2014-2015 Westminster News

for their dedication to print media. Co-Editors-in-Chief

Drew Brazer and Hieu Do worked tirelessy to assure that

the articles were of the highest quality and that each paper

portrayed the community on The Hill.

Congratulations and best of luck in your future endeavors!


DOMINATION!Westminster Girls’ Softball Team ends the year 16-1, defeating a strong Taft team in the bottom of the 7th

Sports

BY M I TCH OV E R BY EFACULTY

Jade Marlowe '15 drove in the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning to lead Westminster to an exciting

4-3 victory over Taft in the Class A Western New England Championship game, capping a 16-1 season for the Martlets. Playing in

front of a large home crowd, Brenna Monroe '17 pitched a gem and Emily Samar '18 caught a strong game against a formidable Taft

team. Catherine Crawley '16 had three singles and two stolen bases for Westminster, while Mackenzie Griffith '17 and Ashlee White

'18 also contributed timely hits. Defensively, Marlowe made numerous strong plays at third base and was the fielding star of the

game. Outfielders Crawley, Griffith, and Kaitlyn McCausland '16 had important catches throughout the afternoon.

The contest was filled with drama, lead changes, and many close plays. Taft jumped out to an early 2-0 lead. However, in the

fourth inning, the Westminster bats came alive. Marlowe and Samar opened the frame with base hits and Ashlee White '18 drove in

a run with a single. Mackenzie Griffith '17 then doubled to score two runs. Backed by excellent pitching and flawless defense, the

Black and Gold took a 3-2 lead into the seventh inning. Taft opened with back to back singles, and had runners on first and third

with no one out. Marlowe then fielded a sharply hit ground ball at third base and threw the Taft runner out as she tried to score.

White got the second out with a nice play at shortstop, before a single by the Rhinos tied the game at 3-3. In the bottom of the sev-

enth, the Martlets answered. Crawley had her third hit of the day and promptly stole second on a close play with dust flying. Gabby

Brown '17 then popped out to right field and Crawley tagged and slid safely into third base. After Monroe was intentionally walked,

Marlowe then lined a single to right field to bring home Crawley in one of the most exciting finishes for Westminster softball. The

victory was the seventh Western New England title within eight years for the Martlets.

PETER DECOTEAU


OpinionWhy the Result of the UK Election is Bad for Britain

BY JA K E SOLOMON '18

One Briton’s perspective on the new Conservative majority in Parliament

If the recent general elec-tion in the UK has taught us anything, it is that the British people do not know what is good for them. After f ive years of a frustrating, slow moving, and un-decisive coalition between the Liberal democrats and the Conservatives, we have seen an ineffective administration emerge. Chief amongst many people’s concerns is that Nick Clegg, who managed managed to scrape into a position of power via the coali-tion, thought that there may be some protection against David Cameron’s plans to pressure the poor out of London and increase university fees. However Mr Clegg seems to have misplaced his

spine, and we, the English Public, have seen no protection against Cameron. This, coupled with the development of a stagnant par-liament; the coalition just can’t seem to get it right. According to the Guardian, there has been an increase in tuition prices from the roughly £3000 ($4717) mark set in 2004, to around £9000 ($14151), per year. This may seem negligible to an American who is probably accustomed to the hilari-ous university fees on the left side of the pond. To an Englishman who associates English policy with a slightly socialist attitude, especia l ly concerning impor-tant things in life, it is not only a problem (it could decrease

social mobility and restrict access to education), but it is also a betrayal of the core principles that England has come to represent. This is why this early event in the coalition government was met with protest and rioting.

The Conservative’s new term also kicked off its new term enveloped in riots. The Prime Minster and his party must real-ize that they cannot be voted to office without London exploding in protest. People are understand-ing now that they may not be as popular as once thought. Again, we see that the Conservatives pose a threat to the essential ideas of Britain. This time it is the Nationa l Hea lth Service

(NHS) which will be attacked, with employment and financial cuts, as part of the many measures that the Tories have put in place. They choose to attack a social service entity rather than stimu-late the economy with spending, or god forbid, raise taxes for the wealthy. The NHS was found-ed by Nye Bevan, who, under the supervision of my favourite Prime Minister, Clement Atlee, said: ‘Illness is neither an indul-gence for which people have to pay, nor an offense for which they should be penalised, but a misfor-tune, the cost of which should be shared by the community.’ This is the fundamental idea that has been threatened and is going to

put a huge majority of Britain’s population at a disadvantage. Of course this begs the question; how on earth did the Conservatives get elected? My answer would be that the working class that would ben-efit from a Labour Government have been distracted and brain-washed by the tabloids (run by conservative supporters and affili-ates), which refocus attention to the matter of immigration and ignore the discussion of things that really will matter. Overall, this election was as much a sign of tragic occurrences as bad things to come.

Tesla Motors’ plans for their “Gigafactory”, a $5 billion, 10 million square foot lithium-ion battery manufacturing faci l-ity plopped down in the barren expanse of greater Reno, Nevada, generated quite a buzz with their reveal earlier in 2014, yet now months into Tesla’s development of the facility Elon Musk’s pro-vocative company has begun to formulate a clear vision for their electric future.

The Gigafactory will, amaz-ingly, have net-zero energy out-put, meaning that the massive facility will be completely self-suf-ficient in the production energy thanks to the construction of a vast on-site solar and wind array.

The Gigafactory is a planned in a joint-effort by Tesla Motors and Panasonic to produce lithi-um-ion batteries en-masse, flood-ing the market with the batteries in order to drive down produc-tion costs and therefore drastically reduce the price of the batteries. Tesla is expecting completion of the Gigafactory by 2017. The

obligatory “bottom line”? As pro-duction costs lower, Tesla’s elec-tric cars will become much more available to a much wider range of customers, expectedly chipping another hole in the United States’ petroleum addiction.

Despite the promise of the Gigafactory, worries regarding the obsoletion of lithium-ion technol-ogy enshroud the development of the project. Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries were first commer-cialized in 1991, seeing rather sig-nificant increases in performance and capacity since; regardless, decidedly more exciting batter-ies loom ever so haughtily on the horizon.

Fuji Pigment Corporation, for example, has recently devel-oped an aluminum-air battery which utilizes the reaction of ambient oxygen with aluminum, rechargeable with the addition of salt or fresh water. The battery has a theoretical specific ener-gy density of 8.1 kWh/kg, over 4 times the theoretical specific energy density of lithium-ion bat-

teries. A plethora of better, more powerful batteries has recently arrived on the energy scene. Is Tesla building their Gigafactory several years too early?

E l o n M u s k , F o u n d e r and CEO of Tesla Motors, has repeatedly reiterated that the Gigafactory’s purpose is not to commercialize emerging battery technologies but rather to normal-ize lithium-ion batteries and com-moditize them as much as pos-sible. Lithium-ion batteries will not be rendered completely obso-lete for at least another decade or two and modern electric vehi-cles remain in a rather formative stage, meaning a few hundred thousand more electric vehicles on the road could not be a bad thing, whether they are to use lithium-ion batteries or not. Tesla may additionally have plans to imple-ment graphene, one-dimensional sheets of carbon with a multitude of astounding properties, into their lithium-ion batteries in the future to increase the capacity and rate capability of the batteries while keeping them relevant in a rapidly accelerating field.

Tesla Motors has increasingly focused on the development of electrical infrastructure through creating greater availability of charging stations for their vehi-cles; the Gigafactory will serve as their primary proponent of a bat-tery-abundant future and seems to be a significant component of this effort toward a larger network of electric vehicles. The company has seemingly stepped back from research in advancing battery technologies and wisely commit-ted to their electrification of the world and, one day, perhaps the death of petroleum.

Tesla’s Gigafactory & the Near Future of Batteries

BY T E AG A N S T E DM A N '18

STAFF WRITER

NEWS EDITOR 2015-2016

Literature, on paper at least, is dying. It is by no means a peaceful one either, as deaths go. Literature is like an old man who still has all his marbles, but is smart enough to know that he is about to punch the clock for the last time. He’s trying as hard as he can to eek every last word out of the paper, or every last second out of life, and it is agoniz-ing to watch. As an aspiring writer living in a culture that envelops itself in screens, it seems increasingly difficult to enjoy the smell of an old book, or enjoy the imagery that comes with the printed word. In today’s society, a person my age (mid teens) it is more likely to read the Cosmopolitan blurb on MSNBC’s home page then leaf through a couple chapters of The Hunt for Red October. I personally have lost what little hope remained for a rebirth of literature. It looks like there’s no turning back. So, in forty years, when the US government declares books endangered and the disposing of them to be a federal offense, the eleven or so of you that actually read this paper can all remember this Opinions piece and can say to yourselves, “Damn, Jackson, you called that one.”

As much as I like to think of myself and other book worms as enlightened in some way, I know that we in fact are not. I do believe, however, that paperback lovers are aware that the end is near. Writing, unlike reading, is not dying, though, it is merely having a sort of mid-life crises. The transformation of writing from paper to computer took many by surprise, and it certainly happened faster than most would have guessed. Still, it is worrying to see because soon there will be nowhere for writers to, well, actually write. Journalists, practicing the most noblest of professions (wink, wink), are being replaced the cock-roaches of digital society; bloggers. People who sit in their basements and complain about how Obama isn’t introducing enough tax breaks, while at the same time browsing through iFunny and eating Sourpatch Kids, piss me off. They anger me not because they sit in their base-ments and type away, which they do, but instead because they consider themselves to be writing professionals. Let me make this clear; me, the high school sophomore who writes mediocre opinion pieces on the side is more of a professional than those people.

Hopefully people will start reading more, not because it will make them smarter or more cultured, but because in forty or fifty years, they won’t be able to pick up a book unless it is at the extinct species gallery in the Smithsonian. Literature still has so much offer our society, it truly is the most generous of art forms. Everyday, people just like you and me learn something new from picking up a book or reading an article in the newspaper. The unfortunate irony of this article would be that I am writing this on a computer, and before this piece is ever printed for you to read, it will be sent to the editors, who will correct the mistakes I’ve made on Google Docs. All of this will be done from computer to computer. The sad truth is that everyone in today’s society is, in some way, totally dependent on technology. Look back in your imaginary telescope just twenty five years, and this was not the case. Hopefully when I’m an old man on my death bed, I can look back at my life and say I have influenced even a quarter of the people that reading and writing has. Rest in Peace, Literature, you will be forever missed.

The Death of Literature

BY JACK SON A N DR E WS '17OPINIONS EDITOR 2015-2016

Elon Musk aspires to transform the energy industry by introduc-ing a $5 billion, 10 million square foot lithium-ion battery manu-facturing facility in Reno, Nevada.

TESLA

One Writer’s Perspective


OpinionAll You Need to Know

About CollegesOne Student’s Satiric Perspective

BY N ICOL E FOx '16OPINIONS EDITOR 2015-2016

You will drive up to the over-ly-hard-to-find admission parking lot, with a sense of hope that you will get to know [blank] school. You are probably cold, and have no rotational mobility due to the debilitating amount of clothes you are bundled in, or you may be sweating through your shirt. There is no in-between.

You will enter [blank] school and be greeted by [blank] who – you should know by now – does not need or want to be impressed. You are then handed enough pamphlets to recreate a paper mache version of the school. Next you enter an info-session with overly complicated power points that provide a “holistic review.” And the more you hear that word, the more you believe your applica-tion has nothing to do with the application process and that at the end of the day someone will pick out of a top hat. [Blank] school must employ Santa’s elves in the “off-season” to read through all the applications as thoroughly as they advertise.

[Blank] will show you an interview of a student or a racial-

ly-balanced photo with some non-specific quote about the school such as, “I love the atmosphere” or, “It just has that ‘feeling’ that I loved” or, “My parents went here.”

Next, [blank]’s young, loud, and overly excited admissions representative will tell you, “we are a liberal arts college with the resources of a large research university.” Or that, “we are a research university with the inti-mate feel of a small liberal arts school.” Enter here the “big” sell-ing point, which isn’t too revo-lutionary and probably mirrors Westminster’s core value. Finally, the admissions officer will berate you with a parting “buzz” word in such frequency, aggressiveness, and enthusiasm that after your tour you will abstain from ever using the word again. Throw in some disheartening statistics, and you are still no closer to knowing [blank] school or making “The Decision.”

Fifth Form Year: Myth and FactOne student’s perspective on the year and college process

BY L E x I ORG A N '16PHOTO EDITOR 2015-2016

Across the country, many students label Fifth Form year as the hardest year of high school. As my sophomore year came to an end last spring, I began to worry if I was going to be able to handle the pressure of such an important year. Typically, what stresses stu-dents out is the addition of the college process. As one’s Fifth Form year commences, students have to begin thinking about the SAT and ACT, and where they want to go for college. Now, as my Fifth Form year is coming to an end, I have discovered for myself which Fifth Form year rumors are true, and which are merely myths. I am proud to say that although this year has been hard, it has been exciting, too. To all the Fourth formers that hear “Fifth Form Year” and immedi-ately become filled with dread, I am here to tell you that every-thing is going to be okay.

Myth #1: It is the hardest year of high school.

When I asked current seniors whether junior year has been their hardest year of high school, many of them were proud to tell me that senior fall is much, much worse.

In the encouraging words of Kevin Choi '15, “One’s senior fall is harder than everyone’s junior years put together.”

Fact #1: Junior year is full of new challenges.

Hallie Feibel, a current Fifth Former, said, “The actual class-es and work load of junior year aren’t much harder than previous years because you have the experi-ence to manage it. However, the addition of the SAT, ACT, and start of the college process add a whole new level of unprecedented stress.”

Although the course load of the Fifth Form year can be hard-er than in the past, students are more adept to handle it after two years of high school experience. The real stress of the year tends to be a byproduct of the start of the “college process.” Although this seems daunting, it is actually pretty exciting. Thinking about college can be viewed as a stressor, or something to look forward to. It all depends on how you choose to view it.

Myth #2: Fifth Form year is as hard as everyone says.

Although this may be true for some people, a current Fifth Former Abby Newman said that, “No, it’s not as bad as everyone says. It’s actually been one of my best years here. I made Summus for the first time and became bet-ter friends with a lot of people.”

Fact #2: Everything will be okay.

As Maria Naqvi '15 and Sally Sandoval '15 eloquently put it, “It all works out in the end. And then you can do “diddlysquat” during your senior spring (see Teagan’s article above).”

Myth #3 There’s no way to manage the stress.

Nicole Fox, a current Fifth Former, has some words of wis-dom, “If you take the right classes and manage your time wisely, it’s not that bad.”

Fact #3: At times, you will be really, really stressed.

When I asked Emma Merlin '16 what junior year meant to her, she said “Hell in a handbasket.”

Many Fif th Formers can agree that at t imes, th ings can seem pretty overwhelm-ing. However, it is important to remember that when the end of junior year rolls around, you will feel as though you have accom-plished more than you ever thought possible; and that is a really satisfying feeling.

College Advice From the Sixth Form

BY K AT I E O’CON NOR '15FEATURES EDITOR 2014-2015

As the college process is coming to a close for the Class of 2015, The Westminster News asked some Sixth Formers if there was anything they wish they had known upon entering the univer-sity search undertaking. College can be a source of stress for many, but The Westminster News hopes that this f irst-hand knowledge can ease the stress for those about to begin the diff icult journey. Below are some of the responses we have compiled, Class of 2016, take note!

“Stay open-minded” –Megan Richard

“Don’t underestimate your-self” – Maria Naqvi

“Don’t compare yourself ” – Sally Sandoval

“Don’t let early decision scare you, it’s not the only way to get into a school” – Katie O’Connor

“Don’t wait until the last minute but also don’t over prepare either” – Jolene Patrina

“It doesn’t really matter” – Nadrina Ebrahimi

“Don’t apply somewhere just because they don’t have supple-ments” – Aubrey Molton

“You’re only going to one col-

lege, don’t apply to too many” – Kevin Choi

“Start your essay early!” – Jewel Brown

“Visit as many schools as pos-sible. Each school has its own vibe and feel, and you never will know until you’re there.” – Nick Rocco

“Inter views rea l ly a ren’t the end of the world” – Shelby Gamble

“Do not talk about scores with people, it only creates stress” – CC Lynch

P.S. Thank you to Katie O’Connor who, as our dearest Sage for the past nine months, has given the Westminster community sound advice on a variety of complex situ-ations. We are thankful for your humor and intelligent words of wis-dom.

SenioritisAn underformer’s perspective on this century-old phenomenon

BY T E AG A N S T E DM A N '18NEWS EDITOR 2015-2016

It lurks in the deepest recess-es of their minds, prowling the hallways of schools everywhere, waiting to lazily strike with the half-hearted swipe of procras-tinating claws. For some, it has already consumed them, a neural leech with the potential to reduce so much work to ashes. No, I do not speak of Netf lix, but rather something far worse: senioritis.

What could a mere freshman possibly know about senioritis? Your presumption is correct: abso-lutely nothing. Now, join me, as I investigate this strange and excit-ing phenomenon of the academic world.

By late spring, many stu-dents have determined where they will be spending their next four years, college visits coming to a standstill. By late spring, some of these students may simply for-get the astonishing reality that they actually still have to attend school and sustain the grades they painstakingly built up for so long. I watch students enter states

of full f lakiness, of an impres-sive amount of wholesome, pure nonchalance. Complacency, the feeling of fulfillment frenetically sweeping away college worries, gives seniors just enough of a lift to coast off to graduation. For one of the first times in high school, many seniors get to enjoy the safe-ty net of college admission. With senioritis becoming somewhat of a modern cultural tradition, how much is it hurting our seniors and more broadly high school seniors nationwide?

As high school graduates enter college, their study habits from their ultimate year of high school may carry over into their first year, leaving some students inadequately prepared for the rigors of college. The shock of this sudden jerk into an extreme workload may contribute to lower freshman retention rates at some colleges and universities.

On the contra r y, cou ld the dreaded (or highly antici-pated) “sen ior it i s” be ben-

eficial? Observationally, here at Westminster the ailment does not seem to be that apparent, save for a few more obvious cases, leading to the belief that a less extreme sense of senioritis may give seniors a “breathing period,” a break from a constant and relentless workload to better enjoy their final months of high school. Seniors are still quite academically engaged in anticipation of AP exams; the term “senioritis” realistically does not imply an absolute disregard for school.

Senioritis, broadly, could be looked at as more of a natu-ral phenomenon more so than unapologetic laziness, permitting students to get their acts together before the rebirth of school in the fall. As long as senioritis is expe-rienced in relative moderation, it does not have to be such a terrible thing, finalizing an outsider’s per-sonal consensus: seniors, you can slack off, but, like, not really.


Baker, Fred McCord Cornell UniversityBaker, Susanna Read Middlebury CollegeBarr, Jae’Quan Tyrone Williams CollegeBeizer, Jake Ryan University of Colorado at BoulderBey, Olivia Rachel Boston CollegeBisson, Alaina Marie Skidmore CollegeBlack, Susan Gentry University of RichmondBoures, Lauren Taylor Wake Forest UniversityBrazer, Andrew Sheldon Princeton UniversityBreed, Katherine Gerry University of RichmondBrophy, William Gap YearBrown, George Hurley University of VirginiaBrown, Jewel Christi-Imani Brown UniversityBuckley, Tyler John Trinity CollegeBurstein, Sarah Maida Hobart and William Smith CollegesCampo, Jack Bentley UniversityCarter, David J Denison UniversityCarter, Susanna Jacobson Elon UniversityCathcart, James Depass University of VirginiaChoi, Jae Won Emory UniversityChou, Chun Heng University of Southern CaliforniaChristman, Eliza Tate University of California, BerkeleyConnelly, Mary Kiefaber The George Washington UniversityCooper, Julia Hutchings University of VirginiaCrawford, George Carroll Colgate UniversityCross, Brennan Richard University of VermontDiMaria, Alyssa Carmelina Gettysburg CollegeDi Pacido, Anthony Gap YearDo, Hieu New York UniversityDoolan, George Ludington Bucknell UniversityDougherty, Colin Patrick Hobart and William Smith CollegesDudzik, Thomas Oscar Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyDurfee, Virginia Benton Washington and Lee UniversityDurham, Olivia Blair Denison UniversityEbrahimi, Nadrina M. Yale UniversityFeola, Benjamin John Trinity CollegeFiller, Emma Ventres Southern Methodist UniversityFitzgerald, Jack Amherst CollegeForelli, Margaret Reis Colby CollegeFoster, Elizabeth Churchill Trinity CollegeFrank, Margot Magee Faber Wake Forest UniversityFrench, Mary Eleanor Trinity CollegeGamble, Shelby Skidmore CollegeGerkens, Gustavs University of BristolHawkes, MacKenzie Parker Northwestern UniversityHeagerty, Michael St. Lawrence UniversityHuth, Phebe Grier Furman UniversityJean-Jacques, Corey Trinity CollegeJohnson, Peter Quinn Duke UniversityJumrustanasan, Panchanok Williams CollegeKandarian, Emily Katherine Bucknell UniversityKavle, Alexandra Farrell Boston UniversityKeir, Kyle Barton Tulane UniversityKelleher, Brian Francis University of St. Andrews

Kellogg, Duncan Rice The George Washington UniversityKille, Benjamin Ashton Bentley UniversityKnight, George New York UniversityKunsman, Emily University of VermontLadd, Stina Katarina Colgate UniversityLoureiro, Kiley Alice Providence CollegeLynch, Cristina Coudert Boston CollegeMalle, Lucien Colorado CollegeMarlowe, Jade Daniella University of ConnecticutMayer, Anne Elisabeth Colgate UniversityMiller, Alexandra Elizabeth Tufts UniversityMorin, Philippe Antoine Middlebury CollegeMorley, Georgia King University of RichmondMoser, Dylan Bolt Wesleyan UniversityMoulton, Aubrey Katherine The George Washington UniversityNam, Nicholas Bucknell UniversityNaqvi, Maria J. Colby CollegeO’Connell, Jack Ronan Dickinson CollegeO’Connor, Katherine Ann Occidental CollegeOzturk, Derin Deniz Georgia Institute of TechnologyOzturk, Erin Derya Harvard UniversityPatrina, Jolene Alysa-Mae Colgate UniversityPercival, Madeleine Anne University of RichmondPerkins, Caldwell M. Colby CollegePope, Austin Ratcliff Wesleyan UniversityPoston, Aaron Alexander Wake Forest UniversityPrendergast, Dalton Roger Williams UniversityPrete, Autumn Nicole Bryant UniversityPrice, Jackson LaRoche Skidmore CollegeRichard, Megan Labrie Hobart and William Smith CollegesRocco, Nicholas Peter University of Notre DameRohde, Chandler Matthew Union CollegeRubin, Aaron William Bowdoin CollegeRyan, David Kelly Trinity CollegeSandoval, Sally Spencer Dartmouth CollegeSavage, Katherine Amherst CollegeSenbahar, Oliver William Southern Methodist UniversitySeymour, Scott Ryan Denison UniversityShakoor, Unique N. The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillSimeon, Andrew Barrett University of VermontSkinner, Sophie Alexandra Southern Methodist UniversitySmith, Hadley Clare Fordham University Solomon, Jake Somerville College, University of OxfordSon, Jae Hyun New York UniversitySullivan, James Francis Furman UniversitySwenson, David Lathrop Dickinson CollegeTawney, Olivia Reyna Bentley UniversityTibbetts, Isabel Gwynne St. Lawrence UniversityTomcik, Bryson Garrett The George Washington UniversityTortora, Stephen Patrick University of DelawareTracy, Sawyer W.H. Southern Methodist UniversityWhite, Aliza Greenman Bates CollegeWilmerding, Nina Stoddard University of Denver

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Westminster News 05 22 2015