March 28, 2014

Castro Valley High SchoolM a r c h 2 8 , 2 0 1 4 www.cvhsolympian.comVolume 57, Issue 8

Supporters of affirmative ac-tion tried to bring race-conscious admissions back to California universities lately, but now the effort appears dead after the chief sponsor withdrew the measure from the state Assembly.

A resolution that seeks to amend the California Constitution and undo the work of Proposition 209 for institutions of higher educa-tion was recently approved by the California Senate. If the Assembly passes it also, voters will decide the issue.

Senate Constitution Amend-ment No. 5, authored by Senator Edward Hernandez, proposes “an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending Section 31 of Article I thereof, relating to public education.” The resolution explicitly exempts public educa-tion institutions of higher learning from provisions of Proposition 209.

In other words, SCA-5 would allow all state universities to con-sider race and gender in admission decisions. Using such criteria cur-rently is banned by Proposition 209, which voters passed in 1996.

For the past 18 years that Prop. 209 has been in effect, California was the first state to outlaw affir-mative action in public university admissions and became the most diversified state. The amendment would have restored racial and gender preferences in admission decisions,

Janet Chin, a media spokesper-son for Hernandez, claimed the proposed amendment would take steps to “ensure that universities reflect the diversity of the state.”

“Campuses have become less diverse since Proposition 209 passed. Underrepresented minor-ity groups, like African Americans and Hispanics need protection, and SCA-5 seems to correct this er-ror by securing the best students,” said junior Kiana Hosseinian.

In response to the State Sen-ate bill, Asian communities have begun online petitions against the measure, including one on the White House website. Saying it would drastically decrease the number of Asian students, oppo-nents of the move to take race and ethnicity into consideration in the admission process have ignited opposition throughout the state.

“That's morally wrong. I think

the community would be out-raged. You can't deny someone the opportunity to go to college based on things they can't control,” said senior Christina Yee.

A petition, titled “California’s SCA-5 is against the equal protec-tion clause of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution,” was in-troduced on Feb. 16 on the White House web site. It has attracted nearly 40,000 signatures, about 60,000 short of the number needed by March 18 to get a response from the White House.

Another petition addressed to California state Assembly mem-bers was started on Feb. 16 on change.org. By March 16, the peti-tion had about 112,000 supporters.

“It’s not fair. California passed Proposition 209 about 20 years ago; SCA-5 is the exact opposite of it. While Proposition 209 fights against discrimination, SCA-5 makes it legal to discriminate us-ing race and gender in admission process. If the amendment passes, then California would be taking a huge step backward in our prog-ress towards equality for all,” said sophomore class president Jessica Yin.

Senator Hernandez, a Los Ange-les Democrat and the bill’s author, expressed his desire to increase diversity on campuses and showed concern toward the percentage of minority students in the University of California system declining at an alarming rate.

“A blanket prohibition on con-sideration of race and gender was a mistake in 1996 and we are still suffering the consequences today,” said Hernandez.

The bill passed the state Senate in late January on a party-line vote but was unexpectedly resisted from Asian Americans who fear it will make it more difficult for their children to get into good colleges.

Over the last several weeks, the three senators who have been tentative about the referendum received thousands of emails and calls from constituents who con-cern that any actions to promote other ethnic groups would unfairly disadvantage Asian Americans to get into the highly competitive University of California system.

Senators signed a letter to As-sembly Speaker John Pérez, D-Los Angeles, urging him to stop the bill from proceeding any further.

The bill was dropped from the Assembly, Hernandez announced on March 17.

In response to California’s dry season, Governor Jerry Brown signed a $687 million drought-relief legislation pack-age on March 1. The package in-cludes goals to recapture storm runoff, use recycled water, and secure emergency supplies to communities that were hard hit by the drought.

The bulk of the funding – $549 million – comes from previously voter-approved bond money. Polluter fines have contributed to $40 million of the fund and the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund has given $20 million.

About $21 million will go to housing assistance and $25.3 million will go to food assis-tance for farm workers directly impacted by the drought. In addition to providing financial relief to those workers, the package will provide funds to help communities more effi-ciently capture drinking water.

The California Department of Public Health is working on

new groundwater replenish-ment regulations and also on us-ing storm and recycled water for non-drinking purposes with the State Water Resources Control Board. The bill also raises the fine on illegally diverting water.

By Rachel DuStaff Writer

By Sally LiangStaff Writer

Affirmative action for college debated

Juniors live it upat Prom

Page 5: Treasure Island memories Page 7: Swim teams slay Dragons!Page 2: Affirmative action aggravates

College admissions should be

merit-based

Trojans swim to victory

against O’Dowd

Junior Morgan Morris cries hysterically as she calls 911 during the Every 15 Minutes crash scene. For more about the safe driving program, see page 8.

A s s e m b l y s h o w s c o n s e q u e n c e s

Y i k e s ! D r o u g h t d a m a g e s

One drip per second wastes 27,000 gallons

per year.

“

”In short, the new package

focuses largely on communities directly drained by the drought and on increasing the efficiency of collecting water. Additional measures are increasing fund-ing to reduce fire fuels in fire-risk areas and providing one million dollars for the Save Our Water public awareness campaign.

According to Assistant Prin-cipal Matt Steinecke, CVHS has

already been doing a few things to conserve water, even though the district has not provided specific directions to deal with the drought. The synthetic turf of the Trojan Stadium saves the school water along with low-flow nozzles installed in the sinks.

“The biggest consumptions are the bathrooms, the baseball field, and the pool,” Steinecke said.

CVHS students are also con-tributing to conserving water at school.

“I save water at school by filling up on drinking water at home instead of at school,” said junior Alyssa Mitchell.

Junior Annie Yu also had a helpful tip. “I stop the faucet when I’m not using it, like when I’m putting on soap,” she said.

Additional measures to save water are cleaning paintbrushes in containers instead of letting the water run over them and reporting leaky faucets im-mediately – according to IBM, a leaky faucet going at a rate of one drip per second wastes 27,000 gallons a year.

felicianna Marquez / Photo Editor

By: Brittany RobertsShould colleges consider race in admissions?

College admissions should focus on qualities students can control

“Race should be taken into account when students apply for college so colleges can have diversity at their schools. But other things they should focus on are income and religious be-liefs.”

Gabriel Cowart,senior

“I would have to say yes and no to race being considered in college admissions because col leges should show diversity.”

Asmin Deo,junior

“No, because what race you are doesn’t matter. Getting into college should be based on how well you did dur ing h igh school, not by what the color of your skin is.”

Mattea Hartman, sophomore

“I don’t think race should be considered in college ad-missions. Race should not determine your intelligence as a human being. Every human no matter what race or color is the same under-neath their skin.”

Sarah Green, freshman

We at The Olympian are strongly opposed to Senate Constitutional Amendment Five, a measure to restore consideration of race to California university admissions. We feel that admissions should be based purely on academics and achievements rather than race.

For more than a decade, UCs and CSUs have been banned from using affirmative action in their admissions process. In 1996, Proposition 209 was passed, which took away colleges’ ability to base admission decisions on one’s eth-nicity or gender.

Then in January, the state Sen-ate passed SCA 5. If the Assembly follows suit, California voters will reconsider permitting affirmative action in college admissions.

But considering race in college admissions just seems unfair and a little unsettling. It almost seems as if certain demographics would suffer even though they have done nothing wrong.

Many would argue affirmative

action is beneficial to students. Some say that this is only a good thing for colleges and their student populations alike. True, it would bring a lot more diversity to col-leges which might be a good ex-perience for many students. Also, being able to consider race, ethnic-ity, and gender could open some doors for students who generally don’t receive the same opportuni-

ties as others. A number of kids ap-plying to college may never have been given the same resources as many others and this could finally give them the break they need. It definitely gives underrepresented groups a better chance at success.

Of course we want everyone to be given an equal opportunity in life, but we also do not think it should be given at the expense

of others who have worked just as hard or harder for it. It doesn’t seem entirely fair that incredibly hard-working individuals could lose their hopes and dreams be-cause colleges want more diversity for campus life.

For the record, Proposition 209 has been in effect for over ten years now and no one has seemed to have any problems with it, and it

does not seem to have any major negative effects on the college system.

Facing heavy opposition from Asian Americans, SCA 5’s support-ers pulled the measure from the Assembly, and for now it appears dead. We are glad. The Olympian says equal opportunities for all means no affirmative action in college admissions.

On Monday, Feb. 29 at about 9:30 a.m., I found myself sitting on a luxurious travel bus next to a shy sixth grade boy who seemed reluctant to be on his way to Ex-ploring New Horizons outdoor school. As a second-time coun-selor, my excitement was slightly diminished due to my knowledge of the responsibilities and chal-lenges that lay ahead.

However, I was still looking for-ward to spending my week with naturalists, a group of 11-year-old boys, and of course, 20 other awe-some counselors. There’s nothing like going on hikes, singing crazy songs about the tide pools and their inhabitants, and exploring the redwood forest.

Every day proved to be ex-hausting yet cheerful and positive even through all the difficult work we counselors endured, such as

telling children to stop talking and making soy butter and jelly sandwiches on the trail.

Over the course of the week, very little time was set aside for counselors to do homework or study for upcoming tests because of the responsibilities that come with watching over all the sixth graders. This led to a disastrous Monday when arriving back at school, worrying about a drop in grades or a test that I was not prepared for. However, I put what I had learned at outdoor school to use and stayed positive and made the best of being back in the real world.

Reflecting on my experience at Exploring New Horizons, I see the importance of the values and beliefs passed down from the naturalists and Principal Kodiak Bear to not only the sixth graders, but also the high school counselors.

Three main ideas that are em-phasized at outdoor school are a positive attitude, cooperation with others and taking chances. These guidelines are as applicable to outdoor school as they are to real life.

I felt elated being a part of the learning experience for Castro Valley’s sixth graders and fellow counselors. Overall, the journey to Camp Loma Mar was more insightful and fulfilling than any-thing I had experienced before.

With preparing for college ap-plications comes the inevitable stress of having to take the SAT. The length and difficulty of the test are things that most people have heard comments about. Those three letters bring in a whole new meaning to stress and worry.

Many of my friends have paid for expensive classes to prepare for the SAT in hopes of giving them a better chance to perform well on a test that seems to set the average student up for failure.

The College Board announced that it has decided to make adjustments to the SAT on Wednesday, March 5. The board announced that the test will have a scoring scale of 400-1,600, use simpler language, make the essay portion option-

al, and won’t penalize students for wrong answers! These are only a few of the changes Col-lege Board has announced for the SAT. In addition to this, the board has decided that it will be teaming up with Khan Acad-emy to create a practice test that will help students prepare for the SAT and make it more

By Luke BusbyStaff Writer

By Stephanie Huertafeature editor

accessible to the students who come from low income families.

When I read all this infor-mation, I was thrilled! I was thrilled until I read that the new SAT will be administered in the spring of 2016! Then, I was devastated. There I was sitting in front of my computer soaking in all this new SAT information,

feeling more confident about performing well on a test that I was sure I was going to do poorly on, when all my dreams shattered at the sight of four numbers, 2016.

While I won’t be enjoying the benefits of the new SAT, I can say that I am both happy and eternally jealous of the future generations of students. This new test is geared at helping students feel more comfortable with taking the test and as-sessing students in a more fair and relevant way according to what they’re actually learning in school.

For us juniors, we are stuck with the traditional SAT, and while we may not reap the benefits of an improved test, at least we can say we endured the “harder” and “traditional” SAT. We are stuck learning to take the test, memorizing vocabulary that we are more than likely to never use again in our life, and stressing over the possibilities of essay prompts that can be given. The only thing to remember is that after those four hours of long difficult testing, in the end we are worth more than the score we receive on the SAT. The fact that we are all people with culture, love, experience, and knowledge is worth far, I assure you!

Changes to the SAT coming in 2016

We are worth more

than the score we

receive on the SAT.

“

”

PHOTOPiniOnsPHOTOPiniOns

Outdoor school a rewarding experience

LiLy CarreLL / Editor-in-ChiEf

Editorial:

The Olympian March 28, 2014 3

Banner heads should go to key, important stories

The Olympian is a publication of the journalism class at Castro Valley High School, 19400 Santa Maria Ave., Castro Valley, CA 94546. © 2014

Editors-in-Chief.....................................................................Lily Carrell Reema KakadayCity Editor......................................................................Joyce Liang News Editor..............................................................Matt TalajkowskiOpinion Editor............................................................Suzanna ChakFeature Editors.....................................................................Eva Chen Stephanie HuertaSports Editor..................................................................Amanat RiarArts and Entertainment Editor......................................Leia Saelee Photo Editor........................................................Lauren Jelks Felicianna MarquezBusiness Manager......................................................Anna TalajkowskiOnline Editors........................................................................Kelly Chan Evan Kwong

Staff Writers: Cameron Beresini, Robbie Brandt, Luke Busby, Alison Dhont, Rachel Du, Sally Liang, Tyler Macias, Grace Moon, Anna Nguyen, Amelia Ortiz, Karla Paredes, Tyler Quan, Brittany Roberts, Callie Ross-Smith, Adrianna Vandiver and Daniel Witte

Advisor........................................................................Matt Johanson

Saturday School drains happiness

Saturday School is given to students with poor attendance of various kinds. It is not fun, but it is not that bad. Apart from the fact that it is on a Saturday and you could be sleeping in, some-times you just gotta do what you gotta do.

Let me walk you through what Saturday School truly is. First off, you have to get there early or else you’ll get kicked out and it will count as if you never showed up. After waiting, you’ll be sent down to the cafeteria, where you’ll sign

in and be assigned a seat. Once seated, you have to wait for the rest of the students to sit down as well (it’ll take a while, trust me). Then, you’ll be read the rules and warned about how things can go and how things will go.

You’ll be given the first two hours to work on whatever it is you need to get done. If you hap-pen to have nothing to work on, it’s okay. They’ll search up your classes and give you something.

Now be aware that not everyone is in there for the same reasons. And not everyone has the same patience or capability to sit in a room for two hours straight and say nothing at all. In my time there I did see a kid not being able to handle such pressure of peace and quiet, it didn’t turn out so great. He made a big scene and everyone was watching. This is how a bad reputation starts.

After two hours, you are al-lowed a 15 minute break. After the break you are brought back to your seat and you are to continue working for the remaining two hours, the slowest part.

Now, in Saturday School, you

should should be aware of the fact that they are trying to punish you by taking away your individuality. You are not you, you are the kid in the second table with the gray sweater. You have put yourself in a group of students where you are all the same. Forget the fact that you got caught in a tardy sweep and couldn’t make it to detention. In Saturday School, you are just the same as the kid who skipped detention three times and the girl who skipped every Monday of the school year.

Saturday School is not about you hanging around school for four hours, it’s about what you could’ve done in class when you weren’t there.

Now, I’ve shown you what my first and last Saturday School was, and as a fellow student and a staff writer of The Olympian, I suggest you stay away from Sat-urday School. I don’t know about you, but personally, spending my Saturday doing nothing in an absolutely silent room with 50 people is not my first choice, so I will definitely try to get to class on time from now on!

The conditions of the Sochi Olympics were a bit of a disaster, with unfinished hotel rooms, wild dogs, and terrorist threats, just to name a few. But while we can all scan our Twitter feeds for updates about bathrooms with no stall doors and broken door-knobs, a much more disturbing fault is also on the radar, one that has been taking place for centuries.

Russia’s anti-gay stance has been prevalent in its govern-ment and in its population, most recently have manifested itself in a new law banning LGBT “pro-paganda.” Passed in June 2013, the legislation bans distribution of LGBT information to minors and public exhibition of pro-gay material.

Anti-gay discrimination isn’t just a legislative issue, but also a social one. Violent beatings and humiliation of gays and activists are common and often overlooked by Russian police. Terrorist organizations such as Occupy Paedophilia post videos and pictures of the group luring LGBT teens to certain locations and then torturing them. To be openly gay in Russia is to as-sume regular discrimination and brutality.

The attitude of Russia towards the LGBT community can be

summed up by one phrase. Rus-sia does not use the terms “gay,” “lesbian,” or “homosexual.” Instead, these people are de-fined as “non-traditional,” as not normal. As not what they are supposed to be.

Although these views can be found across the globe, the scary thing about Russia’s course of action is that they target the younger generation. It is impos-sible to spread tolerance across a country and even the world if a child never sees it from the moment he or she is born. What are children supposed to think when they see gay activists be-ing arrested on the street? What message is being sent when LGBT individuals are beaten in front of them? How are they go-ing to feel when they see videos of their open classmates being ridiculed?

These laws not only spread hatred and fear, but are outright undemocratic. Russia masquer-ades itself as a republic by using a technique they’ve perfected over the years: It’s easy to pick a side when there’s only one choice available.

Countries have considered putting pressure on Russia to change its laws, a popular idea being to boycott the Olympics. This, however, is a solution that can never cause permanent change. You cannot fight hate with hate, nor can you fight a war about love with hate. The U.S. has taken an approach, as small as it seems, that has by far been the best path to acceptance. The U.S. sent a representative delegation to Sochi featuring both straight and openly gay members. It expresses our coun-try’s views and shows Russia that harmony can exist in a place of openness. But perhaps the best thing is that it gives the younger population an example of tolerance that they might not have ever experienced.

By Anna TalajkowskiBusiness Manager

What would you do if you had to spend an entire 24 hours with-out media? No smartphone, ipod, tablet, or laptop?

The National Day of Unplug-ging (NDU) occurred on March 7 and 8, and was a day that is meant to help everyone, especially the "techies," so that they take a break from technology for one day. It was created to give people a day of rest from the technological parasites that are stuck in people’s ears and the bright screens that are always shining in dark rooms.

I spent the day in what felt to be the Dark Ages, unplugged in

Disneyland. I was awakened by my roommates, yelling at me to wake up – even though I didn’t have an alarm to help me do so!

After that mess, my group and I headed down to Disneyland to have our character breakfast with Winnie-the-Pooh, Minnie Mouse, and more giant cartoon characters. Everyone managed to get pictures with them and I was so excited for my turn, until I real-ized I was unable to use a camera. I had to watch sadly as all my friends uploaded their pictures to Instagram, and Facebook, show-ing the world their happiness.

After I got over my breakfast depression, my group started traveling around the park, racing and running to our next ride. One time, I accidentally got separated from my friends in the crowd and debated on breaking my unplug oath so that I wouldn't be stranded alone. Luckily, after wandering for a few minutes I finally spotted them at the Star-bucks on the corner. After that, every time we wanted to go different ways we had to set up specific meeting points with exact times so I wouldn't get marooned

a second time.I spent the day realizing all the

technology I take for granted. I never realized how much tech-nology had invaded my life, and how I had simply accepted it as an extension of myself.

Cannot “fight a war about love with hate”

Honoring an “unplugged” day in Disneyland

By Adrianna Vandiverstaff Writer

By Karla Paredesstaff Writer

These days it is an abnormality to not own a cell phone, laptop, or tablet, when only a decade or two ago these things barely existed. Next time you go to school, try leaving your phone and iPod at home so you can realize exactly how much technology impacts our daily lives.

I never realized how

much technology had invaded

my life.

“

”

Karla Paredes/ Staff Writer

The CVHS Spirit Boosters held the annual Mr. CV event this year on Friday, March 14 in the cafeteria. Male students in the class of 2014 were judged by influential local profession-als to win the Mr. CV prize packages. This year ’s event was titled “Let the Good Times Roll,” and was highlighted with a masquerade theme.

Suited up in attire sponsored by Men’s Wearhouse, 23 con-testants competed for the title of Mr. CV. Alejandro Gonzalez and Lauren Korbas served as the MCs of the evening, and kicked off the event by intro-ducing each contestant with his self-written biography. The senior boys performed a group dance and worked hard to entertain the large crowd of parents and students.

Transitioning into the talent portion of the competition, each contestant performed either alone or in a group to showcase their skills. This ranged from playing electric

The Trevor Project is the leading national organiza-tion providing crisis inter-vention and suicide preven-tion services to youth, spe-cifically queer youth, who are three to four times more likely to attempt suicide than young people who identify as straight. In addition to offering the Trevor Lifeline, the only 24 hour hotline for LGBTQ adolescents in crisis at 1-866-488-7386, it provides numerous resources online for young people, adults and educators to learn more about how to prevent suicide and make schools safer.

The Trevor Project was cre-ated in 1998 by Randy Stone, Peggy Rajski, and James Lecesne, after the three had created an Academy Award winning short movie TREVOR, which centers on a 13-year-old boy, Trevor, who attempts suicide after struggling with the hard-ships of being openly gay in an unsupportive community.

With the film set to air on HBO, the founders wished to provide a resource to help youth like the charac-ter Trevor, and found none existed. The group set to cre-ate one, and when TREVOR aired, the Trevor Lifeline was launched for any LGBTQ

adolescent in need to reach out to for help. That night alone it received more than 1,200 calls.

Since then, the organization has expanded to include vari-ous other intervention services, education trainings, advocacy and more. In 2013, the Trevor Lifeline received over 36,000

By Anna TalajkowskiBusiness Manager

Mr. CV brings all the girls to the yard

Senior contestants for Mr. CV show their true colors after a silly and very successful event.

reeMa KaKaday / Editor-in-ChiEf

By Kelly ChanOnline editOr

guitar to dancing the dougie. Popular acts were dancing, singing, and combinations of both. One contestant stood out to everyone as he shook his hips to Kelis’ “Milkshake” while actually blending milk-shakes onstage and eventually serving them to each of the

judges. After the talent portion was

done, the audience got an intermission, where they had the opportunity to buy colorful desserts from the snack booth or be part of the 50/50 raffle drawing. Soon after, the top five contestants were named

and were up for the final chal-lenge: the Q&A. Rix Linayo, Kevin Garma, Nima Edalatja-vid, Anthony Lewis, and Tony Kawaguchi drew questions for each other to answer.

Finally, Linayo was crowned Mr. CV 2014, while Nima Edalatjavid placed as first run-

ner up and was voted People’s Choice by the audience. Joey Berube was honored with the Mr. Congeniality title for his positive attitude and active participation during rehearsals. Between Linayo and Edalatja-vid, prizes included Senior Ball bids, prom flowers from Castro Valley Florist and Gigi’s Florist, a senior portrait package, a haircut from Stacy Monroe’s Salon & Spa, and oil changes.

Proceeds from ticket and raffle ticket sales went to sup-port the CVHS cheer and dance programs. The CVHS cheer and dance teams, along with other volunteers, accompanied the boys in performances as well. They also performed multiple dance numbers with and with-out the Mr. CV contestants, while volunteers sold raffle tickets and worked at the snack booth.

Mr. CV left the audience lighthearted and entertained by the senior boys, who also seemed to have enjoyed their time onstage and cherished the experience with each other. Junior boys, don’t miss your chance to participate in Mr. CV next year!

calls and more than 100,000 youth reached out for support.

Luke Knudsen is a member of The Trevor Project Youth Advisory Council, a group of young adults who consult with the Trevor organization and help to spread its message. He describes the organization as impactful through its ac-

The Trevor Project: saving young lives

Luke KnudsenMember of The Trevor Project

Youth Advisory Council

Trevor is unique as an organization because it is

committed to providing

resources for all LGBTQ youth nationwide.

“

”

ceptance. “Trevor is unique as an

organization because it is committed to providing re-sources for all LGBTQ youth nationwide,” said Knudsen. “They are working to provide life-affirming, culturally com-petent outreach and support and are one of the few organi-zations nationwide who work to do so.”

Along with the Trevor Life-line, The Trevor Project also has online assistance. Trev-orChat allows youth to reach out for help through instant messaging, and is available every day of the week from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. TrevorText provides assistance over text message, and can be accessed on Fridays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Less urgent questions can be submitted online and answered by Ask Trevor. There is also a forum, Trevor-Space, for adolescents of any gender or sexual identifica-tion to talk to each other in an open environment.

Another resource is educa-tional materials for schools. Various lessons for students and teachers on creating safe environments and preventing suicide are available for free.

The Trevor Lifeline is avail-able 24 hours a day by calling 866-488-7386. TrevorChat, TrevorSpace and Ask Trevor can be accessed at thetrevor-project.org.

Please help save the planet and RECYCLE this newspaper

after reading!

The OlympianMarch 28, 2014 5

Juniors treasure memorable night at Prom

As I became a junior this year, there were a few experiences I ex-pected, like stressing over classes, calling myself an upperclassmen, getting ready for college, and danc-ing the night away at prom. Now out of all of these, I think you can guess which one I was most excited for: my first formal dance.

Don’t get me wrong; winterball, you try hard. But nothing beats the feeling of going into Move Over Princess and finally having a reason to try on the long glam-orous dresses. Even as I basked in the awesomeness of winterball, prom was on my mind. I thought over all the cliches I had heard and seen in movies, because, if there’s one thing we can agree on, it’s that prom is the most cliche night of our high school career.

Who's going to spike the punch? Which couples are going to break up? Who is going to cry in the bathroom? Which two best friends who always had romantic tension were going to find each other on the dance floor, look into each other’s eyes, and finally decide they were in love?

Needless to say, I was curious, excited, stressed, and nostalgic. With prom so close, I was remind-ed of the eight-year-old Lauren who watched every high school movie she could get her hands on, wishing to be prom queen.

Between my daydreams about how life would, for one night, be like a movie, I shopped for my prom dress, shoes, accessories and every little thing. My dad drove me to Trudy’s in San Jose, where I was able to find my dream dress (periwinkle with diamond band around the waist) in just over an hour. Next, I had to get my shoes (Payless) and subsequently get my dress hemmed (Dori Anne Veils). After that, I had to make my hair and makeup appointments (Rae Talbot Salon), while trying to fig-ure out what hair and makeup I wanted. Finally, I had to plan out what group I was going with, and above all, who my date would be.

And so, after eight weeks of spending, planning, and stressing, the junior class gathered at the Treasure Island Event Center, and got ready to boogie. Inside, a live

By Lauren JelksPhoto Editor

band played lively jazz music, a chocolate fountain beckoned, an (alcohol-free) bar clinked, and a DJ made the bass drop hard. Dur-ing those four hours inside, sur-rounded by my classmates, I didn’t have a care in the world.

The music was great, the per-fect mixture of current hits and rap that got people moving (they even played three slow songs). The ladies looked like a million bucks and the guys looked like they walked out of a catalogue. I saw so many people I cared about, all under one roof, all here as a sort of declaration. “Hey, this is the epitome of high school memories, and we’re here together. Besides the freshman dance and gradua-tion, this is one of the only times that we, as a class, come together for one special day.”

In the end, there wasn’t one thing I would change. My date was fabulous, grabbing me water whenever I got hot and politely putting up with my terrible danc-ing. All the friends I saw who I hugged and exchanged compli-ments warmed my heart. Maybe the punch wasn’t spiked, and I didn’t see any cliche love stories, but I do know that there is a reason prom is such a big event in high school. It’s the one celebration of the fact that here we are, getting ready to be seniors, celebrating our junior year, and making memories, together.

At the tender age of five, most children are learning how to spell their name, with no worries in the world. But that was not the case for Deng Ajak Jongkuch, one of the “Lost Boys of Sudan.” He was forced to flee his village without any guidance, and had to grow up in very poor condi-tions before getting the chance to move to America and receive a better chance at life.

Deng is from South Sudan, Africa; a country in the midst of its second civil war in 1983, when Deng was just a young boy. The government defeated the rebels but pushed them into the villages. Many of the villag-ers didn’t know anything about politics, including Deng’s mother who was illiterate.

As a result, thousands of peo-ple escaped in order to avoid being shot from rebels or the military. Deng, like thousands of other children his age, lost his parents in the crowd and didn’t know where to go. Going back to his village was not an option, as it was unsafe to return. So Deng started his three week journey with thousands of other children to Ethiopia, many of whom lost their lives and couldn’t make it to their final destination

“United Nations did not want to help because they thought we were war soldiers. Soldiers who were five years old?” said Deng, who told his story to CVHS stu-dents on March 19.

Soon after they reached Ethio-pia, they were kicked out as a re-sult of a military coup. They had two options: stay and risk being shot, or flee the area once again

with no clear plan of survival. Many made a getaway towards a nearby river but sadly, a few drowned and died. Those who made it, relocated to Kenya; this journey took them over a year by foot, as they trecked through dangerously mysterious jungles and ate whatever edible fruits or animals that came into sight.

“No shoes, no water, no blan-ket. You cannot imagine that,” Deng said.

When asked why he kept mov-ing on, and not giving up, his answer was simple, “The fear of dying.”

They eventually reached the Kakuma Refugee camp in Kenya. By now, many people had either died from the journey or were abducted by rebels. At this time, the UN had gotten involved providing food and water. To the children’s dismay, there was only enough food to last them a few weeks. So in order to survive on what they had, they split into

groups rationing the food among them so that only one group would eat one meal each day. It wasn’t enough to survive in a healthy way, but was still more than what they were used to for the past year.

“Can you only eat one meal a day?” Deng asked the stunned audience. “But we got used to it because it was all we were given.”

In Kenya, he started his first grade education using the sand as a place to do his arithmetic and practice his writing skills. It wasn’t until he was in the fourth grade that he received a pencil. After completing his high school education, the United States decided to help some of the children and take them to America to give them a better opportunity in life. There were seven interviews conducted to determine who would get to leave their terrible conditions. The first interview was done to

identify their background; most did not know their birth date, so they were given one. Deng was given Jan. 1, 1981 as his date of birth. In fact, most people were given Jan. 1 because it was the first day of the year.

“They looked at my face and asked, ‘Do you think you were born in 1981?’ I said yes,” Deng narrated.

Those accepted were excited to come to the U.S. Small things like stoves, the showers, lights and vacuums fascinated them, they had never had these re-sources. After three months of being trained in the American culture, they were sent off to be on their own. He had his first job at Pottery Barn Kids lifting large supplies which he found difficult and often felt frustrated when he could not understand his co-workers.

After three years of working there, he was found it hard to pay his bills so he decided to go for higher education.

He attended De Anza college in Cupertino where he did well in math and science but had trouble with english and all the essays he was required to write. He graduated in 2008 in Health and Administration and later attended San Jose State Univer-sity where he did his masters in Public Administration.

“It was still difficult, but that does not mean it can’t be done,” said an optimistic Deng.

He decided to go back to South Sudan, but there were no cell phones, no internet, no facebook to help him find and contact his family. Eventually he introduced himself to a family, but no one recognized him because he had nice clothes and shoes, which

was unusual for the people in Sudan.

The woman he thought was his mother couldn’t see his face properly, so she took some dry grass, lit it on fire and held it to his face. She couldn’t believe it was him, so she asked him what his nickname was and he replied, “Little Pumpkin.” The villagers started crying because they realized it was actually him and got excited, asking if he still remembered them. Deng was the first person during that time to revisit the village, so he had to tell other families what had happened to their children. Some had died or were in refugee camps, but others managed to make it to America.

He discovered there was a 90 percent illiteracy rate and that there were no roads or clean water around his village. After returning to America and giving a presentation of his trip to his class in SJSU, someone asked him what he was going to do to change fix that. He did not know at the time so people donated money and he raised $20. Seeing this as an incentive, he kept do-ing more presentations until he raised $4,000.

He went to Kenya and bought some necessities for the people in his village. After realizing how beneficial his help was, he gave another presentation at SJSU to get more money to build a school. After teaming up with Lisa Wade and the non-profit organization Impact A Village, they raised $25,000 in one year to build the new school.

“If people are educated, they are less likely to support the war. Education starts with young children,” Deng advised.

By Amanat RiarSPortS Editor

Deng Ajak Jongkuch: from poverty to prosperity

Deng Ajak Jongkuch illustrates his “Lost Boy of Sudan” journey to an entranced audience in the CFA on March 19.

JoycE Liang / City Editor

Banner heads should go to key, important stories

Growing up, Legos had been one of my favorite toys. While I failed to build anything more intricate than a multicolored, misshaped tower, the idea of a Lego movie brought back nostalgic memories, motivating me to leave the comfort of my couch to watch it in theatres.

The movie follows the story of Emmet Brickowski (voiced by Chris Pratt), a rule-abiding con-struction worker who discovers a foreign object, making him “The Special.” He becomes destined to save the world, and must leave behind his old lifestyle in order to stop the evil plans of President Business (Will Ferrell). On the way, Brickowski finds love, friends, and adventure, all while undergoing the process of self-discovery.

With an A-list cast including Elizabeth Banks, Morgan Free-man, Liam Neeson, and Channing Tatum, the characters are loveable and enjoyable for audiences of all ages. Cameos from different Lego

figurines are met with joy from children, while the subtle pop-cul-ture references and satire provide laughs for older audiences.

While the plot may come off as cheesy and predictable, the content makes the film worth seeing. The story is perfectly paced, allowing the audience to become attached to the story without compromising its

Fitz and The Tantrums deliver an upbeat mix of passionate lyr-ics and energetic vocals in their album, More Than Just a Dream. Their recent work blends together soul music with electronic, and sprinkles in lots of sugary pop to create a unique genre for their sec-ond album, released in mid-2013.

The band’s lead vocalist, Mi-chael Fitzpatrick, sings along with Noelle Scaggs for 45 minutes in 12 songs, and compels listeners with their lively combination. Throughout songs like “Out of My League” and “Spark,” Fitzpatrick and Scaggs are both grandiose and

On a slow Sunday night, I decided to pick up some dinner for my little brother and me at L&L Hawaiian BBQ. I had pre-viously eaten food from another franchise of L&L Hawaiian BBQ and was curious about whether this one lived up to the same expectations.

L&L Hawaiian BBQ is located right across from the Castro Val-ley Boulevard Safeway, in a little

Colby, a small town of beach houses, tourists, and seafood, is home to protagonist, soon-to-be college student Emaline in the novel The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen. Everything suddenly changes in the span of a summer (yes, it’s one of THOSE books).

As the book opens, we peek into Emaline’s family life. Her mom was pregnant with her while still in high school. Even though her parents and the boy’s parents did not want her to keep the baby, she did so anyway. Once out of high school, her mom began working at Colby Realty. Emaline’s mom married a widow when Emaline was two years old. She refers to her stepfather as “Dad” and her biological male parent as “Father,” to distinguish the emotional detachment.

Emaline suddenly receives a call from her father, even though they had not communicated for months. Earlier in the year, she had been corresponding to her father via email. They connected over literature, and her father offered to pay her tuition to Columbia University if she got in. However, when she did, her father withdrew his offer with-out much explanation, and their

“Everything is Awesome” in The Lego Movie

By Anna NguyenStaff Writer

witty and fun premise.The Lego Movie definitely lived

up to my expectations, leaving me feeling happy and optimistic at its end. Despite being kid-oriented, the movie remains one of the best animated features I’ve seen. Its message is inspiring, its effects mesmerizing, and its impression powerful.

emails ceased. She is hesitant to revive the relationship when her father when he comes to Colby from New York, but begins to develop her relationship with her ten year old step brother Benji.

Like all summer coming-to-age novels, there must be two boys: one the protagonist has been together with for an extended period of time and the other the new person in town. The Moon and More is no exception.

The new boy in town, Theo, is a college student working as an assistant to a documentary maker is in Colby find out more about Clyde, a local modern artist. Emaline becomes increas-ingly involved with him and the project (reluctantly).

Although there are common elements to other teenage novels (e.g. the dramatic change over a summer and the boyfriends), Dessen makes this book unique by creating interesting conflicts and dimensional characters. She weaves together different problems, making it all come together in the end, and moments of joy, sadness, and frustration in between.

It also overlaps with her other books (her stories all take place in the same world, with characters from other novels making brief appearances). The reader can connect to the characters in her highly realistic yet imaginary world.

Overall, The Moon and More is a novel worth reading, and I would especially recommend it to Dessen fans.

By Suzanna ChakOpiniOn editOr

Readers receive “The Moon and More”

dynamic, making their voices easy to sing along with.

The energetic spectrum featured in More Than Just a Dream never disappoints, making the album worthwhile. “The Walker,” for ex-ample, prepares audiences for the danceable energy unleashed onto them through melodic whistling and Fitz’s lyrics in the introduc-tion: “crazy’s what they think about me/Ain’t gonna stop cause they tell me so/’Cause 99 miles per hour baby/Is how fast that I like to go.”

On the other hand, melancholic but electro notes and backup vo-cals echo through “6AM” when Fitzpatrick and Scaggs sing about their missing love when “It’s six in the morning, I’m still awake/My sleepless heart is torn up, babe.”

Although emotion is evident in Fitz and the Tantrums’ music, the band also seems to convey too much drama in their album.

Soul music, which supposedly incorporates elements of R&B, jazz, hip-hop, and pop, demands continuous energy and groove. While the band obviously pelts listeners with energy, they are often overdramatic, and force the music to flow out of the album in an excess of funky saxophone jams and an overdose of piano ballads.

In fact, in the commentary for More Than Just a Dream, Fitzpatrick admits to having written “Fools Gold” after the album was almost complete. The band had written the final song in an attempt to “conjure up some magic,” but ended up creating a stale, not-so magical piece that mirrors every other song in the album.

Despite the album’s flaws that make it seem unnatural and forced, Fitz and the Tantrums have done more than created an album that’s more than just good. They’ve made music that’s great.

By Evan KwongOnline editOr

More Than Just a Dream is more than just good

By Eva Chenfeature editOr

corner in the small strip mall that also hosts Baskin-Robbins and RadioShack.

Upon walking in, bright orange walls, L&L Hawaiian BBQ mer-chandise, and tropical flowers greeted my roaming eyes. The menu had many options, including Loco Moco (consisting of ham-burger patties covered with brown gravy and topped with two eggs), Kaula Pork (smoked flavored shredded pork mixed with cab-bage) and Chicken Katsu (crunchy deep fried boneless chicken).

I ordered chicken katsu, Ha-waiian BBQ chicken, and spam musubi for takeout with an order total of $21.72, a decently priced dinner for two.

After a ten-minute wait, my

food was hot and ready with complimentary macaroni salad and sauce for the chicken katsu.

The first bite of the crunchy chicken katsu gave me the flavor of well seasoned and suc-culent chicken, but after eating half of the portion they served, my mouth felt dry. As for the the Hawaiian BBQ chicken, it was seasoned well with a nice grill on both side and a cabbage salad underneath; both plates were served with portions of rice. The spam musubi, on the other hand, didn’t live up to my expectations. The portion of the thinly sliced spam to the one-inch layer of rice gave me the feeling of eating a plain bowl of rice.

Local buzz about L&L Hawaiian BBQ

CamerOn BereSini / Staff Writer

Banner heads should go to key, important stories

B o u n d i n g B r i l l i a n t Ba l l e r s

Jennifer Lie, freshman Anant Tikku, seniorJosh Lam, juniorSpencer Dong, sophomore

Grace Moon / Staff Writer

Freshman Jennifer Lie has been playing badminton for about one and a half years. Though unable to pinpoint the exact date on which she started playing, she remembers her first time playing badmin-ton during the summer with her friends. It was a mere banter and hit and play, but she soon decided to actually learn and play competi-tively. Lie’s friend’s dad coached her and her friends every Sunday after church.

On the JV team this year, Lie likes playing badminton because of the fun competition that manages to brighten her mood and keep her in shape. She’s learned the importance of team spirit and enjoys meet-ing new people and forming new friendships.

Spencer Dong has been playing tennis for ten years, having started at five years old. Instead of being motivated to win, he plays because he appreciates the sport in every point, serve, backhand and volley.

In his second year on the CVHS team, Dong loves the fact that tennis helps him grow mentally and physi-cally. Undeniably dedicated, Dong explains that being on the tennis team made him see his teammates as brothers you could trust who had your back and could comfort you. For Dong, being on a team isn’t just about individual preference and technical practice, but rather about the constant bonding during practices and matches.

Has badminton been wrongly judged as an “easy” sport among many people? Badminton player Josh Lam believes so as he plays hard on the badminton courts dur-ing his after school practices and matches.

Having played badminton since freshman year, Lam thinks the best thing about badminton is meet-ing new people from both CVHS and other schools. The people in badminton are all around amazing people, Lam states, and he believes that it’s due to this factor that makes the game more enjoyable and entertaining.

He appreciates the coaches that constantly motivate the team dur-ing games and are always there for extra help.

Senior Anant Tikku has been seen on both the football field and in the pool. Both a captain and teammate, he’s learning and understanding the true meaning of work ethic and integrity.

Having played football for the past three years, and serv-ing as team captain this year, Tikku says that the role of being a captain is being someone who doesn’t take it easy at practice.

During spring, Tikku slices through the waters on the CVHS swim team. He has swam since he was eight years old, and now he usually swims butterfly and the individual medley during meets.

Chosen as one of the 16 nomi-nees of the Castro Valley Sports Foundation (CVSF) Hall of Fame is Marie Gray, who has dedicated 30 years to teaching and coaching high school sports. When informed that she was chosen, Gray was surprised and honored to accept the award.

Gray has won numerous awards while she coached the Trojan soft-ball team including 15 Hayward Area Athletic League Champion-ships. In 1993, Gray was named the All-East Bay coach of the year, and in 1997, Gray was also named North Coast Section honor coach. Although Gray has won several awards over the time she has coached, she feels that those rewards are not what is motivat-

Marie Gray scores special spot in CV Sports Hall of FameBy Tyler Quan

Staff Writer

ing her. “I’m not in it for rewards nor for

the record. It’s about the kids,” said Gray. “Each season is an opportu-nity for a group of individuals to come together to be the best team they can be.”

Gray is certainly devoted to her students. She doesn’t allow time for the students to slack off. She brings them to the point where they know and are focused on the goal that they must achieve.

“Mrs. Gray is a great teacher. She is awesome. She motivates us by giving us an incentive to work up to. She is working us to our fullest potential” said Alana Gusman.

Gray has been junior varsity volleyball coach, a basketball coach for ten years, a softball coach since 1991, and an athletic director for 16 years. Gray has maintained a perfect record of teaching and

coaching sports.Even in Gray’s high school

years, she participated in volley-ball, basketball, and softball.

Before teaching at CVHS, she taught at Gonzales High School in Texas where she taught softball, basketball, and volleyball. Gray was also a Castro Valley athletic director with Bill Davies for three years before she took over the posi-tion in 2010.

Gray has always been keep-ing her students up to task and pushing them to be the best. Gray hates to give up and because of her effort, she is able to win several rewards. Her history of playing sports, teaching and coaching sports shows that she's earned the spot in the CVSF Hall of Fame.

“I like to get each kid on board and ride that wave all the way to the end,” said Gray.

Coach and P.E. teacher Marie Gray reminds readers to always aim high!

tyler Quan / Staff Writer

By Alison DhontStaff Writer

Star wrestler wins 3rd at state in last tournament

Senior Rebecca Busch had a successful last wrestling tour-nament, as she placed third in the entire state on Feb. 28 and March 1.

In previous years, she had placed eighth as a sophomore and seventh as a junior in state. With this in mind, she set a personal goal to be in the top six for this season.

“With that goal and the knowledge that this tourna-ment would be my last, I was very driven to succeed at state. Of course, I was nervous, but I was ready,” explained Busch.

On the first day at the state tournament, she competed in three matches; she won two and lost one.

“Knowing that I couldn’t af-ford one loss, the second day of state went much better because I was motivated to win,” said

Busch.The next day, she brilliantly

won all five of her matches. Her last match was a tense one against a girl who had beaten her the previous day. But Busch didn’t let that get to her as she managed to beat her opponent and took third in the state.

“My family, teammates, and coaches had been watching and it was truly an incredible experience. It was the best way to end my wrestling career. I had exceeded my goals and I was ecstatic,” said Busch.

By Amanat RiarSportS editor

Senior Rebecca Busch

Trojan swim teams slay the Dragons

The Trojan swim teams slayed the Bishop O’Dowd Dragons on March 20.

The swim meet was held at our very own CVHS swim-ming pool and Trojans swam their hardest.

Before the meet, CVHS swim coach Brian Berry talked about what he expected from his team.

“I am confident that the team will perform very well today,” said Berry.

Castro Valley’s Tony Kawa-guchi pumped up his team-mates before the meet started with a great spectacle of rip-ping the head off of a small dragon dog toy. The show must have worked because the Trojans performed flawlessly.

“I feel great. It always feels

good to beat O'Dowd,” said Berry. “It is still very early in the season and we still have some stuff to work on, but over-all, we performed very well.”

The final scores proved Berry is doing something right. The

varsity boys team won 122-48, and the varsity girls team won, 100-70. Junior varsity boys won by 127- 36 and ju-nior varsity girls won by 131-39.

Every day, the swim teams spend long, grueling hours to prepare for their matches. After all the conditioning and practices, the hard work pays off.

“I am very confident that we will win first at WACC championships at the end of the swim season,” com-mented junior Sarah Yi on the teams’ progress. “So far, we haven't lost a meet and I’m expecting this winning streak to continue for the rest of the season!”

Come watch the Trojan swim teams practice after school on Wednesdays at the CVHS pool!

Junior Shelby Averil dives into the pool.

aliSon dhont / Staff Writer

The OlympianMarch 28, 2014 8

Every 15 Minutes teaches CVHS a lesson

By Matt TalajkowskiNews editor

Every 15 minutes, someone dies from an alcohol-related car crash. “Today, I died,” I wrote. Unfortunately, the rest of my letter to my girlfriend was washed out by a constant flow of tears that crinkled my paper and created pools of dark purple ink.

Fourteen hours earlier I smiled as my name was called over the loudspeakers. Walk-ing out of my classroom into the open air of the courtyard, I admired the sun shining down on my face. I watched the trees sway gently in the wind while I thought to myself how great

it would be to not go to math. I met up with my friend Alejan-dro on my walk to the Center for the Arts. We chatted and laughed about our day as we entered the CFA to get ready for the crash scene.

While inside the CFA, several nurses and teachers explained how our lives would change after the program. As I watched the stony faces of my peers, I smiled a little. I was strong since I’ve seen car crashes and seen them in movies too. I wouldn’t cry. Sure, it would be an emotional experience, but in the end, I would walk out the same person. Putting my joy-ful demeanor aside, I walked solemn-faced out onto the field to survey the crash.

The moment I heard the screech of rubber on asphalt, my mind split in two. I knew it was fake. We had just rehearsed this part of the crash and had just strewn fake blood across the windshield of the car. But as I watched my friends gasping for breath as they bled out onto the turf, it became increasingly more real for me. But I fought back the emotion, and contin-ued on with the assembly.

After the crash, we packed

our bags and began talking about the resort we would stay at that night. After a long bus ride, we arrived at our resort, put our bags in our rooms, and met in the lobby. It was a Thurs-day night and we were carefree and happy to be far away from homework and school, and felt invincible while we had our

“The things I loved most in life and how I lost them all”

The moment I heard the screech

of rubber onasphalt, my mind

split in two.

“

”friends around us. I couldn't have been more wrong.

The next 20 hours crushed me like the hundreds of im-pacts I was about to see. The images tore at me like broken glass and my tears ran as fast as blood dripping onto asphalt. Through the guest speakers and the presentations, I was strong. I sat tall and listened to one heart-breaking story after another. But it wasn't me. It wasn't my family and it wasn’t my friends. I watched

in horror as pictures of people mangled in cars flashed across the screen. So when leadership teacher Nick “Dubb” Whitaker asked us to do one last final activity, I did what he asked, and sprawled out onto the floor with my peers, feeling strong and relaxed.

Twenty minutes later, I tried to get up. I was curled in a fetal position gripping my pillow with white knuckles. My shirt was wet and so was the carpet around me from tears that were still streaming from my eyes. As I looked across the room, the social hierarchy of high school dissolved around me. The boys who I had regarded as tough were crying and shaking as they laid on the floor. The girls who had convinced me that they no longer showed emo-tion huddled together as they sniffled and wept.

As Dubb described the hor-rors of a drunk driving crash that had taken my own life, I envisioned the things I loved most in life and how I lost them all. I would never see that per-son that I loved, I would never eat that favorite meal. I would never do anything again. My life was over because someone

decided to drink and drive. Still shaken from the thought of my own death, I took a piece of paper like everyone else and began to write. I wrote to my parents and to my girlfriend, apologizing for all the things I had done and telling them that if I had one more minute, I would've told them I loved them before I left.

For 17 years I had been in-vincible. I had been strong and I had a future. But it only took one day for someone to con-vince me of my own mortality. Earlier that day, I had walked through the bright sunshine, felt the wind across my face, and took it all for granted. I sat on top of a hill with my friend and never once thought, “When I drive home today, I may never see him again.” I suddenly realized that ev-erything I had watched and heard in the last day could’ve been my story. It could’ve been me. But as I looked around the room at the red eyes and stuffy noses of people I barely knew, I felt safe because we were no longer naive. We had not died, but decided to live a new life, free from drunk driving.

Today, I do not have to die.