Four more years of Obama Moldova and its schools Almond cookies Seven Sisters play Boys Soccer TeamPhó for the belly

Opinions, 7 International, 8 La Marea, 12 Arts, 14 Features, 17 Sports, 19

News 2-4 Opinions 5-7 International 8-9 Center Spread 10-11 La Marea 12-13 Features 14-15 Arts 16-17 Sports 18-20

Many students consider school a second home. After all, most of them spend at least seven hours a day, five days a week, thirty-six weeks a year at school. It is only natural that students should be able to attend classes knowing that they will be safe from harm.

However, with all the recent reports of school shootings and other instances of violence in schools all around the country, some are beginning to question whether or not our schools are putting enough

A night of celebrating culture

CROWDING, cont. on page 3

Students feel safe in MCPS

MCPS security could improve

by Rachel Postby Jennifer Zhang and Nathan Li

Schools are supposed to be sacred institutions, places where students can join together in pursuit of their academic dreams. However, any incident where students or staff’s personal safety is compromised brings up the question: are schools taking effective security measures?

On the MCPS website, MCPS curtly states, “The Department of School Safety and Security is committed to promoting safe and secure environments for MCPS students and staff.” The website briefly states that

GOLD, continued. on page 6

Energetic music, exotic foods, intricate dances, and colorful clothing marked this year’s International Night, held on Friday, November 30. The annual event celebrated the diversity of the student body through a performance gala held in the auditorium, followed by a cultural

exhibition in the cafeteria. “Diversity is both a cherished

and important element of our society,” junior Jessica Li announced at the start of the gala. She and junior Mary Melati were the emcees for event.

The gala consisted of 19 performances, each highlighting aspects of culture from different countries. Most pieces were performed by ESOL students.

by Anagha Lockhande

School nears capacity

In the five minutes between classes, the halls are often bustling with swarms of students trying to get to the next period. It seems all high schools have the same issues of congestion and extreme hall traffic.

However, congestion is becoming an increasing problem. In recent years, the school has become more crowded with students, and this year our student body count is at a record high. The school is nearing its full capacity of 2,400 students with 2,123 students presently enrolled.

Because of this situation, there is a noticeable impact on class size, resources, and even school events like pep rallies.

With class sizes ranging from at least 25 to 30 people, the dynamic between teachers and individual students can become much less personal. “I wish classes were smaller so I could have the teacher pay attention to each of us individually,” said

freshman Payal Arora. Social studies teacher

Daniel Evans can attest to the increased number of students in classrooms. He stated, “Now I have 170 students in 5 sections, but earlier in my career I had 130-140 students. It used to be 20-25 students per class but now there are usually at least 32 students.”

He attributed this change to “a growing student population and a diminished county budget.”

Counseling department head John Randall stated, “[There are] no more than 100 extra students between this year and last year. Next year though, the projection is that we’ll grow a little bit.”

Since some teachers have larger amounts of students than before, some are relying more on lunchtime to provide individual help. Physics teacher Jon Goetz frequently tutors during lunch, helping students from his class understand the concepts of special relativity or particle physics.

“The increased number of students has effects at the margins, [but they are] hard to measure.

by Nikita Sardana

BlackB

security measures in place to prevent such tragedies from occurring again. Though schools strive to create a perfect system of security, the unfortunate truth is

that no amount of equipment, no amount of personnel, no amount of funding will be able to create a foolproof security system. It does not matter what kind of programs and equipment we implement in schools, there will always be those who compromise safety and there will always be those who will bring weapons to school. And at some point, any given security system will inevitably have flaws that allow a breach of security to occur.

That being said, our current security measures are among the best that can be practically and effectively implemented within a public school. 84 percent of high schools, 73 percent of middle schools, and 51 percent of primary schools reported that they already use security cameras to monitor their schools, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Schools are already doing their best to monitor any suspicious behavior.

Most proposed additional security measures are usually impractical and are always expensive. For example, metal detectors are one of the most commonly suggested additions to a school’s security arsenal. Parents who propose the installation of metal detectors, however, usually overlook potential problems in their implementation.

their security goals are to continually provide 24-hour security, work with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, to coordinate security programs and initiatives.

MCPS has established The Educational Facilities Officers, which hired 32 new police officers to take up positions in schools. They have also hired police officers renamed “School Resource Officers” to cover high schools located in their respective districts.

However, even with these security measures, MCPS has back-tracked on their own progress with budget cuts. In 2011, MCPS‘s budget abolished 16 Educational Facilities Officers, in effect halving the program, for a projected savings of $1,960,460.

But should a student’s safety and the security of a school be sacrificed to cut costs?The answer is no. Ultimately, after academics, security is an utmost concern in public

schools. Students expect and deserve a safe learning environment. Unfortunately, even though MCPS has worked to provide safety in schools with some security measures, the amount of security breaches are unreasonable. Apprehension about violent incidents in schools takes away from the quality of education.

An October 2012 article from the Washington DC Examiner states that at least one quarter of students in 22 of MCPS middle and high schools say that they don’t feel safe at

BLACK, continued on page 6

CULTURE, cont. on page 9

The event allowed students who generally do not participate as much in class or in other activities to perform for a welcoming and encouraging audience of friends and family.

“Well the best thing is see kids who are sometimes quiet in class who get out there and do their thing and you get to see how really talented they are,”

Senior Meem Haque and sophomore Nashra Zaman sing Safe or Sorry in Bengali during the gala.

GGold

PHOTO BY DIANE KEUNG

PHOTO BY RACHIT AGARWAL

2 NEWSThe Tide December 2012 NEWS IN BRIEF

Junior Gabby Brooks was selected as a member of the Washington Post’s Young Journalists Development Program. She had the opportunity to attend workshops and seminars, as well as receive scholarships. In addition, she was published by the Washington Post during the summer.

Sophomore Mikaela Walker was chosen to serve as a student representative on MCCPTA Curriculum Advisory Committee. She will act as the student voice on the board.

AWARDS

New Years DayHappy new years!

Winter BreakNo school for students and teachers.Dec 26-31

December/January

Jan 1

Jan 14 First day of examsGood luck (but we hope you don’t need it).

Dec 24-25 Christmas Eve and ChristmasTime with family, and more importantly, no school.

by Sedef Berek

Obama grants federal aid to Maryland after Sandy

Hurricane Sandy breezed through Maryland without extensive damage to Montgomery County, causing an extra two day break for students. However, on November 20th President Obama announced that federal aid would be provided to the state to cover the costs of storm damage.

MCPS granted an extra two days off in anticipation of the storm. Nevertheless, the D.C. metro area remained relatively unaffected by the storm in comparison to the rest of the state of Maryland.

In Western areas, Hurricane Sandy caused power outages due to the snowfall that came with the storm. Additionally, the downed trees in forested regions contributed to a loss of power for over 20,000 people in the area.

Earlier in November, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley sent a letter to Obama requesting aid in rebuilding after the storm. Local and state resources were quickly overwhelmed by the damage of the storm.

Now, Maryland legislators are applauding Obama on his decision to grant federal money in state reparations. Although the total reimbursement amount will not be known until much later, it will still provide much needed support to businesses and lives affected by the storm.

The federal aid will be distributed through state and local organizations, as well as some non-profits.

by Sarah Wu

Dec 12 Winter Choral ConcertStarts at 7:30 PM in the auditorium.

Senior Zack Young wakes up every weekday at 5:30 AM. He catches the bus an hour later. He rolls into school a minute before the bell sounds at 7:20.

And then he falls asleep in first period Theory of Knowledge.

Maryland counties have been considering the effects of starting the school day later than 7:25 for high school students and moving the younger students to an earlier time slot. According to WUSA, “Arlington and Loudon counties start school later” while Fairfax and Montgomery Counties start earlier. The former counties begin at 7:50 AM for middle school, anywhere between 8:00- 9:00 AM for elementary schools, and 8:15 AM for high school.

On October 15th, Montgomery County parent Mandi Mader created an online petition in support of pushing the school day back. Since then, 9050 signatures as of November 19th have been added, according to WUSA. The petition asks for a high school starting time at 8:15 or later. The petition will be presented to the School Board later this month.

Mader, a parent of both a sophomore at Walter Johnson and a sixth grader at Tilden, started the petition in October as the “first act of the Montgomery County chapter of national advocacy group Start School Later”, according to an interview with WTOP.

However, this change brings both supporters and critics. Critics say that the plan would complicate existing policies and schedules for students, parents, and teachers. But, the supporters focus on the benefits of sleep, the productivity of students, and the dangers of driving in the mornings. However, the critics point their attention to the plan’s interference with school and extracurricular activities, including school athletic teams, the busy schedule of students, and the schedules of parents with students in different school systems.

Supporters of the petition cite research from sources including Harvard Health, Web MD, and

MCPS petition circulates, calling for later start times at school and more sleep for students

the National Sleep Foundation, that states that students who wake up later are more likely to stay in school, perform better on assessments, and socialize more. In the petition itself, supporters believe that “school attendance will go up, tardiness [will] decrease... and students will report less depression and irritability.”

Annual senior MOMA trip postponed

The International Baccalaureate program seniors traditionally embark on a trip to the Museum of Modern Art during the second quarter, in accordance with the Theory of Knowledge class’s art unit. Originally planned for November 30th, the trip was cancelled by Montgomery County Public Schools, along with all other trips to New York City, due to damage caused by Hurricane Sandy.

Because the MOMA trip would not be affected by closed subways or other damage, the history department attempted to appeal the cancellation but ultimately failed. Currently, the teachers planning the trip are in the process of receiving approval from MCPS for the trip to be postponed to a later date. However, according to Theory of Knowledge teacher Robert Thomas, RM lost its tour slot and MOMA tours are booked throughout December. Because reserving a tour is required for a group of over 100 students, the trip will have to be postponed to an even later date, if it occurs at all.

If MCPS is to approve a trip to New York City, the trip will most likely take place sometime in the spring.

by Alicia Loh

Sophomore Mina Haque is fully behind a later school day. “The [teachers] over stress us by giving us so much work...when we finish at 1 am, we still have to get up at 6 am and do it again. We are expected to be alert and take quizzes and be at a competitive level at all times” said Haque.

This opinion is shared by junior Sughra Hasan who simply “likes coming home early in the day,” adding that she just wished “there were more hours in the day.”

However, opponents of the petition believe that by pushing the school day forward, the hour that students gain in the morning will be taken from their sleep. With extracurricular activities and heavy course work, students have to study until midnight later on average and pushing that time further would not balance the hour that they would gain in the morning.

Sophomore Claire Liu believed that “sport practices would end at 6 or 7 pm and thus it would be harder to schedule after school activities.”

Other arguments against the petition include the fact that the current schedule matches the schedule for most businesses and

acts as preparation for college and future jobs. Spanish teacher Aaron Trovillion supports having the petition as a means of expression but opposes the later school time, having noticed that “students are no more productive if they start school later” and recommended instead that “students learn how to manage their sleep.”

Sophomore Nancy Jin disagrees with Trovillion’s claim and noted that “[she] knows [she] would be more awake at 8 am versus 6 am... the reason everyone is tired is because they wake up so early not the fact they go to bed late.” If the petition passes, it would be costly for the school transportation system, which already has to make multiple rounds starting with high school students and ending with elementary school kids.

A Washington Post article predicted that changing the schedule by just forty-five minutes would add an additional one million dollars to the cost of transportation for the county.

Overall, the petition is en route to the School Board; but no matter the result, it will require flexibility and time management from the students and parents.

Sports, such as ice skating and swimming, offer early morning practices so that students can make informed choices about their extracurricular schedules.

There are certainly mixed opinions about the petition and its possible effects, but it all comes down to the bringing the maximum benefit to the students of the county that is possible.

Senior Zack Young is one of the students who catches the bus early in the morning. A petition has circulated MCPS calling for later start times to allow students to sleep more.

PHOTO BY DAVID CHEN

The sports article headlined “Football fights for a playoff spot in October” was mistakenly attributed to Matthew Szwerc and Samuel Deutsch. Kyle Deppe and Krishnan Patel were the writers.

Last issue’s editorial said, “Homecoming costs have risen recently between the increased costs of tickets, formalwear, and dinner.” To clarify, homecoming ticket prices at Richard Montgomery have not risen in the past 5 years. The writer meant to convey that across the country, the average cost of homecoming has risen.

CORRECTIONS

Students compete at annual Final Frontiers competition

The 2012 Montgomery County Final Frontiers Science Competition was held on November 10th at Wootton High School. Sponsored by the Maryland Space Business Roundtable and the Maryland Space Grant Consortium, Final Frontiers encompassed multiple events structured around engineering and physics.

Teams from RM entered all six space-based events, including the Aero Car, Shuttle Arm, Lunar Bridge, Newton’s Nightmare, Golf Ball Barrage, and Mystery events. Juniors Milka Piszczek and Suzanne Xu prevailed in the Lunar Bridge event, beating out the competition by building the lightest balsawood bridge able to hold a brick for at least ten seconds.

In Newton’s Nightmare, a team competition to solve a series of space-related problems, freshmen Grace Cheung, Jesse Huang, and Medha Reddy placed second in the Grade eight—nine Division, while seniors Kathleen Yu, Joseph Wu, and David Zhang placed third in Division II. Physics teacher Kevin Martz judged the event.

Constructing a device that launched a golf ball over a barrier, aiming at a target on the floor, juniors Sasha Maldonado, Kate Weishaar, and Lizzie Hamer won third place in the Golf Ball Barrage. Finally, the entire Richard Montgomery Final Frontiers team came together to take third place in the Mystery Event, an engineering event with the details revealed on site.

by David Zhang

stat box - can include graphic from connie if we need to use space

by Dahlia Wilson

NEWSThe Tide

A review of this election’s most debated referendums

3December 2012

The DREAM Act is a law that grants an in-state tuition discount to undocumented college students. The law won voter approval in a referendum; Governor Martin O’Malley himself called it a “tremendous victory,” according to the Gazette.

Part of what makes the act controversial is the popular vote that it pulled throughout the state. Only about a dozen other states have laws that are similar to this one.

Last year the law won approval from both the Democrat-controlled General Assembly and Governor O’Malley. However, the issue landed on the ballot after critics collected enough petition signatures to force a referendum on whether to uphold the statute.

Spanish teacher Roxanne Hodges said, “I personally know a number of students who will benefit. It provides a pathway to working harder towards higher education.” An extra push to reach for a higher education may be all that some students need for further self-improvement.

As for the issue of being saddled with large university debts, local students are already suffering from financial difficulties. The portion of the law that dictates in-state tuition rates will help those falling into a lower-income tax bracket. “It’s not like it’s free public education over all, they’re still paying for it,” said English teacher Michael Oakes. Community colleges will still be generating the same amount of revenue from students who utilize the DREAM Act as those who do not need the DREAM Act.

Some now fear possible overcrowding in community colleges as more students gain the financial means to enroll. However, Mrs. Hodges said, “Colleges will probably see an increase in students, but that’s not a negative thing; it just helps their educational programs grow.”

The campaign to pass the expansion of gaming and gambling in Maryland marked the most expensive and extensive political media campaign in our state history. The law allows for casinos to offer table games, such as blackjack and roulette, and also allows a single casino to be built in Prince George’s County.

When the General Assembly debated the proposition in August of this year, it included a provision requiring that a majority of Prince George’s County residents approve the measure in order for a casino to open there. Returns from that county showed a solid margin in favor of the measure.

Two rival casino companies, MGM Resorts International and Penn National Gaming, combined funneled more than $80 million into the campaign. MGM was hoping to build a glistening new casino and resort complex at National Harbor.

Penn, recognizing a possible threat to its hotspot gaming place, Charlestown Races and Slots in West Virginia, matched MGM penny for penny in an attempt to defeat Question 7.

Slots are already legal, so many politicians thought that the expansion of gambling to include table games was only logical. The Prince George’s casino in particular though, drew the most divisive line between politicians and voters alike.

Proponents of the law cited the promise for an increase in jobs and that revenue from the casino was to be spent on education. Opponents stated that, although revenue from the casinos would be earmarked for education, funding for education would be pulled from elsewhere. Additionally, opponents believed that the casino would result in violence.

Rawlings-Blake—a major monetary supporter of MGM and a Question 7 supporter—said, “benefits of table games would outweigh any disadvantages from increased competition.”

But at the end of the day, the outcome was in the people’s hands, not the big businesses’. The vote came in at 52% for and 48%, and resulted in a very narrow yet victorious margin for MGM.

Voters in Maryland passed many liberal referndums during the recent election. Governor Martin O’Malley is surely pleased at the passing of three major political referendums on his agenda: the DREAM Act, the Civil Marriage Protection Act, and Gaming Expansion. However, the votes were not unanimous. Each subject had been debated for months, if not years.

“It’s a big party in the LGBTQ community,” Allison Truland, President of the school’s Gay Straight Alliance club, claimed of the recent passage of the Civil Marriage Protection Act.

Although the law was approved by Maryland legislators earlier in the year, opponents such as the Maryland Marriage Allegiance collected enough signatures to force the proposed law into a referendum. However, there was an important element to the newly-passed law that redeemed it in many people’s eyes: protecting religious leaders from performing marriage ceremonies that they believe are against their faith.

Same-sex couples will now be able to receive civil marriage licenses from legal offices, and these licenses are exactly the same as the ones opposite-sex couples currently receive. But as Truland explained, “so long as the federal Defense of Marriage Act is in effect, the Full Faith and Credit clause of the Constitution does not apply to same-sex marriages, and such marriages may or may not be recognized in other states based on the same-sex marriage policies (or lack thereof) in those states.”

It is obvious that the United States still has a long way to go in pursuit of equal rights for members of the LGBTQ community. Sophomore Charlie Kang was not necessarily in favor of the new law. “I feel like the social issues get too much attention in politics while economics has been downplayed,” he explained.

But according to the GSA, LGBTQ rights are not an issue of politics or policy. “Maryland has successfully righted a wrong. We haven’t given our citizens new rights; we’ve only restored the rights that were rightfully theirs. This systematic oppression of our community has gone on long enough,” said Truland.

As long as the rest of the country stays unappreciative of Maryland’s homosexual couples’ new marriages, the act will have little impact, confined only to our state. America’s true views on the subject will be made clearer only when federal laws are passed protecting homosexual marriage.

STATISTICS FROM THE MARYLAND STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS

4,000 students were susceptible to anaphylaxis attacks from 2011 to 2012, according to a memo released by Montgomery County Public Schools.

Anaphylaxis is a life-threatening type of severe allergic reaction to drugs, foods, insect bites, or other stimulants. Signs include shortness of breath, low blood pressure, hives, and abnormal heart rhythm.

An epi-pen, the advised treatment for the reaction, is a single-dose, prefilled automatic epinephrine which is used to treat a variety of allergic reactions, including anaphylactic shock.

Student Member of the Board of Education John Mannes has experienced allergies all his life.Mannes stated, “I have suffered with severe food allergies and anaphylaxis starting at a very young age to milk, eggs, dairy products, peanuts, tree nuts and all nuts in general.”

Maryland lawmakers passed legislation that requires all school systems to create policies outlining the administration of emergency

care for students. In response to this legislation, the MCPS Board approved a policy explaining what kind of emergency care should be given to students experiencing anaphylaxis.

According to the new policy, a trained staff member is allowed to administer the epinephrine regardless of whether the student has previously been identified as susceptible to anaphylaxis.

“The whole legislation was [spurred by] two deaths of students in North Carolina and Chicago. One girl ate a peanut on the playground and had anaphylaxis and died because the school didn’t have epi-pens on hand,” explained school nurse Teresa Perez.

Although many students know of their susceptibility to anaphylaxis, some students remain unaware of their condition until a reaction occurs. Last year, anaphylactic shock came as a surprise to 27 out of the 97 MCPS students who experienced it, according to MCPS.

Despite concerns of improper administration, there are no permanent medical side effects posed by the injection of

MCPS passes new epi-pen policyby Jay Huang and Dahlia

Wilson

I haven’t noticed too much in the classroom as the students are generally well-behaved but it increases the workload [for teachers],” noted Mr. Evans.

To combat the consequences of larger classes, social studies teacher Todd Stillman suggested, “If you’re a student the key is to get involved and stay engaged. Don’t just be a face in the crowd. Find a niche and participate in a community.”

However, larger class sizes can also have a positive effect on learning. Freshman Kevin Ying said, “Having more classmates isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It contributes to a better conversation between the students, and more resources for students to go to if they have questions.”

Mr. Randall noted that “as the number of students rises, the number of classes rises too,” but admitted “the only potential problem is the availability of classrooms but that’s where portables come into play.”

Other downsides show in consequent shortages of computers, textbooks, and other learning materials. A laptop cart from the media center holds around 18 laptops, which is not enough for many classes of 20 to 30 students.

When asked about the subject of fewer resources, SGA president Alex Bazán said, “I don’t believe that there is a lack of resources, but I have been in a few situations where there were not enough computers in a lab for the class.”

He added that in many of these situations, there was simply one or two malfunctioning computers, but as the student count goes up, it is possible that there will really not be enough for everyone to use their own.

Aside from resources and class sizes, social events have been affected as well. Bazán said, “In past years, we were able to have one pep rally for all grades but recently, we’ve had to adjust to a double pep rally since our gym cannot contain all the students.”

In the future, changes may be required to counter growth. Portables can make it difficult for students to get from class to class, but building an extension to the school can be costly and can take a significant amount of time. Hiring more teachers can also strain the school budget. However, it seems that eventually the school as well as MCPS will have to reach a decision about how to fix the problem.

Still, students are confident that the growing population does not create any tensions in the dynamic of the school--in fact, it brings everyone closer together. “There’s just so much out there in terms of people. You can meet new people at any time, and you can find people with similar interests for almost everything,” said Ying.

Bazán said, “We have students coming from all over the county, so [the school is] even more diverse than may have thought before. I enjoy being united [with] all of the students by all being Richard Montgomery Rockets.”

epinephrine. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, side effects include upset stomach, sweating, and dizziness.

Epi-pen user and sophomore Ryan Liiva agrees with Mannes’ sentiment. “No one is allergic to the epi-pen because it’s basically just adrenaline,” he said. “I would be happy if my life were saved.”

However, many people agree that the best solution to the problem lies in making sure the susceptible students avoid exposure to their specific allergens in the first place.

Mannes stated, “These changes [in the policy] now were state changes, not about prevention, and more about response. I think that where we need to looking at now is more towards prevention.”

He continued, “ Personally, I know Shirley Brandman (the President of the Board of Education) expressed this as well, that we feel that the school system can do more especially in curriculum and in the classroom in relation to food and students with allergies.”

School enrollment growsCROWDING, cont. from page 1

0.3 mgAmount of epinephrine usually in an injection,

according to Lincoln Medical LTD

10 secondsHow long a patient holds the epi-pen in place as the

epinephrine is injected, according to BMJ Group

16-35 %Percentage of anaphylaxis attacks were a second dose was needed, according to

BMJ Group

Epi-pens by the numbers

4 NEWSThe Tide December 2012

Photo of the Month

SGA considers a winter dance after complaints of homecoming music

Homecoming is supposed to be a modern day fairytale; students dress up and are whisked away to a fabulous ball. Every detail is meant to be perfect.

However, many students found this year’s homecoming music to be lacking due to technical difficulties experienced by the DJs. Students complained, so the DJ offered its services for another event at a discounted price.

The offer lead to the Student Government Association to consider a winter dance. “The DJs for homecoming felt very badly that the speaker blew out, and so they’ve offered to give us a dance at a very...reduced cost,” Mrs. Kellinger said. “[The SGA] thought, ‘Well, why not just have another one?’”

Although there is no guarantee that these plans will come into fruition, the SGA discussed the idea of a winter dance at the November general assembly.

Senior Maggie Drummond, SGA representative for her class, stated the

“Out hustle, out work, out think, out play, out last.” Such was the mindset of the Powderpuff participants, both players and coaches alike, as they prepared for the event on November 13th. Powderpuff is a flag football fundraiser where girls and boys switch places; the girls play football, while the boys cheer.

The proceeds of the annual game are sent to the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. The first Powderpuff game was held in 1988. History teacher and SGA sponsor, Toni Kellinger, has sponsored Powderpuff for the past ten years. First, the juniors play against the freshmen. Second, the seniors play against the sophomores. The winning teams of each game play in the final championship round. Traditionally, the seniors tend to prevail.

Surprisingly, a crisis occurred this year when the junior class could not conjure up a team on time. Coaches desperately extended deadlines. Determined members of the SGA used social networking to seek out the remaining number of necessary participants. The lack of players was shocking to some students because, as junior Pamela Alegre said, the junior class “prides [itself] on [their] pep.” Gradually, days before the game, a few brave girls stepped up. The team’s only practice was on the day before the game and lasted a total of thirty minutes. Despite the setbacks, one of the junior coaches Zach Blanken never lost hope and said that he had “complete faith in [the] girls.”

Upon arriving to the game,

friends and parents saw the freshman and juniors beginning to warm up. According to freshman Colleen Adams, the freshmen had had “3-4 hour long practices” prior to the match.

To kick off the game, freshman MVP Christina Brown scored the first touchdown within approximately 7 seconds. Junior Nicole Burchett was primarily invested in blocking Brown from further touchdowns. A tight battle raged throughout between the two teams. Juniors began to pull away at the last minute, as Kayla Sukri and Burchett scored back-to-back touchdowns. The game ended with a final score of 35-21, in favor of the juniors.

As temperatures began to drop, the concession stand began to flourish. Speculators grabbed their cup of hot cocoa and sat down to watch the seniors versus sophomores. The seniors confidently stepped onto the field. Senior Tise Taiwo scored the first touchdown, feeding the seniors’ confidence. Perhaps a little too confident, two seniors were simultaneously injured on the field. This allowed the sophomores to advance by two points, taking the lead. However, as is tradition, in the end the seniors triumphed.

During the halftime performance, the Boms received a warm welcome as they jogged onto the field. Senior coach Steven Burchett was one of the participants. According to Bomsmember junior Jonathan Huang, it was a “fantastic” performance and experience for the BOMs.

Juniors and seniors faced off in the championship game. Taiwo started the game off with a touchdown for the seniors. Juniors on the side huddled together and cheered their teammates

on. Soon, the juniors scored and the atmosphere turned serious. Eventually, juniors took the lead. Alegre, surprised, noted that the juniors played “pretty well with only one practice.” The junior winning streak ended, however, seconds before the end of the game, when senior quarterback Megan White scored the winning touchdown.

In the end, the zealous seniors achieved their goal. Persistence, determination, and support from effective coaches resulted in their triumph. Senior Megan Yan stated that the seniors won because “[we] wanted to win more than any other team”.

According to senior Natalie Salive, they “got together, worked together….and gave [their] all.”

When asked what she will do after winning the game, Tise responded “I will go home and eat!”

Adams remembers the game as being “lots of fun” and is

Students turn up to watch seniors win Powderpuff gameby Amanda Behdin and

Wendy Risso

PHOTO BY CYNTHIA SONG

PHOTO BY RAGHAV MEHRA

excited to participate again in the future. Alegre, as well as Mrs. Kellinger, enjoyed “the spirit exemplified by the teams.” For any girls skeptical of joining

Powderpuff, Alegre reminds them that it is an opportunity to “show the boys that [girls] have just as much school spirit as they do.”

Above: Seniors and sophomores players battle for the football. Below: Senior Megan White outruns a sophomore into the endzone. Seniors beat both the sophomores and juniors.

The Rockville Town Center ice rink opens with a laser show and fireworks on Friday, October 26. The ice rink is a popular student attraction.

PHOTOS BY CONNIE CHEN

by Audrey Carleton and Tara Bhardvaj

dance may be held in “December... [but it is] not set in stone.”

After further consideration of logistics, the SGA, however, may move the dance to after semester exams.

The twist for this winter dance lies in its Sadie Hawkins theme. Originating in the 1930s, Sadie Hawkins dances are usually more casual, and as tradition goes: the girls ask the boys.

The SGA historically has refrained from holding winter dances but SGA sponsor Toni Kellinger said, “We are always looking for new activities that students can participate in.”

Sophomore Richie Yarrow said, “If there are enough volunteers, if it is affordable to the SGA, and if it benefits the student body, then the SGA should by all means pursue it.”

The winter dance would also be less expensive and more convenient than the other school dances.

“We’re hoping to keep the cost down to the $6-$8 range, so it would be cheaper, and just more relaxed,” said Mrs. Kellinger.

Last year, the SGA tried to plan a similar winter dance in tandem with the winter spirit week and winter pep rally, but it was unsuccessful. The “Snowball” dance was eventually cancelled, because the ticket sales were too low. This year though, a number of students demonstrated interest in attending a winter dance.

Sophomore Carmen Winkler likes the idea of holding another dance because of previous positive experiences at school dances. “Homecoming is always fun, [and] this dance would be less expensive, which is always a plus,” Winkler said. “If it does happen I’d definitely go.”

However, Winkler expresses mixed feelings about the Sadie Hawkins theme. “I mean I like [the idea of a Sadie Hawkins

dance] a lot, but there are a lot of people who wouldn’t get it,” she continued. “If it were up to me, I’d go with a theme that more people would understand.”

In contrast, junior Nashra Zaman supports the proposed theme “Dances are great fun, and a Sadie Hawkins theme would be a first for RM. We girls need to [get up the courage] and ask someone,” stated Zaman.

Another area of debate among students is the music that is played at school dances. Some students were still dissatisfied with the music played at homecoming.

“I think they should play more [dance-able] music,” said Winkler. “Like house music- stuff with good beats. Better music would make [the winter dance] way better than homecoming.”

Executive Board member Charlie Kang took a similar stance on the subject: “[The DJ at homecoming] could’ve played more songs that had better dancing rhythms.”

Aside from music, concerns have been raised about sufficient student participation for a successful winter dance.

Mrs. Kellinger noted, “[the SGA] took a poll with people, because we wanted to make sure there would be enough interest in people coming, because last year we tried a winter dance, [but] that didn’t fly.”

Organizers also are still searching for an available date to hold the dance. A December dance seems increasingly unlikely as time passes by. The original consideration to hold the dance on the 14th was ruled out because the gym would be occupied by a wrestling competition.

Despite these challenges, the SGA continues to hope for success. Mrs. Kellinger said, “If a kid can go to a dance for $5, and dance for two hours and have a good time, we’re ok with that.”

5April 2010 The Tide

OPINIONSLetters to the Editor

Please send any comments as letters to the editor to tide.opinions@gmail.com.

Submissions may be edited for length and/or clarity.

Symphonic Orchestra is a valuable classSymphonic Orchestra is one of my favorite classes. It is a

chamber group, consisting of about twenty musicians and Mr. Perry, our conductor. We meet every day in 8th period, and spend our time practicing pieces for upcoming performances. I love this class because I enjoy playing music in a group setting. It also gives me a chance to improve my playing and to get to know other people who also enjoy playing their instruments.

-Betsy Wang, 9th grade

International Night offered new insightsI was really excited for International Night. It’s a time to see

interesting performances and eat foods of different cultures. Last year, I saw some talents that I didn’t know my classmates had. International Night also a time to hang out with friends. I wish the school had added previews of the performances so that the students attending won’t be completely surprised by what they see.

-Justin Pan, 10th grade

Teachers should coordinate testing datesTeachers should, once in a while, meet up to balance out the

amount of work they assign to students. More often than not, work piles up and everything is crammed. In a way, this limits our ability to absorb information because everything comes at us so quickly. A project would be due one day, and the next, there is a test or an in-class writing to study for. At times, most of us are overwhelmed by stress and need to work unhealthy hours into the night.

-Sonny Hoang, 11th grade

Photos of student atheletes are fantasticAs a student athlete, I really appreciate how Eye on the

Ball takes photos of every sports team at RM. I love having professional quality portraits of me in my uniform as well as action photos. It’s great to see photos commemorating athletes of all sports online. Plus, it’s nice that they cover major school events, like homecoming court, and I hope that Eye on Ball continues to do so!

-Deborah Gross, 12th grade

The Tide250 Richard Montgomery Drive

Rockville, Maryland 20852www.rmtide.com

301-610-8000

The Tide is the student newspaper of Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, Maryland. The Tide is dedicated to keeping the Richard Montgomery school

community accurately informed and to providing a forum for student expression.

1,000 copies of the newspaper are printed and disctributed among students.

Any corrections are printed in the following issue on page 2.

The opinions presented in The Tide do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff and administration at Richard Montgomery.

Questions, concerns, and suggestions on articles, advertisements, and photos can be

submitted to thetideeditors@gmail.com.

Editors-in-Chief.................................................................................David Chen, Sofia Hu, Marni Morse, Megan White News............................................................................................. Sarah Krosnick, Anna MaOpinions..................................................................Sharika Dhar, Emily Ma, Ankit SarkarInternational.........................................................................................Hari Devaraj, Julia DiCenter Spread...............................................................................Alina Bui, Isabella HuangLa Marea....................................................................Alexander Bazan, Camilla VillasanteFeatures...........................................................................................Vivian Bui, Christina XuArts............................................................................................Zack Young, Andrew ZhangSports.............................................................................Stephen Alexander, Jonathan MarxPhoto....................................................................................................................Connie ChenCopy...............................................................................................Neha Sardana, Zuri ZhaoOnline.....................................................................................Michelle Wang, Matthew ZipfSponsor.................................................................................................Mrs. Lisa MacFarlane

The Tide Editorial

December 2012

A case for student newspapers

Poll of the month: Out of grades, social life, or sleep, which is most important?

What clothes to wear, when to catch up on sleep, and what tests to cram for during RMBC? The typical student must debate these questions every morning.

But, truly, the most important question is “What do I value most?”

For students, the holy grail of teenage life are getting eight hours of sleep, maintaining perfect grades, and having a thriving social life. It is difficult for most people to manage all three.

A sample of 117 students was used to create these results. Data was collected from RM Broadcasting Channel from November 19-21, 2012.

Sophomore Nancy Jiang believes that “sleep and grades are the most important for now, because high school is basically preparation for college,” adding “you can better manage your social life [in college].” Many hardworking students like her will probably wait for a college acceptance letter before partying.

There are a few brave students, like junior Christian Schmidt, who said, “I would give up sleep for grades.” Hopefully their report cards are worth the eye bags and 1 AM cram sessions.

The diverse population has differing opinions about their priorities. While a well-rested night is extremely popular, there are students willing to give it up for grades or their social life.

Of course, the most impressive students are those who can manage all three!

The Tide’s editors and writers are hard at work, putting up the final touches to this issue’s layout. Editors spend one week per month glued to their computer screens, editing, placing, and formatting articles.

by Ellin Hu and Jack Qian

by Sharika Dhar

Grades 40%

Social Life 35% Sleep 25%

PHOTO BY DAVID CHEN

Producing a newspaper takes a lot of effort. Group effort. Though the school newspaper is only printed monthly, behind the scenes, students are constantly working.

Writers research every article while other students take photos and draw graphics to be displayed alongside insightful articles, showcasing the variety of talents and events that exist at school. Editors assign articles and dedicate a week every month to laying out articles, fitting all the pieces together like a puzzle, forming a cohesive newspaper.

Though great faculty advisors

and school administrators support student newspapers, like The Tide, students initiate everything, from writing and editing to fundraising. It is student-run.

Unfortunately, during this cycle of planning and writing, students on newspapers across the country worry about the same problem: money. Printing a newspaper takes money.

Unlike other organizations, student newspapers, like The Tide, distribute their product for free. Though it costs approximately $1095.88 a month to print the 1,000 copies, the newspaper is free. And it should not be any other way.

At RM, students are fortunate

to have a student-run newspaper. Other Maryland schools, like Bethesda Chevy Chase High School, have been forced to stop printing and switch to only online editions despite the important role of a print newspaper in the school community. This is due to the inability to keep up with high production costs.

Bethesda Chevy Chase High School was forced to cease production and ask others to fund The Tattler, their newspaper, through Kickstarter, a funding platform for creative projects. In the meantime, the online edition reaches a diminished audience. Their future, and that of other newspapers, remains uncertain.

The Tide is lucky to have various funding sources.

The newspaper relies on advertisements and donations. However, as it becomes easier to advertise online, fewer companies are interested in advertising through newspapers. Given this problem, The Tide is extremely grateful that the school pays for half of six issues annually, totally about $3287.64 of the $6575.28 total cost.

Nevertheless, editors are constantly preoccupied with the financial state of the newspaper, which takes away from other important tasks. The Tide relies partially on monthly bake sales to cover a substantial portion of the costs.

A legitimate organization

that fulfills an essential niche in the school community should not have to rely on precarious fundraisers, like a bake sale. It is always uncertain whether the sale will bring in the amount needed. Circumstances outside editors’ control should not be what determine if a student periodical is printed.

This is not to argue that the students should have to pay for their school newspaper. Though other student organizations charge or their product, like Black Maskers Drama or the Fine Lines literary magazine, a newspaper is a unique medium that should be kept free to ensure its accessibility to the entire community. A student newspaper is an asset to the faculty, administration,

and students at any school as it recounts recent events, honors students for achievements, and provides an outlet for students.

Newspapers like The Tide are a testament to the culture and community. The Tide has existed at Richard Montgomery since 1975 and has provided a platform for any single student to voice an opinion so that the community takes notice over this entire period.

School communities must recognize that the cost to the community of losing the valuable contributions of a print newspaper, like the one in your hands, is far greater than the production costs.

6 The Tide December 2012OPINIONS

Black & GoldAre MCPS’s current security measures effective?

MCPS Security measures are sufficient

GoldGMCPS security needs improvements

school. It is unacceptable that one in four students do not feel safe when they are attempting to learn.

What is even more unfortunate is the number of harmful incidents that occur in public high schools across the country. According to National School Safety Center, since 1992, there have been approximately 270 violent deaths that have occurred in schools.

After these statistics came out in 1992, many schools

intervened and put tools in place to

aid in reducing school violence.

Like MCPS, schools across the nation have hired s e c u r i t y guards for the schools, h a v e performed f r e q u e n t l o c k e r inspections,

and have placed video

c a m e r a s t h r o u g h o u t

schools.Even though these

measures were taken, according to the National

Center for Education Statistics, during 2007-2008 about 8% of students and reported that they were threatened with injury or that they were physically attacked by a student from school during the previous 12 months.

However, there is a remedy for this problem. The National School Safety Center states that the number one way to prevent in-school violence is for teachers and other administrators to become more knowledgeable about the causes of violence, which will allow them to know

what to look for and how to remedy the problem.

Recently, in October 2012 at Northwood High School, a 15 year old student was stabbed in a hallway near the school’s cafeteria just before 11 a.m. Again, this begs the same questions: why were appropriate security measures not taken? Why was security not informed that a student was carrying a weapon?

If teachers and administration were more knowledgeable about student violence this incident could have been avoided. A teacher may have noticed the warning signs in the attacker and been able to monitor him and get the student the necessary help that he needed.

Not all fighting occurs in high schools; there have been instances of violence even in elementary schools. According to The National Center for Education Statistics, from July 1, 2009, through June 30, 2010, there were 33 school-associated violent deaths in elementary and secondary schools in the United States.

Schools across the nation are not safe places. They have scary statistics of violence, fear, and death.

There is not enough action being taken for the safety of students. When parents send their kids to school, they expect their children to feel safe. They expect their children to not be threatened and for attacks to be quelled before there is an injury.

The safety of public schools should be a national concern. MCPS is only a small fraction of the nation. However, 25% of MCPS student’s not feeling safe in schools is a clear red flag to the county that they are not doing enough to protect their students.

BlackBStudents should consider all post-high school options

Even if these logistical problems could somehow be overcome, metal detectors would still do nothing to stop violence committed with non-metal weapons (e.g. polymer knives) on school grounds, or on buses.

Logistics is the main issue. There is simply no way schools can thoroughly and practically scan thousands of students in the morning for weapons without causing severe disruptions to the school schedule and creating lines of students who must go through a lengthy screening process in order to enter school.

In addition, it is extremely impractical to install metal detectors due to the high hardware and manpower costs. Moderately priced detectors that offer the features and reliabilities required for a school metal detection program cost around $4,000 or $5,000 each. To make any metal detection program effective, school access during the rest of the school day, during off-hours, and during special activities needs to be tightly controlled.

The ongoing personnel costs required to operate the equipment in a complete weapon detection program severely supersede the initial purchase price of a portal metal detector. And this is without even considering the training necessary to use these tools to their full potential.

The current cash-strapped educational system cannot afford to pour millions to fund metal detectors for every school. And underfunding in any of the previously mentioned areas would severely limit the

effectiveness of any such system. The best way to ensure security in

schools is to have highly trained staff like the one at school, that is able to recognize warning signs of possible violent behavior. According to Kenneth Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services, “the first and best line of defense is always a well-trained, highly alert staff and student body.” Students who are able to recognize and report potential threats save more lives than metal detectors or improved security cameras ever can.

In addition, excessive security measures enacted to appease parents may in fact create a false sense of security, t h e r e f o r e l e a v i n g staff and s t u d e n t s off guard, and doing more harm than good.

B u l l y i n g and other n e g a t i v e i n t e r a c t i o n s between students are the main reasons behind most school security threats. The creation of a safe and welcoming learning environment for all is the best protection against such risks. The current intervention programs in conjunction with the zero tolerance policy on bullying have proven effective in preventing bullying and providing victims of bullying with proper support.

Though not perfect, our current security system, with its highly-trained and highly-motivated personnel and security-camera network is more than sufficient to preserve safety and security at school.

BLACK, cont. from page 1 GOLD, cont. from page 1

by Jeffrey He

Is college really worth it? This is a question that many

students and parents consider as they search and apply to college.

With the price of tuition skyrocketing, sending students to college has become a risky investment. Families sacrifice a lot to try to send their child to college and, after struggling over tuition, the payoff after graduation is uncertain due to the stagnant economy.

According to Time Magazine, 75% of families think that paying for college will be a serious challenge for them. And given that in the span of 30 years, the cost of a college education, both at private and public universities, has more than doubled when values are adjusted for inflation, the percentage of families who have trouble paying for college will likely increase.

Thus, everyone must weigh the pros and cons of a college education and its guaranteed benefits before deciding what to do after college. Many people might profit from developing a trade or working before or even instead of going straight through another four years of school.

Despite the climbing costs,

86% of college graduates still think it is a good investment and 55% of graduates believe that college better prepares them for the workforce. However, the burden of paying for college cannot be overlooked. In 2012, 48% of graduates who joined the workforce after graduating from college found that having a college loan made it difficult for them to pay bills or obtain loans for a car or house.

While many employers look for a college degree, college does not guarantee a job upon graduation. College is not for everyone; successful college dropouts such as Bill Gates and Steve jobs stand as testament. According to the Wall Street Journal, most people who drop out of college without a degree find themselves with debt and without the benefits of a college degree.

In today’s harsh economy and tough job market not only is it important to finish college, but it is imperative to graduate with a degree in the right major. Many students today encounter difficulty when searching for a job after graduation as there is simply no demand for the skills they have acquired. Even students with prestigious degrees in areas, such as law or medicine, have had trouble finding a job

upon graduation. The volatile nature of our job market means that both individuals with and without college degrees are at risk of unemployment.

Although, many school systems push students toward college, students and parents should carefully consider career goals and options and assess the

extent to which college may help them achieve those goals. College is not the right path for everyone and should not be treated as the only path to success.

GRAPHIC BY SAVANNAH DU

7OPINIONSThe Tide December 2012

Scare tactics prevent impaired driving

What four more years of Obama means for students

by William Segovia

thinking development. Also, a New York Times article stated that the program allows states “to set new, unambitious goals for how quickly students must reach those standards.”

Even with these gaping holes in his plan, President Obama has brushed aside all criticisms, insisting that his plan is sound. But in reality, the Race to the Top program is not the educational reform students need; rather it is a continuation of failed policies that will ultimately hurt America and its students in the future.

-Charlie Kang

What is the purpose of education? As renowned philosopher Noam Chomsky put it, “Education is really aimed at helping students get to the point where they can learn on their own.” However, President Obama’s ‘Race to the Top’ program does completely otherwise.

The basis of the “Race to the Top” program is teacher evaluations based on student test scores. The primary concern with this program is that teachers will be required to focus on standardized testing of basic subjects, such as mathematics and reading. Unlike the free-flowing, education that kids need, this will leave them with less time to develop interests in the natural

and social sciences, arts, and even physical education. Teachers will teach material from the test, and in return, students will be unable to develop the interest and necessary skills to pursue the subjects they want to.

Furthermore, schools that continue to get low test scores will be either closed or turned into private charter schools. This is an ineffective method to raise education standards, as charter schools on average, do not get better results than regular public schools, and many do worse.

As most teachers would say, learning should be fun. Yet how fun can learning be when teachers cannot teach what they want, and students cannot learn more about what they like? President Obama must rethink and reform his approach to improving high school education across the country. The purpose of education is to develop students who have a passion for learning and spur this desire fortheir entire lives.

-Steve Chen

At Richard Montgomery, students pride themselves in the new school building. The streetlamps on Main Street that students constantly bump into and the imposing walls seen from afar are lasting images of the school. But, of course, the school did not always look like this.

Richard Montgomery has had the privilege of becoming modernized. However, other high schools across the country are slowly falling apart and are in desperate need of repair. And while a huge amount of new technology has been created to greatly improve education, schools and school districts often do not have the money to move towards renovation and modernization.

President Barack Obama plays a pivotal role to high school students everywhere. Recently reelected, the president supports a $25 billion plan to modernize our schools, with most of the money going to those school districts that are in the greatest need. This money will help renovate schools throughout the country and bring

new technologies to the classrooms.In a global economy that is constantly

changing, it is paramount that American schools be up-to-date. Without modern high schools, a modern high school education is impossible.

President Obama understands the importance, and he has expressed multiple times that he will push for education reform. By modernizing schools and setting a precedent, President Obama will not only be empowering students who are currently in school, but also be encouraging the future generation of our country that dearly needs this change.

-Trinish Chatterjee

On July 21, 1969, astronaut Neil Armstrong planted his feet on the moon and took his now-legendary “giant leap for mankind.” However, this step was more than just a leap; it was an affirmation of the American spirit of innovation. And this spirit only occurred because President John F. Kennedy fostered a rekindling of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in the United States.

Like President Kennedy, President Obama certainly recognizes the importance of a national focus on the STEM subjects on our economy and our future.

With Barack Obama at our nation’s helm for another presidential term, American students will continue to see valuable resources channeled into science education. For example, President Obama created the “STEM Master Teaching Corps” to identify the nation’s top STEM educators and reward them with up to $20,000 in bonuses.

This force of elite science teachers will be the foundation of President Obama’s nationwide “Educate to Innovate” campaign. In order to enable all students to think critically about science, Obama has called for a National Lab Day, which will pair scientists with students as they conduct their own investigations.

The opportunities President Obama plans to provide each student with will enable us to make our own giant leaps into the future. It is only efforts like these that are adequate preparation for our nations kids.

-Rachel Gold

With the re-election of President Obama, we must stop and think about what his second term means for high school education. Looking back at his record on educational policy from his first term, his re-election could mean potential bad news for students across the U.S.

A program called Race to the Top is considered to be President Obama’s signature educational policy. In a nutshell, it is a competition to encourage state and local K-12 educational systems to improve through reforms and innovation. The program awards points to each state based on specific criteria, such as teacher performance and test scores.

The downfall of the Race to the Top program, as many critics such as Diane Ravitch of the Huffington Post have pointed out, is its emphasis on standardized testing as the main indicator for student performance. Because of that focus, class curriculums become much more test oriented at the expense of critical

1,600,000Number of auto collisions involving cell phones in 2011, according to the National Safety Council

330,000Number of injuries caused per year due to texting and driving, accord-

ing to Harvard Center for Risk Analysis Study

5 secondsThe minimal amount of time taken away from the road when texting, according to VA Tech Transportation Institute

11Number of deaths per day due to texting and driving, according to the

Interstate Institute for Highway Safety Fatality Facts

Recently, Richard Montgomery had a Safe or Sorry assembly presented by the University of Maryland Shock Trauma

School assemblies are aimed at stopping students from distracted driving.

Center that showed juniors and seniors the dangers of distracted driving. The EMT presenters went over Shock Trauma Center’s shocking statistics on car accidents and then showed a graphic video about a texting and driving.

After the presentation, students were shocked. Some were surprised, and some were even angry that an innocent safety prevention assembly turned out to include violent images.

However, impaired driving has become such a dangerous and widespread epidemic that extreme measures must be enacted to increase awareness of the dangers of distracted driving and save lives.

Even though using scare tactics to

prevent teens from texting and driving bothers a few people, it is worth the shock if the assemblies help to prevent accidents.

Using alarming images and messages to promote safe driving has become a widely used method. In October, Walter Johnson High School displayed a wrecked car in

front of the school during homecoming to serve as reminder of the harsh consequences of drinking and driving. This solemn reminder was disturbing, but there is a reason why this method is used so often: it is very effective.

Junior Ashim Tamang said, “The video inspires [students] to be better drivers.”

For most students concerned about their peers’ safety, getting the message across is much more important than the perceived traumatic effects of seeing photos of gruesome injuries.

The concern that shocking and attention-grabbing videos will scare or bother high school students is absurd. Most high school students should realistically be

able to handle the graphic nature of these types of stories.

“The video wasn’t so graphic to me because of how many [violent] movies there are now” says Jonathan Song, a senior at RM.

He makes a valid point. Students watch gory horror movies and TV shows and play violent video games all the time. In comparison to other purposeful scare tactics used by the media, the methods employed at the Safe or Sorry assembly were mild. By now, most students should be aware of the reality of car accidents and should definitely be desensitized enough to watch any content that MCPS has approved.

Furthermore, most of the assemblies are optional. Any student who is uncomfortable with the content shown may leave. In fact, the EMT presenters even urged students to leave the auditorium if they could not

handle the more violent scenes.While the Safe or Sorry film was tragic, it

depicted a truthful and relatable situation. It allowed students to comprehend that driving accidents can happen to anyone.

Underneath a graphic façade, the presentation really connects with students.

After the assembly, Junior Gabriella Ferrati said, “I would feel so badly if I ever had to go through a near death experience.” She added that she would feel “even worse if [she] was responsible for killing [her] own friend.”

It is essential to remember that the main purpose of this presentation is not to shock students, but rather to educate them. When crafting these presentations, fear is never an end goal for organizations like MCPS. They simply want to educate, like what was done at the assembly, and any graphic content shown is merely an effective mean to achieve an admirable end.

Senior Arvind Srinivasan holds his poster supporting Obama’s 2012 campaign.PHOTO BY SOFIA HU

PHOTO BY MEGAN WHITE

8 The Tide December 2012

Amsterdam cracks down on weed

You would probably laugh at the funny way “Amsterdam” looks like “Hamsterdam” without the “H”, snigger at how the rough edges of the newspaper seem to have the masseur’s touch, and stare at the title “International” for an hour while giggling intermittently.

But alas, such feelings are reserved for Amsterdam, the unofficial legal weed capital of the western world and go-to destination for all who are young and impressionable.

Recently, Amsterdam’s mayor, Eberhard van der Laan, overrode a Dutch ban on selling cannabis to foreign tourists.

Cannabis, also known as marijuana, is a depressant drug and slows the activity of the central nervous system, inducing a state of pleasant euphoria. The substance has been linked to decreases in concentration and negative psychological development. Cannabis’s effects upon its consumers are varied because of its many components, but it can be psychologically addictive to some.

The proposed Dutch ban would still allow cannabis sales, but would limit sales to only Dutch residents. The reasoning behind the law is that lowering sales of cannabis to tourists seeking drugs would reduce crime rates and drug peddling in the southern cities in the Netherlands.

However, Mayor van der

by Emelia Kuentz and Suzanne Xu

Laan claimed that such a ban would in fact result in heavy black market activity and increased crime rates. He believed that some foreigners would still come to Amsterdam and purchase marijuana illegally. Because the supply for foreigners would be black market goods and therefore could not be regulated, van der Laan argued that there would be more disputes over sales of fake drugs.

Although some think that legalization of marijuana will lead to more severe drug use, senior

From the random people that smile and compliment you in the street to the extremely structured organization of the school sys-tem, the American lifestyle makes me smile inside. I highly regard the friendly yet professional re-lationship between teachers and students in the American high school.

The reason why I say so is because last year in my Moldo-vian high school, l would have to leave school nearly every single day to perform the mortifying and demanding task of weed-ing. Yes, weeding- the removal of unwanted plants from an area of ground to cultivate the soil. Our

Can you still remember the first day you walked into the school? The excitement you felt, bewilderment maybe? Well, noth-ing you felt can compete with what I felt because…I’m new.

I come from Moldova, a min-iscule and relatively impover-ished country in the Southeast-ern region of Europe. However, I have also lived in Romania and Belgium too because of my fa-ther’s position as an ambassador, and I must say that there are huge differences between the countries.

by Madeleine Pituscanmath teacher forced us to perform this task in order to “encourage” classroom participation; a surely mysterious form of motivation.

Two years ago, our math class had been canceled in favor of someone’s birthday, an unnec-essarily abnormal event. Even stranger, the teacher encouraged the consumption of alcohol. I re-member the strange looks my teachers gave me when I refused the alcohol being proposed. I was the only one who didn’t drink. Over the years, I came to under-stand that alcohol was another uncommon way of inspiring our moral values.

Reading through my previous

comments I realize I somehow managed to make my country look very unattractive I can, but without any doubts, I can affirm that the Moldavian people are un-believably kind and helpful; they value the true human interaction and friendship. Even if they saw you for the first time, they would open up to you in a trusting and friendly way of honesty and sin-cerity.

In our human nature, people are usually not satisfied with their position and lives. Having the astonishing opportunity to travel around the world makes me re-alize that “happiness is a way of travel not a destination.”

From cathedrals to open pastures by the mountains, Moldova is certainly a special place. For Madeleine, Moldova is a part of her heritage.

Amsterdam’s proposed weed ban provokes a decisive debate both in the country and here at the school.

HER EXPERIENCEIN MOLDOVA

COURTESY OF MADELEINE PUTUSCAN

Sarah Snider thinks otherwise. Snider stated, “Legalization would allow those who enjoy marijuana recreationally to do so legally, and dissuade those who use marijuana as an act of rebellion.”

Though some foreigners would still travel in hopes of black market drugs, which have their own negative consequences, most drug tourists would simply search for areas where there is not as much regulation.

Students at RM are divided upon the issue of cannabis sales.

Senior Claudia Hendrick argued that marijuana should not be sold, regardless of whether to foreigners or citizens. “Marijuana can have medical uses, but that doesn’t erase the fact that long-term use can negatively impact the body and be addictive,” Hendrick stressed.

She also rejects Mayor Van der Laan’s reasons for overriding the ban. Hendrick also suggested that “perhaps it will revive black market trade, but quite frankly, there will always be black market trade [in some areas]. The issue

here isn’t so much marijuana as the culture itself.”

However, junior Nick Greco disagreed with Hendrick’s view. “I don’t see a problem with private sellers distributing marijuana with an age restriction similar to that of buying alcohol or cigarettes,” said Greco.

He also stated, “The government should educate people to the same extent they do with alcohol or tobacco, using neutral and undisputed information, and then let citizens make their own decision about

using marijuana.” Greco supports maintaining

cannabis sales to help tourism, saying that “anything that brings tourism dollars in helps the economy.”

Whatever happens as a result of the Mayor’s decision will be studied and applied to other attempts for more lenient drug uses, such as in Colorado and Washington where referendums were passed legalizing marijuana.

When asked if a referendum legalizing marijuana in Maryland would affect Maryland schools,

English teacher Sara Liles said, “If this referendum passed in Maryland, in theory it should not affect students, as they would not (or should not) be old enough to purchase it.”

Liles then added a caveat, pointing out that “the same logic applies to alcohol and cigarettes, although the reality is that all of these substances are abused by underage individuals.”

By looking at outside examples, the United States could hopefully avoid the trial and error undergone by other countries.

GRAPHIC BY CYNTHIA SONG

said social studies teacher Todd Stillman. “It’s a different group of students than you see in other events.”

Some of the remarkable performances included junior Jessica Dugan’s signing of If It Was Me. Even though the former RM Idol winner saw in Filipino, it was easy to understand the meaning and pain of the song through her heartfelt voice and beautiful piano playing.

Dugan was followed by many other songs from El Salvador, China, Taiwan, and Myanmar. The audience received each piece with support; during juniors Amy Xiao’s and Claudia Xie’s Chinese song on an artist in dilemma, audience members waved their

9December 2012 The Tide INTERNATIONAL December 2012

by Grace Shi

Asian American Club mem-bers crowded into the Career Center in the middle of Novem-ber and saw box after box of for-tune cookies—at least one thou-sand cookies—unloaded onto the tables. The students then began the arduous task of packing all the fortune cookies into paper bags. Others joined the hustle and bustle by organizing the bags into one colossal pyramid.

This is one of the main tradi-tions of Asian American Club: the packing and delivering of Thanksgiving fortune cookies to teachers and staff.

Asian American Club is basi-cally a club designed to get the RM community involved with and aware of the Asian commu-nity,” explained co-president Ali-na Bui. The club is dedicated to providing students with the op-portunity to share various Asian cultures with each other, both fos-tering Asian pride and allowing students to have fun at the same time.

“We spread Asian culture through various activities such as potlucks. We also try to sup-port the Asian community, both at home and overseas, by host-ing fundraisers and donating the

In Rockville Town Center, the reinstalled ice rink and tree are happy reminders that the holi-days are almost here! While many students are looking forward to spending winter break with their family and friends, people around the world are also preparing for their own holidays.

Winter holidays from around the world

COMPILED BY JULIA DI AND JANA LU

by Moraa Marwaya and Claudia Xie

CULTURE, cont. from page 1

St. Lucia DayAccording to the old Julian

calendar, December 13 is the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year. Nowadays, however, December 13 is known as St. Lu-cia Day, while the modern Winter Solstice falls on December 21 or 22.

St. Lucia Day, the Catholic feast day of St. Lucy Wheat, is most widely celebrated in Swe-den. On the morning of St. Lu-cia, Swedish girls become “Lucia brides,” dressing in white gowns with red sashes and wreaths of burning candles. These “Lucia brides” wake their families up with songs, coffee, and Lucia cats, which are twisted saffron buns.

ChristmasAlthough December 25 is

the birthday of Jesus Christ, it is widely recognized and celebrated by both Christians and non-Chris-tians alike. Christmas has become synonymous with gift-giving, though the Christians who cel-ebrate also attend church.

“We set up the Christmas tree in early December, and then throughout the month the gifts just pile up underneath the tree. On Christmas morning we have breakfast and dress in green and red to symbolize Christmas,” said Shema Mugabo, a sophomore whose family celebrates Christ-mas the traditional way.

Senior Juddy Fang plans to celebrate Christmas a little dif-ferently. She said, “I will prob-ably spend that whole day winter shopping.”

KwanzaaKwanzaa is an African Ameri-

can holiday celebrated from De-cember 26 to January 1, to com-memorate African heritage.

The name “Kwanzaa” comes from the Swahili phrase “matunda ya kwanza,” which means “first fruits of the harvest.”

Celebrated in a way similar to that of Hanukkah, Kwanzaa is marked by the gathering of fam-ily and friends to exchange gifts and light candles.

Kwanzaa candles are black, red, and green, representing the seven basic values of African American family life: self-deter-mination, responsibility, coop-eration, purpose, and faith.

Chinese New YearUnlike the Western New Year,

Chinese New Year follows the lu-nar calendar and falls on a differ-ent date each year. Next year, The holiday begins on February 10.

Like other New Year celebra-tions around the world, Chinese New Year is considered a time of family reunion and thanksgiv-ing. “My family eats dinner the night before, and the adults give the children red envelopes,” said Councelor Theresa Chee. “The red represents good luck.”

Billions of people celebrate the holidays listed here and countless more.

As people all over the world enjoy their holidays, be sure to en-joy whatever holidays you may be celebrating this year too!

Cultural Club of the Month: Asian American Club

Asian American club presidents (from left): Alex Bazan, Emily Jiang, Alina Bui, Andrew Shen and Victor Wu.

Where are students traveling to during the winter holiday?

money to charities,” said co-presi-dent Emily Jiang.

“And contrary to popular be-lief, Asian American Club is not just for Asian-Americans! We welcome everybody,” added the senior Jiang.

Asian American Club not only hosts events, but also starts them. Last year, Asian American Club created an exciting new tradition: a co-ed volleyball tournament in the spring. They invited many other MCPS schools to participate and raised hundreds of dollars for the charity Hue Help.

Besides hosting and creat-ing their own fun events, Asian American Club also participates in the activities hosted by other Asian American Clubs through-out MCPS. The Asian American Club has participated in dances and talent shows hosted by fellow high schools, such as Wootton High School.

“Asian American Club is re-ally fun because it allows us to do many creative activities while still helping out our school,” said sophomore Karen Yu.

With so much stress in the daily school life, why not tone it down a little and have some fun at the Asian American Club? The club meets at lunch in the Ca-reer Center on the first and third Wednesday of every month.

PHOTO BY DAVID CHEN

arms to the tune. The dances, like the songs,

came from many different nations such as Peru, Korea, Myanmar, and Nepal. Many performers dressed in cultural clothing, their colorful dresses flowing behind them as they moved to the music.

“Performing was nerve wrecking at first, but then it got better,” said sophomore Sujata Rai. She along with four other students performed a traditional Nepali dance which featured graceful movements and rhythmic footwork. Each dancer wore a different costume representing a unique region of Nepal.

School clubs like the FTW Dance Team also joined the night, performing an ensemble of songs, one of which was Psy’s Gangnam Style. The Spanish Honor Society

ended the gala with a Latin dance. The cultural exhibition that

followed the gala was an exciting chance to obtain a more in-depth perspective of the cultures that were initially presented during the gala. The exhibits displayed clothing, food, and various artifacts from countries around the world while also providing information about the culture and history of the nation. The students who created the exhibits stood by answering questions.

Senior Claudia Hendrick and junior Kathy Wang stood by the Chinese stand, making long xu tang, also known as dragon beard candy. Their exhibition also featured fortune cookies and traditional Chinese instruments and fans. To their left and right were buzzing groups of students, some serving and some tasting, the prepared food.

In addition to the performers, students worked behind the scenes to make International Night a success.

Sophomore Liming Tang, who helped with the admission stand, volunteered during the event. “I hope that more people can gain exposure to and experience different international cultures,” she said.

Media technician Eric Rodney and his lighting crew deserves special notice, as they paired

student performances with great special effects (and their hallmark Batman light signal). Sadly, the usual running crew that helps with drama performances was not a part of the show, and transitions between sets were somewhat clumsy.

ESOL teachers Aremona Bennett and William Donnelly were in charge of organizing the night. Ms. Bennett said what she enjoyed most about planning the night was that she was helping allow “students who have so much talent to showcase it.” She continued, “It’s a wonderful experience for the students. They get to present themselves in a very professional way.”

When asked what his favorite part of International Night

was, Mr. Donnelly answered, “Working with Ms. Bennett.” He laughed, but continued, “I was at Sherwood for twenty years, and I used to do it there too. I always feel that International Night was a big thing to the school, because so many times students, especially the ESOL students, are neglected as far as attention and showcasing their skills.”

“International Night is a great opportunity for students to showcase their diverse backgrounds and show how proud they are of themselves and how proud we are of them,” said Ann McCallum, an ESOL Research teacher. “The sheer variety of cultures that we have is impressive and it’s important that we display that diversity.”

Music and food from many parts of the world at International Night

PHOTOS BY DIANE KEUNGAbove: Junior Jessica Dugan sings a Filipino song.Left: Students perform a Nepali dance in traditional clothing.

GamesDarksiders 2

In this game, you are literally Death, the fourth

horseman of the Apocalypse. While your fellow Horseman, War, is

being punished for bringing about the end of the world, you go out to prove his innocence

by systematically murdering everything that is not dead already with a giant scythe.

Assassin’s Creed IIIDo you hate the British? Do you enjoy lurking in the

shadows? If yes, then this may be the game for you. Go back in time and fight in the American Revolution in this third installment of the acclaimed Assassin’s Creed series. Use hidden blades, tomahawks, and muskets to free America!

Halo 4After 5 long years, Master Chief is back to do what he does best: shooting aliens with

all the technology the future has to offer. It is Halo. What more is there to say

except that it is back and better than ever?

BasketballLeBron James and

the Miami Heat quieted the critics this year with an

NBA Finals victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Heat were coming off of a disappointing 2011 season in which superstars

LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne Wade were

unable to capture the title.

10 The Tide December 2012 The Tide December 2012CENTER SPREAD CENTER SPREAD

Chunky KnitsTime to bundle up with

fashionable chunky knits this fall! The warm and cozy sweaters are back in

fashion. The chunky sweaters make a bold fashion statement and add texture to your outfit.

But chunky knits include so much more than the average sweater; scarves, ponchos, and dresses are welcome too! RM students especially love this style. Freshman Natalie Zhang said, “I love this look because it’s both comfortable and fashionable!” This style is not a stranger to the runway, where

designers such as Prada and Rag & Bone have effortlessly showed off this fashion.

Colored Jeans

This year, fashionistas everywhere added a pop of color to their everyday

wardrobe with brightly colored skinny jeans. In the past, colored denim was only worn during

the spring and summer seasons. But this year, we saw jeans being worn in almost every

color under the sun, and worn well into the fall. A trend that was first showcased on runways in spring 2011 by designers like Jil Sander, colored skinnies eventually made their way into the hallways of RM. This trend has also been seen on the likes of fashion icons such as Kate Middleton, Lauren Conrad

and Emma Stone.

Technology

MoviesIn twelve months of cinema,

New York City was invaded space aliens and attacked by giant scientists-

lizards, London was nearly brought to its knees by cyber terrorism, and Gotham nearly

burned to ashes (again). Earsplitting explosions and dastardly villains caused complete chaos on the big screen. However, there certainly was not a shortage of heroes ready to save the day! This standout year of the heroes began with the widely anticipated release of Hunger Games, and followed up quickly with summer blockbusters like The Avengers, The Amazing Spider-man, and Dark Knight Rises. As Skyfall,

Breaking Dawn Part 2, and The Hobbit wrap up 2012, look forward to another year of

superheroes in 2013, including Superman and Iron Man 3.

Football

Jerry Sandusky, a former football coach at Penn State, was convicted for the

molestation of young children during his tenure at Penn State. The charges sent shockwaves throughout

the country, prompting new initiatives to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.

The New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots 21-17 for their second Super Bowl victory in five years. The matchup was almost identical to 2008, in which the Giants beat the Patriots in another closely contested game. Eli Manning won the Super Bowl MVP award for the second time, cementing his legacy as an elite quarterback.

2012 also marked the beginning of the Robert Griffin III era in Washington. The Redskins traded up in the draft

to get the quarterback, and he has not disappointed fans. Currently, the team has a losing record, but

RG3 has been electrifying with his athletic play.

HockeyAfter a thrilling

2011-12 NHL season culminating in a Stanley Cup for the Los Angeles Kings; the NHL locked its players out after an expired bargaining agreement. The league has yet to agree to terms and is

approaching the second missed season in less

than a decade.

OlympicsAs it does every four years, the

sports world provided a barrage of truly fantastic moments capturing the beauty of

human competition and emotion. The nation was engrossed with the many epic storylines

surrounding the 30th Olympiad and its athletes competing in London. The quintet of gymnasts from the United States known as the “Fierce Five” grabbed the attention of viewers everywhere, earning the first team title in gymnastics for the U.S. since 1996.

In other Olympic events, swimmer Michael Phelps broke an all-time Olympic record by winning 22

medals. Potomac native Katie Ledecky won a gold medal in the 800 meter freestyle while breaking

the American record in the event. Ledecky, 15, became one of the youngest

medalists in Olympic history.

RM SportsHere at RM, 2012 brought

about a successful athletic campaign ending in controversy. The

football team finished 6-4 for its first winning record since 2005, but Head Coach

Neal Owens was forced to resign after the season. The move brought about murmurs of conspiracy within the Athletic Department, but the underlying cause of the move has yet to be determined. In other sports, freshman Sophie El Masry finished second in the 4A Cross

Country Championships, and the boys soccer team concluded the season

with a deep playoff run.

BaseballBaseball saw a

year of significant change in 2012. Locally, both the

Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles earned playoff berths in the new 10-team postseason. The San Francisco Giants won the World Series

in 4 games, sweeping the Detroit Tigers.

MCPS Petition

A major accident in Montgomery County has sparked a petition relating

to school starting times. In October, at 7:03 am, 10th grader Christina Morris-Ward from

Seneca Valley High School was killed in a car crash while trying to get to school. Petitioners argued that the accident occurred because schools start too early, forcing students to cross roads when it is still dark outside. More than 7,000 people have signed the petition to start

high schools at least two hours later, and it will be presented to the school board

this November.

HurricaneSandy

Although it may have only grazed through our area, leaving

us with fallen trees, a couple days off school, and some electricity loss, New York

was devastatingly hit. Their tunnels and subways were flooded, and their resources were severely depleted. Many people were left without power for days, even weeks, and countless are now homeless. Around 48 people died from the storm. Economic

losses across the New York region were estimated to be at least $18 billion,

but communities have banned together to raise money to

restore the city.

ElectionsPresident Barack

Obama won re-election, giving him four more years in office. In

Maryland, hotly debated questions 4, 6, and 7 on the election ballot were all passed. Question

4, also known as the DREAM act, will allow Maryland’s undocumented graduating high school

immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates at community and state colleges. Question 6, a vote on the landmark Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act allowing same sex couples to obtain legal marriage status, was passed with 52% of the vote. It established Maryland as the seventh state to approve marriage equality for same-sex couples. Question 7 will allow

for a new casino to be built in Maryland, which promises not only to increase the amount of

jobs, but also to provide more funding for Maryland schools.

Higgs Boson

Scientists say that this summer they have discovered

the elusive Higgs Boson particle, which physicists have been searching for since the 1960s. They say this “God particle” gives atoms mass. Without it, there would not even be gravity. This has brought us a huge step

forward towards discovering how our universe came to be, and

what keeps it from falling apart.

Peplum Dresses and Shirts

After many seasons of baggy, loose-fitting tops, this year’s designers brought

back a trend that celebrates and showcases a girl’s curves: peplum, which is a short strip

of fabric attached at the waist of a shirt or dress. In fact, peplum was a trend worn widely by RM students at our very own Homecoming. Peplum is a style that originated in the 1800’s, but was popular in the 1940’s, and more commonly seen in the 1980’s. Making a comeback in spring 2012, peplum was featured in the runway skirts,

blouses, and dresses of designers like Christian Dior and Jason Wu , and

it is a trend that quickly made it into the closets of fashion

enthusiasts everywhere.

Peter Pan Collars

To add a touch of sweetness to every girl’s wardrobe, the Peter Pan collar is

back. Traditionally only attached to shirts, the cute rounded collar is now attached to a

range of clothing choices from flirty dresses to loose fitting blouses. With the Peter Pan collar, you can add a touch of flirty-ness to your everyday T-shirt and jeans ensemble or dress down a fancy dress for a daytime look. Many students at RM have been sporting this cute

and fashionable look that originated from a Peter Pan costume 1905, and reappeared

in the 20’s, the 70’s, and today.

FacebookFacebook’s year has been

more eventful than that of any other social media company. Five months after its

tumultuous IPO, the company announced that it has amassed over one billion active users. To put

that into perspective: over one out of every three people active on the Internet uses the social media site.

Facebook also bought Instagram in April for $1 billion, and it has been widely successful, especially among high school students. Currently, over 27% of Instagram’s 100 million users are below age 27. Instagram allows any amateur with a phone to snap professional-looking pictures with a tap of a button. Contrary to its popularity, sophomore Olivia Antezana complains that

Instagram’s “idea is great, but the way it runs is very unsatisfactory: too

many glitches.”Snapchat

The app Snapchat emerged in the App Store,

providing users with a whole new social media idea: photo-messaging

with the guarantee that the photos self-destruct within seconds of reception. With Snapchat, friends can update each other with current whereabouts, activities, or just a silly face with the

ease of taking a picture: without the worry of your horrible face

immortalized.

AppleApple, another technology giant,

has released a slew of new products. The iPhone 5, complete with a larger screen and

lighter weight, hit the market with great success. Sophomore Adithya Girish describes the new phone as

“another flawless example of Apple engineering, outdoing its predecessors in terms of power, aesthetics, and quality.”

Just over two months after the iPhone 5 release, Apple released the iPad mini, which is projected to sell well over the holidays.

Apple’s two wins come along with two losses: the new Maps and Passbook applications have been deemed unsatisfactory by iOS users. The Maps application on the iOS used to be powered by Google, but Apple has taken initiative in the maps application market and produced its own mapping system powered by TomTom. iPhone users from around the world have issued

complaints about poor directions or even nonexistent locations. Passbook is an application that allows users

to store coupons, boarding passes, tickets, and other forms of mobile payment. Despite its

good intentions, Passbook has left users confused and without clear

instructions.

Music2012’s popular songs spread

widely throughout various genres, ranging from K-pop to indie to alternative to

dubstep. Some chart toppers were expected, like Justin Bieber’s “Boyfriend,” but others were definitely

unanticipated, like “Somebody that I Used to Know” by Gotye, and “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen.

This year has seen the astounding rise of British boy bands. One Direction’s “What Makes You Beautiful” and The Wanted’s “Glad You Came” topped American charts. Both bands, with their adorable accents and stylish hair, have stolen the hearts of teenage girls throughout America.

But what 2012 will probably most be remembered for is the popularity of “Gangnam Style” by South Korean

artist PSY. The song, mocking the materialistic lifestyle of the Gangnam District, has nearly 800

million views on YouTube and has inspired countless spin off videos, parodies, and flash mobs.

BooksThe biggest bestseller of

2012 was Fifty Shades of Grey by E.B. White. Starting from fan fiction

origins, Fifty Shades of Grey has topped booklists like the NY Times and US Weekly

Bestseller lists and has also claimed the title of fastest selling paperback of all time. The Casual Vacancy by the renowned J.K. Rowling has also been tremendously successful. Popular young adult novels of 2012 include The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, a tear-jerking

book about cancer patients, and The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan, the

third installment of Riordan’s The Heroes of Olympus

series.Entertainment

Sports

Fashion

Major Headlines

12 The Tide

LA MAREADiciembre del 2012

Diferentes países y costumbres celebran el mismo valor familiar

por Fatima del Barco

“Arroz con leche, me quiero casar”

por Alexander Bazán

Se celebran diversos tradiciones en Latino América durante la navidad.GRÁFICO POR CAMILA VILLASANTE

El polvorón: Una delicadeza típicapor Claudia Xie

América Latina está llena de diferentes culturas y tradiciones. Durante las fiestas todos celebran el feriado de una manera diferente.

A veces, la celebración de las fiestas depende en el país donde este uno, pero a veces, simplemente depende de su familia. Aunque todos celebren los feriados de maneras diferentes, es una época de alegría y de festejo para todos.

Aparte de algunos detalles, la celebración es similar a como se celebra en los Estados Unidos. Se reúne toda la familia, cenan juntos y se obsequian regalos. Melissa Lipnick, estudiante del onceavo grado de Richard Montgomery comentó sobre como celebra su familia los feriados. Dijo que en México, “toda [su] familia se reúne en la casa de [su] abuela y entonces hay como 60 personas o más y [comen] una cena enorme y [bailan] y [abren] regalos”. Así que hasta estando en un país diferente, las tradiciones y celebraciones no varían tanto. Igual se involucra toda la familia y se junta durante todas las fiestas.

Agustín Aguerre, otro estudiante del onceavo grado, contó que en Uruguay, se hace más o menos lo mismo pero que “la Navidad, los Reyes Magos, y el Día de Pascuas se festeja mucho más que en los

Estados Unidos. En Noche Buena, a las doce en punto, el cielo se llena de fuegos artificiales.” En muchos países de América

Latina, las celebraciones son extensas y una verdadera razón para celebrar con toda la familia. Siempre se celebra con fuegos

artificiales y hay muchas supersticiones que se practican esa noche, como correr alrededor del vecindario o ponerse el color amarillo para tener buena suerte.

Aparte de la Navidad, muchos países sudamericanos celebran el Día de los Reyes Magos y tienen tradiciones de las cuales no se ven mucho en los Estados Unidos. Agustín contó que en su casa, ponen un par de zapatos por cada miembro de su familia al lado de la puerta de su casa durante la noche, y en la mañana, están todos los regalos ahí.

Aparte de festejar unos feriados que no se celebran mucho en los Estados Unidos y tener muchas supersticiones, otra diferencia entre las celebraciónes en América Latina y los Estados Unidos, es que en América del Sur y en América Central, estas fiestas durante nuestro invierno son durante su verano. Así que en vez de celebrar las fiestas durante el frio y con nieve, se celebra en la playa y con sol. Ya que es verano, todos están de vacaciones así que tienen mucho tiempo para relajarse y estar con amigos y la familia.

Finalmente, estas diferencias demuestran la cultura de cada país y nos muestran más sobre el mundo en el cual vivimos.

Aunque la manera de celebrar fiestas en diferentes países pueda ser diferente, todos se divierten durante estos feriados y disfrutan esta época de alegría y diversión.

Cuando pienso de mi niñez en Perú, me acuerdo de la canción que se llama “Arroz con Leche”, tal vez porque el título era el nombre de mi postre favorito. Es una comida dulce, suave, y muy tradicional.

Cuando mi mamá hace arroz con leche en mi casa ahora, me regresa las memorias de cuando toda mi familia, mis tíos, tías, primos, y mis queridos abuelos, se reunían en una casa cada sábado para pasar tiempo juntos.

Los niños jugando con una pelota y los adultos jugando con cartas. Lo importante era estar juntos debajo el mismo techo para acordarnos de bien que nos sentimos juntos y que la familia siempre estará con nosotros, pase lo que pase.

El arroz con leche es una comida deliciosa pero también es un símbolo para familia y tradición.

Me gustaría compartir la receta con Uds. para que puedan disfrutarla también.

Ingredientes:

- 2,5 taza con arroz- 6 tazas con agua- 1 raja de canela grande

Los Polvorones originaron en España. Los más famosos se encuentran en Sevilla, una ciudad colocada en la región de Andalucia.

Es comida típica navideña, y es muy popular también en la América Latina y las Filipinas.

Otro nombre para los polvorones es “mantecados” por causa de su ingrediente tradicional, la manteca de cerdos ibéricos. Aunque no es muy complicado ni elegante, sigue creciendo en popularidad.

¡Disfruta esta receta tradicional y no te olvides compartirla con tu familia y amigos!

La receta hace 16 galletas.

Ingredientes:- 1,5 tazas de harina de trigo- 0,75 tazas de almendras- 5 onzas de mantequilla- 0,75 tazas de azúcar- 0,5 cucharaditas de canela en polvo

Preparación:1) Precaliente el horno a 350 grados.2) Mida y vierta la harina sobre una bandeja de horno. Ponga la harina en el horno por 8 minutos. Retire y reserve.3) Ponga las almendras crudas en otra bandeja de horno, y toste las almendras hasta que cambien de color ligeramente.

4) Quite y ponga las almendras en un procesador de alimentos. Pulverize las almendras.5) Baje la temperatura del horno a 250 grados.6) En un tazón grande, mezcle la mantequilla, el azúcar, y la canela.7) Mezcle la harina y el polvo de almendras.8) Ponga una hoja de papel encerado en una superficie plana.9) Forme una bola con la masa y ponga la bola en el papel encerado. Aplane la masa.10) Con un cortador de galletas, corte círculos de las bolas.11) Use una espátula para mover las galletas a una bandeja de horno.12) Hornée las galletas por 25-30 minutos.13) Retire la bandeja del horno. Deje

enfriar las galletas completamente.

FOTO POR JADE YE

¡Dulces del mundo hispano!

- 6 clavos de olor- 1 lata de leche condensada- 1,5 taza de azúcar- 1 cucharadita de esencia de vainilla- Canela en polvo- 0,25 de taza de pasas (opcional)

Preparación:1) En una olla mediana o grande, ponga las 5 tazas de agua a hervir con la canela y los clavos de olor.2) Una vez que esté hirviendo, agregue las 2,5 tazas de arroz a la olla de agua.3) Mueva el arroz constantemente hasta que reviente. 4) Añade la lata de leche condensada, y la taza y media de azúcar. Sigua moviendo el arroz para que el sabor pueda extenderse por toda la olla.5) Añade la cucharadita de esencia de vainilla y mueva el arroz.6) Dependiente de su preferencia, puede agregar una 0,25 de taza de pasas.7) Mueva el arroz con todos los otros ingredientes hasta que hierva por 3 minutos más.8) Sirva el arroz con leche en pequeños platos hondos.9) Para un sabor extraordinario, se le espolvorea canela en polvo.Se puede comer caliente o frio. 10) ¡Disfruten del arroz con leche!

FOTO POR ALEXANDER BAZAN

Polvorones son galletas tradicionales españoles navideñas.

El arroz con leche es un postre popular, especialmente en Perú. Es una comida dulce.

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ARTS14 15ARTSThe Tide December 2012 The Tide December 2012

The lights dimmed, the audience hushed the air quivered; two slim sil-houettes crossed the stage lights, which cast deep obscuring shadows across the performers’ faces. What were they go-ing to sing, the audience wondered?

Moments later, a shy female voice mod-estly announced that the song was scarcely rehearsed and what everyone was about to hear was the result of a single night’s work. She cleared her throat and the guitar be-gan to strum the slow rhythmic introduc-tion of “Blackbird” by The Beatles. To everyone’s aston-ishment, the iconic Paul McCartney voice was replaced by an equally beau-tiful soprano sound; Sydney Wiltshire had chosen not to mimic the signature voice of The Beatles’ lead, but rather to modify it and make the song her own.

When asked about her perfor-mance later, “I made so many mistakes,” she lamented, yet the audience had struggled to discern a single one. This motif of humble yet fierce originality and independence has permeat-ed throughout her life. Encouraged by her father, Wiltshire’s love of song blossomed at a very young age, often resulting in spon-taneous mini-recitals featuring the various commercial jingles she had memorized. “I have a natural love for singing,” she said.

By the time she reached the first

This year, the RM Black Maskers chose to go in a different direction than the Christmas themed play they put on as last year’s winter production. They select-ed the comedy play Seven Sisters, which originally premiered in 1911, directed by Edith Ellis Furness and Ferenc Herczeg.

The comedy is set in early 20th century Hungary, where it was considered unlucky for daughters to get married in any other order than that of which they were born.

When MGM studios announced the release date of Skyfall in January of 2011, it quickly became one of the most antici-pated movies of 2012, despite the release date being 12 months away. It has been 4 years since the release of the 22nd Bond film, Quantum of Solace, and for fans, Sky-fall quickly became the relief to a 4 year drought of the world’s most famous secret agent. Daniel Craig returns for his third appearance as Agent 007 and once again fails to disappoint even the most skeptical crowd. But for us, Craig was not the act-ing force that drove this film to such success. Rather, the characters who stood out were the ones who can only be referred to by a single letter. M, played by Judi Dench, is the straight-faced, emotionless leader of MI6 who has the tables turned on her as her depart-ment becomes the victim, rather than the attacker, of a mysterious terrorist hacker. Joining the team is Q, played by Ben Whishaw. The tech-savvy quartermaster has been absent in the previous two films, but brings back the witty, cutting-edge Brit-ish personality that charmed audiences a decade ago.

The big question remains: Where does this film rank against the 22 other Bond films that have been produced over the past half-century? Well, to be quite honest, it is a difficult task to compare them

by David Chen

by Andrew Del Vecchio and Max Molot

by Jesse Daines

Skyfall reinvigorates the 007 series

Metalhead fans, look no futher: our very own Rockville is home to two groups that definitely do not disappoint. The Avant-Garde metal band, Dog Fashion Disco (DFD) was active from 1995 to 2007. The three original members, Todd Smith, John Ensminger, and Greg Combs, actu-ally came up with their unique band name while attending high school in Rockville, Maryland. DFD’s roster has shifted over the years with Jasan Stepp, Brian “Wendy” White, Jeff Siegel, and Matt Rippetoe all joining at one time. However, the influence of the 80’s band Mr. Bungle has contistent-ly remained a touchstone in their sound.

DFD was composed of young artists for the entirety of its existence, and they re-leased seven albums under Outerloop, Ar-temis, Rotten, and Spitfire Records. When asked about the tour of their dreams, they replied “with our style of music, we need to be out on the road bring- ing it to the kids. … We have to start it up ourselves and build from there.”

DFD’s music successfully

a p -

pealed to their

target mar-ket, kids

grade, she had joined her elementary school’s chorus. By high school, she had participated in various prestigious groups throughout both her academic and extracurricular careers. In the com-ing semester, she will be singing for the exclusive Madrigals group and con-tinuing her solo position at Resonance.

While she enjoys contributing to her chorus group, Wiltshire prefers the inti-mate and story based style of the coun-try and songwriter genres when she is at home. “To me, country music actu-ally tells a story and it’s usually about things I can relate to; it is the actual lyr-ics that mean something to me,” Wiltshire

revealed, “it is not the twangy hillbilly music many people wrongly assume it is.”

She also dives into the often-under-appreciated subcul-ture of the singer and songwriter genre, which is filled with a plethora of artists constantly crafting fresh forms of music through their unique vocal qualities. Their products are often soothing and have the intimately relatable stories of daily strug-gles that Wiltshire so eagerlyconnects with.

Yet Wiltshire’s ar-tistic and academic talents go far beyond singing; her love of artistry extends to photography and she also wants to pur-sue a biological science major at Uni-versity of South Carolina. Her indepen-dent and original nature allows her to be a Renaissance character, drawing inspiration from the arts, sciences and the empirical experiences of daily life.

Mitzi Gyurkovics (played by Madeleine Winstel), however, the fourth born of her seven sisters, does not want to wait for her older sisters to get married. She, along with Ferenz Horkoy (played by August McClel-land) whom she meets at a masked ball, set out to marry off her three older sisters.

The play is very short compared to previous Black Maskers productions, and the Director, Denise Duvall Saladyga, ad-mits that Seven Sisters is a, “simple little show with a sweet, almost naïve plot.”

The cast was relatively small, with only fourteen characters. Molly Simp-son, a junior on the sound crew, said that

all. This time around, Bond is portrayed not as a person, but as a symbol. The series has progressed from the classic good guy

against bad guy format to an artistic, stylish Bond who is more than just a man with an unbridled love for his country. Sure, the action is still there (even more prev-alent than usual), the

stunts are plentiful, and the spy is handsome to

say the least, but Bond is evolving. The

series is adapt-ing itself to the modern era of film. And soon enough, the de-b a t e w i l l

arise as to w h e t h e r Bond needs to become traditional or progres-sive. Some critics say that Sky-fall has shaken the Bond leg-acy, while others say

it is just stir-ring things

up. Never-theless, Bond is back, and it appears that he is here to stay.

interested in heavy metal, with mysteri-ous lyrics and a very heavy sound. This, combined with a somewhat irregular tempo, causes DFD’s music to stay rel-evant and interesting to many even today.

Another Metalhead band originat-ing from Rockville is Polkadot Cadaver. Formed by several former DFD members, Polkadot Cadaver distinguished itself with a newer and fresher sound than its prede-cessor. The band consists of Todd Smith, Jasan Stepp, David Cullen, and John En-sminger, three out of the four original members of DFD. Polkadot Cadaver built momentum quickly, especially after their first songs, were recorded in Wrightway Studios and released by Rotten Records.

Their debut album, Purgatory Dance Party, was released on November 17, 2007 and picked up right where DFD left off. On May 5, 2011, the band debuted at Number 17 on the Billboard New Artist Chart with their second album Sex Offender. Pol-kadot Cadaver is still active to this day, producing music ranging from thrashing Slayer-like riffage to folk-pop melodies.

When choosing between Dog Fash-ion Disco and Polkadot Cadaver, many might prefer Polkadot Cadaver’s quality of sound as well their more relatable lyr-ics. DFD’s music has an antique metal

sound and, compared to Polkadot Cadaver’s work, seems far less or-chestrated. Metal might not be

most people’s favorite genre of mu-sic, but Polkadot Cadaver’s diverse mate-rial proves it can appeal to a broad base of listeners. Both of these locally success-ful bands should give hope to anyone try-ing to launch a music career by spending hours after school jamming in their garage.

With the recent release of their third album, fittingly titled #3, Irish trio The Script set off on their American tour. The night of November 7, I, along with a few friends, went to DAR Constitu-tion Hall to see them in action. You may have heard their classics—The Man Who Can’t Be Moved, Breakeven, or Nothing—but their lesser- known songs are some of their best. Former model Tristan Pretty-man opened for the band and impressed the audience with her vibrant voice.

The stage setup was subtle, nothing overly fancy (though with all the lights and fog, it was hard to believe that the stage is the same one used for graduation). Lead singer Danny O’Donoghue filled the hall with the energy and voice that made the audience melt in adoration. The mu-sical accompaniment by Mark Sheehan (guitar) and Glen Power (drums) accen-tuated the refined tones of O’Donoghue’s

lead. A melting pot of pop, rock, R&B, and rap, the playlist never got old.

O’Donoghue is known for getting the audience involved in his shows, and even came down from the stage and let the audi-ence attack him in the middle of his songs on multiple occasions throughout the concert. During Nothing, which he sum-marized as a song about the downfalls of “drunk-dialing,” he asked for an audience member to “dial someone they shouldn’t be dialing” and give him the phone. O’Donoghue picked up the phone and sang into it throughout the performance. (Needless to say, all the girls were jealous of the person on the other end of the call!)

The venue was small enough that ev-eryone in the audience had a good view of the band, but to get an even closer look, we rushed to the floor during the encore performance. We got to lock eyes with the dreamy Danny O’ and get po-litely rejected by the adorable Mark Shee-han when we begged for him to come down from the stage. At least he threw my friend a wink and me a signed guitar pick!

by Tandis Hamidzadeh

The Script debuts album “#3” with US Tour

PHOTO BY TANDIS HAMIDZADEH

Singer O’Donoghue and company woos the audience with his vibrant voice and spirit.

Wes Anderson com-bined the best elements from his previous work and turned it into a film that is both his most ac-cessible and one of his best. The tale of young love gone to the extreme is a perfect mix of hu-mor, drama, and heart.

Functioning as both a fascinating character study and a sly takedown of organized religion, Paul Thomas Anderson’s carefully crafted script and inventive direction were only topped by Joaquin Phoenix in the best screen performance of the past few years.

Scary, funny, and ge-nius, this action-horror-scifi-comedy tore apart just about every horror convention in movie his-tory while also critiqu-ing modern society in a wildly entertaining ride.

After taking a sharp decline in recent years, in-terest in James Bond was beyond revitalized with one of the best entries in the franchise’s history. Great action, actual char-acter development, and Javier Bardem’s instant classic of a villain made it the only movie on the list that anyone can love.

Our final spot goes to a pair of time travel movies that made sci-ence fiction exciting again. Looper featured memorable thrills and a provoking story with a slew of great acting. Safe-ty Not Guaranteed took time travel in a unique romantic “dram-edy” direction, with a fresh and emotional story that catapulted it to greatness.

Tide’s Fave Five Movies of 2012

PHOTO COURTESY OF OUTERLOOP RECORDS

PHOTOS BY DAVID CHEN

Putting the rock back in RockvilleDog Fashion Disco centers it’s fan base in the local Rockville area where it originated.

PHOTO COURTESY OF OUTERLOOP

PHOTO BY DAVID CHEN

Black Masters put on an atypical rom-com with Seven Sistersby Brian Harrington

the small cast made their job much easier because, “there was not much to do re-garding mic changes between scenes.”

It was obvious that the ac-tors put in a lot of rehearsal time.

Noah Beye in particular put on a strong performance as the Colonel Gaza Radviany. His strong voice projected well and thundered across the set when-ever his character was angry, and the au-dience could feel his power and wrath.

The play utilized a single set: the seven sisters’ house. Little things like the style of the wallpaper and furniture created

the feel of a genuine Hungarian home. The same went for the costumes, with

vintage-looking dresses and suits for all the characters. The production crews were truly able to create the feel of a Hungarian setting.

Emily Schaefer, the assistant director of the play, said it best when she noted, “The cast and crews have really brought to life the lovably dysfunctional Gyurkov-ics family and the world they inhabit.”

The production was able to bring the sto-ry to life with some superb acting and design.

Stay on the lookout for the Black Mask-ers’ next production coming early 2013.

PHOTOS BY LEXIE WERNER

PHOTO BY LEXIE WERNER

Radviany and Katinka (pictured left) are matchmade by the devious Mitzi and Ferenz.

Mitzi and Ferenz flirty relationship soldifies after marrying off Mitzi’z older sisters.

Wiltshire finds inspiration in nature.

COURTESY OF FOCUS FEATURESCOURTESY OF

THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY COURTESY OF MGM COURTESY OF LIONGATECOURTESY OF TRISTAR PICTURES

AND FILMDISTRICT

Senior Hari Devaraj shows his admiration of the movie with a home-made shirt.

15ARTSDecember 2012 The Tide December 2012

When MGM studios announced the release date of Skyfall in January of 2011, it quickly became one of the most antici-pated movies of 2012, despite the release date being 12 months away. It has been 4 years since the release of the 22nd Bond film, Quantum of Solace, and for fans, Sky-fall quickly became the relief to a 4 year drought of the world’s most famous secret agent. Daniel Craig returns for his third appearance as Agent 007 and once again fails to disappoint even the most skeptical crowd. But for us, Craig was not the act-ing force that drove this film to such success. Rather, the characters who stood out were the ones who can only be referred to by a single letter. M, played by Judi Dench, is the straight-faced, emotionless leader of MI6 who has the tables turned on her as her depart-ment becomes the victim, rather than the attacker, of a mysterious terrorist hacker. Joining the team is Q, played by Ben Whishaw. The tech-savvy quartermaster has been absent in the previous two films, but brings back the witty, cutting-edge Brit-ish personality that charmed audiences a decade ago.

The big question remains: Where does this film rank against the 22 other Bond films that have been produced over the past half-century? Well, to be quite honest, it is a difficult task to compare them

by Andrew Del Vecchio and Max Molot

Skyfall reinvigorates the 007 seriesall. This time around, Bond is portrayed not as a person, but as a symbol. The series has progressed from the classic good guy

against bad guy format to an artistic, stylish Bond who is more than just a man with an unbridled love for his country. Sure, the action is still there (even more prev-alent than usual), the

stunts are plentiful, and the spy is handsome to

say the least, but Bond is evolving. The

series is adapt-ing itself to the modern era of film. And soon enough, the de-b a t e w i l l

arise as to w h e t h e r Bond needs to become traditional or progres-sive. Some critics say that Sky-fall has shaken the Bond leg-acy, while others say

it is just stir-ring things

up. Never-theless, Bond is back, and it appears that he is here to stay.

With the recent release of their third album, fittingly titled #3, Irish trio The Script set off on their American tour. The night of November 7, I, along with a few friends, went to DAR Constitu-tion Hall to see them in action. You may have heard their classics—The Man Who Can’t Be Moved, Breakeven, or Nothing—but their lesser- known songs are some of their best. Former model Tristan Pretty-man opened for the band and impressed the audience with her vibrant voice.

The stage setup was subtle, nothing overly fancy (though with all the lights and fog, it was hard to believe that the stage is the same one used for graduation). Lead singer Danny O’Donoghue filled the hall with the energy and voice that made the audience melt in adoration. The mu-sical accompaniment by Mark Sheehan (guitar) and Glen Power (drums) accen-tuated the refined tones of O’Donoghue’s

lead. A melting pot of pop, rock, R&B, and rap, the playlist never got old.

O’Donoghue is known for getting the audience involved in his shows, and even came down from the stage and let the audi-ence attack him in the middle of his songs on multiple occasions throughout the concert. During Nothing, which he sum-marized as a song about the downfalls of “drunk-dialing,” he asked for an audience member to “dial someone they shouldn’t be dialing” and give him the phone. O’Donoghue picked up the phone and sang into it throughout the performance. (Needless to say, all the girls were jealous of the person on the other end of the call!)

The venue was small enough that ev-eryone in the audience had a good view of the band, but to get an even closer look, we rushed to the floor during the encore performance. We got to lock eyes with the dreamy Danny O’ and get po-litely rejected by the adorable Mark Shee-han when we begged for him to come down from the stage. At least he threw my friend a wink and me a signed guitar pick!

by Tandis Hamidzadeh

The Script debuts album #3 with US Tour

PHOTO BY TANDIS HAMIDZADEH

Singer O’Donoghue and company woos the audience with his vibrant voice and spirit.

Wes Anderson com-bined the best elements from his previous work and turned it into a film that is both his most ac-cessible and one of his best. The tale of young love gone to the extreme is a perfect mix of hu-mor, drama, and heart.

Functioning as both a fascinating character study and a sly takedown of organized religion, Paul Thomas Anderson’s carefully crafted script and inventive direction were only topped by Joaquin Phoenix in the best screen performance of the past few years.

Scary, funny, and ge-nius, this action-horror-scifi-comedy tore apart just about every horror convention in movie his-tory while also critiqu-ing modern society in a wildly entertaining ride.

After taking a sharp decline in recent years, in-terest in James Bond was beyond revitalized with one of the best entries in the franchise’s history. Great action, actual char-acter development, and Javier Bardem’s instant classic of a villain made it the only movie on the list that anyone can love.

Our final spot goes to a pair of time travel movies that made sci-ence fiction exciting again. Looper featured memorable thrills and a provoking story with a slew of great acting. Safe-ty Not Guaranteed took time travel in a unique romantic “dram-edy” direction, with a fresh and emotional story that catapulted it to greatness.

Tide’s Fave Five Movies of 2012

PHOTO BY DAVID CHEN

Black Masters put on an atypical rom-com with Seven Sisters

PHOTOS BY LEXIE WERNER

COURTESY OF FOCUS FEATURESCOURTESY OF

THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY COURTESY OF MGM COURTESY OF LIONGATECOURTESY OF TRISTAR PICTURES

AND FILMDISTRICT

Senior Hari Devaraj shows his admiration of the movie with a home-made shirt.

16 The Tide December 2012

FEATURES

1. Sweaters over collared shirts: This is an easy way to add a lot of sophistication to an outfit. It is also great for the weather because it allows you to mix and match layers! The best collared shirts for this would be those of neutral colors becausethey match well with most colored or patterened sweaters.2. Heeled boots with shoelaces: This trend is also appropriate for the weather! It combines the casualness of shoelaces with the toughness of leather

heels. This looks great with anything, but be careful not to cover up too much of the shoes with jeans! It goes best with skirts and dresses with tights that show off the heel’s design. If wearing heeled shoes to school scares you, there are many options

available without a heel.3. Slouchy hats: It is time to pull out the hat and mittens! Slouchy hats are casually fun and come in many designs and colors. Pick a color that compliments your outerwear for the best effect. And remember to take

off your hat during class.4. Stripes: Stripes are great on anything, including skirts, dresses, or sweaters. Horizontal stripes are more flattering than vertical stripes. If you wear a striped skirt or sweater, pair it with solid color for balance. If you are wearing a striped dress, pair it with a jacket that matches one of the colors in the dress’ design. The widths of stripes vary from brand to brand, so experiment and have fun!

5 . M o c c a s i n s : Moccasins are great for everyone, but find a style that you like most, be it embellished or fringed. Moccasins greatly compliment boot leg jeans.6.High-waist black s k i r t s : H i g h - wa i s t skirts are the staple of the season! They elongate the legs and can be wornfrom

season to season. For a casual effect, pair the skirt with a graphic

tee-shirt or sweater. For a more formal effect, pair with a solid color top tucked

by Michelle Wang and Erica Lee

by Sedef Berk

‘Tis the season to reach out and give back to our community

Stay warm this winter season with the hottest trends

Greetings Richard Montgomery,

The SGA would like to thank everyone who participated in the Treats for Troops Candy Drive. We raised over 120 lbs. of candy for our troops overseas. Way to go Rockets!

Congratulations to the senior class of 2013 for winning Powderpuff Foot-ball that was held on Wednesday November 13th from 3:00pm-5:00pm. Al-though the weather was freezing, we had an excellent turnout of spectators and players. We raised over $500 that we are sending to “Susan G. Komen” for Breast Cancer Research.

The City of Rockville Holiday Drive took place on the week of December 3rd-7th. The sixth period class that collected the most toys wins a pizza party courtesy to the SGA. The winning class will be announced promptly!

On Wednesday, December 12th, the SGA will be hosting the Student vs. Staff Basketball Game from 7:00pm-9:00pm in the Gym. Tickets will be $3/stu-dent and $5/adult and all the money will go towards Hurricane Sandy Relief. Come watch your friends take on the teachers.

It is official everyone! We have confirmed our winter spirit week and pep rally for the week of December 10th-14th. Monday is class color day, Tuesday is pajama day, Wednesday is Disney day, Thursday is ugly sweater day, and Friday is black & gold Day. We will have the double pep-rally on Friday, De-cember 14th at the end of the day. Spirit days will also be advertised on the SGA bulletin board, the announcements, and RMBC. Don’t forget to bring all your school spirit to the Student vs. Staff Basketball Game on Wednesday!

Lastly, there will be a MCR General Assembly on Wednesday, December 19th during 3rd-6th period hosted by our own Richard Montgomery HS. If you are interested in attending, please contact our school’s MCR Liaison Al-lison Febrey for a permission slip. The next General Assembly for 1st period delegates and class officers is Friday, January 11th during 6th period, this means we will not have a December General Assembly. Have a great holiday break!

Sincerely,Alexander Bazán, SGA President 2012-2013

by Stephanie MooreTen Thousand Villages is a fair trade

organization. That means, in “simplest terms” according to Brown, it “pays people for what they do.”

Artisans from about 37 developing countries create handmade artwork for

Ten Thousand Villages stores throughout the US and Canada, and all have a unique story. A lot of jewelry fills the store; however it is definitely not short on décor.

P a t r o n s can find pieces for their living rooms, kitchens, bedroom, and special gifts for anyone in mind.

Each piece is reflective of the culture it comes from. Brown advocates its

goal to “regain an industry

and reclaim an old art” in order to provide “sustainable income” for the well deserving artists. Brown states that “the best advertisement is a happy customer.”

Go visit the store and you will find yourself pleasantly surprised at the its great message and hospitality.

PHOTO BY SEDEF BERKWhen a sweater seems too casual pair it with a collard shirt for a more classy look.

PHOTO BY SEDEF BERK

If wearing pants, tuck them into boots!

Tucked away on the backside of Rockville Town Square is a store with a lot of character—Ten Thousand Villages. The clusters of color and the smiles of employees welcome each customer as they walk in. Customers range from “all ages and all sorts,” said Assistant Manager Malvina Brown.

Many Richard Montgomery students have volunteered at the store, making it either a well-known spot or a hidden treasure. Since the store is a non-profit organization, it relies heavily on volunteers.

Although students come in for Student Service Learning opportunities by sorting shelves or acting as floor members of the store, they end up leaving with a much larger sense of community. A current volunteer, Carolina Rabinowicz, recalls the store being a community within itself and adds, “I love this store, my mom loves this store, and it carries a great message.”

bringing the villages to the square

Ten Thousand Villages is a great place for holiday shopping, especially for mom.

PHOTO BY SEDEF BERK

Take a break from decking the halls and drinking hot chocolate and volunteer in your community! There are many opportunities to donate and volunteer to help the needy during this holiday season both inside and outside the school community.

The Student Government Association has always been very active when it comes to community service. On November 13th our SGA finished the Treats for Troops Drive. The drive ran for a week and raised over 100 pounds of candy for troops.

The next major SGA-sponsored drive was the City of Rockville Holiday Drive from December 3rd-7th. It was a 6th period class competition and the winning class will get a pizza party.

One of the most fun community serivce events the SGA sponsorsd is the annual student verse staff basketball game, which will be on Wednesday, December 12th

from 7:00-9:00pm. The game will be raising money for Hurricane Sandy victims in New York and New Jersey. Students can participate by playing in the game, donating money, or simply cheering on their peers and teachers.

In addition to the SGA, many clubs have already decided to give back to the community. The National Honor Society packed about 100 bagged lunches for a homeless shelter for Thanksgiving and is planning on going caroling this winter. Additionally, NHS students are heading to Manna Food Center to help sort food on December 14th; any additional can donations are heartily welcomed.

The Red Cross club hosted a toiletries drive from Monday, November 26 to Friday, November 30. In addition to helping the community, first period classes had the incentive to compete with each other; the class that brought in the most

toiletries gets donuts and juice!Tri-M, the National Music Honor

Society, had an event for Peerless Rockville, a group that works to restore historic buildings in the area. The group had a fundraiser party on December 2nd at Red Brick Courthouse from 1-4 PM. It was a great opportunity for RM students to put their musical skills to use while giving back to their community.

Outside of school, many organizations are helping those in need to have a happier holiday season. A Wider Circle accepts food donations and grocery store gift cards to create holiday

meal baskets. Donated toys and gift cards brighten up the holidays for children in low-income families.

Hearts and Homes for Youth, Inc.is also dedicated to helping children. Annually, the organization helps over 1,000 kids who are neglected and abused. Currently, they

are collecting clothing, books, CD players, gift certificates, and sports equipment.

In addition, the Community Companions Program is looking for volunteers to help children and teenagers with developmental disabilities to celebrate the holidays. Volunteers and children make holiday crafts, sing carols, and play interactive games together.

The group Bethesda Cares, is collecting toiletries (such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, lip balm, lotion, and disposable razors), blankets, and warm clothing, as well as donations of coffee, tea, hot chocolate, sugar, and cups for hot drinks.

Helping out around during the holidays is a great way to give back to the community and avoid the winter blues! Every donation or volunteer contributes to the priceless smiles of a happier community.

However, keep in mind that helping out is not just for the holidays: volunteering and giving back to our community can take place in any way, any time.

Have a very giving holiday!

The annual charity student versus staff

basketball game will be on Wednesday, December 12th from 7:00-9:00pm.

17The Tide FEATURES December 2012

by Mary Melati

Holidays are around the corner and the pressure to spend money on gifts for friends and families is overwhelming! It’s meant to be the most joyous time of the school year, but for those who like to be frugal, it is a hectic time.

Internet holiday gift guides just don’t understand students’ lack of funds and limited budget. But not to worry! The Tide has created the greatest gift guide for those with a tight budget. This year, show appreciation for your loved ones by getting them one of these fun, cheap gifts!

1. awesome accessoriesTeam up with your siblings to buy your

mom a Vera Bradley iPad or laptop case which costs about $30. For your dad, a new mouse for the computer or phone case should cost around $10 each at Microcenter and is perfect

by Michelle Wang and Yueyang Ying

Restaurant Review: Where to phó for lunch?

All I want for Christmas...is the best present ever!

Step 2: Fold the card in half so that the crease runs down the middle of the tree, dividing it symmetrically.Step 3: Keep the card folded in half with

by Meghasena Chavali

the tree on the outside of the card, which will make cutting a lot easier. Cut along the layers of the tree, ending up with five slits going from the middle of the tree to the dotted line on the side of the tree.Step 4: Fold the first layer back against the card over the dotted line. Crease the paper

down and fold it back to its original position.Step 5: Open the card and push the first layer through to the other side, creating a 3-D pop up effect on the other side.Step 6: Close the card again with the first layer

pushed in on the other side and crease down.Step 7: Repeat steps 4-6 with the next layer until all the layers are on the other side.

Step 8: Take another piece of paper the same size as your card (cut accordingly) and glue it onto the back of the card for a nice cover. You should only be able to see the 3-D pop-out side of the tree. Note: Creasing each fold will lead to a more crisp and sturdy tree!

Celebrate Hanukkah with delicious Moroccan donutsby Arielle Hazut

Step 1: Copy the template onto a blank card.

PHOTO BY MICHELLE WANG

Pho and Rolls is conveniently in RTC. A favorite for students, it fills up at lunch time.

Phó 95 is inviting with a casual setting.

Jelly-filled doughnuts are a traditional snack eaten during the Jewish holiday Hanukkah. Not only are jelly-filled do-nuts delicious, they symbolize the miracle of the oil that was expected to be used up in one day, but instead lasted for eight.

This year, try something a bit more challenging than store-bought donuts.

Yield: 30 donuts.Time: around 4 hours

PHOTOS BY VIVIAN BUI

Sugary donuts are a Hanukkah tradition!

for quotidian use this holiday season.

2.the freedom to express

Dare your friends to reveal their inner artists by buying them art journals to keep for the upcoming year. You can go to Barnes and Nobles or even Urban Outfitters to find the Wreck This Journal series and other popular art journals created by Keri Smith for only $10. These journals are so addicting you might want to buy one for yourself.

3.defense against the cold

With cold weather and snow coming this winter, senior Danny Chang complained, “I hate it when my hands get cold.” Save your friends from chilliness by buying them tech gloves (gloves with a super touch on the tips recognizable by the touch screen), wool infinity scarfs, or warm hats. These accessories can be found anywhere in the mall for around $10.

4. Make Your Own Gift

This year, homemade gifts are the new luxury gifts. Make a batch of cookies and buy chocolate and divide it into holiday goody bags for your friends. Create a custom playlist and burn it to a CD for an instant personalized gift.

5. the gift of smooth skin

Senior Brian Huang complained, “I hate it when my skin gets dry in the winter.” Time to treat your friends to Bath and Body Works lotion and creams. The store always has great deals during the holidays, such as “Buy 3, get 2 Free”, “5 for $15” or “7 for $20”! In addition to their holiday fragrances, the store also carries the popular Japanese Cherry Blossom, Sweet Pea, and Twilight Woods scents.

6. a night at the theaters

At Costco, you can buy a movie gift certificate for Regal Cinemas or AMC Lowes

for only $7 each! Let your friends enjoy the gift of movies this holiday season.

A popular street food and night meal in Vietnam, the traditional Vietnamese noodle soup, phó, has made its way to America. Phó is healthy and filled with complex flavors, a great alternative to the typical burger and fries. But where can you get a good bowl of phó? There are many options in the Rockville area. Here are a few to consider.

Chic and stylish, Phó and Rolls in Rockville Town Square attracts adults and students alike. Teachers and students can stop in for a refreshing drink or a quick meal.

Phó and Rolls offers a small bowl of Phó for $7, medium and large bowls from $8 to $10, and take-out for an extra 50 cents. The restaurant is sit-down, but be prepared to pay up front before getting the food.

The restaurant pairs its phó with an option of tenderloin, flank, meatballs, chicken, or vegetables. Although it skimps a bit on the meat, Phó and Rolls is notable for with its large variety of rolls. Phó and Rolls serves a Vietnamese twist on the sandwich, using daikon, pickled carrots, and pâté. Among the drinks offered are

fruit smoothies, bubble tea, and for diners over 21, wine or beer.

Phó 75 is located on Hungerford Drive. The restaurant seems to be more closely related to Phó and Rolls, as it also has a menu limited to mainly phó. But the prices here are a little cheaper: $5.75 for a small bowl and $6.45 for a large. Make sure to carry cash, as they do not accept credit cards. For those who can drive, this

restaurant is but a few minutes away.

By CVS on 355 sits another restaurant that specializes in this type of cuisine. Phó 95 is a small, family-owned restaurant established in 1995 with a mission to serve authentic Vietnamese dishes that can be eaten anytime of the day. The owner commented, “It’s almost

a fast food of sorts, except it’s healthy.” Among customer favorites are the chicken phó and number 11 phó, the “Tai Chin:” a simple steak-and-brisket dish. Service is speedy yet occasionally somewhat rude. Phó 95 has considerably more variety in their menu compared to Phó 75 and Phó and Rolls.

All three restaurants have their own merits. But if you are looking for an authentic experience, we suggest you try your luck at Phó 75 or Phó 95. If you want a more Americanized experience, Phó and Rolls is the place to go.

PHOTO BY MICHELLE WANG

Ingredients: 50g (1.75 ounces) moist-yeast, ½ cup lukewarm water, 1kg (4 ½ cups) flour, ½ teaspoon salt, and 2 ½ cups warm water. For frying the doughnuts you will need 1liter (4 ¼ cups) of oil (preferably canola) and a bit of oil to grease your hands.

Preparation:1. In a small bowl,

dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water

and set aside for 10 minutes or until the solu-tion bubbles up.In a larger bowl, mix the flour and salt together and mix in the dissolved yeast mixture.

2. Add the warm water and knead the dough until it is soft and slightly sticky.

3. Cover the bowl with a damp

towel and let the

dough rise at room temperature for 3 hours.4. Grease your hands with a bit of oil

and form the dough into balls with diam-eters of around 3 cm.

5. Heat the oil in a pot until bubbles be-gin to appear.

6. Spread the dough balls into rings by gently pulling the dough outwards from the middle with your fingers

7. Place the dough balls into the oil.8. Fry until lightly brown, then flip.9. Remove the doughnuts with a slotted

spoon and place on paper towels.10 Serve them sprinkled with pow-

dered sugar, or dipped in honey!

Homemade HallmarkPHOTO BY ARIELLE HAZUT

However “there is one gift that you can always give everyone without any cost,” junior Jacquliene Page stated affirmatively, “A hug.”

In addition to a gift, a greeting card is the best way to show you care! Write about a fun memory you had with your friend this past year and wish them a warm and restful holiday.

Local CVS stores have a variety of Hallmark cards that range from funny to sentimental, but why not try making your own? On the internet, there is an overabundance of guides to create homemade origami cards; they’re eye-catchers because they’re different!

In the end, keep in mind that it does not matter how expensive your gifts are to your loved ones. Just add your own personal touch and voila! You are Santa Claus with the perfect gift for everyone.

18 The Tide December 2012ADVERTISEMENTS

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Division Two champions last year, the swimming and diving team will attempt to keep up to par with some of the best teams in the county in Division One. Although the team lost some of last year’s best swimmers to graduation, it also gained some promising swimmers and more experienced divers as part of the new freshman class.

Last season, the boys team went undefeated, and the girls team had a solid 3-2 record. This year, the team hopes to keep this momentum up and do just as well, if not better, against the Division One teams. “We plan to step up our game this season, after doing great last year in Division Two and moving up to Division One this year, and we plan to surprise all the teams who see us as underdogs,” e x p l a i n e d coach Aryn W h e e l e r .

T h e t e a m ’ s stars have a positive outlook on this year’s s e a s o n d e s p i t e losing some very fast swimmers. Junior Greg Song said that “Ben Hsieh was the most spirited person, but we have some new captains that can do just as fine a job.” This year’s boys captains include Matt Din, Matt Mittl, and Rio Hodges, while the girls feature Madison Kunstman and Brittany Dickerson.

Key losses include the aforementioned Hsieh “who was a really spirited guy, along with Faye Hixenbaugh, who

19The Tide December 2012

SPORTSIndoor track looks to sprint past tough county competition

New Division One challengers await motivated swim & dive team

by Krishnan Patel and Kyle Deppe

by Nancy Jin

Though this winter calls for record snowfall, the indoor track and field team intends to heat up the Mondo and set a few records themselves. The team has a strong core, which includes juniors Adam Jung and Grace Hanger, as well as seniors Dasia Adams and Michael Scott. These few individuals will need to step up and lead the team in order to fill the holes left behind by last year’s seniors and have a successful season.

The team is led by Head Coach Jonathan Rogers, who has brought RM fourteen state championships throughout his successful tenure at the school. This success is also evident through his coaching of the All-American 4x800 meter team three years ago.

This year, success will be much harder to come by with the losses of Nick Hu and David Hamilton, both of whom have been major contributors to the team’s success in the past few years.

Junior Julian Claytor believes their absence will be felt.

“We’re going to miss David for the 300, 400, and 500 and Nick Hu for the jumping and hurdles,” said Claytor. Hu was also a part of the 4x200 and 4x400 relays, as was the All-American Hamilton.

Claytor does believe people will come through, however, as he said, “I think we have a solid team, we have a lot of good runners.” Junior Adam Jung agreed, stating, “[we have] a lot of good runners

Boys soccer captains lead the team

Soccer captains will be missed.Leadership in key moments is the skill

that, more than any other, defines whether a talented team finds success or loses to less skilled opponents. Nowhere was this more clear than with this year’s boys soccer team.

The four senior captains – Spencer Glass, Arent Hiltermann, Graham Kindermann, and Tommy Scott – led the team through a rocky season and stayed motivated and focused both on and off the field.

The team’s coach, Chamy Wijeratne, had only the highest praise to dole out to his captains. Wijeratne described that the four captains “work alongside the team, not above it.”

Thanks to the hard work and skill of the captains as well as the team’s other star performers, the Rockets were able to advance to the regional semifinals, the furthest playoff advancement in school history. The playoff run included road upsets of the favored Churchill Bulldogs and Quince Orchard Cougars, both in excitingly close fashion, before a tough loss to the eventual state champion Wootton Patriots.

The goalie Kindermann arguably had the biggest impact on the team’s success this season. Kindermann, who was selected to the Maryland All-State team, consistently

bailed the team out with excellent saves all year long, highlighted by five clutch saves in the playoff win at Churchill and the winning save in the penalty shootout against Quince Orchard. As Coach Wijeratne described, “Graham Kindermann was the glue that held the team together."

However, Kindermann was not the only major contributor among the captains. Glass contributed key goals and “helped the team with his pace and footwork,” according to Scott. Hiltermann “controlled the midfield,” Scott describes, and scored the lone winning goal in the overtime win against Clarksburg and the first-round playoff duel at Churchill. Scott was no slouch either, scoring a goal in a 1-1 tie with BCC and assisting on many goals.

Where even the captains could not help, however, Coach Wijeratne provided invaluable additions. He encouraged the team to maintain confidence through their rough division slate, and organized improved teamwork through the team’s unique practice regimen.

The improved results show the success of Coach Wijeratne’s strategies, and despite the loss of the excellent senior class, the Rockets program is here to stay. The team has an excellent younger core, and they will “continue on with their winning tradition,” says Coach Wijeratne. Either way, this season’s team announced their presence and the Rockets are most certainly back on the map.

PHOTO BY CYNTHIA SONGJunior Daniel Johnston leads a pack of boys during indoor track tryouts. Tryouts were three days of grueling time trials including the mile and 800 meter run.

by Syllia Newstead and Victoria Mickens

© 2012 WWW.EYEONBALL.COM

who can step up”. Claytor thinks Scott can cover the hole left by the two in the 300. Claytor said, “He was under the shadow of David and will fill the void.”

In addition to Scott, a dynamic pool of juniors and sophomores keeps the team afloat. Sophomore Matt Agboola, the 3,200 meter (2 mile) runner, returns

and looks to continue the success he had during last season, possibly to break RM’s 3,200 meter record.

Junior Jamal Darby is a hopeful to be one of the team’s best 300 meter and 500 meter sprinters. Junior Nick Costello will throw for the first time during indoor track and is looking to continue the success he

had from shot put during outdoor track. The team has depth in the 800

meter event, with Agboola, Claytor and sophomore Emmanuel Porquin.

The depth here puts them in contention for a wide open 4x800 race at the county championships. While Hu and Hamilton were legends in the

program, the quantity of talent this year leaves the team more able to respond to injury and push each other in practice.

The girls team, unlike the boys, has most of their core runners returning; however they have still lost a key senior.

Elena de la Paz, a distance runner, was part of the 4x800 unit that made it to

the state championship. The senior trio of Adams, Ashley Christopher and Tise Taiwo will all be among the favorites in the sprint events this year and are projected to give RM strong relays.

Hanger seeks to build on a strong cross country season and contend for titles in the 800 and 1600 this season. Claytor recognizedHanger’s potential in replacing de la Paz, acknowledging, “Grace will make up for it”.

Junior Thea Postolache, who runs the 1600 meter and 800 meter, is there to help Hanger fill the void.

Along with this, the girls see the return of their throwers, juniors Ozioma Edokobi and Tiffany Afolabi-Brown. They look to continue their success after qualifying for the state championship last year.

The girls team is among the favorites this year for a county title after finishing 5th last year.

The girls indoor team looks to capitalize on what could be their best team in years. Their superiority in almost every event puts them among the county’s best.

“It is almost a balanced team,” said Claytor. The boys team will focus on their strengths and lay the foundation for title runs in the future.

“Our strength this year is going to be towards distance,” said Claytor.

The team starts its season with a scrimmage on December 1st at the Prince George’s Sports and Learning Complex. This should give them an idea of where they stand among their county rivals.

Arent Hilterman passes to Tommy Scott while fighting off an agressive defender.

© © 2012 WWW.EYEONBALL.COM

ran the show in sprint freestyle for the girls,” according to senior Rio Hodges.

Besides these two talented seniors, the team also lost Andrew Zhao (a sprint freestyle and breaststroke swimmer) and Tony Trinh (who swam a number of relays), among others.

However, sophomore John Jeang hopes that “this year will be even better than last year. The new freshmen are extremely strong and that is what is going to make this year so great.” Last year, the main focus of the swimming and diving team was on the swimmers because of a notable lack of divers. This year, because of new potential divers, both the swimming and diving squads have improved chances and will therefore boost the team even higher.

With all these great improvements, the team is working on minimizing its weaknesses and expanding on its strengths. “The team’s strengths are definitely, well, our team. We’ve got a great set of swimmers in the upper and lower classes,” c o n f i r m e d s o p h o m o r e Sherril Han.

As for weaknesses, the team may be lacking in spirit. As sophomore Peter Wang explained, “On

a swim team, there isn’t much to say about team stuff because it’s mostly individual, even the relays.” Even so, cheering and encouragement amongst the team members is just as essential as training hard when meets come around.

Asked about her predictions for the upcoming season, Coach Wheeler concluded optimistically that “we should be keeping up with the best in the county.”

Junior Greg Song catches his breath while swim-ming breast stroke which is his favorite stroke.

position is a credit to the team’s resilience and spirit in the face of adversity. The Rockets prevailed over their loss of two key starters in the midst of the tight division race, and also overcame a number of injuries, including senior Ashlyn Lee’s ankle injury. Thankfully for Coach Boyd’s squad, “we’re o ve r c o m e r s , ” as senior Emily Jiang explained.

A f t e r o v e r c o m i n g these injuries and defections from the team, the Rockets set up to face Wootton in the regular season’s final (and most i m p o r t a n t ) match. After dropping the first two sets in a heartbreaking fashion, they clawed their way back and were able to win the final three sets and the whole match. This was the first five-set match played by the Rockets in more than three years, and it set them on a promising road towards the regional playoffs.

Unfortunately, after easily vanquishing

20 The Tide SPORTS December 2012

Only a junior and only 15 years of age, Gregory Song already has his eye set to compete as a member of the US National Swim Team at the 2016 Olympics. Last year, as a sophomore, he won the MVP award and broke two school records in the individual 100 breaststroke and team relay 400 freestyle.

Although he has only swum for 4 years, Song has already been ranked in the USA All-Time Top 100 and recently received the honor of being named a “Scholastic All-American,” an accolade that requires a swimmer to have multiple fast times and maintain at least a 3.5 grade point average.

Song’s dedication and strong work ethic has pushed him to the top in almost every event at a county, region, and national level. Song, who started swimming as a hobby to get in shape, admitted, “I didn't expect to come this far at all.”

When asked to describe Greg in one word, teammate and sophomore Sherril Han chose “stubborn” because his determination “is exactly what motivates him and characterizes him as a great swimmer.” When faced with a hard workout, Greg ignores the complaints from his teammates and instead he said he tries “to do the best I can.”

As a leader on the team, fellow junior Jonathan Huang noted that Song “is just a great person to be around because you can literally hear his voice wherever you are at the pool.” Cheering on his teammates, Song also receives his fair share of chanting

Girls volleyball ends another sucessful season with a 18-3 record

In addition to swimming at RM, Song competes for an excellent nationally-ranked club team and here wears the cap of the Darnestown Demons, swimming the butterfly.

PHOTOS BY GREG SONG

Coming into the 2012 fall season, the girls volleyball team had high expectations, seeking to improve on last year’s winning record and continue as a competitive powerhouse in both the county and the state.

With those high expectations, however, came the fear of rough sailing. Working with a new coach and dealing with the loss of three senior starters (including former first-team All-Met Jackie Nelligan), the season had its ups and downs, concluding with a tough regional semifinal loss to the powerhouse team from Walter Johnson.

The coaching change required major adjustments in the Rockets program. Former coach Elmer Matlock, who had coached the Rockets since 1988, announced his retirement before this season; his replacement, Theresa Boyd, was forced to step into the head position and make adjustments to the team and its strategies.

Nonetheless, the team started the season hot before losing a tough match against the rival Magruder Colonels. After this loss, however, the Rockets managed to reel off another four straight wins to run their record to an impressive 10-1 upon entering the grueling division slate. Aside from single losses to Walter Johnson and Sherwood, the team was able to rattle off six more wins to set up their 16-3 record when they entered the key Senior Night showdown with crosstown arch-nemesis Wootton High School.

The fact that the Rockets were able to find themselves in this highly-ranked

by Leilani Stacy

by Sam Deutsch

Athlete of the Issue: Greg Song

first-round foe Quince Orchard in straight sets, the Rockets fell in an upsetting semifinal match to the talented Walter Johnson Wildcats. While the 3rd place regional finish may have felt disappointing to the team’s players, Coach Boyd’s girls

understand that all hope is not lost. “We’ve accompl i shed our goals,” Jiang said. “And I have no doubt that we will still be a competitive team next year.”

While the outlook for the future is u n d o u b t e d l y promising, it comes with r e s e r va t i o n s . The team will have to replace MVPs Melanie English and Judy Fan, not to mention captain Jiang herself, a starter on the team since her freshman year. Overall, seven of the team’s twelve players, mostly starters, will be

graduating this year. Improvement will not be easy,

but the hard work and determination

demonstrated by this year’s seniors should be enough to push the team to new heights next year, assuming that these same skills are passed on to the younger generations of Rocket players.

Overall, the thrilling win against Wootton and crushing defeat at Walter Johnson made for a bittersweet conclusion

as Coach Wheeler remembers the “Su-bong” cheer that the Rockets will shout every time Song steps onto the blocks.

Coach Wheeler knows that she can “count on Greg to score points in whatever event I need him in.”

Song’s versatility shows through his love for multiple events, as he said, “My favorite high school event is probably the 100 breast, but my favorite club events are the 100/200 breast, 400 IM, and 200 fly.”

Additionally, Song won a division title in the 500 free, further showing the range he employs.

This season, RM will move from Division 2 to Division 1, which means that the Rockets will have to step up to match the competition in the best division in the county. Song maintains a positive outlook and acknowledged, “We have the talent we need to stay in and maybe even win it all.”

Outside of school, Song swims for the Nation's Capital Swim Club (NCAP), a club that has previously been named the

best in the U.S. At his site in Georgetown Prep, Song attends practices 8 times a week, the maximum number allowed. Guided by experienced coaches and surrounded by exceptional swimmers, Song has had the opportunity to train with gold medalist Katie Ledecky.

Out of the pool, his commitment to high academic standards has opened doors already to opportunities at Ivy League and Division 1 schools.

Song manages to balance his grueling IB student life and intense practice schedule through his dedication and time management skills, and while “juggling swimming and school is definitely difficult, in the pool I just forget about everything and enjoy what I'm doing in there.”

In terms of his RM career, Coach Wheeler observes that “between his freshman and sophomore year his times dropped and I have seen him learn how to swim smarter.”

Song hopes to continue his success and be able to swim in college and possibly even at a professional level.

Judging by the impressive performances he has recorded in his two years so far, the next two seasons at RM will provide record times and plenty of fireworks.

Girls volleyball by the numbers

16 regular season wins

2 postseason wins13

shut-out wins 184 kills by senior Judy Fan49

digs by senior Emily Jiang

49

blocks by senior Melanie English

PHOTO BY WENLING DONGSenior Melanie English goes up for the ball. She ended her season with 183 kills.

to an altogether impressive season and capped the high school careers of seven Rocket players. Jiang speaks for all of the seniors when she proudly exclaims that, while the dream of winning states went unfulfilled, “it’s been a fun, exhausting, and memorable four years.”